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San  Francisco,  California 
2007 


VOLUME  8 

New  Series 

1928 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 
MILWAUKEE 


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Srcfjeologt^t 


Vol.  8  ©ctofcer,  1928 

NEW  SERIES 


HARRY  E.  COLE 

EFFIGY  PLATFORM  PIPE 

SKELETAL  REMAINS 

REEDSBURG  CACHE 

INDIAN  EARTHENWARE  VESSELS 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOOTCAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in   Sec. 
1103,  Act,   Oct.   3,   1917.     Authorized   Jan.  28,  1921. 


Jfttltoaufeee, 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

H.  H.  Smith 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

W.  H.  Vogel  C.  G.  Schoewe  Dr.  H.  L.  Tilsner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  W.  W.  Oilman 

A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

DIRECTORS 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz 

A.  P.  Kannenberg  E.  F.  Richter  Mrs.  H.  E.  Koerner 

VetalWinn  L.R.Whitney  Geo.  A.  West 

W.  C.  McKern 


TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thome 

National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  G.  Mc- 
Lachlan,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  C.  E.  Brown,  W.  C.  McKern,  T.  L. 
Miller,  A,  W.  Pond,  C.  W.  Beemer,  and  Frank  Thomlinson. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— W.  W.  Gilman,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  Dr. 
A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Mrs.  Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Louise 
P.  Kellogg,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Main,  R.  A.  Maas,  J.  W.  Norris,  Mrs.i 
F.  R.  Melcher,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  and  G.  L.  Pasco. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  A.  C. 
Neville,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  P.  Hamilton,  William  Horlick, 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Olson,  Mrs.  H.  E.  Koerner,  R.  S.  Van  Handel,  Mrs. 

E.  T.  Wiswall  and  T.  M.  N.  Lewis. 

MEMBERSHIP— C.  G.  Schoewe,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  A.  R. 
Rogers,  A.  Sohrweide,  Jr.,  Vetal  Winn,  C.  G.  Weyl,  Mrs.  Theo. 
Koerner,  W.  P.  Morgan,  A.  E.  Koerner,  Louis  Pierron,  C.  Baer- 
wald,  D.  S.  Rowland,  and  Geo.  Overton. 

MAN  MOUND  PARK— E.  A.  Gilman,  Miss  Emma  Richmond  and 
M.  F.  Hulburt. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK— R.  P.  Ferry,  M.  G.  Troxell,  and  W.  W. 
Gilman. 

PUBLICITY— A.  O.  Barton,  Mrs.  W.  F.  Bauchle,  M.  C.  Richter,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre  and  R.  K.  Coe. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce.  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  8,  No.  1,  New  Series 

ARTICLES 

Page 

Harry  E.  Cole 7 

The  Historic  Brule,  Louise  P.  Kellogg 10 

Effigy  Platform  Pipe,  Charles  E.  Brown 12 

Importance     of    Skeletal     Remains     in    Wisconsin     Archeology, 

Alton  K.   Fisher 14 

The  Reedsburg  Cache,  Milton  F.  Hulbert 18 

The  Ceramic  Repository,  Carl  E.  Guthe 20 

The  Importance  of  Pottery  in  Wisconsin  Archeology,  W.  C.  McKern  26 

The  Dickson  Mound  Builders'  Tomb,  Theodore  T.  Brown 29 

Wisconsin  Shell  Beads,  Anton  Sohrweide 32 

The  Rockford  Mound  Group,  Charles  E.  Brown 35 

Family  Names  of  Civilized  Indians,  Vetal  WTinn 36 

A  "Lost  Art"  That  Was  Never  Lost 39 

Archeological    Notes 41 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
Effigy   Platform   Pipe Frontispiece 

Plate  Facing  Page 

1.  The  Reedsburg  Cache   18 

2.  Indian  Burials  in  the  Dickson  Tomb 30 

3.  Rockford  Mound  Group  __  36 


EFFIGY    PLATFORM     PIPE. 
Albion   Township,   Dane  County,   Wisconsin. 


&rcf)eologt£ft 


Published  Quarterly  by  the  Wisconsin.  Archeological  Society 

Vol.  8  MADISON,  WIS.,   OCTOBER,   1928  No.   1 

New  Series 


HARRY  E.  COLE 

Harry  E.  Cole,  for  many  years  a  very  active  member  of 
the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  died  at  his  home  at 
Baraboo,  Wisconsin,  on  Friday,  April  13,  1928.  Mr.  Cole 
was  a  charter  member  of  the  state  society  and  at  different 
times  during  the  many  years  of  his  membership  one  of  its 
vice  presidents  and  a  member  of  its  board  of  directors.  At 
the  time  of  his  death  he  was  the  chairman  of  its  committee 
on  State  Survey,  an  office  which  he  had  held  for  a  number 
of  years.  At  the  time  of  his  death  he  was  also  the  president 
of  the  State  Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin. 

"Mr.  Cole  was  a  native  of  Indiana.  He  was  born  on  a 
farm  near  Pierceton,  his  parents  Thomas  and  Caroline  Cole. 
He  finished  his  common  school  education  at  Pierceton  high, 
then  took  a  course  at  DePauw,  graduating  in  '92.  The  bril- 
liant Beveridge  was  but  one  year  before.  For  a  time  he  was 
principal  of  Pierceton  high  school,  then,  having  determined 
upon  journalism  as  a  life  calling,  he  went  to  La  Crosse  in  a 
reportorial  capacity,  but,  after  about  a  year,  bought  the 
Baraboo  Daily  News,  in  association  with  A.  D.  Dorsett,  a 
college  classmate.  That  was  33  years  ago.  Since  then  he 
was  editor  .for  many  years  before  Harlan  K.  Page  pur- 
chased a  half  interest,  and  also  was  business  manager. 
Twenty-five  years  ago  last  May  Mr.  Cole  was  married  to 
Miss  Dorothy  Matchett.  The  two  were  friends  from  child- 
hood and  attended  the  Pierceton  high  school  together.  Mr. 
Cole  was  editor  of  his  college  paper,  and  a  member  of  Delta 
Upsilon;  also  he  was  a  Pythian  and  a  Kiwanian.  His  par- 
ents were  Methodists. 

"Mr.  Cole  figured  large  in  Baraboo  affairs  for  more  than 
33  years,  bringing  the  community  distinction  and  many 


8  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   1 

notables — more  by  far  than  any  other  citizen  in  all  the 
history  of  the  city.  His  interest  in  archaeology  was  sincere, 
and  due  to  his  activities  in  a  great  measure  do  we  have  a 
gratifying  mapping  of  the  mounds  of  Sauk  and  neighboring 
counties.  He  likewise  was  especially  fond  of  geology  and 
local  history. 

"His  inclination  was  strongly  historical,  and  early  he 
joined  the  Wisconsin  State  Historical  Society,  of  which  he 
was  president  for  three  years.  For  many  years  he  had  been 
a  curator.  Also  he  was  a  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Acad- 
emy of  Sciences,  Arts  and  Letters,  of  the  Baraboo  humane 
society,  of  the  Sauk  County  Historical  society,  of  the  Bara- 
boo Fortnightly  club,  which  he  organized  and  served  as 
president,  of  the  Men's  Book  club,  likewise  organized  by 
him,  of  the  Heart  of  the  Hills  Walking  club,  of  the  Friends 
of  Our  Native  Landscape,  of  which  he  was  treasurer. 

PRESERVES  INDIAN  MOUNDS 

"These  associations  clearly  indicate  the  trend  of  his 
thoughts  and  his  activities.  In  conjunction  with  Dr.  A.  B. 
Stout,  now  of  the  New  York  Botanical  Garden,  Mr.  Cole 
was  instrumental  in  securing  the  site  of  a  mound  four  miles 
east  of  Baraboo,  where  reclines  the  effigy  of  a  giant  214  feet 
long  by  48  broad  at  the  shoulders — a  mystifying  object  of 
unusual  interest. 

The  work  of  Mr.  Cole  in  the  archeological  field  began  with 
Dr.  Stout  in  making  a  survey  of  the  Indian  remains  in  the 
eastern  half  of  Sauk  county.  Some  700  mounds  of  various 
types  were  mapped,  village  sites  located,  and  other  evidences 
of  aboriginal  occupation  recorded.  Over  a  period  of  three 
years  Mr.  Cole  made  a  number  of  trips  to  Adams  county 
where  a  like  survey  was  made  and  hundreds  of  mounds 
listed.  This  was  followed  by  a  survey  of  the  western  half 
of  Sauk  county,  where  more  mounds  were  mapped,  and  one 
trip  was  made  up  the  Baraboo  river  valley  with  the  late 
Prof.  A.  S.  Flint,  some  interesting  remains  being  located. 
More  recently,  in  connection  with  Charles  E.  Brown,  secre- 
tary of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  society,  a  survey  of 
Columbia  county  was  made.  Extensive  reports  have  been 
printed  of  the  work  completed. 


Harry  E.  Cole. 


AWARDED  LAPHAM  MEDAL 

"Bronze  tablets  have  been  placed  on  many  mounds  at 
Madison,  Delavan,  Waukesha,  Milwaukee,  Devils  Lake 
State  Park,  Baraboo  and  elsewhere,  Mr.  Cole  attending  with 
fidelity  and  often  assisting  with  the  accurate  placing  and 
the  unveiling.  The  fine  bronze  tablet  which  marks  the 
great  bird  effigy  mound  at  Kirk's  hotel  in  Devils  Lake  State 
Park  was  one  of  his  personal  gifts  to  Wisconsin  archaeol- 
ogy. In  recognition  of  his  services,  covering  over  25  years, 
the  Lapham  medal,  bearing  the  following  inscription,  was 
presented  to  Mr.  Cole  by  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society : 

AWARDED  TO 
MR.  H.  E.  COLE 
.     FOR  DISTINGUISHED  SERVICE 

IN 

ANTHROPOLOGICAL  RESEARCH 
MARCH  15,  1926 

"The  Sauk  County  Historical  society  was  incorporated 
more  than  20  years  ago  and  Mr.  Cole  always  was  its  presi- 
dent. Largely  through  his  efforts  a  highly  creditable  mu- 
seum was  established  in  the  Baraboo  courthouse.  Here  are 
placed  some  of  the  rare  archaeological  relics  of  the  region 
and  objects  of  pioneer  interest. 

"Mr.  Cole  was  the  author  of  "Stage-coach  and  Tavern 
Days  in  the  Baraboo  Region,"  "Baraboo,  Dells  and  Devils 
Lake  Region,"  "Baraboo  and  Other  Place  Names  in  Sauk 
County,"  "Baraboo  Bear  Tales,"  "The  Quest  of  Life's 
Meaning,"  and  other  books  and  brochures.  The  one  relat- 
ing to  the  Baraboo  region  has  gone  into  the  third  edition. 
This  book  is  used  largely  by  geologists  and  tourists  who 
come  to  see  the  unusual  scenery,  archaeological  remains 
and  geology  of  the  Baraboo  valley.  At  the  time  of  his  death 
Mr.  Cole  had  finished  an  extended  revision  of  his  stagecoach 
story,  which  he  had  expanded  into  an  important  volume  of 
several  hundred  pages,  covering  the  entire  state, — finished 
except  for  printing. 

"Numerous  articles  from  his  pen,  usually  historic,  ap- 
peared over  many  years  in  magazines  and  the  press.  Be- 


10  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

fore  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences,  Arts  and  Letters 
he  spoke  a  number  of  times  and  at  his  death  he  was  vice- 
president  of  that  organization. 

"Mr.  Cole  had  been  to  Europe  twice,  and  was  widely 
traveled  over  his  own  country.  One  visit  was  made  to 
Alaska.  Notable  friends  he  had  everywhere,  and  with 
many  he  maintained  a  lively  and  intimate  correspondence. 
He  had  a  wide  knowledge  of  books,  his  library  extensive  and 
of  solid  literary,  historic,  scientific  and  philosophic  merit."* 

The  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  has  never  had  a 
more  devoted,  active  or  unselfish  member  than  Harry  E. 
Cole.  His  interest  in  its  undertakings  and  his  activity  in 
its  behalf  never  ceased  until  the  day  of  his  death.  In  years 
past  he  frequently  spoke  at  its  Milwaukee  meetings  and 
helped  to  organize  its  state  field  assemblies.  He  often  ap- 
peared before  the  committees  of  the  state  legislature  in  be- 
half of  its  appropriation  and  other  bills.  To  call  on  Harry 
E.  Cole  for  any  public  educational  service  was  to  secure  his 
assistance.  The  doors  of  his  hospitable  home  at  Baraboo 
were  ever  open  to  archaeologists,  historians,  geologists  and 
nature  lovers,  and  his  automobile  was  ever  at  their  com- 
mand for  expeditions  into  all  parts  of  the  state.  The  offi- 
cers and  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
especially  mourn  the  loss  of  so  great  a  friend  as  he  was. 
He  sleeps  in  beautiful  Walnut  Hill  cemetery  at  Baraboo, 
near  some  of  the  men  and  women  whose  achievements  his 
ready  pen  has  helped  to  perpetuate  and  within  sight  of  the 
beautiful  Baraboo  range  whose  scenic  beauties,  geology, 
archaeology  and  history  no  man  has  ever  known  so  well. 


x  THE  HISTORIC  BRULE 
LOUISE  PHELPS  KELLOGG 

Far  up  in  the  northwest  corner  of  Wisconsin,  near  the 
western  end  of  Lake  Superior  issues  a  small  river,  which 
has  had  a  long  and  varied  history  and  has  considerably  in- 
fluenced the  destinies  of  Wisconsin.  The  headsprings  of 
this  stream  lie  almost  a  hundred  miles  to  the  south  where 


The  Wisconsin  State  Journal,April  14,  1928. 


.The  Historic  Brule.  11 

they  interlock  with  those  of  the  St.  Croix  River,  a  tributary 
of  the  Mississippi.  It  is  due  to  this  fact  that  both  the  rivers 
have  become  historic,  for  by  following  either  and  portaging 
to  the  other  the  shortest  way  between  the  water  systems  of 
the  Great  Lakes  and  the  great  river  is  found. '  The  north- 
ern stream  makes  a  swift  descent  of  over  five  hundred  feet 
to  the  waters  of  Lake  Superior,  forming  it  is  said,  two  hun- 
dred and  forty  distinct  rapids,  some  of  which  are  consider- 
able cascades ;  it  is  navigable  only  by  the  frail  birch  canoes 
of  the  Indians.  These  skillful  canoemen  can  run  down  the 
river  making  only  four  portages;  in  ascending,  however, 
the  portages  and  decharges1  are  numerous  and  a  birch  bark 
flotilla  needed  five  or  more  days  for  the  voyage. 

This  waterway  was  known  to  the  redmen  long  before  the 
advent  of  the  whites;  through  the  thick  bordering  forest 
they  urged  their  frail  craft,  intent  upon  seeking  game  or 
bent  on  a  war  expedition  against  their  enemies.  The  first 
Indians,  who  lived  thereabouts  were  the  Sioux  tribesmen 
and  their  name  for  the  river  was  the  Nemitsakouat,  by  that 
name  it  is  called  in  a  letter  of  La  Salle  written  in  1861. 

The  year  before  had  taken  place  the  first  recorded  jour- 
ney of  a  white  man  along  this  river — no  less  a  personage 
than  La  Salle's  great  rival,  Daniel  Greysolon  Sieur  Duluth. 
This  brave  adventurer  had  come  to  the  far  Northwest  to 
reconcile  the  Sioux  Indians  with  their  hereditary  enemies, 
the  Chippewa,  whose  habitat  lay  at  the  eastern  end  of  Lake 
Superior.  The  rival  war  parties  made  all  routes  unsafe 
either  for  hunting  or  for  discovery.  Duluth  was  very  suc- 
cessful in  his  pacification,  having  brought  the  chiefs  of  both 
tribes  together  and  held  a  peace  council  where  the  city  now 
stands  that  bears  his  name.  "In  June,  1680,"  he  writes  in 
his  journal,  "not  being  satisfied  with  my  exploration  by  land 
I  took  two  canoes,  with  a  savage  who  was  my  interpreter, 
and  with  four  Frenchmen,  to  seek  the  means  of  making  it 
by  water.  For  this  purpose  I  entered  into  a  river  which 
has  its  mouth  eight  leagues  from  the  extremity  of  Lake 
Superior  on  the  south  side,  where  after  having  cut  down 
some  trees  and  broken  through  about  one  hundred  beaver 


1 A  decharge  is  a  place  where  only  the  load  is  taken  from  the  canoe 
and  the  craft  itself  poled  through  the  rapid. 


12  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

dams,  I  went  up  the  said  river,  and  then  made  a  carry  of 
half  a  league  to  reach  a  lake,  which  emptied  into  a  fine  river, 
which  brought  me  to  the  Mississippi." 

The  French  guarded  this  waterway  by  rudely  built  forts, 
one  on  Madeline  Island  in  Chequamegon  Bay,  one  on  an 
island  in  the  Mississippi,  and  a  third  was  placed  for  a  time 
on  upper  Lake  St.  Croix.  They  were,  however,  obliged  to 
abandon  this  region  because  of  the  outbreak  of  the  Chip- 
pewa-Sioux  war,  the  great  battle  of  which  was  fought  near 
the  falls  of  St.  Croix,  early  in  the  eighteenth  century.  The 
Chippewa  won  and  drove  the  Sioux  from  these  hunting 
grounds.  They  renamed  the  river  Wis-a-ko-da  (Misacoda) 
which  means  burnt  pines;  this  the  French  translated  to 
Bois  Brule  from  which  is  derived  the  modern  name  of  Brule. 
One  other  title  was  borne  by  this  stream  during  the 
eighteenth  century  when  it  was  named  Goddard's  River  for 
an  early  fur  trader  by  the  famous  Jonathan  Carver,  first 
English  traveler  in  Wisconsin.  When  he  was  here  in  July, 
1767  he  says  "this  [the  river]  was  so  scant  of  water  we 
were  obliged  to  raise  it  with  dams  for  passage." 

Among  the  first  Americans  to  visit  this  stream  were 
Henry  Rowe  Schoolcraft  in  1831  and  his  party  guarded  by 
Lieutenant  James  Allen  of  the  Fifth  United  States  Infan- 
try with  a  number  of  troops.  Schoolcraft,  who  was  Indian 
agent  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie  came  out  to  vaccinate  the  Chip- 
pewa of  this  locality,  among  whom  wras  the  famous  Chief 
Pezhicki,  or  Buffalo,  who  had  visited  President  Monroe  at 
Washington  and  wore  a  silver  medal  on  his  breast  bearing 
the  president's  effigy.  Schoolcraft  speaks  of  moose  hunting 
on  the  Burntwood  River,  while  Allen  says  "the  river  is  ex- 
ceedingly cold  and  clear  and  is  filled  with  thousands  of  the 
real  mountain  brook  trout" — a  fisherman's  paradise  a  hun- 
dred years  ago.  Allen,  however,  had  hard  work  to  descend 
this  rapid  stream  with  awkward  soldiers  unaccustomed  to 
guiding  canoes  in  strong  water,  the  craft  struck  so  often  on 
the  rocks  that  the  supply  of  gum  to  mend  the  birch  bark  was 
exhausted,  and  part  of  the  soldiers  had  to  take  to  the  woods 
and  clamber  among  the  rocky  steeps  of  the  river's  bank. 
"Often,"  says  Schoolcraft,  "on  looking  down  its  channel 
there  are  wreaths  of  foam  constituting  a  brilliant  vista. 


Effigy  Platform  Pipe.  13 

This  stream  might  appropriately  be  called  Rapid  or  Mad 
River." 

Thus  the  many-named  stream— Nemitsakouat,  Wisakoda, 
Bois  Brule,  Burntwood,  Goddard,  Brule  or  Mad  River  has 
threaded  the  dark  forests  of  northwest  Wisconsin,  an  his- 
toric stream,  known  formerly  to  a  few,  now  of  world  wide 
fame,  as  the  summer  home  for  the  chief  executive  of  the 
nation.  In  1803  it  was  the  route  of  a  French-Canadian  fur- 
trader  who  gives  us  some  of  the  Indian  names  for  localities. 
He  slept  one  night  at  "le  petit  Pakouijawin,"  a  native  term 
for  a  bayou  or  lake  just  above  the  last  quick  water  and  not 
far  from  Cedar  Island  lodge.  Near  by  was  "le  grand  Pa- 
kouijawin" and  from  its  head  there  ran  an  old  Indian  trail 
to  where  Superior  now  stands. 

Thus  this  river  justifies  its  title  of  the  historic  Brule, 
frequented  in  prehistoric  times  by  the  Sioux  who  were 
driven  thence  by  their  rivals  the  Chippewa;  traversed  in 
the  seventeenth  century  by  French  discoverers  and  soldiers 
of  fortune;  a  well-known  waterway  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury for  British  explorers  and  fur  traders,  it  became  in  the 
nineteenth  century  a  lumberer's  stream,  until  with  more 
leisurely  days  came  the  sportsmen  and  tourists  who  have 
placed  the  historic  Brule  on  the  map  of  the  world. 

EFFIGY  PLATFORM  PIPE 
CHARLES  E.  BROWN 

The  very  interesting  Indian  ceremonial  pipe  illustrated 
in  the  frontispiece  of  this  issue  of  The  Wisconsin  Arche- 
ologist  was  plowed  up  in  the  year  1925  from  a  gravel  hill 
on  the  Atwood  farm,  in  the  Si/2  of  Section  5,  Albion  Town- 
ship, Dane  County,  Wisconsin. 

The  disk,  with  slightly  concave  surfaces,  probably  repre- 
senting a  discoidal  stone,  has  in  front  of  it  a  headless  kneel- 
ing female  figure,  both  on  a  rather  thick  and  broad  plat- 
form base. 

This  pipe  has  the  following  dimensions,  and  weight : 

Height — 5%  inches. 

Length — 6%  inches. 

Base — Length  5%  inches,  width  23/4  inches,  thickness  T%  to  1  inch. 

Diameter  of  discoidal — 5%  inches,  thickness  2%  inches. 

Height  of  kneeling  figure — 4%  inches. 

Weight — 5%  pounds. 


14  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

The  bowl  of  this  pipe  is  on  the  top  of  the  discoidal.  It  is 
conical  in  form,  li/2  inches  in  diameter  and  1%  inches  deep. 
The  "stemhole"  is  placed  on  the  side  of  the  disk  at  a  dis- 
tance of  %  of  an  inch  beyond  the  edge  of  the  bowl.  It  is  of 
about  the  same  size  and  depth  as  the  bowl.  It  is  very  prob- 
able that  the  kneeling  figure  once  possessed  a  head. 

This  pipe  is  one  of  the  largest  and  heaviest  pipes  ever 
found  in  Wisconsin.  It  is  likewise  one  of  a  very  small  num- 
ber of  human  effigy  pipes  found  which  are  probably  prehis- 
toric. In  a  number  of  places  it  shows  traces  of  a  former 
polish.  The  material  from  which  it  is  fashioned  is  crinoidal 
limestone  of  the  same  character  as  that  of  an  outcrop  of 
this  material  which,  according  to  geologists,  occurs  in  south- 
eastern and  western  Kentucky,  southern  Indiana,  southern 
Illinois  and  eastern  Missouri.  Its  character  indicates  that 
it  was  probably  made  by  some  one  of  the  prehistoric  Indian 
tribes  of  the  Middle  Mississippi  valley  or  of  regions  further 
south. 

The  kneeling  figure  is  suggestive  of  some  of  the  kneel- 
ing effigy  vessels  obtained  from  mounds  and  stone  graves 
in  the  Middle  Mississippi  valley.  This  very  interesting 
pipe  (A8954)  is  the  property  of  the  State  Historical  Mu- 
seum at  Madison. 

In  his  monograph,  "The  Aboriginal  Pipes  of  Wisconsin," 
George  A.  West,  describes  and  figures  some  other  effigy 
pipes.* 


THE  IMPORTANCE   OF  SKELETAL  REMAINS  IN 
WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGY 

ALTON  K.  FISHER 

One  of  the  most  interesting  fields  in  the  realm  of  arche- 
ology is  the  Wisconsin  region.  Here  the  problems  which 
confront  the  investigator  are  many,  but  the  means  of  solv- 
ing these  problems  are  often  very  meager  and  sometimes 
apparently  absent.  This  apparent  absence  of  archeological 
evidence  is  due  in  part,  I  believe,  to  the  climate  of  this  field. 
In  the  spring  the  ground  is  saturated  with  water  and  in  the 


*  Wis.  Archeologist,  v.  4,  Nos.  3  and  4,  1905. 


Skeletal   Remains.  15 

summer  the  soil  sometimes  hardens  and  cracks  in  the  hot 
sunshine.  In  the  fall  the  soil  is  again  reduced  to  mud  and 
the  following  winter,  which  is  often  severe,  freezes  the  soil 
below  the  depth  at  which  archeological  materials  are  fre- 
quently found.  Because  of  the  great  quantities  of  water  in 
the  soil  and  because  of  the  frequent  temperature  changes, 
materials  such  as  bones,  pottery  and  plant  fibers  are  often 
reduced  to  such  a  state  that  identification  of  them  is  no 
longer  possible. 

It  is  possible  that  the  comparative  abundance  of  stone 
artifacts  has  led  local  archeologists  to  accumulate  large  and 
valuable  collections  of  arrow-points,  and  to  neglect  almost 
entirely  the  rarer  and  less  stable  materials.  Then  too,  small 
potsherds  and  broken  skulls  do  not  make  as  interesting 
exhibition  pieces  as  do  agate  points  or  copper  ear-spools. 

However,  if  we  are  to  make  any  progress  in  the  solution 
of  our  archeological  problems  we  must  collect  and  study  the 
crude  and  homely  specimens  as  well  as  the  beautiful  ones. 
It  is  practically  impossible  to  determine  the  culture  of  a 
people  from  the  arrow-points  that  are  found  upon  their 
deserted  campsites,  but  the  neglected  potsherds  tell  more 
definite  stories.  Mound  excavations  result  in  the  accumu- 
lation of  vast  quantities  of  information  regarding  the  cul- 
ture of  these  prehistoric  people,  but  it  is  only  through  the 
actual  examination  of  their  skeletal  remains  that  we  can 
ever  hope  to  know  what  they  were  like  as  human  beings, 
and  that  information  is  just  as  important  to  anthropology 
as  data  for  any  of  its  other  divisions. 

Climatic  conditions,  as  has  been  stated  before,  are  not 
conducive  to  the  preservation  of  bone  materials  in  this  re- 
gion and  consequently  it  is  seldom  possible  to  obtain  skele- 
tons or  parts  of  skeletons  in  perfect  condition.  Very  fre- 
quently skeletons  are  found  crushed  by  the  pressure  of  the 
soil  above  them,  and  it  is  a  common  occurrence  in  excavat- 
ing a  burial  to  find  only  portions  of  a  few  bones  remaining, 
the  rest  having  entirely  disintegrated.  In  view  of  these 
facts  one  may  consider  himself  fortunate  if  he  finds  a  skele- 
ton in  good  condition,  and  he  may  also  consider  it  a  good 
find  if  any  of  the  bones  can  be  preserved  for  future  exami- 
nation. A  skeleton  in  good  condition  is  valuable  to  the  phys- 
ical anthropologist,  but  much  information  can  be  obtained 


16  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    1 

from  a  broken  specimen.  In  the  past,  in  fact,  valuable  dis- 
coveries have  resulted  from  the  study  of  only  fragments  of 
bone,  and  it  is  advisable  for  all  who  uncover  skeletal  mate- 
rial to  "save  the  pieces". 

From  the  measurement  of  skeletal  remains  it  is  possible 
to  compute  with  a  fair  degree  of  accuracy  the  size  of  indi- 
viduals in  life,  and  if  the  number  of  skeletons  measured  is 
great  enough,  one  may  be  reasonably  certain  that  if  a  par- 
ticular size  predominates,  it  is  a  physical  characteristic  of 
the  group  under  consideration.  If  the  vast  majority  of  in- 
dividuals examined  exhibit  long,  narrow  heads,  that  too 
may  be  a  physical  peculiarity  of  that  group  and  it  may  prove 
very  valuable  in  determining  the  peculiar  physical  traits  of 
a  cultural  group.  There  are  a  great-  number  of  measure- 
ments to  be  taken  which  may  be  valuable  in  future  work. 
Dr.  Ales  Hrdlicka,  the  eminent  physical  anthropologist,  says, 
"There  are  none  except  natural  limits  to  the  number  or 
variety  of  measurements  that  can  be  legitimately  practiced 
on  the  human  body  or  its  remains."  The  measurements 
taken  may  not  be  used  by  the  present  generation  of  scien- 
tists nor  the  succeeding  one,  but  who  can  positively  say 
that  these  measurements  will  never  be  used  ? 

Despite  the  fact  that  measurements  are  essential  in  an- 
thropological work,  the  physical  anthropologist  does  not  de- 
vote all  of  his  attention  to  them,  for  he  is  also  interested  in 
knowing  what  kind  of  lives  this  or  that  people  lived,  and 
whether  or  not  they  were  effected  by  the  diseases  which 
effect  modern  people.  Who  knows  whether  or  not  the  men 
were  more  susceptible  to  the  diseases  of  those  prehistoric 
days  than  were  the  women,  or  whether  spinal  arthritis  was 
a  common  affliction  of  the  times?  No  one  knowrs  at  the 
present  time  because  no  one  has  tried  to  find  it  out,  but 
after  making  a  thorough  study  of  the  skeletal  remains  it 
will  be  possible  to  answer  many  of  these  questions. 

Up  to  the  present  time  little  work  regarding  the  pathol- 
ogy of  prehistoric  people  has  been  carried  on  in  this  coun- 
try, and  the  first  work  to  be  undertaken,  to  my  knowledge, 
in  investigating  the  pathology  of  the  archaic  folks  of  this 
state  is  being  conducted  under  the  auspices  of  the  Milwau- 
kee Public  Museum  at  the  present  time  by  Dr.  Herbert 
Kuhm,  Dr.  George  Adami  and  myself.  The  present  invest!- 


Skeletal  Remains.  17 

gations  are  restricted  to  the  jaws  and  teeth  of  available 
specimens,  and  those  specimens  vary  from  complete  skulls 
with  mandibles  or  lower  jaw  bones,  to  only  small  portions 
of  mandible  and  such  small  portions  are  just  as  important 
as  a  complete  skull.  From  the  evidence  obtained  from  only 
one  half  of  the  lower  jaw  bone  it  is  possible  to  determine 
with  a  fair  degree  of  accuracy  the  sex  of  the  individual, 
some  of  the  pathological  conditions  which  developed  in  the 
jaws  or  teeth  during  his  life,  and  his  approximate  age  at 
the  time  of  his  death.  The  teeth  serve  also  as  indicators, 
to  a  certain  extent,  of  the  nature  of  the  foods  used  by  these 
folks. 

Although  our  investigations  of  the  diseases  of  the  jaws 
and  teeth  of  prehistoric  Wisconsin  Indians  have  only  begun 
we  have  already  found  evidences  of  many  abscesses  in  the 
bone,  some  resulting  from  infections  in  the  teeth  due  orig- 
inally to  large  cavities.  Evidences  have  been  found  also  of 
pyorrhea  and  of  other  infections  of  the  gums,  of  malocclu- 
sions  and  malformations  of  the  teeth  and  of  unerupted 
third  molars  or  wisdom  teeth,  all  of  these  facts  being  con- 
trary to  the  popular  opinion  that  the  Indians  and  their  an- 
cestors were  the  possessors  of  only  perfect  teeth.  As  we 
continue  our  investigations  we  may  encounter  new  and  in- 
teresting conditions,  and  in  recording  our  discoveries  we 
help  to  make  more  complete  the  slowly  forming  story  of 
those  folks  of  long  ago. 

The  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  and  the  State  Historical 
Museum  both  have  growing  collections  of  osteological  speci- 
mens, and  it  is  these  specimens  that  are  being  examined  as 
the  beginning  of  our  study.  However,  these  two  collections 
are  unable  to  furnish  sufficient  material  for  the  completion 
of  this  research  project.  From  them  we  can  gain  much  in- 
formation, but  if  our  conception  of  this  deceased  people  is 
to  be  a  true  one,  and  if  the  conclusions  drawn  from  this  in- 
vestigation are  to  be  in  any  way  positive,  we  must  study  a 
much  larger  series  of  specimens  that  will  include  bone  ma- 
terials from  all  over  the  state  of  Wisconsin.  In  order  to  dc 
this  we  must  enlist  the  aid  of  those  who  are  interested  ir. 
seeing  Wisconsin's  archeological  riddles  solved.  It  is  pos< 
sible  that  collections  of  bones  may  exist  in  various  localities 
but  due  to  an  apparent  lack  of  interest  or  an  unconscious- 


18  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,   No.   1 

ness  of  the  importance  of  the  subject  little  or  nothing  has 
been  said  concerning  them.  We  desire  to  borrow  for  study 
purposes  for  only  a  short  time  all  of  the  skulls  or  parts  of 
skulls  available.  We  also  desire  detailed  information  to 
accompany  any  specimens  loaned  to  us  regarding  the  exact 
location  where  the  burial  was  uncovered,  and  also  the  na- 
ture or  method  of  burial. 

These  bones  should  be  packed  in  a  substantial  box  and 
addressed  to  the  Department  of  Anthropology,  Milwaukee 
Public  Museum.  We  will  be  very  grateful  to  the  reader  for 
any  cooperation  on  this  matter.  After  the  examinations 
have  been  completed  the  specimens  will  be  sent  back  to  the 
owners  in  the  same  condition  in  which  they  were  received. 
If  the  reader  can  inform  me  of  the  whereabouts  of  any  such 
specimens  his  efforts  will  be  greatly  appreciated. 


THE  REEDSBURG  CACHE 
MILTON  F.  HULBERT 

In  May,  1927,  Wm.  Schuette,  while  digging  a  fence-post 
hole,  unearthed  a  collection  of  chipped  flint  blanks — seven- 
teen in  number — as  shown  in  the  accompanying  photo- 
graph. They  were  located  together  and  at  a  depth  of  about 
two  feet  below  the  present  surface  of  the  ground. 

This  cache  was  found  near  what  is  probably  the  site  of 
an  ancient  Indian  village,  near  the  north  shore  of  the  Bara- 
boo  River,  in  what  is  now  a  part  of  South  Park  Addition 
to  the  city  of  Reedsburg,  Wisconsin. 

At  this  point,  a  few  rods  from  the  present  river  bank, 
there  is  a  tableland  which  is  elevated  about  fifteen  feet 
above  the  water.  From  the  surface,  over  a  tract  of  an  acre 
or  two  of  this  tableland,  a  large  number  of  flint  implements 
have  been  found  from  time  to  time  since  the  land  was  first 
cleared  and  cultivated  by  the  whites.  Hundreds  of  flint 
knives,  arrow  and  spear  points — some  perfect,  finished 
specimens  and  some  broken  or  unfinished — together  with 
flint  chisels  and  drills  and  a  great  number  of  flint  chips  and 
fragments  have  been  gathered  from  the  locality.  A  few 
grooved  stone  axes,  celts  and  grinding  stones  have  also  been 
found. 


THE    REEDSBURG    CACHE. 
Plate  1. 


The  Reedsburg1  Cache  19 

The  cache  of  chipped  flints  was  located  at  the  southern 
edge  of  the  area  which  has  been  so  prolific  in  surface  flints 
of  various  kinds  and  of  unknown  antiquity. 

The  writer,  on  learning  of  the  discovery  of  the  cache,  ob- 
tained the  specimens  from  Mr.  Schuette,  and  now  has  them 
in  his  collection. 

The  combined  weight  of  the  seventeen  pieces  is  six 
pounds ;  the  smallest  one  weighing  2  ounces,  and  the  largest 
specimen  2  pounds. 

All  of  the  specimens  are  of  chert  or  hornstone  of  a  dull 
color,  a  variety  of  stone  said  to  be  plentiful  in  the  adjoin- 
ing county  of  Richland.  At  the  spot  where  this  cache  was 
found  the  land  is  quite  level  and  probably  has  not  been  sub- 
jected to  rapid  erosion,  at  least  during  recent  geological 
time. 

From  the  variety  and  great  number  of  flint  implements 
and  chips  that  have  been  found  in  this  particular  locality, 
it  is  highly  probable  that  it  was,  at  some  remote  time,  a 
village  site  of  Indians  yet  in  the  "Stone  Age"  whose  only 
vestiges  in  this  instance  are  the  flint  implements  that  they 
fashioned  and  used. 

About  eight  rods  to  the  southwest  of  these  grounds,  but 
lying  in  the  lowlands  bordering  the  river,  is  an  effigy 
mound,  113  ft.  in  length,  known  as  the  "Mink  Mound."  Its 
average  width  is  about  eight  feet  and  the  height  is  about 
three  feet.  Its  direction  is  nearly  due  north  and  south. 

Whether  this  mound  was  constructed  by  the  same  primi- 
tive inhabitants  that  formerly  occupied  the  prehistoric  vil- 
lage site  is,  of  course,  speculative  and  uncertain.  The 
mound  has  never  been  excavated.  Its  contents  are  there- 
fore unknown.  When  the  mound  was  built,  and  by  whom 
constructed,  are  as  profound  mysteries  as  is  the  data  rela- 
tive to  the  chipped  flints  and  the  natives  who,  for  a  consid- 
erable time,  lived  in  their  rude  abodes  on  the  adjacent  up- 
lands. 

Another  item  of  some  interest  in  connection  with  this 
mound  and  the  evidences  of  the  ancient  native  camping 
grounds  herein  outlined,  is  the  following: 

In  1925,  while  excavating  a  cellar  about  twenty  rods 
north  of  the  "Mink  Mound",  and  in  direct  line  with  its  gen- 
eral axis,  the  workmen  came  upon  a  well  defined  circular 


20  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOIX)GIST.       Vol.   8,  No.   1 

area  of  black  dirt  which  was  sharply  outlined  against  the 
surrounding  earth,  of  a  very  different  color  and  composi- 
tion. It  was  evident  that  at  some  remote  time  in  the  dim 
and  misty  past,  a  circular  hole  about  four  feet  in  diameter 
and  four  or  five  feet  deep  had  been  dug  into  the  ground  and 
that  the  excavation  has  subsequently  become  filled  by  in- 
wash  of  the  black  surface  soil.  It  is  thought  that  it  may 
have  been  an  ancient  water  hole  or  well  in  which  water 
accumulated  by  lateral  seepage.  This,  however,  is  only  a 
conjecture.  Maybe  some  of  your  readers  may  be  able  to 
suggest  a  more  plausible  explanation. 

The  contrast  was  so  well  marked  in  color  and  character 
of  the  dirt,  and  the  outlines  were  so  well  defined,  that  it 
plainly  indicated  the  former  work  of  human  hands. 

That  the  excavation  was  an  ancient  one  was  shown  by 
the  marginal  stellate  coloration  effected  in  the  lapse  of  time 
by  chemical  changes  wrought  by  the  organic  matter  of  the 
black  fill  with  the  mineral  contents  of  the  surrounding  clay. 


THE   CERAMIC   REPOSITORY   FOR   THE   EASTERN 

UNITED    STATES,    AT    THE    UNIVERSITY    OF 

MICHIGAN,  UNDER  THE   AUSPICES  OF 

THE  NATIONAL  RESEARCH  COUNCIL 

CARL  E.  GUTHE 

The  Committee  on  State  Archaeological  Surveys,  of  the 
Division  of  Anthropology  and  Psychology  of  the  National 
Research  Council,  at  a  meeting  held  in  Chicago,  recom- 
mended and  authorized  the  formation  in  the  Museum  of 
Anthropology  at  the  University  of  Michigan  of  a  repository 
for  pottery  fragments  obtained  in  North  America.  This 
has  been  approved  by  the  Division  and  the  Council. 

The  reason  for  the  setting  up  of  such  a  repository  is 
found  in  the  ultimate  purpose  of  archaeology,  an  historical 
science  which  seeks  to  interpret  extinct  civilizations,  and 
thereby  to  arrive  at  conclusions  regarding  the  forces  which 
mould  the  development  of  man  and  his  cultures.  The 
archaeology  of  eastern  North  America  is  complex.  In  cer- 
tain areas  some  of  the  archaeological  remains  are  definitely 
related  to  historic  cultures  which  have  since  disappeared, 


The  Ceramic  Repository.  21 

while  the  remainder  are  associated  with  cultures  which 
clearly  antedate  the  coming  of  the  European.  The  problem 
is  further  complicated  in  that  each  of  these  great  classes  of 
remains  may  consist  not  of  a  single  culture,  but  of  a  group 
of  cultures,  whose  relationships  both  in  time  and  in  space 
are  not  understood,  because  of  our  present  incomplete 
knowledge  of  them.  In  several  states,  enthusiastic  investi- 
gators have  been  making  rapid  progress  in  ascertaining  the 
content  of  the  cultures  found  within  their  respective  com- 
monwealths, and  in  isolating  the  problems  which  this  mate- 
rial presents.  Yet,  due  to  the  restrictions  caused  by  the 
geographical  limits  within  which  in  large  degree  they  must 
confine  their  efforts,  many  of  these  problems  have  not  been 
solved. 

A  reconstruction  of  the  culture  history  of  this  region 
rests  upon  the  solution  of  comparative  problems.  This,  in 
turn,  depends  upon  an  adequate  appreciation  of  the  hori- 
zontal and  vertical  distribution  of  the  cultural  material. 
By  discovering  and  plotting  the  localities  in  which  a  given 
class  of  material  occurs,  a  concrete  knowledge  is  obtained 
regarding  its  relative  abundance,  the  extent  of  its  distribu- 
tion, and  the  geographical  location  of  the  culture  to  which 
it  belongs.  By  the  laws  of  diffusion  it  is  also  possible  to 
gain  information  with  regard  to  its  relative  antiquity  in 
comparison  with  associated  cultures.  Similarly,  in  those 
localities  in  which  stratification  of  deposits  occurs,  definite 
data  on  the  relative  antiquity  of  successive  cultures  which 
occupied  the  same  site  may  be  secured.  By  combining  the 
results  obtained  from  these  two  forms  of  evidence,  it  should 
be  possible  to  reconstruct  in  outline  the  prehistory  of  east- 
ern North  America. 

However,  such  conclusions  are  not  reached  in  a  short 
time,  but  only  after  long  and  painstaking  research  work. 
In  order  that  this  work  may  be  valid,  the  data  upon  which 
it  depends  must  be  as  complete  and  accurate  as  possible.  In 
final  analysis  the  whole  superstructure  of  comparative  re- 
search in  archaeology  rests  upon  the  data  derived  from  ade- 
quate and  detailed  field  work  and  excavation.  Specimens 
are  intrinsically  of  little  value  to  the  scientist.  It  is  essen- 
tial that  they  be  accompanied  by  adequate  information,  giv- 
ing the  geographical  locality  and  the  associations  in  which 


22  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

they  were  found.  Therefore,  the  first  and  most  important 
step  in  the  formation  of  the  repository  for  pottery  frag- 
ments, and  for  that  matter,  in  the  solution  of  the  general 
archaeological  problems  of  this  area,  is  an  insistence  upon 
proper  field  technique  of  'observation  and  of  excavation,  and 
a  strong  discouragement  of  the  efforts  of  individuals  inade- 
quately equipped  to  pursue  such  investigations. 

Satisfactory  results  of  comparative  research  work  depend 
upon  a  minutely  detailed  knowledge  of  the  material  studied. 
In  this  way  alone  is  it  possible  to  discover  the  minor  varia- 
tions of  the  material,  and  to  evaluate  their  significance.  A 
knowledge  of  the  more  obvious  variations  may  be  obtained 
from  publications,  but  in  the  end  the  investigator  will  be 
required  actually  to  handle  and  study  as  many  specimens  as 
possible.  As  knowledge  of  the  material  increases,  certain 
characteristics  at  first  overlooked  or  ignored  may  be  found 
to  be  important.  It  is  therefore  essential  that  material  once 
handled  may  again  be  easily  available  as  specialized  knowl- 
edge multiplies  the  technical  aspects  of  the  work.  All  forms 
of  archaeological  evidence  are  susceptible  to  this  kind  of 
treatment.  The  major  antiquities,  such  as  mounds,  earth- 
works, village  sites,  and  workshops,  will  yield  important  in- 
formation if  studied  in  this  manner.  The  many  classes  of 
minor  antiquities,  of  stone,  shell,  wood,  and  pottery,  as  well 
as  evidences  of  former  customs,  such  as  burial  rites,  all  lend 
themselves  equally  well  to  such  comparative  research  work. 

There  are  several  reasons  for  inaugurating  this  compara- 
tive research  with  a  study  of  pottery.  It  is  the  most  inde- 
structible product  of  human  culture,  in  that  a  specimen  may 
be  shattered,  yet  the  fragments,  no  matter  how  small,  still 
retain  definite  characteristics  by  which  they  may  be  classi- 
fied. Again,  pottery  is  capable  of  great  variation ;  in  mate- 
rial, in  surface  finish,  in  decorative  technique  and  design, 
and  in  form.  With  an  adequate  appreciation  of  the  factors 
involved,  definite  conclusions  may  be  drawn  from  a  study 
of  such  variations.  A  third  attribute  of  pottery  is  its  uni- 
versal distribution  and  its  abundance,  which  causes  it  to 
become  the  common  denominator  of  the  various  cultures  to 
be  studied.  It  is  assumed,  therefore,  that  by  a  special  study 
of  pottery  at  least  the  major  outlines  of  the  prehistory  of 
eastern  North  America  may  be  secured,  a  step  which  will 


The   Ceramic  Repository.  23 

facilitate  the  proper  coordination  of  other  archaeological 
material  in  the  general  reconstruction  of  these  extinct  civ- 
ilizations, which  is  of  course,  the  ultimate  aim  of  archae- 
ology. 

