Archaeology Uncovers the Unwritten Past

Archaeology Uncovers the Unwritten Past. Kathio Landmark Trail. , The Cooper Village Site , European explorers who visited here in the late 1600s gave general descriptions of Dakota communities, but it was archaeologists who uncovered the specific location of this village site., Today, it is known as the "Cooper site," named in honor of Leland Cooper of Hamline University. Cooper, who worked under archaeologist Elden Johnson of the University of Minnesota, was instrumental in the discovery of several Kathio sites., Under the direction of Elden Johnson, crews conducted archaeological investigations at Kathio throughout the 1960s and 70s. The Cooper site is the most thoroughly studied of the 30+ sites that have been discovered in the park. This research has added greatly to our understanding of Kathio's place in our heritage, and has resulted in the park being designated a National Historic Landmark District., Archaeologists uncovered the floors of large houses as well as the remains of a log palisade that surrounded the village on three sides., To your right, you can see a metal post that is set into concrete. This is the datum, or reference point, used in archaeology. All excavations are measured from this point, so that all artifacts and archaeological features can be precisely located from field notes. This system is a standard in professional archaeology., This map shows some of the archaeological features of this site. It was drawn from field notes related to the site datum., Artifacts such as arrow points, stone tools and pottery indicate that people lived on this site as early as 1,500 years ago., Trade Goods , Trade items unearthed here helped confirm early historic records of contact between villagers and European visitors., Sandy Lake Vessel , Pottery styles and the subtle remains of house floors told the archaeologists that a Mdewakanton Dakota village was located here late in the prehistoric period.