In South Charleston, West Virginia is the second largest Native American burial mound in the state. The mound stands 33 feet tall and 157 feet in diameter in the center of a small park in the city. The mound was built by the Adena Culture sometime between 1000 and 200 B.C. Once a part of a more elaborate earthwork complex, the mound was excavated in 1883 by Col. P. W. Norris working for the Smithsonian Institution. Norris excavated numerous burials within the mound including the main burial chamber in which were buried 11 individuals. Today the mound is situated in a small park where visitors can see the mound and read more about it and the Adena peoples who constructed it.
The Shawnee Reservation Mound, also known as the Institute Fairgrounds Mound and the Poorhouse Mound, is a burial mound that was built by the Hopewell tribes that inhabited this area for centuries prior to the arrival of Europeans. The mound is located in Shawnee Regional Park in Dunbar, West Virginia. The Smithsonian Institution excavated the mound in 1884 and archaeologists believe that it was built by the area Hopewellian peoples about 1500 to 2000 years ago.
On the banks of Twelve Pole Creek and the Ohio River near Huntington, West Virginia, is the third-largest Adena Native American mound in the state. It is uniquely located in the middle of a local amusement park named Camden Park. The mound is believed to have been constructed by the Adena Culture which flourished in the area between 800 B.C. to A.D. 100. It has never been scientifically excavated by professional archaeologists.
In Ashland Central Park, there is a group of six prehistoric Native American burial mounds. Ranging from four to six feet tall, the mounds are arranged in a slightly curved line. They were first documented in 1932. The mounds were created by a group of prehistoric Native American people named the Adena Culture. The Adena Culture, commonly called "the mound-builders", thrived in the region from 800 B.C. to around 100 A.D. They lived in small villages, grew crops, hunted, made pottery, traded goods with other Native Americans, and built sometimes large and intricate mounds and earthworks.
The May Moore Mound is the third-largest Indian mound in West Virginia. The mound is representative of the way of life for early Native Americans who lived during an era known by scholars as the Adena Culture, a label that describes the life and culture of organized tribes who lived in this region 10,000 years ago. The mound appears to have been cut into-likely by early farmers, but is still one of the few remaining Adena mounds that has been left relatively undisturbed
Established on March 2, 1923, The Hopewell Culture National Historical Park preserves Hopewell culture and artifacts. Hopewell culture is set back to the times where pre-columbian Native Americans flourished and lived near the rivers. It was not exclusive to one tribe or society, but a culture that lasted through many generations of Native Americans. This park was created to help keep the history of Hopewell culture alive and is managed by the National Park Service.
Marietta founder Rufus Putnam wanted to protect a mound, called the Cronus, in town that had been constructed by people of the Hopewell culture. To do so, he suggested a cemetery be built around it. The cemetery became known as the Mound Cemetery starting in 1791. Many Ohio officials and Revolutionary War veterans were buried in the cemetery.
The Grave Creek Mound in Moundsville, WV is the largest Adena conical burial mound in North America. The major West Virginia landmark is currently 62 feet high and 240 feet in diameter and is estimated to contain 57,000 tons of earth. Archaeologists believe that the mound was constructed sometime during the Early Woodland period in successive stages during 250-150 B.C. The mound once had a three-story observatory and Civil War artillery on its summit. Horse races were often run around the base. Today the Grave Creek mound is owned and operated by the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History as part of the Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex. The Complex includes the Delf Norona Museum and the state's repository for West Virginia's archaeological collections.
Over 2000 years ago, the Hopewell became one of the earliest groups of Native Americans to settle in the West Michigan area. The Hopewell culture is especially prevalent in Ohio, but it extended all across the Eastern United States, including throughout Michigan. Grand Rapids holds one of the most significant sites in the remaining history of the Hopewell: the Norton Mound group. The site is a National Historic Landmark and is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Tremper Mound is one of the best-preserved examples of a Hopewell Culture (100 B.C. to 500 A.D.) burial mound. Like many other earthworks and mounds, this site is in close proximity to a river and is located on a bluff which overlooks the Scioto River. There has been debate about whether this particular mound should be considered an animal effigy mound, known as a zoomorphic geoglyph, because of its unique shape, or whether this was a burial mound because of its use and contents. Animal effigy smoking pipes account for a large portion of the recovered artifacts, giving insight into the Hopewell people by both their use and the materials used to make them. The history of the mound and the artifacts removed from it are displayed at the Ohio History Center in Columbus, Ohio.
