Shreveport and Bossier have a wonderful story to tell, as rich and colorful as any city in the United States. Much of this history will be found throughout this book, so consider this chapter a brief overview that will be expanded as you continue to read. But to establish the framework for the narrative, we should really start at the very beginning: the prehistoric past. This area shows signs of a human presence for thousands of years, with some of the oldest mounding sites in North America functioning as both archeological treasure troves and tourist destinations.
The Caddo Indians also called this area home, building on the lives and customs of their predecessors, the Coles Creek people. An expedition led by Hernando de Soto briefly had contact with the Caddo in 1541, which proved quite lethal to the Caddo, who lacked the ability to offer a proper defense. It would take more than one hundred years before “official” first contact would be established. But the ways of the Caddo, their stories of Coyote—one of the first men on earth—and their land soon would be silenced by a new European-American presence, ultimately leading the few remaining Caddo Indians to migrate to modern-day Oklahoma, with their current settlement located near the city of Binger. The traditional Turkey Dance has become the primary symbol of Caddo identity and one of their only remaining rituals.
French traders and Spanish explorers spent time in this area, even after the Louisiana Purchase made the region part of the United States. But it would be the efforts of Captain Henry Shreve that would lead to the founding of a port town bearing his name. Brothels and bars made the settlement both notorious and popular, as did the agriculture and wildlife. With the onset of the Civil War, Shreveport grew in its importance to the Confederacy, eventually becoming its last capital, finally yielding to Union forces at the end of the war.
Reconstruction brought a renewed sense of growth and introduction of new technologies, such as the railroad, which allowed Shreveport to be connected to the rest of the country as never before. While the railroad led to the demise of the paddlewheel boats, it allowed for the exporting of cotton and other goods around the world. The turn of the century continued to nurture the idea of progress, with the finding of oil and the establishment of Barksdale Air Force Base serving as major manifestations of a realized future. While the “oil bust” in the 1980s led to economic stagnation, the idea of a brighter tomorrow never died, which is something you will definitely experience when you come to visit.