Sommerheim Park Archaeological District
Encyclopedia
The Sommerheim Park Archaeological District includes a group of six archaeological site
s west of Erie
, Pennsylvania
in the United States
. The sites are in Sommerheim Park, one of the few undeveloped areas of the Lake Erie
shoreline, in Millcreek Township
.
across a wide area of the park, including in the north where there are former farmlands and in dense woods along the park's eastern edge. The artifacts uncovered represent a wide range of archaeological culture
s. Digs at six sites have found evidence from the entire Archaic period and the Early and Middle Woodland period
. Artifacts include an especially dense concentration of Late Archaic remnants as well as a nineteenth-century dump
created after European settlement. Various stone tool
s and evidence of Late Archaic houses have been found, indicating that the area may have been occupied seasonally by a fishing and hunting people.
Although the findings have been largely limited to the tops of the area's bluffs, it is believed that the edges of the bluffs may yield evidence of prehistoric cemeteries. The district is significant because few seasonal campsites from before the Late Woodland period have been discovered along Lake Erie.
s in Sommerheim Park in 1975 led to the first recognition of the area as a possible archaeological site. Students at Erie's Gannon University
investigated the park under the leadership of a university archaeologist in the summer of that year, beginning a program of annual field schools that continued through the rest of the 1970s. These excavations yielded little evidence of disturbance at the sites; while some parts of the bluffs had been cultivated after European settlement of the area, the damage was limited to the shallow upper layers of earth that could be cultivated
with horse-drawn plows. The district's location on a lake bluff is likely to be the reason that it has survived; many similar sites likely once existed along nearby beaches and ridges, but they have likely been destroyed by the expansion of Erie and its suburbs and by quarrying
for sand and gravel.
and listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1986. No other Native American village sites northwest of Pittsburgh are listed on the Register, and the only other prehistoric site on the Register in northwestern Pennsylvania is Indian God Rock
, a petroglyph
in Venango County
.
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,...
s west of Erie
Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie is a city located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Named for the lake and the Native American tribe that resided along its southern shore, Erie is the state's fourth-largest city , with a population of 102,000...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The sites are in Sommerheim Park, one of the few undeveloped areas of the Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
shoreline, in Millcreek Township
Millcreek Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania
Millcreek Township is a township in Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 53,515 at the 2010 census. It is the largest suburb of Erie, Pennsylvania and the sixth-largest municipality in the state; larger than the cities of Altoona and Harrisburg.Millcreek Township is home to...
.
Discoveries
Excavations revealed artifactsArtifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
across a wide area of the park, including in the north where there are former farmlands and in dense woods along the park's eastern edge. The artifacts uncovered represent a wide range of archaeological culture
Archaeological culture
An archaeological culture is a recurring assemblage of artifacts from a specific time and place, which are thought to constitute the material culture remains of a particular past human society. The connection between the artifacts is based on archaeologists' understanding and interpretation and...
s. Digs at six sites have found evidence from the entire Archaic period and the Early and Middle Woodland period
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...
. Artifacts include an especially dense concentration of Late Archaic remnants as well as a nineteenth-century dump
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...
created after European settlement. Various stone tool
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...
s and evidence of Late Archaic houses have been found, indicating that the area may have been occupied seasonally by a fishing and hunting people.
Although the findings have been largely limited to the tops of the area's bluffs, it is believed that the edges of the bluffs may yield evidence of prehistoric cemeteries. The district is significant because few seasonal campsites from before the Late Woodland period have been discovered along Lake Erie.
Excavation
Local archaeologist C. Frederick Sanford's discovery of Plano pointPlano point
Plano point is a general term used by archaeologists to describe a variety of different chipped stone projectile points used by the various Plano cultures of the North American Great Plains between 9000 BC and 6000 BC....
s in Sommerheim Park in 1975 led to the first recognition of the area as a possible archaeological site. Students at Erie's Gannon University
Gannon University
Gannon University is a private, co-educational Catholic university offering associate's, bachelor's, and master's degrees, certificates and doctoral degrees and is located in Erie, Pennsylvania. Gannon University has an alumni base numbering around 31,500. Current enrollment is 4,238.Gannon's...
investigated the park under the leadership of a university archaeologist in the summer of that year, beginning a program of annual field schools that continued through the rest of the 1970s. These excavations yielded little evidence of disturbance at the sites; while some parts of the bluffs had been cultivated after European settlement of the area, the damage was limited to the shallow upper layers of earth that could be cultivated
Plough
The plough or plow is a tool used in farming for initial cultivation of soil in preparation for sowing seed or planting. It has been a basic instrument for most of recorded history, and represents one of the major advances in agriculture...
with horse-drawn plows. The district's location on a lake bluff is likely to be the reason that it has survived; many similar sites likely once existed along nearby beaches and ridges, but they have likely been destroyed by the expansion of Erie and its suburbs and by quarrying
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
for sand and gravel.
Preservation
Well-preserved Native American archaeological sites are a rarity in the Lake Erie plain and the amount of information found at the Sommerheim Park sites makes them one of the leading archaeological sites in the Erie area and the southern shoreline of Lake Erie. In recognition of their significance, the sites were designated a historic districtHistoric district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
and 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...
in 1986. No other Native American village sites northwest of Pittsburgh are listed on the Register, and the only other prehistoric site on the Register in northwestern Pennsylvania is Indian God Rock
Indian God Rock
Indian God Rock is a large boulder in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Located near the unincorporated community of Brandon, it lies along the Allegheny River in Venango County's Rockland Township. It is significant for the large petroglyph on one of its sides...
, a petroglyph
Petroglyph
Petroglyphs are pictogram and logogram images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...
in Venango County
Venango County, Pennsylvania
Venango County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 54,984. Its county seat is Franklin.-History:Venango County was created on March 12, 1800 from parts of Allegheny and Lycoming Counties...
.
See also
- List of European archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania
- List of Native American archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania
Further reading
- Kirkpatrick, M.J. Sommerheim Site — 36Er68 — An Archaic (Transitional) Situation 1975-76-77-78. Pittsburgh: Carnegie Museum of Natural HistoryCarnegie Museum of Natural HistoryCarnegie Museum of Natural History, located at 4400 Forbes Avenue in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, was founded by the Pittsburgh-based industrialist Andrew Carnegie in 1896...
, 1978. - Schooler, E.E. "Pleistocene Beach Ridges of Northwestern Pennsylvania." Pennsylvania Geologic Survey, Fourth Series, General Geology Report 68, 1978.