Mounds and Middens

Mounds and Middens

Florida State Parks protect natural and cultural resources that help us connect with…the Real Florida. November is Native American Heritage Month, and we’re featuring two relevant cultural resources: ceremonial mounds and shell middens. 

Ceremonial mounds served a variety of purposes: some may have been territorial markers, burial sites or had other religious significance. Although they may look similar on the surface, by contrast, a shell midden is a mound of shells, bones and other debris discarded by the early inhabitants of an area. These layered sites are a preserved record of the people who once lived there, showing what they ate, what tools they may have used and other features of the technology and culture of the time. 

The large ceremonial mound at Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park is the tallest in Florida, made with an estimated 27 million gallons of a soil-shell mixture and encased in clay. Archaeological research indicates the mounds were built by hand, one basketful at a time, by members of the Swift Creek and Weeden Island Native American cultures, although some experts have suggested the mounds were more in the style of the later Mississippian culture. 

Further south, Mound Key Archaeological State Park provides details about a Native American tribe known as the Calusa, and how their shell middens sometimes took on more culturally significant purposes. Mound Key, known then as “Calos,” is believed to have been the cultural center for the Calusa. While these mounds were originally thought to simply be a place where the Calusa discarded their trash, research has found that these mounds also served as territory markers and burial memorials. 

One feature these resources have in common is their protection. It’s important to remember that special rules are in place to preserve…the Real Florida for all. If you see something you think may be an artifact at a state park, leave it alone and notify park staff.  

Get to know…the Real Florida by viewing middens, mounds and artifacts at a state park near you!