Newark Earthworks photograph   Save
Ohio History Connection - Property Files
Description: The Newark Earthworks were built by the Hopewell people between 100 B.C.E. and A.D. 400. The Newark Earthworks were the largest set of geometric earthworks ever built in Ohio. They were constructed by the Hopewell culture (100 B.C. to 500 A.D.) of prehistoric Native American people. Originally it included a great circular enclosure (the Great Circle Earthworks), another slightly smaller circle that was linked to an octagon (Octagon Earthworks), and a large, nearly perfect square enclosure (Wright Earthworks). In addition an oval earthwork surrounded a dozen conical and loaf-shaped mounds. All of these structures were connected by a series of parallel walls. There were many smaller circular enclosures and a scattering of other mounds and pits. On the opposite bank of the Licking River's South Fork, another square enclosure and an oval earthwork encircled the top of a hill that overlooked the vast maze of geometric enclosures. In 2006, Governor Bob Taft formally declared the Newark Earthworks to be Ohio's state prehistoric monument, honoring the early American Indian builders of this site. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06601
Subjects: Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1–400); Mound-builders--Ohio; Archaeology--United States--History; Ohio state symbols
Places: Granville (Ohio); Licking County (Ohio)