Lake Jackson Mounds |
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The Lake Jackson Mounds are located near present day Tallahassee, Florida and are some of the largest ceremonial complexes in existence in Florida. The Lake Jackson complex consisted of at least 6 mounds, an open plaza-like area, a village residential site, and is almost 70 acres in area (Mainfort). The Lake Jackson Mounds date to approximately 1000AD and is consistent with the beginning of the early Mississippian Period which extends from 1000AD to approximately 1550AD. Mississippian Period is the final pre-Columbian period and the Lake Jackson complex is a fine example of Mississippian archeological remains.
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The Lake Jackson culture would have utilized the bow and arrow for hunting and defense, they fashioned shell tempered pottery, and practiced agriculture through raising maize, squash, and certain beans (Waselkov & Braund). Copper artifacts have been discovered in the Lake Jackson Mounds indicating extensive trading relationships with areas well beyond the southern region of the United States (Waselkov & Braund). The Lake Jackson mound complex represents one of the earliest Mississippian period trends of the move to larger settlements and towns indicating a greater complexity in both society and governance. In the Lake Jackson mound complex the move to complex social groups and organizations is clearly evident in the arrangement of its ceremonial mound around the central plaza, next to its village.
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Resources & Further Reading:
Milanich, Jerald T. Archaeology of Precolumbian Florida. Gainesville, FL: University of Florida Press, 1994.
Morgan, William N. Pre-Columbian Architecture in Eastern North America. Gainesville, FL: University of Florida Press, 1999.
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