Subterranean Homesick Blues: Excavations at Site 51SE071, a Native American Settlement along the Anacostia River, Washington, D.C.

Summary

Construction of DC Water's new Poplar Point Pump Station in southeast Washington, D.C., led to the discovery of a buried river terrace under an I-295 interchange that contained Native American artifacts dating from the Middle Archaic period through the Late Woodland period. Archaeologists working more than 15 feet below ground in the construction footprint of a large subterranean structure recovered more than 7000 artifacts and identified the remains of a cooking hearth feature. This paper will explain how the geoarchaeological investigation identified the site in this complex urban environment and will report the results of the excavations. Use-wear analysis performed on chipped stone tools has provided evidence about the types of activities that occurred at this location. This paper will also discuss how the investigation of this site contributes to more than 100 years of Native American archaeology along the Anacostia River.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20995