Huntington Free Library Native American Collection *• ^^ ■■ .'f. • fie* .-"ia«»-. •JHKf.'- 'J CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Cornell University Library The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924097737856 PHILLIPS ACADEMY, ANDOVER. MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF ARCHAEOLOGY BULLETIN IV PART I The Exploration of Bushey Cavern, near Cavetown, Maryland By CHARLES PEABODY PART II Fort Ancient: The Great Prehistoric Earthwork of Warren County, Ohio By WARREN K. MOOREHEAD ANDOVER, MASS. THE ANDOVER FRESS ^ 19(8 jiiM^ni^fLi\'.!!,Y£ii!isiTY library 3 1924 097 737 856 PART 1 THE EXPLORATION OF BUSHEY CAVERN, MARYLAND BY CHARLES PEABODY : •■ •■ '„t'Vv.V, \ 0\\^ L- IS ,..#"■ -""'^>'>. ,^ •X '''^Y^rAXiJ^ .uA)'!^^! ,' V \ ( -^ #V ^^ u. a ^ "^ "3 f ^ — j- f A i i .2 i I 1 J I ■f- Jt ^ ^ J. ? ^/ ' 3 3 /5 ^ /J ? /< 7 /( / V r n /■ /5 /^ /[ rti .11— i— — — > i' ,? 4 1 > el" " Li I J J "-r J 3 O . ^ J N 5c d-le - i Ce atTi me \ ere ^ / Mc Ccc or 1 100 f 3u SH EY CA' VE RN ^ ^^^"^ 7 CA' ;/E' rov\rN MA RY LA m 7" — _- — V : f " 7' y ^ / ' ^ ^^ ^ -— " _— / / / * / ;^ J H — T? V. -— . ^ 4 T 5B \ H,A XX r^ K X X >■ X A A Z ^■^ + ^ \ ^-. z ■. k- Y \ ^^ — . - — TR EN — 7^ CH G Y X «i. 1 1 si TR EN CH c ^ B EA A X w A ^=^ \ X. K ^ V - [^ DE T^ Vv ■ — - ^ V V 7 T ^ ; M' a ^ ""1 \ : u u T LA RG E X .- ~ ~1 ,, ., _ _ 1 1 1 i: T J. ST AL AG MI re •< M «g: f.% * * * ^ M'C 1 '■;■ 5 p / 1 ^ H / I 1 :. 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K V <> O ^^ A^ ^ HEY V 7 - ]<: J \ Y <> ^^ ^^ y 4r A A -&.A ;: J J \ <^ ^^ D> / + ^*A V L .i ; T ^ y / ■ H Q ; a If f 1 p c > X X XXX X X >;, EN erf R D i 'i IX X A X X ': D C TK EN CH ■ VX X, XXX ■ c B \ 5 ^.,*% TB EN CH - B A .A \ 1 < \ i D K X G 3 \ .* ** i—^ — ..:- ■r ■A \ r \ : ) / \ •<- V / r '- ■ \ ■^^ i ! y / ^^ ^^ -^ ^s^^ / y N \, --^ ■■| -^ ,y N "~ — - '^ j 3 ^ 3. ^ 3 ? 1 ^ '» 2 ? ^ % ^ 7 X L X 5 3 V J 3 ^ 2. -2 / J. / f / ^ / 7 / 6 /• ,f / '^ / 3 / ;i> / / / ( i 1 ' ^ ^ ^^ .: < > ( ? [<■ ■ It. -. -4_ — — EXPLORATIONS OF BUSHEY CAVERN Bushey Cavern is situated in Cavetown, Washington County, Maryland, on the line of the Western Maryland Railroad, twelve kilometres^ northeast of Hagerstown. The opening is on the western side of the line about twelve metres above the level of the track and about one hundred metres from the Cavetown station in the direction away from Hagerstown. The hill or ridge in which it is found has a major axis running generally north and south and is flat above ; the valley to the east is about two kilometres wide and there bounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains. These attain a height of from six hundred to seven hun- dred metres in the vicinity. The valley mentioned is part of the Cumberland Valley conxmencing to the north in Pennsylvania and continued southwestward by the famous Valley of Virginia across the Potomac river. It is rich in grain and fruit, picturesque to a degree attained by some French landscapes and abounding in associations connected with the war between the States. The altitude of the valley at Hagerstown is one hundred and seventy-six metres. Much of the fertile soil rests on the Cambrian-Silurian " Shenandoah " limestone formations in which caves and rock-shelters are usually found. Immediate^ south of Bushey Cavern is a large limestone quarry ; the oificers and men connected with it extended all ftid and courtesy in the furtherance of the exploration; tools and time were cheerftdly afforded. The Cavern receives its name from Mr. F. M. Bushey, of Cavetown ; he was at the time in control of the land in which it is situated, and freely offered the privileges of excavation. It consists of a chamber or rock-shelter, behind which are a vestibule and narrow passage running westward. 1 The metric system is used throughout the article. 5 Tlie surface witliin the rock-shelter was divided by rows of stakes at intervals of one metre ; these rows were at right angles to each other ; the numbered stakes ran inward from the entrance from zero upward and the lettered stakes from south to north beginning with A. STATISTICS FOLLOW Orientation of cavern; i.e., direction of line at right -p , ,„„ ,, angles to the line of the entrance. '^^^*- ^" ^onh. M. Cm. Length of entrance under overhanging rock . . . Length of main chamber measured parallel with the line of the opening Depth of main chamber measured at right angles to the line of the opening Length of passage at the rear of the cavern (ap- proximate) Height of roof above floor. On the line of the opening at stake A. ... U li iL LI U H LL U p " " " " " " near " l! ! ! ! " " " " " " " " V. . . Height of roof above floor. In the interior. At stake K— 13 Greatest height. 8 metres southwest of stake K — 13 . . . 21 41 29 200 40 40 70 00 75 50 On entering the ground is found to slope rapidly down- wards towards the west; two diagrams of this are given (figs. 1 and 2). Pig. 1. (Main chamber, front portion.) Line AC rep- resents the slope of the surface from A (at stake H-0 on the map) southwestard to C (near stake G-14). The fall is 3 m. 35 cm. 6 7 Ik IS Hf /.I /3 // ir. t, r., 7 S ■+ i X UE. A ^ ^ . ■ ^ c— ^ -^ ■w: /li, IS tif A Fig. 2. (Main chamber, rear portion.) Line AC repre- sents the slope of the surface from A (near stake T-16 on the map) westward for 15 metres. The fall is over 2 metres. There is also a fall from north to south within the main chamber. Near stake S-16 is a stalagmite, isolated and much larger than other similar formations within the Cavern ; it is 2 m. 60 cm. high, reaching to within 68 cm. of the roof and its elliptical base has a major axis of 2 metres. Against the southwestern wall lies the so-called "Cas- cade ", an involved series of stalagmitic cups formed of the lime held in solution by the dripping water. The slope formed hj these ridges has a fall of 2 m. 85 cm. in 6 metres. The " Cascade " is a feature unique in cave formation so far as the experience of the author goes. Near stake W-3 excavation disclosed an opening in the north wall of the Cavern. This leads to the so-called " Bear-Den ", a circular recess 2 metres in diameter and 1 m. 35 cm. in height. The entire " Bear-Den " is 2 metres below the level of the undisturbed stratum of ashes and soil outside in the main chamber. There is no reason to doubt the existence of many such recesses, passages and crevices, which, if excavated, would alter considerably the contour map of the Cavern. At the time of the exploration the floor of the main Cavern was partly a hard stalagmitic formation (generally confined to the rear) and partly^ a deposit of ashes, vege- table mould and decomposed limestone. This was mingled with pebbles and blocks of limestone attaining occasionally a weight of hundreds of kilogrammes. Blasting with small charges of dynamite was required for their removal. The stalagmitic floor, so far as observed, varied from a few centimetres in thickness to more than fifty. It was hardly found east of stake 15. Previous exploration of the Cavern has been made at a number of times. In 1903 Mr. J. D. McGuire, of Wash- ington, explored certain sections in the months of May and September ; these are roughly marked and entitled McG. on the map. In addition the work done by the late Mr. F. H. Cushing, by Mr. F. E. Bushey and others should be mentioned. The explorations here considered were begun by Mr. W. K. Moorehead on May fifth, 1905, and were continued by himself and the author until May twenty-ninth. A working force of eleven or less was employed, who not only labored according to direction, but took an intelligent and helpful interest. The specimens found are in tlie Department of Archaeology, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, under whose auspices the expedition took place. The digging in the Cavern may be summarized as follows : Pit or TrenCli Position 1 OR A. C to F lto4 Depth M. I Cm. Remarks. 60 At D — 4, 60 cm. down, charcoal. 2 or B. B/-16/ /c /n to near A — 17 60 55 cm. down, charcoal, animal bones and pottery. 3 or C. 4orD. 5 orE. /z yi5 -V to Y- in north , N — 16to M — 11 in south Carried under wall of cav- ern to the north and east. Near A — ' 8. S— 6 to T— 2 in north K— 9 to K— 5 in south 77 60 At Z 10/ 'W 1 m. 77 cm. down, bone awl or pin. At Z — 12, 1 m. 7 cm. down, bone awl. At W — 7, 75 cm. down, animal bone embedded in rock. At / — 9, 1 m. down, rock composed of brec- /z cia, containing stones, charcoal and bones. Under this additional animal bones. At B — 7, 80 cm. down, under north wall, ani- mal bone embedded in rock. At 5^ — 9, about 1 m. 40 cm. down, red (cave) -^aa earth. At X —10, 85 cm. down, bone awl or pin. At AA — 7, about 1 m. 70 cm. down, fragment of stalagmite. At Z — 10, 1 m. 50 cm. down, projectile point or knife. Some pottery was also found. Soon discontinued. V _5, 1 m. 40 cm. down, fragment of pottery, /T Pit or Trench 6 or F. Position An ellipse near ^X— 20 4 m. 80 cm. north and south 3 m. 10 cm. east and west Depth M. Cm. Remarks. 7 orG. W — 3 and north eastward Known as "Bushey Pit"; begun as a trial trench by Mr. F. E. Bushey, continued to display the stratification of the cavern. The cross-section l^ollows 1 M. Cm. 34 Vegetable earth. 2 20 Dark stalagmitic floor with char- coal. 3 30 White stalagmite floor. 4 25 Red and black stalagmitic forma- tion. 5 1 10 Red clay ("cave earth"). 6 10 Yellow or red clay. 7 8 Gray clay. 8 10 Yellow clay. 9 10 Black earth. 10 70 Yellow clay. 8 27 Total depth. The walls contained numerous large stones. No bone, nor chipped flint nor charcoal was encountered below stra- tum 3. Known as the "Bear-Den". There is a narrow entrance and an interior cir- cular chamber. It contained rocks, brec- cia, loose earth and animal bones, worked and unworked. The bones from the cave have been examined through the kindness of Mr. C. C. Willoughby and Dr. W. C. Fara- bee pf the Peabody Museum, Harvard University. They include bear, deer, raccoon, woodchuck, and probably por- cupine. During the work visits were received from Professor W" H. Holmes, Chief of the Bureau of American Ethnology, and from Mr. J. D. McGuire of Washington, whose ex" periences, enthusiasm and advice assisted the progress of the explorations most materially. At the end of the rear passage is a pool currently re- ported to be "bottomless". Mr. Moorehead, with consid- erable difficulty, compassed the transportation of a boat through the passage for the examination of this pool. It was found to be about 30 metres in length, 6 metres in width and about 2 metres deep. The inhabitants of the Cavern before the white men were probably members of the Shawnee tribes of Indians. II In addition, several small trenches were dug to the west of the large stalagmite ; the results were negative as were those of a trench sunk in the inner passage, 24 metres back of the west wall of the Cavern. This was 1 m. 70 cm. X 90 cm., and 1 metre deep. The stalagmite floor through which " Bushey Trench " was driven varied in thickness. At the top it is black from vegetable mould, in the middle it is cream-white and very pure ; below this it becomes more and more red until it is indistinguishable in color from the red " cave earth " which it covers. At the position given above in the section it had a total thickness of 75 cm. ; in spite of being in the aggre- gate very hard, it is quite friable in fragments. As the upper part forms a breccia it is not surprising that it contains evidences of the human occupation of the Cavern. Similar breccia with charcoal, animal bones and chipped flints abounded about the sides of the Cavern and in the Bear Den. From the middle or white stratum of the stalagmite floor no bones nor flint were taken and the presence of charcoal is doubtful. Below this the explorations found no traces of human or animal occupation contemporary with or previous to the laying down of the floor. At stake L-19 ("Bushey Trench"), however, in a breccia red (not black) charcoal was found at a depth of 19 cm. below the surface of the floor. Artifacts from the Cavern are rare : bone awls and pins of various types are the more numerous of the flnished implements. (Cf. PI. VII.) In the low-lying fields ad- joining were found numbers of knives and projectile points of chipped stone (Cf. Pis. V and VI). The limestone quarry to the south gave opportunity for studying the red "cave earth " or decomposed limestone to a considerable depth ; many fossilized, or semi-fossilized animal bones were observed in it. Among these is a specimen, as yet incompletely identified, but not improbably belonging to the Equus complicatus (this is through the kindness of Mr. J. R. Gridley of the Department of Geol- ogy, of the Smithsonian Institution). H < H < w < 1-1 < i-I 14 / i 'P N-t C y-C ^/i> ^^ PLATE V. i-f/S'-J? ^ / r/ s H-ifj^ '^/i^-i H-i t^7 <-/ / Sfi PLATE VI. i-^ji^x'i i-z&sy ^ /6'^/ ^/(oO 7 ^/^-g^ PLATE VII. H-lL / V- '-hllo /fo 1+15' 2.