re: No more Indian mounds on gameday

September 14, 2010

Baton Rouge, LA

LSU Indian Mounds Reveal Surprising History

Students majoring in anthropology were baffled this morning when a houndstooth hat and coat were recovered from the site. Inside the coat was written "The Bear" in bold letters. Students could only guess that this be a reference to the chieftan of a local tribe that once inhabited the area. Hearing of the recent find, anthropology students from the nearby University of Alabama have reported that they believe the recent find at the ancient mounds is somehow connected with a ghost that has frequented the Tuscaloosa campus every few years since the mid 80s.

Boooooooooooo!

My kids love sliding down the Indian Mounds. They are just now getting old enough to slide down standing up, "surf-style". Before leaving for the game they always ask, "Do we have our (cardboard) boxes?"

Instead of only closing the mounds for the 7 or 8 home games "because of high traffic", how bout only opening them for the home games and closing them all other times of the year?

Also, I really don't think I'm going to sit there and talk with some goober/Ross Geller-type about the significance of the mounds. They'll be lucky if they don't get doused with beer.

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wow are they really? FTR I find this type of stuff amazing and super interesting. SO they are studying them to see what they were used for?

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Yes.

Archaeologists test ‘charcoal horizon’ at LSU

If you're really interested, you should visit a place called "Poverty Point".



Located in northeastern Louisiana, Poverty Point commemorates a culture that thrived during the first and second millennia B.C. This site, which contains some of the largest prehistoric earth works in North America, is managed by the state of Louisiana. These state park facilities are open to the public.

Poverty Point National Monument

It's just north of Delhi off of I-20, outside of Epps, on Bayou Macon.

Two observations:

(1) The article states that the mounds have been in existence for SIX THOUSAND YEARS. They been able to withstand six millenia of erosion, wind, storms, hurricanes, stifling humidity, relentless sun, and various forms of human trespass. They've endured through all 150 years of LSU's existence and approximately 120 years of home football seasons. Thus, it seems unlikely that the trampling feet of toddlers pose any imminent danger the mounds;

(2) In the newspaper piece, LSU all but concedes that there will be no mechanism whatsoever for enforcing the new policy. Hence, there will indeed be children on the mounds once again this season. It seems like little more than a symbolic gesture.

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I thought I remembered reading somewhere that those mounds were move to the campus from somewhere else.

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I thought I remembered reading somewhere that those mounds were move to the campus from somewhere else.

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Just pointing out that I did not say that.

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(2) In the newspaper piece, LSU all but concedes that there will be no mechanism whatsoever for enforcing the new policy. Hence, there will indeed be children on the mounds once again this season. It seems like little more than a symbolic gesture.

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I'd be cool with that. Perhaps they are just trying to raise a little awareness. Now let me rephrase an earlier statement. If some students were there to teach kids, and myself, the importance of the mounds, but not there to keep all kids off of the mound, then that could be good for all.

(no message)

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Yeah, I'm not really looking to obtain a master's degree on Saturday's in the fall with my two little boys by my side

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It's not whether or not you're matriculating for an advanced degree, but I take some amount of pride that the department that issued my degree, the Department of Geography and Anthropolgy, was ranked in the top 15 in the nation - of all schools, public and private. This is the very department that the "goober" would be studying Archeology in. There are other things besides the football team to take pride in at LSU.

It's too bad that you couldn't appreciate what we had there while you were in school.

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For christ sakes, people, they just want to keep grass growing on them to keep erosion to a minimum.

No one is saying that you can't go on them ever, just not on those 6 or 7 days a year when they get the most traffic.

And as far as focusing on more important matters, they're just going to put up some fencing, just like around the oaks, and some signs. If people are caught on them, they will just be asked to get off. It's not like they're going to hire special "Indian Mound Police" or something.

Some of you people make this out to be some sort of Aggie situation.

Yes, they've been around for thousands of years. Yes, they are showing signs of erosion. Can we just show a little respect for a National Historic Place while we conduct research as to their original purpose?

Some of you will bitch about absolutely ANYthing.

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Excellent post.