Native Americans from thousands of years ago have left their mark in modern-day Ohio by building mounds and massive earthworks. One such mound, the Serpent Mound, was excavated by Harvard University archaeologist Frederic Ward Putnam in the late nineteenth century. Based on his work, later archaeologists attributed the effigy to the Adena culture, which flourished from circa 1000 B.C.E. to 50 C.E. This theory on the site's origin was widely accepted until 1991 when pieces of charcoal found within the Serpent Mound were radiocarbon dated to be approximately 900 years old. Going by this date, the creators of the Serpent Mound likely belonged to the Fort Ancient culture (circa 1000 C.E.-1750 C.E.). In 2014, however, new radiocarbon dating suggested that the mound was built in 300 B.C.E. and possibly renovated later. The site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places under Stubbs Earthworks.
The Alligator Mound in Granville, Ohio, received its name from the Native Americans who created it, although the exact timeline of its origin is questionable. While the mound resembles creatures such as a racoon or panther, it is thought to have been a representation of the Native American “Underwater Panther,” a powerful supernatural spirit. Multiple excavations of the site have led researches to uncertainty of the time period in which the mound was constructed, but many believe it was part of the Adena culture, being used by the Fort Ancient culture thousands of years later due to radiocarbon dating of charcoal in the area. In 1971, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and is one of only two effigy mounds in Ohio.
Located in Campbell Park on the west side of Columbus along McKinley Avenue, Shrum Mound was built by Native inhabitants two thousand years ago. The mound stands 20 feet tall with a diameter of 100 feet. According to the Ohio Department of Tourism, the mound is named for the family that donated the land. The mound is located in Campbell Park, named for James E. Campbell who was the governor of Ohio between 1890 and 1892.
Miamisburg Mound Park contains one the two largest conical-shaped mounds in eastern North America. This park is open to the public with the mound featuring 116 concrete steps that allow visitors to ascend 65 feet to the top of the structure. The mound is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Indian Mound Cemetery is located on land that was utilized as a burial ground prior to the arrival of settlers of European descent. In 1860, land adjacent to the Native American burial mound was donated by local resident David Gibson for the purpose of creating a cemetery. This area was also the site of an early Civil War skirmish as Union forces advanced on Confederate-held positions early in the war/ The cemetery includes graves of several leading political leaders including West Virginia governors and descendants of George Washington.
For more than a thousand years, Indians lived an agricultural life on the lands in present day North Carolina. About the 11th century A.D., a new cultural tradition emerged in the Pee Dee River Valley. That culture was part of a widespread tradition known as "South Appalachian Mississippian to archaeologists." Throughout Georgia, South Carolina, eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina, and the southern North Carolina, the new culture gave rise to complex societies. These people built mounds for their spiritual and political leaders. They were involved in trade, supported craft specialists, and they even celebrated a new kind of religion.
Spikebuck Town Mound and Village Site is a significant Native American and early Colonial period archaeological site located next to a recreational park. Evidence suggests that the site was occupied as early as 1550. It remained so until around 1830 when the Cherokee were forced to leave these lands. During the Colonial period, the site became a trading center where Cherokee and settlers traded goods; it was also a site along a trading route. At its peak, the mound featured a large public townhouse that served as council house and temple. At the base was a plaza which was surrounded by homes and crops were planted outside of the village. The site is managed by the Clay County Communities Revitalization Association.
