Of the many peoples inhabiting the Great Eastern Forest in what is now the United States, the Hopewell Culture, spanning 50 BCE to 400 CE was one of the most artistic and geographically influential. The Hopewell peoples were not the only American Indians to build earthworks, but they certainly were the most consummate. Their works span everything from solitary mounds and earthwork enclosures to immense sacred landscapes with multiple and connecting features, sometimes aligned to cosmic celestial events.
Tremper Mound was constructed on the west terrace of the Scioto River, five miles north of its confluence with the Ohio. Built late in the first century BCE, which was quite early in the Hopewell Cultural era, Tremper Mound’s irregularly shaped 8-foot-tall mound was built on the burnt ruins of a large multi-chambered ceremonial building, enclosed by an oval earthen wall that was 500 feet across. Tremper Mound did not stand alone; it was part of a group of mounds and earthworks that were part of an even larger complex centered at the Mouth of the Scioto River. Known as the Portsmouth Earthworks, the complex spanned both sides of the Ohio River in three main centers of development.
Through the HEART of Appalachian Ohio Project Tremper Mound will be enhanced and opened for the first time to public. This critical earthwork is the last of the Portsmouth Earthworks and the installation of a viewing tower and pollinator area will add to the visitor experience.
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