  Shown within Florida | |
| Location | Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida, USA |
|---|---|
| Region | Leon County, Florida |
| Coordinates | 30°30′4.39″N84°13′19.78″W / 30.5012194°N 84.2221611°W /30.5012194; -84.2221611 |
| History | |
| Founded | 1450 |
| Abandoned | 1625 |
| Cultures | Fort Walton Culture,Apalachee |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1970s, 1980s |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural styles | platform mound |
| Responsible body: State of Florida | |
Velda Mound (8LE44) is aNative Americanarchaeological site located in northernTallahassee,Leon County, Florida, United States. The site was first occupied by peoples of theFort Walton Culture (a regional variation of theMississippian culture[1]) in the late prehistoric period and during the protohistoric period was part of the extensiveApalachee Province of the panhandle. The site is now owned by the State of Florida and managed as a park.
Velda Mound was built in approximately 1450 by Fort Walton peoples and occupied by their descendants theApalachee until about 1625.[2][3] The Spanish explorers called this areaApalachee Province in recognition of the tribe's power, a territory which also included theLake Jackson Mounds and major center ofAnhaica. Theplatform mound is believed to have served as a residence for a village leader, with a village surrounding the mound. The village inhabitants cultivated vegetables in small family plots and farmed largecommunal farming fields in the area around the village.[3] They cultivated numerous varieties ofmaize,beans andsquash.
Velda Mound was abandoned byindigenous peoples by the beginning of theSpanish Mission Period (ca. 1565). This was most likely the result of their depleting nearby natural resources, such as trees for building homes and for firewood. The soil may have become depleted as well. The people would move to new lands which were more fertile, and allow older areas to recover. No evidence exists showing occupation of the mound by the later Spanish or British colonists.
In March 1922, a Florida State College for Women instructor, Emma Boyd, was killed when a portion of the mound collapsed while she and her friends were excavating it.[4] During the 1950s, the area around the mound was part of the pastures used by the large Velda Dairy operation. During this era, looters continued digging into the mound to search forartifacts, which damaged the mound and altered its structure. The dairy property was later sold for redevelopment as the Arbor Hill residential subdivision. The mound has since been repaired and is now owned by the State of Florida.
| Middle Mississippian |
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| South Appalachian Mississippian |
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| Fort Walton culture | |||||||||||
| Pensacola culture | |||||||||||
| Plaquemine Mississippian | |||||||||||
| Caddoan Mississippian | |||||||||||
| Upper Mississippian cultures |
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| Culture |
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