June 23, 2011
Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in Moundsville will continue its 2011 lecture and film series at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 30. The program, titled “Growing a Garden at Grave Creek Mound,” will be presented by Andrea Keller, cultural program coordinator at Grave Creek. The series is held in conjunction with the Upper Ohio Valley Chapter of the West Virginia Archaeological Society. The lectures are free and open to the public.
The June program will begin outdoors at the “Interpretive Garden” plot. The garden was planted in May with volunteers from the Webelows Pack 79 from Moundsville and the Marshall County Master Gardeners program. Horticulture students from John Marshall High School prepared the garden plot prior to planting under the guidance of their teacher Nicole Shipman.
The garden includes plants such as sunflowers, corn, beans, squash, pumpkins, and gourds that were grown by prehistoric Native Americans in the region. Specific varieties of heirloom plants were chosen based upon how closely they resemble plant remains described in archaeological reports. The outdoor tour will be followed by a slide program that will discuss these plants and how they fared in last year’s garden.
“This program is a great opportunity to learn about gardening and plants from an archaeological perspective,” said David Rotenizer, site manager at Grave Creek. “Our garden continues to generate a lot of interest.”
Keller has worked for the West Virginia Division of Culture and History since 1998. She started as a consultant working on the archaeological collection, which is now housed at Grave Creek’s Research Facility. She also worked as a survey archaeologist for the State Historic Preservation Office in Charleston and has been in her current position since 2007.
The lecture is part of a year-long monthly series of presentations relating to archaeology and historic preservation activities in West Virginia and the surrounding region. Next month’s program will feature the film, Secrets of the Valley: Prehistory of the Kanawha, sponsored by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on July 28.
For more information about the lecture and film series or other programs at Grave Creek Mound, contact Keller at (304) 843-4128 or e-mail her at Andrea.K.Keller@wv.gov. Indicate in the message if you are interested in receiving information of upcoming events at the mound.
Operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex features the largest conical burial mound in the New World and ranks as one of the largest earthen mortuary mounds anywhere in the world. The Delf Norona Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. It is closed on Mondays.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The Division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the Division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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