Angel Mounds is the site of the largest settlement of its time in what is now known as Indiana. It was a fortified town serving as a social, political, and religious center for a much larger area of villages, hamlets, and farmsteads that ran 70 miles along the Ohio River, from the Wabash River to 35 miles east of Evansville. The town and surrounding settlements together constituted a chiefdom and were occupied from as early as A.D. 1000 to as late as A.D. 1450 by Native Americans whom archaeologists call Mississippians. The term “Mississippian” refers to an Indian culture, or way of life, which developed in the Mississippi River Valley about A.D. 800 and spread, with regional variations, across the southeastern United States to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. This culture was characteristic of many different groups who spoke a variety of languages. We have no way of knowing what language the people who lived here spoke, what they called themselves, or what they called the town they built here. The town became known as Angel Mounds because it was part of a farm owned by the Angel family for over 100 years. This region of the Ohio Valley has been occupied by a succession of people with different cultures. Paleo-Indians, big-game hunters who lived in this region as early as 12,000 years ago, were followed by Archaic hunters and gatherers around 9,000 years ago. By 1000 B.C. the succeeding Woodland peoples had begun to experiment with horticulture and to build ceremonial centers and mounds, activities which laid the foundations for the full-scale corn agriculture and permanent towns and villages of the Mississippian farmers by A.D. 1000. After the abandonment of Angel Mounds by A.D. 1400 – 1450, the population shifted downstream to the mouth of the Wabash where they built a number of large villages before leaving the area altogether by A.D. 1650. We do not know whether any living Native Americans are descendants of the people who once lived at Angel Mounds. Roving bands of Shawnee, Miami and other historic Native Americans moved into this area from the east and north and were followed by Euro-American settlers by A.D. 1800. To preserve Angel Mounds, the Indiana Historical Society bought 412 acres of the site in 1938 with money donated by Eli Lilly. In 1946, the Historical Society gave the property to the State of Indiana and in 1965 granted the excavation rights to Indiana University along with the responsibility to house the artifacts. The original purchase was augmented by Elda Clayton Patton Herts' donation of 20 acres containing an early Woodland mound. This mound lies across from the entrance to Angel Mounds State Historic Site on the north side of Pollack Avenue. From 1939 – 1942, the United States Works Progress Administration workers, under the direction of Glenn A. Black, conducted scientific excavations. In 1945, Indiana University began archaeological research at the site, work which continues to expand our understanding of the people who lived here. The Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites Corporation now protects, manages, and interprets Angel Mounds State Historic Site.
Pyramid Mound is an archaeological site in Vincennes, Indiana located along Wabash Avenue east of Highway 41. What is often thought to be a “mound,” is actually a loess, which is a naturally formed hill that was used by the natives to perform traditional ceremonies while burying their dead.
Home to several thousand Native Americans from 1000 A.D. to 1550 A.D., this 54-acre site protects six earthen mounds, a plaza, village site, borrow pits and defensive ditch. Towering over the community, the 63-foot earthen knoll was likely used as a platform for the home of the priest-chief. The site is a National Historic Landmark and visitors and includes a museum that explores Etowah's history.
The Leake Mound site is a archaeological site located by the Etowah River in Cartersville, Georgia. The site occupation lasted from approximately 300 B.C. until 650 A.D. The site has three small earthen mounds and was a important center during the woodland period. An interpretive trail allows visitors to learn about the inhabitants of the site.
Located within Santee National Wildlife Refuge, Santee Indian Mound was likely built between 1200 and 1500 A.D. and is the easternmost example of the Mississippian native culture, of which the Santee people were a subgroup. It probably served as a burial mound or temple (or perhaps both). During the American Revolutionary War, the British built a fort, named Fort Watson, atop the mound as it provided an excellent vantage point from which to monitor Lake Marion. American forces eventually captured the fort in 1781, forcing the British to eventually abandon their attempt to take hold of the South Carolina backcountry. The mound was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969. Nothing remains of the fort.
These mounds are part of a large 105-acre historical site. Visitors can view the mounds from viewing platforms, but closer observation is not available to the public. The Kincaid Mounds hold a wealth of archaeological information about the people that inhabited the area many centuries ago.