The  function  of  the  pottery  repository  is  fourfold.  Its 
greatest  value  lies  in  the  accumulation  of  a  library  of 
shards  which  will  serve  as  a  permanent  record,  not  only  for 
the  present,  but  also  for  the  future,  when  improved  meth- 
ods and  new  problems  may  require  a  restudy  of  the  mate- 
rial of  which  the  library  is  composed.  The  concentration  in 
one  laboratory  of  shards  from  widely  distributed  sites  will, 
of  course,  greatly  facilitate  the  investigation  of  compara- 
tive problems.  Again,  the  repository  will  be  a  clearing 
house,  through  correspondence  and  publication,  for  infor- 
mation upon  the  material  and  problems  involved/  By  means 
of  the  notes,  photographs,  and  bibliography,  which  are  an 
essential  part  of  the  repository,  it  will  be  possible  to  aid  the 
research  of  students  of  related  fields  and  subjects.  Finally, 
the  formation  of  this  library  of  shards  will  permit  the  in 
auguration  of  loan  collections,  which  may  be  sent  to  archae- 
ologists working  on  detailed  problems  in  their  special  areas, 
for  the  solution  of  which  it  is  necessary  actually  to  handle 
pottery  from  other  localities. 

The  methods  and  facilities  which  will  be  used  depend 
somewhat  upon  the  problems  which  must  be  solved;  prob- 
lems which  may  not  become  fully  apparent  until  after  the 
repository  is  physically  in  existence.  The  material  as  it  ar- 
rives will  be  catalogued  in  the  accession  file  and  the  serial 
museum  catalog,  with  a  note  that  it  is  part  of  the  National 
Research  Council  repository.  It  will  then  be  placed  in  trays 
in  the  filing  cabinets  of  the  museum  laboratories.  These 
trays  are  arranged  in  such  a  manner  that  immediate  access 
is  possible.  Accessory  files,  covering  various  subjects  such 
as  geographical  distribution,  technical  variations,  field 
notes  accompanying  collections,  photographs,  related  col- 
lections in  other  museums,  and  a  bibliography,  will  be  de- 
veloped. It  is  planned  to  make  the  repository  as  accessible 
as  possible,  and  of  real  value  to  archaeologists  everywhere 
in  the  area.  The  arrangements  in  the  museum  building  will 
permit  laboratory  work  in  the  rooms  in  which  the  filing 
cases  of  specimens  are  situated.  Facilities  for  undisturbed 


24  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,   No.   1 

prolonged  research  exist  for  those  students  of  pottery  who 
care  to  work  in  the  museum  itself. 

The  Museum  of  Anthropology  at  the  University  of  Michi- 
gan was  chosen  as  the  custodian  of  this  repository  for  three 
reasons.  Situated  in  the  Great  Lakes  district  within  rela- 
tively easy  access  of  the  entire  Mississippi  basin,  it  forms 
a  logical  geographical  center  for  the  accumulation  of  such 
a  collection.  A  new  museum  building  is  now  under  con- 
struction at  the  University,  in  which  are  incorporated  the 
most  advanced  ideas  regarding  research  facilities.  It  is 
planned  to  occupy  the  building  in  the  spring  of  1928. 
Finally,  the  staff  of  the  museum  contains  a  specialist  on  pot- 
tery, who,  through  field  work  in  various  regions,  is  equipped 
to  assume  responsibility  for  the  care  and  study  of  the  mate- 
rial which  the  repository  will  contain. 

The  formation  of  this  library  of  pottery  fragments  by  the 
Committee  on  State  Archaeological  Surveys  does  not  imply 
any  interference  with  the  collection  of  specimens  by  any 
other  organization.  The  library  will  be  composed  primarily 
of  shards  which  would  under  other  circumstances  be  dis- 
carded. While  the  receipt  of  unbroken  pottery  objects  will, 
of  course,  be  welcome,  it  should  clearly  be  understood  that 
the  primary  purpose  of  the  repository  is  the  formation  of  a 
study  series,  in  contrast  to  an  exhibition  collection. 

In  selecting  the  material  to  be  sent  to  the  repository,  no 
attempt  should  be  made  to  sort  out  the  most  interesting  or 
important  fragments.  In  the  course  of  excavation  or  col- 
lection from  the  surface,  a  large  quantity  of  shards  will  be 
obtained, — good,  bad  and  indifferent.  It  is  urgently  re- 
quested that  all  the  material  be  forwarded  without  sorting, 
in  order  that  a  definite  conception  may  be  obtained  of  the 
relative  abundance  of  the  different  kinds  of  wares  in  the 
locality  from  which  the  material  was  obtained.  Detailed 
study  will  undoubtedly  bring  into  prominence  numerous 
variations  in  the  pottery  which  are  not  now  appreciated. 
Obviously,  if  the  shards  are  sorted  too  carefully  at  the  pres- 
ent time,  the  material  retained  might  prove  inadequate  for 
later  investigation.  Therefore,  while  rim-shards  and  shards 
bearing  designs  are  most  needed,  any  other  fragments  asso- 
ciated with  them  will  be  equally  welcome. 

Another    important    consideration    is    the    information 


The  Ceramic  Repository.  25 

which  should  accompany  the  collections  sent  in.  It  is  im- 
perative that  there  be  given  an  accurate  geographic  location 
of  the  site  from  which  the  material  was  obtained.  This  in- 
cludes not  only  the  local  name  of  the  site,  but  also  the  name 
of  the  owner  of  the  land,  the  township  and  range,  the 
county,  and  state,  in  which  the  site  occurs.  Any  references 
to  nearby  land  marks  such  as  rivers  or  mountains  should 
also  be  included. 

Mention  should  also  be  made  of  whether  the  material  is 
a  result  of  excavation  or  of  surface  collection.  If  it  is  from 
an  excavation  in  which  stratification  occurs,  care  should  be 
used  to  keep  the  shards  from  each  stratum  separate,  in  or- 
der that  proper  chronological  weight  may  be  given.  In  the 
case  of  surface  collections,  a  record  should  be  made  of  the 
amount  of  surface  covered,  the  kind  of  surface,  i.  e., 
ploughed  or  pasture,  and  whether  the  collection  consists  of 
all  fragments  seen.  The  record  accompanying  the  material 
should  state  the  kind  of  remains  from  which  the  material 
was  obtained,  i.  e.,  a  mound,  an  earthwork,  a  village  site,  a 
grave,  etc.  Any  notes  regarding  other  minor  antiquities 
found  in  association  with  the  pottery  will  aid  in  the  study 
of  the  shards  sent. 

The  collections  which  are  to  be  sent  to  the  repository 
should  be  packed  in  small  boxes  or  cartons,  in  layers  sepa- 
rated by  layers  of  excelsior  or  similar  material.  While  it  is 
advisable  to  wrap  each  shard  or  group  of  shards  in  news- 
papers, this  is  not  absolutely  essential.  The  primary  re- 
quirement is  that  the  material  should  be  packed  in  such  a 
manner  that  it  will  not  rattle  within  the  container  nor  in 
any  other  way  cause  the  various  fragments  to  come  into 
contact  and  thereby  have  their  edges  spoiled.  It  is  sug- 
gested that  the  containers  be  of  a  size  to  permit  sending 
them  by  parcel  post.  Within  the  container  should  be  placed 
a  record  giving  all  necessary  information  for  the  proper 
identification  of  the  contents  when  the  box  is  opened.  At 
the  time  of  sending,  a  letter  of  transmittal  should  be  mailed 
to  the  same  address. 


26  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,   No.   1 


THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  POTTERY  IN  WISCONSIN 
ARCHEOLOGY 

W.  C.  McKERN 

In  so  far  as  we  have  any  records,  all  the  Indians  of  pre- 
historic Wisconsin  were  pottery  makers.  Earthen  vessels 
were  employed  as  cooking  pots,  water  carriers  and  contain- 
ers, storage  receptacles,  and  were  probably  made  to  serve 
in  other  capacities  less  easily  ascertained.  The  introduc- 
tion of  copper,  brass  and  iron  vessels  with  the  establish- 
ment of  trade  contacts  with  the  invading  Europeans  marked 
the  end  of  pottery  development.  Soon  the  native  manufac- 
ture of  earthenware  became  a  lost  art,  and  to  a  large  ex- 
tent, the  very  memory  of  pottery  vanished. 

The  historical  knowledge  which  we  possess  regarding  the 
pottery  of  local  tribes  is  of  the  briefest,  amounting  to  little 
more  than  the  mere  fact  that  pottery  was  made  and  used. 
Ethnological  research  has  resulted  in  the  addition  of  but  a 
few  facts  to  the  meager  stock  of  information  available.  The 
result  is  that,  for  example,  we  can  not  say  with  any  degree 
of  certainty  what  kind  of  pottery  was  made  by  the  Menom- 
ini,  or  what  the  difference  between  Menomini  and  Winne- 
bago  pottery  might  have  been.  To  the  archaeologist  has 
been  left  the  problem  of  classifying,  if  possible,  primitive 
Wisconsin  pottery. 

In  order  to  attack  this  problem  at  all,  study  specimens 
are  necessary.  Occasional  whole,  or  nearly  whole  pots  have 
been  found  from  time  to  time  at  ancient  campsites  or  in 
mounds.  These  comprise  our  best  materials  for  study,  but 
are  so  rare  in  occurrence  that  the  student  is  hopelessly  lim- 
ited in  his  research.  Not  a  few  specimens  from  a  few  scat- 
tered sites  are  required,  but  thousands  of  specimens  from 
every  section  of  the  state. 

Specimens  which  are  often  neglected  by  the  collector  are 
the  ordinary  potsherds.  These  occur  in  quantity  at  nearly 
every  primitive  campsite,  and  yet  it  is  difficult  to  find  a  good 
representative  lot  of  potsherds  in  any  small,  local  collection, 
or  even  in  large  collections  outside  the  walls  of  museums. 
This  is  not  due  to  the  fact  that  pottery  is  relatively  unim- 
portant to  the  student  of  archaeology.  Earthenware  is  pli- 


Wisconsin   Earthenware.  27 

able  in  the  hands  of  the  maker  and,  therefore,  reflects  the 
maker's  concepts  of  utility  and  art  to  a  greater  extent  than 
any  other  imperishable  material  available  to  primitive  man. 
Thus  we  find  arrowpoints  in  Wisconsin  much  like  those  of 
New  York  or  Arizona,  aside  from  materials  and  the  pro- 
portionate use  of  any  one  shape.  In  pottery,  however,  there 
are  radical  differences  between  the  types  respectively  found 
in  Wisconsin,  among  the  Iroquois  of  New  York  and  among 
the  Hopi  of  Arizona.  One  can  pick  up  a  potsherd  and  say 
that  it  belongs  to  a  certain  archaic  or  historic  culture  area 
with  a  comfortable  degree  of  certainty.  To  what  extent 
can  that  be  done  with  the  chipped  stone  artifacts  to  be  en- 
countered in  this  district? 

It  is,  therefore,  unfortunately  true  that  the  specimens  of 
most  importance  in  the  solving  of  our  local  archaeological 
problems,  the  artifacts  that  have  the  most  understandable 
story  to  tell,  are  being  left  rejected  in  the  field,  while  the 
relatively  unimportant  arrowpoint  is  seized  upon  with  avid- 
ity. By  this  I  in  no  way  infer  that  the  arrowpoint  has  no 
importance  to  the  archaeologist,  but  rather  that  the  pots- 
herd is  a  much  more  apparent  and  reliable  culture  marker, 
and  that  in  a  province  such  as  Wisconsin,  where  we  have  as 
yet  neither  defined  and  limited  our  archaic  cultures  nor  defi- 
nitely ascertained  connections  between  these  and  historic 
cultures,  a  study  of  pottery  promises  maximum  results. 

In  attacking  the  problem  of  archaic  definition,  pottery 
has  already  played  a  most  important  part,  in  Wisconsin  as 
well  as  in  other  fields.  In  New  York,  pottery  alone  often 
identifies  a  site  as  of  Iroquois  or  Algonkin  occupation.  The 
determining  of  seven  successive  cultures  in  the  Southwest 
was  primarily  dependent  upon  a  study  of  pottery.  In  Wis- 
consin we  have  distinguished  at  least  four  mound-building 
cultures,  largely  through  pottery  evidence:  (1)  the  Effigy 
Mound  culture  was  basicly  northwestern  Woodland  in  type, 
with  pottery  suggesting  Algonkin  affinities;  (2)  the  Grand 
River  culture  was  basicly  northwestern  Woodland  in  type, 
with  pottery  suggesting  Siouan  affinities;  (3)  the  Aztalan 
culture  was  basicly  similar  to  that  of  the  Cahokia  district 
centering  in  southwestern  Illinois,  as  evidenced  primarily 
by  the  pottery;  (4)  the  Hope  well  culture,  first  discovered 
in  Wisconsin  by  Cyrus  Thomas  in  about  1890,  rediscovered 


28  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

and  first  identified  as  of  Hopewell  type  this  year  in  Trem- 
pealeau  County,  was  definitely  marked  by  a  Hopewell  type' 
of  pottery.    In  every  instance  pottery  has  proved  the  most 
important  culture  marker. 

The  problem  of  authorship  of  the  effigy  mounds,  if  it  is 
ever  solved,  will  probably  come  to  its  solution  through  a 
study  of  effigy  mound  pottery.  Radin  seems  largely  re- 
sponsible for  the  general  acceptance  of  the  theory  that  the 
Winnebago  built  the  effigy  mounds.  His  conclusions  were 
based  solely  upon  a  very  limited  quantity  of  ethnological 
data.  Radin  also  gives  for  the  Winnebago  one  of  the  best 
descriptions  of  primitive  pottery  ever  recorded  for  a  specific 
Wisconsin  tribe.  Of  it  he  says:  "These  vessels,  most  of 
which  were  very  large,  with  round  bottoms,  always  hung 
over  the  fire.  The  material  used  in  their  manufacture  was 
blue  clay  .  .  .  mixed  with  shell  shards,  glue  from  the 
sturgeon  vertebrae,  and  the  gelatinous  substance  in  the 
horns  of  deer."1 

The  pottery  which  Radin  describes  for  the  Winnebago  is 
Siouan  in  type,  as  might  be  expected,  and  corresponds  very 
closely  to  that  found  in  mounds  and  campsites  of  the  Grand 
River  culture.  But  when  we  come  to  examine  the  pottery 
of  the  effigy  mounds,  we  find  something  quite  different. 
These  vessels,  when  of  large  size,  are  equipped  with  pointed 
bottoms.  The  material  used  seems  most  generally  to  have 
been  yellow  clay,  and  was  invariably  tempered  not  with 
shell  shards  and  glue,  but  with  grit.  How  then  does  it  hap- 
pen that  Winnebago  pottery  is  not  found  in  mounds  said  to 
have  been  built  by  the  Winnebago  Indians?  Either  Radin 
is  mistaken  about  the  authorship  of  the  mounds,  or  he  was 
misinformed  regarding  the  nature  of  Winnebago  pottery. 

From  the  above  specific  examples  of  discoveries  and  logi- 
cal conclusions  based  upon  knowledge  of  pottery,  the  impor- 
tance of  the  Wisconsin  potsherd  is  clearly  apparent.  It  is, 
therefore,  to  be  hoped  that  the  many  collectors  of  archaeo- 
logical materials  in  Wisconsin,  who  are  rendering  great 
service  to  archaeologists,  now  and  in  future,  by  building 
such  collections,  will  be  brought  to  see  the  importance  of 
the  neglected  potsherd  and  to  materially  enhance  the  value 


1  Radin,  Paul,  The  Winnebago  Tribe,  37th  Ann.  Kept.,  B.  A.  E., 
p.  119,  Washington,  1923. 


The  Dickson  Mound   Builders  Tomb.  29 

of  such  a  collection  through  the  including  therein  of  repre- 
sentative specimens  of  the  pottery  to  be  found  in  the  dis- 
trict which  the  collection  illustrates.  That  potsherds  are 
less  or  more  attractive  than  other  materials  is  a  matter  of 
opinion.  That  potsherds  are  of  relatively  high  importance 
in  the  solving  of  our  archaeological  problems  is,  far  from 
being  a  matter  of  opinion,  a  fact  beyond  all  dispute. 

THE  DICKSON  MOUND  BUILDERS'  TOMB 
THEODORE  T.  BROWN 

A  museum  which  is  probably  different  from  any  other 
museum  in  the  United  States  is  the  so-called  Dickson  Mound 
Builders'  Tomb  located  at  a  distance  of  five  miles  southeast 
of  Lewistown,  on  a  high  bluff  overlooking  the  picturesque 
Illinois  and  Spoon  river  valleys,  in  west  central  Illinois. 
A  description  of  this  very  interesting  mound  and  the  story 
of  its  exploration  is  given  in  an  interesting  illustrated  pam- 
phlet printed  by  Dr.  Don  F.  Dickson,  one  of  the  owners,  for 
distribution  to  friends  and  visitors.  From  it  this  brief 
description  of  the  mound  and  its  contents  is  largely  drawn.* 

The  form  of  this  great  aboriginal  earthwork  was  that  of 
a  crescent,  the  points  of  which  were  on  its  eastern  side. 
The  circumference  of  the  mound  (measured  from  one  point 
around  the  mound  to  the  other  point)  was  about  550  feet. 
The  maximum  depth  of  this  huge  heap  of  earth  was  from 
thirty  to  thirty-five  feet.  In  its  center,  between  the  arms 
of  the  crescent,  was  a  deep  basin.  This  contained  a  pool  of 
water  throughout  the  year. 

Twenty-seven  years  ago,  Thomas  C.  Dickson,  the  father 
of  Dr.  Don  C.  Dickson,  selected  this  mound  as  the  site  for 
his  home.  This  he  decided  to  erect  in  the  basin  or  depres- 
sion in  its  center.  In  order  to  fill  it  to  a  height  suitable  for 
the  foundation  of  the  building  he  removed  earth  from  the 
surrounding  mound.  This  entire  surface  had  been  used  as 
a  burial  place.  In  grading  the  crest  he  disinterred  "hun- 
dreds of  skeletons." 

The  bones  were  heaped  together  and  later  hauled  away 
by  wagon  loads  and  reburied. 

*  The  Dickson  Mound  Builders'  Tomb. 


30  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,  No.    1 

During  this  grading  between  eight  and  ten  thousand  ab- 
original artefacts  were  secured,  among  which  were  numer- 
ous specimens  of  earthenware  vessels,  stone  pipes,  dis- 
coidals,  plummets,  some  polished  stone  celts,  bone,  flint  arid 
shell  implements,  and  hundreds  of  strings  of  beads  made 
of  shell.  The  number  of  earthenware  vessels  obtained  is 
reported  to  have  been  nearly  one  thousand,  some  of  these 
being  very  interestingly  ornamented  or  colored.  Many  of 
these  specimens  became  the  property  of  private  collectors 
and  of  state  and  national  museums.  A  collection  of  several 
thousand  of  the  finest  specimens  became  the  property  of  the 
well-known  collector,  Mr.  Edward  W.  Payne  of  Springfield, 
Illinois. 

Long  before  Mr.  Dickson  began  the  erection  of  his  home 
other  persons  had  at  different  times  dug  in  this  mound  and 
secured  interesting  specimens.  Thus  during  the  past  fifty 
years  it  has  yielded  a  great  harvest  of  aboriginal  imple- 
ments. Dr.  Dickson  has  himself  carried  on  explorations  in 
it  at  different  times  during  the  past  twelve  or  fifteen  years. 
In  February  1927  he  began  the  excavating  which  led  to  the 
founding  of  his  present  "museum".  At  this  time  he  un- 
covered three  adult  skeletons  which  he  left  in  place  in  order 
that  others  might  view  them  and  afterwards  erected  a  shel- 
ter over  them  to  protect  them  from  the  rains.  He  then  be- 
gan work  in  a  new  location  on  the  western  slope  of  the  cres- 
cent and  at  this  time  has  the  large  number  of  188  skeletons 
and  all  of  the  earthenware  vessels,  pipes,  implements  and 
ornaments  accompanying  these  burials  completely  exposed 
to  view.  None  of  the  burials  have  been  moved,  all  are  in 
place  just  as  they  were  found. 

The  work  of  exposing  these  burials  has  been  most  care- 
fully done.  'The  bones  were  very  easily  broken,  due  to 
their  age  and  to  the  absorption  of  moisture  from  the  soil. 
Great  care  was  necessary  to  preserve  them,  and  also  the 
implements,  especially  many  implements  made  of  thin  pot- 
tery, shell  and  bone.  At  first  we  used  small  knives,  table 
spoons,  and  small  paint  brushes,  to  remove  the  clay  from 
between  the  ribs  and  in  other  difficult  places.  After  a  few 
months'  work  using  these  tools,  we  'advanced'  to  the  point 
of  using  pointers'  trowels,  air  bellows,  brushes,  small 


The  Dickson  Mound  Builders  Tomb.  81 

knives,  and  often  testing  the  soil  around  the  burials  with 
orange  sticks." 

The  skeletons  uncovered  at  the  present  time  are  for  the 
most  part  full  length  interments.  Several  are  family  burials 
of  a  father,  mother  and  child.  There  are  other  burials  of 
children.  There  are  several  "bundle"  burials.  Most  of  the 
burials  are  accompanied  by  pottery  vessels  and  with  spoons 
cut  from  clam  shells.  Some  of  the  shells  are  plain  uncut 
unio  valves.  Some  of  the  vessels  are  of  bowl  shapes  with 
or  without  handles,  some  are  ladle-shaped,  some  are  in  effigy 
forms,  some  are  colored  red  or  brown.  There  is  one  very 
unusual  double  vessel.  Small  vessels  accompany  some  of 
the  child  burials. 

Among  the  numerous  interesting  objects  accompanying 
these  burials  there  may  be  mentioned  strings  of  disk  and 
cylindrical  shell  beads,  sea  shells,  perforated  clam  shells,  a 
clam  shell  receptacle  containing  bone  awls  and  a  sandstone 
grinding  stone,  a  string  of  pearl  beads  and  baroques,  a  bone 
fishhook,  bone  awls,  a  bone  dagger,  sheets  of  mica,  platform 
pipes,  an  effigy  pipe  with  a  representation  of  a  human  face, 
a  perforated  stone  discoidal,  a  large  white  flint  knife,  flint 
triangular  arrow-points,  small  obsidian  points,  a  broken 
rock  crystal  point,  a  large  polished  stone  celt,  a  stone  spade, 
trophy  jaws  colored  with  hematite,  a  pottery  trowel  with 
disk,  a  hematite  plummet  and  a  bell-shaped  copper  axe.  Of 
special  interest  are  a  limestone  platform  pipe  in  the  stem 
hole  of  which  a  piece  of  the  point  of  a  flint  drill  has  been 
broken  off,  a  cut  bear's  tooth  so  cut  as  to  sheathe  a  small 
knife,  and  a  large  well-chipped  red  flint  implement  probably 
used  as  a  "smoother."  This  heavy  specimen  is  about  ten 
inches  long,  five  inches  wide  and  four  inches  high. 

The  Dixon  burials  have  been  covered  with  a  substantial 
vitrolite  block  building.  This  is  76  feet  long  and  46  feet 
wide.  They  are  in  a  large  pit  protected  by  a  wooden  rail- 
ing and  surrounded  by  a  walk.  They  may  thus  be  viewed 
from  every  side  of  the  enclosure.  Fastened  to  the  walls  of 
the  museum  building  are  glass  cases  containing  many  hun- 
dreds of  other  interesting  and  beautiful  aboriginal  artefacts 
obtained  from  other  mounds,  graves  and  village  sites  about 
Lewistown.  Exposed  to  view  in  these  cases  are  a  hundred 
or  more  pottery  vessels  of  various  shapes,  large  circular 


32  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

sheets  of  mica,  six  pearl  necklaces,  a  cache  of  blue  horn- 
stone  turkey-tail  points,  a  cache  of  fourteen  barbed  flint 
spearpoints,  large  sea  shells,  animal  jaw  ornaments,  four- 
teen large  bone  daggers,  perforated  bears'  teeth,  sheet  cop- 
per imitation  bears'  teeth  ornaments,  copper  beads,  copper 
axes,  stone  pipes,  discoidals,  plummets,  earspools,  beads  and 
gorgets,  bone  awls  and  flakers,  and  many  other  rare  and 
unusual  specimens.  In  the  vicinity  of  Lewistown  at  least 
three  aboriginal  cultures  are  represented  by  mounds  and 
sites — the  Cahokia-Lewistown,  the  Hopewell,  and  a  hill-top 
"hunter"  culture,  probably  Algonkian. 

The  Dickson  Mound  Builders'  Tomb  is  one  of  the  historic 
monuments  of  Illinois.  It  has  already  become  a  place  of 
pilgrimage  for  those  interested  in  the  State's  archaeological 
history.  On  the  Sunday  afternoon  when  the  writer  and  Mr. 
Charles  E.  Brown  were  present  over  one  thousand  visitors, 
who  came  by  automobile  from  many  Illinois  cities  and  vil- 
lages, visited  the  Tomb  and  listened  to  the  explanatory  talks 
given  by  Dr.  Dickson  and  his  assistant  lecturers.  The  larg- 
est number  of  visitors  as  yet  entertained  here  on  a  single 
day  was  eighteen  hundred.  Wisconsin  archaeologists 
should  not  fail  to  visit  Lewistown. 


WISCONSIN  SHELL  BEADS 
ANTON  SOHRWEIDE 

The  great  variety  of  beautiful  freshwater  shells  abound- 
ing in  the  lakes  and  streams  of  Wisconsin  served  a  useful 
purpose  in  the  daily  life  of  the  aborigine.  They  served  as 
food ;  they  gave  binding  strength  to  his  vessels  of  clay ;  the 
innate  beauty  of  their  iridescent  pearly  interiors  could  not 
be  reproduced  in  stone,  thus  it  would  be  strange  indeed  if 
the  natives  did  not  utilize  them  for  ornamentation  when  at 
the  same  time  they  could  be  easily  shaped  and  used  as 
knives. 

Bearing  in  mind,  then,  its  usefulness,  there  is  small  cause 
for  wonder  that  the  archeologist  oftimes  finds  village  sites, 
particularly  among  sedentary  peoples,  that  are  strewn  with 
broken  mussels  and  occasional  artifacts  made  from  them, 


Wisconsin  Shell   Beads.  33 

remains  that  have  escaped  the  ravages  of  time  and  the  de- 
stroying plowshare. 

The  shell  bead  is  one  of  the  most  commonly  found  relics 
of  shell.  It  matters  not  whether  they  be  of  past  or  pre- 
Columbian  origin,  information  concerning  shell  beads  of 
both  periods  is  quite  unavailable. 

Our  present  small  knowledge  concerning  the  origin  and 
method  of  manufacture  of  these  beads  finds  its  basis  in 
documentary  evidence  and  in  scholarly  investigations  of 
Indian  folklore. 

In  the  14th  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  American 
Ethnology  (Part  2)  Hoffman  sums  up  what  is  known  con- 
cerning the  source  and  mode  of  manufacture  of  these  arti- 
facts when  he  writes : 

"These  beads  were  evidently  made  from  the  thick  por- 
tions, or  perhaps  joints,  of  fresh-water  mussels;  they  are 
of  the  size  of  buckshot,  with  a  perforation  drilled  from  each 
side  toward  the  middle.  The  perforations  being  somewhat 
of  funnel  shape,  and  showing  marked  striae,  would  indicate 
that  the  drilling  had  been  made  with  other  than  a  metal  in- 
strument. On  subsequent  investigation  respecting  the  man- 
ufacture of  articles  requiring  perforation,  I  was  informed 
that  the  Menomini  used  sharp-pointed  pieces  of  quartz  and 
jasper,  rotating  these  rude  drills  with  the  hands  and  fingers. 
As  regards  the  use  of  the  bow-drill,  either  for  making  fire 
or  for  drilling  stone  and  shells,  no  definite  information 
could  be  ascertained  as  none  of  the  more  intelligent  or  aged 
natives  remembered  having  seen  them  in  use." 

Whether  in  post-Columbian  times  the  white  traders  in- 
troduced shell  beads  of  European  manufacture  is  not 
known.  Dr.  Walter  Hough,  Head  Curator  of  Anthropology 
at  the  National  Museum,  states  that  he  does  not  know  the 
sources  of  any  European  importations  of  shell  beads,  if 
any.  He  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  Indians  formerly  made 
their  own  beads  for  ornamentation  and  continued  to  do  so 
long  after  the  advent  of  the  white  man  in  areas  remote  from 
trading  posts.  This  explanation  perhaps  accounts  for  the 
presence  of  ancient  shell  beads  on  village  sites  where  the 
European  colored  glass  bead  is  much  in  evidence. 

With  reference  to  the  later  trade  in  shell  beads  or  wam- 
pum after  the  advent  of  the  whites  on  the  eastern  coast 


34  WISCONSIN  ARCHEQLOGIST. Vol.   8.  No.   1 

Mr.  Herbert  W.  Krieger,  Curator  of  Ethnology  at  the 
Smithsonian  Institution,  furnishes  the  following  memo- 
randum : 

"The  only  place  that  comes  to  mind  as  a  source  of  coun- 
terfeit wampum  in  the  United  States  is  the  little  town  of 
Pascack,  New  Jersey.  A  white  family  continued  to  operate 
a  factory  for  more  than  150  years  to  supply  counterfeit 
wampum  for  the  Indian  trade.  There  is  in  the  National 
Museum  a  quantity  of  stock  material,  of  unfinished  beads, 
tubes,  and  ornamental  objects  in  various  states  of  comple- 
tion obtained  from  the  old  site  of  this  factory.  From  this 
material  it  is  apparent  that  conch  shells  from  the  Gulf 
Coast  were  substituted  for  the  more  rare  clam  shells  Venus 
mercenaria  from  the  Atlantic  Coast.  The  more  abundant 
supply  of  conchs  combined  with  the  improved  mechanical 
devices  at  the  disposal  of  the  Pascack  manufacturers  en- 
abled the  white  trader  to  flood  the  market,  some  of  the 
objects  of  this  nature  even  reaching  the  Pacific  Coast. 

There  are  possibly  other  towns  that  added  to  the  supply 
of  artificial  or,  rather,  counterfeit  wampum,  but  I  cannot 
name  them." 

The  above  known  facts  concerning  the  manufacture  and 
origin  of  shell  beads  in  Wisconsin  finds  its  basis  largely  in 
the  observations  of  Hoffman  who  spent  some  time  in  study- 
ing the  practices  of  the  Menomini.  It  is  perhaps  safe  to  be- 
lieve that  the  other  Wisconsin  tribes  followed  like,  if  not 
the  same,  methods.  The  evidence,  as  Dr.  Hough  points  out 
seems  to  indicate  that  even  after  the  introduction  of  Euro- 
pean glass  beads  the  Indian  continued,  though  in  lesser  de- 
gree, to  manufacture  these  artifacts  even  as  his  people  be- 
fore him  had  done.  It  is  due  to  this  continued  production 
in  post-Columbian  times  that  we  can  account  for  the  pres- 
ence of  primitive  shell  beads  on  village  sites  founded  long 
after  intercourse  with  the  whites  had  been  established. 

It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  from  our  present  small 
knowledge  concerning  the  origin  and  manufacture  of  these 
early  artifacts  little  can  be  known  in  a  definite  and  precise 
way ;  it  is  with  generalities  that  we  deal. 


The  Rockford  Mound  Group.  35 

THE  ROCKFORD  MOUND  GROUP 
CHARLES  E.  BROWN 

Members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  who 
visit  or  pass  through  the  City  of  Rockford  in  Illinois  should 
not  fail  to  see  the  fine  Indian  mounds  preserved  in  Beattie 
Park,  also  known  more  commonly  as  Waterworks  park. 
These  mounds  are  near  the  bank  of  the  historic  Rock  river, 
in  the  very  heart  of  the  city. 

One  of  the  four  fine  prehistoric  mounds  located  in  this 
small,  but  very  attractive,  city  park  is  a  turtle  effigy  of  the 
type  distributed  through  the  Rock  River  region  from  Rock- 
ford  northward  to  beyond  Lake  Koshkonong  in  Wisconsin. 
This  effigy  mound  is  nearly  6  feet  high  at  its  head.  Its  body 
has  a  length  of  about  63  feet  and  its  long  tapering  tail  is 
about  103  feet  long.  Near  this  mound  is  a  tapering  linear 
mound,  probably  also  an  animal  effigy,  which  is  about  150 
feet  in  length  and  about  3%  feet  high  at  its  head.  Beyond 
the  tip  of  the  tail  of  the  big  turtle  effigy  is  a  conical  mound 
about  36  feet  in  diameter  and  4  feet  high  at  its  middle,  and 
not  far  away  another  conical  earthwork  which  is  about  18 
feet  in  diameter  and  about  one  foot  high.  These  are  paced 
dimensions  and  of  course  not  very  accurate.  The  two  effigy 
mounds  are  very  imposing  monuments  and  stretch  a  con- 
siderable way  across  the  breadth  of  this  small  park.  On 
the  north  side  of  the  Mound  Avenue  boundary  of  the  park 
another  conical  mound  of  this  group  is  preserved  on  the 
lawn  of  a  residence  property,  and  on  the  east  side  of  Indian 
Terrace,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street,  a  remnant  of  a 
linear  ( ?)  mound  extends  beneath  the  front  of  another  resi- 
dence. 

Prof.  T.  H.  Lewis  mentions  the  former  presence  of  a 
mutilated  bird  effigy  in  this  group  (Wis.  Archeo.,  17,  1,  p. 
20). 

This  fine  group  of  Indian  earthworks,  so  fortunately  here 
preserved  to  the  public,  should  be  marked  with  a  descrip- 
tive metal  tablet  in  order  that  Rockford  citizens  and  other 
visitors  to  the  park  may  understand  and  appreciate  its 
authorship  and  significance. 

In  Illinois  very  few  of  the  mound  groups  or  mounds 


36  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOG1ST.  Vol.    8,  No.    1 

which  are  at  present  preserved  in  state  or  municipal  parks 
are  marked  with  tablets.  This  should  be  done.  The  un- 
informed visitors  to  these  places  see  them  and  walk  over 
and  around  them  without  knowing  what  the  nature  of  these 
ancient  monuments  really  is.  In  a  park  at  Quincy  a  stair- 
way leads  to  the  top  of  a  great  mound  located  on  the  top  of 
a  high  Mississippi  River  bluff,  and  well-worn  paths  lead  to 
the  top  of  several  other  as  sightly  monuments.  Visitors 
think  these  to  be  observatories  erected  for  the  purpose  of 
viewing  the  beautiful  river  valley  and  give  no  thought  to 
the  fact  that  these  heaps  of  earth  from  the  top  of  which 
they  are  viewing  the  landscape  are  ancient  mortuary  monu- 
ments of  the  American  Indian.  Markers  are  sadly  needed 
also  in  Cahokia  Mounds  State  Park. 

As  we  have  been  pointing  out  for  the  past  twenty  years 
or  more  that  in  our  sister  state  of  Illinois  there  is  the  great- 
est need  of  the  organization  of  a  state  archeological  society 
to  actively  interest  itself  in  the  preservation  of  the  state's 
priceless  Indian  memorials.  With  hundreds  of  archeologi- 
cal investigators  and  prominent  collectors  distributed 
throughout  its  length  and  breadth  the  perfecting  of  such  a 
state  organization  is  now  possible.  Iowa,  Indiana  and  Min- 
nesota archeology  are  in  the  same  state.  Ohio,  New  York, 
Michigan  and  Wisconsin  all  have  state  archeological 
societies. 

FAMILY  NAMES  OF  CIVILIZED  INDIANS 
VETAL  WINN 

During  the  past  few  years  considerable  interest  has  been 
shown  in  Indian  place  names.  In  several  instances  Indian 
names  which  had  been  discarded  or  forgotten  have  been  re- 
vived and  are  again  used  to  designate  the  same  localities  as 
formerly.  In  some  cases  where  the  exact  Indian  name  is 
unknown  or  too  cumbersome  a  substitute  or  derivative  is 
used. 

It  has  always  seemed  to^me  rather  unfortunate  that  the 
early  settlers  so  often  gave  the  nanre  of  their  former  home 
to  the  one  they  were  founding.  TVis  predilection  on  the 
part  of  the  colonists  was  carried  so  far  that  today  there  is 


ROCKFORD  MOUND   GROUP. 

Rockford,  Illinois. 

Plate  3. 


Family  Names  of  Civilized  Indians.  37 

scarcely  a  town  in  Great  Britain  that  has  not  a  namesake  in 
the  United  States,  either  with  or  without  the  prefix  New, 
and  often  duplicated  many  times.  The  cities  of  France  and 
Holland  are  nearly  as  well  represented  and  also  to  a  great 
extent  those  of  Ireland  and  Germany.  These  names  of 
course  meant  something  to  the  settlers  but  to  their  descend- 
ents  they  mean  absolutely  nothing.  If  each  city  and  town 
in  this  country  had  a  name  not  duplicated  by  that  of  any 
other  city  or  town,  it  would  be  much  better  in  a  number  of 
ways. 

During  the  same  period  that  the  various  localities  of  the 
country  have  gradually  acquired  permanent  names,  the  In- 
dians and  their  mixed-blood  descendants  have  also  assumed 
or  been  given  names  which  have  gradually  become  family 
names. 

These  names  may  be  divided  into  three  classes  viz :  . 

1.  European  names  or  names  of  European  origin. 

2.  Indian  names  or  names  of  Indian  origin. 

3.  Names  consisting  of  Indian  ideas  expressed  in  the 
English  language. 

The  first  class  of  names,  those  of  the  European  origin, 
have  been  acquired  by  their  bearers  legitimately  by  inher- 
itance or  adoption  and  are  eminently  proper.  Some  ex- 
amples may  be  given,  as  Spoon  Decorah  (De  Kaury),  Saba- 
tis  Perrote  (Pierrot),  Arthur  S.  Parker. 

The  second  class,  those  of  Indian  origin  are  still  better. 
Examples  are  Paul  Shabbema,  Joe  Wisconsin,  Ben  Ahque- 
wee.  If  the  future  descendants  of  these  people  are  as  proud 
of  their  Indian  blood  as  are  the  present  day  descendants  of 
Pocahontas,  they  will  surely  be  as  proud  of  such  names  as 
other  people  are  of  their  treasured  heirlooms. 

.  It  is  to  the  names  of  the  third  class  to  which  I  wish  to  call 
your  attention.  Such  names  as  Hollow  Horn  Bear,  Amos 
One-road,  Joe  Two-sticks,  Jim  Horse-go-long-way  are  ab- 
surd and  ridiculous. 

The  origin  of  such  names  is  of  course  easily  explained. 
The  early  settler  held  the  Indian  either  in  contempt  or  fear 
and  seldom  learned  his  language  and  usually  called  his  In- 
dian acquaintance  by  a  nickname  coined  by  himself  or  some 
kind  of  translation  of  his  Indian  name.  While  the  French 
fraternized  with  the  Indians  more  than  the  English  and 


38  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

Dutch,  their  treatment  of  Indian  names  was  very  similar. 
Of  course  to  the  Indian  of  that  day,  it  mattered  nothing 
what  the  white  man  called  him.  If  it  had,  there  was  plenty 
of  other  business  between  him  and  the  white  man  to  fully 
occupy  his  attention. 

The  condition  of  affairs  with  the  Indian  of  to-day  is  radi- 
cally different.  His  status  is  changing  more  rapidly  than 
it  ever  has  in  the  past  and  more  rapidly  than  it  ever  will 
again  except  during  the  next  few  years.  Now  if  we  look 
ahead  as  far  in  time  as  we  must  look  back  to  the  first  colo- 
nists, we  shall  see  the  descendants  of  the  Indians  as  average 
citizens,  many  of  them  of  nearly  pure  white  blood  whose 
only  connection  with  the  Indians  perhaps  is  a  family  tradi- 
tion or  an  Indian  name.  Can  you  imagine  Dr.  J.  Mont- 
gomery Hair-sticks-four-ways,  or  Robert  F.  Two-horse-one- 
cow  as  an  attorney  at  law?  Such  names  as  George  White- 
fish  or  John  Bear  are  not  so  bad,  but  even  they  fall  in  the 
same  class. 

It  seems  to  me  that  we  should  be  doing  a  favor  to  numer- 
ous citizens  of  future  generations  if  we  were  to  be  instru- 
mental in  having  some  of  these  compound  English-Indian 
names  eliminated.  Of  course  we  could  not  accomplish  much 
directly  because  we  do  not  come  in  contact  with  the  people 
who  bear  the  names.  If,  however,  we  could  arouse  the  in- 
terest of  those  who  do  come  in  contact  with  them,  such  as 
Indian  agents  and  especially  teachers  in  the  Indian  schools, 
much  might  be  accomplished. 

The  young  Indians  who  attend  the  government  schools 
are  highly  intelligent,  and  once  their  attention  were  called 
to  the  matter,  should  be  able  at  once  to  see  the  incongruity 
of  such  names  and  it  would  be  a  simple  matter  to  have  them 
changed  before  they  become  permanently  fixed. 

I  think  most  of  them  have  an  Indian  name  by  which  they 
were  known  among  the  Indians.  Each  should  assume  his 
Indian  name  as  a  family  name.  If  it  is  compounded  of 
many  words  as  many  Indian  names  are,  several  words  or 
syllables  could  be  dropped  and  still  the  name  would  be  of 
Indian  origin. 


A  "LostArt"  That  Was  Never  Lost.  39 

A  "LOST  ART"  THAT  WAS  NEVER  LOST 
Literary  Digest,  November  5,  1927 

The  hardening  of  copper,  as  practised  by  the  ancients, 
often  spoken  of  as  a  "lost  art,"  and  so  treated  by  Wendell 
Philips  in  his  celebrated  lecture,  was  never  so  in  reality, 
declares  William  G.  Schneider,  a  New  York  mining  engi- 
neer, in  a  research  report  to  the  Engineering  Foundation. 
Says  Mr.  Schneider,  as  quoted  in  a  press  bulletin  issued  by 
the  Foundation : 

"Many  persons  spend  a  lifetime  trying  to  rediscover  an 
art  that  never  was  lost.  The  tragedy  occurs  when  they  have 
evolved  a  hard  copper.  They  next  endeavor  to  find  some 
use  for  it  and  then  learn  that,  unless  it  has  some  special 
properties,  no  market  exists. 

"Copper  wire,  hard  drawn,  has  a  tensile  strength  of  about 
65,000  pounds  per  square  inch  and  an  elongation  in  ten 
inches  of  about  1  per  cent,  with  a  conductivity  of  about  97 
per  cent.  This  affords  some  basis  on  which  to  work  when 
endeavoring  to  develop  the  hardening  of  copper. 

"If,  for  example,  it  were  possible  to  harden  copper  so  that 
the  tensile  strength  were  materially  increased  above  that 
just  stated,  without  reducing  the  conductivity,  a  worth- 
while discovery  would  have  been  made. 

"The  fact  is  that  our  present-day  metallurgists  not  only 
understand  how  the  ancients  hardened  their  copper  and 
bronze,  but  also  know  how  to  produce  copper  and  bronze 
products  that  are  even  harder  than  those  left  to  us,  and 
which  represent  the  evidence  of  the  so-called  lost  art  of 
hardening  copper. 

"Cutting  edges  developed  on  swords,  daggers,  knives  and 
other  implements  by  the  ancients  were  obtained  by  hammer- 
ing the  metal,  or,  in  other  words,  cold-working.  Those  old 
metal-workers  not  only  hand-hammered  their  copper  imple- 
ments but  also  used  the  same  means  to  harden  their  bronze 
articles. 

"The  heating  of  many  of  these  products  in  open  fires  re- 
sulted in  the  formation  of  considerable  copper  oxid,  which 
alloyed  with  the  copper  and  hardened  it.  One  of  the  most 
common  mistakes  of  persons  claiming  to  have  rediscovered 


40  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

'the  lost  art  of  hardening  copper'  is  to  heat  it  in  a  forge, 
and  in  this  way  saturate  it  with  copper  oxid,  which  com- 
bines with  the  copper  to  form  a  much  harder  and  much 
more  brittle  product. 

"There  are  really  two  methods  of  hardening  copper  that 
are  regularly  practised  nowadays,  just  as  centuries  ago. 
One  consists  in  alloying  the  copper  with  some  other  metal 
or  several  other  metals  such  as  zinc,  tin,  nickel,  cadmium, 
chromium,  cobalt,  silicon,  aluminum,  iron,  beryllium,  and 
arsenic. 

