A. Brooke Persons, RPA, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Archaeological sites are meaningful embodiments of peoples past and present. They reflect the long cultural history of indigenous communities, as well as iconic struggles for autonomy, freedom, and emancipation during the historic past. While many sites may be primarily known by resource managers and professional archaeologists, other become indelible reminders of the ways that archaeology contributes to modern communities. They are rallying points for descendants and for the public when threatened, and they remind us of the awesome power of community when they are protected through public discourse, interagency coordination, and advocacy. While different sites may come to mind depending on where readers live, in Chattanooga, the best examples of archaeological advocacy include the suite of sites known as the Moccasin Bend National Archaeological District, located along the Tennessee River near the heart of downtown Chattanooga.
Figure 1. A view of Moccasin Bend and the Moccasin Bend Health Facility. (Photo credit: Benjamin Lundberg).
Initial efforts to protect 1,400 acres of Moccasin Bend by the State of Tennessee failed in 1950, which led to the construction of a hospital, a golf course, and a law enforcement training facility known as the “firing range”. A renewed community effort in the 1980s to “Save the Bend” resulted in listing on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 and recognition as a National Historic Landmark for the remaining undeveloped acreage in 1986. These protective measures, led by the advocacy of the Friends of Moccasin Bend National Park, culminated in Congressional legislation signed into federal law to establish Moccasin Bend National Archaeological District in 2003 under the management of the National Park Service (NPS) as part of Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park. Since then, the site has typically been considered to be protected in the general mind of the public. However, recent actions have reminded stakeholders that there is a continued need for advocacy and protection at this significant site. Accordingly, this blog post discusses key issues in the long-term conservation of the Moccasin Bend National Archaeological District. By highlighting the need for continued advocacy, this case study reminds us to remain vigilant when it comes to the protection and conservation of the sacred cultural landscapes that contribute to our sense of heritage and make meaning for local communities.
Protecting Moccasin Bend
While the site has long since been recognized as sacred by tribal nations and descent communities, early archaeological investigations at Moccasin Bend began, like many sites in the southeast, with a visit from Clarence B. Moore and his mobile laboratory housed on a steamboat known as The Gopher. C.B. Moore’s 1913-1914 visits largely focused on Woodland period mounds and a Late Mississippian and early Contact-era village in the area. Subsequent research over the next 100 years drew professional archaeologists like J.B. Graham, Major C. R. McCollough, Quentin R. Bass III, Lawrence Alexander, Dr. Nicholas Honerkamp, Bruce Council, and many more, to document over 10,000 years of indigenous settlement alongside early Spanish contact, the Trail of Tears, the Civil War, the Underground Railroad, and historic development of the town of Chattanooga. Altogether, the communities who called Moccasin Bend home lived through and experienced many of the most pivotal moments in the southeast.
However, the interest of professional archaeologists also drew the interest of looters. In fact, much of the research conducted on site in the 1980s focused on documenting the extent of the looting from prior years. Thanks to the efforts of the Native American Reserve Force (NARF), the Chattanooga Regional Anthropological Association (CRAA), coordination with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department, and the hard work of volunteers, advocates provided a consistent monitoring presence on site so that looters would not have an opportunity to perform illegal excavations and intentionally damage sites for personal gain. Such broad coordination across the archaeological community, local government, federal institutions, nonprofit organizations dedicated to conserving resources, and the public, created a culture of advocacy and activism that has become emblematic of the fight to protect Moccasin Bend.
Many Chattanoogans drew a great sigh of relief once many of the resources within the district came under the control and management of the NPS’s Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park in 2003. As resource managers, the NPS provides for the administration of federal lands while also serving a vital role planning for the future. In particular, the NPS has worked in concert with tribal nations, descent communities, and resource managers to think critically about how these lands can be protected and shared through public outreach, interpretive programs, and more. This public conversation resulted in two NPS long-term planning documents: A Cultural Landscape Report in 2014 and a General Management Plan Amendment/Environmental Assessment in 2017. In recent years, such efforts have included highlighting understudied narratives and fund-raising campaigns for the planned development of a visitor orientation facility at the gateway to the district to serve as a point of public engagement, interpretation, and education.
Local nonprofits like the National Park Partners (NPP) have been essential to these efforts. NPP consolidated the former Friends of Moccasin Bend and the Friends of Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, bringing two active organizations together to conserve natural, historic, and cultural resources of Chickamauga Battlefield, Lookout Mountain Battlefield, Missionary Ridge, Moccasin Bend, Orchard Knob, and Signal Point. Over the last several decades, these nonprofits have amassed countless volunteers, fundraised to support archaeological research and facilities projects, and, importantly, coordinated with local government officials and stakeholders to try to conserve and protect Moccasin Bend.
Long-term Management and Current Concerns
Despite the monumental efforts that were untaken to protect these sites, long-term management still poses significant challenges. There is a longstanding debate about increasing access for education and interpretation, extending even to whether such access points should be developed in the first place. In this regard, NPS’s consultation with tribal nations bears significant weight, as honoring sacred places might mean restricted public access. Thanks to the efforts of the NPS and their community partners, I have faith that any future plans will be undertaken respectfully and in accordance with the wishes of descent communities.
