056-0059

Cliff Kill Site

VLR Listing Date

09/16/1982

NRHP Listing Date

12/15/1985

NRHP Reference Number

85003153

This site on the crest of the Blue Ridge, in the Shenandoah National Park, is Virginia’s only known example of a prehistoric cliff kill site. Despite the absence of faunal remains, analysis of the lithic assemblage supports the interpretation of the site as a kill site dating from mainly the Middle to Late Archaic periods (ca. 4000-1500 B.C.) with a Late Woodland component. The prehistoric inhabitants killed game by driving it over the edge of the cliff, a sheer drop on the eastern edge of Big Meadows. Studies on the relationship between the Cliff Kill Site and other Archaic period sites on Big Meadows will allow for increased understanding of settlement and subsistence patterns in the Blue Ridge Mountain region.

Last Updated: June 23, 2024

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Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark

For additional information Read

Nomination Form

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