Art-Worlds Criel Mound - South Charleston, West Virginia
Site: Criel Mound - South Charleston, West Virginia
Location: Staunton Park, 301 7th Ave, South Charleston, WV 25303
Google Maps Link
Date of visit: May 2023
This large mound is in a park surrounded by a very busy urban area. There are several historical markers displaying information about the site and the Adena culture. I couldn't see the Kanawha River from the top of the mound, although that may have been possible at one time. Close by is the South Charleston Museum & Interpretive Center, which has a collection of local Native American artifacts and prints of finds from the site. We were told the original artifacts are in a warehouse owned by the Smithsonian. Criel was once part of a larger earthwork called the Kanawha Valley Mounds.
Criel Mound is considered the second tallest in West Virginia. It has been modified over the years from its original conical shape. In 184, when the top was leveled to build a judges’ stand for horse races, human bones were found at a depth of three feet.
One of the more sensational finds by the US Bureau of Ethnology 1883-1884 excavation was the skeleton of "one most powerful man" thought to be at least 7 feet tall. The image or reconstruction of the body at the Interpretive Center was impressive. The man was tall and built with a very husky physique that would be a daunting sight for most people. Dr. Greg Little has explored the subject of unusually large skeletons in Pre-Columbian America in his book Path of Souls. The AP Magazine website also has an interesting article on the topic. He writes that West Virginia, especially the Kanawha Valley, had the greatest number of large skeletons.
Links to more information
- The Truth about Giant Skeletons in American Indian Mounds, by Dr. Greg Little | AP Magazine web site
- Creel (Criel) Mound: South Charleston Interpretive Center website: Visit South Charleston West Virginia