% Lf t i' oy ^' ^ X^ PLATE VIII. 24 NOTES TO THE MAP OF BUSHEY CAVERN — Approximate line of union of interior deposit with the wall. = Opening under overhanging rock. = Rough contours of Mr. McGuire's digging. «***##«-_ Rough contour of trenches of 1905. DESCRIPTION OF PLATES Plate I. The eastern section of the Cumberland Valley, looking north- east from near the limestone quarry, from a water-color by Professor W. H. Holmes, kindly presented by him to the author. Plate II. Bushey Cavern, Trench F, or "Bushey Trench"; from the east, showing stalagmitic floor. Height of boy = 63 cm. Plate III. Bushey Cavern. Interior, showing large stalagmite. Plate IV. Bushey Cavern. "Cascade" of stalagmitic cups. Plate V. Vicinity of Bushey Cavern. Knives of stone; oval, roughly circular and oblong. Plate VI. Bushey Cavern and vicinity. Projectile points or knives of stone. No. 41591 is from Trench 3, Z — 10, 1 m. 50 cm. down. Plate VII. Bushey Cavern. Pins, awls and perforators of bone. All from within the cavern. Plate VIII. Bushey Cavern. Celt from Trench 3, about 75 cm. down. Fragment of pottery from Trench 3, 1 m. 40 cm. down. Fragments of breccia, including animal bones, stones and charcoal. N. B. — All specimens m the plates are of one-half size. ^ 25 ^ViJ LuNGTH. 2760 Ft. ^un^kHiirlir.;n^\■:!i^.\\\\^^.■T.imxfX:u\.K■.ifxiwa Ma«^■«!;»:'/J;-^^■-."wa^r.aliu;r«-:i■^:^^wr.v,rA^^^^^-.av.'t:;::T.■-.'a;ll^ Parmlue-l Walls j^ TrairnwpBff Df '"<>''' "^ m wTnw ww a nntWH i w Cross Section S. A. New Fort. R^ fl ^UltWWHHg tM WtHWTOMHUi W W'WM- tfaaUMhU^^ B. Old Fort. inljiijimrntHiij-vnrT'nWT^^ Plate 2. 1 GERMRO FOWKE AND CLINTON CO WEN, SURVEYORS. H^rP^V c.COWEN. — J889. J^ _ _ 1 iEOO F t l40or-r iSOOKt. laOOfT. [ lOOORl <. Stone: Graves. COPYRIGHTED 1908, BY WARREN K. MOOREHE*D ALL RIGHTS RESERVED PART II FORT ANCIENT THE GREAT PREHISTORIC EARTHWORK OF WARREN COUNTY. OHIO BY WARREN K. MOOREHEAD COPYKIGHTHD, 1908 PHILLIPS ACADEMY Andoveb, Massachusetts 28 ILLUSTRATIONS Plate Page I. A Distant View of Part of East wall of New Fort. Camera outside of Embankment, 250 yards dis- tant and looking West. 26 II. Map of Fort Ancient. (Survey of 1889). 30 III. Rear View of Portion of East wall of New Fort. Camera outside of Fort, 100 yards distant, look- ing West. 33 IV. Part of Wall of New Fort. Camera outside of East Wall, nearest, and looking South. 1000 feet of Embankment shown. 34 V. View from inside of New Fort; Camera looking East. Summer View of same Walls shown in Plate IV. 39 VI. Within the New Fort, West Side. Walls on the edge of Hill overlooking the Eiver. 40 VII. Top of the Embankment near Station 12, looking North. 43 VIII. Approach to Fort Ancient from the West. (From the Railway.) 46 IX. Great Gateway; looking South. A Recent View. 46 X The Great Gateway as it Appeared in the Summer of 1889. 52 XI. A portion of Old Fort Walls, near the Great Gate- way. Camera pointed Northeast. 57 XII. East wall of Great Gateway; at the Highest Point. Camera pointed West. The View is from the Base upward. 63 XIII. A Corner of the Old Fort; west side. Camera pointed Northwest. 67 XIV. Old Fort, near the Southwest Corner. 70 XV End of a Low Embankment, East side of Middle Fort. Picture taken in 1889. (Station 86.) 75 XVI. Giant Embankments of Extreme Southern Part of Old Fort. Camera 150 yards distant, looking South. 80 XVII View of Outside Slope of Embankment; West Side, Old Fort. (Near Stations 2S6-7). Summer of 1889. 84 XVIII. End of Embankment at Station 230, Old Fort. 1889 Summer View. 90 29 XIX. XX. XXI. xxti. XXIII. XXIV. XXV. XXVI. XXVII. XXVIII. XXIX. XXX. XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII. XXXIV. XXXV. XXXVI. XXXVII. XXXVIII. XXXIX. XL. XLI. Giant Embankment at Entrance. Southern Part of Old Fort. Near View, Camera pointing South- west. 93 The Middle Eort (Isthmus), Looking West. 95 View of the Valley. 97 The Lowest Point in Fort Ancient's Walls. , Middle Fort, West Side. (1889). 100 Washout in Wall, West Side of New Fort near Sta- tion 363. Summer of 1889. 102 Cross Sections of the Embankments, taken where Contrasts were Marked. 104 Bone Awls and Scrapers, from Ash-pits, Fort An- cient. 105 Typical Mussel Shell Hoe; Village Site; Full size. 106 Fragments of Decorated Pottery, Lower Village Site, Fort Ancient. 1-2 size. 114 Restored Fort Ancient Type of Pottery. 1-3 size. Ill View of the Two Mounds just outside the New Fort. The Parallel Walls Start Between These. The Camera is pointed East; Mounds 250 feet Distant. 116 Group of Graves from a Cemetery near the Eiver. 120 A View of the Serpentine Embankment, New Fort. A 20 ft. Scaffold was Built by Mr. Williams in Order that this Pi'^ture might be Taken. 122 Decorated Pottery from the Village Sites. 124 Axe, Unfinished Pipe and Celts from Old Fort. Surface Finds. 126 Problematical Objects, Tubes and Ornaments. Surface Finds. Old Fort and Middle Fort. 128 The "Owl Ornament"; found in a Fort Ancient Grave in 1882. Front View. Full size. 130 Rear of "Owl Ornament ". 132 Types of Spear-heads from Fort Ancient. Phillips Academy Collection. Size 1-4. 134 Types of Knives ; Fort Ancient. Phillips Academy Collection. Size 1-2. 136 Ground Plan of Stone Mound in Clermont County. 137 Cross Section of Mound on Mr. J. Boyle's Farm. 139 Skeleton from Boyle's Mound, and Depression in which it lay. 142 30 CHAPTER I THE HISTOEIC PERIOD AT FORT ANCIENT. In preface to a detailed description of the various em- bankments, mounds and camp sites, it is well to place on record how Fort Ancient came to be preserved as a park by the State of Ohio. For although most persons are aware that the State has come into possession of several remark- able earthworks of pre-Columbian times, the facts leading up to such worthy action, may not be generally known. Those of us who lived near the place had heard more or less concerning it. Mr. North of Old Town — the site of Old Chillicothe, three miles north of Xenia, in Greene County — used to relate to interested boys stories of adven- ture with Indians handed down from his father, who had heard them from the lips of Simon Kenton, the friend of Daniel Boone. One of these mentioned that Kenton — who spoke Shawano well — said the Indians had no tradition of the builders of Fort Ancient, but that they (the Shawanoes) visited the place en route to the Ohio and did homage to the spirits of its makers. Xenia is twenty-two miles north of Fort Ancient, and in the early eighties, after the publication of Professor Short's "North Americans of Antiquity", there was much interest manifested in the earthworks of the Little Miami Valley. Picnic parties to Fort Ancient were organized every sum- mer and as a boy in company with older persons, I occasion- ally visited "the Fort". In those days, as at present, Fort Ancient was a favorite resort for such excursionists. Apro- pos of this it is proper to state that in the early summer of 1891, 800 persons visited Fort Ancient in one day. This was the occasion of the opening of some thirty stone graves, and citizens from Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton and other distant points were present. Local interest in Fort Ancient exceeded that of the Serpent Mound, which was more diffi- cult of access. The place had a fascination for me and I spent many happy days thereabouts collecting specimens. 31 In the summer of 1887 Mr. Clinton Cowen, C. E. spent u, week with me at Fort Ancient. We dug in the village site along the banks of the Little Miami river. The next win- ter (January 8, 1888) I wrote an article for the Ohio State Journal, * urging the preservation of Fort Ancient. This article was copied extensively throughout the state, aroused considerable interest, and numerous persons wrote mc. Mr. A. A. Graham, at that time Secretary of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society, asked me to call upon him at Columbus and the next spring he and I visited Fort Ancient. Late in February, 1889, Mr. Gerard Fowke and myself met in the State House at Columbus where we agreed upon the survey and exploration of Fort Ancient. Mr. Alfred Cowden, the principal owner of Fort Ancient at that time livuig at Morrow, and Mr. and Mrs. Dunham and others of Lebanon, heirs in the Fort Ancient estate, were visited by us. Mr. Cowden and the other owners were quite willing to cooperate with the proposed survey and gave us un- limited leave to excavate, survey, map and photograph. All specimens found were to be my property as the survey and exploration were in the interest of no institution. June 8th arrangements were made with Mr. Robert Clarke, head of The Robert Clarke Company, Publishers at Cincinnati, to issue the book "Fort Ancient" as soon as the explorations were completed. This firm was founded in 1858, succeeding the house of H. W. Derby & Co. The Derby Company was one of the earliest publishing houses in the West. It and the Robert Clarke Company made a specialty of history, science, biography, archaeology, etc. Mr. Clarke's private collection of first editions on America, and library of early American history, row in the Univers- ity of Cinciimati, is one of the finest extant. Mr. Clarke was more than a publisher ; he knew much concerning arch- aeological matters and was an authority on Ohio Valley bibliography. He died in 1899. He impressed on me the necessity of a thorough explor- ation—that Fort Ancient was now a jungle and that we would be compelled to expend a large sum of money in 32 hi'r>i,: -J ) k 'MmMM w Mr 1— ( rt -kks ■Stfs^-t jj-i 4t ^i!^-:^-! ^I^ R^iil ■4-> m w o "u o o > ^^yj ■ 'km ^v^ order to examine the place carefully and systematically; that we must make huudreds of accurate measurements, for other men might attempt to upset our calculations — a pre- diction afterward verified. To Mr. Clarke we were in- debted for many wise counsels and practical suggestions. The force employed varied from seven to fourteen per- sons. Besides Messrs. Fowke and Cowen, Mr. W. W. Ralston acted as stenographer, and Mr. Strong of the Cincinnati Camera Club was photographer. Some of my "workmen had dug for me during brief field work in '87 and '88. Three of them went on the Hopewell survey. These men had become quite skilful and could remove skeletons which at first glance seemed too frail to be handled. De- cayed skeletons they worked about with hand trowels and whisk brooms, brought the bones into relief by cutting away the earth underneath, whitened the bones so that there might be sufficient contrast between the skeletons and the clay. In some photographs of field work the bones do not show distinctly, because the skeletons are of the same color as the clay. This can be avoided by careful work and whitening the bones as stated above. The collection made in ]889 was placed in the Smith- sonian Institution where my collection had been exhibited for some time. In '91 and '92, a part of my collection was bought by the Smithsonian Institution, but the greater part of it including the Fort Ancient material — was exhibited in Orton HaU, Ohio State University, when I was appointed curator of that museum March, 1894. Part of the Fort Ancient collection was bought by Mr. F. W. Parker of Omaha, but the major portion of it went to Columbus as stated above. Early in 1891, Prof. F. W. Putnam, Chief of the An- thropology, "World's Columbian Exposition (Chicago), sent for me to visit him at Cambridge. At that time Dr. George A. Dorsey, post-graduate student in Harvard and an old college friend of mine, was appointed to carry on explora- tions in South America for the Exposition. He and I were in consultation together with