392 ANNUAL KEPOET SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1934 



has been conducted on the Macon group than on any other group in 

 the history of systematic archeology in the Southeast, and the final 

 results of the work should furnish us with keys to many of the 

 general southeastern problems. 



NORTH CAROLINA 

 PEACHTREE MOUND AND VILLAGE SITE 



To recover at least a part of the prehistory of southwestern North 

 Carolina, an important Indian mound and village site in the Hiwas- 

 see River Valley, near the mouth of Peachtree Creek, was selected 

 for excavation. This selection was made upon the recommendation 

 of Dr. John E. Swanton, ethnologist in the Bureau of American 

 Ethnology, who regards the location as, in all probability, that of 

 Guasili, visited by Hernando De Soto and his soldiers in the summer 

 of 1540. 



The mound, 215 feet long, 180 feet w4de, and lOi/o feet high, was 

 built above a 2-foot stratum of black loam, in which were found 

 burial pits, post holes, and much village-site debris. Originally it 

 was a truncated pyramid, an artificial elevation commonly used by 

 various southeastern Indian tribes as supports for temples or chiefs' 

 houses. Within 4 feet of the top, three distinct hard-clay floors were 

 superimposed, indicating that when the mound had reached a cer- 

 tain height the top was leveled otf and a wooden structure with a 

 clay floor was built. After its destruction by fire or other agencies a 

 second structure was superimposed. This occurred at least three 

 times. 



Except for important features in the mound ver}^ few artifacts 

 or burials were placed in the mound proper. However, Indians 

 buried in pits dug into the mound surface were associated with 

 articles of European origin, such as glass beads, lead bullets, and 

 broken spurs, indicating contact with the white man. Most of the 

 skeletal material was poorl}^ preserved. 



The most important feature in the mound proper was the remains 

 of a structure 25 feet square and probably 7 feet high. Excavation 

 revealed a hard thin floor extending beyond the walls, which may 

 have constituted the floor of a much larger structure. The sides of 

 the building consisted of piles of stones, which served as a founda- 

 tion to support vertical posts (pi. 6, fig. 1). Four large post 

 holes were found, one at each corner, remnants of the main roof 

 supports. The stone walls rested on the clay floor, but the holes 

 extended beneath it. Residue of the pole and brush roof lay in 

 the center of the various compartments. There existed at least 

 six partitions or rooms along the stone walls (pi. 6, fig. 2). These 



