Indian Mound Park - Photo courtesy Dave Scheidecker
As a way to encourage residents and visitors to learn about the rich history and prehistory of the state, and to preserve Florida’s cultural resources every March is considered Florida Archaeology Month. This year’s celebration offers plenty of things to see and do across the state.
The focus for this year’s celebration is Indian Mound sites – large hills containing soil, rock, shells, bones and other materials. They were used at one time for spiritual rituals and ceremonies.
For more information on the events or locations, visit www.flpublicarchaeology.org.
Northwest Region
Things to Do:
March 5: Public Lecture, “Civil War Earthen Fortifications in Florida: An Archaeologist’s Perspective.” Bay County Public Library, Panama City
March 27: Celebration Event: Help celebrate Florida Archaeology Month, bring the whole family out to experience hands-on activities, participate in rough sorting of artifacts, explore Destination Archaeology!, and much more. 207 East Main Street, Pensacola
Place to see:
Fort Walton Temple Mound
Built as a ceremonial and political center between 800-1400 AD, the Fort Walton Temple Mound stands 12 feet tall and measures 223 feet across its base. An estimated 200,000 basket loads of earth were used to create this earthen structure. The Indian Temple Mound Museum, located beside the mound, houses interpretative exhibits depicting 12,000 years of Native American occupation. Over 6,000 artifacts of stone, bone, clay, and shell are displayed, as well as one of the finest collections of prehistoric ceramics in the Southeastern United States. Additional exhibits include artifacts from European explorers, Civil War soldiers, and early settlers of Northwest Florida. Fort Walton Beach. (850) 833-9595 www.fwb.org/index.php/museums/577.html
North Central Region
Place to See:
Lake Jackson Mounds
The site is a large ceremonial center dating back to the Fort Walton period of Florida’s history (1200-1500 A.D.) and is composed of six earthen temple mounds. A society that could develop a site of this type is believed to have had a well-organized political system with tribal leaders residing in regional centers like the Lake Jackson site. The remains of important tribal members have been found at the site with a rich array of burial objects, including elaborate items such as copper breast plates, shell beaded necklaces, bracelets, anklets and cloaks still in place. These exotic artifacts indicate religious and trading ties with other large, pre-historic Indian ceremonial centers in the southeastern United States. Tallahassee. (850) 922-6007 www.floridastateparks.org/lakejacksonmounds/default.cfm
Northeast Region
Things to Do:
March 17 to March 20: Northeast Florida Symposium on Maritime Archaeology. St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum
March 21-22: A Walk Back in Time. Florida Agricultural Museum
Place to See:
Turtle Mound
Turtle Mound is the highest shell midden in the nation. This two-acre site contains over 35,000 cubic yards of oyster shell, extends more than six hundred feet along the Indian River shoreline, and stands about fifty feet tall. Visible for miles offshore, the mound has been used as a navigational landmark since the early days of Spanish exploration.
In 1605, Spanish explorer Alvaro Mexia visited the site, called Surruque, and reported natives launching their dugout canoes at the mound’s base. Over the years, this huge feature began to take the form of a turtle—hence its name.
Today, the National Park Service offers a fun and educational boardwalk to the top of Turtle Mound, with interpretive signs along the way. From the peak, visitors can see the great estuaries used by native people during the late-St. Johns period. The panoramic view of the Atlantic Ocean, Merritt Island, the Indian River, and Mosquito Lagoon is spectacular, and one which was surely enjoyed by the prehistoric inhabitants of the area. Titusville. www.volusia.org/history/richpast.htm
Central Region
Things to Do:
March 26: Moon Over the Mounds. Crystal River Archaeological State Park
April 23-25: Crystal River Boat Bash: Small Traditional Wooden Boat Building and Sailing, Civil War-themed event, including reenactors, traditional boating craft from the area, and educational booths. Crystal River Preserve State Park
Place to See:
Crystal River Preserve State Park
This pre-Columbian, Native American site has burial mounds, temple/platform mounds, a plaza area, and a substantial midden. The six-mound complex is one of the longest continuously occupied sites in Florida. For 1,600 years, the site served as an imposing ceremonial center for Native Americans. People traveled to the complex from great distances to bury their dead and conduct trade. It is estimated that as many as 7,500 Native Americans may have visited the complex every year. Crystal River. (352) 795-3817 www.floridastateparks.org/crystalriver/default.cfm
East Central Region
Place to See:
Jupiter Inlet Historic & Archaeological Site & Dubois Park
Dubois Park contains the remains of a village and shell midden occupied by the Jobe and their predecessors from 1,000 years ago. Jonathan Dickinson, a Quaker merchant whose family and crew were shipwrecked in 1696, is thought to have been held captive at this site. Jupiter. (561) 747-8380. www.lrhs.org
West Central Region
Place to See:
Madira Bickel Mounds
The first in Florida to be designated a State Archaeological Site, Karl and Madira Bickel donated the mound and surrounding property to the state in 1948. The flat-topped ceremonial mound is composed of sand, shell, and ephemeral footprints, some of which date back 2,000 years. Climb the mound to its top and see the many native trees and bushes. Or, cruise the sideways and byways of the serene island and view the mixture of charming historic and vinyl-sided houses. Ellenton. (941) 723-4536 www.floridastateparks.org/madirabickelmound
Southeast Region
Things to Do:
March 13: Archaeology Day. Anne Kolb Nature Center.
April 25: Passport to the Past – Talks and activities about the history and prehistory of Florida. Gumbo Limbo
Place to See:
Indian Mound Park
Located within this small park overlooking the Intracoastal waterway is a prehistoric Native American burial mound. The mound has a well-marked trail with informative signage relating to the Native American occupation of the site.
In the 1930s and 40s, many professional and amateur archaeological investigations took place here. Through these investigations, archaeologists determined that the mound was constructed around the year 1300 A.D. as a place for ceremonial burials. It is thought that the builders of the mound were ancestors of a tribe known as the Tequesta Indians.
The Tequesta built the mound by carrying baskets of sand from the beach back to this site. Before burial, the bodies of the Tequesta dead were taken to a special house and allowed to decompose. The bones were then cleaned, bundled together, and taken to the mound to be buried. The mound is about 16 feet high. A walking path winds through the park and up to the very top of the mound, allowing guests to stand where the Tequesta did nearly a thousand years ago. Pompano Beach. (954) 786-4111 www.mypompanobeach.org/history/index.html
Southwest Region
Place to See:
Mound House
Experience old Florida at Mound House, where Estero Island’s oldest standing structure sits atop an ancient Calusa Indian Mound. Through archaeology and history, 2,000 years of island life are revealed in a variety of tours and educational programs. Fort Myers Beach. (239) 765-0865. www.moundhouse.org
March 24 mark’s the 6th annual Agriculture Literacy Day. Developed by Florida Agriculture in the Classroom, Inc., a non-profit organization that educates teachers and volunteers about agriculture in order to teach students its importance, the day invites Florida agriculture industry volunteers to read in elementary schools.
By Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