Prof. Putnam during some days. The Professor appointed me an assistant to explore 35 various remains in Ohio. He wished to make a relief map of Fort Ancient such as had been made of the Serpent Mound from Mr. Cowen's survey of that structure in 1890. I told Professor Putnam that additional cross sections, various levels and measurements were necessary in order to furnish sufficient data, but that a re-survey of the walls of Fort Ancient was a needless expense. However, Pro- fessor Putnam wished the place re-surveyed and accordingly it was done. Mr. George Little, a graduate surveyor, and Mr. John Munger, assistant, chain and axe men were em- ployed and the whole work re-surveyed in the early sum- mer of '91. Three months were consumed in making an exhaustive re-survey. The total length of the walls was given by Coweu and Fowke as 18,712.2 feet. Little and jMunger surveyed from points independent of those estab- lished by Fowke and Co wen and the total variation was less than ten inches. This is remarkable when one con- siders the irregular walls and the difference of opinion which must naturally arise as to where the gateways end or begin. The second survey emphasizes the accuracy of both surveys and that a subsequent survey of Fort Ancient would be an mexcusable waste of time and money. For several years it has been my desire to bring within one volume the complete surveys of 1889 and 1891, to- gether with all that has been observed by other investiga- tors at this interesting and remarkable place. Such a pub- lication would permit me to somewhat modify conclusions or observations made in '89, '90, '92 and '95. Again, cer- tain statements or deductions may be put forth more strongly and better substantiated than in the original pub- lication. In this Bulletin I have made use of about a fourth of the original plates of the book " Fort Ancient". In many of these the language has been changed, others where meas- urements are given and the text relates to observations as to walls, moats, terraces, etc., are presented as they were published in the original book. I am quite aware that the chapters devoted to the embankments themselves, and kin- dred subjects, make very dull and tedious reading, but in 36 order to understand the place thorougMy and just what it means, he who is interested in archaeology should follow the text carefully. General readers will be iaterested only in the conclusions and final observations. Mr. Webster Williams of Fort Ancient, took eleven of the photographs during the winter of 1905, when conditions were perfect. The specimens are from the Andover col- lection (found by Mr. Clifford Anderson) and from my own collection now owned by the Ohio State University. I am indebted to Mr. W. C. Tichcnor of Dayton, Ohio, for permission to reproduce from his " Guide to Fort An- cient " the view of the Valley (Plate XXI) and Plates VIII and IX ; also to Professor W. C. Mills for sug- gestions. Those who cooperated with the surveys of '89 and '91 have been thanked in previous publications. Comments on the survey for Professor Putnam are im- necessary but I have reprinted the record of the explora- tion of village sites flanking the Little Miami river. This work was done for Professor Putnam and all the specimens found, together with numerous skeletons, were shipped to Chicago. It has been thought best to reprint some portions of explorations along the East Fork of the Little Miami and of Clinton County. These places present Fort An- cient culture and are very interesting on that account. THE PUECHASB OB" FOET ANCIENT Although it is not the writer's purpose to present all the details concerning the purchase of Fort Ancient by the State of Ohio, the essential facts are herewith given. During the course of the 1889 explorations, hundreds of people visited the Fort. The Cincinnati papers sent repre- sentatives and numerous interviews were published. The next winter, the Hon. Jesse N. Oren of Wilmington, and representing his district in the Ohio State Senate, intro- duced a bill to purchase the fortification. This bill passed . April 28th, 1890. Through an oversight only half of the enclosure was purchased and Senator Oren introduced a second bill, which passed the Senate but was omitted in the 37 Report of the House Committee. April 16th, 1906, the legislature passed a bill authorizing the purchase of the remainder of Fort Ancient. The following extracts from a letter written by him April 10th, 1908, to the author of this Bulletin are seK- explanatory : — * * * * 41 J remember you very well. I visited Fort Ancient while you were making the survey. Later, you gave me a copy of your book. " I was elected to the Senate in 1889. After my election, the importance of preserving Fort Ancient was first called to my attention by Prof. Jonathan B. "Wright of Wilming- ton College, who said: 'The State ought to own Fort An- cient '. I had never given the subject much thought, but after reading your book I was more and more impressed with the importance of preserving these prehistoric works. "With a view of carrying out the idea, I introduced a bill and succeeded in having it passed, providing for the purchase by the State, of the grounds upon which the most important part of the Fort is built ; putting the Fort under the control of the Archaeological and Historical Society of the State. " The impo] tance of Fort Ancient as a prehistoric work was never fully realized until the pubhcation of your book in 1889. You have rendered an invaluable service to the science of archaeology in what you have contributed to the preservation of this wonderful work. I am, very respectfully yours, " Jesse N. Oeen." In answer to a letter of inquiry, a communication was received from Professor J. B. Wright, dated April 21st, 1908. Professor Wright states that he took a party of friends to Fort Ancient in the fall of 1889. During the course of dinner, Mrs. Wright suggested that her husband speak to Senator Oren about the preservation of Fort Ancient. Thus it will appear that whether these persons were influenced by the 1889 survey or not, much of the credit for the purchase by the State of Ohio, is due to them. Immediately after the first purchase, the State set about 38 P-I c P-I M C > ■■'T '■' ^,^ -""-"»*««««■ w=3 <> ■a 3 improving Fort Ancient. The care of the work was given to the Ohio Sate Archaeohjgical and Historical Society, and Mr. Warren Cowen was appointed custodian. He has held that office for fourteen years and improved the property greatly. The small, low mounds of 60 to 70 feet diameter have been restored slightly, by Mr. Cowen. The edges, constituting natural wash, have been thrown up and the mounds thus changed to 30 feet diameter and 6 feet height — the same kind of work was done by Professor Putnam at the Serpent Mound. Mr. Cowen resides on the spot in the original farm house, which has been remodeled for his benefit. A committee appointed by the Society has supervised the work of this custodian. Retaining walls have been con- structed where washes occurred, miderbrush has been cleared, some of the moats have been drained, and a pavillion for the accommodatioii of visitors was erected. The walls have been sowed with blue-grass. Altogether the Society has done an excellent work at Fort Ancient and is deserving of credit. Fortunately no " restorations " have been at- tempted, and the walls remain m their original condition. At the time of the first purchase. Col. Van Home, a gen- tleman interested in landscape gardening and to some ex- tent in archaeology, visited Fort Ancient with a view to beautifying the place. While it is far from the writer's purpose to speak disparagingly of Col. Van Home, if the truth is to be told, lovers of Fort Ancient vrill rejoice that the Colonel's plan of "landscape gardening" was not carried out. He did some grading on the edge of the ravine in the center of the North Fort (see point marked " house and barn " upon the map, Plate II). Pie informed me that this grading was a preliminary in the construction of a macadamized road entirely around Fort' Ancient. The ap- propriation was not sufficient to complete his scheme, and the rains soon washed out the Colonel's road. A bad gnlley began to form back of the house, and had not brush been filled in, the break might have become serious. But, fortunately, no permanent damage resulted. Col. Van Home made no regular survey of Fort Ancient. His equipment consisted of a hand level and steel tape. 41 His researches were conducted alone and no force accom- panied him. It is necessary to remark these facts, for he was requested to make a map of Fort Ancient to he hung in the State House, and an artist under nis direction copied the map drawn by Messrs. Fowke and Cowen on an en- larged scale and for years it hung in the State House at Columbus. As no credit was given those of us who made the survey, I have always felt that Col. Van Home did the survey of 1889 an injustice. BOOKS ON FORT ANCIENT On page 164 will be found a bibliography of Fort Ancient literature. The first printed account of Fort Ancient that we have record of, is in the " Portfolio ", published in Philadelphia, in the year 1809. It was described and a plan given in the " Pioneer ", of Philadelphia, also in the year 1809. It was described and figured in Drake's " Pictures of Cincinnati ", in 1815. Caleb Atwater, in 1820, ia the " Transactions of the American Antiquarian Society," presents an intelligent account of the place and gives us a map. This was after- wards copied by Howe in his "History of Ohio". At- water's description is quaint. Although he wrote before 1820, his remarks are more sensible than those of some re- cent authors. According to his description the walls have changed little since his day — an indication of their age. Squier and Davis gave the best description of Fort An- cient that we have had previous to 1889. Locke's survey, copied by them, is fairly accurate. Among recent publications upon Fort Ancient there is "A Giiide to Fort Ancient", by Mr. W. C. Tichenor of Dayton, 0. This is a neat pamphlet of 31 pages with nine illustrations. It is well written, accurate, and contains all needed information. It is the Fort Ancient " Baedeker ", and we commend its perusal to visitors who would under- stand what they observe. A more pretentious work, published this j'-ear, is " The Masterpieces of the Ohio Mound-builders ", by the Hon. E. 42 PLATE VII. Top of the Embankment near Station 12, looking North. 0. Randall. Mr. Randall is secretary of the State Archae- ological and Historical Society. In his book of 126 pages he gives numerous figureb and interesting descriptions of the chief hill-top fortifications of the state, f.6 pages are devoted to Fort Ancient. His narrative is popular rather than scientific, and his style quite entertaining. He quotes at length from the various surveys and descriptions of Fort Ancient, and thanks to his . judicial training is able to examine and comment upon discrepancies in the observa- tions of the archaeologists who have written about the Fort. Both of these books present the " new Fort Ancient " — the attractive park instead of the former brush-covered plateau. Mr. Randall, durmg his many years as Secretary, has contributed more than anyone else to the bringing of Fort Ancient to its present state of beauty. Dr. Cyrus Thomas published a brief account of Fort An- cient in the " Handbook of American Indians ", issued by the SiTiithsonian Institution, 1907, page 469. The descrip- tion exhibits a lack of familiarity with the place. Dr. Thomas has always underestimated the amount of labor expended b}' the builders of Fort Ancient. When the survey of 1889 began work, it was clear to us that there had been no uniformity of terms in the many descriptions of Fort Ancient. Farmers residing near " the Fort " had always recognized two divisions, the New Fort and the Old Fort. These terms were entered upon our map, together with additional names. New Fort. — The northern Fort; that portion of Fort An- cient lying north of the Crescent Gateway, or north of the Isthmus. Old Fort. — The southern Fort ; that portion of Fort An- cient south of the Great Gateway ; the irregular part lying south of the Isthmus on the map. Great Gateway. — The dividing mounds at the south end of the Isthmus, which are marked stations 10-3 and 285, and ^vhich separate the structure into the Old and New Forts. These stations are on their highest points. Isthmus. — The narrow neck which divides the structure almost into halves. 