Fortified Hill are hilltop enclosure earthworks built by Indigenous people thousands of years ago in what is now Ross Township, Butler County.
Soon, the public will have the opportunity to experience the architectural genius of the Hopewell culture through limited 90-minute tours.
“There’s a lot of mystery around it, but we definitely want to bring the people out to appreciate the past that’s right here in our area,” said Stephen Smith, associate director of education and programming at Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park.
The tours are offered through the adjacent Pyramid Hill park. They’re starting this weekend and will be offered on a monthly basis through November.
A monumental site that’s weathered many changes
Fortified Hill is 40 acres, according to park officials. It was once at risk of development when the property went up for public auction in 2019. But it was saved after the Harry T. Wilks Family Foundation acquired the property and gifted it to the park.
It’s taken six years for the site to be restored, said Pyramid Hill’s executive director Sarah Templeton Wilson.
Courtesy of Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park
Digitization of map from 1836 of the site
“During that time period, we were still working with community partners, we’re still inviting in experts but we wanted to make sure we did this right because unfortunately there’s been so many people that have done it wrong over the years and a lot of times we’re dealing with past choices on other properties,” Templeton Wilson said. “So we want to learn from those choices and make sure we made ours to the best of our abilities.”
Jeff Leipzig, a nearby resident of the site, was the one that first made calls to try to find an…
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PENNSYLVANIA STATE – Pennsylvania, a state synonymous with American history, liberty, and religious tolerance, owes its existence to the vision of one man: William Penn. An English Quaker, Penn founded the colony of Pennsylvania in 1681, transforming a vast tract of land in the New World into a haven for religious freedom and a bold experiment in self-governance.