Troyville culture facts for kids
The Troyville culture was an ancient group of people who lived in parts of Louisiana and Arkansas. They lived in the lower Mississippi River valley, which is in the Southeastern Woodlands of North America. This culture existed from about 400 CE to 700 CE, during a time known as the Late Woodland period.
The Troyville people lived at the same time as the Coastal Troyville and Baytown cultures. All these groups developed from the earlier Marksville culture. After the Troyville culture, the Coles Creek culture came next. While the Baytown people spread out their homes, the Troyville people kept building large centers made of earth, known as earthworks.
What Did Troyville People Eat?
The people of the Troyville and Coles Creek cultures mostly ate wild plants they gathered. They also grew some local plants. Corn, or maize, was not a very important food for them. Instead, they ate more acorns, persimmons, palmetto, and a type of grass called maygrass. Squash was also an important food.
They also grew tobacco. For protein, they hunted deer and smaller animals. Because there was so much food available in their region, they did not rely on corn as a main food until much later, around the 1200s CE.
Important Troyville Culture Sites
Many places where the Troyville culture lived have been found. These sites often have large earth mounds. Here are some of the most well-known sites:
| Site Name | Image | What is This Site? |
|---|---|---|
| DePrato Mounds | This site has several mounds in Concordia Parish, Louisiana. Scientists used carbon dating and pottery styles to figure out it was used around 600 CE. This was during the Troyville and Coles Creek periods. | |
| Greenhouse site |  |
This is a site with many mounds in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana. It was used during the Troyville-Coles Creek Period. |
| Marsden Mounds | This site has multiple mounds in Richland Parish, Louisiana, near Delhi, Louisiana. It was used by the older Poverty Point culture around 1500 BCE. It was also used by the Troyville-Coles Creek people from 400 to 1200 CE. | |
| Peck Mounds |  |
This site has several mounds. It was used in the late Troyville and early Coles Creek periods. It is located in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana. |
| Troyville Earthworks |  |
This is a very large site with many mounds. People lived here from about 100 BCE to 700 CE. It once had the tallest mound in Louisiana, which was about 82 feet (25 meters) high. It is in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, in the town of Jonesville. This site is so important that the Troyville culture is named after it. |
| Venable Mound | This site has a single mound. It was used during the Troyville, Coles Creek, and Plaquemine periods. It is located in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana. |