44 Crescent Gatncay. — The wing walls which run out from stations 306 and 89. The space between these and the Great Gateway is known as the Middle Fort. A few names have smce been added by the State, but the important places still bear the original nomenclature. 45 ' "^ \^^_^,*^"\'V^»^'f-^'»*.^^JlL^ff> -^^ .'TXmAe^ ^^^i^^»y PLATE VIII. Approach to Fort Ancient from the West. (From the Railway.) PLATE IX. The Great Gateway; looll < *^ drain it, cut a small trencli tltrougli tlie wall, wHch was bnilt on a gravel deposit. The water soon began to un- dermine and cut out a wide ditch, and in spite of ef- forts to prevent it, the wall on each side caves in more or less every rain. The gap is now 57 feet wide, and will continue to increase unless some effective measures are soon taken to stop it. At station 360 is a gateway leading down hill on a narrow spur toward the railroad station. Between stations 363 and 364 the pike passes. This was apparently one of the main gateways of the fort. On both sides of the pike within the Avail, the earth has been excavated to a large extent to be used in the walls. The pike, however, follows the extent of a kind of platform, having the original level for a width of 70 feet, from which part no earth was re- moved. It has the appearance, viewed from the entrance, of an artificial elevation, but is simply the original surface left to make an easy passage. The first wall on the north side of the pike, although very heavy, forms a crescent, almost a semi-circle. A large amount of earth has been excavated just within to be used in the construction of the embankment. Formerly this contained water to a depth of several feet during the entire year, but it is now almost entirely filled up with decayed vegetation. Station 367 is a bastion overlooking a narrow spur that runs out between the road and a deep ravine on the north. Its gateway could not be reached from the interior di- .rectly on account of the pond above mentioned. It would be -necessary to approach it from one side or the other on the wall. There is a depression where the wall was built solidly across a deep ravine, but has washed out. At station 374 there is a gateway leading down to a deep ravine on the north. Beginning at station 375, there is a terrace on the outside of the wall which extends as far as station 387. From station 370 to station 388, the wall is built below the top of the hill, on the slope. Between sta- tions 378 and 379 the wall must have been heavy across the ravine, but it is now washed out. A natural ravine has 71 formed by water running along the inside of the wall, which in process of time, has cut its way through the embankment. Station 382 is a gateway which leads out upon the ter- race. At station 386 the wall was once solid, but was pierced for the passing through of a road, so it is reported ; but, from tho indications, we think there was a gateway there, and very little, if any, excavating was done to allow a wagon road to pass through. There are large fiat stones in the bottom of the wall at this point, and they crop out at the edges and can be plainly seen. At station 390 there is a bastion opening out on a ravine. On the interior there is a level, but the gateway is slightly higher. At station 394 the wall was once built across a small hollow, but for some reason unknown to us was left quite low, so that it has the appearance of having been washed out, leavmg a depression about twenty-five feet in width. This liHS an easy approach from the interior, and on the outside leads down a slope to the bottom of the ravine, at a point where a branch comes in from a good spring in the field north of the fortification . There is a regular passage- way through station 397 to the mouth of this branch. The spring has unusually cold, clear water, and it seems as if an artificial channel led from it to the ravine at the place men- tioned. Station 402, at the north-east corner of the fortification, was probably a bastion, as it opens down into a ravine ; but it may have been a gateway leading out to the field north- east. Station 405 is a gateway opening out toward the large mound on the east side of the pike. This gateway has a great deal of stone in it. Between stations 407 and the pike passes. The summary of the survey may be stated in the follow- ing figures : Total length of the walls of Fort Ancient ^ 18,712.2 feet.* Length of the parallel walls . .' 2,760 " Length of the crescent in New Fort. 269 " \ \ \ Distance in a straight line from sta- tions 187 to 389 (the most distant \ points north and south) . . 4,993 feet Total length of terraces within one mile of station . . . . 5| miles. Grand total of artificial work in length lOll miles. The parallel walls are 2,760 feet each ; readers must not fall into the error of considering the above the length of both taken as one continuous embankment, *Tbis leugtli of tUe walls is obtained by measuring and surveying the center of tlie embankment on top. There is no allowance made lor spurs, bastions or elevations. The Crescent Gateway is not in- cluded. Were these added we would probably have a total length of 21,400 feet. CHAPTER in. THE POSTTION OF THE EORTIEICATION. POINTS COiJrCERN- ING THE GATEWAY AND THETMOATS It will be observed, on the map, that in the center of Fort Ancient extends a long, narrow isthmus, flanked on each side by two deep and precipitous ravines. The width of this isthmus ranges from 100 yards at its widest point to a contraction compassed within 100 feet. Natives were compelled to traverse the isthmus in passing from one fort to the other. Taking one's point of view from the western walls, it begins at station 309 on the north, and extends to the Great Gateway, or station 288 on the south. In order to understand this isthmus and the central part of the work, which is by far the most interesting portion of the entire fortification, we will call the attention of the reader to Plates IX, X, XI, and XII. In Plate IX, at page 46, it will be seen that the road which extends through the en- tire length of the fortification passes between two large high mounds. They stand about 300 yards south of the point where the camera was placed for the taking of this view. These two mounds are about 20 feet in altitude, and at the base are ten feet apart, leaving just space enough for a wagon to pass between them. At their bases and between them is a raised platform four feet in height. This is, more extensive on the side next to the Old Fort than on that lying toward the New, and when examined it was found to contain many human bones, in small fragments and much decayed. When within 103 feet on the east and 143 feet on the west of the Great Gateway, the embankment com- ing from the north on the edge of the isthmus on each side abruptly terminates. For a distance of 103 feet on one side and 143 feet on the other there is no embankment, the ravines having such a steep angle on each side that further protection was unnecessary. Plate X, at page 52, will show the surveying corps as they stood on the mound and in the gateway. This plate 74 Ed ° also furnishes a close view of the Great Gateway, and by the figure standing on the summit of the mound to the left, or east, one will obtain an idea as to its height when com- pared with that of a man of .six feet. It may not be improper to observe that in some of the pictures with which this book is embellished, trees and foli- age are very conspicuous, often hiding the walls. It was impossible to secure photographs otherwise ; and this con- stituted the main difficulty which we encountered. Nearly (he entire area of Fort Ancient lay in a forest so dense that no little clearing had to be done before photographing, sur- veying, or excavating, could be done with satisfaction. Mr, WiUiams, who took views of the structure in the winter of 1905, for the writer, labored under no such disadvantage. Not only was the season propitious, but the fort is more open than formerly, much of the underbrush having been cut away. All about the Great Gateway are masses of stone which were employed both as coverings for graves and as a pro- tection to the embankment. Recently -many of these have been hauled away by farmers. They are most frequent on the east side in a depression between stations 103 and 103. At this point the embankment is the steepest in the entire earthwork. At the base and protruding from the sides are many large water-worn limestones. These must, at one time, have been piled up in the form of a rude wall to strengthen the base of the embankment. The average size of these stones is 18 x 20 inches, weighing probably- about 40 pounds each. Human bones are numerous in the soil under them. Plate XI (p. 57) exhibits the east mound-shaped' wall of the Great Gateway. The road passes between them, and is four feet higher than the surrounding- level on account of the platform mound which lies in the opening. From the Great Gateway the two walls which constitute the Old Fort sharply diverge. One runs directly east, the other south-west. The wall running east soon swings around to the south ; the other wall runs in a very irregular 76 manner, being more tortuous than any other portion of the entire structure. About twenty-five stations beyond the Great Gateway, it assumes a southerly direction for quite a distance. Immediately to the left of the Great Gateway there is a deep depression between the walls, which is filled with rock. These rocks are not the coverings of graves. They are stones that have been used to form a sort of wall at the foot of the embankments. By thrusting an iron rod into the bank at almost any point, one can feel stones still stand, ing as they were originally placed. The earth from above has washed down and covered them up so that they now appear as if they had been originally covered with earth by the builders. Such is not the case. The stones were on the outside of the wall ; the earth has since run down from above and covered them. Many of the stones have fallen down and formed a heap about the base of the high steep mounds at this spot. Plate XII, page 63, shows how steep and high the em- bankment is just above the spot where lies the stone wall described. The figure at the top is that of a six foot man. Compare his height with that of the embankment. Of both Old and New Forts, the interior is cleared, but there is left a fringe of timber extending all around the Old Fort and part way through the New, thus affording a source of protection and preserving the embankment as nothing else could. We find beech, walnut, oak, ash, elm, dog- wood, poplar, and hickory. The beech is more numerous than other trees, and its roots spread out over the surface, forming a perfect net-work in places over the wall, and together with the moss, which is so abundant in many localities, affording an efficient barrier against erosion. The places where the embankment has recently washed are those upon which cattle have stood and cut the earth with their hoofs, and thus started a small gully, or where some one has cut a drain tha-ough to allow water which has coUected above to escape. The embankments of the Old Fort are markedly more irregular and crooked than those of the New. Their construction must have been more difficult. 