The Riverside Archeological District is a historic archaeological site in
Gill
A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...
and
Greenfield, Massachusetts
Greenfield is a city in and the county seat of Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Greenfield was first settled in 1686. The population was 17,768 at the 2020 census. Greenfield is home to Greenfield Community College, the Pioneer Val ...
. The site added to 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 ...
in 1975.
Site description
The Riverside Archeological District encompasses a sizable tract of land north of Turners Falls, a major whitewater rapids on the
Connecticut River
The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges at Long Island ...
, north of the eponymous village of
Turners Falls, Massachusetts
Turners Falls is an unincorporated village and census-designated place in the town of Montague in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,512 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropoli ...
in
Gill
A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...
and
Greenfield. Located in northern
near the mouths of four major tributaries to the Connecticut, the area has an archaeological history known to date back to the late
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
. During the earliest contacts between European colonists and Native Americans in the 17th century, the area was known to house major Native encampments, and was the site of the 1676
Battle of Turner's Falls
The Battle of Turner's Falls or Battle of Grand Falls; also known as the Peskeompscut-Wissantinnewag Massacre, was a battle and massacre occurring on May 19, 1676, in the context of King Philip's War in what is present-day Gill and Greenfield, ...
in
King Philip's War
King Philip's War (sometimes called the First Indian War, Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, Pometacomet's Rebellion, or Metacom's Rebellion) was an armed conflict in 1675–1676 between indigenous inhabitants of New England and New England coloni ...
. The area has been recognized has archaeologically significant since the 19th century, with well-attested accounts of small finds and some distinctive burial sites.
Formalized archaeology in the area began in the early 20th century with the accumulation of artifacts from Gill in 1915 and 1916 that are now in the collection of the
American Indian Archaeological Institute in
Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
. It has continued at low levels of activity throughout the 20th century.
Boundaries
The western boundary of the site is roughly Adams Street in Greenfield; the eastern boundary is in the Lily's Pond area of Barton Cove in Gill, a sheltered area of the Connecticut River. The northern boundary is just north of Riverside Cemetery in Gill, and the southernmost portion of the area may extend just across the river into the village of Turners Falls.
See also
*
Dedic Site
The DEDIC or DEDIC/Sugarloaf Site is a paleo-Indian Clovis-era archaeological site in South Deerfield, Massachusetts. It encompasses an area of the Connecticut and Deerfield River valleys containing evidence of relatively large-scale human ha ...
, in South Deerfield
*
References
*Levine, Sassaman, and Nassaney, eds. ''The Archaeological Northeast'' (Chapter: "The Significance of the Turners Falls Locality in Connecticut River Archaeology" by Michael S. Nassaney). Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey (1999).
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Archaeological sites in Massachusetts
Greenfield, Massachusetts
Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Franklin County, Massachusetts
Wampanoag