Sites within the Haw and Eno drainages that contain historic trade artifacts have been assigned to three phases. The Mitchum phase (c. 1620-1670) is attributed to the historic Sissipahaw occupation of the Haw River valley; the Jenrette phase (c. 1620-1680) may be associated with the Shakori tribe, visited by John Lederer in 1670, that occupied the Eno and New Hope drainages; and the Fredricks phase (1680-1710) represents the Eno River occupation of the Occaneechi following their withdrawal from the Roanoke River in 1676 (see distribution map).
Details of settlement structure for the Mitchum phase are known only for the Mitchum site (31Ch452), located on Haw River and probably occupied after 1650. Excavations indicate that it was a palisaded village, covered less than 1.5 acres, and contained sub-rectangular and probably circular wigwam-like houses approximately 20 ft in diameter (see excavated house). Storage pits, dug near houses, comprise the primary feature type. The absence of comparable sites for the Mitchum phase suggests that the seventeenth-century Sissipahaw population already may have greatly reduced by disease; however, only two burials were found within the 3500-sq-ft excavation area.
The Jenrette phase is best represented at the Jenrette site (RLA-Or231a), located along the Eno River immediately adjacent to the Fredricks site. This site was recently discovered in 1989 while searching for additional evidence of the Occaneechi occupation beyond the Fredricks site palisade, and may represent the Shakori village of "Shakor" mentioned by John Lederer in 1670. Excavation of a 5200-sq-ft area (about 12% of the site) in 1989 revealed approximately 50 pit features containing rich refuse deposits, a single shaft-and-chamber burial, and at least two structures along two overlapping palisade lines (see excavation plan and note 2). One of these structures was a rectangular wall-trench house measuring 13 ft by 18 ft; the other was an oval structure of single-post wall construction measuring 26 ft by 28 ft. A third wall-trench house, excavated in 1990, measured about 16 ft by 19 ft. These data indicate a circular, palisaded village that covered about 0.5 acres and probably had a population of about 150 people. As with the Mitchum site, no archaeological evidence of epidemic disease was found.
The Fredricks phase (1680-1710) is attributed to the Occaneechi occupation of the Eno drainage. Observations made by John Lawson in 1701 suggest that the Occaneechi lived in a single town. A site believed to be this settlement, the Fredricks site (31Or231), was excavated in its entirety between 1983 and 1986 (Dickens et al. 1987; Ward and Davis 1987b) and provides a clear picture of Occaneechi Town's community plan and probable population size (see excavation plan). The town was small compared to earlier site occupations at the Jenrette, Mitchum, and Wall sites, and covered just over 0.25 acres. The Occaneechi population here probably did not exceed 75 individuals. The settlement contained at least 11 circular or oval houses of both single-post and wall-trench construction. These houses ranged from about 15 ft to 20 ft in diameter, and were arranged in a circle around an open plaza that contained a sweat lodge. Surrounding the settlement was a palisade or fence of light construction. All but two of the 18 burials associated with Occaneechi Town were placed in straight-sided pits in at least two separate cemeteries located just outside the village palisade. Given that this settlement probably was occupied for less than a decade (based on a lack of evidence for rebuilding of houses and the palisade), the small population size and relatively high burial frequency stand in sharp contrast to earlier villages in the region. Sometime before 1710, the Occaneechi abandoned the Eno valley and shortly thereafter settled with the Saponi, Tutelo, and other weakened tribes at Fort Christanna in southeastern Virginia.
