Category Archives: Bois D’Arc (Maclura Pomifera)

JTAH Volume 8, Article 4: Unexpected Bois d’Arc at the Redwine House Site

by Alan Skinner, Cody Davis, and Kathryn Crater Gershtein

Greetings! The Journal of Texas Archeology and History is pleased to announce publication of an excellent article by S. Alan Skinner, Cody S. Davis, and Kathryn Crater Gershtein entitled “Unexpected Bois d’Arc at the Redwine House Site.” In advance of a water pipeline installation project for North Texas Municipal Water District in Collin County, AR Consultants, Inc. encountered and excavated the collapsed remains of the Redwine House, a 4-room plank frame house built in 1870 and occupied continuously until the 1960s. Documentation of this house extends the North Texas Plank Frame style back in time by at least a decade. The investigations also revealed that half-notched bois d’arc logs had been used as foundation beams, joined using bois d’arc wood pegs. Incorporating archeological field data, analysis of artifacts and features, and historic research, the authors thoroughly explore the Redwine House’s construction style and additions over time, and the property’s history of occupation. We hope you enjoy reading this interesting piece of research. To access the full-color digital article simply click here for the link to where you may read, download, and print.

Evidence for a Long-Distance Trade in Bois d’Arc Bows in 16 th Century Texas ( Maclura pomifera , Moraceae)

Volume 1 (2014) – Article 3

Evidence for a Long-Distance Trade in Bois d’Arc Bows in 16 th Century Texas ( Maclura pomifera , Moraceae)

By: Leslie L. Bush

ABSTRACT
A piece of wood charcoal identified as bois d’arc (Maclura pomifera) was recovered from the Janee site (41MN33) in Menard County, Texas. The specimen has been directly dated to 400 ± 30 B.P., a period when no naturally-occurring bois d’arc stands are believed to have been present within 400 miles of the site. Bois d’arc ecology, economic uses of bois d’arc wood, and historical accounts of bois d’arc trade indicate the specimen is best interpreted as part of a trade item related to Caddo bow-making traditions in Northeast Texas and adjacent areas of other states.