Marksville Prehistoric Indian Site
31°7′29″N 92°2′52″W / 31.12472°N 92.04778°W / 31.12472; -92.04778
Marksville Prehistoric Indian Site, also known as the Marksville site, (16 AV 1) is a Marksville culture archaeological site located 1 mile (1.6 km) southeast of Marksville in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana. The site features numerous earthworks built by the prehistoric indigenous peoples of southeastern North America.
Description
Marksville is the type site for the Marksville culture (a local variation of the Hopewell tradition) and was the first scientifically excavated site for the culture. Centuries later the Avoyel and Natchez peoples lived in the vicinity of the site until 1700.[3] Burial mounds at the site are surrounded by a horseshoe-shaped earthen embankment about 3,000 feet (910 m) long. The site is also one of the largest of the period in the southeastern United States, with large and distinctive ring features not found elsewhere. The site's importance has been known since the 1920s, when it was first formally investigated, and it is regularly the subject of further investigation. Radiometric dating of the sites features have yielded occupancy dates from 0-400 CE.[4]
Landmark and access
The archaeological site was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964.[2][5]
The site was formerly operated by the State of Louisiana as a Louisiana State Park, however, in August 2020, the ownership and operations of the site transferred to the City of Marksville. As of November 2021, the site is closed to public access.
See also
- Crooks mound
- Grand Gulf Mound
- List of Hopewell sites
- List of National Historic Landmarks in Louisiana
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- ^ a b "Marksville Prehistoric Indian Site". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on May 2, 2005. Retrieved January 4, 2008.
- ^ Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. "Marksville Indian Museum Historical Marker".
- ^ McGimsey, Chip (Summer 2003). "The Rings of Marksville". Southeastern Archaeology. 22 (1): 47–62. JSTOR 40713264.
- ^ Griffin, John W. (February 28, 1964). "National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings: Marksville" (pdf). National Park Service.
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External links
- Marksville State Historic Site - Louisiana Office of State Parks - Official Page
- Jones, Dennis (1991). Weinsten, Richard A. (ed.). "The Avoyelles Prairie Terrace : Concentrated Archaeology" (PDF). Louisiana Archaeological Society Newsletter. 18 (1). Louisiana Archaeological Society: 10–15. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 15, 2014.
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- Woodland period
- List of Hopewell sites
- Mound Builders
- List of archaeological periods (North America)
- Beam Farm
- Benham Mound
- Cary Village Site
- Cedar-Bank Works
- Dunns Pond Mound
- Ellis Mounds
- Ety Enclosure
- Ety Habitation Site
- Everett Knoll Complex
- Fort Ancient
- Fortified Hill Works
- Great Hopewell Road
- High Banks Works
- Hopeton Earthworks
- Hopewell Culture National Historical Park
- Indian Mound Cemetery
- Keiter Mound
- Marietta Earthworks
- Moorehead Circle
- Mound of Pipes
- Nettle Lake Mound Group
- Newark Earthworks
- Oak Mounds
- Orators
- Perin Village Site
- Pollock Works
- Portsmouth Earthworks
- Rocky Fork Enclosures
- Rocky Fork Mounds
- Seip Earthworks and Dill Mounds District
- Shawnee Lookout
- Shriver Circle Earthworks
- Stubbs Earthworks
- Tremper Mound and Works
- Williamson Mound Archeological District
- Goodall site
- Norton Mound group
- Crooks Mound
- Grand Gulf Mound
- Marksville Prehistoric Indian Site
- Mott Archaeological Preserve
- Lewiston Mound
- Serpent Mounds Park
- LeVescounte Mounds
Santa Rosa-Swift Creek culture
- Crystal River Archaeological State Park
- Etowah Indian Mounds
- Leake Mounds
- Kolomoki Mounds
- Miner's Creek site
- Pierce Site
- Swift Creek mound site
- Third Gulf Breeze
- Yearwood site
- Yent Mound
- Armstrong culture
- Copena culture
- Fourche Maline culture
- Laurel complex
- Saugeen complex
- Old Stone Fort (Tennessee)