Anna Site
Encyclopedia
The Anna Site is a prehistoric Plaquemine culture
archaeological site
located in Adams County, Mississippi
10 miles (16.1 km) north of Natchez
. It is the type site
for the Anna Phase (1200 to 1350 CE) of the Natchez Bluffs Plaquemine culture chronology. It was declared a National Historic Landmark
on September 14, 1993.
, about 10 miles (16.1 km) north of Natchez, Mississippi
. The site consists of eight platform mound
s, six of which are situated around a central plaza
. The main group of six mounds sits near the bluff, with the largest being Mound 3. It is 50 feet (15.2 m) in height and sits directly on the edge of the bluff overlooking the river. A ramp runs down the front of this mound onto the plaza area and toward a smaller mound (Mound 5) which is about 300 feet (91.4 m) away and measures 12 feet (3.7 m) in height. A small mound (Mound 4) sits adjacent(northeasterly) to Mound 3, just off the plaza. Excavations of this mound have found evidence of a summit structure. Another small mound (Mound 1) sits in a similar position on the southern side of Mound 3. Mound 2 flanks the plaza in between Mound 1 and Mound 5. Mounds 3, 2 and 5 are situated parallel to the plaza area, but Mound 6 is diagonally positioned. Mound 6 also has remnants of a ramp. Two other mounds (Mounds 7 and 8) are situated to the east and northeast of the main group. Deep ravines surround the mounds, and material, including Mississippian culture pottery
, is scattered in the area.
. Mound construction may have begun during this period but had definitely begun by the succeeding Anna Phase (1200 to 1350) and continued through the Foster Phase (1350-1500) and Emerald Phase (1500 to 1680). This 300-year period saw the transformation of the site into a regionally significant multi-mound center, possibly ruled over by a burgeoning hereditary elite class. The site was occupied until c. 1500.
There is no indication that the site was later reoccupied. The site was excavated in 1924 by archaeologists Warren K. Moorehead
and Calvin S. Brown. James A. Ford
, Jesse D. Jennings
and John L. Cotter
also worked at the site at different times over the next fifty years. The site was recommended by both Ford and Jennings to the State of Mississippi for purchase and future excavation and as a property for an archaeological museum, but the recommendations were not followed through. Cotter's 1951 excavations and analysis of the site were important in establishing the phases for the Natchez Bluffs chronology. The Gulf Coast Survey and the Alabama Museum of Natural History
conducted joint excavations in 1997 and reaffirmed the previous chronological placement of the site.
Plaquemine culture
The Plaquemine culture was an archaeological culture in the lower Mississippi River Valley in western Mississippi and eastern Louisiana. Good examples of this culture are the Medora Site in West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, and the Anna, Emerald Mound, Winterville and Holly Bluff sites located...
archaeological site
Archaeological site
An archaeological site is a place in which evidence of past activity is preserved , and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and represents a part of the archaeological record.Beyond this, the definition and geographical extent of a 'site' can vary widely,...
located in Adams County, Mississippi
Adams County, Mississippi
As of the census of 2000, there were 34,340 people, 13,677 households, and 9,409 families residing in the county. The population density was 75 people per square mile . There were 15,175 housing units at an average density of 33 per square mile...
10 miles (16.1 km) north of Natchez
Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez is the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. With a total population of 18,464 , it is the largest community and the only incorporated municipality within Adams County...
. It is the type site
Type site
In archaeology a type site is a site that is considered the model of a particular archaeological culture...
for the Anna Phase (1200 to 1350 CE) of the Natchez Bluffs Plaquemine culture chronology. It was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
on September 14, 1993.
Description
The Anna site is located on a bluff above the Mississippi RiverMississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, about 10 miles (16.1 km) north of Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez is the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. With a total population of 18,464 , it is the largest community and the only incorporated municipality within Adams County...
. The site consists of eight platform mound
Platform mound
A platform mound is any earthwork or mound intended to support a structure or activity.-Eastern North America:The indigenous peoples of North America built substructure mounds for well over a thousand years starting in the Archaic period and continuing through the Woodland period...
s, six of which are situated around a central plaza
Plaza
Plaza is a Spanish word related to "field" which describes an open urban public space, such as a city square. All through Spanish America, the plaza mayor of each center of administration held three closely related institutions: the cathedral, the cabildo or administrative center, which might be...