"The  second  method  consists  in  cold-working  the  metal 
or  copper  alloy.  In  fact,  it  is  possible  to  work  the  metal  to 
such  a  stage  of  hardness  that  a  slight  amount  of  additional 
work  will  cause  it  to  break.  The  explanation  of  all  copper 
hardening  may  be  attributed  to  one  of  these  methods  or  a 
combination  of  them. 

"Microphotographs.of  an  ancient  copper  spearhead  indi- 
cate that  it  was  extremely  hard,  and  that  apparently  this 
hardness  had  been  obtained  by  cold-working. 

"Copper  scissors,  knives,  and  other  cutting  tools  may  be 
obtained.  Unless,  however,  a  special  reason  exists  for  their 
use,  they  offer  no  advantages  over  tools  made  from  steel. 
Occasionally,  however,  it  becomes  necessary  to  use  copper 
or  bronze  tools,  such  as  knives.  Around  a  powder  plant, 
for  instance,  where  all  sparks  must  be  avoided,  bronze 
knives  are  almost  essential. 

"Some  recent  methods  of  hardening  copper  by  alloying 
have,  to  a  certain  extent,  come  about  as  near  to  actually 
'tempering'  copper"  as  would  seem  possible.  In  these  meth- 
ods the  metal,  silicon,  plays  a  most  important  part  because 
it  forms  silicides  with  other  metals  which  in  turn  form 
eutectics  with  the  copper. 

"The  deoxidizing  effect  that  silicon  by  itself  exerts  plays 
no  unimportant  part  in  finally  allowing  the  metal  to  be 
worked  and  by  heat  treatment  to  develop  a  high  strength, 
with  a  relatively  high  conductivity.  This  latter,  however, 
is  considerably  below  that  of  pure  copper  and  second  only, 
speaking  of  alloys  from  the  standpoint  of  both  strength  and 
conductivity,  to  those  of  copper  and  cadmium. 

"Alloys  of  copper  with  cadmium  give,  for  a  stated  con- 
ductivity, higher  strengths  than  those  with  silicon." 


Archeologlcal  Notes.  41 

ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Meetings 

Vice  President  Charles  G.  Schoewe  presided  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  .held  on  the  evening  of  November  21, 
1927,  in  the  trustee  hall  of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum.  There 
were  seventy  members  and  guests  in  attendance  at  this  first  autumn 
meeting.  The  program  consisted  cf  a  lecture  by  Dr.  Herbert  W. 
Kuhm  on  the  subject  of  "Wisconsin  Indian  Fishing — Primitive  and 
Modern".  This  was  a  fine  presentation  of  a  very  interesting  subject. 
It  was  discussed  by  the  Messrs.  Louis  Pierron,  C.  G.  Schoewe,  C.  E. 
Brown,  and  the  Messrs.  John  Bear  and  Ulysses  White,  two  Winne- 
bago  members  of  the  Society  who  were  present.  Mr.  John  Bear  gave 
a  very  interesting  account  in  Winnebago  of  the  organization  and  cus- 
toms of  the  Winnebago  bear  and  wolf  clans,  Mr.  White  interpreting 
his  talk. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  election  to  membership  in  the  Soci- 
ety by  the  Executive  Board  of  the  Messrs.  Herbert  W.  Cornell  and 
Gustav  Marx,  Milwaukee;  H.  K.  Thurston,  Madison,  and  Mary  Dunn, 
Lena,  Illinois.  The  Angie  Williams  Cox  Library,  Pardeeville,  was 
made  an  institutional  member.  Henry  Damereau,  Fairwater,  was 
elected  a  life  member.  Governor  Fred  R.  Zimmerman,  Dr.  Paul  B. 
Jenkins,  Williams  Bay;  Sheldon  Bradt,  New  London;  John  Bear, 
Mauston;  and  Dr.  W.  B.  Hinsdale,  Ann  Arbor,  Michigan,  were  elected 
honorary  members. 

The  deaths  were  announced  of  Messrs.  Jacob  Van  Orden,  Baraboo, 
Charles  F.  Poster  and  Anthony  Ballant,  Milwaukee,  members  of  the 
Society,  the  Secretary  giving  a  brief  account  of  the  life  of  each. 

It  was  reported  that  a  descriptive  bronze  tablet  had  been  provided 
for  the  marking  of  the  Indian  earthworks  in  Aztalan  Mound  Park. 
This  Mr..  Robert  P.  Ferry,  chairman  of  the  park  committee,  would 
cause  to  be  mounted  on  a  suitable  boulder.  A  brief  report  on  the 
archeological  field  work  conducted  during  the  summer  was  presented. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  exhibits  of  interesting  archeological  and 
ethnological  materials  were  made  by  the  Messrs.  Kermit  Freckman, 
Edward  F.  Richter,  C.  G.  Schoewe  and  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum. 

President  George  A.  West  conducted  the  meeting  of  the  Society 
held  at  Milwaukee  on  Monday  evening,  December  19,  1927.  One  hun- 
dred and  fifty  members  and  guests  were  present  at  this  meeting, 
every  seat  in  the  trustee  hall  being  taken.  The  speaker  was  President 
West,  his  subject  being  "The  Antiquities  of  Egypt."  In  his  lecture 
he  presented  ar  account  of  a  visit  made  to  this  country  by  himself 
and  Mrs.  West  during  the  spring  months  of  the  year  and  during  which 
its  major  monuments  and  ancient  sites  were  studied  and  photo- 
graphed. His  lecture  was  illustrated  with  an  especially  fine  collec- 
tion of  lantern  slides.  It  was  greatly  appreciated  by  the  large  audi- 
ence of  members  and  guests.  President  West  has  been  for  many  years 
very  active  in  both  the  labors  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
and  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum.  For  years  he  has  given  an  annual 
illustrated  lecture  to  the  members  and  friends  of  the  Society. 

The  January  16,  1928  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Soci- 
ety was  directed  by  President  West.  Seventy  members  and  visitors 
were  present.  Mr.  Huron  H.  Smith,  ethiio-botanist  and  a  vice  presi- 
dent of  the  Society,  favored  the  members  with  a  very  interesting  illus- 
trated lecture  on  "Forest  Conservation  in  Wisconsin".  His  colored 
lantern  slides  were  especially  fine.  The  speaker  gave  a  large  amount 


42  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   1 

of  valuable  information  on  the  uses  formerly  and  still  made  of  the 
forest  products  by  Wisconsin  Indians  in  wigwam  construction,  canoe 
manufacture,  maple  sugar  making,  vessel  and  utensil  making,  etc. 
His  lecture  was  discussed  by  President  West  and  other  members. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  recent  deaths  of  Mrs.  Sherburn  S. 
Merrill  of  ^Milwaukee,  a  life  member  of  the  Society,  and  of  the  Rev. 
Stanley  E.  Lathrop,  Madison,  for  many  years  one  of  its  active  mem- 
bers, and  of  Mr.  N.  L.  Kaudy,  of  South  Dakota,  a  former  annual 
member. 

The  election  of  Dr.  Bruce  T.  Best,  Arlington  Heights,  Illinois,  as 
an  annual  member  was  reported.  A  letter  received  from  Governor 
Fred  R.  Zimmerman  acknowledging  his  recent  election  as  an  honorary 
member  of  the  state  society  was  read. 

Exhibits  of  archeological  specimens  were  made  by  T.  M.  N.  Lewis, 
C.  G.  Schoewe,  T.  T.  Brown  and  T.  L.  Miller. 

President  West  conducted  the  meeting  held  on  February  20th.  Mr. 
Ira  Edwards,  geologist  of  the  Milwaukee  Museum,  gave  an  illus- 
trated lecture  on  "The  Wreck  of  Mt.  Mazama".  In  connection  with 
this  lecture  the  Museum  made  an  exhibit  of  Indian  implements  made 
of  volcanic  tufa,  basalt,  obsidian  and  other  volcanic  rocks.  There 
were  fifty  members  and  guests  present.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Execu- 
tive Board  Mr.  John  Blackhawk  was  elected  an  honorary,  and  Mr. 
William  M.  Foster  of  Milwaukee  an  annual  member. 

A  report  was  made  by  Dr.  Barrett,  chairman  of  the  special  commit- 
tee appointed  to  consider  the  conferring  of  the  Lapham  Medal  on 
several  members  at  the  annual  meeting.  Mr.  Smith,  chairman  of  the 
special  committee  on  biographies  of  members,  also  offered  a  report. 

The  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was 
held  at  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  on  Monday  evening,  March  19, 
1928.  President  George  A.  West  presided.  There  were  eighty  mem- 
bers and  visitors  present. 

On  the  motion  of  Mr.  W.  W.  Gilman  the  President  appointed  as  a 
nominating  committee  to  select  officers  for  the  ensuing  year  the 
Messrs.  W.  C.  McKern,  W.  H.  Vogel  and  R.  S.  Van  Handel.  This 
committee  presented  its  report  which  was  accepted  by  the  Society. 

The  following  officers  were  unanimously  elected:  Mr.  Huron  H. 
Smith,  president;  the  Messrs.  W.  H.  Vogel,  C.  G.  Schoewe,  Dr.  H.  L. 
Tilsner,  Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  W.  W.  Gilman,  A.  T.  Newman  and 
Dr.  H.  L.  Kastner,  vice-presidents,  and  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  Dr.  F.  C. 
Rogers,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  F.  Richter,  Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner,  Vetal 
Winn,  L.  R.  Whitney,  G.  A.  West  and  W.  C.  McKern,  directors.  Mr. 
C.  E.  Brown  was  elected  secretary  and  Mr.  G.  M.  Thorne,  treasurer. 

Secretary  Brown  and  Treasurer  Thorne  presented  annual  reports. 
President-elect  Smith  was  honored  for  his  ethno-botanical  researches 
and  publications  by  having  the  Lapham  Medal  conferred  upon  him, 
the  presentation  address  being  made  by  Vice  President  Winfield  W. 
Gilman.  President  Smith  then  assumed  the  chair  and  presided  over 
the  remainder  of  the  meeting. 

The  program  of  the  meeting  consisted  of  an  illustrated  address  by 
Dr.  Barrett  on  "Hawaii,  The  Paradise  of  The  Pacific",  which  he  de- 
livered in  his  usual  interesting  way  and  delighted  the  members  and 
visitors  present. 

The  election  to  annual  membership  of  Mr.  Robert  Harper  of  Reeds- 
burg  was  announced  Exhibits  of  specimens  were  made  by  the 
Museum,  and  Mr.  R.  Van  Handel. 

President  Huron  H.  Smith  conducted  the  meeting  of  the  Society 
held  at  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  on  April  16,  1928.  In  the  ab- 
sence of  Secretary  Brown  in  attendance  with  other  officers  and  mem- 


Archeological  Notes.  43 

bers  at  the  funeral  of  Mr.  Harry  E.  Cole,  president  of  the  Wisconsin 
Historical  Society,  at  Baraboo,  Mr.  W.  C.  McKern  was  appointed  to 
act  as  secretary. 

Mr.  George  A.  West  delivered  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "From  Hol- 
land to  the  Holy  Land",  in  which  he  gave  a  further  description  of  the 
many  interesting  places  visited  by  himself  during  his  recent  journey 
to  the  Old  World.  This  was  greatly  appreciated  by  the  audience  of 
over  one  hundred  members  and  visitors  which  filled  the  lecture  hall. 

President  Smith  appointed  the  Messrs.  Oilman,  Schoewe  and  Mc- 
Kern an  auditing  committee  to  audit  the  Treasurer's  books  and  report 
at  the  May  meeting. 

The  election  to  membership  as  an  annual  member  of  Mr.  John  P. 
Bennett,  Milwaukee,  was  announced.  The  Executive  Board  at  its 
meeting  adopted  a  resolution  requesting  the  Secretary  to  convey  to 
Mrs.  H.  E.  Cole  the  condolences  of  the  Society  on  the  death  of  Mr. 
Harry  E.  Cole,  one  of  its  charter  members  and  for  many  years  one 
of  its  very  active  officers  and  workers. 

The  meeting  of  the  Society,  held  at  Milwaukee  on  Monday  evening, 
May  21,  1928,  was  conducted  by  President  Huron  H.  Smith.  There 
were  thirty-two  members  and  ten  visitors  present. 

Mr.  S.  J.  Carter,  city  reference  librarian,  gave  a  talk  on  "Scientific 
Browsing",  this  being  a  discussion  of  the  anthropological  books  and 
periodicals  available  to  students  in  the  Milwaukee  Public  Library. 
This  talk  he  illustrated  with  an  exhibit  cf  some  of  the  books  and  other 
literature.  Many  of  the  members  present  afterward  asked  questions 
to  which  the  speaker  replied. 

Talks  on  "Fraudulent  Indian  Artifacts"  were  given  by  the  Messrs. 
C.  E.  Brown  and  Geo.  A.  West.  Other  members  participated  in  the 
discussion  which  followed.  President  Smith  announced  that  he  had 
appointed  a  special  committee  of  members,  with  Mr.  Jos.  Ringeisen 
as  its  chairman,  and  to  which  questionable  Indian  implements  might 
be  submitted.  Mr.  W.  W.  Gilman,  chairman  of  the  auditing  commit- 
tee, made  a  report  in  which  he  stated  that  his  committee  had  exam- 
ined and  found  the  Treasurer's  accounts  to  be  substantially  correct. 
This  report  was  adopted. 

It  was  announced  that  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  would  shortly  leave  for 
East  Africa  with  an  expedition  of  the  Milwaukee  Museum.  Dr.  Bar- 
rett briefly  outlined  the  objects  of  the  exploration  party.  William 
Rath,  president  of  the  "Indian  Re-search  Club'',  a  ycung  man's  organ- 
ization of  Milwaukee,  presented  an  account  of  its  activities.  Mr.  Mc- 
Kern reported  on  current  anthropological  literature. 

The  election  by  the  Executive  Board  of  Mrs.  Anna  French  Johnson, 
Prairie  du  Sac,  Rev.  O.  M.  Ziegler,  St.  Francis,  and  C.  V.  Hall,  Mil- 
waukee, as  annual  members,  and  of  Albert  B.  Reagan,  Quest,  Oregon, 
as  an  honorary  member  was  announced.  President  Smith  had  ap- 
pointed the  Messrs.  Miller,  McKern,  Brown,  Ferry  and  Ringeisen  a 
committee  to  arrange  for  a  dedication  program  at  Aztalan  Mound 
Park  during  the  month  of  October.  The  special  committee  appointed 
to  prepare  biographies  of  members  had  submitted  a  sample  biography. 

Exhibits  of  fraudulent  stone  and  metal  implements  were  made  by 
the  Messrs.  McKern  and  E.  F.  Richter. 

The  seventh  annual  meeting  cf  the  Central  Section,  American 
Anthropological  Association  was  held  in  the  Logan  Museum  of 
Archeology  at  Beloit  College,  on  Friday  and  Saturday,  March  2  and 
3,  1928. 

Members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  offered  eight  of 
the  twenty-four  papers  in  the  program,  those  participating  being 
W.  C.  McKern,  C.  R.  Keyes,  Huron  H.  Smith,  H.  W.  Kuhm,  C.  E. 


44  WISCONSIN  AKCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    1 


Brown,  W.  K.  Moorehead,  Alonzo  Pond  and  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett.  A 
special  exhibition  of  Aurignacian  implements  was  made  for  the  occa- 
sion by  the  Logan  Museum.  The  prog-ram  was  exceptionally  inter- 
esting, many  of  the  papers  being  illustrated.  The  meetings  were 
largely  attended.  On  Friday  evening  the  members  and  visitors  were 
tendered  a  dinner  at  the  Faculty  Club  by  the  Museum.  On  Sunday 
a  pilgrimage  to  visit  Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem,  veteran  archeologist,  at  his 
Janesville  home  was  made. 

The  new  officers  elected  at  this  meeting  were:  Dr.  Carl  E.  Guthe, 
president,  Dr.  Ralph  Linton  and  Dr.  J.  E.  Pearce,  vice-presidents, 
and  George  R.  Fox,  secretary-treasurer. 

The  annual  Joint  Meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences, 
Arts  and  Letters,  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  and  the  Mid- 
west Museums  Conference  was  held  at  I  awrence  College,  Appleton, 
on  April  6  and  7,  1928.  Members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  So- 
ciety who  offered  papers  were:  Huron  H.  Smith,  A.  M.  Fuller,  J.  B. 
McHarg.  R.  N.  Buckstaff,  S.  A.  Barrett,  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  G.  A. 
West,  Vetal  Winn,  C.  E.  Brown,  Geo.  Overton,  M.  K.  Hulbert,  T.  T. 
Brown,  G.  R.  Fox,  C.  W.  Beemer,  F.  S.  Dayton,  A.  O.  Barton  and 
Ira  Edwards.  The  annual  dinner  was  held  on  Friday  evening  at 
Brokaw  Hall.  President  Wriston  of  Lawrence  College  gave  an  ad- 
dress at  the  dinner. 

Publications 

The  Logan  Museum  of  Beloit  College  has  published  Dr.  George  L. 
Collie's  very  interesting  monograph  on  "The  Aurignacians  and  Their 
Culture".  "This  bulletin  has  been  prepared  to  aid  the  students  of  the 
college  to  a  better  understanding  of  the  Aurignacian  people  and  their 
culture  and  thus  to  stimulate  appreciation  of  the  large  and  repre- 
sentative collection"  of  artifacts  of  the  Aurignacian  age  now  on  ex- 
hibition at  the  Logan  Museum.  The  latter  were  assembled  during  the 
museum  expeditions  to  France  and  Algeria  through  the  generous 
financial  and  other  support  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Frank  G.  Logan.  Copies 
of  the  bulletin,  which  is  fully  illustrated,  can  be  purchased  of  the 
Museum.  We  trust  that  every  Wisconsin  archeologist  will  want  one. 
The  explorations  undertaken  by  Dr.  Collie  and  Dr.  Logan  in  the  caves 
and  sites  of  Europe  and  Africa  have  made  it  possible  for  Wisconsin 
students  of  archeology  to  study  in  the  Logan  Museum  one  of  the 
finest  collections  of  Palaeolithic  and  Neolithic  material  to  be  found  in 
any  museum  in  the  United  States. 

The  1927  Yearbook  of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  contains  an 
illustrated  report  by  W.  C.  McKern  on  "Archeological  Field  Work  in 
Sheboygan  and  Dodge  Counties".  Dr.  Barrett  contributes  several  in- 
teresting papers  en  the  Hawaiian  Islands  in  this  same  bulletin. 

In  the  Museum  bulletin  entitled  "Ethnobotany  of  the  Meskwaki  In- 
dians", Huron  H.  Smith  has  made  a  fine  contribution  to  our  knowledge 
of  the  plant  lore  of  the  Fox  Indians  located  at  Tama,  Iowa. 

The  Wisconsin  Historical  Society  has  printed  in  its  1927  Proceed- 
ings a  paper  on  "Wisconsin  Historical  Landmarks",  by  Dr.  Louise  P. 
Kellogg.  In  this  very  useful  paper  the  Indian,  pioneer  and  other 
landmarks  of  the  state  are  grouped  by  regions.  "It  is  largely  de- 
signed to  call  attention  to  the  historical  sites  in  Wisconsin  cities  and 
along  its  roads".  An  "Index  to  Landmarks"  adds  greatly  to  its  use- 
fulness. 

The  April-June  1928  issue  of  the  American  Anthropologist  con- 
tains among  others  a  paper  on  "Cremation  and  Preservation  of  the 


Archeological  Notes.  45 

Dead  in  North  America",  by  Edwin  O.  James;  "The  Lead  Glaze  Deco- 
rated Pottery  of  the  Pueblo  Region",  by  Walter  Hough;  "A  Prehis- 
toric Village  Site  in  Greenup  County,  Kentucky",  by  W.  S.  Webb,  and 
"A  Peculiar  Type  of  Stone  Implement",  by  Julian  H.  Seward.  Ed- 
ward Conzemius  contributes  a  paper  on  "Ethnographical  Notes  on  the 
Black  Carib".  In  the  July-September  number  Ralph  Linton  describes 
the  "Culture  Areas  in  Madagascar".  E.  B,  Delabarre  has  published 
an  article  on  "A  Prehistoric  Skeleton  from  Grassy  Island"  and  George 
Brinton  Phillips  one  on  "The  Earliest  Ornamental  Metal  Work".  This 
issue  also  contains  a  report  on  "Archeological  Field  Work  in  North 
America  During  1927".  This  report  is  made  by  Carl  E.  Guthe,  chair- 
man of  the  Committee  on  State  Archeological  Surveys  of  the  Division 
of  Anthropology  and  Psychology  of  the  National  Research  Council. 
Secretary  Geo.  R.  Fox  has  published  the  report  on  the  meeting  of  the 
Central  Section,  American  Anthropological  Association  which  was 
held  at  Chicago  on  March  25,  1927. 

In  the  July  1928  issue  of  Indian  Notes  of  the  Museum  of  the  Amer- 
ican Indian,  Marshall  H.  Saville  has  written  an  interesting  paper  on 
"Ceremonial  Axes  from  Western  Mexico".  Some  of  these  are  of  hu- 
man and  animal  forms.  M.  R.  Harrington  writes  of  "A  New  Archeo- 
logical Field  in  Texas",  Melvin  R.  Gilmore  describes  "The  Cattail 
Game  of  Arikara  Children",  and  Chas.  O.  Turbyfill  an  owl-shaped 
steatite  pipe  from  the  old  Cherokee  Country  in  North  Carolina. 

The  Museum  has  also  published  a  valuable  monograph  on  "The 
Indians  of  Tierra  del  Fuego"  by  Dr.  Samuel  K.  Lothrop,  being  the 
result  of  a  three  months  visit  to  the  island  during  the  summer  of 
1924-25. 

The  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology,  Bulletin  35,  consists  of  "Con- 
tributions to  Fox  Ethnology",  by  Truman  Michelson.  Under  this  title 
several  interesting  papers  on  the  Fox  Indians  are  introduced. 

The  American  Association  of  Museums  has  printed  a  pamphlet  re- 
port on  "Contributions  of  Museums  to  Outdoor  Recreation",  by  Laur- 
ence V.  Coleman,  its  director. 

The  Wisconsin  Chapter  of  the  Friends  of  Our  Native  Landscape 
has  issued  the  April-July,  1928  number  of  "Our  Native  Landscape". 
Franz  A.  Aust  is  the  managing  editor  of  this  bulletin. 

Several  very  interesting  issues  of  "Arizona  Old  and  New",  the 
Arizona  Museum  Journal,  have  recently  appeared.  This  is  issued  by 
the  Arizona  Museum,  Phoenix,  Arizona. 

The  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  has  just  published  a  Table  of 
Contents  of  Volumes  1-20,  and  Volumes  1-7,  New  Series  of  The  Wis- 
consin Archeologist,  1901-1928.  This  will  enable  members  of  the 
Society  and  others  to  order  such  issues  as  they  may  require  to  com- 
plete their  files,  or  for  other  purposes.  Copies  of  the  Table  may  be 
secured  from  the  Secretary. 

Research  and  Other  Work 

During  the  summer  Messrs.  George  A.  West  and  George  R.  Fox, 
members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  accompanied  as 
archeologists  the  McDonald-Massee  expedition  to  the  Isle  Royale  pre- 
historic Indian  copper  mines.  Among  other  valuable  results  of  the 
investigations  of  this  expedition  were  the  location  of  some  thousands 
of  additional  copper  mining  pits.  W.  C.  McKern  and  a  field  party  of 


46  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    1 


the  Milwaukee  Museum  conducted  explorations  of  Indian  mounds  at 
Trempealeau,  with  good  results.  C.  E.  and  T.  T.  Brown  were  en- 
gaged in  field  work  along  the  Rock  river  and  in  other  parts  of  south- 
ern Wisconsin.  Dr.  George  L.  Collie  has  returned  to  Beloit  from  the 
scene  of  the  Logan  Museum  investigations  in  north  Africa.  Alonzo 
Pond  has  returned  to  his  home  at  Janesville  from  Mongolia,  Asia.  He 
has  brought  with  him  a  collection  of  about  12,000  ancient  stone  and 
other  implements  obtained  in  the  interior  of  that  continent  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Roy  Chapman  Andrews  Expedition.  Dr.  Ralph  Linton 
formerly  of  the  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History  has  joined  the 
faculty  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin  and  will  conduct  a  course  in 
anthropology.  News  has  reached  us  of  the  death  of  Alvin  H.  Dewey, 
archeologist  and  patron  of  archaeological  research,  of  Rochester,  New 
York.  The  death  is  also  reported  of  Wilkin  C.  Beemer  of  Kenosha, 
one  of  the  very  active  younger  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeo- 
logical  Society.  Beemer  was  conducting  a  survey  of  his  home  county 
for  the  Society.  He  was  the  young  investigator  who  obtained  the 
airplane  photograph  of  the  large  water  spirit  effigy  mound  near  Bur- 
lington, Wisconsin. 

Among  other  visitors  at  the  State  Historical  Museum,  at  Madison, 
during  the  summer  were  Dr.  Carl  E.  Guthe,  Dr.  Melvin  R.  Gilmore, 
Alonzo  Pond,  and  Dr.  Bruce  T.  Best  and  Enos  Kiethly,  Illinois  arche- 
ologists. 

Robert  P.  Ferry,  chairman  of  Aztalan  Mound  Park,  has  erected  a 
boulder  marker  and  made  other  welcome  improvements  at  the  state 
archaeological  park  during  the  year.  Members  of  the  Society  and 
other  friends  who  desire  to  contribute  to  the  preservation  of  the  great 
mound  group  located  at  Frost's  Woods  Wild  Life  Sanctuary  at  Madi- 
son may  send  their  contributions  to  Mr.  Albert  O.  Barton,  secretary, 
at  Madison.  Every  dollar  given  will  help  save  to  save  to  posterity 
one  of  the  most  interesting  groups  of  prehistoric  earthworks  about 
the  Madison  lakes, 

At  the  close  of  the  1928  season  all  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Arche- 
ological  Society  are  requested  to  file  with  the  Secretary  reports  of  any 
field  work  engaged  in,  or  archeological  discoveries,  by  themselves. 
This  in  order  also  that  a  complete  report  may  be  made  to  the  Execu- 
tive Board  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  1929. 


Vol.  8 


January,  1929 

NEW  SERIES 


.  2 


EARTHENWARE  VESSELS 

THE  STOCKADED  VILLAGE 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHE5OLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided   for  in   Sec. 
1103,  Act,  Oct.   3,   1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


3rcf)eologtcal  S>oetetj>    f 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

H.  H.  Smith 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

W.  H.  Vogel  C.  G.  Schoewe 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  W.  W.  Oilman 

A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

DIRECTORS 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz 

A.  P.  Kannenberg  E.  F.  Richter  Mrs.  H.  E.  Koerner 

Vetal  Winn  L.  R.  Whitney  Geo.  A.  West 

W.  C.  McKern 

TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thorne 

National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  G.  Mc- 
Lachlan,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  C.  E.  Brown,  W.  C.  McKern,  T.  L. 
Miller,  A.  W.  Pond,  and  Frank  Thomlinson. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— W.  W.  Oilman,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  Dr. 
A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Mrs.  Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Louise 
P.  Kellogg-  Mrs.  H.  A.  Main,  R.  A.  Maas,  J.  W.  Norris,  Mrg.i 
F.  R.  Melcher,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  and  G.  L.  Pasco. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  A.  C. 
Neville,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  P.  Hamilton,  William  Horlick, 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Olson,  Mrs.  H.  E.  Koerner,  R.  S.  Van  Handel,  and 
T.  M.  N.  Lewis. 

MEMBERSHIP— C.  G.  Schoewe,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  A.  R. 
Rogers,  A.  Sohrweide,  Jr.,  Vetal  Winn,  C.  G.  Weyl,  Mrs.  Theo. 
Koerner,  W.  P.  Morgan,  A.  E.  Koerner,  Louis  Pierron,  C.  Baer- 
wald,  D.  S.  Rowland,  and  Geo.  Overton. 

MAN  MOUND  PARK— E.  A.  Gilmaii,  Miss  Emma  Richmond  and 
M.  F.  Hulburt. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK— R.  P.  Ferry,  M.  G.  Troxell,  and  W.  W. 
Gilman. 

PUBLICITY— A.  O.  Barton,  Mrs.  W.  F.  Bauchle,  M.  C.  Richter,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre  and  R.  K.  Coe. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thorne,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 

• 

Vol.  8,  No.  2,  New  Series 

ARTICLES 

Page 
The  Story  of  Aztalan,  George  A.  West 51 

Aztalan  Literature _ 61 

The  Stockaded  Village,  Louise  P.  Kellogg 61 

The  Use  of  Earthenware  Vessels  by  the  old  North-west  Indians, 

Charles  E.    Brown 69 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Tablet  at  Aztalan  Mound  Park Frontispiece 

Plate  Facing  Page 

1.  Mound  Burial  at  Aztalan _ 54 

2.  Meeting  at  Aztalan  Mound  Park 62 

3.  Pottery  Fragments  from  Aztalan 70 


TABLET  AT  AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK 


Cfje  i^ificonstn  8rcf)eolog;tfit 

Published    Quarterly    by    the    Wisconsin    Archeolo^ical    Soeiety 

Vol.   8  MADISON.  WIS.,  JANUARY,  1929  No.  3 

New  Series 


THE  STORY  OF  AZTALAN 

George  A.  West 

The  "ancient  city  of  Aztalan"  located  but  45  miles  di- 
rectly west  of  Milwaukee  has  long  been  known  and  often 
referred  to  as  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  western  world. 
When  discovered,  it  certainly  was  the  most  extensive  work 
of  antiquity  within  the  state  of  Wisconsin.  The  good  judg- 
ment of  its  founders  is  indicated  by  the  beautiful  location 
chosen,  with  its  eastern  exposure  and  gentle  slope  to  the 
placid  stream  now  known  as  the  Crawfish  River.  The  high- 
lands along  its  western  border  afforded  an  opportunity  to 
these  early  Americans  of  seeing  the  sunrise  in  all  its  glory, 
they  probably  being  worshipers  of  that  orbit. 

These  works  were  discovered  by  N.  F.  Hyer  in  October, 
1836  and  a  hasty  survey  made  by  him  in  January,  1837. 
He  later  published  a  brief  description  of  the  enclosure,  illus- 
trated by  a  rude  wood-cut,  in  the  "Milwaukee  Advertiser", 
one  of  Wisconsin's  earliest  newspapers.  At  this  time  there 
were  no  white  settlements  in  the  neighborhood. 

The  name  "Aztalan"  was  given  to  this  place  by  Mr.  Hyer 
because,  according  to  Humboldt,  the  Axtecs  of  Mexico  had 
a  tradition  that  their  ancestors  came  from  a  country  to  the 
North,  called  "Aztalan,"  which  in  Mexican  means  "near 
water".  Hence  the  natural  inference  that  the  country  about 
the  Great  Lakes  was  the  ancient  residence  of  the  Aztec, 
which  of  course  in  the  light  of  our  present  knowledge  is 
not  considered  seriously. 

A  paper  by  a  Mr.  Taylor,*  who  obtained  the  information 
from  a  friend  who  had  made  a  visit  to  the  works,  accom- 
panied by  Mr.  Hyer,  was  published  in  "Sillman's  American 
Journal",  added  but  little  to  the  knowledge  of  these  ruins. 


Stephen  Taylor. 


52  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   2 

Messrs.  Squier  and  Davis  published  a  condensed  report 
in  the  first  volume  of  the  "Smithsonian  Contributions", 
with  many  suggestions  which  have  proved  to  be  merely 
conjectures. 

In  1838,  the  famous  Edward  Everett,  then  governor  of 
Connecticut,  besought  the  President  of  the  United  States  to 
withdraw  Aztalan  from  sale  as  a  piece  of  public  land,  but 
in  vain;  it  was  sold  at  $1,25  per  acre  and  $22.00  added  to 
the  Treasury.  Then  the  settlers  started  plowing  and  sowing 
turnips  on  the  mounds.  About  this  time,  some  trade  orna- 
ments of  silver  were  found,  resulting  in  a  mad  rush  of 
treasure  hunters,  who  trenched  the  mounds  and  walls  of 
the  enclosure  in  dozens  of  places. 

In  1850  Dr.  Increase  A.  Lapham,  made  a  careful  survey 
of  Aztalan  and  of  the  earthworks  in  the  vicinity,  and  in 
1855  there  appeared  a  finely  illustrated  article  on  the  en- 
closure in  his  "Antiquities  of  Wisconsin". 

This   interesting   enclosure,   now   almost   obliterated   by 
many  years  of  cultivation,  is  in  the  shape  of  an  irregular 
parallelogram,  reported  to  contain  17%  acres,  surrounded 
on  three  sides  by  an  artificial  ridge.     The  length  of  the 
north  wall  Lapham  gives  as  631  feet,  the  west  as  1419  and 
the  south  as  700.     The  Crawfish  River  forms  the  fourth 
side,  on  the  east.    Many  exaggerated  statements  respecting 
the  brick  walls  have  been  made,  all  of  which  have  little 
foundation  in  truth.    The  wall  was  22  feet  wide,  from  one 
to  five  feet  in  height  and  enlarged  on  the  outside  at  almost 
regular  distances  by  mounds,  often  referred  to  as  "but- 
tresses or  bastions".     These  projections  were  from  61  to 
95  feet  apart,  about  40  feet  in  diameter  and  from  two  to 
five  feet  high.    On  the  inner  side  of  the  wall  opposite  many 
of  these  mounds  were  found  the  remains  of  a  sloping  way 
by  which  the  wall  was  ascended  from  within.     Near  the 
southwest  angle  of  the  great  enclosure  were  two  outworks 
constructed  in  the  same  manner.     The  corners  of  these 
walls  are  not  rectangular  and  the  embankment  or  ridge  is 
not  straight.    The  earth  of  which  the  ridge  was  made  was 
doubtless  scraped  up  from  the  surface  of  the  adjoining 
ground. 

The  alleged  "walls  of  brick"  have  given  to  Azatalan  a 
great  deal  of  undeserved  notoriety.  It  is  interesting  to  note 


* 
Aztalan.  53 

the  fondness  with  which  many  persons  still  cling  to  this 
absurd  bit  of  fiction,  long  exploded. 

There  is  in  fact  little  foundation  for  calling  these  "brick 
walls".  Clay  mixed  with  grass  seems  to  have  been  placed 
on  the  surface  of  portions  of  these  ridges  and  treated  by 
fire,  probably  to  protect  them  against  erosion  and  to  furnish 
a  solid  surface  on  which  the  natives  might  travel  regardless 
of  the  weather.  Fragments  of  these  so-called  briquets  are 
still  scattered  about,  in  the  vicinity  of  these  ruins.  With 
these  briquets  were  found  fragments  of  broken  pottery, 
bits  of  charcoal  and  pieces  of  partly  burned  human  bones, 
which  led  Dr.  Lapham  to  suggest  that  possibly  the  clay 
mixed  with  straw  was  employed  as  a  covering  for  sacrifices 
which  were  burned  on  top  of  the  walls.  Fowke  asserts  that 
they  were  simply  the  remains  of  the  walls  and  roofs  of 
mud-plastered  huts  which  have  been  destroyed  by  fire. 
Similar  remains  of  burned  clay  occur  in  the  low  flat  mounds 
of  Missouri,  Arkansas  and  Mississippi. 

Within  the  wall,  near  the  northwest  corner,  was  a  rect- 
angular pyramidal  mound,  its  level  top  measuring  60  by  65 
i'eet.  At  its  southeast  corner  was  a  sloping  ascent.  This 
mound  occupied  the  summit  of  a  ridge  and  rose  but  little, 
if  any,  above  the  top  of  the  adjacent  wall.  It  had  been 
partly  destroyed,  as  Lapham  stated,  by  persons  curious  in 
antiquarian  research,  and  by  one  who,  it  is  said,  had  been 
supernaturally  convinced  that  a  large  amount  of  money 
was  deposited  in  it. 

At  the  southwest  corner,  also  within  the  wall,  was  a 
square  mound,  the  level  area  on  its  top  being  53  feet  wide 
on  the  west  side.  It  probably  was  originally  square.  This 
was  a  terraced  mound  with  two  levels  and  a  sloping  way 
from  its  top  toward  the  east  and.  was  the  highest  earth- 
work within  the  wall,  which  it  overlooked.  The  tops  of 
these  mounds  possibly  supported  structures  of  perishable 
materials. 

From  the  eastern  side  of  the  last  mentioned  mound,  a 
ridge  with  a  number  of  projections,  similar  to  those  of  the 
wall  of  the  enclosure,  extended  about  two-thirds  of  the  way 
to  the  river,  where  it  angled  in  a  northwesterly  direction, 
being  broken  near  its  middle.  Not  far  from  and  east  of 


54  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST. Vol.   8,  No.   2 

this  embankment  was  a  second  parallel  ridge  with  projec- 
tions distributed  at  various  distances  along  its  sides. 

A  short  distance  west  of  the  enclosure  and  extending 
along  the  front  of  the  wall  was  a  long  mound  of  a  famil- 
iar tapering  effigy  type,  an  irregular  line  of  conical 
mounds,  and  a  single  linear  mound.  Several  hundred  feet 
northwest  of  the  enclosure,  on  the  higher  ground,  was  a 
double  line  of  seventy-four  conical  mounds  of  different 
sizes,  of  which  but  ten  remain. 

Opposite,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  river,  is  another,  but 
much  smaller  enclosure  and  with  it  a  considerable  number 
of  mounds,  one  of  them  a  600-foot  panther  type  effigy. 
These  ancient  earthworks  were  doubtless  allied  to  the  large 
works  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river. 

EARLY  EXCAVATIONS 

Dr.  Lapham's  report  indicates  that  he  did  some  exca- 
vating at  Aztalan, — that  a  shaft  was  sunk  in  the  sixth 
mound  from  the  northwest  angle  of  the  outer  wall,  and  the 
only  finds  were  a  fragment  of  galena  and  another  of  iron 
ore,  used  as  red  paint.  There  was  no  burned  clay  on  this 
mound,  which  was  built  of  a  yellowish  sandy  loam,  taken 
from  the  sub-soil  of  adjacent  grounds.  Two  smaller 
mounds  in  the  interior  were  also  opened  by  him  without 
results  of  any  interest. 

The  mound  or  buttress  at  the  northwest  angle  of  the 
enclosure  was  excavated  with  interesting  results.  Frag- 
ments of  pottery  were  encountered  just  below  the  sod; 
charcoal,  half-burned  human  bones  and  numerous  masses 
of  burned  clay  were  met  with  for  the  first  twelve  inches 
only ;  at  deeper  levels  fragments  of  clay,  charcoal  and  fresh 
water  shells,  badly  decayed,  were  observed.  Still  deeper 
a  cavity  was  found,  nearly  filled  with  loose  earth,  in  which 
were  indications  of  bones,  in  a  bad  state  of  preservation, 
and  charcoal.  This  was  divided  below  into  two  other  cy- 
lindrical cavities,  filled  with  some  loose  materials.  He 
believed  that  two  bodies  had  undoubtedly  been  buried  here 
in  a  sitting  posture. 

Lapham  examined  several  of  the  tumuli,  exterior  to  the 
enclosure,  but  with  no  very  important  results.  The  third 
from  the  north  end  of  the  long  row,  as  appears  on  his  plat, 


MOUND   BURIAL   AT    AZTALAN 

Skeleton  of  a  woman  showing1  belts  of  shell  beads 
Plate  1 


Aztalan.  65 

four  feet  high  and  thirty  feet  in  diameter,  was  penetrated 
to  the  bottom  where  a  decayed  post  was  encountered. 

While  working  at  Aztalan,  he  was  also  informed  that, 
"upon  opening  one  of  the  larger  mounds,  some  years  ago, 
the  remains  of  a  skeleton  were  found,  enclosed  with  a  rude 
stone  wall  plastered  with  clay  and  covered  with  a  -sort  of 
inverted  vase  of  the  same  materials". 

Mr.  J.  C.  Brayton  of  Aztalan,  in  a  letter  to  Dr.  Lapham, 
said :  "Several  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  square  mound, 
near  the  northwest  corner  of  the  enclosure,  was  found  what 
appeared  to  be  the  remains  of  cloth,  apparently  enveloping 
a  portion  of  a  human  skeleton.  Its  texture  was  open,  like 
the  coarsest  linen  fabric,  but  the  threads  were  so  entirely 
rotten  as  to  make  it  quite  uncertain  as  to  what  material 
they  were  made".  Sillman's  Journal  reported  the  finding 
of  a  piece  of  cloth  at  Aztalan  and  which  was  sent  by  Dr. 
King  to  the  National  Institute  of  Washington,  which  is 
possibly  the  same  specimen  referred  to  by  Mr.  Brayton. 

As  Dr.  Lapham  reported,  many  artifacts  as  well  as* 
"numerous  fragments  of  earthenware  have  been  taken 
from  the  mounds  at  different  times;  portions  of  broken 
vessels,  varying  in  size,  (judging  by  the  curve  of  the  frag- 
ments), from  a  few  inches  to  three  feet  across  the  rim". 
Mr.  Brayton  is  authority  for  the  statement  that  in  one 
instance,  two  loads  of  broken  pots,  uncovered  by  the  plow, 
were  used  for  filling  in  mud-holes  in  the  highway. 

In  the  study  of  the  American  Indians,  ethnologists  have 
found  nothing  more  significant  of  aboriginal  culture  than 
the  designs  and  patterns  used  in  aboriginal  pottery  decora- 
tion. Unfortunately,  Dr.  Lapham  failed  to  appreciate  this 
as  he  furnished  no  descriptions  of  the  potsherds  he  so 
plentifully  discovered  at  Aztalan. 

The  works  here  are  often  referred  to  in  such  fanciful 
terms  as  "sacred  enclosure",  "temple  mounds",  and  "sacri- 
ficial mounds",  all  tending  to  establish  a  belief  that  their 
authors  were  not  ordinary  Indians,  but  religious  fanatics 
who  worshipped  the  sun  and  offered  human  beings  in 
sacrifice  to  this  luminary.  In  a  concluding  paragraph  of  his 
description  of  these  works,  Dr.  Lapham  said: 

"We  may  suppose  it  to  have  been  a  place  of  worship;  the 
pyramidal  mounds  being  the  places  of  sacrifice  like  the 


56  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   2 

teocalli  of  Mexico.  From  its  isolated  situation,  there  being 
no  similar  structure  for  a  great  distance  in  any  direction, 
we  may  conjecture  that  this  was  a  kind  of  Mecca,  to  which 
a  periodical  pilgrimage  was  prescribed  by  their  religion. 
There  may  have  been  the  annual  feasts  and  sacrifices  of  a 
whole  nation.  Thousands  of  persons  from  remote  locations 
may  have  engaged  in  mid-night  ceremonies  conducted  by 
priests.  The  temple,  lighted  by  fires  kindled  on  the  great 
pyramids  and  at  every  projection  on  the  walls,  on  such 
occasions  would  have  presented  an  imposing  spectacle,  well 
calculated  to  impress  the  minds  of  the  people  with  awe  and 
solemnity". 

Peet  said :  "There  came  a  sense  of  awe  as  we  looked 
about.  It  was  easy  to  imagine  that  the  place  was  once 
given  to  religious  assemblies,  and  that  the  platforms  or 
pyramids  were  covered  with  temples  and  smoked  with  sac- 
rificial fires,  and  to  realize  that 'the  place  was  very  sacred 
to  the  people". 

The  flat-topped  mounds,  located  within  the  enclosure, 
and  the  finding  by  Lapham,  while  excavating,  of  ashes 
mingled  with  charcoal  and  occasional  fragments  of  human 
bones  probably  caused  more  speculation  as  to  the  religious 
significance  of  these  works  than  anything  else.  That  canni- 
balism was  not  an  uncommon  practice  among  the  early 
Wisconsin  Indians  is  shown  by  the  accounts  of  early  writ- 
ers, and  the  finding  of  human  bones  showing  the  action  of 
fire  may  well  be  considered  as  the  remains  of  cannibal 
feasts. 

It  has  also  been  suggested  that  this  enclosure  might  have 
been  occupied  by  a  colony  of  Mexicans,  such  colonies  being 
sent  out  by  those  people  at  an  early  day. 

However,  practically  every  theory  advanced  thus  far  as 
to  the  uses  and  authorship  of  these  interesting  remains  was 
based  almost  wholly  on  surface  indications. 

RECENT  EXPLORATION 

It  was  not  until  the  spring  of  1919  that  the  Milwaukee 
Public  Museum,  appreciating  the  educational  value  of  mod- 
ern scientific  research  and  the  necessity  of  acting  quickly 
lest  the  plow  should  forever  obliterate  all  remaining  evi- 
dences of  the  prehistoric  life  and  culture  of  a  people  that 


Aztalan.  ,  57 

may,  for  hundreds  of  years,  have  occupied  this  site,  sent  its 
Director,  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  with  a  number  of  his  assistants, 
to  seek  beneath  the  surface  for  information  that  might 
solve  the  problem  that  has  ever  since  its  discovery  caused 
many  wild  theories  to  be  advanced.  It  required  two  sum- 
mers' work  by  the  expedition  to  thoroughly  excavate  these 
ancient  works. 