Founded in 1991, the Oakville Indian Mounds Education Center is a museum dedicated to preserving the history of the prehistoric Native Americans who inhabited the area between 1,000 B.C.-1,000 C.E.: the Middle Woodland culture and the Copena culture. They built five mounds, two of which survive today. The Middle Woodland people built the Oakville Ceremonial Mound, which is the largest mound in the state at 1.5 acres wide and 27 feet tall. It likely served as the religious and social focal point for the community at the time. The Copena mound is one of the best preserved burial mounds in the state. The Copena culture is distinguished its use of copper and galena for tools and other items. The museum features 1,000 artifacts, including numerous points, as well as exhibits on the Cherokee people—who moved into the area as Europeans began to arrive in the 17th century—and the "Black Dutch" people, mixed-race descendants of Europeans and Cherokees of the 19th century.
The Wickliffe Mounds State Historic Site represents the remains of a once flourishing village occupied by hundreds of members of the vast Mississippian society, which existed from c. 1100-1350 AD. These Native Americans created a village around a large, central plaza that included several flat-topped platforms, or mounds. The site is located on a bluff above the Ohio River, and is dominated by two large platform mounds, with at least eight smaller mounds. The site, open since 1932, now contains a museum that houses many artifacts excavated from the area, as well as replicas of their artwork. One can also walk along trails that meander around the mounds. It is on the National Register of Historic Places, and is also a Kentucky Archaeological Landmark and State Historic Site.
The Pinson Mounds State Park is a significant pre-historic Native American archaeological site located in Pinson, Tennessee. This large 400-acre site includes 17 mounds, an earthen geometric enclosure, and numerous habitation areas, that were most likely built during the Middle Woodland period (c. 1-500 A.D.). The complex is the largest group of Middle Woodland mounds in the United States. The largest one, Sauls' Mound, which rises to 72 feet, is the second highest surviving mound in the United States. The site is a National Historic Landmark and is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There is a museum at the site that is inside a replica mound and six miles of trails.
Located along the Natchez Trace Parkway is the Bear Creek Mound and Village Site, which features a large Indian mound. Ancient peoples first occupied this site around 8,000 B.C., using it as a temporary encampment to butcher animal kills. Natives began practicing agriculture at the site between 1 and 100 A.D. The land was eventually used for modern farming, which reduced the size of the mound from plowing and agricultural use. The National Park Service acquired the property in 1965. After excavating the remnants of the site, the mound was restored to its estimated original height of 8 feet.
The Cahokian Mounds of southern Illinois remind visitors of an ancient civilization and the thriving city that once existed in its place, centuries before Europeans ever "discovered" the Americas. Sadly, most Americans have not yet discovered this UNESCO World Heritage site, which showcases the "Cahokia" civilization (their real name is unknown, as they had not adopted a written system) from the 8th century through the 15th century. To understand American prehistory, however, this site is a must-see.
The Pharr Mounds site is one the largest and most important ancient Native American sites in the southeast United States. It features eight Middle Woodland mounds dating between 0-200 A.D. in a roughly 85-acre area. The National Park Service conducted excavations of four of the mounds and found numerous artifacts, cremated and non-cremated human remains, and clay platforms. Artifacts found include copper tools and objects and decorative ceramic vessels. Many of the objects, including the copper ones, were not native to the area, highlighting the site's extensive trading networks. Only three of the mounds are visible from the parking lot.
Placed on the National Register in 1972, Dickson Mounds is a significant Native American burial mound site located southeast of Lewistown, Illinois. The site consists of several mounds as well as the Dickson Mounds Museum, which was built in 1972 and is a branch of the Illinois State Museum. The mounds date from 800 CE-1250 CE and they are thought to contain around 3,000 burials. The museum features exhibits that explore the interaction between the peoples who have lived in the area and the Illinois river, from the Ice Age to the present day; the culture and life of the inhabitants of the Illinois River valley through the artifacts they left behind; and the Mississippian people who constructed the mounds.