. The main group of six mounds sits near the bluff, with the largest being Mound 3. It is 50 feet (15.2 m) in height and sits directly on the edge of the bluff overlooking the river. A ramp runs down the front of this mound onto the plaza area and toward a smaller mound (Mound 5) which is about 300 feet (91.4 m) away and measures 12 feet (3.7 m) in height. A small mound (Mound 4) sits adjacent(northeasterly) to Mound 3, just off the plaza. Excavations of this mound have found evidence of a summit structure. Another small mound (Mound 1) sits in a similar position on the southern side of Mound 3. Mound 2 flanks the plaza in between Mound 1 and Mound 5. Mounds 3, 2 and 5 are situated parallel to the plaza area, but Mound 6 is diagonally positioned. Mound 6 also has remnants of a ramp. Two other mounds (Mounds 7 and 8) are situated to the east and northeast of the main group. Deep ravines surround the mounds, and material, including Mississippian culture pottery
Mississippian culture pottery
Mississippian culture pottery is the ceramic tradition of the Mississippian culture found as artifacts in archaeological sites in the American Midwest and Southeast. It is often characterized by the adoption and use of riverine shell-tempering agents in the clay paste. Shell tempering is one of...
, is scattered in the area.
History
The construction of the Anna Site began c. 1200, corresponding to the beginning of the interaction among various Lower and Middle Mississippi cultures, leading to the formation of the Plaquemine culture. There were minor occupations at the site but the most significant period of occupation at the site starts during the Gordon Phase 1000–1200 of the Coles Creek period (700-1200)Coles Creek culture
Coles Creek culture is a Late Woodland archaeological culture in the Lower Mississippi valley in the southern United States. It followed the Troyville culture. The period marks a significant change in the cultural history of the area...
. Mound construction may have begun during this period but had definitely begun by the succeeding Anna Phase (1200 to 1350) and continued through the Foster Phase (1350-1500) and Emerald Phase (1500 to 1680). This 300-year period saw the transformation of the site into a regionally significant multi-mound center, possibly ruled over by a burgeoning hereditary elite class. The site was occupied until c. 1500.
There is no indication that the site was later reoccupied. The site was excavated in 1924 by archaeologists Warren K. Moorehead
Warren K. Moorehead
Warren King Moorehead was known in his time as the 'Dean of American archaeology' ; born in Siena, Italy to missionary parents on March 10, 1866, he died on January 5, 1939 at the age of 72, and is buried in his hometown of Xenia, Ohio.-Early life:His mother died when he was quite young, and while...
and Calvin S. Brown. James A. Ford
James A. Ford
James Alfred Ford was an American archaeologist. He was born in Water Valley, Mississippi, on February 12, 1911. He became interested in work on Native American mound research while growing up in Mississippi.-Archaeological work:...
, Jesse D. Jennings
Jesse D. Jennings
Jesse David Jennings was an American archaeologist and anthropologist. Based at the University of Utah, Jennings is best known for his work on desert west prehistory and his excavation of Danger Cave near Utah's Great Salt Lake...
and John L. Cotter
John L. Cotter
John L. Cotter was an archaeologist working for the United States National Park Service.In 1966–67 he taught what was probably the first course in the U.S. to carry the title "Historical Archaeology", at the University of Pennsylvania.-External links:...
also worked at the site at different times over the next fifty years. The site was recommended by both Ford and Jennings to the State of Mississippi for purchase and future excavation and as a property for an archaeological museum, but the recommendations were not followed through. Cotter's 1951 excavations and analysis of the site were important in establishing the phases for the Natchez Bluffs chronology. The Gulf Coast Survey and the Alabama Museum of Natural History
Alabama Museum of Natural History
The Alabama Museum of Natural History is the state's natural history museum, located in Smith Hall at the University of Alabama campus in Tuscaloosa. The oldest museum in the state, it was founded in 1831. The exhibits depict the natural diversity of Alabama from the Age of Dinosaurs, the Coal Age,...
conducted joint excavations in 1997 and reaffirmed the previous chronological placement of the site.