 The area around Vandalia in Fayette County, IL, especially to the south and west of the city, is one of rolling hills and what was, until relatively recently, wetlands. I only had the opportunity to collect extensivlely from them for a couple  of years before these sites were put into no-till farming so these are very limited observations. Topographic maps by the U.S. Geological Survey from the 1930's show numerous lakes and ponds. Most of these have been drained and are now farmland but a few still to this day hold water. Along the old shorelines of these lakes are numerous sites that have yielded artifacts from the Early Archaic up to Mississipian times. These sites appear to be seasonal sites rather than permanent villages. The few undrained ponds left today are often covered by geese and ducks in the spring and fall. These would have been an important seasonal food source during prehistory. Although similar to the potholes of the Shelbyville Moraine, these old lakes appear to have been larger and deeper than the former. Also, they seem to have been utilized much more extensively during the Woodland and Mississipian periods. This is probably due to their close proximity to several large village sites along the Kakaskia River in contrast to the Shelbyville Moraine sites that are several miles from any river or stream of any size. Many of the point types found on these sites are virtually identical to points found on the river. The exceptions are Table Rock points and small dart points  that resemble Riverton points. I have found these in other localities but they are more common on these sites. I have found three plummets, two from the same site and within feet of each other. All are hematite and were found at or below the old waterline, suggesting they were weights or sinkers of some sort. I have found two axes, one full and one 3/4 groove, as well as two celts. The only ornamental or ceremonial artifacts are a broken bannerstone and an unfinished bannerstone, both made of slate.
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