A National Historic Landmark, Moundville is one the most historically significant ancient sites in the United States. It dates from 1000-1450 A.D. and is the second-largest site of the classic Middle Mississippian era, after Cahokia, which is located in Illinois. Moundville features well over two dozen mounds, encompassing an area of several hundred acres, about 185 of which comprise the Moundville Archaeological Park. The University of Alabama manages the site and also operates a museum here, which opened in 1939. The largest earthworks are mounds A and B, the latter being the tallest at 58 feet high. The smaller mounds were likely used for ceremonial and mortuary purposes and the larger ones possibly had the homes of upper classes on top. The museum features numerous artifacts from the site on display.
The Owl Creek Mounds are comprised of five man-made plateau mounds, which are suspected to have been built between 1100 and 1200 AD. Multiple mounds have been destroyed, but two, which are owned by the U.S. Forest Service, have been preserved and are open to the public. The largest is 17 feet high and is believed to have been used for ceremonial purposes as well as the residence of high-ranking members of the community, such as chiefs.
Constructed from 350CE to 600CE, the Kolomoki Mounds are one of the largest mound complexes from the Woodland Period. Seven mounds can be found within Kolomoki Mounds State Historic Park. The park's museum is built around an excavated mound, providing an ideal setting for learning who these people were and how they lived.
Once the site of a slave plantation, Orange Mound became one of the largest communities to be built entirely by and for African Americans after the Civil War. This self-contained and independent neighborhood once rivalled Harlem for its number of Black businesses. Orange Mound had locally-owned stores and restaurants, and a higher concentration of Black attorneys and doctors than nearly any other community in the United States. Like other almost exclusively African American neighborhoods in the era of Jim Crow, it also had its own schools, churches, and cultural institutions. For example, the W. C. Handy Theater welcomed entertainers such as B.B. King and many of the greatest blues musicians trace their training back to the band at Melrose High. Today, Orange Mound shares many challenges that are common to urban areas, but also a strong sense of identity and community.
The Toolesboro Mound Group is a group of Havana Hopewell culture earthworks. They are located on the north bank of the Iowa River near its discharge into the Mississippi River. The mouth of the Iowa River was a superb location for people skilled in hunting and the gathering of food. Some of the dead placed in the mounds were either layed in a sitting postition or creamated, while some were placed in charnel houses where the bodies would decompose, then the boides were later buried.
Nanih Waiya Mound holds great significance for the Choctaw Indians, who consider it to be the heart of their culture. It is 25 feet tall, 218 feet long, and 140 feet wide. The mound plays a central role in the Choctaw creation stories, one of which says that the mound gave birth to the Choctaw ancestors who then gave rise to the tribe. It is not known exactly when the mound was built as archaeological excavations have not taken place. However, pottery shards have been found nearby and these date from 100 B.C.-400 A.D.. Similar mounds found throughout the midwest built by the ancient Mississippian cultures date to 1000-1600 A.D., so it is possible that Nanih Waiya Mound was built during this period. The mound and the immediate surrounding area, which is a state historic site, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
Located high on a limestone bluff overlooking the Little Maquoketa River, 32 burial mounds of the Late Woodland people dating back to A D 500-1500, rest peacefully within a protective fence. Late Woodland people of the pre-historic Hopewell Culture built mounds for religious and ceremonial, burial, and elite residential purposes. It is estimated that 10,000 bushels of earth were moved into the area to construct the mounds. Some mounds are 42 feet across and others 50 feet high. The mound area features a mature forest and a segment of a native bluff top prairie. The 42-acre grave site became a state archaeological and geological preserve in 1981. Over 15 Native American tribes were consulted during its development. Information about the site is located at the parking lot and bluff top.
The Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park is located just fourteen miles east of Tallahassee. The site is home to Florida’s tallest Native American ceremonial mound (46 feet high and 300 feet across), which was built between 1100 to 1800 years ago. The site served as a ceremonial, economic, and political center to the natives in the area. The park also features a pavilion picnic area, interpretive trials, and a bronze sculpture of the mound. Guided tours are available upon request.
