Preserving pre-historic Native American culture is at the core of Etowah Indian Mound’s mission. In fact, it is the most intact Mississippian period site in the Southeast. Guests can take stairs to the top of three large earthen mounds (Mound A is the second tallest Mississippian mound in the country) that were constructed several centuries ago. Amazingly, only about nine percent of this archaeological site has been excavated. One exciting discovery was the floorplan of a dwelling that dates from AD 1250 to 1325.
Using that floorplan, a team of American Indians, volunteers, and staff reconstructed a wattle and daub hut at Etowah in 2008. It was constructed of upright posts with woven green cane (wattle). Daub made of Georgia red clay was mixed with grass and water and "daubed" to the wattle. While a great feature to the site, time (and groundhogs) have not been kind to it. It requires a great deal of volunteer and staff efforts to care for the dwelling, as cracking and shrinking are typical effects from this style of construction.
Thanks to Friends of Etowah, great strides have been made to help maintain and restore the wattle and daub house so that it can be enjoyed by guests and utilized during educational programming. Currently, rafters are being installed and the hut is coming along nicely.
If you would like to help Friends support this ongoing project and learn more about Native American culture, call the historic site office at 770-387-3747