Rare, Pristine Site

The Muscatine Journal reported on the archaeological finds that have slowed reconstruction of the levee protecting Oakville and the farms surrounding it. The dig should be completed by the end of February.

Work on the levee is expected to begin sometime in the spring. The temporary levee has been raised and hopefully will hold any large spring snow melts.

Oakville Levee Delayed

The U.S. Corps of Engineers have delayed repairing the levee that was breached. The levee was being repositioned further from the river. An archaeological survey found artifacts where the new levee is to be located. The artifacts could be anywhere from 100 to 10,000 years old.

Just north of Oakville are the Toolesboro Mounds which possibly contain the largest Hopewell era mound in Iowa. The area close to Oakville was reputed to be the location where the Indian warrior Black Hawk met with Chief Keokuk before the Black Hawk War in which Abraham Lincoln took part. There are several mound locations found on the bluffs south of Oakville along Highway 99, along with Chief Taimah's (Tama) grave site just north of Burlington.

Levee News

A levee broke east of Wapello, Iowa a few days before the break in Oakville. Wapello was not flooded but farms and houses were and Highway 99 was damaged as well as another county road.

The Army Corps of Engineers is considering not repairing this levee. Highway 99 is the main road from Oakville to Wapello and other routes would add considerably to this time. The Corps estimates it will cost $4 million and they would be responsible for 80% while landowners would have to pay $260 per acre for the rest. They believe the cost may not be worth the benefit.