Summarizing  the  results,  which  were  most  gratifying: 
Work  was  commenced  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river.  Dis- 
covery was  made  that  a  low  embankment,  several  hundred 
feet  in  length  and  from  four  to  ten  feet  in  depth,  along  the 
river  bank,  extending  back  a  considerable  distance,  was  in 
reality  a  refuse  heap,  probably  originally  low  ground, 
where  was  dumped  kitchen  refuse  and  other  discards, 
from  which  were  obtained  many  interesting  objects. 
Among  them  were  potsherds,  stone  implements  and  wooden 
posts,  cut  with  primitive  tools. 

The  various  walls,  including  the  enclosure,  were  exca- 
vated, revealing  post  holes  close  together,  indicating  that 
the  site  was  a  stockaded  fort.  Within  the  enclosure  was 
discovered  a  series  of  post  holes,  in  which  were  undoubtedly 
set  posts  for  defensive  purposes.  Other  post  holes  were 
found  that  evidently  had  been  used  in  the  construction  of 
buildings. 

On  the  northeast  side  was  discovered  an  entrance  way, 
leading  through  a  very  narrow  alley,  bordered  on  each  side 
by  post  holes,  with  twists  and  turns,  constituting  a  trap, 
making  ingress  for  an  enemy  very  difficult.  This  gateway 
was  defended  on  each  side  by  bastions,  around  the  outer 
edge  of  which  were  palisades,  as  post  holes  indicated.  In 
fact,  each  of  the  projections  of  the  outer  wall  was  doubtless 
used  as  an  outlook  and  fortified  by  trunks  of  trees  set  into 
the  ground. 

Not  far  from  the  entrance  and  toward  the  river,  the 
foundations  of  a  number  of  dwellings  were  discovered.  The 
excavations  produced  many  implements  and  ornaments  in 
stone,  bone  and  copper,  deer  antlers  and  thousands  of  pearl 
shells  or  mussels,  they  usually  being  perforated  and  prob- 
ably used  as  hoes.  Human  remains  were  also  encountered 
as  well  as  coarsely  woven  fabrics,  but  the  most  important 
discovery  was  the  large  number  of  potsherds,  the  quality 


58  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   2 

and  decoration  being  unique.  Many  of  these  were  shell- 
tempered,  equipped  with  angular  shoulders  and  decorated 
below  the  rim  by  means  of  incised  spirals,  highly  pol- 
ished, beautifully  shaped,  representing  the  finest  pottery 
made  by  the  ancient  Wisconsin  Indians,  and  probably  to 
be  classed  with  the  best  ware  of  any  American  Indians, 
north  of  Mexico.  It  is  typical  of 'the  Aztalan  site.  Other 
sherds  were  decorated  with  incised  scrolls  and  geometrical 
arrangements  of  incised  lines.  One  fine  specimen,  a  unique 
find  in  the  Wisconsin  area,  is  a  pottery  ladle  of  hard,  shell- 
tempered,  polished  ware,  shaped  to  represent  a  gourd. 

Excavations  of  Aztalan  have  resulted  in  the  discovery  of 
four  distinct  cultures,  its  earliest  inhabitants  having  the 
most  advanced. 

They  were  evidently  a  sedentary  people, — pottery  makers 
and  weavers,  equal  to  any  of  the  southeastern  tribes  in  high 
artistic  attainments  and  military  tactics. 

Another  very  interesting  find  was  a  large  number  of 
beautiful  arrow-heads,  containing  three  square  notches,  the 
third  being  at  the  base.  They  are  rarely  found  elsewhere 
in  Wisconsin,  never  in  Ohio  and  the  northeastern  part  of 
the  country,  but  are  encountered  in  considerable  numbers 
in  the  South  and  East.  These  and  other  finds  are  indica- 
tive of  the  southeast  culture. 

In  one  of  the  large  mounds  on  the  ridge  near  the  highway 
was  discovered  the  remains  of  a  post,  which  originally 
probably  extended  far  above  the  mound  and  was  used  for 
ceremonial  purposes.  An  adjoining  mound  contained  noth- 
ing excepting  a  peculiarly  shaped  boulder,  which  probably 
had  some  religious  significance. 

In  another  mound  nearby  was  found  a  skeleton  of  a  young 
woman,  together  with  thousands  of  beads  made  from  the 
pearl  shells  or  mussels  found  in  the  rivers  of  southwestern 
Wisconsin.  These  beads  seem  to  have  been  attached  to 
belts  of  some  material,  one  of  which  was  wound  several 
times  around  the  neck,  another  around  the  body  and  a  third 
around  the  ankles. 

While  the  Winnebago  were  the  last  to  occupy  this  site, 
they  disclaimed  any  knowledge  of  its  origin,  which  could  be 
expected  from  the  fact  that  other  cultures  were  discovered, 
by  excavation,  below  their  own.  All  evidence  at  hand  leads 


Aztalan.  59 

to  the  conclusion  that  the  founders  of  Aztalan  came  from 
the  South  or  Southeast,  and  that  for  some  unknown  reason 
their  advance  into  Wisconsin  territory  seems  to  have  been 
extremely  limited  and  their  high  state  of  culture  not 
adopted  by  the  wilder  tribes  of  this  district.  Who  they 
were  is  still  an  unsettled  problem. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK 

For  sixty  years  the  plow  has  kept  steadily  burying  deeper 
the  secrets  of  this  "City  of  Mystery".  In  1905  the  Land- 
marks Committee  of  Lake  Mills,  the  State  Federation  of 
Women's  Clubs  and  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
made  a  determined  effort  to  interest  the  public  and  our 
State  legislature  in  the  preservation  of  this  site  by  securing 
it  for  state  park  purposes.  Much  publicity  was  given  the 
matter,  which  was  met  with  a  deaf  ear. 

Again  in  1920,  a  concerted  movement  was  carried  on  all 
over  the  state  by  archeological,  historical,  scientific  and 
memorial  societies,  led  by  the  Landmarks  Committee  of 
the  State  Historical  Society  and  other  organizations,  under 
the  slogan,  '"Save  Aztalan",  to  urge  the  acquisition  of  the 
property  as  a  public  park  to  be  conducted  by  the  Rural 
Planning  Committee  of  Jefferson  County. 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  and  the  late  P.  V.  Lawson  gave  illus- 
trated lectures  throughout  Jefferson  County,  in  order  to 
stimulate  the  project,  resulting  in  the  school  children  of 
that  county  contributing  a  substantial  part  of  the  purchase 
price  of  about  three  acres  of  the  tract,  containing  a  few  of 
the  outlying  mounds  in  what  is  now  Aztalan  Mound  Park. 
The  County  Board  supplied  the  necessary  balance  of  the 
funds  and  presented  the  site  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society. 

On  October  20,  1928,  a  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeo- 
logical Society  and  others  fully  interested  in  saving  as 
much  as  possible  of  this,  Wisconsin's  most  famous  ruin, 
met  at  Aztalan  for  the  unveiling  "of  a  tablet  in  commemora- 
tion of  its  departed  glory.  The  bronze  plate,  attached  to  a 
large  granite' boulder,  bears  the  following  inscription: 


60  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   2 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK 

Site  of  the  famous  prehistoric  Indian  stockade-protected 
village  known  as  Aztalan.  First  described  by  N.  F.  Hyer, 
in  the  Milwaukee  Advertiser  in  January,  1837.  Described 
by  Dr.  Increase  A.  Lapham  in  the  "Antiquities  of  Wiscon- 
sin" in  1855.  Explored  by  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum 
in  1919-21.  Purchased  by  the  citizens  of  Jefferson  County 
in  1922,  and  presented  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society.  Marked  by  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
1927. 

In  recognition  of  the  devoted  services  of  Mr.  Robert  P. 
Ferry,  Chairman  of  the  Park  Committee,  in  improving  and 
protecting  this  sacred  spot,  his  daughter,  Miss  Elizabeth 
Ferry  and  her  friend,  Miss  Elizabeth  Tillotson,  were  ac- 
corded the  honor  of  unveiling  this  marker.  Appropriate 
addresses  were  made  on  this  occasion  by  Miss  Louise 
Phelps  Kellogg  of  the  Wisconsin  State  Historical  Society,  on 
"Indian  stockade-protected  villages" ;  by  Mr.  John  Jeske, 
of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum,  describing  the  excava- 
tions by  the  Museum,  and  by  Geo.  A.  West,  of  Milwaukee, 
who  gave  both  a  historical  account  of  the  site  and  the 
unveiling  address. 

Sadly,  with  feelings  difficult  of  utterance,  our  party 
wandered  back  and  forth  in  the  chilling  wind,  over  the 
long  neglected  wreck  of  this  once  most  remarkable  and 
extensive  ancient  earthen  structure  of  our  state.  Realizing 
its  priceless  value  from  an  educational,  historical,  and 
scenic  standpoint,  we  could  not  help  but  feel  that  the  need- 
less destruction  of  so  rare  an  example  of  prehistoric  re- 
mains is  a  lasting  disgrace  to  our  state  and  a  blot  on  the 
career  of  our  statesmen  of  the  past,  who  had  the  oppor- 
tunity to  preserve  it  at  a  trifling  cost  and  hand  it  down  as 
an  heirloom  to  coming  generations  of  Wisconsin  people, 
who  will  more  appreciate  it  than  we  ourselves  do. 

Pleased  we  should  be  that  the  policy  of  our  state  officers 
and  law  makers  has  changed.  The  securing  of  public  parks 
in  upper  Wisconsin  is  highly  commendable,  but  thus  far  the 
southern  part  of  our  state,  in  this  respect,  has  not  received 
due  consideration.  Some  place  for  recreation  within  a  short 
drive  would  accomodate  the  hundreds  of  thousands  who 


The  Stockaded  Village.  61 

cannot  afford  or  spare  the  time  to  go  long  distances  for  a 
day's  outing.  Such  a  park  should  be  provided  and  the  site 
of  Ancient  Aztalan  is  the  most  logical  and  desirable  for 
this  purpose  and  the  additional  land  required  should  be 
purchased  and  the  enclosure  restored  by  the  State  of  Wis- 
consin without  unnecessary  delay. 

AZTALAN  LITERATURE 

In  the  course  of  years  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  So- 
ciety has  published  a  number  of  papers  and  articles  on  the 
subject  of  the  character  and  preservation  of  the  Aztalan 
enclosure.  The  first  of  these  appears  as  a  chapter  in  a 
monograph,  "The  Indian  Authorship  of  Wisconsin  Antiqui- 
ties", published  in  1907,  its  author  being  Mr.  George  A. 
West.  Accompanying  this  is  a  reproduction  of  Dr.  Lap- 
ham's  map  of  Aztalan.  Other  papers  published  since  that 
time  are  "The  Pilgrimage  to  Aztalan,"  "The  Ancient  City 
of  Aztalan",  by  Publius  V.  Lawson ;  "A  Visit  to  Aztalan  in 
1838",  by  William  T.  Sterling;  "Prehistoric  Cannibalism  in 
America",  by  A.  N.  Somers;  and  "Aztalan  Conveyed  to 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Park  System".  Dr.  Barrett's  re- 
port on  the  investigations  conducted  by  the-  Milwaukee 
Public  museum  has  not  yet  appeared. 

Recent  improvements  made  at  Aztalan  Mound  Park  by 
Chairman  Robert  P.  Ferry  consist  of  the  enclosing  of  the 
park  with  a  substantial  fence,  the  planting  of  trees,  the 
erection  of  roadside  and  other  signs  directing  visitors  to 
the  site,  the  erection  of  the  boulder  marker,  and  the  erection 
of  a  shelter  with  a  permanent  map  and  literature  case. 

THE  STOCKADED  VILLAGE 
Louise  Phelps  Kellogg 

Nearly  all  the  discoverers  and  first  settlers  of  North 
America  mention  the  palisaded  village  as  a  feature  of 
Indian  life.  When  Jacques  Cartier  in  1535  advanced  up 
the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  site  of  Montreal  he  found  there  the 
Huron  village  of  Hochelaga,  containing  more  than  a  thous- 
and people,  which  was  surrounded  by  a  wooden  palisade 
in  triple  rows.  This  palisade  was  circular ;  and  on  its  inner 


62  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   2 

side  ran  a  gallery  on  which  the  defenders  stood.  A  picture 
of  this  village  appears  in  the  collection  of  voyages  by  the 
Italian,  Ramusio,  with  an  especial  diagram  of  the  palisade. 
The  three  tiers  of  tree  trunks  met  at  the  top  in  the  form 
of  a  pyramid;  it  was  firmly  bound  together  and  of  a  very 
strong  construction.1 

When  th%  French  in  the  early  years  of  the  seventeenth 
century  returned  to  settle  the  St.  Lawrence  Valley,  the 
Hurons  had  removed  to  western  Ontario,  south  of  Georgian 
Bay.  There  they  had  six  fortified  villages,  with  wooden 
stakes  in  triple  ranks  interlaced,  lined  within  with  large 
pieces  of  bark.  These  stockades  were  from  eight  to  fifteen 
or  more  feet  high  and  reinforced  underneath  with  great 

trees  laid  on  short,  strong  forks  of  tree  trunks.2  Not- 
withstanding these  strong  fortifications,  when  in  1648-9 
the  Iroquois  raided  the  country  of  the  Hurons  they  were 
able  to  capture  these  stockades.  One  had  a  palisade  of  pine 
trees  fifteen  to  sixteen  feet  high  with  a  deep  ditch  around 
it;  the  Iroquois  fell  upon  it  and  undermined  it  with  blows 
of  their  hatchets ;  thus  they  made  several  breaches  through 
which  they  rushed  and  set  on  fire  the  cabins  of  their 
victims.8 

The  Iroquois  also  had  stockaded  villages;  one  of  their 
earliest  Dutch  visitors  writes :  "This  [Onondaga]  castle  is 
surrounded  by  three  rows  of  palisades,  six  or  seven  feet 
high  so  thick  it  is  a  wonder  they  could  do  it."-4  They  ran  a 
trench  several  feet  deep  around  five  or  six  acres  of  land, 
threw  up  the  ground  upon  the  inside,  then  set  a  continuous 
row  of  stakes  or  palisades  in  this  bank  of  earth,  fixing  them 
at  such  an  angle  that  they  inclined  over  the  trench.  Some- 
times a  village  was  surrounded  by  a  double,  triple,  or  even 
quadruple  row  of  palisades.  Within  were  the  cabins  and 
without  the  cultivated  fields.5 


1  Jacques  Garner's  Voyages,  (Biggar  ed.  Ottawa,  1924),  144-148, 
154. 

'Samuel  de  Champlain,  Oeuyres  (Quebec,  1870)  iv,  73;  Sabriel 
Sagard:  Theodate  Le  Grande  Voyage  du  Pays  des  Huron  (Paris, 

3  Jesuit  Relations  &  Allied  Documents  (Thwaites  ed.  Cleveland, 
1896-1901),  xxxiv,  14,  123,  125. 

4Arent  Van  Curlaer's  journal  in  American  Historical  Association 
Report,  1905,  90. 

'Lewis  Morgan,  League  of  the  Iroquois,   (N.  Y.  1901)   I,  305-306. 


MEETING   OF   MEMBERS    OF    THE    WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGICAL   SOCIETY 

AT  AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK,   OCTOBER  20,   1928 

Plate  2 


The  Stockaded  Village.  63 

Champlain  gives  us  two  illustrations  of  the  stockaded 
villages  of  the  Iroquois:  in  his  exploration  of  1609  at  the 
severe  encounter  he  had  with  the  Mohawk  not  far  from 
Lake  Champlain,  the  village  shown  in  his  picture  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  stockade  hexagonal  in  shape  strongly  inter- 
woven with  binding  withes.6  Again  in  1615  when  the 
explorer  accompanied  a  party  of  Hurons,  which  attacked 
an  Oneida  village,  Champlain  thus  describes  the  enemies' 
stronghold:  "The  village  was  enclosed  by  four  good  pali- 
sades, which  were  made  of  great  pieces  of  wood  inter- 
laced with  each  other  with  an  opening  of  not  more  than 
one-half  a  foot  between  two;  it  was  thirty  feet  high  with 
galleries  around  the  inside;  there  was  a  pond  near  and 
gutters  ran  between  each  pair  of  palisades."  Champlain's 
party  was  not  able  to  storm  this  strong  fort  even  with  the 
aid  of  firearms  and  a  moveable  tower,  which  the  besiegers 
tried  to  push  up  to  the  walls.  The  picture  Champlain  gave 
shows  that  this  formidable  palisade  was  six-sided.7  A  still 
older  stockade  was  reported  among  the  Seneca,  which  was 
rectangular  in  shape  and  the  outline  of  which  could  be 
traced  as  late  as  the  nineteenth  century.8  Galinee  in  1669 
describes  a  Seneca  village  "with  palisades  thirteen  feet 
high,  fastened  together  at  the  top  and  planted  in  the 
ground,  with  great  piles  of  wood  the  height  of  a  man  behind 
these  palisades,  the  curtains  being  not  otherwise  flanked 
merely  a  simple  enclosure,  perfectly  square."  As  a  rule 
only  the  older  Iroquois  villages  were  fortified.  As  the 
confederacy  spread  its  conquests  in  every  direction  and 
consolidated  its  power,  it  no  longer  took  the  trouble  to 
stockade  its  villages.9 

The  Algonquian  Indians  of  the  Atlantic  seaboard,  who 
were  early  met  by  European  discoverers  and  explorers,  had 
the  custom  of  planting  stakes  around  their  villages.  In 
Virginia  we  have  these  stockades  pictured  in  the  drawings 


'Champlain's  Voyages   (Biggar  ed.,  Toronto,  1922),  ii,  134. 

'Champlain's  Voyages  (Grant  ed.,  N.  Y.  1907),  291-295. 

8  David  I.  Bushnell.  "Native  Villages  and  Villages  Sites  east  of  the 
Mississippi;"  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology,  Bulletin  69.  The  writ- 
er acknowledges  her  debt  to  this  treatise,  although  her  investigations 
were  conducted  independently. 

,-    B  Louise   P.   Kellogg,  Early   Narratives   of  the  Northwest,    (N.  Y. 
1917),  180.     Morgan,  op.  cit.  I,  306. 


64  WISCONSIN    AROHEOLOGIST. Vol.   8,  No.   2 

of  John  White,  first  English  artist  of  America.10  "Their 
Fortifications,"  writes  one  of  the  earliest  historians  of  the 
colony,  "consist  only  of  a  palisado,  of  about  ten  to  twelve 
feet  high,  and  when  they  would  make  themselves  very  safe 
they  treble  the  pale.  They  often  encompass  their  whole 
town ;  but  for  the  most  part  only  their  king's  houses  and  as 
many  dwellings  as  they  judge  sufficient  to  harbor  all  their 
people  when  an  enemy  comes  against  them." 

Hariot,  who  accompanied  Sir  Walter's  colony  to  Virginia 
in  1585  wrote :  "If  they  [the  villages]  be  walled  it  is  only 
done  with  barks  of  trees  made  fast  to  stakes  or  else  with 
poles  only  fixed  upright  and  close  to  one  another." 

Coming  farther  north  we  find  that  the  Algonquian  In- 
dian village  on  Manhattan  Island  was  "a  castle  or  palisaded 
village."  Most  of  these  Algonquian  stockades  were  circular ; 
but  we  have  one  picture  of  a  rectangular  stockade  built  by 
the  Mohican  Indians,  which  was  somewhere  within  the 
limits  of  New  Netherland.  This  was  so  regular  in  form  that 
it  may  have  been  rectified  by  the  artist;  it  is,  however, 
interesting  as  an  example  of  this  shape  on  the  eastern 
borders  of  North  America. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  Pilgrims  and  Puritans  of  New 
England  encountered  few  Indians  because  of  a  recent  pes- 
tilence; some  of  the  earlier  visitors  to  this  coast  inform  us 
of  stockaded  towns.  Champlain  found  one  on  Saco  River, 
which  was  a  permanent  village  surrounded  by  palisades 
formed  of  rather  large  trees  placed  one  against  another  and 
into  this  they  retire  when  their  enemies  come  to  make  war 
against  them."11 

A  Jesuit  missionary  to  the  Abnaki  wrote  that  "their 
cabins  were  ranged  almost  like  houses  in  cities,  an  enclosure 
of  high  and  closely  set  stakes  formed  a  sort  of  a  wall  which 
protected  them  from  the  incursions  of  their  enemies."12 

Turning  now  to  the  Northwest,  the  region  with  which 
we  are  most  familiar,  we  find  numerous  references  to 


10  White   was   a   member   of   Raleigh's   colony   on   Roanoke  Island ; 
his  drawings  were  engraved  and  published  by  the  German  collector 
of  voyages,  Theodor  de  Bry.     See  reproduction  of  a  circular  village 
palisade  in  Con  way  W.  Sams,  Conquest  of  Virginia:  Forest  Primeval 
(N.  Y.  1916),  128,  134. 

11  Champlain' s  Voyages    (Biggar,  ed.),  i,  329. 

12  Jesuit  Relations    (Thwaites  ed),  Ixvii,  135. 


The  Stockaded  Village.  ^  • 65 

formidable  palisades  around  the  settled  villages.  The 
Hurons  who  fled  from  the  raids  of  the  Iroquois  made  their 
way  in  considerable  numbers  into  Wisconsin,  accompanied 
by  the  Ottawa  from  the  eastern  shore  o±  Georgian  Bay 
and  from  Manitolin  Island.  At  first  both  groups  of 
refugees  lived  upon  the  islands  of  Green  Bay,  but  hear- 
ing rumors  of  the  approach  of  an  Iroquois  band,  the 
fugitives  retired  to  the  mainland  and  spent  two  years 
erecting  a  fortification,  which  proved  impregnable.  The 
Iroquois  finally  in  1653  arrived  before  it,  but  spent  with 
their  journey  they  made  no  attempt  to  attack,  and  started 
negotiaions  for  a  peace.  The  envoys  were  drawn  over 
the  palisade  with  ropes,  and  after  some  negotiations  asked 
for  food.  This  the  besieged  party  poisoned  and  threw 
over  the  ramparts.  The  enemy  retreated,  vanquished  by 
the  wiles  of  the  defenders  and  their  heavy  palisade.13 

The  Hurons  and  Ottawa,  none  the  less,  were  panic 
stricken  and  continued  their  flight  into  the  thickest  of  the 
forests  of  northern  Wisconsin.  The  Ottawa  finally  built 
a  village  on  Lac  Court  Oreilles,  which  Radisson  notes  was 
without  palisades;14  evidently  these  fugitives  thought  the 
distance  and  the  depth  of  the  forest  would  protect  them, 
without  the  heavy  labor  of  erecting  a  stockade.  A  half- 
century  later,  however,  when  dwelling  on  the  straits  of 
Mackinac  they  protected  their  permanent  villages  with 
stockades  which  Lahontan  describes  and  pictures.15  The 
commandant  of  1694-97,  Sieur  de  Cadillac,  thus  describes 
Mackinac:  "These  forts  [of  the  Indians]  are  made  of 
stakes.  Those  of  the  outer  row  are  as  thick  as  one's  thigh, 
and  about 'thirty  feet  high;  the  second  row  inside  fs  a 
full  foot  from  the  first,  and  leans  over  at  the  top  to  sup- 
port and  prop  it;  the  third  row  is  four  feet  from  the 
second  one,  and  consists  of  stakes  3%  feet  in  diameter 
standing  15  or  16  feet  out  of  the  ground.  Now  in  this 
row  no  space  is  left  between  the  stakes;  on  the  contrary 


13  Wis.  Hist.  Colls,  xvi,  7-13;   Louise  P.  Kellogg,  French  Regime 
in  Wisconsin  and  the  Northwest   (Madison,  1925),  96-98. 

14  Wis.  Hist.  Colls.,  xi,  94. 

15  Lahontan' 's   Voyages   to   North  America    (Thwaites  ed.    Chicago, 
1905),  417.     Lahontan  is  in  this  passage   speaking  in  general,  but 
he'  was  familiar  with  the  Mackinac  villages  and  portrays  them   as 
palisaded  on  his  map.     Wis.  Hist.  Colls,  xvi,  136. 


66  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   2 

they  are  driven  as  closely  tog-ether  as  possible,  and  loop 
holes  are  cut  at  intervals.  In  the  first  two  rows  there  is 
a  space  of  about  6  pounces  [inches]  between  the  stakes, 
and  by  this  means  the  first  and  second  rows  do  not  pre- 
vent the  enemy  from  being  discovered;  but  there  are 
neither  curtains  nor  bastions,  and,  properly  speaking,  it 
is  a  mere  fence."16  Yet  one  must  conclude  it  was  a  fence 
or  fortification  of  great  .  strength,  and  must  have  im- 
pressed all  the  tribesmen  of  the  western  country. 

Whether  these  stockaded  villages  of  the  Hurons  and 
Ottawa  at  Mackinac  were  copied  by  the  Algonquians  of 
Wisconsin  is  not  certain ;  yet  there  are  evidences  that 
Wisconsin  villages  had  some  sort  of  protective  stockades. 
The  Jesuits  speak  of  "forts"  both  among  the  Outagamie 
on  Wolf  River  and  for  the  Miami-Mascouten  on  the  upper 
Fox;  a  Seminary  missionary  of  1698  mentions  the  village 
on  Milwaukee  River  as  "the  fort  of  Milouakik."17  On 
the  other  hand  neither  Marquette,  La  Salle,  nor  Tonty 
mention  any  palisaded  villages  in  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
and  it  seems  quite  evident  that  the  Illinois  had  no  stock- 
ades in  the  seventeenth  century,  when  attacked  by  the 
Iroquois.  By  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  how- 
ever, they  had  learned  to  fortify  their  villages  against  the 
attacks  of  the  Foxes.18 

At  the  time  of  the  Fox  Wars  in  the  first  decades  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  we  have  many  evidences  of  stockaded 
forts  and  villages.  Mackinac  was  abandoned  by  the 
Hurons  and  Ottawa  in  1700  and  their  forts  were  rebuilt 
at  Detroit  and  quickly  surrounded  by  a  double  row  of 
palisades  with  good  gates.19  Then  when  the  Foxes  at  the 
invitation  of  the  French  commandant  removed  to  the 
neighborhood  of  Detroit  they  also  built  fortifications, 
within  which  in  1712  the  first  siege  of  the  Fox  Wars  oc- 
curred.20 

The  few  Foxes  who  were  left  after  this  disastrous 
event  fled  back  to  Wisconsin,  and  there  with  their  com- 


18  Wis.  Hist.  Colls.,  xvi,  352-353. 
"Kellogg,  Early  Narratives,  153,   155,  345. 
15  Bushnell,  Villages  and  Village  Sites,  40. 

19  Wis.  Hist.  Cotts.,  xvi,  368,  369. 
"Ibid.,  274,  278,  284,  293. 


The  Stockaded  Village.  67 

rades  built  on  the  banks  of  Lake  Butte  des  Morts  a  for- 
midable fort  composed  of  triple  oak  stakes  with  curtains 
at  each  corner.-1  There  in  17161  they  were  besieged  by  a 
French  army,  which  advanced  against  this  fort  in  regular 
European  style,  planning  mines  and  other  ways  of  reduc- 
ing it.  A  truce,  however,  was  made  before  the  fort  sur- 
rendered and  the  Foxes  were  left  to  occupy  their  stock- 
ade for  a  time  in  peace. 

( Lulled  to  security  by  French  .promises  the  Foxes  by 
1727  had  a  village  on  Fox  River  without  a  palisade,  and 
when  the  next  year  the  second  French  expedition  mounted 
that  stream  their  enemies  fled  without  standing  siege.22 
Taught  their  lesson  by  this  surprise  in  1730  they  had  two 
strong  forts  and  the  Winnebago  had  one  on  an  island  not 
far  from  Appleton.23  Then  in  the  autumn  of  that  year, 
attempting  to  take  refuge  among  the  Iroquois,  the  Foxes 
turned  at  bay  and  built  in  Illinois,  fifty  miles  or  more 
south  of  Lake  Michigan,  a  stockade  in  which  they  stood 
siege  for  twenty-three  days,  and  left  its  protection  only 
when  hunger  forced  a  sortie.24 

At  a  later  date  in  this  same  struggle  the  Foxes  built 
near  the  shore  of  Lake  Pistakee,  on  Fox  River  of  Illinois, 
"a  stockade  fort  with  an  earthern  rampart  inside  the 
height  of  a  man,  with  a  water-tower  or  block  house  above 
it."  And  in  1734  they  were  fortified  on  the  banks  of  the 
Wapsipinicon  River  in  Iowa.25 

The  Sauk  Indians  also  had  in  1732  a  palisaded  village 
on  the  site  of  modern  Green  Bay,  opposite  the  French  post 
on  the  west  side  of  the  stream;  at  the  gate  of  this  village 
the  French  commandant  was  slain.  This  site  of  this  Sauk 
stockade  is  now  marked  with  a  tablet  placed  in  1918  on 
the  corner  of  the  Beaumont  hotel.26 

After  the  close  of  the  Fox  Wars  about  1738  we  hear  no 
more  of  stockades  around  the  villages  of  Wisconsin  In- 
dians. For  that  reason  it  seems  to  have  been  forgotten 
that  whenever  serious  danger  threatened,  the  villagers 


21  Wis.  Hist.  Colls.,  v,  79,  82. 

22  Wis.  Hist.  Colls.,  xvii,  23,  100,  109,  129. 

23  Ibid,  88-99. 
"Ibid,  111,  115. 

28  Ibid,  178,  208,  216,  218. 

26  Wis.  Hist.  Soc.  Proceedings,  1927,  74. 


68  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST. ^ Vol.   8,  No.   2 

had  to  resort  to  palisades.     Yet  no  fact  seems  better  es- 
tablished by  a  survey  of  early  literature. 

There  is  one  description  by  a  writer  of  1674  of  a  forti- 
fied village  in  east  Tennessee,  probably  of  Cherokee  origin, 
that  commands  attention  because  of  its  evident  similarity 
to  the  remains  at  Aztalan.  "This  towne  is  seated  on  ye 
river  side,  having  ye  clefts  of  ye  river  on  ye  one  side 
being  very  high  for  its  defense,  the  other  three  sides  trees 
of  two  foot  over,  [in  diameter]  pitched  on  end,  twelve 
foot  high,  and  on  ye  tops  scafolds  placed  with  parrapits 
to  defend  the  walls  and  offend  theire  enemies  which  men 
stand  on  to  fight  .  .  .  this  forte  is  four  square;  300 
paces  over  and  ye  houses  set  in  streets."-7  Some  such 
village  must  have  existed  at  the  site  of  Aztalan  in  pre- 
historic times,  whether  marking  the  last  stand  of  a  more 
civilized  people  who  had  made  their  way  hither  from  the 
south  along  the  Mississippi  and  Rock  rivers,28  or  whether 
the  remains  of  a  village  built  by  the  ancestors  of  our  well- 
known  Wisconsin  Indians  at  some  time  of  stress  and  dan- 
ger. Here  was  gathered  a  considerable  population,  with- 
out the  walls  were  the  watch  towers  and  tribal  emblems. 
Within  the  stockade  a  busy  scene  was  enacted,  food  was 
gathered  and  prepared  for  scores  of  people,  refuse  heaps 
piled  up,  in  all  probability  the  usual  incidents  of  savage 
life  continued, — courtship,  marriage,  birth,  death,  cere- 
monial observances,  feasts,  dances,  and  orgies.  Yet  all 
the  time  the  watchers  on  the  walls  were  vigilant,  along 
the  parapets  they  paced,  with  keen  eyes  they  watched  the 
distance,  their  cries  of  alarm  or  their  assurances  of  safety 
aroused  or  lulled  the  villagers.  Within  the  stockaded 
village  was  a  reasoned  safety  and  here  a  tribal  group 
abode  in  peace. 


7    C.  W.  Alvprd  and  L.  Bidgood,  First  Explorations  of  the  Trans- 
Allegheny  Region   (Cleveland,  1912)    213. 

28  Paul   Radin,   The  Story  of  the  American  Indian.      (New  York, 
1927),  198. 


The  Use  of  Earthenware  Vessels.  69 


THE  USE  OF  EARTHENWARE  VESSELS  BY  THE 
OLD  NORTHWEST  INDIANS 

Charles   E.  Brown 

All  of  the  dozen  or  more  Indian  tribes  whom  the  French 
encountered  in  Wisconsin  and  adjoining  states  were 
makers  and  users  of  earthenware  vessels.  Some,  if  not 
all,  also  employed  in  their  domestic  activities  vessels  made 
of  bark,  wood  and  shell.  Frequent  mention  is  made  in 
the  historical  records  of  that  period  of  the  use  of  earthen- 
ware by  the  different  tribes.  Unfortunately  these  refer- 
ences to  the  ceramic  art  of  the  natives  are  all  too  brief. 
Of  the  source  of  the  clay  or  the  exact  manner  of  manu- 
facuring  the  clay  pots  very  little  is  said.  The  testimony 
of  the  early  village  sites  is  that  pottery  making  must 
have  been  going  on  in  nearly  all  of  them. 

Pierre  Esprit,  sieur  d'Radisson,  mentions  that  the 
Hurons  and  Ottawa  journeyed  to  Lake  Winnebago  to  ob- 
tain from  the  Indians  located  there  "light  earthern  pots, 
girdles  made  of  goat's  hair  and  small  sea  shells."*  Of 
the  Beef  Sioux  he  says:  "Their  drums  v/eare  earthern 
potts  full  of  watter,  covered  with  staggs-skin.  The 
sticks  like  hammers  for  ye  purpose."  *Father  Marquette 
mentions  of  the  Illinois  that  they  "cook  in  great  earthern 
jars  which  are  very  well  made.  They  also  have  plates  of 
baked  earth  which  they  use  in  various  ways."  *Father 
Allouez,  however,  mentions  of  the  Outagami  (Fox), 
Miami  and  Mascouten  gathered  at  Green  Bay  that  they 
were  "unusually  barbarous,  and  do  not  make  even  a  bark 
dish  or  a  laddie;  they  commonly  use  sea  shells."  •  This 
statement  is  difficult  to  understand  since  all  of  these 
tribes  were  potters  in  their  home  regions.* 

Nicolas  Perrot  says  6f  the  Winnebago:  "In  former 
times,  the  Puans  were  the  masters  of  this  bay  (Green 
Bay)  and  of  a  great  extent  of  adjoining  country.  This 
nation  was  a  very  populous  one,  very  redoubtable,  and 
spared  no  one.  If  any  stranger  came  among  them  he  was 
cooked  in  their  kettles."  He  accuses  them  of  having  slain 


*Wis.  Hist.  Colls.,  X-296;  XI-92. 
*  Jesuit  Relations,  59-157;  68-125. 


70  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST. Vol.   8,  No.   2 

and  eaten  a  delegation  of  Illinois  who  visited  them  on  a 
humanitarian  mission.*  All  of  these  Northwestern  tribes 
were  cannibalistic  on  occasion  and  there  are  frequent  ref- 
erences in  the  French  records  of  their  cooking  the  flesh  of 
their  enemies  in  their  earthern  kettles.  When  Perrot  vis- 
ited a  Mascouten-Miami  village  thirty  miles  south  of 
Green  Bay  his  party  were  received  by  "a  venerable  old 
man"  and  "a  woman  carrying  a  clay  pot  filled  with  corn- 
meal  porridge.*  He  presented  to  the  old  men  of  the  vrt- 
lage  his  metal  kettle,  with  the  words:  "I  carry  it  every- 
where without  fear  of  breaking  it"  thus  referring  to  the 
destructable  nature  of  their  own  earthenware  kettles.* 

Ke  wa  kons,  a  Chippewa  chief,  informed  Henry  R. 
Schoolcraft  in  1827  that  at  the  time  when  the  whites  made 
their  appearance  among  his  tribe  they  laid  aside  their 
akeeks  or  clay  cooking  vessels  and  adopted  the  light  brass 
trade  kettles.*  He  mentions  that  the  Assiniboin,  parties 
of  whom  appear  to  have  occasionally  visited  Minnesota 
and  Wisconsin  in  the  French  period,  obtain  their  name 
from  their  early  custom  of  cooking  by  placing  heated 
stones  in  their  vessels.  He  illustrates  the  Chippewa  man- 
ner of  suspending  an  earthern  pot  from  a  tripod.  Thomas 
L.  McKenny,  1827,  gives  the  Chippewa  name  for  their  own 
earthern  vessels  as  wau'  begun  onaug'  unun.* 

Rev.  Peter  Jones  says  of  the  Chippewa,  among  whom 
he  early  served  as  a  missionary:  "Their  pipes  are  made  of 
soft  stone,  cut  and  carved  in  all  sorts  of  shapes  and  fig- 
ures. Some  were  made  from  baked  clay  or  granite. 
Their  pots  were  made  of  the  same  materials  and  baked 
thoroughly  so  hard  as  to  stand  the  action  of  fire.  The 
Indians  were  well  pleased  to  discard  these  for  English  pots 
and  kettles,  which  they  find  much  more  convenient."  He 
figures  several  potsherds,  which  are  ornamented  with 
grooved  and  indented  patterns  rather  than  with  cord- 
impressions.  The  vessel  which  he  figures  has  a  rounded 
base  and  incised  (?)  rim  decoration.* 

L.  H.  Bunnell  states  that:  "Clay-colored  pottery  water 


*  Indian  Tribes  of  the   Upper  Mississippi   and   Great  Lakes,  295, 
323,  331. 

*  Tour  to  the  Lakes. 

*  Winona  and  its  Environs,  84. 


FRAGMENTS    OF    POTTERY    VESSELS    FROM    AZTALAN 
Plate  3 


The  Use  of  Earthenware  Vessels.  71 

jars,  drums  and  other  vessels  were  made  by  the  Sioux  of 
the  Minnesota  and  Mississippi  rivers."* 

Dr.  W.  J.  Hoffman  who  engaged  in  a  study  of  the  Wis- 
consin Menomini  for  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology 
lid:  "Earthernware  is  no  longer  made  by  the  Menomini, 
though  some  of  the  oldest  women  remember  when  pottery 
making  was  engaged  in/'* 

Alanson  Skinner,  whose  researches  among  these  same 
Indians  extended  over  a  period  of  eleven  years,  records  the 
following  information:  "Although  pottery  vessels  have 
not  been  made  or  used  by  the  Menomini  for  over  a  hun- 
dred years,  the  memory  of  the  process,  as  described  to 
them  by  their  parents,  still  lingers  among  some  of  the 
older  people.  In  1911  the  late  Philip  Naku'ti,  then  eighty- 
four  years  of  age,  told  the  writer  that  the  vessels  were 
made  of  selected  clay,  which  was  pounded  and  mixed  with 
pulverized  shells  of  the  freshwater  clam  (Unio  sp.,)  for 
tempering.  When  the  clay  had  been  properly  prepared, 
more  water  was  added,  and  it  was  kneaded  into  a  stiff 
paste.  This  was  plastered  by  hand  over  a  large  ball  of 
basswood-bark  twine,  an  opening  being  left  out  of  which 
protruded  an  end  of  the  string.  The  clay  was  then 
smoothed  off  with  a  stick,  and  the  incipient  vessel  was  set 
in  the  sun  to  dry.  In  fact,  sunshine  was  considered  such 
a  necessary  factor  in  the  drying  process  that  no  one  ever 
attempted  to  make  pottery  on  a  dull  day. 

"When  the  coating  was  dry,  the  potter  took  hold  of  the 
ball  of  twine,  which  had  been  left  protruding  from  the 
opening  made  for  the  purpose,  and,  pulling  it,  unwound 
the  ball  within,  leaving  an  earthern  shell.  Fresh  clay 
was  daubed  over  the  rough  inside,  and  the  outside  was 
again  scraped  smooth  with  a  stick.  The  vessel  was  then 
sized  with  a  coating  or  wash  of  finer  clay,  and  orna- 
mented with  designs  marked  with  a  sharpened  stick. 
Such  was  Naku'tis  information,  but  archeological  evidence 
is  to  the  effect  that  figures  impressed  by  means  of  sticks 
wrapped  with  cord  predominate  over  incised  designs. 
After  decorating  the  receptacles,  holes  were  bored  in  the 


*  History  of  the  Ojibway  Indians,  74. 

*  14  Bu.  Am.  Ethno,  257. 


72  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST. Vol.   8,  No.   2 

sides  near  the  rim,  for  the  purpose  of  affixing  a  bail  of  bass- 
wood-bark. 

"The  vessel  was  then  dried  again,  arid  is  said  to  have 
been  ready  for  use.  Naku'ti  supposed  it  not  to  have  been 
fired  but  to  have  become  hardened  by  the  heat  while  in 
use,  but  apparently  memory  or  his  information  must  be 
at.  fault  in  this  particular,  for  not  only  does  it  seem  im- 
probable that  an  unfired  vessel  could  have  been  made  to 
retain  liquid  without  dissolving  or  coming  apart,  but  all 
the  potsherds  and  vessels  seen  or  collected  by.  the  writer 
from  old  Menomini  sites  show  distinct  evidence  of  firing. 
Indeed  they  could  not  otherwise  have  withstood  the  ele- 
ments for  so  many  years.  Possibly  the  theory  that  ves- 
sels were  used  without  this  essential  step  is  a  "folk  ex- 
planation" of  a  now  forgotten  art.  Archeological  inves- 
tigations show  that  the  jars  of  the  ancient  Menomini  are 
of  the  old  "pan-Algonkian"  type  with  a  pointed  base  (fig. 
33)."* 

Of  the  decorative  art  of  the  Menomini. he  says:  "In  em- 
broidery, carving,  and  later  in  applique,  however,  floral 
designs  predominate  over  all  others,  whereas  in  pottery, 
basketry,  and  in  woven  bags  and  mats,  geometric  figures 
were  preferred  or  dictated  by  custom,  or,  in  some  in- 
stances more  easily  made."* 

He  gives  the  Menomini  names  for  earthenware  ves- 
sels:— ma'nona  a'ka,  pottery  (red  clay)  kettle;  ota- 
kakun,  pottery  kettle  (lit.  'his  kettle').*  Skinner  found 
that  some  of  the  potsherds  obtained  by  him  from  former 
Menomini  village  sites  on  the  west  shore  of  Green  Bay 
were  in  all  respects  similar  to  the  pottery  obtained  by  him 
from  mounds  on  the  Menomini  Reservation.  Skinner  also 
gives  the  following  information  concerning  the  manufac- 
ture of  pottery  vessels  by  the  Mascoutin  or  Prairie  Pota- 
watomi.* 

"Clay  was  selected,  kneaded,  and  mixed  with  an  equal 
proportion  of  burnt  and  pulverized  stone  as  tempering. 
Sometimes  pulverized  soap  stone  was  used  instead  of  burnt 
crushed  stone.  A  hole  was  next  dug  in  the  ground  and  the 
clay  put  in  it  and  trodden  with  the  feet.  A  wooden  model 


*  Material  Culture  of  the  Menomini,  282-284;  279,  309. 

*  Bull.,  Milw.  Pub.  Mus.,  6-2,  294. 


The  Use  of  Earthenware  Vessels.  '     73 

of  a  vessel  is  alleged  to  have  been  carved  and  rubbed  very 
smooth.  The  wet  clay  of  the  consistency  of  dough  was 
then  smeared  over  the  form  and  polished  with  a  slick 
stone.  It  was  also  worked  thin  with  a  stick.  The  edge 
around  the  rim  was  turned  up  and  back  with  the  fingers, 
and  the  vessel  together  with  the  form  was  placed  in  the 
fire  in  a  pit  dug  for  the  purpose.  It  is  said  that  the  clay 
gradually  dried  and  heated  until  red  hot,  when  the  fire  was 
allowed  to  die  out.  The  freshly  baked  pottery  was  kept 
indoors  to  prevent  drafts  from  cracking  the  vessel. 

"In  firing,  the  form  was  burned  out.  When  cool,  the 
vessel  was  scraped  with  a  stone  on  the  inside.  It  was 
then  firm  and  hard  and  ready  for  use.  It  could  not  be 
cracked  by  the  action  of  cold  water  poured  in  it  while 
hot,  it  is  asserted.  Some  of  the  jars  were  durable  enough 
to  pack  on  horses. 

"The  writer  doubts  the  practicability  of  burning  a  clay 
vessel  over  a  wooden  form  as  described,  and  believes  that 
in  part  at  least,  this  account  is  a  "folk-reconstruction." 

"Pottery  pipes  are  said  to  have  been  made  up  to  very 
recent  years  in  time  of  emergency.  Common  clay  was 
mixed  with  tallow,  all  being  well  kneaded  together,  to 
keep  the  clay  from  cracking  when  fired.  The  grease  was 
sweated  out  by  placing  the  pipe  bowl  near  the  fire.  The 
vessel  was  then  put  in  the  hot  ashes,  and  another  fire  built 
over  it,  which  was  kept  up  for  a  time  and  then  allowed  to 
die  out.  The  clay  turned  red  and  was  harc(.  [Sam]  Bosley 
himself  once  made  a  pipe  of  this  nature  which  was  shaped 
like  a  Siouan  pipe,  but  was  heavier." 

From  Simon  Kahquados  Dr.  Alphonse  Gerend  secured 
the  following  brief  statement  of  the  method  formerly 
practiced  by  the  Wisconsin  Potawatomi  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  clay  vessels :  "For  pottery  making,  pure  clay  was 
selected  and  worked  over  and  mixed  a  long  time.  One 
month  well  mixed.  It  was  mixed  in  a  hollowed  log.  For 
the  form  a  bowl  was  burned  into  a  log  and  the  clay  pressed 
about  the  sides.  Half  of  the  ware  vessel  was  removed, 
then  the  other  half  and  the  two  joined.  Pot  sometimes 
formed  on  [the]  outside  of  mold."* 


Wis.  Archeologist,  19-2,  70. 


