Mound Hill Archaeological Site

Last updated
Mound Hill Archeological Site
Mound Hill Archeological Site.jpg
Roadside view
USA Kentucky location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location0.5 miles (0.80 km) west of the Devil's Backbone above Stoner Creek [1]
Nearest city Winchester, Kentucky
Coordinates 38°5′49″N84°8′1″W / 38.09694°N 84.13361°W / 38.09694; -84.13361 Coordinates: 38°5′49″N84°8′1″W / 38.09694°N 84.13361°W / 38.09694; -84.13361
Area18 acres (7.3 ha)
NRHP reference No. 78001308 [2]
Added to NRHPAugust 25, 1978

Mound Hill (also known as the "Nelson Gay Mound" [2] ) is an archaeological site in the Bluegrass region of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Located north of Winchester in far northern Clark County, the site is part of a group of Indian mounds lining Stoner Creek, although by far the largest of the group. The mound has frequently attracted attention from mapmakers and other surveyors, due to its large size; [3] it was measured at 240 feet (73 m) (circumference) and 20 feet (6.1 m) (height) by an 1884 survey, which pronounced it a "romantic sight" due to its hilltop location between Stoner Creek and Pretty Run. The surveyors suggested that its linear shape with a central depression might have been the result of erosion or of the construction of multiple mounds that were later merged into one. It lies approximately 0.5 miles (0.80 km) west of the rest of the group, which occupies the summit of a narrow ridgeline known as the "Devil's Backbone." [1] Digging at these mounds, which were seemingly related to Mound Hill, produced artifacts such as pottery and a pipe, as well as numerous stone box graves. [3]

In 1978, Mound Hill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One of several Clark County archaeological sites on the Register, it was deemed to encompass an area of 18 acres (7.3 ha) for preservation purposes. It is believed to have been built by peoples of the Adena culture. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Etowah Indian Mounds</span> United States historic place

Etowah Indian Mounds (9BR1) are a 54-acre (220,000 m2) archaeological site in Bartow County, Georgia, south of Cartersville. Built and occupied in three phases, from 1000–1550 CE, the prehistoric site is located on the north shore of the Etowah River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angel Mounds</span> United States historic place

Angel Mounds State Historic Site, an expression of the Mississippian culture, is an archaeological site managed by the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites that includes more than 600 acres of land about 8 miles (13 km) southeast of present-day Evansville, in Vanderburgh and Warrick counties in Indiana. The large residential and agricultural community was constructed and inhabited from AD 1100 to AD 1450, and served as the political, cultural, and economic center of the Angel chiefdom. It extended within 120 miles (190 km) of the Ohio River valley to the Green River in present-day Kentucky. The town had as many as 1,000 inhabitants inside the walls at its peak, and included a complex of thirteen earthen mounds, hundreds of home sites, a palisade (stockade), and other structures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grave Creek Mound</span> United States historic place

The Grave Creek Mound in the Ohio River Valley in West Virginia is one of the largest conical-type burial mounds in the United States, now standing 62 feet (19 m) high and 240 feet (73 m) in diameter. The builders of the site, members of the Adena culture, moved more than 60,000 tons of dirt to create it about 250–150 BC.

Indian Mound Park, also known as Shell Mound Park or Indian Shell Mound Park, is a park and bird refuge located on the northern shore of Dauphin Island, a barrier island of Mobile County, Alabama in the United States. In addition to the many birds which visit, a wide variety of botanical species contribute to the natural offerings. The site is historically significant due to the presence of prehistoric Indian shell middens, mounds composed of discarded oyster shells. The park was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 14, 1973. It is administered by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stoner Site</span> Archaeological site in Illinois, US

The Stoner Site is a substantial archaeological site in the far eastern portion of the U.S. state of Illinois. Discovered during the Great Depression, the site has produced large numbers of artifacts from a prehistoric village that was once located there, and archaeological investigations have shown it to be one of the area's most important archaeological sites for the Allison-Lamotte culture. After more than a decade of fruitful research and predictions of potentially rich results from future work, it has been designated a historic site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kincaid Mounds State Historic Site</span> Archaeological site in Illinois, US

The Kincaid Mounds Historic Site c. 1050–1400 CE, is a Mississippian culture archaeological site located at the southern tip of present-day U.S. state of Illinois, along the Ohio River. Kincaid Mounds has been notable for both its significant role in native North American prehistory and for the central role the site has played in the development of modern archaeological techniques. The site had at least 11 substructure platform mounds, and 8 other monuments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portsmouth Earthworks</span> Archaeological site in Ohio, United States

The Portsmouth Earthworks are a large prehistoric mound complex constructed by the Native American Adena and Ohio Hopewell cultures of eastern North America. The site was one of the largest earthwork ceremonial centers constructed by the Hopewell and is located at the confluence of the Scioto and Ohio Rivers, in present-day Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Town (Franklin, Tennessee)</span>

