Near Bismarck in Burleigh County, North Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Midden Mounds (Trash Heaps)
Double Ditch State Historic Site
Photographed By Connor Olson, November 2, 2019
1. Midden Mounds (Trash Heaps) Marker
Inscription.
Midden Mounds (Trash Heaps). Double Ditch State Historic Site. The raised areas you see around the village are midden mounds or earthen mounds ranging from one to ten feet high. There are more than 30 mounds surrounding the village. The Mandans at Double Ditch disposed of their trash in heaps such as the one in front of you. The oldest mounds, dating to AD 1550-1650, occur directly atop Ditches 3 and 4. Excavations showed some mounds to be accumulations of household refuse-animal bones, broken pottery, and ash from hearths-carried and dumped in huge heaps. Other mounds were composed partially or entirely of fill excavated from elsewhere in the village, clearly indicating that those mounds were intentionally constructed. The mounds provide one of several kinds of evidence for large scale earthmoving.
During one phase of occupation, the village defense involved a combination of Ditch 2, which lacked bastions, and several large mounds placed as strong points just inside the ditch. Mound B was built rapidly from borrowed fill, and its construction ceased just when ditch 2 was excavated.
Photo captions: , Borrowed fill in Mound B. This fill has fewer artifacts and lacks the ash and other heavy organic concentrations found in other midden mounds with abundant household trash. , Will and Spinden's 1905 trench through Mound B was reopened in 2002 , Household trash in Mound 12, with abundant artifacts and layers of ash and corn.
The raised areas you see around the village are midden mounds or earthen mounds ranging from one to ten feet high. There are more than 30 mounds surrounding the village. The Mandans at Double Ditch disposed of their trash in heaps such as the one in front of you. The oldest mounds, dating to AD 1550-1650, occur directly atop Ditches 3 and 4. Excavations showed some mounds to be accumulations of household refuse-animal bones, broken pottery, and ash from hearths-carried and dumped in huge heaps. Other mounds were composed partially or entirely of fill excavated from elsewhere in the village, clearly indicating that those mounds were intentionally constructed. The mounds provide one of several kinds of evidence for large scale earthmoving.
During one phase of occupation, the village defense involved a combination of Ditch 2, which lacked bastions, and several large mounds placed as strong points just inside the ditch. Mound B was built rapidly from borrowed fill, and its construction ceased just when ditch 2 was excavated.
Photo captions: Borrowed fill in Mound B. This fill has fewer artifacts and lacks the ash and other heavy organic concentrations found in other midden mounds with abundant household trash. Will and Spinden's 1905 trench through Mound B was reopened in 2002 Household trash in
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Mound 12, with abundant artifacts and layers of ash and corn.
Erected by State Historical Society of North Dakota.
Location. 46° 56.114′ N, 100° 53.809′ W. Marker is near Bismarck, North Dakota, in Burleigh County. Marker can be reached from North Dakota Route 1804. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Bismarck ND 58503, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on August 18, 2020. It was originally submitted on August 17, 2020, by Connor Olson of Kewaskum, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 185 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on August 17, 2020, by Connor Olson of Kewaskum, 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. •
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