Moundville Archaeological Site | |
 Artist's conception of the Moundville Archaeological Site | |
   | |
| Location | 634 Mound State Parkway Moundville, Alabama, US |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Tuscaloosa |
| Coordinates | 33°00′17″N 87°37′52″W / 33.00467°N 87.63107°W |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000149 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966[1] |
| Designated NHL | July 19, 1964 [2] |
Moundville Archaeological Site, also known as the Moundville Archaeological Park, is a Mississippian culture archaeological site on the Black Warrior River in Hale County, near the modern city of Tuscaloosa, Alabama.[3] Extensive archaeological investigation has shown that the site was the political and ceremonial center of a regionally organized Mississippian culture chiefdom polity between the 11th and 16th centuries. The archaeological park portion of the site is administered by the University of Alabama Museums and encompasses 185 acres (75 ha), consisting of 29 platform mounds around a rectangular plaza.[3]
The site was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.[2]
Moundville is the second-largest site in the United States of the classic Middle Mississippian era, after Cahokia in Illinois. The culture was expressed in villages and chiefdoms throughout the central Mississippi River Valley, the lower Ohio River Valley, and most of the Mid-South area, including Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi as the core of the classic Mississippian culture area.[4] The park contains a museum and an archaeological laboratory.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- ^ a b "Moundville Site". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on January 11, 2008. Retrieved October 28, 2007.
- ^ a b "An Archaeological Sketch of Moundville". Moundville Archaeological Museum. Archived from the original on November 18, 2007. Retrieved December 4, 2007.
- ^ "Southeastern Prehistory: Mississippian and Late Prehistoric Period". National Park Service. Retrieved December 4, 2007.