Mississippi’s Moundbuilders
Construction of mounds by Native Americans began around 6000 years ago in what we now call the Middle Archaic Period. Little is known about the use or purpose of these earlier mounds. More is known about the mounds constructed later, during the Woodland Period (3000 – 1000 years ago) and the Mississippi Period (1500 – 1000 years ago). During this time period the early Native Americans experienced a shift from being nomadic hunter/gatherers to settling down in one location and farming to provide for the majority of their food and sustenance. The geology of the area allowed these Indians to ban together into larger villages or small towns, leading to more permanent structures such as the mounds you see here and in other parts of the state.
As the local geology was able to support larger villages and even small towns of Indians, religion and politics began to take on even more importance. Mounds were built and used for burial purposes and as temples or residences for important political and religious figures. As these religious and political figures grew in importance and power, additional villages would spring up nearby, and these mounded villages and towns became important commercial centers for trade and exchange of goods and ideas. This tradition was still in use when the first Spanish and French explorers made contact with the natives in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Pocahontas Mounds
The Pocahontas site is located on a ridge that separates the Pearl River, which flows into the Gulf of Mexico, from the Big Black River, which flows into the Mississippi River. Two large streams, Bogue Chitto Creek and Limekiln Creek provide water for people and crops, as well as access to the nearby Big Black River. Periodic flooding of the river and creeks produced the rich, fertile soil necessary for the growing of crops to support the increased population of the area. The Pocahontas mounds were built and used between A.D. 1000 and 1300, and consist of a large Platform mound as seen at the rest stop and a smaller, 10 foot Conical mound located across the highway on private land. The conical mound was used as a burial mound, while the platform mound supported a thatched, mud plastered ritual temple or chief’s lodging. Together, these mounds served as the ceremonial and political seat of the local Plaquemine culture of Native Americans.
Construction of the Village and Mounds
Even though the site is located on a ridge, it was not perfect for the location of a village or small town. Just as modern man now alters the landscape to suit his needs, so too did the early Native Americans. Extensive soil testing shows that the Indians built up the area for their village and the mounds by filling in low areas between two minor ridges. The Mississippi Indians filled in the low lying areas and built the mounds by removing soil from what we now call “Borrow Pits” and dumping it, one basket at a time, at the construction site. Baskets of soil could weigh 60 lbs or more, and the work was backbreaking as well as slow. Evidence of two borrow pits are located nearby in the park, one to the north and another to the west. It is estimated that it took 2000 – 3000 cubic yards of earth just to fill the low areas and build the village, and much more to construct the platform mound itself.
Just north of the platform mound is evidence of another type of mound, called a “Midden” mound. The midden, or “trash” mound is nothing more than a concentrated accumulation of broken tools, burned foodstuff, and broken utensils from the local village, in other words the town dump. The midden is very important to archeologists, because it provides evidence of what tools the Indians used, what they ate, even what they used as trade goods. As an example, the midden at Pocahontas provided evidence that a particular fresh-water mussel, once thought to be confined to the Ouachita and Ozark uplands of Arkansas and neighboring states, was also abundant in this area. Another type of midden, “Sheet Midden”, is also found here. Sheet midden is a thin layer of trash, and is the result of a widespread distribution of trash, such as what fell inside and between houses and was quickly covered up.
Claiming Credit for the Cache Find
To claim credit for the cache find, you must do the following:
1. While photos are not required, if possible, please take a photo of yourself and/or your group with the platform mound visible in the background. We love seeing your photos!
Then, e-mail me with your answers to the following questions:
A. What is the height of the platform mound? Give me your estimate.
B. One of the exhibits shows a photo of a greenstone ax head that was recovered from the burial mound here. Greenstone is not natural to this area, so how did it get here?
C. How much earth did it require to build the platform mound?
D. What is the name of the freshwater mussel, once thought to be confined to the Ouachita and Ozark uplands, that was found here?
E. In your own words, give one example of how the local geology enabled these mounds to be built.
Logs without the required documentation will be deleted as per earthcache rules. I hope you enjoy your break here, and encourage you to look for the nearby regular cache.
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