77 At page 84 (Plate XVII) there is shown the outside slope of the fort wall, near station 280. The earth at this point has been dumped on the edge of the hill and allowed to fall down upon the outside, which has made the outside slope of the ravine very steep, perhaps 35 or 36 degrees. The height on the inside of the wall at this point is only- nine feet. We trace earth artificially deposited at the base on the exterior 50 feet from the summit, There is consid- erable timber on the slope, as will be seen in the illustration, and the growth of grass and weeds is very heavy. We ob- serve a moat here, within the enclosure, and from its size conclude that much earth was removed for the embankment. The moat is of such extent in depth that water stands in it La places. Alongside the embankment, west of the Great Gateway, we dug in the moat to determine its original depth. Although at present it is but two feet deep, our examination led us to believe that when the aborigines completed it, the depth was five feet greater than at pres- ent — a total of 7 feet. The earth to a depth of two feet was exceedingly dark and heavy. Four feet from the sur- face were pottery fragments, chips and flakes of charcoal. The bones had probably decayed. From the bottom of the moat to the top of the wall is 16 feet. But as soil from the wall had washed into the moat, the total distance was, we are convinced, at least 19 feet. Plate XX presents a bit of the Isthmus. A little spur juts out a few yards toward the west. From this point one commands a splendid view of the valley far beneath. It is possible for one to discern the hills flanking the river and Oregonia, three miles up stream, or north. The embank- ment is not steep and varies from four to seven or eight feet in height. In building the walls high, the earth was thrown over the edge of the bluff. One is able to differen- tiate the artificial slope from the natural. To the left of the picture the Isthmus contracts and the walls come nearer each other. At Station 296 (not shown in Plate XX), the embankment runs north and south and is made heavy at the head of another spur. At Station 296 there is an open space in front of the embankment, filled with stones, the design and use of which is by no means easy to explain un- less they formed the walls at the base of the embankment. 78 CHAPTER IV KEMAEKS UPON THE ILLUSTRATIONS. POINTS OP INTEREST. GATEYv^AYS AND DITCHES. Standing on station 0, which is to the extreme right in Plate III, one has an uninterrupted view across 2000 feet of New Fort. To the left are the two mounds without the enclosure (see Plate XXIX). The fields are cleared on either hand, and far to the west, a quarter of a mile away, is the other side of the fort wall flanking the river. Note the difference between these embankments in summer and winter. The frontispiece is from the exterior of New Fort, the camera placed 250 yards distant and looking west. In Plate II the camera is brought nearer. In Plate IV, long, straight stretches described in. Chapter II are clearl}' indi- cated. 1000 feet of embankment is shown, and in Plate V there is a summer view of the same walls as are observed in Plate IV. But in Plate V the view is from the inside of the fortification. Station would be slightly to the left of the margin and is not shown. In Plate VI we are west of the center of the New Fort and look at embankments flanking the Little Miami valley. Plate VIII gives a glimpse of the valley beyond the west wall of the isthmus. The lowest embankments are shown in Plate XXII. The road made use of by those who drive from the turnpike in the New Fort to the village site in the Old Fort is in the foreground. As the embankment is but four feet in height and does not appear to have ever been either steep or high, one queries why it should have been so weak at this particular place. Several theories suggest themselves. One, that pahsades were planted to strengthen the wall. Another, that the wall was not completed at this point. Certain it is that the amount of earth now in evi- dence could not have constituted, originally, a wall of more than 6 or 7 feet in height. Although the writer is unable to prove conclusively his belief, he is of the opinion that the embankment was not completed. 79 «s.^|r^ >2 xo 3 X J3 a w Plate XXIII illustrates- how that a small washout, through neglect,, may become a menace. This serious break in the wall has occurred since Atwater's time. The State has since built a heavy retaining wall and further damage can- not occur. The washout was 67 feet in width and nearly 45 feet deep, or more than 20 feet deeper than the original height of the wall. However, the damage is not without its recompense, for the exposed sections show clearly the composition of Fort Ancient's embankments. There is variation in color and material, indicating that the natives scooped up amounts of earth varying from a peck to half a bushel, some working in loam, others transporting clay, and again those who carried stone. In the center the stones assume the shape of a rough layer. On the other side the stones weighed as much as 10 pounds each. There is a tra- vertine coating on the stones — a natural formation. It is quite likely that the wall — at least here at station .363 — was built at two periods, separated by an unknown length of time. Vegetable matter accumulated between these layers, and when the wall was completed, this material lay between the first and second sections. The line of division is haK an inch thick, is dark, clearly marked, and precisely such as is found in mounds, denoting different periods of construction. While loam and yellow clay predominate, not a little blue clay appears. Such material the builders must have taken from ravines and the hmestone beds. There has been frequent reference to limestone slabs so numerous about the Great Gateway, in the end of embank- ments and on the outside of the walls. By thrusting an iron rod into the earth at almost any point in the wall, these stones can be felt. Over most of them is a coating caused by carbonated water, flowing over them and dissolving a portion of the stone. In places where the stones are heaped up they seem to have been held together by a cement. The coating is travertine and due entirely to natural causes. Some early writers on Fort Ancient have called it " Mound Builder cement " — which, of course, is absurd. The amount of stone and its position indicates that the builders constructed a stone backbone entirely around the 8i enclosure. This varied, but usually it lay near the center of the embankment. It is quite likely that on the exterior stones were laid up forming a wall sloping slightly back- wards — as they naturally would lying against the curve of the embankment. Within the New Fort is a semi-circular, or crescent- shaped, embankment, somewhat injured by the state road running through a portion of it. It will be seen in the map as cut into halves by the pike. The height of this crescent is about two feet ; the length of it, 269 feet. There is no use assigned to it. The portion north of the pike was covered and protected in 1899 by a growth of small bushes and trees. The fort wall, on Mr. Ridge's side, the extreme north, runs comparatively straight. The average height of the em- bankment on Mr. Ridge's land is 13 or 14 feet, and there are fewer gateways on his portion than on any other of equal extent. There is a ditch on the inside for the entire extent. We dug into the ditch running out from the mound on Mr. Ridge's side, with the following results : The part dug was near the large mound in his orchard. At a depth of three feet in the bottom, and resting on un- disturbed earth, and covered by the accumulations of years, was the bottom of what had once been a very large clay jar. It seems, from the fragment found, to have been at least a foot in diameter. The upper portion being gone, we could not tell the height. Several other fragments were found in this ditch. On the south side of the Lebanon and Chillicothe pike, just south of mound 69, there starts another ditch or moat. This we carefully excavated, and found a number of in- teresting things. It has filled to a depth of three feet. This makes the original depth about four feet. There were fragments of charcoal and some burnt stone in it; that was all. We dug another trench about 100 yards further south, in the same moat, and here took out fragments of pottery, as many as one could hold in two hands. As the excavation was enlarged, more and more pottery pieces were found, but they were well scattered. There were fragments 82 of the bones of a yery large animal, presumably those of a buffalo, in the moat, and some flakes of charcoal. There was no burnt earth. A piece of mica, about three inches across, and chips of flint, were also taken from this ditch. Resting upon the undisturbed earth was a layer of gravel reaching about two feet in width, and six inches thick at thickest part, running out to a feather edge toward each side. We do not know how far it extended along the moat, or why it was placed there. It was put there by the hand of man, as numerous objects, such as referred to above, were found on and in it. The moat here has been filled in by rubbish to the depth of three feet ; it is three feet de^p now. Its original depth at this point was therefore six feet. Between stations 417 and 418, there is a place which has either been only slightly excavated, or else filled up again after excavation, as it is only a foot lower than the bank on either side, and has but a few inches of black soil above the yellow clay which is found at a depth of three feet in the other parts of the moat. We dug in the "causeway" which leads out from station 5, but found that it was original earth (natural), not filled in, and that the elevation was undoubtedly made use of as a foot-way in and out of the inclosure. After the causeway was examined, pits were sunk in the depression or moat on either side. 20 inches of black, mucky soU. intervened and then the natural clay. It ap- peared to us that here the moats were never very deep. It is possible that the clay may have washed in, but we con- sider that improbable. Outside the embankment at station 3 is a large, long moat, briefly described on page 51. Further excavations were made in it at another time and nearer the woods its original depth must have been four or five feet greater than at present — a total of 6 or 7 feet in excess of what it is today. A hollow into which the ditch extends, rapidly deepens. A terrace follows it for nearly a mile, ending abruptly opposite a peculiar knoll, which may be natural, although 83 h •d in W g S o 6 r it appears as if artificially rounded. There are also a niini- ber of depressions ; all of which, should be investigated more thoroughly. It is hkely that natives made use of the ditch as a cov- ered retreat when they wished to pass from the mounds, or the parallel walls, or the pavement to the Old Fort and be protected en route. Again, that ditch may carry some ceremonial significance. The writer is of the opinion that the ditches were more extensive when Fort Ancient was completed and that they bore a peculiar significance to the whole earthwork, a rela- tion which is at present imperfectly understood. CHAPTER V. EXCAVATIONS IN AND ABOUT THE EAETHWOEKS. STONE GRAVES, STONE HEAPS, ETC., AND THEIB CONTENTS. Reference has been made to the stone heaps and stone graves so numerous about the Great Gateway and on the terraces. In addition to such, there are seven small mounds on the outside, within a few hundred yards of the fortification, but our map is not large enough to show them, and, besides, they are unimportant. The stone graves and the cemetery were opened very carefully, and drawings and photographs taken of their contents. In the center of the Old Fort in 1889 stood the stump of a large and old walnut tree on a perceptible rise of ground. For a distance of about 110 feet, all around the stump, are many graves, at an average depth of two and a half feet. These graves are formed of hmestones, which were brought from the ravines adjacent, or the river valley below, and are placed on each side of the skeletons, at the head and at the feet, and over them. The skeletons found in the cemetery are of an average size, being about five feet six inches in height, and were buried similarly. But one exception of consequence was observed — that of a skeleton surrounded by a circle of stones. The following objects accompanied this interment : Near the left femur was a large spear head of yellow flint ; near the left shoulder were remains of ^pottery broken into small fragments ; near the right femur, a large stone celt. The bones of this individual were quite well preserved, and we saved them almost entire. From the grave-yard we took out twenty skeletons in various stages of decom- position. Some of these were as