[nativestudies-l] NEWS: Archaeological discoveries in Ohio show that "fort" was actually an ancient aqueduct

[Alyssa Mt. Pleasant]

FROM:
Scientific American 60-Second Science (podcast)
(http://www.sciam.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=fort-actually-ancient-aqueduct-08-09-24 
<http://www.sciam.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=fort-actually-ancient-aqueduct-08-09-24>) 

"Fort" Actually Ancient Aqueduct
What had been thought to be a Native American fort in what is now Ohio was
actually a complex water management system. Cynthia Graber reports
[The following is an exact transcript of this podcast.]

There's a Native American site in Ohio that appeared to be a fort. But 
recent
discoveries by archaeologists at the University of Cincinnati show that's
not the case. Instead, it's a two-thousand year old Shawnee water 
management
system. It stretches out almost six kilometers. That's much larger than 
what
had been thought to comprise the so-called fort. It's one of the largest 
such
sites in the country.

What had been thought to be gates for military protection are actually a
series of dams and irrigation canals. There are logs and clay bricks for
damming; raceways for flowing water originate in far-off springs. The 
water was
stored and channeled for irrigation. Drill cores show water sediments 
and clay.

The site demonstrates a sophisticated knowledge of engineering---which
archaeologists did not realize that Native American communities might 
have. The site
also reveals an emphasis on public works, rather than on war. So this
discovery might rewrite a bit of history. Another interesting note: 
Shawnee remains
from the time are typically of petite, graceful men---and robust, muscular
women. So it was probably the women who built the water system. Which 
means even
more history to rewrite.
---Cynthia Graber

More information about the field school and its investigations can be 
found at: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-09/uoc-rar091208.php

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