Clampitt Site facts for kids

The Clampitt site (also known as 12Lr329) is an ancient archaeological site. It's found on a sandy area next to the East Fork of White River in Lawrence County, Indiana. This special place was dug up by students from Indiana University in 1991 and 1992. The Clampitt site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2016. This means it's an important historical spot. The site is on private land. It is one of thirteen National Register of Historic Places listings in Lawrence County, Indiana.

What is the Clampitt Site?

The Clampitt site is an archaeological site where people lived a very long time ago. It shows signs of different groups of people living there over thousands of years. These groups ranged from the very first people (Paleo Indian period) to later groups like those from the Oliver Phase. The Oliver Phase was part of the Terminal Woodland period, which ended around 1400 AD.

How Was the Site Discovered?

People knew about the Clampitt site for a long time. In 1924, E.Y. Guernsey, an archaeologist, wrote about finding pottery pieces (ceramic sherds) and flint (chert) on the surface. Local people also talked about finding special spear points called "fluted points" there. These points are very old and were used by early hunters.

Digging Up the Past

In 1990, Indiana University started looking into the site more closely. They named it the "Clampitt site" after the family who owned the land. In the summers of 1991 and 1992, university students had special classes (field schools) at the site. They dug up the ground carefully to learn about the people who lived there.

What Did They Find?

The excavations showed that the ancient village was quite large, about one acre. It had a central open area (a plaza) surrounded by pits. There was also evidence of fences or walls (stockades) that might have been rebuilt over time. Many holes where wooden posts once stood (post molds) were found. However, no clear house shapes could be identified.

One interesting discovery was Feature 44. This was a very large and deep post mold on the highest part of the site. It might have been part of a huge building or a special marker.

What Did People Eat?

Scientists also studied the remains of plants (floral materials) and animals (faunal materials) found at the Clampitt site. They found corn (maize), beans, wild plants, berries, and nuts. Animal remains included deer, fish, squirrels, foxes, beavers, and various birds like turkeys and ducks.

Farming and Hunting

A lot of corn was found, which suggests that people farmed at the site. They likely lived there during the planting and harvesting seasons. Maybe they moved to smaller groups in the hills during winter, or perhaps some stayed at the site all year. Even though not many animal bones were found, they showed that people hunted and fished for food.

Ancient Pottery and Tools

Over ten thousand pieces of pottery were dug up at the Clampitt site. Most of these pieces came from round pots with rough, cord-marked surfaces. The tops of the pots were often smooth. Many pots had decorations made by pressing a cord-wrapped tool into the clay. A common design was made with trailed lines, called guilloche.

Types of Pottery

About two-thirds of the pottery was similar to "Fort Ancient-like Oliver Cord-marked" pottery. This type of pottery is linked to the Oliver Phase. The rest was "Late Woodland Bowen Cord-marked" and "Bowen Collared" pottery. These pottery types help archaeologists know when people lived at the site.

Stone Tools

Archaeologists found some grinding stones, which were used to grind plants. They also found many chipped stone tools. These included spear points from different time periods. One very old point from the Paleoindian period was found. Many points from the Archaic and Woodland periods were also discovered. This shows that people kept coming back to live at the site for thousands of years.

The most common spear points were "Riverton points" from the Late Archaic period (around 1600-1000 BC). Later, "Madison" and other triangular points from the Oliver Phase (around 1250-1400 AD) were common. These triangular points were much like those found at Fort Ancient sites in the Ohio River Valley.

When Did People Live There?

Scientists used a method called radiocarbon dating to find out how old the materials were. This showed that the Oliver Phase people lived at the Clampitt site in the 1300s. Specifically, the dates range from about 1276 AD to 1433 AD. This means the Clampitt site was one of the last places where Oliver Phase people lived.