Ancient Fermilab: The Mier Collection of Native American Artifacts
Native American Cultural Chronology Paleoindian – 12,000 – 10,000 years ago Archaic – 10,000 – 3,000 years ago Woodland – 3,000 – 1,100 years ago Mississippian – 1,100 – 700 years ago Late Prehistoric – 700 – 329 years ago European Contact – 329 years ago
Archaeological sites at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory
Mier Collection Artifacts Paleoindian 5/2% Early Archaic86/26% Middle Archaic83/26% Late Archaic86/26% Late Archaic/Early Woodland17/5% Late Woodland 3/1% Mississippian/Late Prehistoric45/14%
Cultural Context of the Meir Fermilab Collection An overview of cultural periods illustrated with artifacts from Native American sites in Illinois.
Paleoindian
Paleoindian spear points
A Paleoindian family
Mastodon hunters
Archaeological sites near Nelson Lake
Archaic
Early Archaic spear points
Archaic Grooved Axes
Archaic dart points
Hunting with an atlatl
Gathering seeds and collecting fish
Woodland
Harvesting Squash
Middle Woodland Pot
Middle Woodland Platform Pipe
Dongola chert disks
Mica
Woodland Copper Adze
Middle Woodland Platform Pipe
Woodland village
Mississippian
Mississippian arrow points
Mississippian hoe
Cultivating corn outside a Mississippian village
Mississippian Birger Figurine
Mississippian marine shell maskette
Mississippian wooden mask
Mississippian town
Late Prehistoric
Late Prehistoric Oneota pot
Late Prehistoric Oneota fish lures
Late Prehistoric conflict
European Contact
French crucifix
European glass beads
Historic Village
In 1845, 12,000 years after the arrival of their ancestors, the last Native American tribe in Illinois was forcibly removed.
Today, although all of the tribes once- resident in Illinois live elsewhere, thousands of Native Americans call Illinois home.