Ohio Historical Society and the Arc of Appalachia
In 2009, the non-profit Arc of Appalachia Preserve System was honored to begin serving as the on-site manager for Fort Hill and nearby Serpent Mound in partnership with its long term and current owners, the Ohio Historical Society. The 63-cre park  is one of 58 state memorials administered by the Ohio Historical Society, and one of thirteen preserves managed by the Arc of Appalachia Preserve System.
 

The park and burial mounds are open every day throughout the year during daylight hours, except in the winter when ice and snow conditions may make parking unsafe. If uncertain about winter access, please call ahead at 937-587-2796.

The Museum and gift shop at Serpent Mound are open as follows:

March: Weekends 10am - 5pm

April - October: Every day 10am - 5 pm

November 1 - December 20: Weekends 10am - 4 pm

 

December 20 (2010) through February: Museum Closed

For safety please honor all posted hours of operation, and please respect our small staff as we do whatever possible to accommodate our guests while protecting the grounds from vandalism.

Cost

A parking fee is charged per vehicle at Serpent Mound, which accesses the park, hiking trails, and Museum (during open hours).

 Donations to the non-profit Arc of Appalachia Preserve System help keep Serpent Mound open to the public with these low fees. Such gifts are fully tax deductible and are greatly appreciated.

PARKING FEES:

Free parking  for all Ohio Historical Society Members & Arc of Appalachia Preserve System Members

Personal Vehicle                     $7*

Motorcycle                              $2

RV or Commercial Van            $9*

School Bus                               $35***

Commercial Bus                      $70

Season Car Pass                     $20**
 

* $1.00 discount for AAA members and half price for Active Military
** Arc Resident Discount Seasonal Pass   $12   (For residents of Adams, Highland, Ross, Pike, & Scioto Counties)

Guided Tours. Guided tours are available whenever staff/volunteers are available and the group is registered in advance. Program fee is $5.00/person. Minimum of 15 people. Please call ahead at 937-587-2796.
School Programs. **** As a courtesy to children's school groups in the spring and fall, a program is included without additional charge whenever staff/volunteers are available and the school is registered in advance. Please call ahead at 937-587-2796.
 

Serpent Mound's Earthworks

What is Serpent Mound?

"The most singular sensation of awe and admiration overwhelmed me at this sudden realization of my long-cherished desire, for here before me was the mysterious work of an unknown people...I mused on the probabilities of the past; and there seemed to come to me a picture as of a distant time" - F.W. Putnam at the Serpent Mound, 1883

Nominated as a World Heritage Site, Serpent Mound is the largest surviving example of a prehistoric effigy mound in the world. Stretching 1,348 feet over the ground, the beautifully preserved ancient earthwork depicts the form of an undulating serpent with an oval shape at the head. Many groups of cultures called the area of Southern Ohio home for thousands of years prior to European contact, and vestiges of their sophisticated art and large-scale earthen creations still remain. Unfortunately many of our land's prehistoric earthworks have been lost in the recent centuries to development and agriculture.

 

Who built Serpent Mound?

Early excavations of portions of the Serpent Mound revealed no artifacts to help identify which Native American culture constructed this immense earthwork. It is possible that several different cultures used the site in succession over time, regardless of the identity of the original builders. Three conical burial mounds are associated with the site. Two of them belong to the Adena Culture (800 BC-100 AD), and one to the Fort Ancient Culture (1000 - 1650 AD). A nearby village site evidences occupation by both the Adena and the later Fort Ancient Cultures.

The most recent evidence for the authorship of Serpent Mound came in 1991, when a small excavation site from the late 1800's was carefully reopened for new examination. Pieces of charcoal recovered at that time were radio carbon dated to a little more than 900 years ago, which would seem to indicate the much later Fort Ancient Culture.  The builders left no written records, so investigation and speculation continues on in both archaeological and less formal circles -- attempting to explain the Serpent's mysterious origins.

 

What is purpose of the Serpent Mound?

The original purpose of the Serpent Mound remains a mystery, lost to a broken oral tradition that might have otherwise connected us to the distant past. However, there are many theories as to what the earthwork could have been intended for. Striking astronomical correlations suggest a sacred or practical calendar, and an earthly acknowledgment of cosmic celestial events. The nearby burial mounds, and the timelessly moving quality of the serpent's coils suggest it was once a site of sacred worship. Some people conjecture the serpent's form mirrors constellations found in the sky above. The serpent motif has a connection to the cycles of birth, death, and nature in many cultures throughout the world. Modern visitors may enjoy contemplating the mysteries of our land's ancestors, feeling a connection to the past, and sensing of wonder at the scale of early people's physical and artistic accomplishments. Mystery, rather than certainty, remains this site's greatest gift to present generations, and all visitors are welcome to enter the circle of conjecture.

What is the recent history of the site?

Serpent Mound was known to Native peoples and early settlers of Adams County for many years, but was brought to general attention in the 1840's by the famous pair who made a broad survey of Ohio's earthworks: Squier and Davis. In the 1880's, Massachusetts archaeologist Frederick Ward Putnam became interested in the site and noticed that it was being degraded by erosion and vandalism. He was able to raise the funds to purchase the land in the name of Harvard University, and it was dedicated as a public park. In 1900 the site was turned over to the Ohio Historical Society, which supervised the building of the observation tower overlooking the effigy, and later in the 1930's, the facilities and shelter house. The interpretive exhibits in the museum were added in the mid-1970's.

 Natural Area with Unusual Geologic Features

Beautiful Hiking Along the Cliffs

Approximately a one-half mile long trail winds below the cliff of  Serpent Mound and along the Ohio Brush Creek that borders the park.

