Near Bismarck in Burleigh County, North Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Ditch 3

Double Ditch State Historic Site

Photographed by Connor Olson, November 2, 2019

1. Ditch 3 Marker

Inscription. Ditch 3 is more recent than Ditch 4 and was constructed in the AD 1500s. Ditch 3, with only a few bastions, encompasses 15 acres and, like Ditch 4, is not visible on the surface. It reflects a fallback to a slightly smaller community and simpler ditch system. The few, small bastions along Ditch 3 are adjacent to the larger bastions along Ditch 4, indicating a close conceptual linkage between these concentric fortification systems. By the late AD 1500s Ditches 3 and 4 were both abandoned, and several earthen mounds were created over these ditches.

The outer two ditches are detectable only through magnetic data, being invisible at the surface. Trenches across these ditches showed their upper parts to have been obliterated. Similarly, only the lower parts of deep storage features remain in residential areas that once existed inside these ditches. Activities of later residents obliterated these older features. When the community contracted, gardening may have occurred in the old village area.

Photo captions:
Lower left: Older overlapping pits on site periphery. Only the lower remnants of storage pits remain.
Lower middle: A magnetic survey map of the entire village
Lower right: Ditch 3 section at a bastion near Mound B

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State Historical Society of North Dakota.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Indigenous Peoples and Communities. A significant historical year for this entry is 1500.

Location. 46° 56.097′ N, 100° 53.825′ W. Marker is near Bismarck, North Dakota, in Burleigh County. It can be reached from State Highway 1804 1.1 miles south of Double Ditch Loop, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Bismarck ND 58503, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on North Dakota’s Missouri Plateau.

It is also in the American Lewis & Clark Corridor,

on the prairies,

and on the Northern Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Midden Mounds (Trash Heaps) (within shouting distance of this marker); Double Ditch State Historic Site (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Founding Community AD 1490-1550 (about 300 feet away); Early Maps Illustrating Double Ditch (about 400 feet away); Ditch 2 (about 400 feet away); Geophysical Prospecting in Archaeology (about 400 feet away); a different marker also named Geophysical Prospecting in Archaeology (about 400 feet away); Final Occupation of Double Ditch (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bismarck.

Also see . . . Double Ditch State Historic Site. (Submitted on August 14, 2020, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.)

Credits. This page was last revised on August 15, 2020. It was originally submitted on August 14, 2020, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 205 times since then and 4 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on August 14, 2020, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. • Mark Hilton was the editor who published this page.

Editor’s want-list for this marker. A wide shot of the marker and its surroundings. • • Can you help?