NRHP Reference # 78001141 Added to NRHP 18 December 1978 | Area 8,094 m² Nearest city Palestine | |
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Location Northern side of 1150th Avenue immediately west of the Wabash River, northeast of Palestine | ||
The Riverton Site is an archaeological site located immediately west of the Wabash River and northeast of Palestine, Illinois. The site, which dates from the Late Archaic period, is the type site of the Riverton culture. The Riverton culture, of which only three known sites had been discovered as of 1978, inhabited the central Wabash Valley and had distinct methods of making tools. The remains at the Riverton site can be separated into two areas: a manufacturing area with pits and a significant number of discarded tools, and a residential area with the clay floors of homes. The site was first noticed in the 1950s, and Dr. Frank Winters of the Illinois State Museum began excavations at the site in 1961.
The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 18, 1978. It is one of three archaeological sites on the National Register in Crawford County; the other two sites, the Swan Island Site and the Stoner Site, were the other two known Riverton culture sites as of 1978.