deep below the surface as th]-ee feet, and one was four feet. The stones are about 15 pounds weight on an average. Some are heavier, and others lighter. Between the stones and the body there is usually four inches of earth. It is almost impossible to save anything except the skull in fragments, the femura, tibiae, and heavier bones. Some of the larger phalanges and the os calcis are often entire, bnt the ribs, vertebrae, pelvis, and smaller bones are usually entirely decayed, and frequently no trace of them remains. In this field (Old Fort) was observed at the time of ex- ploration, some house-sites that have since disappeared. Some were clearly defined, others indistinct. They vary in diameter from 22 to 30 feet and two of the best preserved of them have a depth in the center of three feet. In char- acter they are not unlike a small circus ring. The area inclosed is different in color from that outside. Fire has tinged the earth to a reddish hue, and pottery fragments, ashes and animal bones are to be observed. Mr. Hughes, an aged man who has lived near the fort aU his life, and was able to furnish us with much information as to the change in character of the surface since his boy- hood days, states that these circles and depressions were plain fifty years ago. At the time of examination, the writer was led to believe that the large lodges in the South or Old Fort were similar to those built by the Mandan Indians on the Upper Missouri. He is still of the same opinion. If the structures were of that character, when the supports decayed, or the sun-baked clay was affected by frosts, the larger portion of the clay — where it was thick- est — in falling would leave an embankment of circular ap- pearance. THE MOUNDS WITHIN FORT ANCIENT Four of the mounds in the North Fort appear to have formed a rude square nearly in line with the cardinal points. This coincidence carries no significance, one is led to believe. Four plates from the original edition of the book " Fort Ancient", describing these mounds and some stone heaps are herewith inserted. On the east there is a small mound about 100 yards from station 1 and it is covered with burnt stone. About 200 yards south there is another small mound near 87 the edge of the woods. There are two more equally dis- tant to the north and west, thus making a square which, while not altogether exact, closely approaches it. E"ear station 35, across a deep hollow over in a dense woods, are three mounds. They are 300 to 400 yards distant from the nearest approach of the wall. They vary in diameter from 20 to 30 feet, but they are all nearly the same altitude. The average height is three feet. These mounds were dug out very carefully and a few interesting things found. The following account of them is taken directly from the Field Book: (The numbers used in reference to graves and mounds require a brief explanation. Last year, when doing field work, I began to number consecutively all mounds opened, in order that my notes might not be confused. These numbers were continued this year.) The first and largest of the three mounds is number 50. It is near a saw-mill, and about one quarter of a mile due south from Mr. GTeorge Ridge's house. The mound is four feet high, about 40 feet in diam- eter, and quite regular in outline. "Work was begun Thursday morning, July 18th. For a considerable distance in this structure nothing whatever was found, and, indeed, we were well into the center of the mound when we came upon a large mass of burnt clay, and considerable charcoal and ashes. About six inches above the base line was a fine layer of burnt bone; this was two or three inches thick, and extended over half the mound. Below this, near the center, were two " pockets" cov- ered by burnt stone, and extending two or three feet deep. There were pottery fragments in each of them. Near one of these "pockets" were three sheets of yellow mica, with edges neatly trimmed, and presenting a disk-shaped appearance; they were about six inches in diameter. There was a fragmentary skeleton in the mound, which had one arrow-head and some pottery fragments buried with it. It had on the right hand quite a mass of red ochre, which was probably used for war-paint. Near the south- west part of tlie mound a broken celt, and a black stone of ratber peculiar form were removed. This latter was a very fine relic and can be restored. Tbe length was about six inches, and the width about one and one-half inches. The pottery found in this mound is thin and well made, but not ornamented. There were no stones in the mound except a few above the bones, and these were not laid reg- ularly. Mound No. 51 is in the same woods as l^o. 50, and lies nearly south from 'So. 50, 200 yards, or about 600 yards from the north point of the fort wall near station 32 or 33. It is two and one-half feet high, and 40 feet across. This mound was dug entirely through, and traces of decayed skeletons were seen, but none of the bones were sufliciently well preserved to take them out entire. There were about 30 scales and chips of flint found with some of these bones. No 52 is in the same woods, but is nearer the fort wall ; it is on the edge of a hollow, probably about 200 yards across from the fort, opposite station 32. It is about 17 feet across and two feet high, and had a circle of stones, somewhat burned, lying immediately under the surface, extending completely around it. This circle was about 15 feet in diameter, and 20 inches wide, and about three*layers deep; the stones were not laid with any pre- cision, but rather heaped in. There was nothing whatever within this stone circle. In the same woods, where these mounds are, and on the ravines bordering on this side of the fort, there are numerous stone graves, in which skele- tons have been found, and many relics have been picked up in the woods. The first time it is plowed, the find will probably be very remarkable. The terrace on the east side of the Great Gateway has on its surface many stone graves. We opened one or two of these and found some very interesting remains. We here give a few notes from the Field Book as taken on the spot, and upon the same day the finds were made. The stones in this pile covered an extent of 20 feet by 80, the stone running from 15 to 25 inches in height, and 8q i-;h B M a Id •a a W the quantity in the pile is not far from 460 wagon loads. The graves are near the Great Gateway, and are on the east side next to the hollow near station 104, and are on the outside of the wall. There they are on a terrace of 25 feet width ; this terrace is about 19 feet from the top of the wall above. We commenced on the west side of the terrace, and dug out a space about 20 feet wide, which was carried right through the stone grave. We then passed over several places where others had dug, and took out 15 feet of grave in one part, and 10 feet in another at the other extremity of the terrace. There were decayed bones scattered all through this stone pile, and pottery fragments in large numbers. These were under the first layer of stone, and very much decayed. They were not over 10 inches deep, most of them, but the larger and better preserved bones were about two feet deep. From the number of bones found, there must have been 18 or 20 individuals interred at this place. Some of the pottery found was decorated, but most of it was plain. In one mass of bones was a very fine celt seven inches long, by four inches wide. In another place was a limestone of about 20 pounds weight, that had three cup-shaped depressions on one side, and three deep grooves on the other, as if it had been used for sharpening a tool of some description ; the grooves look as if copper had been sharpened. The cup-shaped depressions were probably due to the grinding of paint. 'No animal bones were found in this stone pile, but several very fine knifes made of long curved flint flakes were found. These skeletons had stones heaped over them, not laid regularly. The bones were broken in small fragments, about two bush- els in quantity. The bones were found in pieces not longer than six inches, and most of them less than four inches. There is a large stone grave at the southern extrem- ity of the fortification, just outside of the fort wall. The grave lies on a high terrace far above the river, and only 36 feet from the fort wall. The grave holds about 40 wagon loads of stone, which are' heaped up and not laid in any regular order. Under these 91 stones we found fragmentary bones, broken celts, and many flint chips. The bones, like those found in nearly all of the stone heaps, are very much decayed, and very fragmentary. The terraces on the west side of the old fort, which overlooks the river, have scattered graves on them, some of which, when opened, yielded very interest- ing bones and relics; many of them, however, have nothing under the stone save broken and decayed bones. The river flows at the foot of the hill on this west side for some distance, and there are many points on the embank- ment where the descent to the river is very steep; an angle of 30 degrees, and where one could stand and shoot an arrow without difficulty across the stream. These ter- races do not have graves their entire length, but only in certain places. The following account concerning these graves, and copied from the Field Book, may be of some interest to readers : — Four of them were opened, situated on the ter- race next to the top, or the third one, going from the river up. Two of the graves opened were located together, and may, perhaps, with propriety be classed as one large tomb. The stone contained in this grave would be equal in quantity to about 100 wagon loads, and is about two feet thick, spreading over a space the width of the ter- race — 20 feet — and was about fifty feet long. "We threw out all this stone, which occupied the time of three men for two days, and under it we found a total of nearly 20 fragmentary skeletons. The skulls were crushed, and the jaws in most instances were broken, but such jaws as were saved we judged to represent individuals of average size, and quite strong. The teeth were much worn, as if they had eaten little vegetables, and their sustenance had been mainly derived from the flesh of animals. The bones that we did save entire, of the legs and arms, would indicate a people of about the same height with ourselves, but rather stronger. There were the bones of children found in this stone heap, and, judging from tbe teeth of one, we should say it was about seven years of age. There were some inter- 92 J3 .a 3 esting relics, such as a clay dish, nearly entire, and about five inches high ; a beautiful ornament or personal pendant some four inches long, made of black slate, with a hole drilled through it ; several arrow-heads ; and a stone celt of unusual finish and beautiful shape. There were no bones of animals in this stone heap. The other two graves were situated further north, one on the center terrace, and a third on the upper terrace. These contained numerous fragments of skeletons, but nothing of any interest in the way of relics, save a few small beads, one or two arrow-heads, one spear-head, and a few pottery sherds. The earth wall along the west side is quite high in some places, higher than on the east side of the old fort. The ditch is quite deep here, and will average three feet below the level inside. The embankment in many places has a layer of stone underneath, presumably to keep it from shpping and sliding down the hill. Landslides in limestone regions being not uncommon, the natives took precautions against the danger here at Fort Ancient. How- ever, some consider the stones of very slight protection or support in case the wall should become loosened in an ex- cessively wet season, and start sliding into the deep ravines. The stones can be seen cropping out at the base of the wall in every gateway. Near station 248, on a point overlooking the valley, is a small grave containing about two wagon loads of stone. Yet underneath were three skeletons in fair state of preservation. With the skull of one individual was found a large flint spear-head, and with another several shell beads, a small but finely made arrow-head, and some ocean shells, which had been perforated and worn as orna- ments. These bodies lay about 10 or 12 inches beneath the surface of the ground, with scarcely any covering. In most instances the bones in the graves in the woods and on the terraces are found within a foot of the surface. 