Other questions about land use are raised by riverfront development in Chattanooga, which will always place pressure on undeveloped tracts in the vicinity. Those familiar with the conservation of cultural landscapes will recognize that conservation strategies have changed over the last few decades, as managers work now to preserve larger sections of land surrounding key resources, rather than protecting isolated tracts. As we consider the solemn significance of resources that we know to exist on site, it raises questions about whether nearby development outside of the district is appropriate given what we know of Moccasin Bend. While development on private property is outside of the purview of many stakeholders, it would be prudent for advocacy to target planned development when its use is not in keeping with the significance of a known site.
Finally, there are prior developments adjacent to the district boundaries representing properties owned by the State of Tennessee, Hamilton County, the City of Chattanooga, and private homeowners. On a positive note, NPS can accept lands donated by state and local governments if their current land use ceases. However, other tracts or properties are still at risk of redevelopment.
For example, the Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute was built in 1961 by the State of Tennessee on state-owned lands that also contain surviving Mississippian period mounds. This 100+ acre property is bordered by the Tennessee River and the boundaries of the archaeological district. This state facility has provided critical mental health services for Chattanooga and surrounding communities for over 61 years. However, since the facility is in need of repair and modernization, the State of Tennessee began discussing redevelopment and renovation of the facility in 2021 (Chattanooga Times Free Press, 16 November 2021). This initial $276.52 million earmark presented by Governor Bill Lee’s administration would apply federal funding to renovate existing structures and construct new facilities within the footprint of current facility. This project aims to provide much-needed renovations to an aging facility and also augment their capacity so that they can better serve mental health needs in this community.
Alternative plans, though, propose that the facility be relocated off site, closer to downtown Chattanooga. According to alternatives proposed by Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly, off-site alternatives would bring the facility closer to the city’s other medical facilities and also offer a lower overall cost to the State of Tennessee (The Chattanoogan, 31 January 2022). Such alternative plans have the clear support of those interested in the conservation of Moccasin Bend, as they provide a unique opportunity to reevaluate the overall use of the site with an eye towards future conservation. While the mental health needs of local communities are of utmost importance, alternative plans could reimagine the nature of the landscape and begin restoring this site to a more natural state while ensuring the protection of documented archaeological sites. Moreover, redevelopment within the same property has the potential to impact as-yet undiscovered archaeological and cultural resources, increasing the development footprint of the facility and detracting from the overall cultural landscape. Put another way, it will be easier to imagine how the landscape existed at different moments in time without intrusive modern development.
While off-site development alternatives have the support of many local stakeholders, the ultimate decision of whether the facility will be either redeveloped or relocated will be up to the State of Tennessee, the Tennessee Legislature, local officials, and administrators for the Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute. However, the public does have the power to make their voices heard. While not directly involved in the decision-making process, the public, descent communities, and stakeholders can weigh in through targeted advocacy. By reaching out to state representatives, advocates can share their support for a compromise that provides essential state services and also honors the history of Moccasin Bend. By taking an active role in local government, by attending public hearings, or providing comments during public comment periods, advocates can make their case for protection of the site. By asking the State of Tennessee and its legislators to protect this site, advocates can contribute to a culture of conservation that is nearly 80 years in the making. For more information on advocacy, interested parties could follow the National Park Partners on social media or sign up for email updates through their website at https://nppcha.org/team.
In conclusion, it is my own personal opinion as a professional archaeologist that the Moccasin Bend National Archaeological District be preserved in perpetuity and off-site development be considered as a viable alternative to onsite renovation. The potential redevelopment of the Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute challenges us to think about what we want this stretch of riverbank to look like 100 years in the future and whether we want subsequent generations of resource managers to be asking the same questions. Do we want those resource managers to still be lamenting encroaching development or would we prefer that they are tackling these questions knowing that the State, the public, and advocates worked to find the right solution when an opportunity to shift gears presented itself? I am hopeful that continued collaboration will find a solution for the resources at Moccasin Bend. However, this case study provides a reminder that we must be vigilant when it comes to protecting the sites we care about and that continued advocacy is often warranted even to protect the sites that we consider to be “protected.”
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Alexander, Lawrence S., Julie J. Coco, Nicholas Honerkamp, R. Bruce Council, and Harry M. Hays
2009 Moccasin Bend National Archaeological District: Archaeological Overview and Assessment, Volume I. Alexander Archaeological Consultants, Inc., Wildwood, Georgia.
Moore, Clarence B.
1915 Aboriginal Sites on the Tennessee River. Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 16(2):169-428. Edited by Richard R. Polhemus. Reprinted 2002. The University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Sher, Andy
2021 Tennessee Gov. Lee eyes $276.52 million ‘rebuild’ for Chattanooga’s Moccasin Bend Mental Health Institute. Chattanooga Times Free Press, November 16, 2021. https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2021/nov/16/gov-lee-eyes-rebuild-moccasin-bend-mental-health/, accessed September 23, 2022.
The Chattanoogan
2022 Breaking News: Major Kelly Proposes State Rebuild Mental Health Hospital Away From Historic Moccasin Bend And At Lower Cost Than State Projected. January 31, 2022. https://www.chattanoogan.com/2022/1/31/442529/Mayor-Kelly-Proposes-State-Rebuild.asp, accessed September 23, 2022.
Tennessee Council for Professional Archaeology 