PO Box 276, c/o Poverty Point State Commemorative Area, Epps, LA 71237
Phone: 318-926-5492 or 888-926-5492
Fax: 318-926-5492
Open All Year
Overview. Until man took to the air, no one imagined these earthen ridges in northeastern Louisiana were anything other than natural features. From above, however, the ridges proved to be six rows suggesting an unfinished octagon and four mounds, clearly the work of man. The most spectacular, Poverty Point Mound, is a 700-by-800-foot bird effigy, and rises to a height of 70 feet. Archaeologists think the ridges once stood five to ten feet high, and might have served as foundations for dwellings, but no one knows for sure. Mound "B," 20 feet tall and conical, was built over a crematory, but there is no evidence that the mounds were burial sites. No matter what their original use, these earthworks reveal the existence of a highly sophisticated culture. Built between 700 and 1700 B.C., it is estimated that more than five million man-hours were required to construct what may be the earliest permanent residential site in the United States. Artifacts recovered at Poverty Point reveal that the prehistoric Indians who lived here traded with other groups from as far away as the Appalachian Mountains and what is now Michigan. In fact, archaeologists speculate that the site was a trading center where raw materials were collected and distributed to manufacturing sites in other locations. Thousands of artificial "cooking stones" fashioned out of local clay have been found at the site, as well as the imprints of cane baskets and animal-skin pouches used to bring in earth to construct the ridges and mounds. Other discoveries include fiber-tempered pottery, microlithic stone tools, steatite bowls, and stone beads, some of which are carved to resemble birds. What to see and do. The site is administered by the state of Louisiana as Poverty Point State Commemorative Area, and features a museum, hiking trails, picnic areas, and guided tours (in season). There are over 1,000 artifacts on display at the museum, which also offers an informative video presentation. From Easter until Labor Day, a guided tram tour ferries visitors to and from the most significant points of interest at the site. Two self-guided trails wind through Poverty Point, as well. If you're in the area in late September, you might want to stop by Poverty Point's celebration of Louisiana Archaeology Week and take in demonstrations of earth-oven cooking and flint-knapping. The monument/commemorative area is open from 9 AM to 5 PM all year. It is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.
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