The Safety Harbor site is an archaeological site in

Philippe Park Philippe Park is a Pinellas County park located in Safety Harbor, Florida. The park is named after Odet Philippe, who is credited with introducing grapefruit to Florida. It is situated on that was once part of Philippe's plantation. Philippe wa ...

at 2525 Philippe Parkway in

Safety Harbor Safety Harbor is a city on the west shore of Tampa Bay in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It was settled in 1823 and incorporated in 1917. The population was 16,884 at the 2010 census. History The area has been inhabited since the Stone ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, United States. It is the

type site In archaeology, a type site is the site used to define a particular archaeological culture or other typological unit, which is often named after it. For example, discoveries at La Tène and Hallstatt led scholars to divide the European Iron A ...

for the

Safety Harbor culture The Safety Harbor culture was an archaeological culture practiced by Native Americans living on the central Gulf coast of the Florida peninsula, from about 900 CE until after 1700. The Safety Harbor culture is defined by the presence of Safety Ha ...

, and includes the largest remaining mound in the

Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater in ...

area.The sacred hill of Philippi Park
/ref> It was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1964.

Description

The Safety Harbor site is a major feature of Philippe Park. The site consists of the large temple mound, one smaller burial mound and two shell middens. The temple mound is roughly circular, in diameter and in height, with a summit plateau measuring about . It is built out of a series layers, alternating shells and sand. Archaeologists have uncovered features interpreted as post holes in the summit area, suggestive that a structure once stood there, either a residence or temple structure. There are also layers of clay, which are thought to represent levels that may have also been used in some way. The site is open to visitors during the daylight hours. In addition to the mounds, the park has walking paths, picnic areas, a boat ramp, fishing, and scenic views.Safety Harbor Mounds and Philippi Park
/ref>

Archaeological significance

The site was documented as being occupied by early Spanish explorers of the region, who described it as the capital city of the Tocobaga people. Contact with these explorers probably introduced European diseases, which decimated the population and led to the site's abandonment, probably by 1700. It was first brought to the attention of archaeologists as early as 1880, but the first formal excavations took place only in 1929. Twentieth-century excavations, both sanctioned and illegal, resulted in the complete excavation of a burial mound which stood nearby. The county acquired the property in 1948, and has conducted investigations into the site since then. The site is the southernmost in Florida that exhibits the influence of

Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture was a Native Americans in the United States, Native American civilization that flourished in what is now the Midwestern United States, Midwestern, Eastern United States, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from appr ...

. Pottery finds at the site share characteristics with the contemporaneous Fort Walton culture.

References

External links

Pinellas County listings
a
Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs
{{National Register of Historic Places in Florida Archaeological type sites Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida Mounds in Florida National Historic Landmarks in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Pinellas County, Florida Native American history of Florida Florida Native American Heritage Trail 1966 establishments in Florida Protected areas established in 1966

Description

Archaeological significance

See also

References

External links