Lake Jackson Mounds Archaeological State Park has been a Florida State Park since 1966 and on the National Register since 1971. It is one of the most important archaeological sites related to Native American history in Florida. The area served as the ceremonial center of the Fort Walton Culture from 1000–1500 AD. The complex originally included seven earthwork mounds, a public plaza and numerous individual village residences. Two of the mounds are available for public viewing. There is a pavilion that can be used for social gatherings. Also, guided tours are available upon request. The park is also a great place for nature hikes and bird watching.
Effigy Mounds National Monument, located in Harpers Ferry, Iowa, preserves more than 200 Late Woodland Period (300-1100 CE) mounds, including 31 effigy mounds in the shapes of birds and bears. The largest is the Great Bear Mound, which is 70 feet wide (from the shoulder to the bottom of the legs), 137 feet long, and 3.5 feet high. The site also includes a visitor center with exhibits displaying artifacts and natural specimens, and 14 miles of hiking trails (see below). Effigy Mounds National Monument was established in 1949 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.
The Fort Walton Mound is a Pensacola culture earthen mound thought to have been built circa 850 C.E. According to archaeologists, the mound was used for ceremonial purposes and as the chief's residence. The mound is 12-feet-tall and 233-feet-wide and is possibly the largest mound on the Gulf Coast. It is located on the grounds of the Indian Temple Mound Museum, which features exhibits that explore the 12,000 years of natural and human history of the area.
Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1994, the Bottle Creek Indian Mounds is the second largest archaeological site in Alabama and on the Central Gulf Coast, consisting of 18 mounds (the largest one being 45 feet high). It is located several miles north of Mobile in a remote, swampy area in the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta. Given this inaccessibility, it is rarely visited and can only be reached by boat. It was inhabited by the Pensacola people—a variant of the Mississippian culture—between 1250-1550 C.E. The site was a significant social, economic, and religious center; its control of the rivers enabled it to control the trade networks in the surrounding region. Between 1991-1994, the University of Alabama conducted the first extensive excavation of the site. Among the archaeological remains they found were prehistoric and historic floors (the only ones found in the Central Gulf Coast region) and evidence of mound construction methods. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Winterville Mounds, named for a nearby community, is the site of a prehistoric ceremonial center built by a Native American civilization that thrived from about A.D. 1000 to 1450. The mounds, part of the Winterville society's religious system, were the site of sacred structures and ceremonies. Archaeological evidence indicates that the Winterville people lived away from the mound center on family farms in scattered settlement districts throughout the Yazoo-Mississippi River Delta basin. Only a few of the highest-ranking tribal officials lived at the mound center.
Built by Native Americans more than three and a half centuries ago and stretching over eight acres, Emerald Mound is the second largest in the nation. It is about 770 by 435 feet at the base and is 35 feet high. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark and is maintained by the park service.
The Pinellas Point Temple Mound is an archaeological treasure surrounded by housing developments and modern streets in southern St. Petersburg. The Temple Mound is one of the only surviving remnants of a large Native American village active during the Mississippian Era (roughly A.D. 900. To A.D. 1500). Archaeologists believe that the Temple Mound was built around A.D. 1,000 and was occupied until the arrival of Spanish explorers on the Florida coast during the 1500s. Furthermore, significant evidence shows that the mound was built by Tocobaga tribes, who inhabited the area when Spanish explorers Panfilo de Narvaez and Hernando de Soto arrived. The Pinellas Point Temple Mound is thought to have been constructed from the shells of oysters and clams. In fact, the Safety Harbor area was celebrated among Tocabaga Native Americans for its vast marine ecosystem, and every year, Tocabaga Native Americans would gather by the hundreds to feast on oysters and clams. Among all the Tocabaga Mounds, the Pinellas Point Temple Mound is thought to be the best known. One of the most famous legends regarding the mound is the story between the Spanish explorer Juan Ortiz and the Tocabaga princess Hirrihigua (also called Ucita). The story of Hirrihigua and Ortiz is known as the Florida Pocahontas.
