Green River Shell Middens Archeological District | |
| Location | Along the Green River |
|---|---|
| NRHP reference No. | 85003182 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | May 5, 1994[1] |
| Designated NHLD | May 5, 1994[1] |
The Green River Shell Middens Archeological District is a historic district composed of archaeological sites in the U.S. state of Kentucky. All of the district's sites are shell middens along the banks of the Green River that date from the later portion of the Archaic period.[2] Studies of this assemblage of sites were critical in the development of knowledge of the Archaic period in the eastern United States.
Kentucky's Green River runs through a broad alluvial plain, from which outcroppings of bedrock project. The plain is an area that was inundated during the Pleistocene by a water body dubbed Lake Green, which resulted in the deposition of large amounts of silt. The middens of this district are typically located along the prehistoric routes of waterways that were established after Lake Green was drained. Archaic period Native Americans were drawn to these waterways by an abundance of mussels.[3]
The district was established and named a National Historic Landmark on May 5, 1994.[2] Each of the district's twenty-three contributing properties had previously been listed on the National Register of Historic Places by itself. The sites are distributed among five counties: Butler County (BT), Henderson County (HE), McLean County (McL), Muhlenberg County (MU), and Ohio County (OH).[4]