Utiangue

Utiangue lay in the Arkansas river country at a rocky crossing, where fertile valleys and wooded bluffs supported farming towns. Maize, beans and squash formed the core of the food supply, supplemented by fish, game and gathered plants. Rivers linked the settlements, and paths joined the valley with the neighbouring plains and forest districts. Utiangue was the name of a late Mississippian region and its principal village. As Hernando de Soto's expedition approached in 1541, the inhabitants withdrew, and the Spaniards occupied the village through the winter of 1541 to 1542. Their brief descriptions give only a partial view of the communities along the river.