WISCONSIN    AKOHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.   8,  No.   2 


Dr.  Paul  Radin  has  published  an  account  of  the  manner 
in  which  pottery  vessels  were  made  by  the  Winnebago: 

"For  cooking,  clay  pots  were  used.  These  vessels,  most 
of  which  were  very  large,  with  round  bottoms,  always 
hung  over  the  fire.  The  material  used  in  their  manufac- 
ture was  blue  clay  found  at  Green  Bay,  on  or  near  the  site 
of  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  mixed  with  shell  shards,  glue  from 
sturgeon  vertebrae,  and  the  gelatinous  substance  in  the 
horns  of  the  deer.  The  addition  of  these  ingredients 
greatly  increased  the  cohesiveness  of  the  clay.  The  ma- 
terial was  either  molded  with  the  hands  or  in  holes  of  the 
desired  shape  dug  in  the  ground  and  lined  with  leaves. 
Finally  the  vessels  were  dried  over  a  slow  fire  in  small 
kilns  constructed  for  the  purpose.  None  of  the  clay  ves- 
sels were  provided  with  handles.  Some  were  ornamented 
with  geometric  patterns.  The  irregular  incised  designs 
on  some  Winnebago  vessels  are  the  impressions  of  grass 
blades  with  which  the  mold  was  lined."* 

It  is  more  than  likely  that  when  a  careful  study  of  the 
potsherds  from  known  Winnebago  village  sites  in  Wis- 
consin is  made  that  it  will  be  found  that  this  tribe  em- 
ployed both  crushed  shell  and  crushed  rock  (possibly  also 
sand  and  other  ingredients)  in  the  tempering  of  the  clay 
in  pottery  manufacture.  J.  V.  Brower  has  shown  such 
to  be  the  case  with  some  of  the  pottery  made  by  their 
relatives  the  Sioux  (Dakota)  of  Minnesota.  In  discuss- 
ing a  collection  of  Siouan  potsherds  from  village  sites  in 
the  Itasca  lake  region  he  says:  "Of  these  about  two-thirds 
of  the  rest  are  made  of  crushed  shells,  sand  and  clay,  the 
remainder  being  mostly  of  clay  and  sand  with  impressions 
of  grass,  in  one  instance  the  charred  fibre  of  the  grass 
still  preserved.  We  find  both  here  and  at  Mille  Lacs  in- 
contestible  instances  of  these  two  ingredients  crushed  stone 
and  shell  in  the  same  sherds.  This,  however,  is  not  com- 
mon, the  most  common  ingredients  being  crushed  granite 
with  clay  and  sand.  It  is  observable  here,  as  in  other 
places  that  the  strongest  sherds  are  composed  of  crushed 
shells  and  sand,  although  at  the  same  time  thinner  than 
those  that  contain  crushed  rock;  but  the  latter  are  often 
more  elaborately  ornamented  about  the  rim."* 


*  37  Bu.  AM.  Ethno.,  119. 


The  Use  of  Earthenware  Vessels.  75. 

"There  is  no  evidence  to  show  that  (in  Minnesota)  the 
Ojibwa,  or  any  other  aboriginal  people  than  the  Dakota, 
made  such  articles.  Since  the  Ojibwa  entered  the  state 
they  have  been  continually  in  contact  with  European 
traders,  and  they  obtained  by  trade  such  earthen  articles 
as  they  needed  for  domestic  use.  There  is  no  known  in- 
stance of  the  making  of  pottery  within  the  state  by  the 
Ojibwa. 

"At  each  permanent  village  site  there  must  have  been 
more  or  less  of  the  practice  of  this  art.  So  far  as  we 
know,  all  the  Dakota  tribes  (including  therein  the  Omaha, 
the  Winnebago  and  the  Iowa)  usually  cooked  their  food 
with  water  made  hot  by  placing  hot  stones  in  earthen  pots 
containing  the  food  and  the  necessary  amount  of  water."* 

One  of  the  interesting  problems  for  students  of  Wis- 
consin Indian  ceramics  to  undertake  to  solve  will  be  that 
of  ascertaining,  if  possible,  to  what  extent  the  Siouan  Win- 
nebago, Dakota  and  Iowa  of  Wisconsin  adopted  in  their 
pottery  manufacture  the  decorative  patterns  of  the  intrud- 
ing Algonkian  tribes.  Also  whether  the  presence  of  some 
Iroquois  sherds  in  Wisconsin  is  due  to  actual  early  resi- 
dence of  people  of  this  stock  west  of  Lake  Michigan  or 
whether  it  was  brought  here  or  made  here  by  some  of 
these  former  New  York  Algonkians. 

The  late  Alanson  Skinner  once  pointed  out  to  the  writer 
that  among  the  potsherds  collected  from  the  site  of  the 
Aztalan  enclosure  the  characteristic  Siouan,  Algonkian, 
Iroquoian,  Middle  Mississippi  Valley,  and  Gulf  States 
earthenware  were  all  represented. 


*  The  Aborigines  of  Minnesota,  437-444. 


W.  8  iaprtl,  1929  J2o.  3 

NEW  SERIES 


CHECKLIST 

OP 

WISCONSIN  INDIAN  IMPLEMENTS 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted   for   mailing-  at   special   rate  of  postage  provided   for   in   Sec. 
1103,  Act,   Oct.   3,   1917.     Authorized   Jan.   28,  1921. 


g>octetp 
Jfflfltoaukee,  Mi*. 


fncorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  Ptur»y  arid 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 
H.  H.  Smith 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

C.  G.  Schoewe  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  W.  W.  Oilman 

A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

A.  P.  Kannenberg- 

t 

DIRECTORS 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz 

M.  C.  Richter  E.  F.  Richter  Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner 

VetalWinn  L.R.Whitney  Geo.  A.  West 

W.  C.  McKern 

TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thorne 

National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  G.  Mc- 
Lachlan,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  C.  E.  Brown,  W.  C.  McKern,  T.  L. 
Miller,  A.  W.  Pond,  and  Frank  Thomlinson. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— W.  W.  Oilman,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  Dr. 
A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Mrs.  Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Louise 
P.  Kellogg,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Main,  R.  A.  Maas,  J.  W.  Norris,  Mrs.' 
F.  R.  Melcher,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  and  G.  L.  Pasco. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  A.  C. 
Neville,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  P.  Hamilton,  William  Horlick, 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Olson,  Mm  A.  E.  Koerner,  R.  S.  Van  Handel,  and 
T.  M.  N.  Lewis. 

MEMBERSHIP— C.  G.  Schoewe,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  A.  R. 
Rogers,  A.  Sohrweide,  Jr.,  Vetal  Winn,  C.  G.  Weyl,  Mrs.  Theo. 
Koerner,  W.  P.  Morgan,  A.  E.  Koerner,  Louis  Pierron,  C.  Baer- 
wald,  D.  S.  Rowland,  and  Geo.  Overton. 

MAN  MOUND  PARK— E.  A.  Gllman,  Miss  Emma  Richmond  and 
M.  F.  Hulburt. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK— R.  P.  Ferry,  M.  G.  Troxell,  and  W.  W. 
Gil  man. 

PUBLICITY— A.  O.  Barton,  Mrs.  W.  F.  Bauchle,  M.  C.  Richter,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre  and  R.  K.  Coe. 

BIOGRAPHY— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  C.  G.  Schoewe  and  H.  H.  Smith. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  8,  No.  3,  New  Series 

ARTICLES 

Page 
Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements,  Charles  E.  Brown 81 

An  Ancient  Village  Site  in  Winnebago  County,  George  Overton__     94 

Prehistoric  Torquoise  Mines 100 

An  Abraham  Lincoln  Indian  Medal,  Theodore  T.  Brown 103 

The  Winnebago  Indians  and  the  Mounds,  John  Blackhawk 106 

Prairie  Smoke 107 

Archeological  Notes 110 

ILLUSTRATIONS 
Abraham  Lincoln  Indian  Medal Frontispiece 


ABRAHAM    LINCOLN    INDIAN    MEDAL 


8rcf)eolosi0t 


Published    Quarterly    by   the   Wisconsin   Archeologrical    Society 

Vol.  8  MADISON,  WIS.,  APRIL,   1920  No.   3 

New  Series 


CHECKLIST  OF  WISCONSIN  INDIAN  IMPLEMENTS 

Charles  E.  Brown 

No  attempt  has  heretofore  been  made  to  provide  students 
and  investigators  of  Wisconsin  archeological  history  with  a 
checklist  or  catalogue  of  the  clay,  stone,  bone,  shell,  metal  and 
other  implements,  utensils  and  ornaments  of  the  prehistoric 
and  early  historic  Indian  inhabitants  of  the  state.  The  pre- 
liminary checklist  now  offered  is  based  on  the  records  of  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  and  on  the  contents  of  the 
public  museums  and  private  collections  of  the  state. 

In  the  back  issues  of  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist  there 
have  appeared  fifty  illustrated  articles  and  monographs  on 
the  various  classes  of  stone,  metal  and  other  implements  and 
ornaments  of  Wisconsin.  Their  authors  are  Geo.  A.  West, 
C.  E.  Brown,  P.  V.  Lawson,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  H.  P.  Hamilton, 
W.  A.  Titus,  V.  Winn,  A.  H.  Sanford,  H.  A.  Crosby,  I.  M. 
Buell,  G.  E.  Laidlaw  and  other  present  and  former  members 
of  the  state  society.  Descriptions  and  classifications  of  Wis- 
consin implements  are  also  published  in  "The  Stone  Age  in 
North  America",  in  "Stone  Ornaments  of  the  American  In- 
dian", and  in  "Prehistoric  Implements",  three  books  pub- 
lished by  Prof.  Warren  K.  Moorehead. 

The  Committee  on  State  Archaeological  Surveys,  National 
Research  Council,  has  in  view  the  preparation  of  a  catalogue 
of  the  Indian  implements  of  the  Middle  West  states. 

CHIPPED  IMPLEMENTS 

Arrow  and  Spearpoints 

1.  Leaf -shape. 

2.  Triangular  (some  with  base  notched). 

3.  Lozenge-shape. 

4.  Stemmed. 

5.  Notched  (some  with  several  pairs  of  notches). 

6.  Barbed  (some  with  barbs  truncated). 

7.  Beveled. 

8.  Serrated. 


82  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   3 


Harpoon  Points 

1.  Asymetric  (points  so  classed  may  have  been  employed  as  harpoon 

points). 

2.  Unilaterally  barbed. 

3.  Bilaterally  barbed. 

Knives 

1.  Flake. 

2.  Leaf-shape. 

Pointed  at  one  end,  base  rounded. 
Pointed  at  one  end,  base  straight. 
Pointed  at  one  end,  base  indented. 
Pointed  at  both  ends. 

3.  Oval. 

Both  ends  rounded,  edges  curved  or  straight. 

Both  ends  square  (straight),  edges  curved  or  straight. 

4.  Semi-lunar. 

One  edge  curved,  one  straight. 

One  edge  broadly  curved,  one  straight  or  slightly  curved  (wo- 
man's knife). 

5.  Curved. 

Base  notched,  curved  blade. 

6.  Lozenge-shape. 

Some  with  diagonally-opposite  edges  beveled. 

7.  Dagger-shape. 

Leaf -shape  blade  provided  with  short  handle. 

Daggers 

See  dagger-shape  knives. 

Ceremonial  Knives 

Large,   broad   leaf-shape  blades   narrowing  toward    a   straight   or 
slightly  rounded  base,      (jgee  13-4  Wis.  Archeologist,  176-181) 

Scrapers 

1.  Flake  (some  with  one  or  several  notches  on  edges). 

2.  Oval,  circular,  crescent,  square  or  rectangular. 

3.  Spoon-shape,  scraping  edge  at  broad  extremity. 

4.  Oval  or  circular  blade  with  stem. . 

5.  Re-chipped  broken  arrow  and  spearpoints  (bunts). 

Perforators  or  Drills 

1.  Flake,  one  extremity  pointed,  or  flake  with  small  projecting  point. 

2.  Straight  bar,  one  or  both  ends  pointed. 

3.  Stemmed,  blade  with  straight  or  curved  edges,  expanding  base. 

4.  Notched  stem  (base) . 

Reamers 

Some  drills  were  very  probably  employed  as  reamers. 

Saws 

Flakes  with  one  serrated  edge. 


Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements.  83 

Celts 

Not  common  in  Wisconsin.     Some  polished  or  partly  polished. 

Axes 

Notched,  double-bitted.     Not  common  in  Wisconsin. 

Spuds 

Single  specimen  known,  similar  in  form  to  those  listed  under  pecked 
and  ground  stone  implements. 

Hoes 

1.  Unnotched  oval  or  square  blades. 

2.  Notched,  with  rounded  blade. 

3.  Notched  base,  with  pointed  blade. 

Spades 

1.  Oval. 

2.  Elliptical,  both  ends  rounded. 

3.  Elliptical,  both  ends  pointed. 

4.  Leaf -shape,  base  rounded,  blade  pointed. 

5.  Bell-shape  blade. 

Fishhooks 

Indian  origin  of  most  or  all  is  doubtful. 

Gunflints 

Made  of  native  flint. 

Effigies 

Small  flint  objects  probably  intended  to  represent  birds  and  animals. 

Disks 

Circular. 

Blades 

Oval,  or  leaf -shape  form.  Frequently  found  in  caches  or  hoards  of 
a  few  or  many. 

Cores 

Pieces  of  flint  from  which  numbers  of  flakes  have  been  removed, 
often  of  conical  form. 

These  chipped  implements  are  fashioned  from  flint 
(chert),  hornstone,  chalcedony,  agate,  jasper,  rhyolite, 
quartz,  quartzite,  sandstone,  silicified  wood,  limestone, 
obsidian  and  other  materials. 


84  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,   No.   3 

PECKED  AND  GROUND  STONE  IMPLEMENTS 

Celts 

1.  Triangular. 

2.  Wedge-shape. 

3.  Rectangular. 

4.  Chisel-shape. 

5.  Bell-shape. 

6.  Adze-celts. 

7.  Fluted  or  ornamented. 

Chisels 

1.  Ordinary  forms. 

2.  Handled  (blade  with  handle). 

Adzes 

1.  Triangular. 

2.  Adze-celts. 

Gouges 

1.  Base  partly  or  wholly  excavated. 

2.  With  shallow  groove  crossing  over  the  back. 

3.  Knobbed  back. 

4.  Knobbed  head,  shallow  groove. 

Axes 

1.  Rude,  unnotched,  with  cutting  edge. 

2.  Notched. 

3.  Grooved,  completely  encircled  by  groove. 

4.  Grooved,  groove  encircles  three  sides. 

5.  Centrally  grooved,  one  end  with  cutting  edge. 

6.  Double-bitted. 

7.  Oval. 

8.  Long-bladed  (adze-axes). 

9.  Fluted  or  ornamented. 

10:  Double  grooved  (two  grooves). 
11.  Curious  forms. 

Picks 

Pointed  at  one  or  both  ends. 

Spuds 

1.  Broad  blade,  short  handle. 

2.  Broad  blade,  long  handle. 

Balls 

1.  Natural  spherical  or  oval  stones. 

2.  Shaped  by  pecking  and  grinding. 

Hammer  Stones 

1.  Pebble,  battered  by  use. 

2  Shape  altered  by  pecking  and  grinding. 

3  With  finger-holds. 


Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements.  86 

Pecking  Hammers 

Flint  nodules  employed  in  dressing  surfaces  of  stone  implements. 

Hammers 

1.  Axe-shape,  with  encircling  groove,  blunt  cutting  edge. 

2.  Ornamented  with  fluting. 

Club  Heads 

Spherical  or  oval  stones  encircled  by  a  groove. 

Mauls 

1.  Heavy  stones,  battered  in  use. 

2.  Heavy  stones,  grooved  for  attachment  to  a  handle. 

Anvils 
Heavy  stones  used  as  anvils. 

Whetstones 

Small  pieces  of  sandstone  or  gritty  stone  with  grooves,  for  sharpen- 
ing bone  awls  and  other  implements.  Sometimes  cut  in  square  and 
rectangular  forms  for  convenience  in  holding. 

Grinding  Stones 

Pieces  of  sandstone  used  in  the  grinding  of  the  surfaces  of  axes, 
celts  and  other  stone  implements. 

Arrowshaft  Grinders 

Sandstone  implements  with  a  single  longitudinal  groove. 

"Spindles" 

Elliptical  implements,  circular  in  section,  pointed  at  both  extremi- 
ties. Unknown  use. 


Pottery  Slicks 

ited  at  both  er 
used  in  smoothing  the  surfaces  of  clay  vessels. 


Flattish  implements,  pointed  at  both  ends.     Thought  to  have  been 
;hi 


Mullers 

Stones,  sometimes  conical  or  hemispherical  in  form,  used  in  grind- 
ing shell,  clay,  stone  and  other  substances. 

Pestles 

1.  Conical. 

2.  Bell-shaped. 

3.  Roller,  tapering  toward  both  ends,  circular  in  section. 

4.  Rectangular,  with  rounded  ends,  square  in  section. 

5.  Tapering. 


«6  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   3 


Mortars 

Stationary 

Boulders  or  rocks  with  shallow  cavities. 
Portable. 

1.  Boulder,  with  cavity. 

2.  Bowl-shaped. 

3.  Flat  stone. 

Nut  Stones 

Sandstone  or  other  stone  with  one  or  a  number  of  small  circular 
cavities. 

Paint  Stones 

Pitted  stones  supposed  to  have  been  used  for  grinding  paint. 

Dishes  or  Cups 

Record  of  a  single  specimen. 

Drill  Weights 

Stones  supposed  to  have  been  used  as  weights  for  fire-drills. 

Net  Weights 

1.  Pebble,  flat,  two  opposite  edges  notched. 

2.  Ditto,  shallow  groove  connecting  the  notches. 
!  3.  Ditto,  notched  on  four  edges. 

4.  Oval  pebble,  grooved. 

5.  Cylindrical,  notched  on  two  opposite  edges. 

Weights 
Large  stones  of  irregular  form  with  an  encircling  groove. 

Among  the  rocks  employed  by  the  Indians  in  the  manu- 
facture of  these  classes  of  the  heavier  stone  implements 
were  diorite,  greenstone,  granite,  syenite,  porphyry,  horn- 
blende, basalt,  rhyolite,  quartz,  quartzite,  sandstone,  mica 
schist,  calcite  and  limestone.  For  the  manufacture  of  orna- 
ments, pipes  and  ceremonials  banded  slate,  catlinite  (pipe- 
stone),  steatite,  chlorite  and  calcite  were  favorite  materials. 
Some  of  the  foregoing  rocks  were  also  employed  for  this 
purpose. 

STONE  ORNAMENTS  AND  CEREMONIALS 

ORNAMENTS 

Beads 

1.  Spherical.  2.  Tubular.  3.  Disk 

Pendants 

1.  Circular  and  oval.  4.  Effigy. 

2.  Square  and  rectangular.  5.  Other  forms. 

3.  Triangular. 


Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements.  87 


Gorgets 

1.  Circular.  6.  Wedge-shape. 

2.  Oval.  7.  Reel-shape. 

3.  Square.  8.  Spud-shape. 

4.  Rectangular.  9.  Peculiar  forms. 

5.  Triangular. 

Some  with  two  or  more  perforations. 


CEREMONIALS* 
Birdstones 

1.  Bar  or  saddle-shape.  4.  Bird-form,  with  eye  disks. 

2.  Bird-form,  without  eyes.  5.  Other  forms. 

3.  Bird-form,  with  eyes. 

Boatstones 

1.  Curved  top,  flat  base.   Some  with  transverse  central  groove  on  top. 

2.  Curved,  flat  or  ridged  top,  concave  base. 

Bannerstones 

1.  Square.  7.  Double-bitted  axe. 

2.  Rectangular.  8.  Crescent. 

3.  Oval.  9.  Double-crescent. 

4.  Pick-shape.  10.  Knobbed  crescent. 

5.  Reel-shape.  11.  Bayonet-shape. 

6.  Butterfly. 

Plummets 

1.  Without  groove. 

2.  With  groove  at  one  end.     Some  with  incised  ornamentation. 

3.  With  groove  at  both  ends. 


Discoidals 

1.  Circular,  with  flat  sides. 

2.  Circular,  with  convex  sides. 

3.  Circular,  with  concave  sides. 

4.  Circular,  flat  sides  with  small  central  depression. 

5.  Circular,  concave  sides  with  central  circular  ring. 

6.  Circular,  concave  sides  with  central  perforation. 

7.  Barrel-shape. 


Cones 


1.  Conical. 

2.  Conical,  top  flattened. 


Hemispheres 

Hemispherical  stones. 


*  Problematical  Forms. 


88  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   * 

OTHER  STONE  ARTEFACTS 
Pipes 

1.  Pebble.  10.  Micmac. 

2.  Ovoid.  11.  Disk 

3.  Square.  12.  Monitor,  straight  base. 

4.  Lens-shape.  13.  Monitor,  curved  base. 

5.  Conoidal.  14.  Handled. 

6.  Vase-shape.  15.  Effigy. 

7.  Keel-shape.  16.  Portrait. 

8.  Right-angled  (elbow).  17.  Other  forms. 

9.  Siouan. 

Tubes 

1.  Tubular  (cylindrical).  3.  Conoidal. 

2.  Oval.  4.  Hourglass. 

Effigies 

Stone  carvings  of  men  and  animals. 

Inscribed  Stones 

Stones  bearing  pictographs. 

NATIVE  COPPER  IMPLEMENTS 

Arrow  and  Spearpoints 

1.  Leaf-shape. 

2.  Stemmed. 

3.  Stemmed,  bevelled  blade. 

4.  Stemmed,  ridged  blade. 

5.  Stemmed,  with  eye  (rivet  hole  ?)  in  end  of  tang. 

6.  Stem  expanded  at  base  with  one  or  two  projections. 

7.  Stem  notched. 

8.  Stem  serrated  (toothed). 

9.  Spatula-shape  ("rat-tail"). 

10.  Triangular  blade  long,  short  pointed  tang. 

11.  Same,  with  barbs. 

12.  Socketted,  back  of  blade  ridged. 

13.  Socketted,  back  of  blade  flat,  rivet  hole  in  socket. 

14.  Socketted,  blade  ornamented  with  punch  marks. 

15.  Conical. 

Harpoon  Points 

Unilaterally  Barbed. 

1.  Short,  flat,  with  single  barb. 

2.  Long,  tapering,  pointed  rod,  with  single  barb. 

3.  Thick,  triangular  in  section,  with  a  number  of  barbs. 
Toggle  Form. 

1.  Conical,  hollow  or  with  socket.     Some  with  perforation  for  the 

attachment  of  a  line. 

2.  Similar  but  with  a  barb  near  the  point. 
Socketted. 

1.  Resembling  a  socketted  copper  spearpoint  but  with  a  barb. 


Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements. 


Knives 

1.  Straight  blade,  pointed  tang. 

2.  Curved  blade. 

3.  Straight  blade,  with  handle  (dagger-shape). 

4.  Straight  blade,  with  socket  tang. 

5.  Blade  ornamented  with  punch  marks. 

Scrapers 

Broad  blade,  pointed  tang. 

Awls  or  Perforators 

1.  Straight,  one  end  pointed. 

2.  Straight,  both  ends  pointed. 

3.  Middle  expanded,  one  or  both  ends  pointed. 
Some  awls  are  square,  some  circular  in  section. 

Pikes  and  Punches 

1.  Straight,  one  or  both  ends  pointed. 

2.  Tapering  form,  both  ends  pointed. 

3.  Tapering,  one  end  blunt,  the  other  pointed. 

4.  Tapering,  one  end  pointed,  one  hooked. 

Needles 

1.  Without  eye. 

2.  With  eye. 

Axes  (Celts) 

1.  Triangular. 

2.  Wedge-shape. 

3.  Rectangular. 

4.  Bell-shape. 

5.  Wedge-shape,  blade  surfaces  depressed. 

6.  Grooved  axes. 

Chisels 

1.  Elongated  triangular. 

2.  Rectangular. 

Gouges 

Under  surface  partly  or  wholly  excavated, 

"Spiles" 

Curved  implements  excavated  for  their  entire  length. 

Spuds 

1.  Square  or  rectangular. 

2.  Socket  constricted. 

3.  Back  ornamented  with  punch  marks. 

Sword  or  Sickle 

Long  knife  with  curved  blade,  and  handle. 


90  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. Vol.   8,   No. 

Fishhooks 

1.  Ordinary  form. 

2.  With  notch  at  end  of  shank. 

3.  Large,  stout  hooks  (gaff-hooks?). 

Dish 

Made  of  sheet  copper. 

Handles 

Copper  socket  or  handle  for  an  implement,  hollow. 


1.  Tubular. 

2.  Rolled  (spherical). 

3.  Perforated. 


ORNAMENTS 
Beads 


Bangles,  Pendants,  and  Gorgets 

Circular,  oval,  triangular  and  other  forms,  generally  perforated  for 
suspension.     One  in  bird  effigy  form. 

Crescents 

1.  Canoe-shape. 

2.  Canoe-shape,  upper  edge  straight. 

3.  Canoe-shape,  lower  edge  with  crescent  indentation. 

4.  Canoe-shape,  two  prongs  projecting  from  near  center  of  upper 

edge. 

5.  Same  as  foregoing,  prongs  joined  at  top  by  a  bar. 

6.  Canoe-shape,  a  pointed  prong  projecting  upward  from  ends. 

7.  Canoe-shape,  prongs  at  ends  turning  inward  and  meeting  to  form 

a  point. 

8.  Crescent-shape,  several  types. 

Claws 

Ornaments  made  to  represent  bird  claws,  one  end  bent  to  form  an 
eye  to  permit  stringing  with  copper  beads  in  a  necklace. 

Finger  Rings  and  Earrings 

Copper  wire  coiled  once  or  several  times. 

Bracelets,  Armlets  and  Anklets 

Bent  copper  rod  or  flat  strip  of  copper. 

Earspools 

Spool-shaped   ear  ornaments  of   copper,   or  of   stone  sheathed   or 
partly  sheathed  with  sheet  copper. 

"Tinklers" 

Small  conical  fringe  ornaments. 

Headbands 

Strips  of  sheet  copper  with  perforations  at  the  ends. 

Breastplates 

Specimens  found  in  Crawford  county  mound  group. 


Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements.  91 

CEREMONIALS 

Bannerstones 
Butterfly  form,  rare. 
Double  crescent,  very  rare. 

Cones  and  Plummets 

Similar  in  form  to  those  made  of  stone.     Of  very  rare  occurrence. 

NATIVE  SILVER  IMPLEMENTS 
Arrowpoint  and  Knife 

Similar  in  form  to  copper  artifacts.     Made  of  Lake  Superior  silver. 

Ornaments 

Wooden  ear  ornaments  sheathed  with  silver  foil. 

LEAD 

Beads  (perforated  disks). 

Bangles  or  pendants  (circular). 

Turtle  Effigies.     Rude  representations  of  turtles. 

Pipes,  probably  recent. 

Pipes  made  of  stone,  lead  inlaid  ornamentation.     Recent. 

Galena  crystals  or  pieces,  on  many  sites  and  in  mounds. 

HEMATITE 

Celts.  Hemispheres. 

Axes,  grooved.  Balls. 

Pendants.  Paint  stones. 

Gorgets.  Tubes. 

Plummets.  Pipes. 
Cones. 

MARCASITE 

Ball  or  hand-hammer. 

PYRITES 

Pieces,  from  fire-making  sets? 

MICA 

Sheet  ornament,  Lake  Koshkonong  mound. 

BONE  IMPLEMENTS 

Awls.  Flakers. 

Needles.  Pins. 

Weaving-needles.  Hoes. 

Arrowpoints.  Celts. 

Spearpoints.  Tool  handles. 

*   Harpoon  points.  Fishhooks. 

Knives.  Paint  bones  (for  applying  paint) . 
Scrapers. 


92  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,  No.   3 


Ornaments 

Beads.  Combs. 

Pendants.  Roach-spreaders. 

Cranial  disks.  Ring  ( ? ) 


Other  Bone  Artefacts 

Dice.  Tubes. 

Whistles.  Medicine  tubes. 

Rattles  (notched  rib  bones) .  Engraved  bones. 
Effigy. 


ANTLER  ARTEFACTS 

Arrowpoints,  conical  form.  Counters. 

Harpoon  points.  Pendant. 

Awls.  Pipes. 

Celts.  Carved  antler. 

Picks.  Flakers. 
Punch,  flint  flaking. 

HORN 

Pipe  (buffalo  horn).  Medicine  container. 


TEETH  AND  CLAWS 

Bear-tooth  ornaments.  Eagle-claw  ornaments. 

Elk  and  buffalo  tooth  ornaments.  Bear-claw  ornaments. 

Alligator-tooth  pendant.  Beaver-tooth  cutting  implements. 
Other  animal  tooth  ornaments. 


SHELL  ARTEFACTS 

Fresh  Water  Mussel  Shells. 
Beads,  disk. 

Pendants,  fish-shaped  and  other. 
Beads,  pearl. 
Spoons,  Unio  valve. 
Hoes,  perforated  Unio  valve. 
Unio  valves,  cut. 

Sea  Shells 

Beads,  perforated  small  shells. 

Beads,  spherical,  cut  from  columella  of  large  shells 

Pendants,  cut  from  columella  of  large  shells. 

Pins,  ditto. 

Gorgets,  circular,  engraved  or  unornamented. 

Vessels,  large  sea  shells  cut  or  unaltered. 

Ladles,  parts  of  large  shells. 

Large  shell  implement,  cut  columella,  pointed. 


Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements.  93 


EARTHENWARE 

Beads.  Jars. 

Earspools.  Kettles. 

Disks,    circular    sherds,  perfo-       Ladles. 

rated.  Canteen.  (?) 

Tubes.  Toy  vessels. 

Pipes.  Effigy. 

Stamps.  Balls. 

Trowels  ("Anvils").  Briquets  (Aztalan  votive  offer- 
Cups,  ings?). 
Bowls.  Lumps. 
Vases. 


WOODEN  IMPLEMENTS 

The  early  Wisconsin  Indians  also  made  numerous  imple- 
ments, weapons  and  utensils  of  wood  and  bark.  Because  of 
the  very  perishable  character  of  these  materials  very  few 
of  them  have  been  recovered  from  old  village  sites  or  in 
mounds  or  graves.  Some  continue  to  be  made  and  used  by 
the  descendants  of  these  natives. 

Bowls.  Clubs. 

Ladles.  Whips. 

Spoons.  Pipes  and  pipestems. 

Stirring  paddles.  Traps. 

Pot-hooks.  Snares. 

Mortars  and  pestles.  Deer  calls. 

Bark  kettles.  Seine  floats. 

Trays.  Feather  cases. 

Bark  mococks.  Bark  and  log  canoes. 

Sap  troughs.  Canoe  paddles. 

Sap  buckets.  Canoe  forks. 

Sap  spiles.  Snowshoes. 

Scoops.  Children's  bark  sleds. 

Digging  sticks.  Sleds. 

Shovels.  Earspools  (prehistoric). 

Rakes.  Drums. 

Bow-drills.  Rattles. 

Fire-making  sets.  Flutes. 

Bark  torches.  Whistles. 

Bark  and  splint  baskets.  Hoops. 

Winnowing  trays.  Snow  snake. 

Beating  sticks.  Ice  arrow. 

Tobacco  driers.  Lacrosse  sticks. 

Bark  bags.  Lacrosse  balls. 

Beacjtwork  looms.  Shinny  sticks. 

Netting  needles.  Tops. 

Cradles.  Game  counters. 

Bows.  Calendar  sticks. 

Arrows.  Images. 

Spears.  Dolls. 

Fish-pinning  spears.  Bark  song  records. 

Harpoons. 


94  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   3 


SUMMARY 

The  checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  implements  here  pre- 
sented lists  21  classes  and  41  types  of  chipped  stone  imple- 
ments, 28  classes  and  50  types  of  pecked  and  ground  stone 
implements,  10  classes  and  39  types  of  stone  ornaments  and 
ceremonials,  4  classes  and  21  types  of  pipes,  tubes  and  other 
stone  artifacts  not  elsewhere  included.  Total,  63  classes. 

Of  native  copper  implements,  ornaments  and  ceremonials 
there  are  listed  36  classes  with  61  recognized  types.  Of 
native  silver,  lead,  hematite,  bone,  antler,  horn,  shell  and 
clay  and  other  implements  and  ornaments  100  classes  are 
listed. 

A  list  of  62  wooden  implements  is  given.  This  is  doubt- 
less very  incomplete. 


AN  ANCIENT  VILLAGE  SITE  IN  WINNEBAGO 
COUNTY 

George  Overtoil 

This  old  village  site  was  located  on  that  part  of  the 
of  Section  34,  Winneconne  Township  (T.  19 — R.  15  E.)  that 
lies  east  of  the  Fox  river.  This  land  was  taken  up  by  Rob- 
ert Grignon,  nephew  of  old  Augustine  Grignon,  in  about 
1835  and  occupied  by  him  as  a  trading-post  and  residence 
during  the  remainder  of  his  life.  This  was  the  Lieut.  Rob- 
ert Grignon  who,  while  convalescing  at  Ft.  Winnebago  from 
wounds  received  in  the  Black  Hawk  War,  negotiated  the 
surrender  of  the  fugitive  Black  Hawk.  Credit  for  this  cap- 
ture has  since  been  claimed  by  others.  His  old  farm  is  still 
known  as  the  Robert  Grignon  place.  He  is  buried  on  the  old 
homestead. 

The  village  was  about  two  miles  by  river  above  the  junc- 
tion of  the  Fox  with  the  Wolf.  A  tapering  sandy  point  juts 
north  from  the  mainland  into  the  Big  Butte  des  Morts 
marsh  and  ends  in  a  beautiful  ridge  on  the  east  bank  of  the 
Fox  river.  This  point  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile  along  the 
river  and  a  bayou  has  an  abruptly  rounding  bank  ranging 
from  six  to  fifteen  feet  above  the  water.  Between  this  es- 
carpment and  the  river  is  a  gently  sloping  shelf  from  two  to 


An  Ancient  Village  Site  in  Winnebago  County.  95 

six  rods  wide,  making  an  ideal  landing  place.  Back  of  the 
bank  the  point  is  level  or  slightly  sloping  toward  the  east. 
It  is  from  a  few  rods  wide  at  the  apex  on  the  river  to  about 
half  a  mile  wide  near  the  mainland,  and  is  about  three  quar- 
ters of  a  mile  long.  A  low  hay  ridge  extends  from  its  east- 
ern side  across  the  marsh  to  Lake  Butte  des  Morts  a  mile 
and  a  quarter  to  the  east.  A  much  used  trail,  later  used  for 
a  time  as  a  U.  S.  Mail  route,  led  down  the  river  bank  and 
along  hay  ridges  in  the  big  marsh  to  The  Grand  Butte,  two 
miles  to  the  northeast. 

The  hard  ledge  of  rock  at  the  outlet  of  Lake  Winnebago 
caused  the  Fox  river  to  reach  bed  level.  The  spring  fresh- 
ets and  silt  from  the  upper  river  made  this  a  shifting 
stream.  Many  different  channels  were  formed  in  the 
twenty-five  miles  above  Lake  Winnebago,  as  are  in  evidence 
by  numerous  bayous.  One  such  old  bayou  extends,  crescent- 
shaped,  along  the  escarpment  on  which  this  old  village  was 
located.  When  this  old  bayou  was  the  main  river  a  perfect 
location  for  a  water  faring  people  was  formed.  In  more 
recent  times  the  bayou  was,  and  still  is,  navigable  for  a 
quarter  of  a  mile,  even  in  low  water,  along  the  village  site. 
This  was  a  village  of  comfort  and  plenty  as  is  shown  by  the 
quantity,  variety  and  elegance  of  recovered  artifacts  and 
utensils.  The  marsh  and  river  supplied  an  abundance  of 
easily  procurable  waterfowl,  muskrats  and  fish.  Wild  rice 
grew  near  on  thousands 'of  acres.  The  soil  near  the  village 
was  easily  tilled  and  to  this  day  produces  excellent  crops 
which  mature  early. 

Hundreds  of  pieces  of  copper  have  been  picked  up  on  such 
parts  of  the  site  as  are  now  in  farm  land.  Most  of  the 
larger  pieces  have  been  disposed  of  by  their  finders  or  car- 
ried away  by  searching  relic  hunters.  Of  these  we  have 
only  the  hearsay  evidence  of  the  people  living  near.  Luckily 
these  collectors  were  content  only  with  the  better  pieces, 
leaving  the  crude  and  partly  fashioned  pieces  together  with 
the  workshop  debris,  for  us  who  followed.  We  combed  the 
fields  on  hands  and  knees,  up  one  corn  row  and  down  the 
other  until  cramps  and  blisters  compelled  a  stop.  No  piece 
that  showed  a  speck  of  green  was  too  small  to  be  picked  up. 
The  smallest  was  one-fourth  inch  long  by  one-sixteenth  of 
an  inch  wide. 


96  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   3 

, — . — 

Here  was  found  a  distinct  departure  from  the  commonly 
accepted  notion  of  the  form  in  which  crude  copper  was 
transported  from  the  mines.  Generally  crude  or  "float"  cop- 
per is  in  chunks  practically  pure,  flat  with  rounded  edges, 
weighing  from  a  few  pounds  to  as  large  as  a  man  could  lift. 
One  piece  in  the  Sawyer  Museum  weighs  more  than  ninety 
pounds.  We  found  many  pieces  just  as  it  was  pounded  out 
of  the  rocks.  Very  many  were  small  and  irregularly  shaped. 
Nearly  all  showed  some  attempt  at  fabrication.  Some  were 
merely  slightly  flattened.  Others  clearly  indicated  they 
were  scraps  broken  off  in  hammering  larger  pieces,  and 
others  were  rejects  which  at  the  time  did  not  work  out  to 
suit  the  artizan  for  the  purpose  he  had  in  mind. 

In  making  an  awl  or  any  other  slender  piece  these  old 
artizans  followed  the  same  steps  in  their  process  that  a  good 
blacksmith  would  follow  in  forging  a  similar  piece.  They 
beat  the  piece  to  a  square  cross  section  and  then  drew  it  out 
to  the  desired  length  and  diameter.  They  then  pounded 
down  the  corners  and  rolled  it  round.  Many  of  the  com- 
pleted pieces  still  show  the  marks  of  having  been  finished 
with  an  abrading  stone  and  are  needlelike  in  sharpness. 

I  firmly  believe  they  understood  annealing  by  heating  and 
plunging  in  water.  Continued  pounding  in  the  drawing  out 
process  would  crystalize  the  metal.  No  sign  of  this  appears 
in  the  finished  pieces,  yet  a  partly  finished  piece  was  very 
brittle. 

A  very  common  type  of  copper  implement  found  here,  of 
which  I  have  seen  fifteen  and  heard  of  dozens  of  others,  is  a 
so-called  fish  hook.  Some  are  exactly  similar  to  a  straight- 
shanked  barbless  hook,  others  are  more  crude  but  might 
serve  the  purpose  very  well.  Except  one  which  is  square  in 
cross  section,  all  are  round,  sharply  pointed  at  the  hook  end 
and  more  crudely  pointed  at  the  other,  and  range,  measured 
around  the  bend,  from  one  and  three-quarters  to  three 
inches  long,  and  generally  average  one-eighth  of  an  inch  in 
diameter.  One  gaff  hook  found  here  was  six  inches  long  and 
one-quarter  inch  in  diameter. 

We  have  a  dozen  specimens  of  a  double-pointed  awl,  or 
perhaps  a  fish  hook  in  the  making.  Some  are  fine  examples 
of  the  aboriginal  coppersmith's  art.  They  range  from  two 
inches  long  and  one-sixteenth  inch  in  diameter  to  four  and 


An  Ancient  Village  Site  in  Winnebago  County.  97 

one-half  inches  long  and  three  thirty-seconds  of  an  inch  in 
diameter.  These  awls  have  a  very  uniform  cross  section, 
are  slightly  tapered,  and  near  the  ends  are  brought  gradu- 
ally to  a  very  fine  point  at  one  end  and  the  other  more 
crudely  to  a  point,  as  though  the  maker  selected  the 'best  end 
and  ground  it  to  a  point,  and  merely  sharpened  the  other 
end. 

A  smaller  type  of  this  artifact  is  made  in  the  same  way, 
rolled  round  with  one  end  sharpened  and  the  other  blunt  or 
unfinished.  These  are  from  three-fourths  of  an  inch  to  two 
inches  long  and  average  one-eighth  of  an  inch  in  diameter. 
Others  of  this  same  size  are  sharpened  at  both  ends.  These 
might  have  been  gorge  hooks,  but  lack  any  notch  or  groove 
in  the  middle  for  fastening  the  line. 

A  small  awl  or  punch  similar  to  the  one  just  described, 
but  having  a  square  cross  section  most  of  its  length,  with 
the  point  ground  round  and  sharp,  is  quite  common  among 
the  finds  on  this  site. 

Arrow  heads  seen  and  identified  from  descriptions  were 
of  both  the  flat  tang  and  the  socket  type. 

Large  pieces — spears,  knives,  celts  and  hatchets,  have 
been  found  in  some  abundance.  My  lowest  estimate  is  at 
least  twenty.  From  my  talks  with  nearby  residents  my  con- 
clusion is  that  they  were  similar  to  the  common  run  of  such 
specimens. 

The  Indian  artizan  was  very  careful  of  his  precious  metal. 
He  fabricated  the  smaller  pieces  into  trinkets  and  orna- 
ments. A  small  piece  was  pounded  thin  and  narrow  and 
then  bent  around  till  it  formed  a  bead.  A  triangular  piece 
of  thin  metal  was  bent  into  a  hollow  cone  with  an  opening 
at  the  small  end,  evidently  for  a  pendant.  One  example  of  a 
long  bead  was  made  of  a  thin  strip  seven-sixteenths  of  an 
inch  wide  which  was  twisted  around  like  a  coil  spring  to 
make  a  bead  or  pendant,  one  and  three-eighths  of  an  inch 
long  and  three-sixteenths  of  an  inch  in  diameter.  A  few 
massive  beads,  one-half  inch  in  diameter  and  one-half  an 
inch  long,  were  perforated  in  some  manner  as  no  sign  of 
joining  is  visible. 

Gorgets,  breastplates  and  earbobs  were  mentioned  as 
found  here,  but  we  could  not  locate  any  for  verification  and 
measurement. 


98  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,   No.   3 

STONE  ARTEFACTS 

My  original  purpose  was  to  write  of  this  interesting  spot 
as  a  copper  workshop  site.  On  looking  over  the  material 
available  and  interviewing  people  who  have  occupied  this 
iand,  I  feel  that  mention  ought  to  be  made  of  the  wealth  of 
flint  and  stone  that  was  left  or  lost  here  by  the  aboriginal 
inhabitants. 

Mr.  Mike  Place,  whose  father  cleared  part  of  the  site,  said 
when  he  as  a  boy  was  sent  out  to  work  on  the  land,  he  would 
come  home  at  noon  and  night  with  pockets  bulging  full  of 
only  perfect  pieces.  He  at  one  time  had  a  cheese-box  full  of 
flints  ranging  from  tiny  arrow  points  and  delicate  drills  to 
spears  from  six  to  eight  inches  long.  These  were  dissipated" 
piecemeal  and  later  he  found  practically  as  many  more.  He 
reported  one  tomahawk  pipe  and  several  pipes  and  frag- 
ments of  others,  made  of  catlinite,  steatite  and  white  lime. 
Several  stone  axes  and  as  many  more  celts,  together  with 
numerous  mealing  stones  and  bushels  of  hammer  stones 
were  also  found. 

Delbert  Martin,  who  was  raised  on  the  Grignon  homesite, 
reports  having  at  one  time  a  bushel  and  a  half  of  specimens, 
largely  flints,  with  half  a  dozen  axes  and  as  many  celts.  At 
one  time  he  had  two  mortars,  one  fourteen  inches  and  the 
other  twelve  inches  in  diameter.  They  were  pecked  into 
shape  and  the  top  and  rim  ground  smooth.  The  polished  de- 
pressions were  about  one  and  a  half  inches  deep.  Four  flint 
spears  were  from  five  to  six  inches  long.  A  beautifully 
formed  copper  knife  with  a  flat 'tang  extending  about  one- 
third  its  length,  was  seven  inches  long.  Probably  a  hundred 
pieces  of  copper  of  various  kinds;  fish-hooks,  awls,  arrow 
points,  beads,  pendants  and  partly  worked  pieces  were 
found.  A  gaff  hook  (noted  before)  was  six  inches  long. 

A  Siouan  calumet  of  grey  stone,  an  ovoid  pipe  of  white 
lime  and  several  others,  in  a  damaged  or  fragmentary  con- 
dition, were  recovered. 

Mr.  Martin  also  reports  that  the  Edick  family  made  ex- 
tensive finds,  among  them  several  fine  copper  implements 
and  numbers  of  choice  flints. 


