Soto Articles Archives : ArcheologyInk

The Battle Site of Mabila? A Critique of The University of West Alabama Claim

Soto ArticlesBy roxlife September 8, 2022

The famous battle site of 1540 between the armies of Hernando de Soto and Native Mabilians was fought in present-day southern Alabama. The archeological site of the battle is not known. The story of the battle is well known through writings of Spaniards who participated in the day-long conflict and is pivotal to our understanding of both the cultures of the Spanish and Natives of the 1500s. Thousands of men and women died in the battle. Their story should be told.

The Mystery of the Tabby Structure on Mobile Bay

Soto ArticlesBy Dana Whitten May 15, 2020

The Mystery of the Tabby Structure on Mobile Bay by: Caleb Curren and David Dodson (Contact Archeology Inc.) Article References and Related Works Download PDF Version Nicholas Cook, a Frenchman, came to the Bon Secour River in the late 1790s and bought property to settle in southern Baldwin County. On his property he found walls…

The Native Tome

Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy Dana Whitten November 8, 2018

The Native Tome: Another Clue to the Location of The Luna Settlement of the Holy Cross (1560) and the Soto Battle Site of Mabila (1540) in S.W. Alabama by Caleb Curren October 2018 Article References and Related Works Download PDF Version The first European contact made with the Tome (toe-may) occurred in the summer of…

A Queen’s Pearl from the Lower Alabama River?

Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy Dana Whitten November 8, 2018

A Queen’s Pearl from the Lower Alabama River? by Caleb Curren October 2018 (an update from a 2016 Archeology Ink. Journal article: Archeologyink.com) Article References and Related Works Download PDF Version A treasure trove was discovered in the current southeastern United States by a Spanish expedition led by Hernando de Soto in May of 1540. The…

Mabila: The Largest Battle Ever Fought Between Europeans and Natives on American Soil

Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy Dana Whitten March 26, 2018

Mabila: The Largest Battle Ever Fought Between Europeans and Natives on American Soil by Caleb Curren Contact Archeology Inc. March 2018 Article Download PDF Version It was October of 1540. The first large European army ever to set foot in the interior of the current United States marched into southwest Alabama. The Spanish army had…

The Battle of Chicaza: The Winter Death Camp of the Soto Army

Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy Dana Whitten November 20, 2017

The Battle of Chicaza: The Winter Death Camp of the Soto Army by Caleb Curren Contact Archeology Inc. Article References and Related Works Download PDF Version ArcheologyInk.com: an Online Journal, November 2017. The Story The Chicaza Native warriors attacked at night. The Spaniards were asleep and their sentinels, few in number, were lax in their duties.…

The Battle of Mabila: Recent Archeological Testing in the “Forks”

Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy Dana Whitten November 16, 2017

The Battle of Mabila: Recent Archeological Testing in the “Forks“ by Caleb Curren Contact Archeology Inc. November 2017 Article References and Related Works Download PDF Version Introduction The largest battle ever fought between Europeans and Native peoples happened at a small town named Mabila. A Spanish army led by Hernando de Soto fought a Native…

Pine Log, an Extraordinary Spanish/Native Contact Site

Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy roxlife June 19, 2014

The Pine Log Creek Site is unique and one of the most important Spanish Contact sites in the southeastern United States. The site was looted by pothunters in the 1980’s. Archeologists from the University of South Alabama, lead by Read Stowe, recovered many of the Native and Spanish artifacts from the site. The artifact inventory is one of…

King Site Spanish Sword

Articles, Assorted, Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy roxlife June 19, 2014

An extraordinary artifact was found in a plowed field in a late Mississippian site (the King Site) in NW Georgia. It proved to be a Spanish sword from the mid-1500’s. Local men were walking a plowed field when they noticed a piece of iron protruding from the sandy loam. Digging into the immediate area, they found a Native…

Cherokee County, Alabama | Site 1Ce308

Luna Articles, Native Articles, Soto ArticlesBy roxlife June 19, 2014

1Ce308 is a very important Native / Spanish contact site in Cherokee County in northeast Alabama. Although the site is multicomponent, the European contact portion of the site is the most intriguing. The site, located in a plowed field, was dug by collectors. Caleb Curren, Keith Little, and George Lankford contacted the collectors and made photographs of a…

Category Archives: Soto Articles