SOUTHWEST OHIO Locations offer a look at Indian mounds
One weekend excursion allows you to see the must-visit sites.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
Burial mounds and other earthworks built by prehistoric American Indians are so numerous in southern and central Ohio that a tourist could take several weekend trips and still not be able to visit all of them.
But a cluster of major sites in southwestern Ohio can be visited comfortably by car in a single unhurried weekend excursion.
Major sites on the must-see list would be the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park, Seip Mound, Serpent Mound and Fort Ancient. All of these were included in a recent bus tour conducted by the Mahoning Valley Chapter of the Ohio Archaeological Society.
The Hopewell Culture National Historic Park, also known as Mound City, features a museum and at least 23 mounds erected by the Hopewell Indians. These mounds contained human remains and artifacts from many regions of North America. Administered by the National Park Service, Mound City is three miles north of Chillicothe on state Route 104.
Not far away are two mounds administered by the Ohio Historical Society, which can be visited during all daylight hours and have no admission charge. Story Mound, a 191/2-foot burial mound erected by the Adena Indians is behind a chain-link fence on Delano Street, just off Allen Avenue in Chillicothe. Seip Mound, built for burials by the Hopewell Indians, is 240 feet long, 130 feet wide and 30 feet high. It is 14 miles southwest of Chillicothe on U.S. Route 50.
Serpent Mound
Serpent Mound, a quarter-mile-long, snake-shaped earthen embankment is billed by the Ohio Historical Society, which maintains it, as "the largest and finest serpent effigy in North America." Who built it and why it was constructed are unknown.
An observation tower provides a good view of Serpent Mound, and a museum features exhibits on the mounds and the area's geology. Serpent Mound is on state Route 73 in Peebles, about 20 miles south of Bainbridge.
The Ohio Historical Society also operates Fort Ancient, a National Historic Landmark, which the society describes as "North America's largest prehistoric Indian hilltop enclosure." This 764-acre site consists of a museum, two miles of hiking trails, several scenic overlooks and some 31/2 miles of earthen walls built about 2,000 years ago by the Hopewell Indians. It is seven miles southeast of Lebanon on state Route 350.
Also administered by OHS is Miamisburg Mound, Ohio's largest conical burial mound. A 116-step climb to the summit provides a view of the surrounding 37-acre park. Miamisburg Mound is open all daylight hours and admission is free. It is on Mound Avenue, one mile south of state Route 725.