An  Ancient  Village  Site  in  Winnebago  County. 


KANNENBERG  COLLECTION 

The  Arthur  P.  Kannenberg  collection  contains  many 
specimens  from  this  site.  Many  were  obtained  from  Mr. 
Place  and  Delbert  Martin,  others  from  Mr.  Kunda  and  Chas. 
Koennemann,  who  have  a  farm  south  of  the  site.  The  re- 
mainder are  personal  finds. 

9  Copper  fish  hooks,  perfect  or  very  good. 

1  Fish  spear.    6%"  by  iV.     Square,  tapered  and  pointed. 

6  Rolled  awls.     3"  to  41/£"  long,  pointed  at  both  ends. 

20  Rolled  awls.     %"  to  2"  long.     Some  pointed  at  both  ends,  others 

blunt  at  one  end,  pointed  at  the  other. 

11  Square  awls.     1"  to  3"  long,  pointed  at  one  end,  blunt  at  the  other. 
100  Pieces  partly  finished, — rejects,  scraps  and  pieces  of  copper  ore. 
3  Arrow  head,  flat  tang,  2"  long  by  about  1"  broad. 
1  Arrow  head,  socket  tang,  and  3  arrow  head  blanks. 

I  have  about  sixty  pieces  of  all  kinds,  about  half  of  which 
are  finished,  the  result  of  two  days  search. 

The  Kannenberg  collection  contains  the  following  flint 
artefacts : 

Flint  plummet.     Flat,  2&"  by  1%". 

1  slender  arrow  point.     .2%"  by  %",  notched^  with  serrated  edges. 
50  Good  arrow  points.     All  kinds  and  shapes  including  a  point  made 

of  Flint  Ridge  flint. 

2  Winged  hand-drills.     3"  long,  wing  2^"  long  at  one  side. 
1  Perfect  hand  drill.     3%"  long  by  l1^"  wide  at  the  base. 

34  Other  drills.     About  50%  of  these  are  broken. 

Clam-shell  gorget.     Broken  at  one  end.    It  had  two  perforations. 
1  Siouan  bone  bead.     2%"  by  &". 
Many  pieces  of  wampum. 

The  following  Trade  materials : 

1  Tine  of  a  sturgeon  spear.     13"  long  and   Vz"  diam.,  2  bilateral 

barbs,  base  bent  for  insertion  in  side  of  shaft. 
1  Medallion  ring. 

7  Band  rings  of  silver  and  brass. 
1  Ring,  green  stones  in  bezil. 

1  Brass  signet  ring.     On  a  finger  bone. 

1  U.  S.  Army  coat  button.      Flying  eagle  above  the  U.  S.,  wreath 
below. 

1  U.  S.  Army  coat  button.     Eagle  with  shield  on  breast,  branch  and 

arrows  in  claws. 

2  U.  S.  Army  vest  or  sleeve  buttons.     Same  design  as  above. 
2  Gents'  silver  coat  buttons,  plain. 

1  Liberty  head  medallion  in  jet. 

1  Set  of  steelyards. 

Part  of  a  balance  scale,  Flint-lock  from  old  Northwest  gun,  parts 
of  forged  traps,  many  glass  beads,  many  Venetian  beads.  A 
dancing  bell,  blade  of  a  fencing  foil,  a  heart-shaped  piece  of 
conch  shell,  with  hieroglyphics  inscribed  on  the  smooth  side, 
and  many  other  specimens. 


100  WISCONSIN  ARCHBOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   3 

ITS  INHABITANTS 

Who  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  this  site  were  can  only  be 
a  matter  of  conjecture.  No  mounds  have  been  found  within 
miles  of  this  site.  The  early  Winnebago  occupied  all  of 
Winnebago  County.  It  was  unoccupied  at  the  time  of  the 
visits  of  Nicolet  and  Allouez  to  the  village  of  the  Mascoutin, 
twelve  miles  further  up  the  river. 

The  Outagamies  must  have  lived  here  at  times,  for  this 
was  their  rallying  point  after  the  burning  of  their  village  at 
Petite  Butte  des  Morts  by  Morand  and  his  Menomini  allies. 
Here  was  fought  the  second  battle  of  Butte  des  Morts,  which 
decisive  defeat  drove  them  out  of  the  country.  The  terri- 
tory of  the  Menomini,  who  received  the  land  of  the  Outa- 
gami,  was  not  supposed  to  extend  beyond  the  Fox  river,  but 
as  they  used  the  river  for  travel  they  probably  camped  on 
this  spot.  After  the  treaty  of  1833  the  Menomini  regularly 
camped  there.  When  the  road,  now  Federal  Highway  110, 
was  relocated  to  coincide  with  the  plat  of  the  Village  of 
Butte  des  Morts,  Thos.  Petford,  then  a  small  boy,  stated  that 
—"the  road  passed  thru  the  Indian  burying  ground.  The 
Indians  hurriedly  came  and  dug  up  all  the  bones  they  could 
find  and  left  them  piled  up  alongside  the  road  in  heaps  and 
boxes  for  a  few  days.  Early  one  morning  they  gathered 
them  all  up  and  took  them  up  the  river  in  canoes."  They 
were  reinterred  at  Grignon's  farm. 

All  these  later  people  had  contact  with  the  whites  and  had 
trade  goods. 

All  kinds  of  stone  implements  of  every  type  common  to 
Wisconsin  has  been  found  on  this  site.  The  patina  on  many 
of  the  pieces  is  very  thick,  indicating  great  antiquity.  Not 
one,  but  many  peoples  must  have  made  this  their  home 
mingling  the  relics  of  their  culture  with  that  of  those  gone 
before. 

PREHISTORIC  TORQUOISE  MINES 

In  an  archaeological  bulletin  recently  issued  by  The  San 
Diego  Museum*  Malcolm  J.  Rogers  presents  a  very  inter- 
esting account  of  the  results  of  an  examination  made  by 


*  Report  of  An  Archaeological  Reconnaissance  in  the  Mohave  Sink 
Region. 


Prehistoric  Torquoise  Mines.  101 

himself  and  a  party  of  assistants  of  the  prehistoric  tor- 
quoise  mines  of  San  Bernardino  County,  California.  We 
take  the  liberty  of  quoting  a  few  extracts  from  his  report : 

"The  mineral  torquoise,  which  was  so  highly  prized  and 
indefatigably  sought  for  by  the  sedentary  peoples  of  the 
Southwest,  occurs  in  San  Bernardino  County,  California, 
within  a  more  or  less  definite  zone  extending  from  west  to 
east  through  the  north-central  part.  The  most  westerly  oc- 
currence known  to  the  author  is  at  Granite  Wells,  twenty- 
two  miles  east  of  Johannesburg.  Pursuing  the  strike  of  this 
lode  to  the  east,  the  mineral  is  next  encountered  in  abund- 
ance in  the  Torquoise  Mountains,  ten  miles  northeast  of  Sil- 
ver Lake.  It  is  next  found  in  quantity  in  the  Crescent 
Mountains,  Clark  County,  Nevada,  and  again,  northeast  of 
Searchlight.  Across  the  Colorado  River,  ancient  torquoise 
workings  of  the  same  nature  are  to  be  found  in  Mohave 
County,  Arizona,  east  of  Eldorado.  The  most  easterly  group 
of  which  I  know  is  in  the  Cerbat  Mountains,  Arizona. 

"Throughout  this  extensive  terrain  of  two  hundred  miles, 
the  writer  has  seldom  found  an  outcropping  of  torquoise 
without  finding  distinct  evidence  of  the  mineral  having  been 
mined  by  the  aborigines,  as  evidenced  by  open  cuts,  pits,  and 
stone  hammers.  In  cases  where  he  has  failed  to  find  such 
evidence  he  has  usually  been  assured  by  modern  miners  that 
it  did  exist  prior  to  its  obliteration  by  modern  mining.  One 
can  not  become  familiar  with  the  magnitude  of  this  work 
and  the  crude  means  employed  without  realizing  that  he  is 
witnessing  another  monumental  attestation  of  the  diligence 
of  early  man  in  America." 

In  the  Torquoise  Mountains,  "there  are  three  large 
groups  of  ancient  mines.  The  west  and  east  groups,  which 
have  been  patented  and  worked  by  Americans,  are  known  as 
the  Toltec  and  Himalaya  groups,  respectively,  and  are  situ- 
ated eight  miles  apart,  with  an  unnamed  intermediate  group 
lying  three  miles  east  of  the  Toltec  group/' 

A  Mr.  James  Hyten,  who  "discovered  these  mines  about 
thirty-eight  years  ago"  "was  later  employed  to  clean  out 
some  of  the  ancient  diggings  of  the  Himalaya  group."  "It 
took  him  and  four  other  miners  several  months  to  muck  out 
the  largest  pit,  which  is  now  known  as  the  Tiffany  mine. 
He  gives  the  dimensions  of  this  aboriginal  working  as  being 


102  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   3 

thirty  feet  long,  twelve  feet  wide  and  twelve  feet  deep. 
From  this  main  pit,  numerous  short  drifts  or  "gopher 
holes"  extended,  where  the  Indians  had  pursued  promising 
veins.  There  is  practically  no  soil  on  this  site  and  the  entire 
excavation  was  conducted  in  bedrock." 

Mr.  Rogers  examined  an  undisturbed  prehistoric  mine 
west  of  the  Tiffany  mine.  In  excavating  these  old  diggings 
"numerous  carapaces  of  the  native  tortoise  were  found. 
These  were  thought  "to  have  been  used  by  the  Indians  for 
scoops  in  carrying  out  the  muck."  The  shoulder  blade  of  a 
large  animal  was  also  found.  "It  had  been  ground  in  the 
form  of  a  shovel."  At  the  Himalaya  group  pits  were  sunk 
in  the  filled-in  pits  of  the  early  native  miners. 

"At  all  the  torquoise  sites  visited,  stone  mauls,  picks,  and 
axes,  were  found  in  varying  numbers."  Puebloan  type  pots- 
herds were  found  "about  the  undisturbed  mines  at  the  Him- 
alaya group."  "No  Mohave  sherds  were  found  at  any  of  the 
mines."  Two  spear  points  were  found  here  also. 

"All  of  the  few  water-holes  to  be  found  in  the  Torquoise 
mountains,  and  many  caves,  were  visited,  with  the  expecta- 
tion of  proving  a  permanent  occupation  of  the  region  by  the 
torquoise  workers,  but  with  scant  success.  Cave  excavation 
produced  a  nonescript  culture  chiefly  characterized  by  a 
paucity  of  artefacts.  Flaked  stone,  an  occasional  broken 
metate,  animal  bones,  and  plain  brown  and  grey  sherds  we 
could  find,  besides  some  interesting  beds,  composed  of  ar- 
rowweed,  carriso,  and  galleta  grass.  Only  the  grass  is  now 
found  in  these  mountains.  No  torquoise  was  found  in  any 
of  the  cave  shelters."  » 

"Water  is  not  attainable  at  any  of  the  mines."  The  near- 
est water  was  about  five  miles  away  from  the  Himalaya 
mines. 

"On  all  the  open  sites  of  the  region,  archaeological  mate- 
rial is  extremely  scarce,  making  interpretation  extremely 
difficult.  Then  too  this  is  virgin  ceramic  area  of  which 
nothing  is  known."  Of  all  the  sherds  found,  only  a  very 
small  percent  could  be  identified.  These  were  Puebloan, 
Mohave,  and  Archaic  Lower  Colorado  types. 

In  the  summary  of  his  report  Mr.  Rogers  says :  "Al- 
though the  extensive  torquoise  mining  industry  is  in  itself 
confirmatory  of  a  Puebloan  people  having  either  visited  this 


An  Abraham  Lincoln  Indian  Medal.  103 

region  intermittently  over  a  long  period,  or  having  lived 
permanently  in  the  region  an  equal  length  of  time,  it  has  not 
yielded,  as  yet,  sufficient  cultural  material  to  properly  place 
it  in  the  scheme  of  Southwestern  chronology." 

Several  interesting  plates  and  a  map  illustrate  this  re- 
port. At  least  one  small  piece  of  torquoise  has  been  re- 
ported as  found  on  a  Wisconsin  Indian  site. 


AN  ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  INDIAN  MEDAL 
Theodore  T.  Brown 

This  medal  was  obtained  by  Rev.  E.  P.  Wheeler  during 
the  summer  of  1928  at  Odanah,  on  the  Bad  River  Indian 
Reservation,  from  John  Cloud,  Zah-buh-deece,  a  Chippewa 
Indian,  whose  grandfather  had  obtained  it  from  President 
Abraham  Lincoln.  His  grandfather,  A-duh-wih-gee-zhig, 
was  a  chief  of  the  La  Pointe  band  of  Chippewa.  His  name 
signifies  "on  both  sides  of  the  sky  or  day."  His  father  was 
Mih-zieh,  meaning  a  "fish  without  scales."  The  chieftain- 
ship of  A-duh-wih-gee-zhig  was  certified  to  by  the  U.  S. 
Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  on  March  22,  1880. 

His  father,  Mih-zieh,  was  one  of  the  three  chiefs  who  led 
the  original  migration  of  the  Chippewa  to  Chequamegon 
Bay,  the  others  being  Uh-jih-jahk,  the  Crane,  and  Gih-chih- 
way-shkeenh,  or  the  "Big  Plover."  The  latter  was  also 
sometimes  known  as  Bih-zih-kih,  or  the  "Buffalo." 

A-duh-wih-gee-zhig  was  a  member  of  the  delegation  of 
Lake  Superior  Chippewa  chiefs  who  went  to  Washington 
to  see  President  Lincoln  under  the  guidance  of  Benjamin  G. 
Armstrong,  during  the  winter  of  1861.  The  account  of  their 
journey,  as  dictated  by  Armstrong,  is  published  by  Thomas 
P.  Wentworth  in  his  book  "Early  Life  Among  the  Indians- 
Reminiscences  from  the  Life  of  Benj.  G.  Armstrong", 
printed  at  Ashland,  in  1892. 

"Agent  Webb,  myself  and  others  had  frequent  talks  over  the  general 
outlook  for  Indian  troubles  and  it  was  finally  decided  to  take  a  dele- 
gation on  a  trip  through  the  states  and  to  Washington,  as  such  a  trip 
would  give  the  delegation  a  rare  chance  to  see  the  white  soldiers  and 
to  thus  impress  on  their  minds  the  futility  of  any  further  recourse  to 
arms  on  their  part.  Agent  Webb  arranged  the  matter  and  it  was  di- 
rected to  have  me  select  the  delegation.  I  selected  a  party  of  nine 


104  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    3 

chiefs  from  the  different  reservations,  made  up  as  follows :  Ahmoose 
[Ah-mose],  or  'Little  Bee',  from  Lac  du  Flambeau  reservation;  Kish- 
ke-taw-ug  [Geesh-kih-tuh-wug],  or  'Cut  Ear',  Bad  River  reservation; 
Ba-quas  [Bay-goosh],  or  'He  Sews',  Lac  Court  O  Reilles  reservation; 
Ah-do-ga-zik  [ A-duh-wih-gee-zhig] ,  or  'Last  Day',  Bad  River  reserva- 
tion; O-be-quot,  or  'Firm',  Fond  du  Lac  reservation;  Shing-quak-onse, 
or  'Little  Pine',  and  Ja-ge-gwa-yo  or  'Cant  Tell',  La  Pointe  reserva- 
tion; Na-gon-ab  [Na-ga-nub],  or  'He  Sits  Ahead',  Fond  du  Lac  reser- 
vation, and  O-mah-shin-a-way,  or  'Messenger',  Bad  River  reservation. 
[Little  Pine,  a  mixed  blood  from  Bayfield,  was  the  interpreter.] 

"We  set  out  about  December  1st.,  1861,  going  from  Bayfield,  Wis., 
to  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  by  trail,  and  from  St.  Paul  to  La  Crosse,  Wis.,  by 
stage,  and  by  rail  the  balance  of  the  way  to  Washington.  Great 
crowds  of  soldiers  were  seen  at  all  points  east  of  La  Crosse,  besides 
train  loads  of  them  all  along  the  route.  Reaching  Washington  I 
showed  them  30,000  to  40,000  soldiers  in  camp  and  they  witnessed  a 
number  of  drills  and  parades,  which  had  a  salutory  effect  upon  their 
ideas  of  comparative  strength  with  their  white  brothers.  Being  con- 
tinually with  them  I  frequently  heard  remarks  passing  between  them 
that  showed  their  thoughts  respecting  the  strength  of  the  white  race. 
'There  is  no  end  to  them',  said  one.  'They  are  like  the  trees  in  the 
forest',  said  another.  I  was  furnished  with  a  pass  to  take  them  to  the 
navy  yard  and  to  visit  the  barracks  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  at 
which  place  one  of  them  remarked  that  the  great  father  had  more  sol- 
diers in  Washington  alone  than  there  were  Indians  in  the  northwest, 
including  the  Chippewas  and  Sioux,  and  that  ammunition  and  provi- 
sions never  gave  out. 

"We  remained  in  the  city  about  forty  days  and  had  interviews  with 
the  Indian  Commissioner  and  the  President,  and  I  was  allowed  the 
privilege  of  a  partial  examination  into  the  records,  showing  the  annui- 
ties due  the  Indians  on  annuity  arrearages,  but  the  excitement  inci- 
dent to  the  war  precluded  any  extended  examination  which  would  lead 
to  a  settlement  of  the  arrearages  at  that  time.  The  President  made  a 
short  speech  to  the  Indians  at  one  of  ,these  interviews,  at  which  he 
said: 

"  'My  children,  when  you  are  ready,  go  home  and  tell  your  people 
what  the  great  father  said  to  you;  tell  them  that  as  soon  as  the 
trouble  with  my  white  children  is  settled  I  will  call  you  back  and  see 
that  you  are  paid  every  dollar  that  is  your  due,  provided  I  am  here  to 
attend  to  it,  and  in  case  I  am  not  here  to  attend  to  it  myself,  I  shall 
instruct  my  successor  to  fulfill  the  promises  I  make  you  here  to-day.' 

"All  of  the  chiefs  of  the  delegation  received  silver  medals  bearing 
the  portrait  of  President  Lincoln. 

"After  visiting  all  places  of  interest  in  Washington,  and  about  a 
week  after  our  last  interview  with  the  President,  we  set  out  on  our 
home  journey,  going  by  way  of  New  York  City,  where  we  stayed  two 
or  three  days  purchasing  goods  and  presents  for  the  chiefs  to  take 
home  to  their  families  and  relatives,  in  all  amounting  to  $1500,  which 
had  been  placed  in  my  hands  by  the  government  for  that  purpose. 


An  Abraham  Lincoln  Indian  Medal.  105 

This  was  in  all  probability  the  most  pleasant  stop  of  the  trip.  We 
stopped  two  days  at  Chicago  on  our  return,  from  there  going  to  La 
Crosse  by  rail,  where  we  took  boat  for  St.  Paul.  We  were  compelled 
to  take  trail  from  St.  Paul  and  arrived  in  Bayfield  about  the  middle 
of  April,  1862." 

Benjamin  G.  Armstrong,  a  Southerner,  came  to  Hudson, 
in  St.  Croix  County  in  1840  and  later  became  a  trader 
among  the  Chippewa  Indians  of  the  Lake  Superior  shore 
region.  He  married  an  Indian  woman,  a  granddaughter  of 
Chief  Crane.  He  was  the  adopted  son  of  Chief  Buffalo,  and 
was  probably  the  best  friend  and  counsellor  that  the  Chip- 
pewa have  ever  had.  The  name  given  to  him  by  his  Indian 
friends  was  Zhah-bahsh-kung,  or  "the  man  who  goes 
through."  It  implies  persistency  and  thoroughness.  He 
also  conducted  a  similar  Indian  delegation  to  Washington  in 
1852  to  adjust  Chippewa  financial  troubles  with  the  Govern- 
ment. 

This  Abraham  Lincoln  medal  is  of  solid  silver  and  is  2T% 
inches  in  diameter  and  slightly  over  one-eighth  inch  in 
thickness  at  the  rim.  The  obverse  bears  a  profile  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  facing  to  the  right.  It  bears  the  encircling 
legend  "Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United  States" 
and  the  date  1862.  The  reverse  face  of  the  medal  has  in  a 
central  circle,  li/2  inches  in  diameter,  a  figure  of  an  Indian 
plowing,  and  in  the  background,  children  playing  ball,  a  hill 
with  a  schoolhouse,  and  a  church  and  other  buildings  be- 
yond. Between  this  inner  circle  and  the  rim  of  the  medal, 
following  the  curve,  there  are  (at  the  top)  a  figure  of  an 
Indian  scalping  another;  and  below,  the  head  of  an  Indian 
woman  weeping,  and  on  one  side  (left)  a  quiver  with  ar- 
rows, on  the  other  (right)  a  bow  and  calumet.  Below  the 
plowing  figure  there  appears  in  minute  letters  the  name  of 
the  designer  of  the  medal,  "J.  Willson.  DEL.  &  SC." 

In  1861  U.  S.  Indian  Agents  in  the  Northwest  were  in- 
structed to  obtain  from  Indian  chiefs  all  British  medals  and 
to  present  Abraham  Lincoln  medals  to  their  possessors. 
The  Lincoln  medal  was  coined  in  both  silver  and  bronze. 
The  specimen  described  in  this  paper  is  the  first  Lincoln 
medal  which  was  recovered  from  any  Wisconsin  Indian.  It 
has  been  placed  in  the  State  Historical  Museum  at  Madison. 


106  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. Vol.   8,  No.   3 

THE  WINNEBAGO  INDIANS  AND  THE  MOUNDS 
John  Blackhawk 

The  Winnebagoes,  who  lived  in  what  is  now  Wisconsin 
long  before  the  coming  of  the  white  man,  built  earthen 
mounds.  These  they  constructed  according  to  the  animal 
symbols  of  their  various  clans  or  gens.  For  the  Thunder  or 
Bird  clans  the  design  was  one  of  a  bird,  for  the  Water-spirit 
clan,  an  elongated  animal.  The  Buffalo,  Bear,  Deer,  Dog, 
Snake  and  various  other  clans  had  each  their  animal  symbol. 
The  War  clan,  or  militaristic  party  of  the  tribe,  had  for 
their  symbol  a  representation  of  the  human  form. 

My  Grandfather  once  told  of  an  occasion  where  he  saw  a 
bird  mound  being  built  in  front  of  a  chieftain's  lodge.  This, 
was  perhaps,  the  last  occasion  of  the  use  of  this  old  tribal 
custom.  He  noted  that  it  was  placed  to  the  east  of  the  lodge 
or  lodges. 

It  was  not,  however,  alone  the  custom  to  build  mounds  as 
clan  symbols,  the  dreams  or  visions  of  the  Indians  were  also 
thus  commemorated. 

A  noted  chief,  Ho-min-ka  (translated,  he  who  lies  in  a 
hill),  leader  of  the  Water-spirit  clan,  had  a  village  at  or 
near  where  the  city  of  Madison  now  stands.  He  had  a  vision 
of  an  immense  Buffalo  which  arose  out  of  a  lake  in  a  mist. 
The  blessing  given  to  Ho-min-ka  by  the  spirit  Buffalo  was 
such  that  his  village  enjoyed  seven  years  of  prosperity  and 
there  was  no  death  among  his  people  during  that  time.  The 
tradition  of  this  happening  does 'not  state  that  mound  was 
built  by  this  chief  in  memory  of  this  event,  but  it  is  quite 
probable  that  this  was  done. 

The  round  mounds,  which  are  numerous  in  Wisconsin, 
particularly  along  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  River  and  its 
tributaries,  are  said  to  be  the  remains  of  earth  lodges.  In 
a  period  when  a  long  and  relentless  war  was  being  waged  it 
was  unsafe  to  live  in  ordinary  lodges  and  the  Winnebagoes 
with  their  allied  tribes  constructed  earth  dwellings  for  the 
purpose  of  defense  from  surprise  attacks.  The  dwelling 
was  substantially  framed  within  to  hold  enough  earth  to 


*  Recent   explorations   have   discovered   Algonkian   earthenware  in 
effigy  mounds. 


The  Winnebago  Indians  and  the  Mounds.  107 

cover  it  in  such  thickness  to  withstand  any  attacks.  In 
nearly  all  cases  two  and  more  families  occupied  one  lodge, 
when  more  Indians  lived  together  the  lodge  was  built  larger 
and  much  stronger. 

There  is  a  tradition  that  a  strange  tribe  lived  in  and 
among  the  cliffs,  principally  along  the  upper  part  of  the 
Mississippi  River.  Their  leaders  were  very  wise  and  the 
warriors  fierce  and  courageous.  The  nomadic  tribes  once 
decided  to  make  war  on  these  cliff-dwellers  on  account  of 
their  acts  of  treachery  and  all  the  tribes  gathered  for  this 
purpose.  As  they  were  greatly  outnumbered  by  their  ene- 
mies the  cliff-dwellers  were  annihilated  after  a  series  of 
battles. 

Some  of  the  younger  members  of  our  tribe  (the  Winne- 
bago)  were  of  the  belief  that  these  people  also  built  mounds 
and  attributed  the  larger  Indian  earthworks  like  Aztalan, 
the  Cahokia  mounds,  and  others,  to  them.  Tradition  says 
that  they  were  very  intelligent  and  displayed  a  skill  in 
earthwork  construction  unknown  to  their  enemy  tribes. 

However,  the  fact  remains  that  the  Winnebago  built 
effigy  mounds  such  as  those  that  abound  in  what  was  for- 
merly Winnebago  territory.  Although  a  tribe  of  hunters 
and  fishermen  they  were  dependent  upon  agriculture  for  a 
considerable  part  of  their  food,  and  planting  grounds  were 
to  be  found  at  all  of  their  permanent  villages. 


PRAIRIE  SMOKE 

The  above  is  the  title  of  a  very  interesting  book  of  Plains 
Indian  history,  customs  and  folklore  just  published  by  the 
widely-known  American  ethnologist-botanist,  Dr.  Melvin  R. 
.Gilmore  (Pahok),  until  recently  a  member  of  the  scientific 
staff  of  the  Museum  of  the  American  Indian,  New  York. 

"The  title  of  this  book  is  suggested  by  one  of  the  popular 
names  of  a  flower  which  is  the  subject  of  one  of  the  stories 
of  this  volume.  This  flower,  the  earliest  to  bloom  in 
springtime  over  all  the  northern  prairies,  has  a  number  of 
popular  names  which  are  'pasque  flower',  'gosling  flower', 
and  'prairie  smoke'.  The  latter  name  is  suggested  by  the 
nebulous  appearance  presented  by  a  patch  of  the  bluish 


108  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


blossoms  upon  a  prairie  hillside  in  early  spring,  while  all 
the  other  vegetation  is  still  brown  and  dead.  At  such  a 
time,  with  all  the  flowers  trembling  in  the  spring  wind, 
they  appear  like  a  pulsing  cloud  of  grayish-blue  smoke 
hovering  low  over  the  ground." 

The  information  and  stories  contained  in  Dr.  Gilmore's 
book  were  obtained  by  him  during  his  investigations  of  the 
plant  lore  of  the  Dakota,  Omaha,  Arikara,  Pawnee,  Man- 
dan,  Hidatsa  and  other  Plains  tribes.  Its  contents  are  ar- 
ranged under  six  sections  bearing  the  titles,  "Mother 
Earth",  "Lodge  and  Tipi",  "The  Tribes  of  Men",  "Four- 
footed  Tribes",  "Tribes  of  the  Air",  and  "The  Plant 
Tribes".  Included  in  these  sections  are  some  forty  tales 
and  legends  some  of  which  are — "The  Water  Spring  of  the 
Holy  Man",  "The  Legend  of  Standing  Rock",  "The  Holy 
Hill  Pahok",  "The  Wonderful  Basket",  "Escape  of  a  War 
Party",  "An  Omaha  Ghost  Story",  "The  Coyote's  Box- 
elder  Knife",  "The  Bean  Mouse",  "How  the  Meadow  Lark 
Won  the  Race",  "Gratitude  of  the  Bean  Mouse",  "The  Song 
of  the  Old  Wolf",  "The  Song  of  the  Wren",  "The  Lost  Baby 
and  the  Upland  Plover",  "The  Friendly  Corn",  "The  For- 
gotten Ear  of  Corn",  "The  Prairie  Rose",  and  "The  Sun- 
flower". One  of  the  stories  describes  a  mysterious  water 
monster  which  the  Dakota  people  believed  lived  in  the  wa- 
ters of  the  Missouri  River.  It  was  a  terrible  animal  and 
was  but  seldom  seen  by  human  beings.  It  was  greatly 
dreaded  by  the  Indians  and  misfortune  befell  those  who 
saw  it.  In  the  springtime  this  monster  moved  up  the  river 
breaking  up  the  ice  as  he  moved  against  the  current.  This 
evidently  refers  to  the  same  malevolent  water  spirit, 
horned  panther  or  monstrous  serpent  which  our  Winne- 
bago,  Menomini  and  other  tribes  speak  of  in  their  legends 
as  having  once  inhabited  many  lakes  and  water  courses  in 
Wisconsin. 

The  author  has  added  greatly  to  the  interest  and  charm 
of  the  book  by  introducing  at  the  beginning  of  its  several 
sections  articles  giving  information  about  Plains  Indian 
environment,  life  and  customs.  Some  of  these  treat  of  the 
Indians  "Love  of  the  Homeland",  "A  Boy's  Education", 
the  origin  of  "The  Earth  Lodge",  the  construction  of  "The 
Tipi",  "Indian  Personal  Names",  and  "False  Notions 


1 


Prairie  Smoke.  109 

About  Indians".  Especially  instructive  are  several  de- 
voted to  a  consideration  of  "Early  Indian  Agriculture", 
"Trading  Between  Tribes",  "Indian  Ideas  of  Property", 
and  "Tribal  Boundary  Lines". 

"The  Arikaras  and  Mandans  on  the  upper  Missouri  were 
the  great  agricultural  tribes  of  their  region.  Omaha 
legend  credits  the  Arikaras  with  first  having  corn  and  with 
having  distributed  it  to  other  tribes.  The  common  picto- 
graph  to  represent  the  Arikaras  among  all  the  surround- 
ing tribes  was  a  conventionalized  ear  of  corn."  The  Ari- 
karas and  their  relatives,  the  Pawnees  were  "the  pioneers 
in  agriculture  in  all  the  Plains  region,"  and  "had  been  the 
teachers  of  the  art  and  science  of  agriculture  to  all  of  the 
other  tribes  of  that  region  which  practiced  it.  They  also 
taught  them  the  Caddoan  architecture,  pottery,  and  other 
arts.  The  products  of  Caddoan  agriculture  were  eagerly 
sought  by  the  tribes  dwelling  on  the  high  plains  west  of 
them,  and  in  the  Rocky  Mountains  beyond,  in  neither  of 
which  regions  could  agriculture  be  carried  on."  The  west- 
ern Dakotas  brought  dried  tipsin  roots  and  dried  wild 
fruits  to  trade  to  the  Arikaras,  the  Cree  and  Chippewas 
dried  moose  meat,  furs,  skins  and  maple  sugar,  salt  came 
from  the  distant  country  of  the  Otos  and  Kansas,  the  Chey- 
ennes  brought  plant  and  mineral  products,  Osage  orange 
wood  for  bows  came  from  Oklahoma  and  southwestern 
Arkansas,  and  dentalium  shells  from  the  Pacific  coast. 

"The  various  tribes  were  free  and  independent  self  de- 
termining nations,  each  holding  dominion  over  a  definite 
area  claimed  as  its  own  country  and  so  recognized  by 
neighboring  tribes.  And  each  such  national  territory  was 
delimited  by  boundary  lines,  usually  established  by  treaty- 
making  conventions  of  the  nations  concerned,  and  marked 
usually  by  topographic  features,  such  as  streams,  hills  and 
mountains." 

Dr.  Gilmore  is  well  known  in  Wisconsin  and  many  mem- 
bers and  friends  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
will  wish  to  possess  copies  of  his  book.  It  is  printed  by  the 
Columbia  University  Press,  New  York.  The  illustrations 
are  by  Louis  Schellbach. 


110  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   3 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Meetings 

A  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was  held  at  the 
Public  Museum  at  Milwaukee  on  Monday  evening,  November  19, 
1928,  President  Huron  H.  Smith  in  the  chair.  Attendance  about 
one  hundred. 

Secretary  Charles  E.  Brown  offered  a  report  on  a  field  meeting  of 
members  and  friends  held  at  Aztalan  Mound  Park,  on  Saturday,  Oc- 
tober 20,  at  which  a  tablet  marker  was  unveiled.  The  dedication 
address  was  delivered  by  Mr.  George  A.  West,  the  other  speakers 
being  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg  and  Mr.  John  A.  Jeske.  Mr.  Robert  P. 
Ferry,  chairman  of  the  Park  Committee,  directed  the  exercises.  An 
opportunity  was  given  to  see  the  new  park  pavillion  and  other  im- 
provements made  under  Mr.  Ferry's  direction.  About  250  persons 
were  present.  Mr.  Brown  also  announced  the  restoration  and  per- 
manent preservation  of  a  fine  group  of  effigy  mounds  and  a  linear 
mound  located  in  Forest  Hill  cemetery  at  Madison.  For  these  a 
tablet  should  be  provided.  He  also  urged  the  marking  with  a  tablet 
of  a  single  conical  mound  located  on  the  State  Fish  Hatchery 
grounds  near  Madison.  Steps  had  been  taken  to  apprehend  the  pro- 
prietors of  the  fake  Indian  implement  "factory"  located  at  Cumber- 
land City,  Kentucky. 

Mr.  W.  C.  McKern  made  a  report  on  the  progress  of  archeological    - 
investigation  in  other  Middle  West  states. 

Mr.  George  A.  West  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "Aztalan,  the 
Most  Ancient  City  in  Wisconsin".  He  strongly  urged  the  appropria- 
tion by  the  State  of  the  funds  needed  to  purchase  the  remainder  of 
the  Aztalan  site,  and  the  restoration  of  the  stockade  wall  and  other 
earthworks  in  its  vicinity.  In  the  discussion  which  followed  various 
members  and  guests  took  part.  An  exhibition  of  Aztalan  material 
was  made  by  the  Museum. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board,  which  preceded  the  meet- 
ing, there  were  elected  as  annual  members  of  the  Society,  Mr.  E.  A. 
Fuchsel,  Neenah;  Mr.  Arthur  J.  Wyseman,  Manitowoc;  Mrs.  H.  E. 
Cole,  Baraboo;  Mr.  Walter  W.  Maier,  Milwaukee;  Mr.  Enos  Kiethly, 
Dixon,  Illinois,  and  Mr.  Nain  Grute,  New  York  City.  Prof.  Julius 
E.  Olson,  Madison,  was  elected  an  honorary  member  of  the  Society. 
The  recent  deaths  of  Dr.  H.  L.  Tilsner,  a  vice  president  of  the 
Society,  and  of  Mr.  Alvin  H.  Dewey,  Rochester,  New  York,  for  many 
years  one  of  it's  members,  were  announced. 

The  December  17,  1928  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  So- 
ciety was  held  in  the  trustee  room  of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum. 
There  were  sixty-eight  members  and  visitors  present.  President 
Smith  directed  the  meeting. 

The  gift  to  the  State  by  Mrs.  H.  Terry  Andrae  of  Milwaukee  of  a 
tract  of  land  on  the  Lake  Michigan  shore,  south  of  Sheboygan,  was 
announced  by  Secretary  Brown.  This  includes  a  part  of  the  noted 
Black  River  Indian  village  sites  long  a  favorite  collecting  ground  of 
local  archeologists.  Mr.  Walter  J.  Kohler  of  Kohler  is  the  owner  of 
the  remainder  of  these  dunelands,  which  he  is  also  administering  as 
a  preserve. 

Mr.  McKern  presented  resolutions  on  the  death  of  Vice  President 
Dr.  H.  L.  Tilsner,  which  were  adopted. 

Mr.  McKern  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "Mound  Explorations 
at  Trempealeau."  Especially  interesting  among  the  results  of  these 
excavations  was  the  discovery  in  one  of  the  mounds  of  remains  of  a 


Archeological  Notes.  Ill 

character  similar  to  those  designated  in  Ohio  as  the  Hopewell  cul- 
ture. Other  evidences  of  this  mound  culture  had  been  found  in  pre- 
vious years  in  certain  mound  groups  in  Crawford  County  by  Dr. 
Cyrus  Thomas. 

Exhibits  of  specimens  were  made  by  Charles  G.  Schoewe,  E.  F. 
Richter  and  other  members. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  directors  of  the  Society,  Rev.  0.  Warren 
Smith,  Oconomowoc,  was  elected  a  life  member.  Col.  Marshall  Cou- 
sins, Eau  Claire,  and  Mr.  Charles  E.  Hard,  Milwaukee,  were  ac- 
cepted as  annual  members.  The  recent  death  of  Mr.  William  Haer- 
tel,  a  former  member,  was  announced.  A  special  committee  on  pro- 
gram projects  consisting  of  the  Messrs.  McKern,  West,  Brown  and 
Kuhm  was  appointed.  Plans  for  the  annual  joint  meeting  of  the 
Society  and  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences  were  discussed  by 
Secretary  Brown.  A  special  committee  on  biographies  of  members 
consisting  of  the  Messrs.  Notz,  Schoewe  and  Smith  was  also  ap- 
pointed. This  committee  to  undertake  the  duty  of  collecting  facts 
concerning  the  life  history  of  the  members  of  the  Society. 

President  Smith  conducted  the  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeo- 
logical  Society  held  at  Milwaukee  on  Monday  evening,  January  21, 
1929.  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  chairman  of  the  special  committee  on  biog- 
raphies of  members,  announced  that  a  questionaire  had  been  mailed 
to  all  members.  Mr.  McKern,  chairman  of  the  program  projects 
committee,  reported  that  a  meeting  of  the  committee  (Messrs.  West, 
Brown,  Smith  and  himself  being  present),  had  been  held  and  a  pro- 
gram for  future  meetings  prepared.  Secretary  Brown  announced 
the  election  by  the  Executive  Board  of  Mr.  A.  E.  Hollister,  Tomah, 
as  a  life  member  of  the  Society.  Mr.  Gilbert  Hacker,  Sheboygan, 
and  Mrs.  Walter  K.  Richards,  Milwaukee,  were  elected  as  annual 
members.  Members  were  urged  to  send  in  the  titles  of  papers  to  be 
read  at  the  Joint  Meeting  to  be  held  at  Williams  Bay  on  April  12 
and  13.  He  read  a  letter  from  an  Indiana  dealer  in  fraudulent  In- 
dian relics,  giving  the  prices  at  which  such  articles  as  pipes,  dis- 
coidals  and  ceremonial  forms  could  be  purchased. 

Mr.  Huron  H.  Smith  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "Among  the 
Winnebago,"  in  which  he  presented  an  account  of  the  home  life  and 
ceremonies  of  members  of  the  Wisconsin  members  of  that  tribe. 

Mr.  Charles  G.  Schoewe  exhibited  a  fine  series  of  wooden  bowls, 
dishes,  ladles  and  spoons  collected  from  the  Wisconsin  Potawatomi 
Indians. 

Fifty-three  members  and  visitors  were  present  at  this  meeting. 

A  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was  held  at  the 
Milwaukee  Museum  on  Monday  evening,  February  18,  1929.  Presi- 
dent Smith  occupied  the  chair.  There  were  fifty-five  members  and 
visitors  present. 

Mr.  George  A.  West  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "The  Prehis- 
toric Indian  Copper  Miners  of  Isle  Royale".  He  presented  an  inter- 
esting account  of  the  last  year's  McDonald-Masse  expedition  to  this 
Lake  Superior  island,  which  he  and  Mr.  George  R.  Fox  accompanied 
as  archeologists,  and  which  resulted  in  the  discovery  of  a  large  num- 
ber of  additional  copper  mining  pits,  of  several  village  sites  and 
burial  places,  and  other  features  of  interest.  Mr.  Vetal  Winn  made 
an  exhibit  of  copper  implements. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  deaths  of  two  members  of  the 
Society,  Mr.  Caspar  Whitney,  of  Irvington-on-Hudson,  New  York, 
and  Mr.  Oskar  Korthals,  Milwaukee,  and  spoke  briefly  of  both  men. 
At  the  meeting  of  the  directors  of  the  Society  there  had  been  elected 


112  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   3 



as  annual  members,  the  Messrs.  Dr.  E.  B.  McDonald,  Little  Rock, 
Arkansas,  Clarence  Sorenson,  New  Lisbon,  and  S.  J.  Carter,  C.  C. 
"Johnson  and  H.  A.  Moussa,  Milwaukee.  The  biographical  committee 
reported  that  good  progress  was  being  made  in  its  work. 

The  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  held  its  Annual  Meeting  in 
the  trustee  hall  of  the  Public  Museum  at  Milwaukee,  on  Monday 
evening,  March  18,  1929,  President  Smith  presiding.  There  were 
ninety  members  and  visitors  present. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  deaths  of  three  members  of  the 
Society — these  being,  Mr.  William  H.  Vogel,  a  vice  president  at  the 
time  of  his  demise,  Mr.  George  E.  Copeland  of  Milwaukee,  and  Mr. 
Rudolph  Kuehne  of  Sheboygan.  All  were  old  members  of  the  organ- 
ization and  their  loss  was  greatly  regretted.  Dr.  Ralph  Linton,  Mad- 
ison, and  Mr.  Alfred  Korth,  Fairwater,  had  been  elected  annual 
members  by  the  Executive  Board.  Mr.  Albert  Thunder,  Kilbourn, 
had  been  made  an  honorary  member.  The  Messrs.  Dr.  Notz,  Dr. 
Kastner  and  Mr.  West  had  been  appointed  a  committee  to  prepare 
resolutions  on  the  death  of  Vice  President  Vogel.  The  annual  report 
of  the  Secretary  was  read  and  adopted. 

A  nominating  committee  to  select  officers  for  the  ensuing  year  was 
appointed.  This  committee,  consisting  of  the  Messrs.  Winfield  W. 
Gilman,  G.  M.  Thorne  and  W.  C.  McKern,  retired  to  an  adjoining  room 
and  on  its  return  nominated  the  following  offices :  President — Huron 
H.  Smith;  Vice  Presidents— Charles  G.  Schoewe,  Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Os- 
trand,  Aden  T.  Newman,  Winfield  W.  Gilman,  Dr.  Alfred  L.  Kastner, 
Mrs.  Theodore  Koerner,  and  Arthur  P.  Kannenberg;  Directors — Dr. 
S.  A.  Barrett,  Milo  C.  Richter,  Vetal  Winn,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  E.  F. 
Richter,  L.  R.  Whitney,  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Geo.  A.  West,  W.  C.  Mc- 
Kern and  Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner;  Secretary — Charles  E.  Brown;  Treas- 
urer— G.M.  Thorne.  These  officers  were  unanimously  elected. 

Mr.  John  G.  Gregory  delivered  a  very  interesting  lecture  on  "Early 
Milwaukee",  in  which  he  described  the  visits  to  the  site  of  the  present 
city  of  the  early  French  explorers  and  missionaries,  the  early  Pota- 
watomi  and  Menomini  Indian  villages  and  early  fur-trading  posts. 

The  Messrs.  West,  Gregory  and  Brown  were  appointed  a  special 
committee  to  report  on  the  desirability  of  marking  the  sites  of  the 
early  Indian  villages  of  Milwaukee  with  appropriate  tablets. 

The  Annual  Joint  Meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society, 
Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences,  Arts  and  Letters,  and  Midwest  Muse- 
ums Conference  was  held  at  Yerkes  Observatory,  Williams  Bay,  on 
Friday  and  Saturday,  April  12  and  13,  1929.  Members  of  the  Wis- 
consin Archeological  Society  who  presented  papers  in  the  program 
were  Dr.  Paul  B.  Jenkins,  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  George  Overton,  Dr. 
Albert  B.  Reagan,  Geo.  A.  West,  Geo.  R.  Fox,  Chas.  E.  Brown,  Dr. 
O.  W.  Smith,  Alton  K.  Fisher  and  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm,  and  Huron  H. 
Smith.  The  annual  dinner  was  held  at  the  Rose  Lane  Resort  on  Fri- 
day evening.  Members  of  the  Society  came  to  the  meeting  from  Apple- 
ton,  Ripon,  Milwaukee,  Elkhorn,  Madison,  Beloit,  Janesville  and  other 
Wisconsin  cities. 

A  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was  held  at  Mil- 
waukee on  April  22,  1928.  Called  to  order  by  President  Smith.  Sixty 
were  in  attendance. 

Secretary  Brown  made  a  report  on  the  results  of  a  meeting  of  the 
Executive  Board.  He  described  briefly  the  six  early  Milwaukee  In- 
dian villages  which  it  was  desired  to  mark  with  tablets.  A  report  of 
the  Joint  Meeting  held  at  Williams  Bay,  on  April  12  and  13,  was  pre- 
sented. 


