One of the best preserved Native American villages in the southeast, this settlement was occupied from about A.D. 1000 until A.D. 1300 in a bend of Spring Creek, a tributary of the Cumberland River. The creek provided natural defense against enemies and also produced food such as fish and fresh water mussel, whose shells were crushed and used as temper in pottery. Earthworks enclose an area of ten to eleven acres. A flat-topped platform mound dominated the plaza to the west and once supported a structure of importance, while a row of six low mounds stretched along the rise overlooking the creek on the south side of the village. Characteristic of Mississippian period villages, the central plaza in front of the platform mound was the setting for public events, games, and ceremonies.