Monticello, Florida

In my previous posting I mentioned that we were driving to Tallahassee to flee Hurricane Irma.   We actually were about 20 miles east of Tallahassee, probably closer to the small town of Monticello.  Our stay there was for two days, which was all the park owner would give us.   Florida University had a very important football game to be played on Saturday, and I am sure there were reservations because of the game for that weekend.  Anyway, that turned out to be a moot point because the game ended up being postponed due to the storm.

So, Saturday morning we had some time to kill.  John did some research and learned that Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaelogical  State Park was nearby.   This park once ( about 1,800 years ago) was the home of Native Indians from the Weeden Island Period.   Those natives were identified by the unique pottery they produced, the likes of which has been found in Weeden Island, Florida. 

Pictured above is the Great Mound.  The park was not officially recorded until 1975, and Florida acquired the property in 1992 with the purpose of making it state property.  Archeologists have found artifacts of stone tools and pottery here dating back to the Weeden Island Period.   The buildings once consisted of a 50 foot tall Great Mound,  as well as 10 smaller mounds,  and two plazas.  According to interpretive signs at the site, the hill was mounded by many baskets of dirt, and the Great Mound’s platform served as a foundation for one structure constructed from timber, thatch, waddle and daub.  The building was possibly used as a residence for a religious leader or a sacred temple.  Hard to see much now as the Great Mound is over grown with weeds.  A boardwalk has been built around one side of the mound, ostensibly to keep people from walking on the area considered by Native Americans to be sacred ground.

Near the park was Mickasukee Lake, very picturesque swamp with bald cypress trees and water lilies.  The lake has a boardwalk, making it possible for us to walk a distance along the water’s edge.

We had been watching the path of the storm, to determine where we would move our home next.  Our best bet was to head northwest into Alabama.  Calling around we soon learned that most campgrounds were full- except for an all terrain vehicle park with the interesting name of Boggs and Boulders.   More on our adventures in the next posting.