Silver Mound Archeological District
Encyclopedia
Silver Mound is a sandstone
hill in Wisconsin
where American Indians quarried quartzite
for stone tools
. Tools made from Silver Mound's quartzite have been found as far away as Kentucky
. The oldest have been dated to around 11,000 years ago, so they provide clues about the first people in Wisconsin. Silver Mound Archeological District was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 2006.
, Jackson County, Wisconsin
. Its sandstone was laid down long ago in the Cambrian
era, like many other bluffs in the area. But in this sandstone a layer of very hard stone called silicated quartzite or orthoquartzite formed. Stone like this is fairly uncommon. With simple tools it can be broken into pieces and shaped into points through a process called knapping. And this quartzite from Silver Mound can be distinguished by technical analyses from similar orthoquartzite from other locations.
began retreating a short distance to the north, when the climate remained cool and mammoths
and mastodons
still roamed the area. To hunt them, the Paleo-Indians needed good projectile points. They also needed knives and scrapers for processing their kill. These tools could be made from the quartzite from Silver Mound, which was the largest source of orthoquartzite in the Midwest. Tools made from Hixton orthoquartzite and datable to this period have been found as far away as Mammoth Cave in Kentucky.
Later Indians continued to quarry the quartzite at Silver Mound. By 8,000 BC the mammoths and mastodons were extinct, but Archaic Indians needed points to hunt large, now-extinct bison
, elk
and deer, and some quarried orthoquartzite at Silver Mound. Later Woodland
and Oneota
peoples also used stone from Silver Mound.
In total there are about one thousand quarry pits on the mound. From the fragments left, some areas have been identified as workshops where the larger pieces of quartzite were broken up into smaller pieces suitable for working. In other workshops the smaller pieces were finished. Six rock shelters
have also been found on the bluff. Two contain rock art
.
Euro-Americans have been aware of the Indian quarries on the mound since the 1840s. It was named Silver Mound because they mistakenly believed it contained silver. Some mining was done, but no silver was found. The land around the base of the mound has been farmed for years, but much of the mound itself remains largely undisturbed. Professional archeologists first visited the mound in 1928. Gradually the remarkable age of some of the Indian quarries emerged. In 1975 Silver Mound was placed on the National Register of Historic Places
. In 2006 it was named a National Historic Landmark
, largely because of the potential information it may still hold about the earliest people in Wisconsin.
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
hill in Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
where American Indians quarried quartzite
Quartzite
Quartzite is a hard metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink...
for stone tools
Stone tool
A stone tool is, in the most general sense, any tool made either partially or entirely out of stone. Although stone tool-dependent societies and cultures still exist today, most stone tools are associated with prehistoric, particularly Stone Age cultures that have become extinct...
. Tools made from Silver Mound's quartzite have been found as far away as Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. The oldest have been dated to around 11,000 years ago, so they provide clues about the first people in Wisconsin. Silver Mound Archeological District 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 2006.
Geography and Geology
Silver Mound is in the town of HixtonHixton, Wisconsin
Hixton is a village in Jackson County, Wisconsin, United States, along the Trempealeau River. The population was 446 at the 2000 census. The village is located within the Town of Hixton.-Geography:Hixton is located at ....
, Jackson County, Wisconsin
Jackson County, Wisconsin
Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2009, the population estimate was 19,886. Its county seat is Black River Falls. Jackson County was formed from Crawford County in 1853.-Geography:According to the U.S...
. Its sandstone was laid down long ago in the Cambrian
Cambrian
The Cambrian is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, lasting from Mya ; it is succeeded by the Ordovician. Its subdivisions, and indeed its base, are somewhat in flux. The period was established by Adam Sedgwick, who named it after Cambria, the Latin name for Wales, where Britain's...
era, like many other bluffs in the area. But in this sandstone a layer of very hard stone called silicated quartzite or orthoquartzite formed. Stone like this is fairly uncommon. With simple tools it can be broken into pieces and shaped into points through a process called knapping. And this quartzite from Silver Mound can be distinguished by technical analyses from similar orthoquartzite from other locations.
Human Use
The earliest known humans at Silver Mound were Paleo-Indians, who entered the area about 9550 BC. This is not long after the last glacierWisconsinan glaciation
The Wisconsin Glacial Episode was the most recent major advance of the North American Laurentide ice sheet. Globally, this advance is known as the last glacial period. The Wisconsin glaciation extended from approximately 110,000 to 10,000 years ago, between the Eemian interglacial and the current...
began retreating a short distance to the north, when the climate remained cool and mammoths
Mammoth
A mammoth is any species of the extinct genus Mammuthus. These proboscideans are members of Elephantidae, the family of elephants and mammoths, and close relatives of modern elephants. They were often equipped with long curved tusks and, in northern species, a covering of long hair...
and mastodons
Mastodon
Mastodons were large tusked mammal species of the extinct genus Mammut which inhabited Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Central America from the Oligocene through Pleistocene, 33.9 mya to 11,000 years ago. The American mastodon is the most recent and best known species of the group...
still roamed the area. To hunt them, the Paleo-Indians needed good projectile points. They also needed knives and scrapers for processing their kill. These tools could be made from the quartzite from Silver Mound, which was the largest source of orthoquartzite in the Midwest. Tools made from Hixton orthoquartzite and datable to this period have been found as far away as Mammoth Cave in Kentucky.
Later Indians continued to quarry the quartzite at Silver Mound. By 8,000 BC the mammoths and mastodons were extinct, but Archaic Indians needed points to hunt large, now-extinct bison
Bison occidentalis
Bison occidentalis is an extinct species of bison that lived in North America during the Pleistocene. It probably evolved from Bison priscus. B. occidentalis was smaller and smaller horned than the steppe bison. Unlike any bison before it, its horns pointed upward, parallel to the plane of its face...
, elk
Elk
The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...
and deer, and some quarried orthoquartzite at Silver Mound. Later Woodland
Woodland period
The Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures was from roughly 1000 BCE to 1000 CE in the eastern part of North America. The term "Woodland Period" was introduced in the 1930s as a generic header for prehistoric sites falling between the Archaic hunter-gatherers and the...
and Oneota
Oneota
Oneota is a designation archaeologists use to refer to a cultural complex that existed in the eastern plains and Great Lakes area of what is now the United States from around AD 900 to around 1650 or 1700. The culture is believed to have transitioned into various Macro-Siouan cultures of the...
peoples also used stone from Silver Mound.
In total there are about one thousand quarry pits on the mound. From the fragments left, some areas have been identified as workshops where the larger pieces of quartzite were broken up into smaller pieces suitable for working. In other workshops the smaller pieces were finished. Six rock shelters
Rock shelter
A rock shelter is a shallow cave-like opening at the base of a bluff or cliff....
have also been found on the bluff. Two contain rock art
Rock art
Rock art is a term used in archaeology for any human-made markings made on natural stone. They can be divided into:*Petroglyphs - carvings into stone surfaces*Pictographs - rock and cave paintings...
.
Euro-Americans have been aware of the Indian quarries on the mound since the 1840s. It was named Silver Mound because they mistakenly believed it contained silver. Some mining was done, but no silver was found. The land around the base of the mound has been farmed for years, but much of the mound itself remains largely undisturbed. Professional archeologists first visited the mound in 1928. Gradually the remarkable age of some of the Indian quarries emerged. In 1975 Silver Mound was placed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. In 2006 it was named 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...
, largely because of the potential information it may still hold about the earliest people in Wisconsin.
External links
- Silver Mound - Mississippi Valley Archaeological Center gives more detail, photos and diagrams, written for the non-archeologist.