Established in the late 1800s, this 17-acre park features six ancient burial mounds, the earliest of which date back between 1,500-2,000 years ago. These early mounds were created by the people of the Hopewell culture. As such, this site is the only distinctly Hopewell site in the state, and one of northernmost examples of this culture in the country. For centuries, Native Americans buried their dead here, including the Dakota peoples. The mounds rest on limestone rock that is 450 million years old. Originally there were at least 16 mounds at this location and 19 more nearby above what is now Carver's Cave but these have been lost to development over the years. The site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.
The 150-acre Spiro Mounds Archaeological Center includes an interpretive center and trail system connecting the twelve mounds on the site. The mounds were part of a ceremonial complex created between 600 and 1450 C.E. It became part of the larger Mississippian Culture, with trade networks and cultural influences spanning from California to the East Coast. Offering tours led by professional archaeologists, rotating exhibits, and nature and cultural trails, it is the only American Indian archaeological site in the state of Oklahoma which is open to the public [2; 4].
Not to be confused with the Indian mounds on the LSU campus, this mound has beed dated to around 1,000 AD during the Cole Creek culture period. The mound probably had sacred buildings on it and/or a platform from which the chief would address his people. A village likely surrounded the mound. During the 1800s, the mound was used as an officer cemetery for the nearby Baton Rouge Post and Arsenal. Just a few feet from the marker is another historical site commemorating the 1779 Battle of Baton Rouge, the only battle during the American Revolutionary War fought outside of the colonies.
On the Louisiana State University campus are two relatively large Indian mounds whose construction has been dated to around 6,000 years ago. These findings place the mounds among the oldest mounds in North America. Archaeological evidence indicates that the mound was built continuously versus in stages, which suggests that the ancient peoples came here to celebrate seasonal rituals and dumped earth as part of these ceremonies. No human remains have been found. In fact the only artifacts found are a few small pebbles used as tools. Currently, the mounds are in need of preservation, as they have suffered from erosion from people who walk on them before football games.
Spirit Mound holds significance as one of the few remaining locations in the Upper Missouri River area where members of the Lewis and Clark expedition—including both leaders—are known to have visited. Most of the locations the expedition visited are under water in Lewis and Clark Lake. Lewis and Clark heard about the mound from a band of Sioux Indians, who said it was a place where "little devils" with big heads lived. Upon arrival, the explorers only found animals and insects, but the view was very nice. No archaeological evidence has been found on the mound. There is an ongoing project to restore the mound to its natural prairie setting. Settlers began to arrive in the area in the late 1860s and the mound was part of cattle grazing and farmland. It wasn't until 1986 that a group formed to protect the mound. However it took until 2001 for the state to purchase the property and thereby designating it as a state park. There is a path that leads to the top of the mound. Visitors can park in a small lot on the southeast corner of the park.
Caddo Mounds State Historic Site is a prehistoric village and ceremonial center located on the original El Camino Real de Los Tejas trail, dating before European exploration. The museum exhibits approximately 200 artifacts dating from A.D. 750–A.D. 1400, including pottery, tools, and weapons. Visitors can walk the 0.7-mile self-guided interpretive trail to see the Caddo’s burial, low temple, and ceremonial mounds. An additional trail along the El Camino Real is also available.
As the name indicates, Grand Mound State Park contains the largest remaining prehistoric Indian mound in the upper Midwest. It is estimated to have been built in 200 B.C. and later occupied by Middle and Late Woodland peoples. It was declared a National Historic Landmark and is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The mound was recently deemed to be an effigy mound in the shape of a muskrat. It is 140 feet wide, 100 feet wide, and 25 feet high. There are also four smaller, mounds at the site. The site is currently closed as of early 2016 but it appears that it might open in the coming years.
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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An illustrative survey of Native American mounds across the eastern half of the United States. While we don't think many people will be able to physically take this tour, it shows the staggering geographical reach of the Woodland Indian culture and the rough footprint of the mysterious mounds they left behind. Visit the South Charleston Interpretive Center to learn more!
