Accokeek Creek Site
Encyclopedia
Accokeek Creek Site, also known as Moyaone, is an archaeological site
in Prince George's County, Maryland
.
According to the National Park Service
, "Occupied intermittently from about 2000 BC, this site, on a low sandy Potomac River terrace opposite Mount Vernon, is remarkable for its variety and concentration of human occupation sites. Accokeek included a palisaded village that was occupied from ca. A.D. 1300 to ca. 1630. The site has been used by archeologists to define a culture-history sequence in prehistoric archeology for the Mid-Atlantic region."
Moyaone, also names the Accokeek Creek site, is the sister site of Potomac Creek, 44ST2
and it is thought that they were settled around the same time. The site dates from the Late Archaic Period, ca. 3,000 BC, to the historic period. During the Middle Woodland Period, ca. AD 800, small horticultural villages were established. The village that appeared during the late-16th/early-17th centuries is where the reference to Moyaone is from. This village had many palisade lines and faced the Potomac. The formations of this site and Potomac Creek are similar in that the outermost system of the village is the only one to include an interior ditch or borrow pits. There are no bastions found at the Moyaone village. A maximum population for Moyaone is calculated to be 300-320 with the size of the village being 6,100 m². Archaeology has indicated numerous building periods which leads to believing these people had a long occupation at the site. Four ossuaries were found near the village and hold the remains of over 1,000 people. The village was abandoned before Contact. At the north end of the area near the Piscataway Creek there was a rectangular fort that was occupied by the Susquehannocks in 1674-75.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1964.
There are three defined types named Moyaone Plain, Moyaone Cord-Impressed, and Moyaone Incised. Moyaone Plain is undecorated. The Cord-Impressed is a simple ceramic and decoration is limited to the rim and lip. Decorations include stamped, rolled onto the vessel, or a cord that is horizontal, vertical, or diagonal to the rim. The Incised decoration is limited to the lip, rim, and upper body area. The decoration used on this type of ceramic consists of incised lines that are made with a sharp tool or a wide, dull tool.
Archaeological site
An archaeological site is a place in which evidence of past activity is preserved , and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and represents a part of the archaeological record.Beyond this, the definition and geographical extent of a 'site' can vary widely,...
in Prince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
.
According to the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
, "Occupied intermittently from about 2000 BC, this site, on a low sandy Potomac River terrace opposite Mount Vernon, is remarkable for its variety and concentration of human occupation sites. Accokeek included a palisaded village that was occupied from ca. A.D. 1300 to ca. 1630. The site has been used by archeologists to define a culture-history sequence in prehistoric archeology for the Mid-Atlantic region."
Moyaone, also names the Accokeek Creek site, is the sister site of Potomac Creek, 44ST2
Potomac Creek, 44ST2
Potomac Creek, or 44ST2, is a late Native American village located on the Potomac River in Stafford County, Virginia. It is from the Woodland Period and dates from 1300 to 1550. There is another Potomac Creek site, 44ST1 or Indian Point, which was occupied during the historic period and is where...
and it is thought that they were settled around the same time. The site dates from the Late Archaic Period, ca. 3,000 BC, to the historic period. During the Middle Woodland Period, ca. AD 800, small horticultural villages were established. The village that appeared during the late-16th/early-17th centuries is where the reference to Moyaone is from. This village had many palisade lines and faced the Potomac. The formations of this site and Potomac Creek are similar in that the outermost system of the village is the only one to include an interior ditch or borrow pits. There are no bastions found at the Moyaone village. A maximum population for Moyaone is calculated to be 300-320 with the size of the village being 6,100 m². Archaeology has indicated numerous building periods which leads to believing these people had a long occupation at the site. Four ossuaries were found near the village and hold the remains of over 1,000 people. The village was abandoned before Contact. At the north end of the area near the Piscataway Creek there was a rectangular fort that was occupied by the Susquehannocks in 1674-75.
It was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1964.
Ceramics
Moyaone ceramics are a Late Woodland ware and date from ca. AD 1300-AD 1650. They are found throughout the Western Shore Coastal Plain of Maryland. The ceramics are characterized by fine grained sand and mica temper, soft texture, compact paste, and smoothed interior and exterior surfaces. The paste is made of a fine-grained clay and has a texture that is soft, smooth, and compact. The temper is made from a fine-grained sand that has mica in it, which gives off a slight glitter appearance.There are three defined types named Moyaone Plain, Moyaone Cord-Impressed, and Moyaone Incised. Moyaone Plain is undecorated. The Cord-Impressed is a simple ceramic and decoration is limited to the rim and lip. Decorations include stamped, rolled onto the vessel, or a cord that is horizontal, vertical, or diagonal to the rim. The Incised decoration is limited to the lip, rim, and upper body area. The decoration used on this type of ceramic consists of incised lines that are made with a sharp tool or a wide, dull tool.
Significance
The site was excavated by Alice L.L. Ferguson in the 1930s-1940s and the material was analyzed by Robert L. Stephenson in the 1950s. The site served as a basis for understanding the ceramic chronology that appears in the Middle Atlantic region. The chronology that was made was the Early Woodland Marcey Creek/Accokeek/Popes Creek, Middle Woodland Mockley, Late Woodland Potomac Creek continuum. The Moyaone village represents the largest and last-occupied Piscataway village before the arrival of Europeans.Selected Publications
The Accokeek Creek Site, A Middle Atlantic Seaboard Culture Sequence. ROBERT L. STEPHENSON and ALICE L. L. FERGUSON, with sections by HENRY G. FERGUSON.(Anthropological Papers No. 20, Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan.) Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1963.External links
- Accokeek Creek Site, Prince George's County, including 1997 photo, Maryland Historical Trust