Archeology

Archeology. . , Archaeological investigations at the Iliniwek Village are critical for a number of reasons. While several known Illinois villages have been excavated, Iliniwek is the earliest and provides information unique to the earliest phases of culture contact. The assemblage from Iliniwek solidifies for archaeologists just what a seventeenth century Illinois assemblage, particularly the ceramics industry, looks like. This information provides a critical comparative baseline for archaeologists exploring culture change among the Illinois through time in the historic period and variation in the ways in which native peoples of other ethnicities responded to European contact. , Subsurface excavations began in 1993 and continued until 1998. Remote sensing was conducted in sections of the village in 1995 and in 1998. Since 1998, excavations have been sporadic. A fascinating picture of what the community looked like, and what life was like in the village has emerged. , Houses , Excavations have revealed evidence of four kinds of houses. The most substantial was a large longhouse with a central ridgeline. One of these (House 1) has been excavated. It had an arbor on the north side. A second type of longhouse did not have a ridgeline. One half of one (House 2) and a portion of another (House 4) have been excavated. A small, single-family house has also been excavated (House 3). These houses were smaller. They may have had only a single family rather than the extended families that lived in the longhouses. A large round house type has also been identified from remote sensing. While one of these has been tested, there has been no large-scale excavation or these. , Ditch and Palisade , Marquette did not mention the fact that Iliniwek Village was fortified. However, at least some portion of the western edge of the site was fortified with a ditch and palisade. Excavations have revealed a ditch about 5 meters (16.3 feet) wide with a loosely constructed palisade, made up of small diameter posts, erected adjacent to and on the village side of the ditch. , Village Pattern , Resistivity and hand excavation have demonstrated that the two "hilltop" villages that make up the Iliniwek Village State Historic Site are a long, linear settlement, stretching along the terrace edge for 2.1 kilometers (r.8 miles). The two villages occupy about 200 acres, with houses only 3-4 rows deep. House structures are widely spaced (10 meters/33 feet) and are laid out end to end. Structures are separated by streets. Open areas dot the cultural landscape. By comparison, Huron Indian villages from this time were often much smaller, averaging 2.000 people living in an 8-acre, fortified village. , Plants , The plant remains at Iliniwek are dominated by corn. A large percentage of all of the identified plant remains are corn. Beans and squash are present but in small numbers. There is also evidence of native domesticates including little barley, sunflower, knotweed and goosefoot. Watermelon, an Old World domesticate, is also present on the site and spread rapidly over the New World after introduction. Collected native species include American lotus, wild rice, raspberry, wild cherry, hawthorn, wild strawberry, persimmon, wild bean, hackberry and grape. Nuts include hickory, black walnut, hazelnut and acorns. , Subsistence Fauna , Bone is generally fairly well preserved in pits on the site. An analysis of 30 pits and their contents indicate that mammals make up the largest percentage of animal remains. These include bison, elk, whitetail deer, dog, black bear, mountain lion and bobcat. Medium-sized mammals include beaver, raccoon, muskrat, opossum, squirrel and cottontail rabbit. Birds, snakes and turtles of a wide variety of species are present but do not make up a high percentage of the diet. Fish remains are numerous and are second only to mammals.