94 CHAPTER VI. VILLAGE SITE ALONG THE BANKS OF THE LITTLE MIAMI BIVEE. A preliminary examination was made of this in 1887 and 1888. Ill 1889 more extensive excavations were under- taken and a number of men employed for a considerable time.. The village extends over a space of grouiid, possibly half a mile long and 400 yards in width. Most of the explorations were confined to a space 100 feet by 400 feet. It is stated that in the heavy woods on the flat across the river is another site, but the writer never attempted explo- rations on the west side of the river. As the river each spring washes and cuts into the banks, a thick hedge has been planted about twenty feet back from the edge. The bank in 1889 was perhaps 15 feet in altitude and nearly perpendicular. We were requested not to dig on the river side of this hedge, and therefore confined all our excava- tions to the east side of it. The first large excavation made was back from the hedge about 30 feet. At a depth of two feet we found numerous bones of animals, ashes, and pottery fragments. The soil at this point is a heavy black loam with some sand in it. It is very rich, and raises annually splendid crops without fertilization. The bones taken out from the depth of two feet were mostly in small pieces, and they were not nearly so numerous as those which we foimd at a depth of four feet. Four feet of earth has accumulated since the great village was there. It is at this deep level that we find pottery of a beautiful texture and finish, and implements of a better grade than those found at the two-foot level. In these excavations the same order of arrangement is noticed every-where. First, there is a layer of loam about two feet thick ; then there is a thin deposit of ashes, char- coal, etc. Then there are two feet to thirty inches of sand and loam, and the heavy deposit of refuse. At five feet we find, in places, a thick layer of bones, pottery, etc.; it is not, 96 however, continuous like the four-foot layer, and the village that left it was not so large as the two later ones. In some excavations the bones are few, and the mussel shells scarce. In others we seem to strike the site of a lodge and find mail}' remains of occupation. .V few pieces of pottery of a dark red color, which were thick and clums}', and a few bird bones were all that were found at two feet from the surface. From a depth of two feet until we had reached a depth of four feet we found nothing. At four feet we found the greatest deposit of objects desciibed. This fact indicates that a very consider- able length of time had elapsed since the first village was abandoned before the next one was occupied. At this level we found a large black mass of ashes, and soft earth, and burnt stone ; such as would result from long continued cooking on one spot of ground. In this mass of ashes were the bones of 17 animals and birds, and many fish scales. We also took out eight bone needles or awls, such as the women of the tribe would use in ihe manufacture of gar- ments of deer skin. Some of the pottery fragments found at this level were quite large and nicely decorated. The bones represent the following animals and birds : bear, deer, elk, musk-rat, ground-hog, raccoon, squirrel, rabbit and wolf, wild turkey, wild duck, hawk, owl, quail, cat-fish, turtle, and gar. It is well known that ashes have a wonderful preserving quabty and in the deeper pits minute fish scales and bones and the vertebral column of fish were removed in almost perfect condition. Needles, perforators and awls Avere quite common as were mussel shells used as scrapers and as hoes. Typical perforated mussel shell for the insertion of either a finger or stick is shown in Plate XXVI. Some of the awls may be seen in Plate XXV. 98 A number of children's graves were uncovered but no group of graves was discovered during the explorations in the sunmier of 1889. A child, probably two years of age, had been buried with unusual care. The stones were two feet by six inches, three inches thick and weighed about 75 pounds each — the largest that we found either in the valley or upon the hill. Near the head of the skeleton lay four shell discs, two small shell pendants and an arrow point of clear chalcedony. Since the grave was con- structed, natives had camped on the spot above, for there was an ash pit 4 by 3 feet which contained much bone ma- terial and pottery sherds. After the writer's appointment as assistant mider Pro- fessor Putnam, work was undertaken agam at Fort Ancient.^ In "Primitive Man in Ohio" the results of the 1891 exploration were given to the public in Chapters VII and VIII of that work, and about half of the pages relating to Fort Ancient are republished herewith. When we consider the magnitude of the walls of Fort Ancient, the immense amount of labor involved in their erection, and in the construction of the miles of terraces connected with them, we realize that all this required a long period of time or a large number of workers ; perhaps, when 'we bear in mind the primitive methods of the builders, we are even justified in believing that it represents the pro- longed and continuous industry of a numerous population. Taking this view of the case, it is a surprising feature to note that so few mounds occur in connection with this 1 When he was appointed to the position of field assistant for the World's Columbian Exposition Survey in 1891, Professor Putnam wrote him on March 18th of that year, giving instructions for the work to he carried out at Fort Ancient, viz. : " Taking into considera- tion the fact that the Exposition will have the benefit of your former work at this place, and the use of such plans and notes as you already have, I herewith agree that all material obtamed during this expedi- tion shall be at your service for study and description." 99 "2 5) -a XI u e < H great earthwork, and that even such as do exist are of in- significant proportions. Omitting a few smaU elevations which have been plowed over until it is impossible to de- termine whether they are natural or artificial, and which have never disclosed anything that would throw light on the question, there are only ten mounds in sight from any portion of the enclosure ; all these except one,= which is in the loop or curve formed by the junction of the parallels, at the farthest extremity of the fort, were thoroughly ex- amined. As the survey of 1889 was not able to thoroughly explore the village sites, under Professor Putnam's direction the author employed eight or ten men for some weeks in May and June, 1891, on the "Lower" and "Upper" sites. These are separated by a small ravine, merely, although the cemeteries were about 700 feet apart. The Lower one- south — was where we had dug in 1889. One can observe both sites from a hundred places upon the towering fort waUs above. It is so near the enclosure that but three or four minutes would be occupied in reach- ing safety should the villagers be compelled to flee at the approach of an enemy. Besides the site mentioned, one mile and a half below the southern extremity of Fort Ancient is another large village covering some eight or ten acres rich in graves and debris. At the mouth of Caesar Creek, six miles distant to the north, are two extensive sites, one in the bottoms and the other upon the hills to the south. The 1891 work confirmed what had been observed three years previously. For a depth of two feet there was little indica- tion of occupation. This level was the highest, and therefore 2 This was examined in April, 1891. It contained nothing. loi St a. 4 Sta. Uj ^^^ V „«,«:!^ «^ ^fg^^^ S- lO (M^ Co a: \v sta. 383 Sta. 241 PLATE XXIV. Cross Sections of the Embankments, taken where Contrasts were Marked. the latest, of three villages that had been situated upon the bottom. We found great quantities of burnt stone, ashes, charcoal, fragments of pottery, bones of animals and birds. Implements of stone lay scattered about and were, with few exceptions, broken or thrown aside in the waste so abundant in such places. This layer had a thickness of about six inches. After passing through it we found another stratum of soil not less than a foot thick, and in some places as much as eighteen inches. It did not contain any specimens of human handiwork. At a depth of one foot below the first layer the level of the second village site was discovered. It had been occupied for a longer period of time than the other. A few inches of clean earth had formed between the second layer and the debris of the lowest or oldest site. Its highest point is fully five and a half feet below the present surface. The depth of this layer is less than six inches. The greatest depth below the surface at which any relic was found in the three village sites was six and a half feet. The specimen was a small highly polished celt of green stone. It must not be inferred that the 'Ikitchen-middens" extended in a continuous, unbroken stratum at the various levels. In some of the pits we found all three strata, in others either one or two. A few places were entirely without layers and did not show any traces of fii'e from the surface to the bottom, of the pit. Articles of aboriginal manufacture wei-e also absent. It is obvious then, that at three different periods in the past, separated from one another by consider- able intervals, this bottom was a place of resort for the aboriginal hunters and fishermen of the Little Miami valley. But whether they came to spend the summer only, or whether the villages were per- manent places of abode will never be known. On one hand is the great amount of refuse accumulated ; but on the other is the fact that the ground is subject to an occasional overflow. At any rate, the intervening strata of earth containing no evidence of human residence, would show that, whichever view of the matter we take, occupation of the site was not continuous. During the excavations at this point we unearthed three skeletons some rods back from the river. The first was that of an adult of small size, not more than five feet six inches long. This burial is notice- able for its peculiarity. The earth had been removed for a depth of two feet, and in the bottom of the space a hole had been dug large enough to contain the body. At each end of this hole a rectangular limestone slab had been placed to serve as head and foot stones. The body had then been deposited and four large flat limestones placed across with their ends resting on the earth at either side so they would not touch the body. The soil had then been thrown over the structure. The bones were well preserved, but no relics of any sort were found in the grave. Within three feet of the end of the grave just referred to was one containing the remains of a child. It was similar in construction to the first, except 104 that the headstone was omitted, and only two stones placed over it. A small qaantity of unusually fine, soft -black earth was with the hones — possibly the remains of garments or robes in which the child had been wrapped. — .■Bf«.<\OT^- PLATE XXV. Bone Awls and Scrapers, from Ash-pits, Fort Ancient. 