Louden in Adams County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

A Missing Coil?

Photographed by Craig Doda, March 15, 2025

1. A Missing Coil? Marker

Inscription. Dr. Jarrod Burks, from Ohio Valley Archaeology, Inc., conducted a magnetic gradient survey of Serpent Mound in 2012. This kind of survey reveals changes in the magnetic properties of soil that are a result of some kind of ground disturbance in the past. The most exciting result of the survey was the discovery of a large, U-shaped feature near the neck of the Serpent that appears to represent an ancient surface buried by an embankment that was later removed.

If this interpretation is correct, then at some time in the past, the original builders of Serpent Mound, or perhaps a later group, changed the design of Serpent Mound. Why they might have done this is a mystery.

Magnetometry Survey
Overview of magnetometer survey data from 2012 showing the Serpent and traces of what might have been a former portion of the Serpent erased in antiquity.

Archaeologists from Ohio Valley Archaeology, Inc, assisted by volunteers, followed up on the magnetometry survey by excavating a trench across a portion of the lost coil feature. The results suggested that part of the mound had once covered this location.

Topics. This historical

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marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Indigenous Peoples and Communities. A significant historical year for this entry is 2012.

Location. 39° 1.576′ N, 83° 25.833′ W. Marker is in Louden, Ohio, in Adams County. It is on Ohio Route 73 one mile west of Horner Chapel Road (County Route 116), on the right when traveling north. The marker is in the Serpent Mound State Memorial Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Peebles OH 45660, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southern Ohio Hill Country.

It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Ohio River Valley,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Serpent In American Indian Manetto Indiangkum, Traditions (about 300 feet away,

Photographed by Craig Doda, March 15, 2025

2. A Missing Coil? Marker

measured in a direct line); The Shawnee And The King Of The Serpent (about 300 feet away); What Is An Effigy Mound? (about 500 feet away); The Serpent Mound (about 500 feet away); Who Built Serpent Mound? (about 600 feet away); Astronomical Alignments at Serpent Mound? (about 600 feet away); Exploring Serpent Mound - Frederic Ward Putnam (about 800 feet away); The Village Site (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Louden.

Other markers no longer nearby. A Missing Coil? (was about 600 feet away but has been permanently removed); a different marker also named Who Built Serpent Mound? (was about 600 feet away but has been permanently removed); Astronomical Alignments At Serpent Mound (was about 600 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Serpent Mound Impact Crater (was about 700 feet away but has been permanently removed); Exploring Serpent Mound (was about 800 feet away but has been permanently removed).

Credits. This page was last revised on March 24, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 18, 2025, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. This page has been viewed 253 times since then and 42 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 18, 2025, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.