Neville Archaeological Site

Neville Archaeological Site

Neville is an archaeological site on the bank of the Merrimack River in New Hampshire, the United States.

The first occupants arrived during the Middle Archaic (around 8000 years Before Present (BP)) and left around 5900 BP. However, people had been visiting the site for more than 8,000 years. The first occupation, termed the Neville Complex, houses the remains of the "Neville" stemmed points. These were "bifacial projectile points with carefully shaped tips and symmetrical bodies." Neville points are believed to be a variant of the Stanly stemmed points and are found from Maine to Connecticut. These points were made between 7800 BP and 7000 BP. Before 7000 BP, a new projectile point form had appeared. Dena Dincauze argues that Neville is a center for spring fishing and domestic activities and not hunting and plant processing. This is evidenced by the lack of hunting and plant processing tools.

The Neville site shows that Middle Archaic people of the Northeastern United States had a relationship with cultures along the Atlantic coast and even farther to the south. Some of the Neville points and tools are related to older Archaic sites in the southeastern United States.

The Neville site is located on the east bank of the Merrimack River in Manchester, New Hampshire. The site was occupied during the Middle Archaic period from ca. 8000-5900 BP and is located close to the Amoskeag Falls, at 205 feet (62 m) above sea level. Because the river provided an almost endless supply of fish, the site's location was probably important in attracting the first foragers to camp at the site.