105 CHAPTER VII. GEOUPS OF GRAVES. In addition to the scattered graves found here and there under or in the village site, several small cemeteries of. three to seventeen graves each, were uncovered. Most of them occurred in the Upper site and were more carefully constructed and different from those of the Old Fort. It is interesting to compare the Fort Ancient graves with those of Kentucky and Tennessee where large cemeteries exist. The graves found at Hopkinsville, Kentucky, in 1903 (see Bulletin No. 3, Department Archaeology, Phil- lips Academy, p. 115), were more nearly, in point of con- struction, like those of Fort Ancient than the ones de- scribed by Gen. Thruston in his "Antiquities of Tennessee." PLATE XXVI. Typical mussel shell Hoe; Village Site; Full size. io6 General Thruston says : " The rude cists, or box-shaped coffins, are made of thin slabs of stone. Sometimes the stones are broken or cut, or rubbed down so as to fit evenly and form a well shaped case, but more frequently they are rudely joined together. Occasionally they are found in mounds or layers, four or five tiers of graves deep. The graves are usually six or seven feet long, a foot and a half to two feet wide, and eighteen inches deep ; but graves of greatly varying sizes and shapes are found intermingled with those of more regular form. The children's graves are proportionately smaller. Frequently the same cist con- tains two or three skeletons, and is not more than three or four feet long, the bones having been placed in a pile irregularly within it, indicating that they were probably interred long after death, and after some intermediate preparation or ceremonies similar to the burial customs of some of the historic tribes. " Many of the graves in the vicinity of Nashville are lined with large, thick fragments of broken pottery, as neatly joined together as if moulded for the purpose. The author regently excavated several graves of this kind on Hon. W. F. Cooper's farm, near Nashville. The pottery burial cases were symmetrically formed, and seemed to be moulded in single pieces, until an attempt was made to raise them, when they fell apart, and were found to be composed of neatly joined fragments of large vessels; the heavy rims of the vessels, more than an inch and a half thick, having been used as rims or borders, for the burial cases. " Nearly all the stone graves are found to be filled with earth inside, by infiltration. The roots of trees have pene- trated them. The very skulls are usually packed solid with earth, but now and then the iron pick will strike a hollow cist in its original state, and the fortunate explorer may be rewarded by finding a vessel or bowl of clay, perhaps 107 two or three, within easy grasp, beside the still uncov- ered skeleton, and he will thus secure a better oppor- tunity of observing at his leisure all the interesting details of the burial. " Sometimes a little cluster of stone graves is found, with the usual accompaniments of pottery and rude orna- ments, like many modern plantation burial-places, contain- ing the remains of a single family, or group of families, that doubtless lived an agricultural life in its own farm dwellings. The remains sometimes found in these small isolated burial-grounds show that some of these villagers or country people must have been supplied with many of the domestic conveniences enjoyed by the inhabitants of the larger towns." The burials in both upper and lower village sites were about equally divided as to adults and children, save in one or two instances. No objects were buried with the adults, but near the children were bead necklaces, small shell ornaments, and shell toys. Frequently a child would be placed alongside an adult woman, probably its mother. Occasionally the short grave of the child, but three or four feet in length, rested directly upon the long hollow vault in which lay the mother. But one or two male skele- tons were found in the group of graves and those were young persons, not over eighteen or twenty years of age. The lower burial site when uncovered presented a very singular appearance. We had excavated a great hole one hundred feet in length and forty feet in width to a depth of four feet, or until we struck hard river sand. Above this floor stood the graves from one to eighteen inches high. See Illustration 1 08 XXX. The deeper graves were often in the undisturbed nver sand, and more carefully constructed ones were prob- ably hollow, but had partially filled with earth, because the stones across the top were broken by horses or other weighty annuals passing over them.^ The illustration shows some of the stones sloping toward the centre of the grave, thus permitting the water and earth to penetrate to the cavity beneath. Upon a given day the 16 graves, comprising the lower group, were opened in the presence of a large number of people from Columbus, Cincinnati, and surrounding coun- try. In those graves which were covered by perfect stones the skeletons remained well preserved. Out of thirty- seven graves in the three groups we secured twenty-five crania entire. All of these crania, together with village site material, were shipped to Chicago to be exhibited at the World's Columbian Exposition. AGE OP THE VILLAaE SITE The conclusions set forth after the two explorations men- tioned, vary in detail, but agree in the main. The writer wishes to place on record the observations of that time, with a few unimportant changes. It must be remembered that there is no evidence that the Shawanoes camped for any length of time near Fort Ancient. Their large village, Old Chillicothe, was three miles north of Xenia or 25 miles from Fort Ancient. No glass beads or iron tomahawks or copper kettles have been found in the burials about Ore- gonia or Fort Ancient. The three villages seem to have been in existence before the advent of French or English traders. Mr. Hughes, previously quoted, who came to Ohio at the age of fourteen in 1812, affirms that the site along the river was covered with a heavy growth of scya- more, elm, walnut and oak timber. This testimony is pre- sented for what it is worth. At Oregonia 100 or more stone graves were opened for Professor Putnam. Graves were upon the hill summit and also in a mound of some size. This mound was more nearly Uke those found in Tennessee and described by Gen. Thruston, (while speaking of a certain mound he refers 1 It must be borne in mind that the tops of the graves were some- times within twenty inches of the surface. 109 to stone graves ) : "A hundred or more of these rude sarcophagi are occasionally found deposited in several tiers, or layers, in a single burial mound." This statement is borne out in the Ohio valley by our own investigations, as well as those of others. AVhile not at liberty to speak in detail of the work done by the World's Fair at Oregonia, Ohio, a few general remarks will be permitted regarding a mound of unusual character. Caesar's Creek, a tributary of the Little Miami River, is noted for the large num- ber of mounds existing near its banks. No archae- ological work was ever carried on in Caesar's Creek valley prior to 1891. Hence, the field was un- usually rich. Upon the heights overlooking the creek and the Miami River to the south is a large village site, covering sixty or seventy acres of ground. In the bottoms on the south side of the river, below the mouth of the creek, is another large village site, while just above the delta is still a third, and smaller one. At the edge of the village upon the hill is a gravel knoll, from which we exhumed ten skeletons, two whole pots, etc. As is always the case when interments are made in gravel or sand, the bones were remarkably well preserved. Just back of the gravel pit is a mound eight feet in altitude and one hundred and ten feet in length. In the mound were seventy-niue skeletons, twenty of which were enclosed in stone cists, such as we find at Fort Ancient. Two of the vaults were hollow, the others being filled with loose earth which had settled in through the crevices. In many places in the mound there were three or four layers of graves, one on top of each other. The skeletons resting upon the base line were not incased in stones. Upon the extreme southern edge of the mound were five graves in a row, all heading the same way, and some of them containing two or three skeletons each. A flint PLATE XXVIII. Restored Ft. Ancient type of Pottery. 1-3 size. dagger of fine workmanship, made of chert, double-pointed, and fourteen and one eighth inches in length, lay by the right femur of one of the largest skeletons buried in the tumulus. By the side of one of his neighbors were a pair of antelope horns. This is exceedingly interesting, as we have no historical record of the presence of antelope in the Ohio valley, although we do know that both elk and bison were here. The horns have been either transported from the "West, through traffic with other tribes, or the burial was made at a greater period of antiquity than we would assign it. It is interesting to note the varied methods of burial of these seventy-nine skeletons. Some lay extended, others with knees drawn up against the sternum, and others lay upon their sides. The people making the interment fre- quently placed the head and trunk of the person in one position, and the legs and arms in another place two or three feet distant. When the aborigines dug graves in the Old Fort, the burials had to lie on tough blue glacial clay, and because of the formation water was retained and the bones decayed rapidly. Bones in sandy or gravelly soil are more apt to be well preserved. The decayed condition of bones in the Old Fort graves does not necessarily mean that they are older than the valley interments, although the writer is coniident that they are older. Both sites seem to be related It is probable that less time and care were taken in constructing burials on the hill. Interments may have occurred after a fight and therefore would be hastily made. In attempting to estimate the age of the village site in the valley, several things must be considered. There are five feet of earth above the lowest site of village deposit. This may have formed in a short period of time, or it may have been five hundred years in forming. When the river is very high, it overflows the bottoms in which the village was located, and frequently deposits mud or sand in a field. It also takes away sand and mud quite as frequently as it leaves it. One bant of the river during a flood may be built up while the other is torn down. But it is very sel- 112 dom the river gets high ebough to flood this bottom to any considerable depth. But there were hardly as many floods in the river in early days as now. The same amount of water fell, prob- ably more, but the land was not cleared, and the streams would not discharge their contents so rapidly into the river. Now we have low water in summer, and a flood every spring. Old settlers can remember when the river was lined with heavy timber, and when there were numer- ous swamps along the bottom lands; and they tell us that the river contained an even stage of water from year to year; that the streams during the winter held much water, but were seldom more than bank full. Trees, logs, and brush, accumulating in the stream, tended to check the flow of the current ; the roots of large trees extending down into the water's edge would hold drift and thus form dams. The fact is attested by this : Eighty years ago there were saw-mills on streams now so small they would not turn the least water-wheel. The writer has heard his grandfather and grandmother (who came to Ohio in eafly days by canal-boat, long before railroads were invented) speak of creeks in the neighborhood of their old home, that once furnished water enough to turn the wheels of several large mills. These same streams now are dry through the summer, but they get very high in the winter and spring. ISTow the point is this : The earth over the second or later village site has been deposited by floods during the last hundred years, or since the land has been cleared. The earth (three feet) above the first or lowest village site, and below the later village, has been much longer in de- positing, as floods then seldom covered the bottoms for reasons given above. This lower layer is composed chiefly of decayed vegetation, and might accumulate at the rate of one inch in six years, which would give the age of the lowest layer 216 vears previous to the upper one, or 316 years ago : i. e., 1570 to 1575. However, these figures can not be said to be accurate, and we give them as result of "3 deliberation after what we uncovered during the course of explorations. Persons who have spent a few days at Fort Ancient, or, as in the case of most observers, a single day, are not qualified to pass upon the problems of age and origin. The Serpent Mound is of such character that it can be seen thoroughly in a few hours. Fort Ancient is so intricate that weeks of study are necessary before one is possessed of anything like complete information concerning it. "S ri in r? » ^ 3