Scientists want to study native whaling site when development breaks ground
Afro-Caribbean religion, ritual evident in Hammock Park, anthropologist says
Anthropologist Dorothy Block walks through the woods of Hammock Park, where she has found evidence of Afro-Caribbean beach rituals. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
By John Pacenti
In the shadows of multimillion-dollar homes and the steady hum of traffic on Florida’s State Road A1A, a 1,000-year-old Native American whaling village rests on a 270,000-square-foot swath of beachfront just south of the Boynton Inlet.
To the south of it, in Ocean Ridge Hammock Park, evidence of modern-day Santería and Vodou (the Haitian variation of Voodoo) ritual are observable to the trained eye of an anthropologist.
Joggers pass the ancient whaling village without a second glance, and local teenagers occasionally camp in the thick woods, unaware they are sleeping near Santería shrines and Vodou spell jars.
Now, anthropologists and archaeologists are asking for cooperation when crews break ground for the town’s newest condominium — currently the site of a former co-op at 6855 N. Ocean Blvd. on A1A.
For anthropologist Dorothy Block, a native of Lake Worth Beach with a master’s degree in coastal archaeology, this ridge south of the Boynton Inlet is not just a scenic landscape, but a valuable cultural resource where the history of indigenous whalers rests in the sand atop the ocean ridge. She has shared her peer-reviewed scholarly paper, recently published in The Florida Anthropologist, with the elected officials of Ocean Ridge. She hopes archaeological testing will be performed before new construction starts at the co-op site.
“It’s a dangerous myth that archaeology will stop development. It doesn’t. We’re there to help expedite the process,” Block said.
Ocean Ridge — as its name implies — is indeed a ridge, a rocky outcropping. It’s not a barrier island where sands ebb and flow. The Native American Jeaga people lived and worked at their village along the ridge between A.D. 750 and 1440. The habitation refuse of their village is called a “midden.” Only recently has Block, through her research, discovered that the midden is quite large.
“We haven’t known since the mid‑1950s where the Boynton Inlet midden is, or how big it is. Now we know.”
LEFT: A historic map had arrows added to point out the historic sites. Map provided RIGHT: Contemporary view of the locations. Coastal Star map based on a Google Map photo
Midden larger than thought
The site served as a “prime central place” for Indigenous people to mine the rich resources of both freshwater Lake Worth to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east.
While mid-20th century reports suggested the site had been destroyed by development, Block’s recent surveys and monitoring of recent utility pipe installations in Ocean Ridge have revealed that a significant portion of the midden remains.
“A midden isn’t just trash. It’s the output of daily life — fire pits, house floors, food remains — a village site,” said archaeologist Dr. George Luer.
Evidence suggests the Jeaga were skilled marine mammal hunters who intercepted right whales on their canoes in the winter.
“Some brave soul, a whaling chief, jumps on top of the whale, and stabs it in the head. It goes down, they harness it with rope nets, and they beach it,” Block said.
The high elevation of the ridge allowed hunters to watch for seasonal wildlife, including manatees, sharks and sea turtles. At the University of Florida, Block has examined bones from at least three individual right whales from the midden. They were unearthed during excavations at the site in Ocean Ridge in the 1950s.
Whale bones and other items recovered from the midden. Photo provided
An opportunity to explore
Now there is a unique opportunity to again explore the midden. The Ocean Ridge Town Commission recently endorsed a plan for a 15-unit condominium — the town’s first new multifamily condominium in decades — that could unearth layers of history.
“Archaeologists do what’s called a phase one survey,” Luer said. “So that you can understand the nature of the deposit, and you can maybe keep development off intact areas, or cover it with fill and not hurt it further.”
Luer — whom Block referred to as a “rock star of Florida archaeology” — highlighted the ingenuity of the Indigenous people who lived there. Lacking local sources of stone for tools, they adapted by using the thick lips of aged Queen Conch shells to create “celts” — ax-like tools.
Block found remnants of a “celt” in an easement on Hudson Avenue. The artifact likely came from another Aboriginal mound site known to exist on Hudson.
Block said so far she has had a lukewarm reception by the Town Commission, with some members telling her that her research is incorrect and the midden does not extend to the site of the new condominium. “They didn’t read, or didn’t understand, what I wrote,” Block said.
Ocean Ridge Mayor Geoff Pugh, when asked about Block’s research, said it would be up to the developers to grant access to scientists. “It’s not up to us, that’s for sure,” he said.
Pugh, who has installed pools for 30 years, said his crews have encountered Indian artifacts and expressed appreciation for Block’s work. “It’s the neatest thing,” he said.
The four-story Dutch Colonial condominium at 6855 N. Ocean is being built by Ohio-based Edwards Companies after it purchased the co-op on the 2.1-acre site for $29 million in October 2022.
