User:Bobcoiltrb/sandbox/Story Mound

Story Mound

(lat:39.3419 long:-82.9993)

Story Mound (also known as Chillicothe Mound #5) is named after a formed owner of the land, Mr. Story. Located in Chillicothe, in Ross County, OH, east of the junction of Cherokee and Delano Streets in the Story Mound State Memorial Ohio State Park. The mound is currently about 19.5 feet high and has a diameter of 95 feet. Its location is near the first governor's mansion, named Adena by Thomas Worthington, which became the name used to describe the people who inhabited the area from about 800 B.C. and 100 A.D. The mound is significant because it is the first documented example of a circular timber building, which is commonly identified with the Adena culture as a ceremonial place. The remains of the post holes, arranged in a circle about 15 feet in diameter, were identified by Clarence Loveberry in 1897 during excavations of the mound. The height of the mound prior to excavation was 25 feet. There are many mounds in the Paint Creek area near Chillicothe, some associated with the Hopewell culture of the period from 100 B.C. To 500 A.D. The Hopewell Culture National Historic Park is just north of town and is open to the public. The mound and the park's 1 acre lot, currently owned by the Ohio Historical Society, is surrounded by a chain-link fence and is not accessible to the public.

See page 7 for photo 1972 photo from NPS Nomination folder page 7.

https://scienceviews.com/photo/medium/SIA4148.jpg 1897 photo prior to excavation.

Story Mound excavations commenced on May 17, 1897, and the report was submitted in 1899. Loveberry explored with a tunneling operation. The posts that formed the central circle ranged from 4 to 12 inches in diameter, with bottoms 5 feet below the mound floor, and were spaced several inches apart. At least some were squared at the bottom. It is presumed that the structure was used to enclose funeral rituals since the skull of a young man was found inside the wooden enclosure near the north wall, apparently laid to rest facing north. Funeral implements included chalcedony spears, a beveled ornament coated with red paint, dear antler awls, and bone beads. Nearby were found caches of arrow heads. The wooden structure or building was burned after its use and was buried within the mound.

Implements found within the Mound https://scienceviews.com/photo/medium/SIA4149.jpg

2012 photo https://scienceviews.com/photo/browse/SIA3975.jpg

The mound is listed in the National Registry of Historic places, information system ID: 73001529, asset ID: 5c0937f6-407f-4b82-a76c-7c8c19d513cf.(2) Registration document submitted 1972.

Note: references to a mound of dirt (lat. 39.116944, long. -84.689333) behind the elementary school in Sayler Park, OH as the location of Story Mound are incorrect.

Bobcoiltrb (talk) 00:16, 2 December 2020 (UTC)BobCoiltrbBobcoiltrb (talk) 00:16, 2 December 2020 (UTC)