Hikers, please note backcountry trail conditions. The trail is primitive in nature, being narrow, uneven, and occasionally steep. After a rain or in the spring after winter snow melt, the paths can be muddy, so please be prepared with proper foot gear.

Protected natural area. Serpent Mound is a protected natural area. Regulations require that hikers remain on the trails, and avoid harvesting or disturbing plant and animal life. Fishing and hunting are not permitted. Dogs are allowed, but must be kept on a leash at all times.

Serpent Mound Museum

The gift shop features jewelry and crafts by local artists, stone carvings, and books with various topics in archaeology, earthwork mysteries, Native American interest, and natural history.

Picnicking and Picnic Shelter Reservation

Picnicking at Serpent Mound is a time-honored tradition, for which the park offers ample green space and picnic tables in manicured lawns. The picnic shelter provides a protected refuge for picnickers when not otherwise reserved for special events. Other than a drinking fountain, there is no running water or food concessions at Serpent Mound, so guests should plan accordingly.

Serpent Mound's picnic shelter may be reserved at no charge  other than the normal parking fee per vehicle.  Please contact Serpent Mound at 937-587-2796 to arrange a reservation.
 

Lodging
The Arc of Appalachia Preserve System offers outstanding lodging facilities for individuals and groups within the Arc's headquarters at the Highlands Nature Sanctuary, a thirty-five minute drive north from Serpent Mound. The Arc offers cabins overlooking the Rocky Fork Gorge and group lodging in historic buildings. Click here for more information.

Friends of Serpent Mound's Special Events
A volunteer group known as Friends of Serpent Mound hosts a variety of special events during the year at the Serpent Mound site, including the popular lighting of the Serpent on the winter solstice. Here is a list of their tentative events for 2010. Click here to go directly to their website for event confirmation and complete details. For information on programs at other Ohio Historical Society sites, please see http://ohsweb.ohiohistory.org/calendar/.

August 11, 2010 Perseids Meteor Showers - 8:00pm - 11:00pm
Gather @ 8:00 to watch the sky for meteor showers. We hope to take a count of how many meteors we see and what direction they are moving. Amateur Astronomer, John Knoechelman will be taking us on a guided tour thru the sky.

August 28, 2010 Archaeology & Ohio Geology Day - 10:00am - 5:00pm.
Members from different chapters of the Archaeological Society of Ohio will display their artifacts and be available to answer questions from the public. Plus, learn about Adams County's unique geological feature “the Serpent Mound Crypto Explosion Area,” as well as, the three different soil types that make the county's flora so diverse. At Serpent Mound in Peebles, Ohio.

September 18 & 19, 2010 Woodland Indian Festival - 10:00-5:00 pm
A two day event filled with information on the Woodland Indian Culture.

December 20, 2010 “Lighting the Serpent” – (Rain or wind date – Dec. 21st), 4:00pm - 8:00pm
Celebrate the Winter Solstice at Serpent Mound. Help volunteers light over 900 luminary candle bags that will outline the serpent effigy. Take a casual stroll and reflect upon the history and importance of this world-renowned earthwork. Bring a long taper candle to help light other candles, or just take in the scenic, holiday, festive glow. There will be hot drinks and munchies. Contact: Delsey Wilson, 1-937-205-0094.

 Interested in Visiting Other Native American Sites in Ohio?

The best preserved geometrical earthwork remnants of the Hopewell Culture is located at Newark Earthworks near Granville, east of Columbus. A fully reconstructed enclosure and mound system known as Mound City earthworks can be found at  Hopewell Culture National Historical Park just north of Chillicothe. The earthworks complex and an interpretive museum at Mound City is operated by the National Park Service. In addition to Fort Hill, another hilltop enclosure is preserved at Fort Ancient, located near present-day Lebanon. This is a particularly well-preserved and large-walled earthwork complex built by the Hopewell Culture, but inhabited later by the Fort Ancient Culture. Museum displays are part of the public offering. 

Seip Mound, a few miles west of Chillicothe, features an impressively large mound, a remnant of what was once part of a large Hopewell Culture earthworks complex in scenic Paint Valley. Sunwatch Village is a re-created Native American Village in Dayton, representing the later Fort Ancient Culture.

Fort Hill  Fort Hill earthwork is an ancient earthen-walled enclosure constructed on top of a large flat-topped ridge. The earthen-stone wall has a circumference over one and a half miles, its span interrupted with with thirty three gateways. The wall itself ranges from 6 to 15 feet in height, averages 30 feet wide at its base, and encloses forty eight acres. It is conjectured that Fort Hill was most likely not a fort at all, but a ceremonial gathering space. Archaeological evidence suggests that the earthwork was built approximately 2000 years ago by people belonging to what is often referred to as the Hopewell Culture, an epithet derived from the surname of the European owner of an early excavation site in Chillicothe, Ohio. Fort Hill is protected as much for its outstanding natural features as its archaeological ones. Fort Hill preserves one of the largest and oldest examples of native forest to be found in southern Ohio. A total of eleven miles of hiking trails exist at Fort Hill, offering some of the best hiking in the entire state of Ohio. Because of the relatively long length of the preserve's three trails, they are best suited for hiking enthusiasts.

Directions

Serpent Mound
David Kuehner, Site Manager
3850 SR 73, Peebles, OH 45660-2796

Phone:
Serpent Mound Phone: 937-587-2796  
Email address: serpentmound@arcofappalachia.org

¹Robert C. Glotzhober and Bradley T. Lepper, Serpent Mound: Ohio's Enigmatic Effigy Mound (Ohio Historical Society, 1994)