A Battlefield with a View: Visibility and Weighted Cost Path Modeling of the Battle of the Wabash

Summary

The Applied Anthropology Laboratories has conducted five years of research at the site of two of the most significant battles in the Northwest Territory: Battle of the Wabash (1791) and the Battle of Fort Recovery (1794). A recent survey and GIS analysis has shed new light on the Battle of the Wabash and particularly the Native American Confederacy’s (NAC) strategy and actions. Using visibility weighted cost paths we were able to predict the locations of survey finds. The survey results were used to refine our GIS model of the NAC strategy. Significantly, our survey located the probable location of the NAC staging ground and identified two or three avenues of attack. Further, our application of visibility analysis reveals the factors of the setting and terrain that contributed to St. Clair’s defeat at the Battle of the Wabash.

Cite this Record

A Battlefield with a View: Visibility and Weighted Cost Path Modeling of the Battle of the Wabash. Kevin Nolan, Christine Thompson, Shelbi Long, Erin Donovan, Erin Steinwachs. Presented at The 81st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Orlando, Florida. 2016 ( tDAR id: 404828)

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Spatial Coverage

min long: -104.634; min lat: 36.739 ; max long: -80.64; max lat: 49.153 ;