The Magnolia State Archaeological Society is offering a chance to go back in time when it hosts its annual Native American Indian artifact show at the Frank Cochran Center in Meridian this month.

The free show, which is set for Saturday Jan. 27 from 8 a.m. – 3 p.m., will allow people to see and touch ancient Indian artifacts from Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky and Louisiana as well as other parts of the country, according to Bill Breidinger, the society’s president.

  “With all of the technology that we have at or finger tips today, its hard to imagine a time when there wasn’t any cell phones, no computers and no electricity or running water,“ Breidinger said.

 The early settlers of North America had to endure harsh climates ranging from extreme heat to bone chilling cold, according to Breidinger.

  Animals provided a dual purpose for these nomadic wanderers. They were not only a food source, but their hides were used for clothing and for covering their simple shelters which were made of sticks and poles. There were no permanent settlements because ancient man had to follow the animals as they moved from place to place. 

  As centuries passed and the glaciers in the North began to thaw, ancient man began to migrate to the mid-western part of what is now the United States.  It is thought that there was an abundance of large game in this area including mammoth, mastodon, elk, moose, short faced bears and giant beavers. Soon after ancient man moved here, these large animals began to be killed off. No part of the animals were rated – even the bones were worked into weapons and tools.

 “Man, as has been his nature since the beginning of time, had to adjust and adapt”, said Breidinger. “He began to rely more and more on gathering nuts and berries to supplement his diet as well as catching fish and river mussels.” 

Small groups came together for mutual support and protection and the first small villages were formed. The people in these villages began to concentrate on the things that they could do best.  Some were hunters, some made pottery, which was used to prepare soups and broth and was also used to store food for the lean times of winter and to protect it from spoilage and insects. Others made tools and weapons. 

  As time passed they began to grow a few crops and now there was no need or desire to move. They settled in the rich, fertile river bottoms and these small villages, over time, grew into larger villages approaching town size. 

During Saturday’s Indian Artifact and Relic Show, collectors and exhibitors will both display and sell items. For more information, call 601-486-6162 or 662-562-2462.