Archeological  Notes.  113 

Mr.  T.  L.  Miller  read  a  paper  describing  the  method  in  use  by  the 
Milwaukee  Museum  in  making  mound  group  surveys.  This  he  illus- 
trated with  several  lantern  slides.  This  was  discussed  at  length  by 
the  Messrs.  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Milo  C.  Richter,  Paul  Joers,  Geo.  A. 
West,  W.  C.  McKern,  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  C.  E.  Brown  and  others  pres- 
ent. Other  methods  were  shown  to  have  been  employed  by  Dr.  Lap- 
ham,  W.  H.  Canfield,  L.  L.  Sweet,  pioneer  archeologists  and  practical 
surveyors,  and  others  by  Prof.  Cyrus  Thomas,  Moses  Strong,  Jr.,  Prof. 
T.  H.  Lewis,  Dr.  S.  D.  Peet,  Ira  M.  Buell,  Dr.  Louis  Falge,  G.  R.  Fox, 
G.  A.  West,  W.  A.  Titus,  Alonzo  Pond,  and  others.  Dr.  A.  B.  Stout 
had  employed  a  very  simple  method,  which  H.  E.  Cole,  H.  L.  Skavlem 
and  others  had  followed  with  good  results.  Sometimes  the  services  of 
professional  civil  engineers  had  been  employed.  The  Museum's  method 
was  thought  by  some  to  be  too  intricate  for  the  use  of  some  amateur 
contributing  members.  Printed  report  forms  and  cross-hatched  paper 
for  use  in  surveys  were  exhibited.  Dr.  Stout  was  the  first  to  make  use 
of  the  latter.  It  was  shown  that  in  the  thirty  years  of  its  life  the 
Society  had  endeavored  to  systematize  more  and  more  the  character 
of  all  field  work.  During  the  State  Survey  of  1911-15  supplies  of 
cross-section  paper  and  other  necessary  supplies  and  full  instructions 
for  field  work  had  been  furnished  by  the  Committee  on  Survey,  Re- 
search and  Record.  Mr.  Brown  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  the 
Committee  on  State  Archaeological  Surveys  of  the  National  Research 
Council  was  proposing  to  soon  print  a  short  manuscript  dealing  with 
the  essentials  of  archeological  record.  By  this  means  it  was  desired 
to  secure  a  certain  degree  of  uniformity  of  work  in  all  states.  A  large 
field  manual  of  archeology  would  probably  follow. 

Mr.  Robert  J.  Kieckhefer  exhibited  a  series  of  three  films  illustrat- 
ing the  results  of  several  long  canoe  journeys  through  the  beautiful 
streams  and  lakes  of  northern  Ontario,  during  which  Indian  sites, 
platform  burials,  pictographs  and  other  aboriginal  landmarks  were 
encountered.  The  introductory  descriptions  of  all  of  these  interesting 
and  beautiful  films  were  given  by  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  his  associate  on 
these  pilgrimages. 

Mr.  C.  G.  Schoewe  exhibited  an  interesting  stone  celt,  Mr.  E.  F. 
Richter  a  small  fluted  stone  hammer  and  Mr.  Paul  Joers  an  Indian 
scalplock. 

Publications 

Indian  Notes,  the  quarterly  publication  of  the  Museum  of  the 
American  Indian,  April  1929,  contains,  among  others,  an  interesting 
paper  by  Frank  G.  Speck,  on  "Boundaries  and  Hunting  Groups  of  the 
River  Desert  Algonquin",  of  Quebec. 

A  book,  "History,  Tradition  and  Adventure  in  the  Chippewa  Val- 
ley", by  Wm.  W.  Bartlett,  is  printed  by  The  Chippewa  Printery,  Chip- 
pewa Falls.  It  is  a  very  interesting  contribution  to  northern  Wiscon- 
sin history. 

Charles  C.  Adams,  director  of  the  New  York  State  Museum,  Albany, 
is  the  author  of  a  pamphlet,  "The  Importance  of  Preserving  Wilder- 
ness Conditions."  In  this  publication,  John  Muir,  Wisconsin-bred,  is 
lauded  as  "our  first  and  greatest  champion"  of  the  nature  sanctuary. 

Two  recent  issues  of  the  North  Dakota  Historical  Quarterly  contain 
a  very  interesting  paper  by  Louis  A.  Tohill  on  "Robert  Dickson,  Brit- 
ish Fur  Trader  on  the  Upper  Mississippi." 

In  a  recent  issue  of  the  University  of  California  Publications,  E.  W. 
Gifford  contributes  a  very  interesting  paper  on  "Pottery-Making  in 


114  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   3 

the  Southwest".    Among  a  number  of  pottery  trowels  (which  he  desig- 
nates as  "anvils"),  are  several  specimens  from  Aztalan,  Wisconsin. 

A  Logan  Museum  bulletin  (Vol.  1,  No.  2),  entitled  "A  Contribution 
to  the  Study  of  Prehistoric  Man  in  Algeria,  North  Africa",  is  by 
Alonzo  Pond,  assistant  curator  of  the  Museum.  Copies  can  be  ob- 
tained through  Dr.  George  L.  Collie,  Beloit. 

In  the  bulletin,  Research  Records  of  the  Rochester  Municipal  Mu- 
seum, William  A.  Ritchie  describes  the  results  of  the  excavation  of 
"An  Algonkian  Village  Site  Near  Levanna,  New  York".  It  is  illus- 
trated with  ten  plates  and  a  map. 

A  publication  of  which  some  of  our  friends  may  have  failed  to  ob- 
tain a  copy  is  Dr.  W.  B.  Hinsdale's  illustrated  booklet  on  "The  Indians 
of  Washtenaw  County,  Michigan." 

Edith  L.  Watson  contributes  to  the  April-June  issue  of  the  Ameri- 
can Anthropologist  a  paper  on  "Caves  of  the  Upper  Gila  River,  New 
Mexico,"  and  W.  C.  McKern  an  article  on  "A  Hopewell  Type  of  Cul- 
ture in  Wisconsin". 

The  January— March  issue  of  the  American  Journal  of  Archaeology 
contains,  among  other  papers,  one  on  "The  Genesis  of  the  Greek  Black 
Glaze",  by  Charles  F.  Binns  and  A.  D.  Fraser,  and  one  a  "Preliminary 
Report  on  the  Excavations  at  Olynthos",  by  David  M.  Robinson. 

Members  can  obtain  from  the  U.  S.  Smithsonian  Institution  a  sepa- 
rate of  a  paper,  "The  Interpretation  of  Aboriginal  Mounds  by  Means 
of  Creek  Indian  Customs",  by  John  R.  Swanton. 

An  interesting  catalogue  of  the  Nature  Guide  School  of  the  School 
of  Education  of  Western  Reserve  University  for  the  summer  session 
of  1929  can  be  obtained  by  addressing  2060  Stearns  Road,  Cleveland, 
Ohio. 

A  booklet  of  "Paul  Bunyan  Tales",  offered  as  a  contribution  to 
American  folklore,  by  C.  E.  and  T.  T.  Brown,  can  be  obtained  by  ad- 
dressing 2011  Chadbourne  Ave.,  Madison.  Cost  30  cents. 

Researches 

All  members  and  friends  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  are 
invited  to  assist  in  its  field  work  during  the  season  of  1929.  It  is  de- 
sired that  as  many  as  possible  will  do  so.  Instruction  and  assistance 
will  be  given  when  desired.  Reports  and  all  other  information  should 
be  filed  with  the  Secretary.  Descriptions  of  collections  and  specimens, 
and  photographs  and  drawings  of  the  same  will  be  acceptable. 


Wi&tun&in 


W.  8  HFulp,  1929  J?o.  4 

NEW  SERIES 


ARCHAEOLOGY  AS  A  HUMAN  INTEREST 

WINNER  AGO  COUNTY  INDIAN  EARTHENWARE 

AMERICAN   INDIAN  CROSS-BOW 

CARTOGRAPHIC  SYMBOLS 

IOWA  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 

APACHE  PLANT  USES 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted   for  mailing-  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided   for  in   Sec 
1103,   Act,   Oct.   3,   1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


Wtecontftn  Srcfjeologtcal 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing-  the  study  and 
preservation   of  Wisconsin   antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

H.  H.  Smith 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

C.  G.  Schoewe  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  W.  W.  Oilman 

A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

A.  P.  Kannenberg 


Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett 

M.  C.  Richter 
Vetal  Winn 


DIRECTORS 

Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers 
E.  P.  Richter 
L.  R.  Whitney 
W.  C.  McKern 


Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz 

Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner 
Geo.  A.  West 


TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thome 

National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  G.  Mc- 
Lachlan,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  C.  E.  Brown,  W.  C.  McKern,  T.  L. 
Miller,  A.  W.  Pond,  Geo.  Overton,  Frank  Thomlinson,  T.  M.  N. 
Lewis  and  M.  F.  Hulburt. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— W.  W.  Gilman,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  Dr. 
A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Mrs.  Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Louise 
P.  Kellogg,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Main,  R.  A.  Maas,  J.  W.  Norris,  Mrs. 
F.  R.  Melcher,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  and  G.  L.  Pasco. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  A.  C. 
Neville,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  P.  Hamilton,  William  Horlick, 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Olson,  Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner  and  R.  S.  Van  Handel. 

MEMBERSHIP— C.  G.  Schoewe,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  A.  R.  Rogers,  A. 
Sohrweide,  Jr.,  Vetal  Winn,  C.  G.  Weyl,  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner,  W. 
P.  Morgan,  A.  E.  Koerner,  Louis  Pierron,  C.  Baerwald  and  D.  S. 
Howland. 

MAN  MOUND  PARK— M.  F.  Hulburt,  E.  A.  Gilman  and  Miss  Emma 
Richmond. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK— R.  P.  Ferry,  M.  G.  Troxell,  and  W.  W. 
Gilman. 

PUBLICITY— A.  O.  Barton,  Mrs.  W.  F.  Bauchle,  M.  C.  Richter,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre  and  R.  K.  Coe. 

BIOGRAPHY— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  C.  G.  Schoewe  and  H.  H.  Smith. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thorne,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  8,  No.  4,  New  Series 


ARTICLES 

Page 
Archaeology  as  a  Human  Interest,  Clark  Wissler 119 

Winnebago  County  Indian  Earthenware,  Arthur  P.  Kannenberg__  124 

Cartographic  Symbols  for  Archeological  Survey  Maps,  Charles  E. 

Brown 129 

American  Indian  Cross-bow,  Paul  B.  Jenkins 132 

Some  Methods  and  Results   of  the   Iowa   Archeological   Survey, 

Charles  R.  Keyes 135 

Plants  Used  by  the  White  Mountain  Apache  Indians  of  Arizona, 

Albert  B.  Reagan 143 

Archeological  Notes _  152 


ILLUSTRATIONS 
Croatan  Cherokee  Cross-bow Frontispiece 

Facing  Page 
Plate  1.  Winnebago     County    Pottery    Vessel,     Oshkosh    Public 

Museum  .  126 


Croatan  Cherokee  Cross-bow. 


Wisconsin  grcijeologtst 

Published    Quarterly   by   the   Wisconsin   Archeological    Society 

Vol.   8  MADISO1V,  WIS.,  JULY,   1929  No.   4 

New  Series 


ARCHAEOLOGY  AS  A  HUMAN  INTEREST 

Clark  Wissler,  Ph.D. 

Curator-in-chief,    Division    of   Anthropology,   American   Museum    of 
Natural   History,  New  York. 

The  matter  of  state  archeological  surveys  is  presented 
here  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  layman  rather  than  the 
specialist.  The  interest  in  mounds,  stone  implements,  etc., 
is  universal  and  spontaneous.  Every  man  is  interested  in 
the  past  of  his  race.  The  farmer  or  the  boy  scout  picking 
up  an  arrowhead  is  spontaneously  carried  back  in  imagina- 
tion to  a  life  different  from  now;  at  this  spot,  he  says,  a 
man  once  hunted  the  deer,  or  perhaps  launched  an  arrow 
at  his  enemy.  In  brief,  the  old,  whether  it  be  historic  or 
prehistoric,  makes  a  spontaneous  appeal.  So  by  the  nature 
of  the  subject,  state  archaeology  touches  one  of  the  basic  in- 
terests in  human  life.  Whenever,  therefore,  we  take  up  a 
survey  or  any  study  of  a  state's  archeology,  we  touch  a  uni- 
versal human  interest. 

HISTORY  AND  ARCHAEOLOGY  INTERRELATED 

It  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  history  and  archaeology  are 
inseparable  in  the  public  mind.  The  Indian  was  on  the 
ground  when  the  explorers  came  upon  the  scene.  The  pio- 
neers, traders,  trappers,  and  settlers,  dispossessed  the  In- 
dian, and  in  the  clash  that  followed,  local  history  was  made. 
So  the  place  where  the  Indians  lived,  the  sites  of  first  settle- 
ment, old  trails,  etc.,  are  all  objects  of  spontaneous  interest. 
Mounds,  stone  implements,  prehistoric  graves,  are  all  asso- 
ciated with  the  Indian,  because  his  ancestors  near  and  re- 
mote were  responsible  for  them.  There  is  no  more  inspiring 
and  romantic  period  in  our  history  than  the  settlement  of  the 
great  valley  of  the  Mississippi.  It  thrills  everyone  to  think 


120  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,    No.    4 

of  the  great  forests  and  plains,  the  hidden  dangers  that 
lurked  therein,  and  the  fearless,  heroic,  forward  movement 
of  our  forefathers  into  this  region.  There  are  to  be  placed 
at  convenient  points  along  the  Old  National  Road,  extend- 
ing from  Cumberland,  Maryland,  to  St.  Louis,  a  series  of 
statues  commemorating  the  pioneer  woman,  my  great- 
grand-mother  and  doubtless  yours  also.  These  statues  are 
symbolic  of  the  future  regard  for  the  outstanding  events  of 
the  pioneer  period  and  we  shall  be  blamed  if  we  neglect  to 
make  adequate  record  of  these  events  before  trace  of  them 
is  lost. 

The  Indian  is  a  part  of  this  pioneer  picture;  he  is  the 
human  element  in  the  background  against  which  the  achieve- 
ments of  our  great-grandparents  are  projected.  Without 
them  and  without  due  regard  to  the  life  of  their  ancestors, 
the  true  life  of  the  pioneer  can  never  be  shown. 

THE  HISTORICAL  AND  ARCHAEOLOGICAL  BACKGROUND  AS  AN 

ASSET 

The  historical  and  archeological  background  of  a  state  is 
one  of  its  great  cultural  and  educational  assets.  It  pos- 
sesses recreational  possibilities  also.  The  rapid  advance  in 
the  mechanization  of  modern  life  has  left  men  and  especially 
women,  with  time  on  their  hands.  We  have  made  wonder- 
ful provision  for  the  education  of  our  children,  but  when 
they  leave  school  and  settle  down  to  the  round  of  life,  the 
doors  of  the  school  are  closed  to  them.  There  may  be  a  li- 
brary accessible,  but  no  personal  leadership.  Women's 
clubs  have  in  part  solved  the  problem  for  the  woman,  but 
in  recent  years  our  educational  leaders  have  come  to  recog- 
nize the  need  of  something  more  for  the  adult,  The  prob- 
lem is  to  find  his  spontaneous  interests  and  to  draw  them 
out.  Everyone  agrees  that  the  best  adult  education  is  that 
which  calls  for  the  least  teaching  and  the  most  learning  on 
the  part  of  the  student — that  which  leads  him  to  follow  a 
real  interest. 

OPPORTUNITY  FOR  LEADERSHIP 

The  conservation  movement  is  another  expression  of  this 
deep  interest.  What  we  hear  now  is,  preserve  these  antiqui- 
ties, they  are  the  culture  heritage  of  the  State.  The  mere 


Archaeology  as  a   Human   Interest  121 

fact  that  people  rise  in  protest  when  antiquities  are  removed 
or  destroyed  is  sufficient  proof  of  the  culture  value  of  such 
things.  Conservation  is  here,  is  taking  care  of  itself,  as 
evidenced  in  the  rapidly  increasing  number  of  state  parks 
in  the  Mississippi  Valley.  What  is  now  needed,  what  the 
time  is  ripe  for,  is  real  leadership  in  interpreting  the  things 
conserved. 

The  preceding  speakers  have  stressed  the  need  for  tak- 
ing stock  of  your  antiquities,  to  interpret  them,  to  sketch 
the  outline  of  the  prehistory  of  this  country.  That  must 
be  done,  even  to  conserve  wisely  the  antiquities  you  have; 
but  in  the  doing  of  it  is  the  opportunity  to  give  intellectual 
leadership  to  the  spontaneous  interest  of  your  people,  and 
especially  to  the  amateur  archaeologists  and  historians  in 
every  community.  A  survey  must  be  a  cooperative  effort; 
to  succeed  such  an  effort  must  be  led. 

THE  NATIONAL  AND  STATE  PARK  MOVEMENT 

Already  several  states  in  the  Mississippi  Valley  have  de- 
veloped systems  of  State  Parks  deserving  of  study.  The 
incessant  public  demand  for  more  state  and  national  parks 
is  registered  in  bills  now  pending  in  Congress  and  in  the 
legislatures  of  many  states.  For  one  thing,  a  park  is  a 
place  for  recreation,  but  it  is  more.  Our  people  demand 
that  each  park  contain  something  inspiring  and  informing, 
as  objects  of  natural  and  historical  interest.  As  popula- 
tions increase  and  highways  become  better  and  better,  more 
such  parks  will  be  established.  The  experience  of  Ohio 
shows  that  archaeological  antiquities  are  eminently  suitable 
materials  for  state  parks.  Further,  the  tendency  is  now  to 
make  our  parks  centers  of  inspirational  and  educational  in- 
terest, to  so  staff  them  and  equip  them  that  they  will  be 
recreational  in  the  highest  sense.  Again  experience  proves 
that  the  mass  of  the  people  are  eager  to  see  historical 
and  archaeological  evidences  of  past  happenings.  In  the 
archaeological  assets  of  the  country  are  to  be  found  rich 
materials  for  such  a  program. 

OUR  AMERICAN  BACKGROUND 

Lewis  H.  Morgan,  one  of  America's  great  social  students, 
was  impressed  by  the  fact  that  every  people  regarded  some 


122  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   4 

land  as  their  own  placed  its  possession  above  everything  else. 
He  went  even  farther,  by  pointing  out  that  national  feeling 
is  chiefly  the  emotion  that  arises  with  the  memory  of  events 
and  objects  in  that  homeland.  We  in  this  Mississippi  Val- 
ley first  of  all  feel  that  here  is  home,  the  base  upon  which 
all  our  activities  rest.  But  we,  as  a  people,  have  not  been 
here  long;  we  are  still  strangers  in  this  land.  To  know  a 
land  well,  we  must  know  its  past.  We  were  transplanted 
here  from  Europe  and  still  think  of  her  history  as  our  his- 
tory. Yet  the  land  we  took  over  had  a  long  history  of  its 
own.  People  preceded  us  not  unacquainted  with  great 
deeds.  Just  across  the  river  from  here  [St.  Louis]  lies  the 
great  Cahokia.  No  child's  play  produced  that.  Go  to  Fort 
Ancient  in  Ohio  and  marvel  at  what  you  see.  No  mules,  no 
steam  shovels,  aided  in  these  works.  Go  to  our  museums 
and  see  the  pottery  and  stone  carvings  of  these  Prehistoric 
folk ;  there  were  artists  in  those  days.  To  say  that  all  this 
is  the  work  of  the  Indian  and  his  ancestors  is  commonplace ; 
but  seldom  do  we  consider  in  how  far  we  are  like  the  Indian 
in  all  that  is  truly  American.  In  our  pride  of  100%  Ameri- 
canism, we  make  large  claims  for  originality  and  efficiency ; 
we  have  good  ground  for  congratulating  ourselves  upon  the 
past,  but  we  may  claim  too  much.  If  we  ask  what  the  In- 
dian contributed  to  our  civilization  and  through  us  to  the 
world,  the  first  thought  may  be  nothing  but  misery  and 
trouble;  the  atrocities  of  border  warfare  come  at  once  to 
mind.  Yet  if  we  take  stock  of  the  things  distinctively  Amer- 
ican, we  are  obliged  to  credit  the  Indian  with  a  respectable 
number  of  them.  For  one  thing,  our  language  contains 
many  concepts  borrowed  from  the  Indian, — war  path,  war 
paint,  scalping,  peace  pipe,  burying  the  hatchet,  scouting, 
etc.  Of  more  material  things ;  moccasins,  snowshoes,  birch 
canoes,  toboggans,  lacrosse,  totem,  wigwam,  tipi,  and  so  on. 
The  very  art  of  woodcraft  was  learned  from  the  Indian  and 
followed  by  the  pioneer;  and  is  still  the  technique  of  scout 
and  other  outdoor  organizations.  In  the  matter  of  place 
and  river  names,  Indian  words  are  found  on  every  hand,  as 
Missouri,  Mississippi,  Ohio,  Chicago,  etc.  Many  more  In- 
dian names  lie  behind  such  translations  as  Buck  Creek, 
Moose  Jaw,  Devil's  Lake,  Pipestone,  etc.  Finally,  note  may 
be  taken  of  the  great  economic  gifts  from  Indian  cultures. 


Archaeology  as  a  Human  Interest.  123 

Even  the  man  who  counts  everything  in  dollars  must  bow 
to  the  Indian.  It  is  not  merely  that  we  took  the  Indian's 
land ;  we  acquired  tobacco,  maize,  potatoes,  peanuts,  toma- 
toes, and  some  forty  additional  food  plants.  The  yearly 
value  of  these  products  produced  in  the  United  States  alone, 
when  stated  in  dollars,  is  incomprehensibly  large.  Even  in 
terms  of  pounds  and  bushels  the  statistics  are  meaningless ; 
as: 

Maize   _                                                             __2,700,000,000  bu. 

Tobacco    1,200,000,000  Ibs. 

Potatoes    400,000,000  bu. 

Peanuts    860,000,000  Ibs. 

If  all  the  maize  raised  in  the  United  States  alone  were 
placed  in  bushel  baskets  and  these  set  in  a  row,  the  row 
would  be  about  1,000,000  miles  long,  reaching  about  forty 
times  around  the  earth.  If  the  peanuts  raised,  in  the  United 
States  were  placed  in  pound  paper  bags  and  set  in  a  row, 
the  row  would  circle  the  earth  twice.  All  this  and  more 
rests  upon  the  gifts  of  the  Indians  to  the  white  man. 

But  you  say  we  would  have  found  these  plants  in  the  wild 
state  and  reduced  them  to  cultivation?  That  is  doubtful. 
Remember  that  the  wild  ancestors  of  several  of  these  plants 
are  still  in  doubt.  They  were  developed  by  ages  of  patient 
study  and  cultivation ;  whereas  our  pioneers  had  them  tossed 
into  their  laps.  Let  us  try  to  imagine  what  would  be  the 
nature  of  these  United  States  today  if  Columbus  had  found 
an  uninhabited  land.  No  Indian  with  cigars  would  have 
greeted  Columbus,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh's  servant  would  not 
have  drenched  his  master  with  the  swill  pail,  Queen  Eliza- 
beth would  not  have  experienced  a  kick  from  the  first  pipe- 
full.  But  you  say,  we  would  have  discovered  tobacco  in 
time;  maybe,  but  it  took  the  Indians  centuries  to  develop 
the  art  and  the  plant.  Maize,  the  economic  backbone  of 
agriculture  in  the  Mississippi  Valley,  would  have  remained 
undiscovered  for  a  long  time  at  least;  think  what  a  differ- 
ent country  this  would  be,  if  corn  were  out  of  the  picture. 
But  we  have  not  considered  all  that  the  Indian  gave ;  it  was 
native  Indian  trade  that  enriched  Europe  and  made  the 
rapid  development  of  our  country  possible.  The  Indian 
was  a  consumer  of  goods,  eager  to  buy  and  to  pay  extrava- 
gently  in  furs  and  other  products.  In  truth,  it  may  be  said 


riscoNsiN  ARCH: 


that  the  American  Indian  put  the  white  man  on  the  map. 
He  certainly  laid  the  foundation  to  the  economic  greatness 
of  the  United  States. 

So  we  see  ourselves  the  inheritors  of  the  best  that  was  in 
Indian  culture ;  we  have  incorporated  this  heritage  into  our 
own  culture.  The  original  cultures  of  the  Indian  were 
slowly  worked  out  as  an  adjustment  to  climate,  flora,  fauna 
and  the  topography  of  America;  an  adjustment  perfected 
by  time.  Our  pioneer  fathers  needed  but  to  learn  what  this 
culture  had  to  offer  and  to  choose  according  to  their  needs. 
All  this  you  know  already ;  my  reason  for  reviewing  it,  how- 
ever, is  lest  we  forget  that  the  very  subject  you  are  now  dis- 
cussing deals  with  the  existing  records  of  that  Indian  cul- 
ture to  which  we  owe  so  much.  The  American  people  have 
taken  up  the  job  of  the  Indian;  to  make  this  America  an 
ever  better  place  to  live  in.  Though  the  Indian  may  have* 
been  no  more  conscious  of  the  fact  than  you  are,  he  also  was 
striving  to  make  America  a  better  place  to  live  in. 

There  seems  then  good  reason  why  some  serious  atten- 
tion should  be  given  to  the  facts  of  Indian  culture,  as  part  of 
the  background  to  which  we  and  those  who  come  after  us, 
must  look  for  inspiration  and  wisdom. 

Finally,  it  all  comes  down  to  this.  We  all  want  to  know 
how  the  Indian  came  here  before  us;  what  place  he  had  on 
the  family  tree;  we  yearn  for  a  glimpse  of  his  history;  we 
want  to  know  more  about  the  mounds  and  earthworks ;  how 
the  Indian  discovered  corn  and  learned  to  put  four  grains  in 
a  hill;  and  where  he  first  discovered  the  joys  of  the  pipe. 
These  and  many  other  things  not  only  haunt  us  but  they  are 
parts  of  our  ill-assimiliated  heritage.  A  large  part  of  the 
answer  lies  in  the  ground  and  it  is  the  retrieving  of  this 
record  that  we  advocate,  that  it  may  be  an  inspiration  to 
succeeding  generations. 


WINNEBAGO  COUNTY  INDIAN  EARTHENWARE 
Arthur  P.  Kannenberg 

Winnebago  County  is  located  in  what  might  be  termed 
the  heart  of  Wisconsin.  It  is  bounded  on  the  east  by  the 
beautiful  shores  of  Lake  Winnebago,  on  the  west  by  Wau- 


Winnebago  County   Earthenware.  12."> 

shara  and  Green  Lake  Counties,  on  the  south  by  Fond  du 
Lac  County  and  on  the  north  by  Outagamie  and  Waupaca 
Counties.  It  is  a  county  with  a  number  of  inland  lakes  and 
rivers,  chief  among  the  rivers,  are  the  Wolf  and  the  Fox. 

At  the  coming  of  the  white  man  to  Wisconsin,  Winnebago 
County  was  inhabited  by  various  tribes  of  Indians,  who 
made  their  homes  on  the  shores  of  these  waters. 

The  Winnebago  tribe,  from  whom  this  county  derived  its 
name,  was  by  far  the  largest.  Other  tribes  such  as  the 
Menomini,  Sac  and  Fox,  Potawatomi,  and  others  are  known 
to  have  lived  within  the  boundaries  of  Winnebago  County. 

Numerous  Indian  villages  and  camp  sites  are  visible  and 
open  to  investigators. 

Most  common  among  the  artifacts  found  on  these  sites 
are  the  fragments  of  earthenware  vessels.  This  depart- 
ment of  archeology,  has  been  somewhat  neglected  from  the 
point  of  study  and  observation.  It  is  most  important  in  de- 
termining the  culture  of  the  early  Indians. 

Pottery,  to  my  idea,  is  at  the  pinnacle  of  aboriginal  art. 
I  am  convinced  that  it  ranks  above  pictographic  art.  The 
pottery  makers'  industry  was  a  very  difficult  one,  investi- 
gation shows. 

The  right  kind  of  materials  to  be  used  in  pottery  making 
had  to  be  obtained.  These  consisted  of  clay,  coarse  sand, 
disintegrated  granite,  clam  shells,  and  of  a  kind  of  glue-like 
substance  to  hold  the  entire  mass  in  shape,  before  being 
baked  in  the  kiln. 

I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  this  method  must  have 
been  used.  Possibly  the  pitch  from  the  pine  trees,  or  the 
sap  from  almost  any  kind  of  bush,  shrub  or  plant,  from 
which  a  sticky  substance  could  have  been  drawn.  It  is  also 
stated  that  the  blood  from  animals  was  used  for  this  pur- 
pose. 

The  pottery  maker  had  no  molds  or  forms  of  any  kind, 
the  pots,  bowls  and  other  vessels  being  shaped  entirely  by 
hand.  A  hole  may  have  been  made  in  the  earth  or  sand, 
in  which  the  piece  to  be  made  was  started.  The  vessels 
were  left  in  position  until  they  were  dry  enough  to  be  hand- 
led. A  larger  hole,  sometimes  round,  sometimes  square, 
was  then  dug  into  the  earth,  a  small  fire  was  built  at  the 
bottom  of  this  pit.  The  finished  bowl  was  placed  on  the 


126  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No,.    4 

hot  embers  and  burnt  until  it  became  hard  and  firm.  Such 
kilns  are  still  to  be  found  on  the  Menomini  Indian  Reserva- 
tion. . 

The  lower  part  of  the  bowl  usually  was  a  smooth  surface, 
and  in  most  cases  is  thinner  at  the  bottom  than  at  the  top. 
Starting  at  the  very  base,  the  thickness  usually  runs  from 
one-eighth  to  one-quarter  of  an  inch,  that  tapers  upward 
to  the  rim  of  the  bowl  to  a  thickness  of  from  one-quarter  to 
one-half  of  an  inch. 

The  larger  bowls  or  pots  average  from  one  to  five  gallons 
capacity.  These  were  storage  vessels  for  food,  and  were 
placed  in  graves  to  aid  the  departed  on  his  journey  to  the 
spirit  world. 

The  smaller  vessels  were  used  for  domestic  purposes  and 
in  some  instances,  were  placed  in  the  grave,  as  were  the 
large  vessels. 

In  making  a  bowl,  the  manufacturer  would  select  a  smooth 
red  or  dark  clay.  Clam  shells,  disintegrated  granite,  coarse 
sand,  or,  as  suggested  by  a  prominent  archeologist,  a  par- 
ticular kind  of  micaceous  shale,  would  be  pulverized  and 
thoroughly  mixed  with  the  clay.  As  this  mixture  would 
not  stand  up  under  the  slightest  pressure  or  weight  from 
the  rim  and  part  of  the  shoulders,  a  fluid  composition  of 
either  gum,  pitch  or  blood,  would  be  absolutely  necessary 
to  make  the  composition  tough  and  elastic  enough  to  allow 
handling  possible,  while  under  construction. 

The  decorations  were  applied  by  various  methods. 
Finger-tip  indentations  for  scalloping  was  the  most  com- 
mon method  used.  Braided  grass  or  twisted-cord,  bark- 
marked,  stick-marked  and  perforated  decorations  are  com- 
mon types.  These  are  found  extensively  in  Winnebago 
County.  We  have  approximately  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  different  types  of  decoration  represented  in  body  sherds 
and  rims  in  the  Oshkosh  Public  Museum.  They  are  of 
seven  distinct  colors  of  clay. 

Potsherds  can  be  collected  by  the  peck  on  the  various 
camp  and  village  sites  in  Winnebago  County.  Several  thou- 
sand specimens  are  now  a  part  of  the  collections  in  the  Osh- 
kosh Public  Museum.  There  are  hundreds  of  other  speci- 
mens in  private  collections. 


I! 


P^P" 


I 


\Yinm-bag-o   County    Karthrn\y;irr.  127 


The  most  noteworthy  discovery  of  pottery  vessels,  was 
made  in  1922,  by  Mr.  Walter  Karow,  on  his  farm  five  miles 
north  of  the  city  of  Oshkosh  on  the  Lake  Shore  Road.  While 
plowing  a  new  piece  of  land,  located  in  the  northeast  quar- 
ter of  Section  30,  Township  19  North,  Range  17  East,  Mr. 
Karow  found  in  a  sandy  kiln  which  runs  parallel  with  the 
west  shore  of  Lake  Winnebago,  a  very  old  burial.  Several 
ribs,  vertebrae  and  a  broken  bowl  came  to  the  surface.  As 
several  very  interesting  surface  finds  had  been  made  in  this 
region,  Mr.  Karow  hurried  back  to  the  house  for  a  spade,  to 
excavate  this  grave.  While  at  the  house  he  called  me  by 
telephone  and  told  me  of  his  discovery.  I  asked  him  to 
wait  and  not  do  any  digging  until  I  came.  I  told  him  he 
might  miss  valuable  material  and  lose  interesting  data.  Al- 
though I  hurried  out  to  his  farm  as  fast  as  I  could,  Mr. 
Karow  had  dug  out  most  of  the  material  and  the  remains  of 
the  Indians,  when  I  arrived.  There  were  two  bodies  in 
separate  shallow  graves.  They  were  buried  lying  flat  on 
their  backs,  heads  to  the  west.  There  were  two  large  flat 
bowls,  bottoms  of  both  were  burned  black,  as  though  they 
had  been  used  over  a  fire.  They  are  rather  heavy  at  the 
base  and  taper  up  to  about  a  thickness  of  one-quarter  of  an 
inch  at  the  rim.  One  of  these  bowls  has  a  straight  handle 
or  lug  on  each  side  extending  out  from  the  side  about  one 
and  one-half  inches  and  about  three-quarters  of  an  inch 
below  the  rim.  It  is  made  of  a  reddish  clay,  tempered  with 
crushed  clam  shells.  A  deep  incised  line  encircles  the  en- 
tire bowl.  Between  this  center  line  horizontal  short  lines 
run  from  the  rim  to  the  center  line,  also  from  the  center 
line  to  the  curve  of  the  bottom.  The  rim  itself,  is  plain. 

The  other  large  bowl  is  of  the  same  form,  except  that  the 
lugs  or  handles  are  absent.  The  rim  of  this  bowl  is 
notched  in  diamond  shape.  Each  of  these  bowls  weighs 
about  five  pounds. 

Two  small  cups  were  also  found.  These  are  in  perfect 
condition.  The  decoration  on  these  is  the  same  as  on  the 
large  bowls. 

Another  round,  rather  flat  bowl,  was  also  found.  This 
has  a  flanged  rim  and  is  very  heavy  for  its  size.  It  holds 
about  a  quart.  Another  flat  dish  was  found.  The  one 
which  was  broken  by  the  plow  was  reconstructed.  It  bears 


128  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,   No.   4 

the  greatest  amount  of  decoration.  The  rim  is  notched 
and  vertical  lines  run  from  the  rim  to  the  base. 

Sixteen  pipes,  seven  of  them  made  of  pottery,  were  found 
with  these  burials;  besides  a  large  number  of  bone  imple- 
ments, several  copper  specimens  and  many  prehistoric 
artifacts.  It  is  considered  the  most  valuable  archeological 
find  made  in  Winnebago  county  to  date. 

The  genuineness  of  these  bowls  or  pots  was  questioned  by 
the  late  Alanson  Skinner  on  account  of  their  peculiar  forms. 
I  am  absolutely  sure  of  their  genuiness.  I  agree  with  oth- 
ers, that  they  are  a  southern  type  of  vessel. 

The  location  in  which  this  find  was  made,  is  the  village 
site  of  the  Winnebago  Chief  Wild  Cat,  or  Pescheu.  Hopo- 
koekau  (Glory  of  the  Morning),  the  Winnebago  princess 
famed  in  history  and  drama,  also  lived  on  this  spot. 

Undoubtedly  these  bowls  were  brought  from  a  long  dis- 
tance as  a  gift,  or  in  barter  with  the  Winnebago.  Several 
obsidian,  jasper,  and  artifacts  made  of  other  foreign  ma- 
terials were  found  on  this  village  site,  which  appears  to 
indicate  that  these  articles  were  brought  to  Winnebago 
County  by  roving  Indian  bands  of  another  tribe. 

Another  very  large  pot  was  uncovered  on  the  Lake  Shore 
Road  in  Section  33,  Township  17  North,  Range  17  East,  on 
the  Warren  Bessey  farm,  about  seven  miles  south  of  Osh- 
kosh.  Workmen  hauling  sand  from  a  pit,  came  upon  a 
burial  containing  a  very  large  pot.  It  was  broken  to  pieces 
with  a  shovel,  while  trying  to  get  it  out.  About  forty 
pieces  with  a  part  of  the  beautiful  rim  are  now  in  my  col- 
lection. 

A  fine  bowl  was  uncovered  with  a  camp  burial  disturbed 
near  the  city  of  Menasha.  It  was  broken  in  getting  it  out, 
but  was  restored  to  its  original  form.  It  is  of  three  gallons 
capacity. 

An  elaborately  decorated  bowl  was  found  with  a  burial 
while  excavating  for  a  basement  in  the  city  of  Neenah.  It 
was  recovered  intact,  but  was  slightly  damaged  before 
thoroughly  dry,  by  a  bystander  who  wanted  to  examine  it. 
It  was  secured  by  the  late  P.  V.  Lawson  of  Menasha,  a 
former  active  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Society,  and  is  now 
in  the  Oshkosh  Public  Museum. 

A  very  odd  shaped  handled  pot  was  uncovered  while  dig- 


Cartographic  Symbols.  129 

ging  a  trench  for  a  drain  on  the  Charles  Kempf  property 
in  the  Town  of  Poygan,  on  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Poy- 
gan.  It  was  broken  in  many  pieces,  but  reconstructed, 
with  a  very  few  pieces  missing.  Both  handles  are  in  per- 
fect condition.  This  bowl  is  in  my  collection. 

While  excavating  for  a  garage  in  the  city  of  Oshkosh,  on 
the  McCauley  property  on  the  Lake  Drive,  workman  uncov- 
ered several  Indian  burials.  A  number  of  stone  artifacts 
and  a  large  pottery  vessel  were  obtained.  As  usual,  the 
pot  was  broken  in  many  pieces.  For  this  reason,  the  work- 
man paid  slight  attention  to  it,  and  it  was  shoveled  into  a 
wheelbarrow  and  dumped  on  a  rubbish  heap.  Several 
hours  later,  I  learned  of  this  discovery  and  immediately 
went  to  the  scene  and  recovered  what  I  could  find  of  the 
pieces.  This  was  evidently  a  very  large  pot,  artistically 
decorated. 

An  elk's  horn  was  also  found,  with  every  prong  cut  off 
square.  One  quite  similar  was  found  in  Omro  township 
several  years  ago;  both  are  in  my  collection. 

We  expect  to  carry  on  extensive  excavation  work  near 
this  spot  within  a  short  time  and  it  is  hoped  other  burials 
may  be  found. 

It  is  more  than  likely  that  many  pottery  vessels  have  been 
found  in  Winnebago  county  by  persons  who  did  not  appre- 
ciate their  value,  and  for  that  reason,  their  existence  was 
never  recorded.  Many  more  will  be  found,  without  a 
doubt. 

We  are  on  the  lookout  for  these.  Contractors  have  all 
been  requested  to  report  these  finds  to  us,  so  that  they  may 
be  preserved  for  the  benefit  of  future  Wisconsin  archeolo- 
gists. 

CARTOGRAPHIC    SYMBOLS    FOR   ARCHEOLOGICAL 
SURVEY  MAPS 

Charles  E.  Brown 

The  late  Prof.  Cyrus  Thomas  was  among  the  first  inves- 
tigators to  make  use  of  cartographic  symbols  in  the  prep- 
aration of  archeological  survey  maps.  In  the  introductory 
pages  of  his  "Catalogue  of  Prehistoric  Works  East  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,"  which  was  published  by  the  Bureau  of 


130  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


American  Ethnology  in  1891,  he  presents  "a  scheme  of  con- 
ventions adopted  for  Archeologic  Cartography  of  North 
America."  This  table  contains  a  total  of  59  symbols  and 
which  are  employed  on  the  maps  accompanying  this  report. 
Of  this  number  23  designate  different  types  of  aboriginal 
habitations  such  as  village  sites,  wood  lodges,  earth  lodges, 
stone  lodges,  igloo  lodges,  cliff  lodges,  cave  lodges,  towers, 
and  groups  of  these.  Twelve  designate  various  classes  of 
earthworks,  such  as  round  or  conical  mounds,  effigy 
mounds,  domicilary  mounds,  assembly  mounds,  mounds 
with  stone  graves,  and  enclosures,  and  groups  of  all  of 
these.  Six  designate  different  types  of  interment  in 
graves,  such  as  ordinary  graves,  stone  graves,  cave  burials 
and  ossuaries,  and  groups  of  these.  The  remainder  are  in 
use  in  locating  such  other  archeologic  features  as  quarries, 
mines,  shell  heaps,  refuse  heaps,  sculptures,  cairns,  pits, 
reservoirs,  trails,  and  undefined  antiquities.  His  symbols 
appear  to  be  very  well  chosen  and  nearly  all  American 
archeologists  who  have  since  found  it  desirable  or  neces- 
sary to  construct  archeologic  maps  of  any  state  or  region 
have  adopted  some  or  many  of  his  cartographic  symbols. 

In  the  fine  "Archeological  Atlas  of  Ohio"  prepared  by  him 
and  published  by  the  Ohio  State  Archeological  and  Histori- 
cal Society  in  1914,  Dr.  William  C.  Mills  has  employed  only 
thirteen  symbols.  In  his  cartographic  table  the  symbols 
which  he  employs  to  locate  enclosures  (square),  graves, 
cemeteries,  petroglyphs,  flint  quarries  and  caches  are  iden- 
tical with  those  used  by  Professor  Thomas,  and  are  no 
doubt  adopted  from  his  table  of  these.  Dr.  Mills,  how- 
ever, employs  devices  to  designate  the  locations  of  mounds, 
effigy  mounds  and  village  sites  which  are  different  from 
those  employed  by  Thomas.  He  also  has  symbols  for  en- 
closures (circular),  enclosures  (cresent),  and  rockshelters, 
none  of  which  Indian  remains  Thomas  designates  in  his 
maps.  To  designate  the  courses  of  trails  Dr.  Mills  uses  lines 
consisting  of  alternate  dots  and  dashes,  whereas  Thomas 
uses  dotted  lines.  Dr.  Mills  maps  are  very  easily  under- 
stood because  all  of  his  symbols  and  trails  appear  on  them 
in  red. 

Alanson  Skinner  and  Max  Schrabisch  in  their  "Prelimi- 
nary Report  of  the  Archaeological  Survey  of  the  State  of 


New  Jersey,"  published  in  1913,  employ  seven  symbols  to 
designate  as  many  different  classes  of  Indian  remains. 
These,  which  are  printed  on  the  map  in  red,  are  the  least  in- 
tricate of  any.  Thus  a  solid  red  circle  represents  a  village 
site,  a  solid  red  square  a  burial  ground,  a  solid  red  triangle 
a  camp  site,  an  open  or  ordinary  square  a  shell  heap,  an 
open  triangle,  a  rockshelter,  an  open  circle  a  cache,  and  a 
St.  Andrews  cross  scattered  finds. 

In  a  report  on  the  "Archaeology  of  Warren  and  Hunter- 
don  Counties",  of  New  Jersey,  published  in  1917,  its  author, 
Max  Schrabisch,  employs  four  symbols  on  his  map.  A 
solid  red  circle  (dot)  represents  a  camp  site,  an  irregular 
oblique  oval  a  village  site,  a  double-barred  cross  a  burial 
ground  and  a  Y-shaped  figure  a  rock  shelter. 

Archaeological  maps  of  other  states  and  regions  east  of 
the  Mississippi  River  show  these  and  other  symbols  in  use 
in  designating  the  locations  of  Indian  remains. 

In  1923  a  bulletin  of  information  entitled  "State  and  Lo- 
cal Archaeological  Surveys",  containing  suggestions  in 
method  and  technique  was  prepared  by  Dr.  Clark  Wissler, 
then  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  State  Archaeological 
Surveys  of  the  Division  of  Anthropology  and  Psychology  of 
the  National  Research  Council.  This  was  printed  for  the 
Committee  by  the  State  Historical  Society  of  Iowa.  In- 
cluded in  this  pamphlet  is  a  figure  showing  "conventional 
signs  for  use  in  field  maps",  these  being  adapted  from 
Mills'  "Archeological  Atlas  of  Ohio",  and  Parker's 
"Archaeological  History  of  New  York."  The  symbols  sug- 
gested for  use  are  only  22  in  number  and  are  intended  to 
represent  such  archaeological  remains  as  mound  groups  of 
several  classes,  village  sites,  camp  and  workshop  sites, 
lodge  circles,  garden  plots,  enclosures  of  several  kinds, 
boulder  effigies,  burials,  cemeteries,  shell  heaps,  rockshel- 
ters,  quarries,  petroglyphs,  caches  or  pits,  Indian  springs, 
and  trails.  This  report  was  re-printed  by  permission  of  the 
Iowa  Society,  by  the  National  Research  Council,  in  the  same 
year. 

