Highbank Park Works
Encyclopedia
The Highbank Park Works is a complex of earthworks
and a potential archaeological site
located within Highbanks Metro Park in the central part of the U.S. state
of Ohio
. The park is in southernmost Delaware County
on the east bank of the Olentangy River
. The site is a semi-elliptical embankment, consisting of four sections, each 3 foot (0.9144 m) high, and bordered by a shallow ditch. It is thought to have been constructed sometime between 800 and 1300 CE by members of the Cole culture
. The earthworks have seen little disturbance since the first white settlement of the region; agriculture has never been practiced on their vicinity, and no significant excavation has ever been conducted at the site. One small excavation and field survey
, conducted in 1951, yielded a few pieces of pottery and flakes of flint
from a small midden
.
The Highbank Park Works is one of several wall-and-ditch earthworks in central Ohio. Unlike Highbank, most of these complexes are known to be the work of people of the Hopewell tradition; however, the similarity between the works of the Hopewell and Cole peoples has led archaeologists to propose that the Cole were descended from the Hopewell.
Also located in Highbank Park are two subconical Adena
era mounds. These two mounds
are known as the Highbanks Park Mound I (also known as the Muma Mound) and Highbanks Park Mound II (also known as the Orchard Mound or the Selvey Mound). The two mounds are not located within the embankment, but are about 0.5 and 1 mile away.
In 1974, the Highbank Park Works were listed on the National Register of Historic Places
because of their archaeological significance. Three other Delaware County archaeological sites are listed on the Register: the Ufferman Site
, the site of a former Cole village; the Highbanks Park Mounds, and the Adena Spruce Run Earthworks
.
Earthworks (archaeology)
In archaeology, earthwork is a general term to describe artificial changes in land level. Earthworks are often known colloquially as 'lumps and bumps'. Earthworks can themselves be archaeological features or they can show features beneath the surface...
and a potential archaeological site
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,...
located within Highbanks Metro Park in the central part of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. The park is in southernmost Delaware County
Delaware County, Ohio
Delaware County is a fast-growing suburban county in the state of Ohio, United States, within the Columbus, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the United States Census Bureau's 2004 population estimates, Delaware County's population of 142,503 made it the fastest growing county in...
on the east bank of the Olentangy River
Olentangy River
The Olentangy River is a tributary of the Scioto River in Ohio.It was originally called keenhongsheconsepung, a Delaware word literally translated as "stone for your knife stream", based on the shale found along its shores. Early settlers to the region translated this into "Whetstone River"...
. The site is a semi-elliptical embankment, consisting of four sections, each 3 foot (0.9144 m) high, and bordered by a shallow ditch. It is thought to have been constructed sometime between 800 and 1300 CE by members of the Cole culture
Cole culture
The Cole Culture is a Late Woodland Period culture of Native American people from central Ohio.Cole Culture people made flint tools and pottery. They were agrarian and cultivated beans, maize, squash, and tobacco. Cole people buried their dead in subterranean graves instead of mounds. They shared...
. The earthworks have seen little disturbance since the first white settlement of the region; agriculture has never been practiced on their vicinity, and no significant excavation has ever been conducted at the site. One small excavation and field survey
Archaeological field survey
Archaeological field survey is the method by which archaeologists search for archaeological sites and collect information about the location, distribution and organization of past human cultures across a large area...
, conducted in 1951, yielded a few pieces of pottery and flakes of flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
from a small midden
Midden
A midden, is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, vermin, shells, sherds, lithics , and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human occupation...
.
The Highbank Park Works is one of several wall-and-ditch earthworks in central Ohio. Unlike Highbank, most of these complexes are known to be the work of people of the Hopewell tradition; however, the similarity between the works of the Hopewell and Cole peoples has led archaeologists to propose that the Cole were descended from the Hopewell.
Also located in Highbank Park are two subconical Adena
Adena culture
The Adena culture was a Pre-Columbian Native American culture that existed from 1000 to 200 BC, in a time known as the early Woodland Period. The Adena culture refers to what were probably a number of related Native American societies sharing a burial complex and ceremonial system...
era mounds. These two mounds
Highbanks Metropolitan Park Mounds I and II
The Highbanks Metropolitan Park Mounds I and II are two archaeological sites located within Highbanks Metro Park in the central part of the U.S. state of Ohio. The park is in southernmost Delaware County on the east bank of the Olentangy River...
are known as the Highbanks Park Mound I (also known as the Muma Mound) and Highbanks Park Mound II (also known as the Orchard Mound or the Selvey Mound). The two mounds are not located within the embankment, but are about 0.5 and 1 mile away.
In 1974, the Highbank Park Works were listed 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...
because of their archaeological significance. Three other Delaware County archaeological sites are listed on the Register: the Ufferman Site
Ufferman Site
The Ufferman Site is an archaeological site in the central part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Located north of the city of Delaware, it occupies approximately of land near Delaware Lake on property near to the boundaries of Delaware State Park...
, the site of a former Cole village; the Highbanks Park Mounds, and the Adena Spruce Run Earthworks
Spruce Run Earthworks
The Spruce Run Earthworks is an archaeological site located in the central part of the U.S. state of Ohio, in Delaware County. It is believed to have been built by the Adena culture....
.