Seven Mile Island in the Tennessee River of northern Alabama preserves an unusually long record of Native American occupation spanning about 9,000 years, from the early Archaic period through the Mississippian era. Archaeologists have identified 18 sites on the island, with the Perry Site and the Seven Mile Island site offering the clearest evidence of its past. At the Perry Site, a seven-foot midden and Archaic ceramic potsherds show repeated occupation over a long period. The Seven Mile Island site includes a Mississippian village and mound, artifacts such as arrowheads, flint knives, and an engraved bottle, and 41 burials, revealing both daily life and enduring cultural importance in the Tennessee Valley.