August 17, 2001 UNT Inhouse publication: UNT professor studies remains of early Texas colonists

homepage

UNT professor studies remains of early Texas colonists

Harrell Gill-King, director of UNT's Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, is working to refine what is known about early Texas colonists. He is currently involved in a Texas Historical Commission project to study the remains of three of the state's first European colonists, discovered in a shallow grave at Fort St. Louis, located in Victoria County in South Texas.

"Dr. Gill-King was chosen for this project because of his reputation as a leading forensic anthropologist and his knowledge of Texas archaeology and history," says Jim Bruseth, director of the archaeology division of the Texas Historical Commission.

Using DNA studies and X-rays of teeth, Gill-King has determined that all three bodies found at the site are those of adults and one is a female. With additional studies, he hopes to find specific reasons for the deaths of these three people. Texas Historical Commission reports indicate disease and attacks by the native population caused the demise of the settlement.

"We hope to understand more about the dietary adaptations to the New World and general health of these early settlers through a series of tests performed on teeth and bones," says Gill-King.

He also plans to compare DNA samples from their remains to samples from regional populations in France to determine which specific areas of France the colonists came from.

Fort St. Louis, founded by the French explorer La Salle in 1685, originally housed 180 colonists. By 1687, only about 20 remained, and by 1689, most of those had died.