Mound Cities By the Sea

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, circa 1993

1. Mound Cities By the Sea Marker

Inscription. In Charlotte Harbor Ponce de Leon came upon an urban Indian culture over 200 years old! The Caloosas were "City dwellers" whose sea-oriented high, dry, airy rectangular dwelling mounds made pleasant and secure homesites. Skillful engineers, the Caloosa surrounded their terraced mounds with kitchen garden courts; waterways and boat basins; ramps, causeways, and ponds where live fish and shellfish were stored. Shell-paved causeways and canals led from the living city to mound cities for the dead, and to yet other "midden" mounds where waste was discarded. The tallest mounds held temples, storehouses and the homes of their leaders.

Erected by The City of Punta Gorda, Florida in Cooperation with Punta Gorda Isles, Inc.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Indigenous Peoples and Communities.

Location. Marker is missing. It was located near 26° 54.602′ N, 82° 5.72′ W. Marker was in Punta Gorda, Florida, in Charlotte County. It was on Ponce De Leon Parkway 0.6 miles south of North Marion Court when traveling south. Marker was in the loop of Ponce De Leon Parkway. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 3400 Ponce De Leon Parkway, Punta Gorda FL 33950, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker was on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

It was also in the American South

and on the Gulf Coast.

Globally, it was in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers.

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At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this location, measured as the crow flies: The Description and Naming of Florida (a few steps from this marker); Juan Ponce de Leon (within shouting distance of this marker); Columbus G. McLeod - Protector of Plumed Birds (within shouting distance of this marker); First White Man Dies in America (within shouting distance of this marker); Southernmost Railroad Terminal (approx. 1.7 miles away); The Boating History of Punta Gorda (approx. 2.3 miles away); The Long Dock (approx. 2.3 miles away); Historic Spanish Anchor (approx. 2.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Punta Gorda.

Other markers no longer nearby. Ponce de Leon at Charlotte Harbor (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Discoveries of Juan Ponce de Leon (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Ponce de Leon Historical Park (was about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line but has been confirmed missing).

More about this marker. Marker was up in 1993 but gone by 1995.

Also see . . . Ponce de Leon Park. (Submitted on February 28, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.)

Credits. This page was last revised on February 28, 2021. It was originally submitted on February 28, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 364 times since then and 28 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on February 28, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.