Clarence Hungerford Webb

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Clarence H. Webb (25 August 1902 – 18 January 1999)

Caddoan culture, and at a number of major sites such as Poverty Point, John Pearce (just N. of U.S. Hwy 171, a short distance E. of the De Soto and Caddo Parish line ; see link http://laexhibitmuseum.org/native-american-collections/archeology/#sidewidgetarea). [where?], Gahagan, and Belcher Mound.[2]

Background

Webb was born August 25, 1902, to Frederick and Annie Lou Hungerford Webb in

DeSoto and Caddo Parishes. This led to a deep appreciation for the land and for hard work. In 1919 he graduated valedictorian from Shreveport High. In 1923 he received his undergraduate degree from Tulane University and then a medical degree in 1925.[3] He participated in sports and was a member of Beta Theta Pi, the Nu Sigma Nu medical honor fraternity, and the Alpha Omega Alpha and Stars and Bars honor societies.[4]
Webb married Dorothy Dodd, daughter of Reverend Monroe E. Dodd, pastor of First Baptist Church, in 1926. They had two sons, Clarence, Jr. and Elmon Dodd.

Career

Webb practiced medicine in Texas, Minnesota, and Illinois from 1929 until 1931 when he received his Master's in Pediatrics from the University of Chicago. After receiving his Master's, Webb moved his family back to Shreveport and opened the first Well Baby clinic, in the Shreveport Public Health Department, with a friend. This clinic served the area for fifty years and Webb remained there until his retirement in 1976. He held teaching positions at four universities and served on the staff at six hospitals. By 1940, he was a charter member of the Society for American Archaeology and joined the Texas Archaeological Society where he attended annual meetings and participated in paper presentations.[5]

Archaeology

Webb's interest in archaeology did not occur until 1934 when he accompanied his sons on a Boy Scout trip near

Kenneth Orr. Webb also met Alex Krieger on an excavation in Texas and the two collaborated on a number of projects over their careers. Later in the 1930s Webb began to conduct his own excavations, with field most notably at Poverty Point and the Gahagan Mounds. He conducted projects regularly over the next thirty years. During his work at Poverty Point, Webb created an extensive and well documented surface collection from the site.[6]
Clarence Webb died January 18, 1991, in Shreveport, Louisiana, at eighty-nine years of age.

Key excavations

Webb did extensive archaeological work in

Paleoindian San Patrice John Pearce[where?] site.[7]

• Poverty Point

zoomorphic locust beads at the site that were made from carved and polished stone, usually red jasper. The beads resembled grasshoppers and cyclical cicadas. He proposed that the beads involved an element of magic that spread across the southern states in multicultural contexts.[7] He argued there was no evidence for cultural unity among the sites where the zoomorphic beads appeared.[6]

• Belcher Mound

Because he lived in

Caddoan culture, people who were primarily farmers, but also fished, hunted, and gathered. They built mounds which were used for ceremonies and contained burials. He noted major changes in house types, construction and usage, pottery, burial customs, some of the tools, ornamentation, and ceremonial tools and customs. They may have hunted using the bow and arrow with small stone points, used small triangular scrapers to scrape hides, and bone tools and ornaments were preferred over shell.[8] Burials were found with ornaments that suggested hereditary social ranking.[9]
The center of
Mississippi Valley
tribes of eastern and southern Louisiana for many centuries.

Other excavations

Other than

Archaic cultures in the Southeastern United States.[10] Webb conducted excavations at the John Pearce site with Joel Shiner and Wayne Roberts, which further defined the lithic assemblages found at this San Patrice culture site. It is still to be determined whether or not these points represent separate Clovis and San Patrice components. Webb further defined the San Patrice assemblages as a socio-cultural unit that was similar to Plains Paleoindian, but transitional to Early Archaic.[11]

Awards and contributions

Webb received numerous awards during his archaeological and medical careers:

Webb made many contributions to many different societies and charities. He organized the first

Louisiana State University Medical School created an award, in his name, for the Outstanding Clinical Instructor of the Year.[4]

Selected publications

Conclusion

When the Louisiana state archaeological society was reactivated in 1970, Webb was chosen as its first president because of his previous contributions to the archaeological societies of Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Mississippi. In 1974 in Louisiana, an office for State Archaeologist was established and Webb was the first to be asked to serve on its Archaeological Survey and Antiquities Commission. He served as chairman until his death in 1991.

References

  1. ^ "Clarence Hungerford Webb 1902-1999" (PDF). cambridge.org. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Library Home". Retrieved 2011-04-21.
  3. ^ a b Gibson, Jon L. “Archaeological Bibliography of Clarence Hungerford Webb, 1939-1979.” Caddoan and Poverty Point archaeology: Essays in Honor of Clarence Hungerford Webb (Louisiana Archaeology 6:51-60, 1980).
  4. ^ a b c d Haag, William G. “Obituary: Clarence Hungerford Webb.” American Antiquity,Vol. 57, No. 3 (Jul. 1992), pg. 393-96.
  5. ^ Louisiana Archaeological Survey and Antiques Commission. The Caddo Indiansof Louisiana. Department of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism. Ed. 2 (1990).
  6. ^ a b Webb, Clarence H. “Evidences of Pre-Pottery Cultures in Louisiana.” AmericanAntiquity, Vol. 13, No. 3 (Jan. 1948), pg. 227-232.
  7. ^ a b Webb, Clarence H. “Archaic and Poverty Point Zoomorphic Locust Beads.” American Antiquity, Vol. 36, No. 1 (Jan. 1971), pg. 105-114.
  8. ^ a b Webb, Clarence H. “The Belcher Mound: A Stratified Caddoan Site in CaddoParish, Louisiana.” Memoirs of the Study for Archaeology, Vol. 16 (1959), pg.1-212.
  9. ^ Webb, Clarence H. “The Caddo Indians of Louisiana.” Louisiana Archaeological Survey and Antiques Commission, Department of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism. Ed. 2 (1990).
  10. ^ "Tejas > Caddo Ancestors > Those Who Came First".
  11. ^ Rees, Mark A. “Paleoindian and Early Archaic.” Archaeology of Louisiana, Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. December 2010. Pg. 49 and 59.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Clarence_Hungerford_Webb&oldid=1207270256"