By JOSEPH FITZGERALD

NORTH SMIITHFIELD —The town is applying for $30,000 in Preserve America matching grants to fund a detailed archeological survey that will give the town a more thorough understanding of the historic Nipsachuck area and the Indian burial mounds and artifacts discovered at the site earlier this year.

The $30,000 grant will be matched by the town in the form of in-kind services provided by the town and volunteers and several organizations, including the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, Blackstone Valley Tourism Council, North Smithfield Land Trust, Valley Alliance for Smart Growth and Archaeological Consulting Services, Inc., which will conduct the survey for a reduced fee.
Town officials believe that at one time Native Americans occupied 700 to 800 acres in the Nipsachuck area off Route 7. The burial mounds were discovered by members of the Conservation Commission last year while they were reviewing the potential impact of Rankin Estates, a 122-unit housing development that was proposed to be built on land near the town's western border near the burial ground site.
 "This (survey) will help us determine the full extent of the Native American occupation of the site," said Conservation Commission Chairman Donald Gagnon, who says the town should know by March whether or not the 2008 grant application is approved by Preserve America — a federal grant program that helps communities support and protect their heritage and historic assets.
The piles of stones at the site vary in size and in some cases are stacked like the cairns that are often seen on hiking trails. Others appear to be low pilings of stone. Local historians and members of the Conservation Commission say the site is a documented site of at least two battles of the King Philip's War from 1675-1676.
See MOUNDS, Page A-8
According to town officials, an additional 124 stone mounds have been identified on sites directly abutting the main site. Many of these mounds are in plain view and some have been vandalized or disrupted.
The site is outside the boundary of the 264-acre parcel the Narragansett Improvement Co. of Providence was seeking to develop the Rankin Estates subdivision. In August, the Planning Board voted to deny the applicant for Rankin Estates to proceed with their Master Plan due to the discovery of the mounds and the results of an initial archeological survey recommended by the state Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission.
The discovery of the stone mounds, or rediscovery of the site by the Conservation Commission, has also generated interest at the University of Rhode Island.
The latest survey also satisfies the town's five-year comprehensive plan which, among other things, calls for the town to protect the cultural resources.
Town officials are hoping the survey will help the town define the extent of the resource area, foster a greater understanding of the site and help preserve it for all generations.