Aside from that, there was only intermittent human use of the site for 2, years, until Euroamericans settled in the area in the s. After hearing a few reports of this ancient settlement, archaeologists began systematically recording the site and collecting some of its countless artifacts.
In , the federal government designated it a National Historic Landmark, one of the highest honors for an archaeological site in the U.
There are only three other archaeological sites in the U. The communities and state parks surrounding Poverty Point World Heritage Site are filled with outdoor adventures, activities, history, great restaurants and more. Check out places to eat, play and stay in nearby areas. Skip to content. Close Video. Get Directions. Advocates for Poverty Point. Start Planning Your Trip The communities and state parks surrounding Poverty Point World Heritage Site are filled with outdoor adventures, activities, history, great restaurants and more.
Need help planning your visit? Find Nearby Places to Stay. Find Nearby Attractions. A hunter-gatherer society built Poverty Point, a massive network of artificially created ridges and mounds surrounding a plaza. Archeologists, including those at the on-site archeological laboratory at Poverty Point, continue to attempt to discover information about the society and the reason for the construction of the mound complex.
Strategically located away from frequently flooded areas, Poverty Point is in the Lower Mississippi Valley. Here, the peoples of Poverty Point created not only the massive earthworks, but also an extensive trade network that stretched outwards for almost a thousand miles.
Relatively little is known about the Poverty Point society. Objects like clay cooking balls, spear points, and fishing tools found at the site give us some idea as to how the mound builders ate and lived.
Because of the quality, diversity, and quantity of jewelry and other objects found at Poverty Point, some speculate that it may have been a capital for an entire ancient culture. The size of the complex and the number of objects are not what make Poverty Point remarkable, though. While research about the society that built Poverty Point continues, it is clear that those who moved the earth, basket by basket, were not sedentary peoples; it is unusual that a mobile society of hunter-gatherers could build the complex system of mounds at Poverty Point.
The hunter-gatherer group that constructed Poverty Point was always on the move, looking for plants and animals. Not cultivating crops for support in between hunts, hunter-gatherer groups had to move frequently to access new food sources; that a pre-agricultural society could perform such a building feat is remarkable. The construction of Poverty Point would have required work and residence in a fixed location.
Given this, archeologists and anthropologists today continue to be puzzled over how such a loosely connected and constantly moving group of people could come together to fashion the complicated, planned mound complex at Poverty Point. How long did they stay? How did they support themselves while building the mounds? Some of these questions have answers while others do not, as Poverty Point continues to be a mystery. Visitors can explore one of the most important mound complexes in North America, learn what is known, and ponder the mysteries and still unanswered questions about the site and the lives of the people responsible for Poverty Point.
In addition to guided tours, including a tram tour, the park offers visitors self-guided tours, a museum, and picnic areas. Explore This Park.
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