Turtle Mound is a prehistoric archaeological site located south of

New Smyrna Beach New Smyrna Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States, located on the central east coast of the state, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east. The downtown section of the city is located on the west side of the Indian River and the ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, on State Road A1A, between the

Mosquito Lagoon Mosquito Lagoon is a body of water located on the east coast of Florida in Brevard County, Florida, Brevard and Volusia County, Florida, Volusia counties. It is part of the Indian River Lagoon system and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. It exte ...

and the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

. On September 29, 1970, it was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Today the site is owned and managed by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

as part of

Canaveral National Seashore The Canaveral National Seashore (CANA) is a National Seashore located between New Smyrna Beach and Titusville, Florida, in Volusia and Brevard Counties. The park, located on a barrier island, was created on January 3, 1975, by an act of Cong ...

Characteristics

Turtle Mound - Canaveral National Seashore Florida

A refuse deposit composed mostly of oyster shells, the mound ranges for over along the lagoon shoreline and holds over of shells. It is the largest

shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

midden on the mainland United States, with an approximate height of , but no extensive excavations have been made. Sparsely vegetated in the early 19th century, it has since been covered by a dense maritime hammock, its primary cover being woody. Along with similar mounds regionally, it is the northernmost outpost of several tropical plant taxa, possibly due to its secluded, elevated, seaside location and to heat retention by shells; a study in 1923 found its flora to be "largely of a tropical character", as did repeated surveys that also spotted rare species. Migratory

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adaptation, adapted to life within the marine ecosystem, marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent ...

raptor Raptor(s) or RAPTOR may refer to: Animals The word "raptor" refers to several groups of avian and non-avian dinosaurs which primarily capture and subdue/kill prey with their talons. * Raptor (bird) or bird of prey, a bird that primarily hunt ...

s, and other avians frequent the site, likely fostering seed dispersal there. Its peak affords the site a panorama for miles, leading a visitor in 1926 to remark that "one has the sensation of standing on top of a mountain". The statehouse in Eldora and nearby Bethune Beach are observable from its top, along with many other features that set the site apart from other such points in Florida: over of wild coastline to its south, the lagoon to its west, and the ocean to its east.

History

The mound, dating to between 800 and 1400, contains waste from the

Timucua The Timucua were a Native American people who lived in Northeast and North Central Florida and southeast Georgia. They were the largest indigenous group in that area and consisted of about 35 chiefdoms, many leading thousands of people. The va ...

, who caught many reptiles and small mammals here. The Timucua may have used the site as an observatory, for ceremonies, or as a refuge during

hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

s. Prior to the late 19th century Turtle Mound was estimated to be high. Visible seaward, the mound was used as a

landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern-day use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures ...

by mariners, including

Spanish explorer Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

s and later navigators. Along with the Green Mound, Turtle Mound was one of the most visible markers on the Florida east coast before lighthouses were built. In 1605

Álvaro Mexía Alvaro Mexia was a 17th-century Spain, Spanish explorer and cartography, cartographer of the east coast of Florida. Mexia was stationed in St. Augustine, Florida, St Augustine and was given a diplomatic mission to the Indigenous peoples of Florid ...

noted the site, dubbing it ''Baradero de

Surruque The Surruque people lived along the middle Atlantic coast of Florida during the 16th and 17th centuries. They may have spoken a dialect of the Timucua language, but were allied with the Ais. The Surruque became clients of the Spanish government ...

'', and observed natives floating their dugout canoes at its foot. In the late 18th century the site was named Mount Belvedere (1769), The Rock (1769), and Mount Tucker (1796). Over time the mound began to take the form of a turtle, giving the feature its name—a toponym first used on a map published in

William Bartram William Bartram (April 20, 1739 – July 22, 1823) was an American naturalist, writer and explorer. Bartram was the author of an acclaimed book, now known by the shortened title Bartram's ''Travels'', which chronicled his explorations of the S ...

's ''Travels'' (1791). Like other mounds, it was slated for use as fill material, but efforts by John B. Stetson Jr. and other individuals led to its acquisition by the State of Florida in 1951. A wall to halt erosion was erected in 1964 on its northwest, and a pair of lookouts were added in 1972.

Tropical plant taxa

Gallery

File:TurtleMound1924_sm1968.jpg, Turtle Mound in 1924 File:TurtleMound1929_ge1157.jpg, Turtle Mound in 1929 File:CNS Turtle Mound sign01.jpg, Sign pointing the way to mound File:CNS Turtle Mound walkway01.jpg, Walkway toward mound File:CNS Turtle Mound shells03.jpg, Shells visible through vegetation File:CNS Turtle Mound top west02.jpg, Looking west from top of mound File:CNS Turtle Mound boardwalk03.jpg, Boardwalk to top of mound

Notes

References

Sources

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External links

Volusia County listings
a
National Register of Historic Places: Turtle Mound

Volusia County listings
a
Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs - ''Turtle Mound ''
{{National Register of Historic Places in Florida Shell middens in Florida Woodland period Native American history of Florida Archaeological sites in Florida Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Volusia County, Florida Protected areas of Volusia County, Florida Mounds in Florida Florida Native American Heritage Trail Timucua