On the Gulf coastal plain of the southern United States, the Middle Woodland period (ca. AD 100 to 500) witnessed the widespread growth of relatively large village communities. At the largest sites, earthen and/or shell mounds dot the perimeters of circular plazas defined by arcs of midden. The impetuses toward aggregation are still poorly understood, but the establishment of grand site plans through construction of monuments by initial occupants indicates that ritual practices seem to have been paramount. This article discusses results of 23 AMS assays from an equal number of discrete contexts at the Garden Patch site, a coastal multi-mound center with accompanying circular village and plaza. The dates, which are modeled using Bayesian statistics, enable an assessment of the full chronology of mound and village construction and occupation. Two Bayesian models are formulated: a four phase model that defines the total site occupation and a two phase model that assesses the specific timing and tempo of platform mound construction. Results indicate that following an initially small and isolated settlement next to the freshwater pond (Phase I), the organized site plan was made manifest quickly during the 4th century (Phase II). Over a period of no more than a few decades, structures were built at the future locations of mounds at opposite ends of the site and the circular village was constructed and occupied. The two investigated mounds were constructed sometime over the following 50years, with the village and mound complex occupation persisting through the 6th century (Phase III). During Phase IV, another village was established de novo on the western edge of the site sometime during the 8th century. The later inhabitants seem to have entirely avoided the formerly occupied areas of the site but made use of the mounds for ceremonial purposes. This study corroborates the ritual associations of initial village aggregations in the region and the rapid creation and multi-century persistence of original site plans.