Cavanaugh Mound

Warm, muggy evenings in the Cavanaugh area of Fort Smith created the perfect setting for stirring up the imagination of a group of little girls. The Cavanaugh Mound area was about a mile from our neighborhood and we use to imagine we could hear beating drums and the chants of Indians while we played. We would listen so carefully, and then suddenly one of us would start screaming, which would lead to the rest of us screaming and imagining the sounds were nearing our street. Of course, there were never Indians there in our life time. We were just a group of little girls who had watched one too many John Wayne movies! As an adult, I still stare in awe of the mounds when we pass by, which have now deteriorated in Cavanaugh. I was happy to read the news today that the area is being taken over by an archaeological company to study the preservation of the site.