The Mandeville site ( 9CY1) is an

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Flo ...

in southwest Georgia in the United States. The site now lies under the Walter F. George Reservoir, which is a part of the

Chattahoochee River The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida - Georgia border. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chatt ...

basin.

History

The first occupations of the site were a village settlement during the Deptford period. Occupation of the site and the construction of two mounds continue into the

Middle Woodland period In the classification of archaeological cultures of North America, the Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures spanned a period from roughly 1000 BCE to European contact in the eastern part of North America, with some archaeologi ...

. Ceramic evidence also dates occupation to the Early Swift Creek culture. The final layer of Mound A indicates it was converted to a

platform mound Platform may refer to: Technology * Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run * Platform game, a genre of video games * Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models * Weapons platform, a system or ...

typical of the

Mississippian period The Mississippian ( , also known as Lower Carboniferous or Early Carboniferous) is a subperiod in the geologic timescale or a subsystem of the geologic record. It is the earlier of two subperiods of the Carboniferous period lasting from rough ...

Excavations

The site was first visited by Clarence B. Moore at the turn of the century. He tested the site but did not conduct any excavations due to negative results. The site was visited by a field party from the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

in 1950. Some minor surface excavations were conducted. Thorough excavations on the site were conducted during 1959-1960 by Arthur Kelly, James H. Kellar and Edward V. McMichael before construction of the dam. The site is no longer accessible for excavation.

Site description

The site contains two mounds, a flat top mound (Mound A), and one large dome shaped burial mound (Mound B). Mound A is about by and about in height. Mound B is about by . There is also a village situated between the two mounds approximately in area. A pre-mound village occupation, dated to the Deptford period exists beneath Mound A. Evidence for small circular houses and pits were found dated to this time. The first layers of Mound construction are attributed to the Late Deptford Period, with subsequent cultures building upon the original. The site was abandoned during the Woodland Period and re-inhabited about 500 years later during the Mississippian Period.

Artifacts

The most significant artifacts at the Mandeville site consist of ceramics, including vessels and potsherds. Bone tools and projectile points were also found, along with flake knives. Fragments from a ceramic figurine were found, including the head and two torso fragments.

References

External links