20 • The Beacon February 6 , 2025
Ohio ’ s top archaeologist will be at the CRF Museum series
The Cleo Redd Fisher Museum ’ s Speaker Series will resume Monday , Feb . 10 at 7 p . m . with Ohio ’ s top archaeologist joining the museum .
The topic of the night will be The Newark Earthworks : One of the World ’ s Ancient Wonders , with speaker Dr . Brad Lepper .
The Newark Earthworks in Newark and Heath consist of three sections of preserved earthworks : the Great Circle Earthworks , the Octagon Earthworks and the Wright Earthworks . This complex , built by the Hopewell culture between 100 B . C . and 400 A . D ., contains the largest earthen enclosures in the world and was about 3,000 acres in total extent while using more than 7 million cubic feet of earth .
These earthworks have been designated as a National Historic Landmark , as the official prehistoric monument of the State of Ohio and most recently as a UNESCO World Heritage site , along with the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park and Fort Ancient sites , forming the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks .
Why did the Hopewell
Dr . Brad Lepper
build such monumental works ? Were they prehistoric forts or ancient American cathedrals ? Find out the answers and more from Lepper , the senior archaeologist for the Ohio History Connection ’ s World Heritage Program .
Lepper ’ s primary areas of interest include the Ice Age peoples of North America , Ohio ’ s mounds and earthworks , and the history of North American archaeology . He has written extensively on these subjects and is the author of a book on Ohio archaeology published in 2005 .
Research includes the excavation of the Burning Tree mastodon in December 1989 , named one of the top 50 science discoveries of 1990 by Discover magazine in its January 1991 issue , and the discovery of the Great Hopewell Road , first reported in 1995 ( see Archaeology magazine , November / December 1995 ). Lepper ’ s research on the Great Hopewell Road was featured in the public
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television documentary “ Searching for the Great Hopewell Road ,” first broadcast in April 1998 .
This program is made possible , in part , by Ohio Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities . Any views , findings , conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of Ohio Humanities , the National Endowment for the Humanities or the Cleo Redd Fisher Museum .
The Speaker Series will continue with Doing Time in Shawshank : Behind the Scenes in March and Statues , Flags and the Ongoing Battle Over the Meaning of the Civil War in April .
All the events are held in the Cleo Redd Fisher Museum , 203 E . Main St ., Loudonville , and are free to attend . Doors will open at 6:30 p . m . with the events beginning at 7 p . m . For more information on the museum or the series , visit www . crfmuseum . com or call the office at 419-994- 4050 .