The Emergence of the Moundbuilders by Elliot M. Abrams AnnCorinne Freter

Author:Elliot M. Abrams, AnnCorinne Freter [Elliot M. Abrams, AnnCorinne Freter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Cultural Studies, Native American Studies, Archaeology, Anthropology
ISBN: 9780821441435
Publisher: Ohio University Press
Published: 2014-06-17T04:00:00+00:00

FIG. 8.5. Hobo® Datalogger data taken at the Swinehart Village during the 1997 growing season

FIG. 8.6. Wire frame digital terrain model of the Swinehart Village (looking south, with a 4× exaggeration of terrain). Areas in black are visible from the center of the enclosure at an eye level 1.5 m above the ground.

Defense

Frequently the evaluation that a given early Late Woodland enclosure possesses defensive attributes is largely based on anecdotal information. In order to evaluate the potential defensive aspects of the Swinehart Village, a digital terrain model was employed (fig. 8.6). In this case contour data from the Rushville, Ohio, topographic quadrangle (1961, photorevised 1985) was digitized and analyzed using ArcInfo® at the Center for Mapping at the Ohio State University. Once digitized contour data had been entered, a three-dimensional model of the terrain was generated. Next, a visibility study was conducted. Initiating this study, a value of 1.5 m was given for the sighting height and a point was chosen to approximate the viewing height of a single adult standing at or near the center of the Swinehart Village. Then, a view of all the areas that could be “seen” was “draped” over the three-dimensional model.

Assuming tree cover was not an obstructing element, results of three-dimensional modeling of the Swinehart Village indicate that areas to the south and east of the enclosure were in clear view for an observer near the center. Areas to the west, north, and to a lesser extent to the south of the enclosure could be seen for much of the Little Rush Creek Valley. The only area not visible was behind a bend on Indian Creek to the north. Therefore, if concerns centered on observing movements along the Little Rush Creek Valley, this study indicates that the placement of the Swinehart Village would offer a strategic advantage over placement in the floodplain.

In sum, defensive aspects of the Swinehart enclosure provided a strategic advantage for an observer overlooking Little Rush Creek and appears to be a significant influence on site settlement in conjunction with other factors such as access to land conducive to growing cultigens. Further evidence of defense at Swinehart Village may come from the fact that Robert Goslin is reported to have identified postholes “around the edge of the embankment” at the site, features also recovered from the Scioto Trails site (Don Aplomad to Goslin, October 3, 1957; Dancey, pers. comm., 1992). The Scioto Trails site on the south end of the city of Columbus holds the dubious distinction of being the only early Late Woodland site in central Ohio with human remains exhibiting signs of a lethal wound from a projectile (Erika Keener, pers. comm., 2001).

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