Local Archeology Connects to World History | ULM Forum 7-22-11

Poverty Point State Historic Site in Epps, Louisiana has long been known as one of the largest groups of Native American earthworks in

Greenlee

North America. Recently, U.S Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has announced he will propose the site to be considered as a nomination to the United Nations’ World Heritage List. The list includes fewer than 1,000 sites, including the Great Wall of China and Stonehenge, and recognizes natural and cultural sites of worldwide interest.

The University of Louisiana at Monroe has also recently been awarded a grant to study erosion of the historic earthen mounds at Poverty Point. Dr. Diana Greenlee is the station archeologist at Poverty Point and an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. She says the study will offer data on the effects of removing trees from earthworks that can be shared with other sites.

How does studying a stone found in the ear of a fish help archeologists learn more about an ancient people? A group of archeologists

Stringer

have discovered some of what are being called the oldest human remains in Louisiana at a site near Shreveport.

University of Louisiana at Monroe paleontologist Dr. Gary Stringer worked with the team to date the material. Their results appear in the latest volume of Louisiana Archeology.