new acquisition

Woodland Site Donated by Concerned Landowner

Having never been excavated, the Giesey site could offer a wealth of information about its inhabitants.

The Loyalhanna Creek attracted Native Americans throughout time. With the inception of horticulture in western Pennsylvania, the fertile flood plains became home to many Native Americans. The creek’s banks are littered with archaeological sites from its headwaters to its confluence with the Conemaugh River. One of those sites is Giesey, which stretches across 10 acres.

Giesey has been inhabited for the last 6,000 years. The Native Americans who lived there practiced horticulture, caught fish and fresh water mussels, and hunted elk and deer. Most of the artifacts found at Giesey are from the Woodland period. Archaeologist Bob Oshnock described the site as primarily an Early-to-Middle Woodland village in a mountain valley. “The site represents a setting in the uplands where prehistoric people exploited the resources of the mountain region,” Oshnock said. He believes Giesey “should eventually yield much information of even early prehistoric occupations.”

Archaeologist Dick George at the Giesey site. No formal excavations have yet been done at the site. It has tremendous research potential. During the Woodland period horticulture was practiced, the population grew, and lifestyles changed. Pottery became important. Native Americans started building mounds throughout the Ohio River Valley, some of which were utilized for burials and others for ceremonial traditions. The prospect of revealing information about this time of great change makes Giesey all the more important. The site’s research potential is great, as no formal excavations have been conducted there. Its alluvial soils also suggest the possibility of deep and stratified archaeological deposits that are undisturbed. Cordelia S. May is donating the Giesey site to the Conservancy to ensure its permanent preservation. For many years May has championed environmental and historical preservation. Many similar sites have been lost to modern agriculture and development. Western Pennsylvania is now home to five Conservancy preserves and, with the help of people like May, we hope to acquire more sites throughout the state.—Joe Navari