James K. Hampson

James Kelly Hampson (1877 – 8 October 1956) was the archaeologist to excavate and preserve the artifacts from the Nodena Site and owner of the Hampson Plantation in Wilson, Arkansas.[1][2]

For the English footballer, see Jimmy Hampson
James K. Hampson exhibit at the Hampson Museum State Park

The Hampson Museum State Park in Wilson, Arkansas is named after James K. Hampson. The museum exhibits an archeological collection of early American aboriginal artifacts from the Nodena Site.

In 1900 Hampson documented the discovery of a prehistoric mastodon skeleton 2 mi (3,2 km) south of the Nodena site.[3]

Nodena village
Main article: Nodena Site

At the Nodena Site, archeological artifacts from a 15 acre (60,703 m2) aboriginal village dated 1400-1650 CE were discovered by Hampson in the first half of the 20th century. The village was located about 5 mi (8 km) east of Wilson, Arkansas, and 4 mi (6.4 km) northeast of Reverie, Tennessee.[4]

In 1964 the Nodena Site was declared a National Historic Landmark.[5] In 1966 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.[6]

Hampson Museum State Park
Main article: Hampson Museum State Park

The Hampson Museum State Park exhibits an archeological collection of early American aboriginal artifacts from the Nodena Site.[1][7]

The museum documents the culture of a civilization which existed in a 15-acre (60,703 m2) palisaded village on a meander bend of the Mississippi River in the Wilson, Arkansas area around 1400-1650 CE. Cultivation of crops, hunting, social life, religion and politics of that ancient civilization are topics of the exhibition.[1][7]

Prehistoric mastodon skeleton
Main article: Island 35 Mastodon

Mastodons are members of the prehistoric, extinct genus Mammut, they resemble modern elephants. Native to North America they are said to have lived on the North American continent from almost 4 million years ago until their eventual disappearance about 10,000 years ago.[8]

In 1900 Hampson documented the find of skeletal remains of a mastodon on Island No. 35 of the Mississippi River, 2 mi (3,2 km) south of the Nodena site and 23 mi (37 km) south of Blytheville, Arkansas.[3] In 1957 the site was reported as destroyed.[3]

References
  1. http://www.arkansasstateparks.com/hampsonmuseum/ ArkansasStateParks.com, Hampson Museum
  2. Williams, Steven (Apr 1957). James Kelly Hampson. 1877-1956. American Antiquity, Vol. 22, No. 4, pp. 398-400.
  3. Williams, Steven (Apr 1957). "The Island 35 Mastodon: Its Bearing on the Age of Archaic Cultures in the East". American Antiquity. 22 (4): 359–372. doi:10.2307/276134. JSTOR 276134.
  4. Nodena, Arkansas: USGS Geographic Names Information System
  5. "Nodena Site". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. 2007-09-26. Archived from the original on 2007-03-01.
  6. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-10-17. Retrieved 2007-10-07.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Visiomania.com, Hampson Museum
  8. "Greek mastodon find 'spectacular'". BBC News. 24 July 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
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