Mason County, WV - An Archaeological Treasure |
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The
Orchard Site (46MS61) Another important village site in Mason County is the Orchard site (46MS61). The village is located on a second terrace of the Ohio River, approximately six miles above the mouth of the Kanawha. The property was once known as Riverview, the home of Dr. Jesse Bennett, who, in 1794, performed the first known Caesarean operation in North America. Most of the archaeological site was located in the old orchard that was planted sometime in the early 1800s. Shell-tempered ceramic vessels from the Orchard Site. Photograph courtesy of Roland Barnett. |
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The site was discovered around 1938, when a young man who lived there noticed a fish effigy pipe that had been dug up by a hog. He and several other amateur archaeologists dug there until World War II, when the U.S. government built a TNT plant on part of the property. Other collectors excavated there until the 1960s. The property is presently occupied by City Ice and Fuel and the remains of the TNT plant Shell-tempered ceramic vessels from the Orchard Site. Photographs courtesy of Roland Barnett. |
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The Orchard Site (46MS61) Over 300 burials were reported from the Orchard site, although records currently exist for approximately 150. One of the most distinctive characteristics of the Orchard site, compared to other late Pre-Contact village sites in West Virginia, is the high percentage of burials with mortuary pottery vessels. Over 100 vessels were found, some of which still contained evidence of food. Many also contained a single mussel shell, presumably used as a spoon. Shell-tempered ceramic vessels from the Orchard Site. Photograph courtesy of Roland Barnett. |
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The pottery from the site is almost identical to that found at two sites in Ohio with firm radiocarbon dates. The similarities suggest regular contact between the villages. From the dates of these sites, the major occupation at the Orchard site was probably between A.D. 1550 and 1650. Shell-tempered lizard effigy pot from the Orchard Site. |
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Over 50 smoking pipes were found at the Orchard site, as well as hundreds of projectile points, bone and shell beads, bone tools, and copper or brass ornaments. The Orchard site was also multi-component with earlier, possibly Woodland burials below the village site. Photograph courtesy of Roland Barnett. |
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Assorted
stone smoking pipes from the Orchard Site
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Assorted
stone smoking pipes from the Orchard Site.
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