Norwood Mound, also known as “Indian Mound” by locals, is a prehistoric Native American earthwork

mound A mound is a heaped pile of earth, gravel, sand, rocks, or debris. Most commonly, mounds are earthen formations such as hills and mountains, particularly if they appear artificial. A mound may be any rounded area of topographically higher el ...

located in Norwood,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, an enclave city of

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Hamilton County, Ohio Hamilton County is located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 830,639, making it the third-most populous county in Ohio. The county seat and largest city is Cincinnati. The county i ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on May 2, 1974.

Description

The mound is an elliptical earthen structure,a burial mound roughly in diameter and in height. It is originally believed to have been taller. Located within the City of Norwood's Water Tower Park at above sea level, the mound is the highest land elevation in Norwood and one of the highest elevations in all of southwest Ohio. The size, shape, and location of the mound suggest it was constructed by people of the

Adena culture The Adena culture was a Pre-Columbian Native American culture that existed from 500 BCE to 100 CE, in a time known as the Early Woodland period. The Adena culture refers to what were probably a number of related Native American societies sharing ...

during the

Pre-Columbian era In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the Migration to the New World, original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization of the Americas, European colonization, w ...

. Archaeologists believe the mound was used by the Adenas for religious ceremonies and

smoke signal The smoke signal is one of the oldest forms of long-distance communication. It is a form of visual communication used over a long distance. In general smoke signals are used to transmit news, signal danger, or to gather people to a common area ...

ing. An 1895 source describes it as "the only Indian mound now remaining in the vicinity of Cincinnati." There were mounds in

Downtown Cincinnati Downtown Cincinnati is the central business district of Cincinnati, Ohio, as well the economic and symbiotic center of the Cincinnati metropolitan area. It also contains a number of urban neighborhoods in the low land area between the Ohio ...

at the time of arrival of the first white settlers.

Recent history

There is no evidence that the site has ever been excavated or otherwise destroyed. It is reported that many relics were found in the area by early Norwood settlers in the late 1800s, and these artifacts were the original nucleus of the Native American Art Collection of the

Cincinnati Art Museum The Cincinnati Art Museum is an art museum in the Eden Park neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1881, it was the first purpose-built art museum west of the Alleghenies, and is one of the oldest in the United States. Its collection of ov ...

. The Norwood Heights neighborhood surrounding the mound was constructed in 1869, when it was reported that seventeen villages and towns could be seen from the summit. The site was deeded to the Village of Norwood in 1875 by Norwood settler, S. H. Parvin, prior to the incorporation of the village.

Notes

{{Archaeological NRHP in Hamilton County, Ohio Norwood, Ohio Archaeological sites in Ohio Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio Archaeological sites in Hamilton County, Ohio National Register of Historic Places in Hamilton County, Ohio Mounds in Ohio

Description

Recent history

See also

Notes