National Historic Landmark - Indiana has its first National Historic Landmark (NHL) archaeological district. On Jan. 13, the Secretary of the Interior designated the Fort Ouiatenon Archaeological District in Tippecanoe County as an NHL. More than 2,600 NHLs can be found in the U.S. today and come in many forms: historic buildings, sites, structures, objects, and districts. Each represents an outstanding aspect of American history and culture.
The district includes the site of Fort Ouiatenon as well as other archaeological sites. Fort Ouiatenon was one link in the great chain of fortified trading posts that once stretched across the Old Northwest. The French first came to this place on the Wabash in 1717 to secure their trade with the local Wea (Ouiatenon) Indians. The district is important for its association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad national patterns of United States history. The Fort Ouiatenon archaeological site itself has yielded information of major scientific importance and has the potential to yield additional research data affecting theories, concepts and ideas regarding the development of this nation. The district boundary conforms to the land parcels owned and operated as an archaeological preserve (Ouiatenon Preserve) by the Tippecanoe County Historical Association of Lafayette, IN, and The Archaeological Conservancy, a national not-for-profit organization based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
DHPA was pleased to present the Tippecanoe County Historical Association, The Archaeological Conservancy and the Roy Whistler Foundation with the Indiana Archaeology Award for 2018.
State Archaeologist Amy Johnson is pictured with representatives from the Tippecanoe County Historical Association, the Roy Whistler Foundation and The Archaeological Conservancy.
Archaeology Site of the Month - In honor of the 25th anniversary of a statewide celebration of archaeology, we are highlighting the 25th recorded archaeological site for each county in Indiana! This focus will span all 92 counties. Archaeological sites are each given a unique, sequential identification number as they are recorded. This helps archaeologists keep track of the artifacts that come from the site and differentiates it from other sites in the area. The numbering system tells archaeologists what state and county a site comes from, and what the specific number in that county belongs to the site. For example, Angel Mounds is archaeological site 12-Vg-1, meaning it is from Vanderburgh County (Vg), Indiana (12), and is the first documented site in that county (1). In this newsletter, we will be highlighting the 25th site from Miami through Ohio County.
Miami 12-Mi-25: This small lithic scatter was recorded in 1980 and consisted of 22 flakes and three chert chunks.
Monroe 12-Mo-25: This appears to be a collector reported site that yielded at least 25 projectile points, one notched knife, and probably many more artifacts in the past.
Montgomery 12-My-25: This is a possible Native American mound location that has never been verified by professional archaeologists.
Morgan 12-Mg-25: 12-Mg-25 is another site that we know about because it was reported to archaeologists by an artifact collector. Unfortunately, the site form does not include what types of artifacts were reported at the site, so little is known about it at this time.
Newton 12-N-25: This site was identified by DHPA staff during the draw-down of J.C. Murphey Lake in 2003. Typically, the site would be under water, but archaeologists took advantage of the rare opportunity to survey the area while water levels were low. 12-N-25 consisted of a small lithic scatter that included a possible Brewerton point, potentially dating the site to the Late Archaic.
Noble 12-No-25: This is a possible historic-era dump site documented during a survey by Ball State University in 1985. The site yielded a high number of glass, crockery, and china artifacts and a small number of metal and brick artifacts. Due to the small number of architectural artifacts, the site was interpreted as being a dump area rather than a former structure.
Ohio 12-O-25: 12-O-25 is a stone mound site that was originally recorded by Glenn A. Black in 1933. The site originally had the site number 12-O-5, but this was changed over the years. Sadly, the site is noted as being “destroyed by digging”, meaning there is probably little left of the resource.
Indiana Archaeology Council - Two Archaeology Team members are serving in roles with the Indiana Archaeology Council. State Archaeologist Amy Johnson and Research Archaeologist Rachel Sharkey are both members of the Board of Directors, and both are on the Indiana Comprehensive Archaeological Context Committee. In addition, Rachel is secretary of the council and is a member of several other committees. To learn more about the organization, go to indianaarchaeology.org.
Outreach-
* State Archaeologist Amy Johnson and Research Archaeologist Rachel Sharkey will participate in a guest lecture on March 3 for Dr. Rob Mann’s (Department of Anthropology, St. Cloud State University) graduate seminar titled “Technical Writing in Anthropology.” They will be part of the Zoom class segment which will be on the topic of writing high quality cultural resource management reports- the view from State Archaeologist offices.
* Archaeologist Rachel Sharkey gave a virtual talk, “Archaeology for Your Community”, for the Johnson County Public Library, Whiteland Branch on Feb. 3.
This information is distributed via email by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology (DHPA). This is meant to provide information on current archaeological topics and issues in which the DHPA is involved. An archive of past Archaeology News issues is available. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact our office at 317-232-1646.
Mission Statement: The Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology promotes the conservation of Indiana’s cultural resources through public education efforts, financial incentives including several grant and tax credit programs, and the administration of state and federally mandated legislation.
Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology, 402 W. Washington St., Room W274, Indianapolis, IN 46204. www.IN.gov/dnr/historic, www.facebook.com/INdhpa
Indiana Archaeology Month (September) webpage - http://www.in.gov/dnr/historic/3674.htm
#INArchaeoMonth
Find the Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology on Facebook.
Compiled by Amy Johnson, State Archaeologist, Archaeology Outreach Coordinator, and Team Leader for Archaeology (March 2021). Text also provided by Rachel Sharkey. #ArchaeoNewsIN
