Fort Ancient photographs

These four photographs document Fort Ancient earthworks near Oregonia, Ohio. Fort Ancient, an earthworks featuring 18,000 feet of earthen walls, was built 2,000 years ago by Hopewell Indians who used the shoulder blades of deer, split elk antler, clam shell hoes and digging sticks to dig the dirt. They then carried the soil in baskets holding 35 to 40 pounds. Portions of these walls were used in conjunction with the sun and moon to provide a calendar system for these peoples. Early settlers believed the mounds were fortifications, leading to the naming of the site "Fort Ancient." It is part of the Ohio Historical Society's system of historic sites. The photographs shown here measure 4" x 6" (10.16 x 15.24 cm). In Ohio, the Hopewell Indians (100 B.C.-A.D. 500) built burial mounds and large earthen enclosures in geometric shapes (circles, squares, and octagons) to mark the places where the people gathered periodically to participate in many social and ceremonial events. Some of these sites were quite large--the Newark Earthworks complex extends over a 4-square-mile area. The Hopewell people also maintained a large trade network extending as far as the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, the Florida coast and Appalachians, and northern Lake Superior