Efforts to reach the company for comment were unsuccessful.
The Miami Circle
One of the most recent celebrated Native American sites is the Miami Circle, remnants of a Tequesta community on the mouth of the Miami River. It was uncovered during the construction of a condominium.
For developers, the Miami Circle might as well be a four-letter word because its discovery stopped a condominium in its tracks.
In 1998, Miami-Dade County’s designated archaeologist Bob Carr was driving by a construction site on Brickell Key in Miami. Carr informed the developer that he was under an obligation to the city of Miami to perform an archaeological field survey.
The circle itself turned out to be a ceremonial site. “We believe it was a shaman’s house,” Carr said.
But there was so much more, he said.
“We found an entire urban town built in A.D. 300 that no one had ever seen or suspected existed,” Carr said. “It turned out to be one of the most significant discoveries made in the history of North America, and now it’s a national landmark.”
In other words, no condo — but the developer did sell the land for $26.7 million to the state of Florida.
Documenting the past
Carr emphasized that efforts to study these sites go far beyond “treasure hunting.” Instead, it’s about “documenting a significant archaeological site” to reveal who Florida’s earliest inhabitants were, particularly on the increasingly developed barrier islands.
As for the Boynton Inlet midden, Carr doesn’t foresee any development being stopped.
“These sites should be fully documented as part of the developmental process,” he said.
He said some major municipalities are designated “certified local government,” obliged by law to complete archaeological assessments. Block said Ocean Ridge has established preservation/conservation areas that include protections for archaeological resources, but they do not include the area of the midden.
The town of Jupiter moved to protect its own midden in January, agreeing to purchase 5.5 acres of waterfront property for $10.5 million from a developer because of its historical and archaeological significance, according to Stet News. The Seminole and Miccosukee tribes have said their ancestors are buried on the Suni Sands property.
A metal doorway holding a pair of silver rings stuck in a tree where contemporary Santería has been performed in Ocean Ridge Hammock Park. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
Signs of Santería and Vodou
In an hour-long interview at Hammock Park, Block took this reporter on an incredible journey through her documentation of contemporary cultural phenomena, including the practice of Afro-Caribbean syncretic religions like Santería along the shoreline.
In the dense maritime hammocks, Block has discovered evidence of “beach” rituals that transform the natural landscape into a sacred space. One notable site involved a ficus tree resembling a womanly figure, where a complex “fertility shrine” is venerated and where a bees’ hive is nestled in its base.
Out on the beach, she showed two palm saplings set up for offerings, surrounded by Cuban cigar butts. Beneath the altar lie three birds beheaded as a blood sacrifice to Yemaya, an old African ocean goddess.
“It’s woods magic. It’s nature magic. It’s an old African nature-based religion that was transported during the African diaspora, and, for example, into Cuba,” she said.
“Now you’re a black slave, you’re in Cuba, right? You have your own religion, but they’re forcing Catholicism on you. And so you synchronize those two, right? And so it’s (Santería), the survival of the African rituals.”
A Santería altar constructed of coconuts, palm fronds and driftwood was found on the beach side of the park. Photo provided
Luer said there has been a resurgence of such beliefs among Latin people and New Age believers, where botanicas sell items to be used in Santería.
Along another winding path, there is a twisting ficus. It is here that Block has found evidence of a Vodou ritual, and a possibly tragic story is within its crevices.
The artifacts included “witch” jars containing milk and honey — symbols of fertility and motherhood — and a pair of ladies’ sexy black underpants. “So that same idea of fertility, sweetness, and motherhood,” Block explains. The inclusion of a personal item suggests the feature is a Vodou spell. “I think somebody cast this spell in hopes of becoming pregnant,” she says.
Then, around the other side of the tree is a note at the base. “Rest in peace, beloved son.”
The woods keep their secrets well. Only the spell maker will ever really know the whole story of how the Vodou spell unfolded.
The story of the Boynton Inlet midden is not just a story of the past; it is a story of the present. It is about how we value the land we inhabit.
On the morning of Jan. 25, Block said she found a binding spell at Hammock Park. “I thought it was voodoo at first,” she said. “But a quick search tells me it’s related to European witchcraft.”
Two dolls were wrapped with a particular rope, she said. “The spell was meant to control people represented by the dolls,” Block explained.
But Block said, despite the interesting nature of the magic at Hammock Park, the real cause célèbre is for social scientists to be able to catalogue the midden.
The excavation of the old co-op site should not be perceived as a threat, Luer reiterated.
“Most people have a misconception,” he said. “It’s a necessary step, just like engineering or architectural design — a component of development that shouldn’t be left out.”
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