Old Town is an archaeological site in Williamson County, Tennessee near Franklin. The site includes the remnants of a Native American village and mound complex of the Mississippian culture, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as Old Town Archaeological Site (40WM2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keiter Mound</span> Archaeological site in Ohio, United States

The Keiter Mound is a Native American mound in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Located north of the city of Wilmington, it sits on a wooded hill above the stream bottom of a small secondary creek, the Anderson Fork. About 5.5 feet (1.7 m) tall at its highest point, the mound measures 58 feet (18 m) from north to south and 65 feet (20 m) from east to west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prather Site</span>

The Prather Site (12CL4) is a Middle Mississippian culture archaeological site located in the Falls of the Ohio region in Clark County, Indiana. It was the principal ceremonial center of the Prather Complex, the northeasternmost regional variant of the Mississippian cultures. It also bordered on several Upper Mississippian cultures, including the Fort Ancient peoples of Southern Indiana, Southern Ohio and Northeastern Kentucky.

The Carlston Annis Shell Mound is a prominent archaeological site in the western part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Located along the Green River in Butler County, this shell midden has been declared a historic site because of its archaeological value.

Indian Mound Reserve is a public country park near the village of Cedarville, Ohio, United States. Named for two different earthworks within its bounds — the Williamson Mound and the Pollock Works — the park straddles Massies Creek as it flows through a small canyon.

The Ramey Mound, designated 15BH1, is an archaeological site in Bath County in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Built by people of the prehistoric Adena culture, the site has been known for more than two centuries; it was recorded in 1807 as consisting of an enclosure at least 3 feet (0.91 m) high. In 1871, another survey observed four mounds in association with the main earthwork: one was located just east of the enclosure, another directly to the west, a larger one to the southeast, and a small one to the southwest. The source of a nearby brook lies within the site and transverses the enclosure; the 1871 survey supposed that it had been dug to provide earth for the enclosure. By the time of this later survey, cultivation had reduced the earthwork to the point that it was nearly indistinguishable.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yankeetown site</span> United States historic place

The Yankeetown site (12W1) is a substantial archaeological site along the Ohio River in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Indiana. Inhabited during the prehistoric Woodland period, the site has yielded important information about Woodland-era peoples in the region, but it has been damaged by substantial erosion. Despite the damage, it has been a historic site for more than thirty years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raleigh Mound</span> Archaeological site in Ohio, United States

The Raleigh Mound (33KN32) is a Native American mound in the village of Fredericktown, Ohio, United States. Built thousands of years ago, the mound is an important archaeological site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cowan Creek Circular Enclosure</span> Earthworks complex in Ohio, United States

The Cowan Creek Circular Enclosure (33CN11) is an earthworks complex in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Named for its location near the stream known as Cowan Creek, the enclosure is an important archaeological site, and it is protected as part of a state park.

The Backusburg Mounds (15-CW-64) are an archaeological site in the Jackson Purchase region of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Located near the tiny community of Backusburg in northwestern Calloway County, the mounds are one of the region's premier archaeological sites. Since at least the early years of the twentieth century, the mounds have been well known locally, due partially to their large size; the largest mound measures 150 by 75 feet at the base. Located on a ridgeline above a fork of the Clarks River, the mound bears a peculiar shape; its size and shape have caused observers to suggest that it might actually be the remnants of a series of smaller mounds placed next to each other. As late as the 1930s, this largest mound had never been plowed; it lay in dense woodland, and among the trees growing upon it were some of considerable size. Nevertheless, the mound has not been preserved entirely without damage; various parts of the mound have been dug into at various times and have yielded numerous artifacts. Such findings are not unprecedented in the area; a field close to Backusburg has long produced skeletons, projectile points, and pottery when plowed, leading to its identification as a former village site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hidden Valley Rockshelter</span> Archaeological site in Virginia, United States

The Hidden Valley Rockshelter (44-BA-31) is a significant archaeological site located near the community of Warm Springs in Bath County, Virginia, United States. A large rockshelter located near the Jackson River, it has been occupied by humans for thousands of years, and it has been named a historic site.

The Carson Mounds,, also known as the Carson Site and Carson-Montgomery- is a large Mississippian culture archaeological site located near Clarksdale in Coahoma County, Mississippi in the Yazoo Basin. Only a few large earthen mounds are still present at Carson to this day. Archaeologists have suggested that Carson is one of the more important archaeological sites in the state of Mississippi.

References

  1. 1 2 Linney, W.M. Report on the Geological Survey of Kentucky . Frankfort: Geological Survey of Kentucky, 1884, 40-41.
  2. 1 2 3 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. 1 2 Funkhouser, W.D., and W.S. Webb. "Archaeological Survey of Kentucky". University of Kentucky Reports in Anthropology 7.5 (1950): 83-85.