By SVEA JONES

Beloit College was built on the native land of the Potawatomi, Peoria, Miami, Meskwaki, and Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) people, who have stewarded this land for generations. The very apparent burial mounds built around 400 and 1200 AD, either conical, linear, or animal effigy mounds, can be seen in the central part of Beloit College, tucked between the grounds of The WAC, middle, and south colleges, while other burial mounds are sprinkled around in other parts of campus. Including the only effigy mound, which is in the shape of a turtle on a bluff that overlooks the Rock River. The entire central portion of Beloit College’s campus is considered a burial site by the Wisconsin Historical Society. 

From the early 1800s onward, mounds have faced various forms of alteration or destruction by agricultural activities, urban expansion, erosion, and looting. Beloit College once had a rich history in the excavation of the mound group on campus, where they found many copper and stone tools, carved pipes and copper ornaments, pottery fragments, and sometimes human remains. In the case of certain mounds, including several on the Beloit College campus, archaeologists conducted excavations. Beloit anthropology courses occasionally carried out exploratory digs, employing test squares and trenches to gain insights into the composition and construction of these mounds. This process also served as a valuable training opportunity for Beloit students to familiarize themselves with archaeological techniques. However, the excavation of these mounds was soon halted in the 1970s when the Logan Museums, staff, students, and faculty started working closely with the native people in northern Wisconsin. As well as the club, Campus Mounds Sustainability and Advocacy Initiative (CMSAI) which was formed in 2018 works to educate students on campus about the history and expectations for the preservation of these mounds. It is in the college’s and CMSAI’s best interest that students at Beloit College demonstrate their respect for the religious and ritual practices associated with the burial mounds on campus by refraining from walking on these sacred sites to maintain and preserve the longevity of these mounds. It solely depends on your comfort; it is safe to walk amongst the mounds but not to step on top of them. Though not all of the mounds contain remains, the same rules still apply as if you were in a traditional European cemetery. You are still inclined to respect the dead and the practices of the Wisconsin natives.

Do you want to know a real head-scratcher? In the fall/winter 2003 edition of the Beloit College magazine, a map from 1852 showed the presence of 20 mounds, While the article passage stated that we once had 27, the Beloit College website says there were 25 but only about 20-23 remain, and the newest map only counts about 16½. Beneath the scenic campus lies a story of history being erased. Though there are laws and acts protecting these sacred pieces of history, what remains is being challenged, buried beneath the weight of progress, for the sake of expansion and accessibility at the college. The erasure through a series of excavation, leveling, sidewalk construction, and parking lot expansion projects has transformed the landscape over the years. Wisconsin once had 20,000 mounds and has dwindled to about 3,000. Even our small plot of land on our campus has had its difficulties with preserving all mounds in Beloit College’s domain. How many will remain in the next 10-15 years? Once they’re gone, they’re gone forever.