Changing prehistoric Settlement along The middle Missouri river:

Archaeologists have proposed three alternative explanations for the expansion and shifts of sedentary villagers along the Middle Missouri during the period AD 900 to 1550: 1) intensification of exchange, 2) adjustment to climatic change, and 3) timber depletion. In addition, it is possible that these settlements do not represent an expansion, but simply a continuation from earlier Woodland settlement. I focus on the timber depletion hypothesis and analyze timber utilization around the Huff site (39MO11), one of the larger fortified villages along the Middle Missouri River. On the basis of this analysis, I conclude that prehistoric timber depletion was unlikely and that other possibilities should be examined to explain changes in settlement. The occurances of timber depletion mentioned in various historical accounts are attributable to the drastic increase in wood consumption which accompanied the establishment and use of Euroamerican posts and steamboats.