The Newark (World's Largest) Earthworks, & the 2,000 Year Old Hopewell Lunar Observatory!

Originally posted by iMacFanatic
Well you have certainly done your homework.

I first heard about these...gawd maybe as a teen and I am 54 now. I was really into studying history, archeology and anthropology at the time as well as oddities.

I forget where I learned of them though...perhaps Ripley's or Charles Fort or a book on the antiquities of North America.

Regardless they are fascinating and what is even more fascinating is that these sites you are talking about are not isolated. They exist all up and down the Mississippi river valley and its tributaries.

In fact as I understand it at the same time these earthworks were in use larger sites existed in and around St.Louis...which have been obscured by the sprawl of the current cities...

Also in the same St. Louis region existed a city that would rival the present one in size and for awhile was the largest known in either North or South America.

What is more interesting is not that these mounds are present, but whats not being said. And that is why would the state and federal govt. and any local indian tribes allow Indian earthen works to be built on or turned into a golf course. I mean when you do construction and such, if an indian arrowhead is found in the debris construction is stopped until an archeologists and his team are sent to see if this area of land is a potential site for more artifacts and/or a burial area. These American BC indians made formica this and that and even forged Iron masks (pretty good to), but yet are unimportant to keep construction away or have it saved as a national and state treasure. There's a book that is on Scribd that I will post later on (I forgot the name) that talks about the curious finds of ancient America and the hidden history of America. Is it possible that North American indians at the time were alot more advanced than we thought. In this post the Hopwell indians displayed works that shows they had contact with people from other parts of the world and civilizations.

Maybe people do know more about these indians but want anymore investigation of them to be over and their works to be out of sight and out of mind. Heck even the Aztecs have legend of a Red Haired man that visited them long ago and left saying that he would come back.

reply to post by hoghead cheese


Hey Hog head!

I guess you're implying that this amazing site was intentionally built over, and that this was intended to hide the fact the Hopewell wee extremely advanced for their time.

I agree that these Indians were definitely advanced, and may have had outside influence, is this a reason to airbrush this amazing culture from the history books?

I suppose it's very possible, the golf course was built in 1911, not a very long time after the days of settling the West and Wars with the Indians (in the mid to late 1800s. That would have been fairly fresh in the memory of a lot of people, maybe the notion that Native Americans were savages would have been shattered with the knowledge they created an ancient lunar observatory! That situation would have been a political time bomb of sorts.

At the very least it points to a more complex and advanced history that nomadic hunter gatherers following buffalo across the pains.

That too would have been knowledge that White Settlers would probably not want to get out.

So you may be on to something there!

All the best, KF

S&F OP

Ancient Americans are my favorite subject.
I have visited as many mounds as I could and hope to visit more in the future.
Just a quickie on most earth works. They are mostly constructed in or near river flood plains so the inhabitants could stay dry. Allowing for the easy access to the marshy areas for planting. Like the Nile the spring floods would revitalize the river banks and keep them more clear and plant able than the wooded areas. These folks were heavy into netting fish as well.
I am sure elite were buried in these works and there treasures with them, keeping them where there graves would be less likely to be looted. Any fortifications would appear as post molds during archeological digs.
The Americas were thinly populated and war fare was not very common in those days.
It was easier to move to another place that fight.

Originally posted by Donny 4 million

The Americas were thinly populated and war fare was not very common in those days.
It was easier to move to another place that fight.

That was a common assertion that I came across during my research.

You're very lucky to be able to visit these places and I'm not surprised it's your favourite subject!

Thanks for that additional info, i wonder if I can find a map of any local water ways, of course a lot can change in 2,000 years, but I'll look anyway!

Thanks again, KF!

reply to post by kiwifoot


Maptech Map Server
TerraServer USA
I will see about putting you on to other amazing earth works as soon as I find a little time.

Here are some mounds I have visited
Okmulgee near Macon Georgia.(earth mounds)
Natchez mounds in Mississippi.(earth mounds)
Emerald Mound- Western Tennessee.(earth mound)
Spiro Mound - Eastern Oklahoma (earth mounds)
Cahocia Mound - Collinsville Illinois Across the river from St. Louis Missouri (huge earth mound)
Crystal River Mound and several (oyster mounds) through out Florida and the Gulf coast.
Moundsville - West Virginia (earth mounds) Ohio River.
There are many along the Ohio River drainage also, Serpent Mound for one.
I would mention though that these folks did not use bronze or any other smelted metals.
Copper items were most likely hammered out of copper pellets found along the shores of the Great Lakes.

Quite well done I must say. Thanks for the information and a great history lesson of the Americas. S+F.

Great works
congratulations
S+F

reply to post by Shadowed


These earth works are not far from Atlanta as I recall.
There are some little known ones down along the Chatahoochie River.
There are some under Lake Seminol. Tristate area. FL-AL-GA


New Georgia Encyclopedia: Etowah Mounds
Etowah Mounds. This nationally famous, prehistoric archaeological site contains one of the largest Indian mounds in North America. ...

www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-577 -

Originally posted by Donny 4 million
Here are some mounds I have visited
Okmulgee near Macon Georgia.(earth mounds)
Natchez mounds in Mississippi.(earth mounds)
Emerald Mound- Western Tennessee.(earth mound)
Spiro Mound - Eastern Oklahoma (earth mounds)
Cahocia Mound - Collinsville Illinois Across the river from St. Louis Missouri (huge earth mound)
Crystal River Mound and several (oyster mounds) through out Florida and the Gulf coast.
Moundsville - West Virginia (earth mounds) Ohio River.
There are many along the Ohio River drainage also, Serpent Mound for one.
I would mention though that these folks did not use bronze or any other smelted metals.
Copper items were most likely hammered out of copper pellets found along the shores of the Great Lakes.

Cheers for pointing me in the direction of those places!

I will look them up and have a good read! A thoroughly interesting and amazing period of North American History!

KF

reply to post by kiwifoot


Dream Time and a Digeridoo are quite fascinating as well.
Tasmania is a whole different ball of wax.
Stop by a Pre Clovis thread I started awhile back. Some early stuff there.
There are a few similarities in the colonization of The America's, Australia and South Africa.
But way dissimilar in the aboriginal folks and their customs.

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