French colonial archaeology at old mobile: An introduction

Twelve years of excavation and analysis of the Old Mobile archaeological site (1MB94) are revealing the physical and social dimensions of the capital of French colonial Louisiana between 1702 and 1711. The specialized studies included in this thematic issue document the interplay of French colonists, enslaved and free Native Americans, and Hispanic trade contacts as a new colonial society developed on the northern Gulf Coast at the turn of the 18th century.