This  bulletin  has  well  served  its  purpose.  If  it  is  re- 
published  or  a  large  and  more  complete  archaeological 
field  manual  is  printed,  which  appears  to  be  now  highly  de- 
sirable, the  cartographic  table  recommended  for  the  use  of 


132 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOL.OGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    4 


archaeological  investigators,  should  be  made  much  more 
complete  than  it  now  is.  For  instance  if  a  separate  sym- 
bol is  assigned  to  designate  each  one  of  a  number  of  dis- 
tinct classes  of  mounds,  as  is  done  in  the  1923  bulletin, 
there  is  every  reason  why  the  same  should  be  done  to  des- 
ignate the  different  kinds  of  aboriginal  stone  quarries,  as— 
flint,  quartzite,  quartz,  rhyolite,  pipestone,  steatite,  etc.; 
of  mines,  as — copper,  lead,  hematite,  mica,  etc. ;  of  Indian 
springs,  as — sacred,  medical,  salt,  etc.;  of  shrines,  as— 
spirit  stones,  sculptured  rocks,  pictograph  rocks,  etc.;  of 
pits,  as—fire  pits,  refuse  pits,  game  traps,  threshing  pits, 
etc.,  and  of  trails  as  main  trails,  minor  trails  (laterals), 
water  trails,  etc. 

There  can  be  no  real  objection  to  the  number  of  symbols 
employed  in  the  preparation  of  a  state  or  regional  archaeo- 
logical atlas  or  map  as  long  as  the  classification  of  archaeo- 
logical features  thus  designated  is  a  proper  one,  and  if  a 
cartographic  table  of  these  accompanies  the  atlas  or  map. 


AMERICAN  INDIAN  CROSS-BOW* 
Paul  B.  Jenkins 

American  Indian  cross-bow,  made  and  used  by  the  Croa- 
tan  (pronounced  Croa-tan)  branch  of  the  Cherokees. 

Dimensions:  Center  of  butt  to  front  end  of  stock,  341/2 
inches.  Bow,  tip  to  tip,  36 1/2  inches.  Center  of  butt  to 
center  of  front  face  of  trigger,  13  inches.  Weight,  3 
pounds,  12  ounces.  Stock  of  oak;  bow,  hickory.  Bow- 
string, twisted  raw-hide.  No  sights  of  any  kind. 

The  arrows  used  with  these  bows  were  of  light,  stiff 
reeds  or  of  dogwood  and  similar  common  arrow-shaft  ma- 
terial. Arrow-points  were  of  flint  or  merely  the  shaft 


*  "Passing  reference  should  be  made  to  the  cross-bow  in  the  Vir- 
ginia tidewater  area  where  its  introduction  by  Europeans  among  the 
Indians  of  colonial  times  parallels  what  happened  northward  as  far 
as  the  Montagnis  Nascapi.  It  is  reported  among  the  mixed  Indian 
groups  as  far  south  as  the  Carolinas."  Frank  G.  Speck,  "Chapters 
on  the  Ethnology  of  the  Powhatan  Tribes  of  Virginia,"  bulletin  of  the 
Museum  of  the  American  Indian,  Monographs,  v.  1,  No.  5,  1928. 

His  illustration  of  this  cross-bow  shows  a  slightly  curved  bow  and 
a  straight  stick-like  stock,  with  a  groove  and  simple  "trigger".  The 
length  of  this  weapon  is  given  as  32  inches. 


American  Indian  Cross-Bow.  133 

sharpened  to  a  point  and  hardened  by  fire.  Effective 
range,  up  to  30  yards. 

With  these  bows  there  were  used  true  Indian  arrows— 
as  the  length  and  construction  of  the  arrow-groove  indi- 
cates— and  not  an  entirely  different  projectile,  like  the 
"bolt"  of  perhaps  the  majority  of  mediaeval  cross-bows. 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  operation  of  the  simple  pivoted 
trigger  of  this  weapon — whose  rear  face  simply  shoves  the 
drawn  cord  up  and  out  of  the  notch  to  which  it  is  pulled 
back — is  totally  different  from  the  revolving  "nut"  or  catch, 
and  separate  trigger,  of  the  English  and  Continental  cross- 
bows. (It  seems  to  the  writer  very  doubtful  whether  such 
"mechanical  ingenuity"  as  the  American  Indian  ever  pos- 
sessed, was  capable  of  copying  exactly  the  more  compli- 
cated mechanism  of  the  trigger-and-"nut"  cord-release  of 
the  mediaeval  cross-bow.) 

The  hump  directly  above  the  trigger  and  cord-notch  is 
a  fixture  for  preventing  the  released  cord  from  jumping, 
on  its  release  from  the  notch,  so  high  as  to  fail  to  strike 
the  rear  end  of  the  waiting  arrow. 

The  entire  weapon — save  the  bow-string — is  of  wood, 
not  a  piece  of  metal  having  been  originally  employed  in  its 
construction  (though  the  mentioned  hump  has  at  some  time 
been  broken  and  repaired  with  small  nails,  which  may  be 
seen  in  the  photograph.) 

In  the  use  of  the  weapon  an  increased  or  decreased  ten- 
sion of  the  bow — with  corresponding  changed  velocity  and 
power  of  the  arrow — was  effected  by  winding  or  unwind- 
ing the  raw-hide  bow-string  from  one  end  (in  this  case, 
the  right-hand)  of  the  bow. 

THE  CR'OATAN  INDIANS  AND  THEIR  CROSS-BOWS 

The  Croatan  Cherokees  have  lived  since  the  discovery  of 
America  in  eastern  North  Carolina,  where  the  majority 
of  them,  probably  some  eight  thousand  in  number,  con- 
stitute nearly  the  entire  population  of  a  tract  along  the 
Lumber  River,  in  Robeson  County,  a  portion  of  which  is  a 
Government  reservation.  They  and  their  leading  white 
protagonists  have  long  claimed  that  the  famous  "Lost  Col- 
ony" of  Roanoke  Island  in  1587,  one  of  several  expeditions 


organized  by  Sir  Walter  and  whose  complete  disappearance 
by  1591  has  ever  since  remained  an  historic  mystery,  joined 
the  ancestral  tribe  near  by,  and  intermarried  and  merged 
with  it.  While  it  is  undeniable  that  there  has  occurred  in 
the  past,  and  is  still  practiced,  a  considerable  infusion  of 
white  (and  negro)  mixture  with  their  people,  their  claim 
to  descent  from  the  "Lost  Colony"  has,  however,  received 
scant  acceptance  from  leading  historians.  Among  the 
principal  evidences  offered  in  support  of  the  allegation  are 
(1)  the  recorded  finding  by  a  would-be  rescuing  party  in 
1591,  of  the  name  of  the  tribe  carved  in  English  letters  on 
a  tree  on  the  site  of  the  vanished  colony;  (2)  their  long- 
standing family-names,  of  which  not  less  than  60  are  iden- 
tical with  known  names  of  members  of  the  "Lost  Colony," 
(3)  some  apparently  old-English  words  still  current  among 
them ;  and  (4)  the  manufacture  and  use  of  these  cross-bows, 
which  are  known  to  have  been  in  use  by  them  for  long  in 
the  past,  and  up  to  1870,  or  probably  even  later. 

It  is  indisputable  that  the  manufacture  and  use  of  the 
cross-bow  must  have  been  learned  by  their  ancestors  from 
European  arrivals.  The  cross-bow  was  in  use  in  England 
for  shooting  deer  up  to  1621,  on  the  Continent  to  1635,  for 
birds  and  small  game  as  late  as  1720,  and  for  sport  and  tar- 
get-shooting until  even  much  later.  It  is  thus  entirely  pos- 
sible.for  their  use  to  have  been  acquired  at  any  period  be- 
tween 1590  and  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
The  distinctly  gun-shaped  butt  and  grip  of  the  weapon 
shown  is,  however,  a  very  late  development  of  cross-bow 
construction,  not  earlier  than  the  late  seventeenth  century ; 
and  in  the  case  of  this  arm  was  certainly  copied  directly 
from  the  stock  of  a  gun,  to  which  it  bears  every  resem- 
blance of  form,  line  and  proportion. 

One  of  the  leading  elders  of  the  tribe  today  (Mr.  Calvin 
Lowrey  of  near  Pembroke,  Robeson  County,)  is  authority 
(1929)  for  the  statement  that  the  weapon  shown  is  be- 
lieved to  have  been  made  between  an  hundred  and  an  hun- 
dred and  fifty  years  ago,  and  at  the  time  of  its  construc- 
tion to  have  been  copied  from  others  of  then  great  antiq- 
uity. It  was  recently  secured  for  the  Museum  of  the 
North  Carolina  Historical  Commission,  at  Raleigh.  The 
photograph  was  secured  through  the  courtesy  of  Col.  Fred 


|U\YH    Archrolcig-iral    Survey.  135 

Olds,  in  charge  of  the  Museum.  A  duplicate  is  still  in  the 
possession  of  the  recognized  head-chief  of  the  Croatans. 
Owing  to  the  present  modernization  of  the  younger  mem- 
bers of  the  tribe  and  the  remoteness  of  residence  of  many  of 
the  older  people  with  their  reverence  for  their  relics  of  the 
past,  the  existence  and  one-time  use  of  these  arms  has  been 
practically  unknown  until  recent  years. 

Whatever  be  the  true  story  of  the  origin  of  these  arms, 
they  certainly  constitute  the  most  unique  and  remarkable 
weapon  known  to  have  been  made  and  used  by  any  Ameri- 
can Indians,  and  they  possessed  qualities  and  an  efficiency 
which  sufficed  to  retain  their  use  side  by  side  with  early 
firearms,  for  many  years. 

SOME    METHODS    AND    RESULTS    OF    THE    IOWA 
ARCHEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 

Charles  R.  Keyes* 

In  the  fall  of  1921,  the  writer  was  asked  by  Dr.  Benj.  F. 
Shambaugh,  Superintendent  of  the  State  Historical  Society 
of  Iowa,  Iowa  City,  to  direct  for  the  Society  an  archeological 
survey  of  the  State.  After  conferences  with  Dr.  Sham- 
baugh, Dr.  Clark  Wissler,  then  chairman  of  the  National 
Research  Council  Committee  on  state  archeological  surveys, 
Mr.  Edward  K.  Putnam,  Director  of  the  Davenport  Acad- 
emy of  Science,  and  others,  it  was  decided  that  the  survey 
should  be  preliminary  in  character  and  that  work  should  be- 
gin as  early  as  possible  in  1922.  Summer  seasons  and  such 
other  time  as  was  available  were  to  be  devoted  to  the  in- 
vestigation. 

By  a  preliminary  survey  was  meant  the  collecting  of  all 
possible  existing  information  rather  than  the  intensive 
study  of  a  few  sites.  This  meant  of  course  the  gathering 
of  all  possible  published  data  and  the  locating  of  the  largest 
possible  number  of  people  capable  of  making  any  contribu- 
tion of  facts. 

As  preparation  for  the  survey  activities,  it  was  decided 
that  a  personal  visit  to  places  in  nearby  states  where  arche- 


*  Prof.  Charles  R.  Keyes  of  Cornell  College,  Iowa,  is  the  director 
of  a  preliminary  archeological  survey  of  Iowa  for  The  State  Histori- 
cal Society  of  Iowa,  Iowa  City. 


136  \Vlsm.\Sl.\   ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    ,X,   No.    I 

•> 

ological  work  was  being  carried  on  would  be  highly  desir- 
able and  profitable.  Accordingly,  in  March  of  1922,  visits 
were  made  to  Madison,  Wisconsin,  to  consult  with  Mr. 
Charles  E.  Brown,  Chief  of  the  State  Historical  Museum; 
to  Milwaukee  to  confer  with.  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  Director, 
and  Mr.  Alanson  Skinner,  Curator  of  Anthropology,  of  the 
Milwaukee  Public  Museum ;  to  Columbus,  Ohio,  to  interview 
Dr.  Wm.  C.  Mills,  Director,  and  Mr.  H.  C.  Shetrone,  Cura- 
tor of  Archeology,  of  the  Ohio  State  Museum.  On  the  first 
trip,  the  Field  Museum  in  Chicago  and  the  Historical  Com- 
mission in  Indianapolis  were  also  visited.  Later,  as  the  sur- 
vey progressed,  trips  were  made  also  into  Nebraska,  South 
Dakota,  and  Minnesota,  as  well  as  return  trips  to  the  states 
first  mentioned.  Incidentally  too  a  number  of  libraries  and 
museums  in  eastern  states  have  been  visited  and  used. 

The  first  product  of  the  survey  was  a  bibliography  of  sev- 
eral hundred  titles.  This  included  newspaper  items  and 
articles  so  far  as  these  were  accessible  without  the  expendi- 
ture of  an  inordinate  amount  of  time.  In  general  the  litera- 
ture, with  the  exception  of  the  articles  and  notes  in  the 
early  volumes  of  Proceedings  of  the  Davenport  Academy  of 
Sciences  and  the  extensive  manuscripts  of  "The  Northwest- 
ern Archaeological  Survey"  (conducted  by  Hill  and  Lewis 
from  St.  Paul  as  a  base,  1881-1895)  found  in  the  State  His- 
torical Society  library  at  St.  Paul,  Minnesota,  proved  rather 
barren,  though  of  course  many  items  are  valuable  in  them- 
selves or  provide  a  starting  point  for  subsequent  investiga- 
tion. Most  of  the  early  work  fell  far  short  of  scientific 
standards  and  all  of  it  together  was  insufficient  to  give  any 
idea  of  the  prehistoric  culture  areas  of  the  State.  While  the 
writer  is  glad  to  have  in  manuscript  a  rather  extensive  bib- 
liography of  the  antiquities  of  Iowa,  he  feels  like  advising 
those  who  may  contemplate  a  similar  undertaking  to  collect 
the  pertinent  titles  as  a  by-product  of  the  survey  rather 
than  to  devote  a  considerable  amount  of  time  exclusively  to 
the  quest. 

Efforts  to  find  those  persons  within  the  State  and  outside 
of  it  who  possess  unpublished  information  have  been  fairly 
successful.  Some  fifteen  hundred  letters  mailed  in  Janu- 
ary, 1924,  to  members  of  the  State  Historical  Society  and 
others  produced  the  unexpectedly  large  return  of  about  one 


Archeological   Survey. 


hundred  answers,  many  of  these  with  new  and  valuable  in- 
formation concerning  mound  groups,  village  sites,  names  of 
collectors,  and  the  like.  A  considerable  amount  of  news- 
paper publicity  was  comparatively  barren  of  results.  Evi- 
dently people  did  not  take  newspaper  appeals  very  seriously. 

Much  the  largest  part  of  the  substantial  information 
possessed  by  the  Iowa  survey  has  been  gathered  through  some 
six  seasons  of  personal  contact  with  the  field.  Each  of  the 
ninety-nine  counties  has  been  visited,  some  of  them  several 
times,  and  the  number  of  contacts  with  persons  capable  of 
giving  real  assistance  has  been  built  up  to  exceed  five  hun- 
dred. As  was  anticipated,  the  collectors,  with  their  collec- 
tions, were  most  prolific  of  information,  although  other  pos- 
sible informants,  especially  the  county  agents  and  the  coun- 
ty engineers,  were  also  canvassed.  A  fortunate  finding  of  the 
survey  has  been  the  fact  that  the  great  majority  of  the  col- 
lectors are  interested  in  local  specimens  only  and  thus  are 
not  burdened  with  a  mass  of  uncataloged  ancL  worthless 
specimens  obtained  by  exchange  or  purchase.  Many  are 
farm  collectors  whose  finds  are  made  on  their  own  land  only 
or  at  most  extend  no  farther  than  the  lands  of  their  im- 
mediate neighbors.  Others  have  gone  a  little  farther  afield 
and  are  able  to  tell  of  neighboring  mound  groups,  cemeter- 
ies, cave  deposits,  and  other  antiquities.  And  even  though 
the  collector  was  not  always  aware  of  the  existence  of  a 
village  or  camp  site  nearby,  the  presence  in  his  collection  of 
such  objects  as  scrapers,  hand  mullers,  and  potsherds  was 
often  enough  to  point  the  way  to  these  all-important  loca- 
tions. With  these  collectors  hundreds  of  miles  have  been 
traversed  by  almost  every  known  method  of  land  travel. 
Many  miles  were  covered  on  foot  or  in  boats  in  places  where 
other  means  of  transport  did  not  avail. 

In  several  localities  where  cultural  boundaries  were  es- 
pecially difficult  to  surmise  from  the  collections  studied  or 
other  indications  found,  excavations  were  carried  out  to  a 
limited  extent,  in  a  few  cases  entire  mounds  being  carefully 
examined,  in  most  cases  test  excavations  only  being  made. 
From  the  first  all  evidences  uncovered  were  carefully  noted 
and  if  possible  collected  for  the  survey:  Artifacts  of  all 
kinds ;  skeletal  materials ;  flint  chips  and  other  stone  refuse ; 
kitchen  refuse,  including  especially  the  potsherds.  The  sur- 


138  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.         Vol.   8,   No.   4 

vey  possesses  materials  from  one  hundred  thirty-eight  pot- 
tery-producing sites  (village  sites,  mounds,  cemeteries,  cave 
deposits)  and  has  examined  materials  which  include  pot- 
sherds from  more  than  fifty  others.  On  the  basis  of  these, 
supplemented  by  the  evidence  furnished  by  the  numerous 
collections  and  by  the  published  accounts,  it  is  believed  pos- 
sible at  this  time  to  outline  roughly  the  prehistoric  culture 
areas  of  the  State. 

The  available  evidence  indicates,  first  of  all,  that  the  pre- 
historic culture  of  most  of  the  State,  nine-tenths  of  it  pos- 
sibly, was  of  the  Western  Woodland  type.  This  seems  sur- 
prising, perhaps,  in  view  of  Iowa's  reputation  as  a  prairie, 
not  a  timberland  state.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  however, 
nearly  all  of  the  Iowa  streams  originally  carried  more  or 
less  extensive  belts  of  timber,  and  the  lake  margins  also 
were  nearly  always  furnished  with  their  groves  of  oak  and 
other  native  trees.  The  village  sites,  generally  covering 
only  an  acre  or  two  each,  are  situated  (1)  on  the  terraces 
of  streams,  both  large  and  small;  (2)  on  sandy  ridges  or 
knolls  close  to  the  streams;  and  (3)  on  the  margins  of  the 
numerous  lakes  of  the  north  central  portion.  A  fourth 
type  of  inhabited  site  is  to  be  found  in  the  numerous  rock 
shelters  of  the  Niagara  dolomite  cliffs  of  the  east  central 
portion,  some  sixty  of  which  are  now  known.  All  these 
inhabited  sites  produce  potsherds  of  a  type  generally  re- 
garded as  characteristic  of  the  Algonkian,  roughly  de- 
scribed as  a  rather  soft,  porous  unpolished  ware  of  a 
brown  or  red  color;  tempered  with  rather  coarsely  crushed 
granite;  ornamented  with  fabric  impressions,  stamped, 
punched,  rouletted,  and  occasionally  incised  designs;  fash- 
ioned into  vessels  that  usually  have  a  rounded  or  round- 
pointed  base.  The  vessels  seem  never  to  be  supplied  with 
handles,  though  occasionally  small  protuberences  on  the 
rims  may  have  served  as  lugs.  Smoothly  drilled  holes,  the 
purpose  of  which  is  none  too  clear,  are  frequently  found 
perforating  either  the  rims  or  the  bowls.  In  his  Neale  and 
McClaughry  Mound  Groups,  McKern,  without  committing 
himself  as  to  authorship  of  this  type  of  pottery,  which  he 
says  is  also  the  type  most  common  in  Wisconsin,  describes 
it  in  detail  and  designates  it  as  Type  I.  Other  criteria 
found  on  the  inhabited  sites,  as  well  as  on  the  adjoining 


Iowa  Archeological  Survej^.  139 

fields,  also  indicate  the  Algonkian  type  of  culture :  weak  de- 
velopment of  bone  artifacts;  strong  development  of  work 
fn  stone,  this  last  resulting  in  a  great  number  of  types  of 
chipped  implements,  ground-stone  implements,  and  prob- 
lematical forms.  A  statement  to  the  effect  that  all  these 
woodland  sites,  as  well  as  the  wide  spaces  that  lie  between 
them,  were  actually  occupied  and  controlled  at  some  time 
by  people  of  the  Algonkian  stock  would  be  premature  at 
present  for. two  reasons:  1)  Algonkian  criteria  are  not  set- 
tled beyond  all  doubt  for  the  Central  Algonkian  area  and 
2)  certain  Siouan  tribes,  especially  the  Winnebago  and  the 
loway  of  the  Chiwere  group,  are  known  to  have  been  much 
under  Algonkian  influence  and  may  have  had  a  material 
culture  not  always  distinguishable  from  the  Algonkian. 
The  Winnebago  presumably  had  little  to  do  with  prehistoric 
Iowa,  but  all  accounts  agree  that  the  loway  had  much  to  do 
with  it.  Up  to  the  present,  unfortunately,  little  is  certain 
as  to  the  loway  prehistoric  culture. 

All  of  the  so-called  "Algonkian"  area,  with  the  exception 
of  a  few  counties  in  southwestern  Iowa  that  are  practically 
barren  of  tree  growth,  is  plentifully  provided  with  mounds. 
These  are  generally  conical  in  shape,  a  few  are  oval,  and  a 
considerable  number  are  linear.  Of  great  interest  are  sev- 
en groups  in  the  Des  Moines  valley  between  Ft.  Dodge  and 
Boone,  where  numerous  linears  are  found  mingled  with  the 
conicals.  The  mounds  usually  stand  in  groups  on  the 
stream  terraces  or  the  bluffs  overlooking  streams — never, 
apparently,  on  the  village  sites  themselves,  but  rather  in 
proximity  thereto.  A  rough  estimate  would  place  the  num- 
ber of  known  mounds  at  about  8000.  Their  size  is  gen- 
erally moderate,  ranging  for  the  conicals  from  25x25x2 
feet  to  80x80x8  feet  and  for  the  linears  from  12x60x1 1/2 
feet  to  18x120x3  feet,  approximately.  The  burials  thus 
far  encountered  have  been  of  the  bundle  reburial  or  flexed 
primary  types,  ordinarily  without  artifacts,  though  rather 
often  accompanied  by  numbers  of  potsherds. 

Two  comparatively  small  areas  in  Iowa,  the  area  of  the 
effigy  mounds,  running  along  the  Mississippi  bluffs  and 
terraces  from  near  the  Minnesota  line  to  the  Dubuque  line, 
and  the  Hopewell  area,  extending  similarly  from  Bellevue 
in  Jackson  county  to  Toolesboro  in  Louisa  county,  appear 


140 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    4 


also  to  belong  to  the  woodland  culture,  the  one  separating 
itself  from  general  Algonkian  criteria  (as  these  are  now 
understood)  only  in  respect  to  effigy-mound  forms  and  the 
other  only  in  respect  to  mound  contents.  The  effigy -mound 
area  shows  many  mounds  of  the  effigy  type,  the  bear  and 
the  bird  predominating,  intermingled  with  linear  and  coni- 
cal mounds,  while  the  sizes  and  locations  of  village  sites, 
the  village-site  criteria,  and  the  mound  contents  (bundle 
reburials  and  flexed  burials,  generally  without  artifacts) 
are  not  thus  far  distinguishable  from  the  "Algonkian"  of 
most  of  the  State.  A  rough  estimate  would  place  the  num- 
ber of  mounds  of  all  kinds  in  the  effigy  area  at  about  2000. 
The  Hopewell  area  shows  the  same  mound  types,  without 
enclosures,  and  the  same  village-site  criteria  as  the  wood- 
land part  of  the  State  generally,  but  the  mounds  have  pro- 
duced materials  very  similar  to  those  of  the  type  region  of 
southern  Ohio :  copper  axes  and  ornaments,  curved-base, 
plain  and  effigy-bowl  pipes,  pearl  beads,  and  extended,  log- 
enclosed  burials.  The  number  of  known  Hopewell  mounds 
is  about  100,  though  other  mounds  within  the  limited  area 
noted  may  well  prove  to  belong  to  the  same  culture.  A  sin- 
gle mound  on  the  upper  Turkey  river  in  Fayette  county 
near  Clermont  produced  Hopewell  materials,  while  neigh- 
boring mounds  produced  bundle  reburials  only.  Elsewhere 
in  eastern  Iowa  also  there  are  suggestions  of  the  Hopewell 
which  await  fuller  investigation. 

A  very  distinctive  culture  that  occupied  solidly  the  val- 
ley of  the  Upper  Iowa  river  in  Allamakee  county,  the  north- 
eastern county  in  the  State,  is  unidentified  up  to  this  time 
and  is  called  for  the  present  the  Oneota,  after  the  old  name 
of  the  river  where  its  remains  are  most  continuous.  In 
addition  to  the  valley  of  the  Upper  Iowa,  several  village 
sites  overlook  the  Little  Sioux  river  in  Dickinson  and  Clay 
counties ;  again,  the  Little  Sioux  is  occupied  almost  continu- 
ously for  some  five  miles  south  of  Correctionville  in  Wood- 
bury  county;  a  very  large  site  overlooks  the  Big  Sioux  in 
the  northwest  corner  of  the  State  in  Lyon  county ;  another 
stands  on  the  Des  Moines  river  bluffs  in  Warren  county; 
and  finally  a  large  site  is  found  on  the  Mississippi  bluffs 
adjacent  to  the  Hopewell  mounds  at  Toolesboro  in  Louisa 
county.  In  a  general  way  this  strange  distribution  cor- 


lo\va    Arrheolog-ical   Survey. 

responds  to  what  we  know  of  the  wanderings  of  the  loway ; 
but,  if  these  sites  are  those  of  the  loway,  then  their  pre- 
historic culture  was  far  removed  from  the  Algonkian.  The 
sites  themselves,  covering  from  ten  to  a  hundred  acres  each, 
are  much  larger  than  the  Algonkian  and  also  their  situa- 
tion is  very  different.  Instead  of  being  hidden  away  in 
the  timber  belts,  they  stand  out  in  the  open  on  high  river 
terraces  or  broad,  rounded  bluffs  of  prairie  type.  They 
produce  quantities  of  shell-tempered,  unpolished  potsherds, 
generally  light  brown  in  color,  with  plain  decorations  of 
trailed  or  punctate  designs,  and  with  the  finger-imprinted 
rims  either  vertical  or  recurved.  The  vessels  generally 
have  either  two  or  four  handles  set  in  the  angle  between 
the  rim  and  the  bowl.  Hand  mullers  of  granite  and 
grooved  hammers  and  mauls  of  the  same  material  abound ; 
celts  far  out-number  the  rather  crude  all-round  grooved 
axes;  small  triangular  flint  arrowheads  and  flake  scrapers 
are  the  usual  and  simple  types;  and  bone  implements  are 
plentiful.  Both  conical  and  oblong  mounds,  also  enclosures 
of  various  sizes  and  shapes  (square,  round,  elliptical,  and 
irregular)  originally  stood  on  or  near  the  village  sites; 
but,  as  the  sites  were  in  the  open,  these  works  have  suf- 
fered much  from  cultivation.  Drawings  of  some  of  them 
may  be  seen  in  Thomas,  Twelfth  Annual  Report.  About  a 
dozen  Oneota  enclosures  are  on  record  and  some  500 
mounds  appear  to  belong  to  the  culture.  Burials  both  in 
the  mounds  and  in  the  nearby  cemeteries  are  primary,  us- 
ually extended,  and  often  accompanied  by  artifacts :  small 
mortuary  pots  of  globular  shape,  diminutive  Siouan  and 
disk-stem  pipes,  tub.ular  beads  of  thin  copper,  bone  awls, 
and  other  objects.  Petroglyphs  on  nearby  cliffs  of  Jordan 
sandstone,  and  incised  pictographs  on  small  polished  slabs 
of  catlinite,  these  last  usually  field  finds,  appear  to  be  prod- 
ucts of  this  culture. 

Another  very  distinctive  culture,  also  an  unknown,  is 
found  in  northwestern  Iowa.  On  the  Little  Sioux  and  two 
of  its  tributaries,  Waterman's  creek  and  Mill  creek,  begin- 
ning in  the  northwest  corner  of  Buena  Vista  county,  cross- 
ing the  southeast  corner  of  O'Brien  county,  and  running 
southward  nearly  across  Cherokee  county,  are  thirteen 
compact  village  sites  of  from  one  to  two  acres  each,  situ- 


142  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   4 

ated,  except  for  a  single  hill-top  site,  on  the  edge  of  the 
second  terrace  next  to  creek  or  river  and  surrounded  by  a 
broad,  shallow  ditch.  Two  of  the  sites  which  have  not 
been  cultivated  show  plainly  the  circular  depressions  of 
large  earth  lodges,  one  a  fourteen-lodge  village,  the  other 
twenty-two.  A  single  site  of  the  same  culture  stands  on 
Broken  Kettle  creek  in  Plymouth  county  about  a  mile 
from  its  confluence  with  the  Big  Sioux.  The  village 
refuse  is  deep  and  consists  of  great  quantities  of 
potsherds  and  other  artifacts,  fire-place  stones,  clam  shells, 
animal  bones,  ash  beds,  and  other  debris.  Broadly  speak- 
ing the  artifacts,  except  the  pottery,  parallel  to  a  degree 
those  of  the  Oneota.  A  larger  proportion  of  the  small 
triangular  arrowheads  have  notched  bases,  the  celt  seems 
to  displace  the  grooved  ax  even  more  completely,  bone  im- 
plements appear  to  be  even  more  numerous,  and  there  are 
other  minor  differences.  A  few  discoidal  stones  are  found 
and  also  a  few  shell  and  pottery  animal  effigies.  The  type 
of  pipe  most  characteristic  is  uncertain,  as  but  few  speci- 
mens of  any  kind  have  been  found.  The  pottery  is  dis- 
tinctive, with  rather  hard,  fine  texture ;  tempering  of  finely 
crushed  granite;  gray  or  black  color;  globular  bowls  of 
small  to  medium  size,  often  showing  polish  on  one  or  both 
surfaces;  vertical  and  recurved  rims,  which  may  be  plain, 
provided  with  handles,  or  surmounted  by  small  animal-head 
effigies.  Further,  the  rims  often  show  cross  hatching  or 
shallow  notches  at  the  top  and  designs  of  diagonal,  incised 
lines  on  their  outer  surfaces.  The  bowls  are  either  plain 
or  encircled  by  parallel  trailed  lines.  Some  200  rather 
small  conical  mounds  are  found  on  the  neighboring  hills 
and  ridges,  which  apparently  belong  to  the  culture;  how- 
ever, as  only  a  small  amount  of  amateur  work  has  been 
done  on  these,  their  characteristics  remain  uncertain.  The 
village  sites  themselves  call  to  mind  at  once  the  Mandan 
villages  of  the  Upper  Missouri ;  the  artifacts,  however,  in- 
cluding the  pottery,  appear  not  to  support  very  strongly  a 
theory  of  Mandan  origin. 

In  several  parts  of  Iowa  there  are  suggestions  of  cultures 
which,  on  fuller  examination,  may  well  prove  to  differ  from 
any  of  those  to  which  reference  is  made  above.  Time  se- 
quences are  entirely  unsolved,  as  no  undoubted  case  of 


Apache  Plant  Uses.  .  143 

stratification  has  been  discovered.  There  are  several 
claims  to  mound  building  within  historic  times,  but  none 
appears  to  be  proven  beyond  all  question  of  doubt.  The 
absence  of  inclusive  deposits  of  objects  of  white  manufac- 
ture indicates  that  the  mounds  are  all,  or  nearly  all,  of  pre- 
historic origin. 


PLANTS  USED  BY  THE  WHITE  MOUNTAIN  APACHE 
INDIANS  OF  ARIZONA 

Albert  B.  Reagan,  Ph.D. 

The  White  Mountain  Apache  region  in  Arizona  may  be 
divided  into  four  distinct  plant  zones,  according  to  altitude : 

1.  This  zone  includes  all  the  lands  of  the  region  above 
5,800  feet,     It  is  well  timbered,  the  principal  trees  being 
pine  and  fir. 

2.  This  zone  includes  all  the  lands  whose  altitude  is  be- 
tween 4,900  and  5,800  feet.     In  it  the  common  juniper, 
Juniper  occidentalis    (cedar),  pinyon,  and  cactus  flourish, 
and  grass  grows  fairly  well. 

3.  All  the  lower  Canyon  creek,  Cherry  creek  and  Salt 
river  canyons,  the  foothills  of  the  Apache  mountains,  and 
the  region  of  the  Hinton  (Tertiary)  formation  included  be- 
tween the  altitudes  of  3,500  and  4,900  feet  are  known  as  the 
zone  of  Cactus,  Agave,  "Oboine,"  and  Artemisia   (grease- 
wood  and  sagebrush).     It  is  further  characterized  by  the 
fact  that  its  grass  (Filaree  and  Grama),  with  few  excep- 
tions,    is  poor,  the  soil  on  which  it  grows  being  derived 
from  granite  or  late  volcanic  rocks. 

4.  This  is  the  zone  of  Cactus  (Cereus  giganteus,  predom- 
imating),  Yucca,  and  Agave   (mescal,  most  nearly  related 
to  Agave  decipiens).     The  altitude   of   this   zone   is  from 
3,000  to  3,500  feet.     It  has  a  scanty  vegetation,  scarcely 
any  grass  at  all ;  but  where  there  is  water,  a  most  luxuriant 
vegetation  springs  up. 

Below  are  some  of  the  uses  the  Apaches  made  of  the 
plants  of  the  region. 

The  Apaches,  for  the  most  part,  live  in  tepees  (which  are 
also  termed  wickiups).     They  are  somewhat  dome-shaped, 


144  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   4 

sometimes  with  conical  top.  They  are  of  a  framework  of 
poles  and  limbs  tied  together,  over  which  matting  of  brush, 
yucca  leaves,  rushes  or  flags  are  placed.  Over  this  a  can- 
vas is  stretched,  or  yucca  leaves,  bark  and  flags  are  placed 
in  thatch-work.  The  edifice  is  open  at  the  top  for  the  es- 
cape of  smoke.  The  door  is  a  low  opening  on  one  side, 
over  which  a  blanket  or  a  piece  of  skin  is  stretched.  The 
fire  is  built  in  the  center  of  the  tepee.  Also  in  summer  the 
family  often  lives  out  doors  within  a  circular,  brush  wind- 
break. They  also  sometimes  set  posts  in  the  ground  in  the 
form  of  an  oblong,  on  which  they  tie  horizontal  poles.  They 
cover  the  inclosure  over  with  a  brush  roof.  Also,  on  the 
side  poles  they  intertwine  twigs  and  brush  in  a  thatch-lat- 
tice work.  Such  a  house,  called  a  "wick-e-up,"  makes  cozy 
quarters  in  summer.  Sometimes  only  the  posts  are  set  in 
the  ground  and  only  a  brush  roof  is  made,  forming  an  open 
arbor. 

In  the  summer  wick-e-up,  wooden  frames  are  sometimes 
made  with  a  pole  base  some  two  or  three  feet  above  the 
ground  and  on  this,  brush  and  dry  grass  are  placed,  over 
which  blankets  are  spread  for  a  bed.  Sometimes  the  young 
men  will  also  have  a  "fiddle"  made  out  of  a  mescal  stalk, 
on  which  they  play  "tunes"  for  their  sweet-hearts.  This 
about  completes  the  furniture. 

The  Apache  woman  still  has  her  tus,  water  jug,  made  of 
woven  willow  splints,  and  daubed  over  both  within  and  with- 
out with  native  resin.  She  grinds  corn  much  as  the  Pueblo 
woman  does,  but  has  but  one  metate  and  one  mano  and  no 
grinding  box.  To  make  the  meal  finer,  she  regrinds  it. 
Flour  is  now  purchased,  not  ground  by  the  Apaches.  Corn 
pone  is  baked  in  or  under  the  ashes,  or  in  lard  in  a  skillet. 
A  sort  of  pancake  is  also  made  of  corn  meal  in  which  no 
salt  is  used  in  the  making,  nothing  except  meal  and  water 
is  used.  When  thoroughly  stirred  it  is  baked  in  a  skillet 
held  right  side  up.  Mush  is  also  made  much  as  the  white 
women  make  it,  except  it  is  stirred  with  two  sticks.  A  corn 
bread  and  also  a  flour  dough  bread  are  also  wrapped  in 
green  corn  husks  and  baked  in  the  ashes,  as  is  also  grass- 
seed  occasionally.  Corn  smut  is  also  eaten;  on  August  22, 
1901,  the  writer  saw  one  Apache,  V-29,  make  a  meal  on 


Apache    1'lant    I'scs.  145 

honey  and  boiled  smut*.  Also,  green  corn  when  not  yet 
in  the  "milk"  is  boiled  and  eaten  cob  and  all.  Walnuts  are 
mashed,  kernels,  hulls  and  all,  and  when  mashed  fine,  the 
women  pour  water  over  the  mixture  and  boil  it.  They  then 
filter  the  product;  the  filtered  material  is  white  and  tastes 
much  like  milk.  It  is  a  very  nutritious  food.  Green  corn 
is  also  roasted  before  the  fire  or  in  the  husks  under  the 
ashes,  or  boiled. 

Also,  at  husking  time,  green  corn  is  gathered  and  thrown 
into  a  pile  by  itself.  When  the  field  is  all  gathered  and 
the  ripe  corn  husked,  a  pit  is  dug  and  a  large  quantity  of 
wood  thrown  into  it.  On  this  stones  are  piled.  The  wood 
is  then  ignited.  When  the  wood  has  burned  down  to  the 
live  coal  stage,  wet  grass,  twigs  or  corn  husks  are  thrown 
over  it  and  the  green  corn,  with  the  husks  on,  is  hurridly 
thrown  on  same.  More  wet  grass  or  fodder  is  thrown  over 
the  corn  and  about  six  inches  of  dirt  heaped  over  the  pile. 
Just  before  closing  the  top,  a  quantity  of  water  is  poured 
in  to  make  steam.  The  cooking  process  is  then  let  have  its 
course  for  twenty-four  hours,  when  the  dirt  is  removed  and 
the  corn  taken  out.  The  husks  are  then  stripped  up  and 
tied  together  and  the  corn  hung  out  on  the  cob  to  dry. 
When  dried  it  is  shelled  and  stored  in  large  storage  baskets 
or  jugs  for  use  when  needed.  The  pit  is  left  as  a  sort  of 
mound  for  future  generations  to  speculate  over. 

The  bean  pod  of  a  species  of  locust  tree  that  grows  in  the 
region,  probably  Robinia  neo-mexicana  Gray,  or  the  mes- 
quite  bean,  a  tree  that  resembles  our  eastern  locust  tree 
very  much,  is  taken  when  quite  matured  and  dried.  The 
pods  and  beans  are  then  crushed  on  the  metates  to  a  fine 
powder  which  is  sweet  and  is  called  "sugar"  by  the 
Apaches.  The  pounded-up  pulp  is  mixed  with  water  and 
cooked  or  is  eaten  raw. 

In  gathering  and  preparing  mescal  tubers  (mescal  or  ma- 
guay  plant,  our  Century  plant  (Agave  americana)  or  a  close 
relative  (cousin)  of  it,  is  the  plant  referred  to,  it  having  a 
very  large  beet-like  root) ,  the  women  go  in  a  company  to 


*  It  ought  to  be  stated  that  the  corn  smut  (Ustilago  maydis)  is 
used  in  the  solid  state  only,  while  it  is  firm  and  white,  otherwise  the 
reader  may  form  a  very  erroneous  concepton.  Corn  smut  is  eaten 
as  other  fungi,  such  as  mushrooms,  are  eaten. — M.  R.  Gilmore, 


146  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,  No. 

the  hills  where  it  grows,  the  best  place  being  in  the  break- 
country  east  of  Canyon  creek  and  in  the  Oak  creek  region. 
Here  they  camp  and  proceed  to  the  hills  to  collect  the  tu- 
bers. There  are  usually  six  or  eight  women  in  the  group 
and  it  takes  them  about  two  days  to  gather  a  ton  of  tubers 
and  carry  them  to  the  camp  (the  beet-like  root  being 
gathered  just  before  the  stem  is  run  up  by  nature  to  go  to 
seed).  When  enough  are  gathered,  a  large  pit  is  dug  and 
filled  with  dry  wood.  On  this  a  large  quantity  of  stones  are 
piled.  The  wood  is  then  ignited  and  when  it  burns  down 
to  live  coals  and  the  stones  are  a  white  heat,  wet  twigs,  or 
rushes  or  flags  are  placed  on  them  to  a  thickness  of  about 
a  foot.  The  mescal  roots  are  then  hurled  on  the  smoking 
mass  and  wet  grass  and  twigs  placed  over  them  and  then  all 
snugly  closed  over  with  a  foot  or  more  of  earth.  A  fire  is 
then  kindled  over  this  pile  and  kept  burning.  The  cooking 
process  is  let  have  its  course  for  a  whole  day.  The  pit  is 
then  opened  and  the  tubers  taken  out  and  the  mound  left  to 
puzzle  the  world  after  the  Indians  will  have  disappeared 
from  it.  The  tubers  are  then  packed  on  burros  or  carried 
by  the  women  to  their  tepees  and  stored  for  future  use. 
They  taste  like  squash,  except  that  'they  have  a  slightly 
burned  taste.  The  are  good  food.  The  Apaches  also  pre- 
pare an  intoxicating  beverage,  called  tisivin,  from  the 
"heart"  or  center  of  the  unopened  cluster  of  leaves  of  this 
plant.  This  heart  is  cooked  in  the  same  manner  as  the  tu- 
ber, as  described  above.  When  it  has  been  thoroughly 
cooked  for  about  fifteen  days,  the  roots  and  heart  are  of  a 
semi-gelatinous  consistence.  They  are  then  crushed  on  the 
metates  or  in  a  vessel  made  for  the  purpose  and  the  liquor 
poured  off  into  retaining  vessels,  where  it  is  kept  until  fer- 
mentation sets  in,  when  they  call  together  all  their  friends 
and  relatives,  sometimes  the  whole  tribe,  and  have  a  dance, 
which  often  terminates  in  a  drunken  carousal. 

In  picking  berries,  the  Indian  woman  goes  to  the  woods 
and  picks  them  and  brings  them  home.  She  then  usually 
sets  them  before  her  host  without  cooking  them.  There  are 
not  many  berries  in  the  region. 

There  is  a  great  variety  of  cactus  in  the  region,  ranging 
from  sour  to  sweet.     The  Indian  women  know  when  each, 
kind  ripens  and  they  make  long  journeys  to  secure  them, 


J'lant    Uses.  1  IT 

The  fruit  is  spiny,  but  fine  eating  when  the  spines  are  re- 
moved. These  the  women  remove  by  rolling  the  fruit  in  the 
-sand  or  by  rubbing  it  with  a  piece  of  buckskin.  All  kinds 
of  the  fruit  are  eaten  as  we  would  eat  an  apple,  except  the 
sweet  kind,  the  fruit  of  the  giant  cactus  (Cercus  gigantea), 
which  is  made  into  a  kind  of  butter. 

The  women  go  in  large  numbers  to  gather  pine  (pinon) 
nuts  every  fall.  Sometimes  a  whole  band  will  go.  Once 
the  writer  saw  all  the  Apaches  of  the  reservation  from  Car- 
rixo  westward  scouring  the  Catholic  buttes  and  Cherry 
creek  region  west  of  the  reservation  for  nuts.  The  nuts 
are  gathered  in  the  cone  which  is  either  burned  off  the  nuts 
near  where  gathered  or  after  the  return  home.  In  this 
process  of  charring  the  cones,  the  nuts  are  roasted.  The 
nuts  are  next  beaten  out  of  the  cones.  Usually  the  cone 
is  burned  or  dried  till  the  nuts  fall  out.  These  are  collected 
and  stored  in  storage  jars  or  baskets  for  future  use.  When 
needed  the  quantity  required  is  placed  in  an  open  tray  and 
live  coals  placed  with  them  to  further  roast  them.  Then  the 
tray  is  shaken  and  lightly  tossed  to  aid  the  parching  process 
and  to  keep  the  tray  from  burning.  When  sufficiently 
roasted,  they  are  taken  from  the  tray  and  the  charcoal  and 
ashes  removed  by  tossing  (winnowing)  them  in  the  wind. 
They  are  then  eaten  after  removing  the  "hulls."  They  are 
also  ground  on  the  grinding  slabs,  hulls  and  all,  and  then 
the  pinon-nut-flour,  thus  made,  is  made  into  soups  and  also 
baked  like  bread  cakes,  which  is  good  to  eat. 

One  of  the  yucca  plants  (Yucca  baccata  Torr,  and  also 
Y.  glauca  Nutt.)  that  grows  in  the  region  has  a  pod  on  it 
which  looks  something  like  a  bean  pod  but  much  larger,  re- 
sembling a  banana  somewhat  in  shape.  This  pod  is  gath- 
ered by  the  women  and  roasted  before  the  fire  or  in  the 
ashes.  The  pod,  not  the  seed,  is  then  eaten,  after  the  epi- 
dermis is  removed.  It  has  a  slightly  burned  squash  taste, 
but  is  relished  by  the  Indians.  The  pod  of  this  plant  is  also 
dried,  after  it  is  split  open  and  the  seeds  and  seed-ribbon 
are  removed.  It  is  then  boiled  when  needed.  When  thus 
prepared,  it  has  a  pumpkin  flavor.  The  Apaches  also  use 
the  leaves  of  the  Yucca  baccata  for  strings,  splitting  the 
leaves  into  the  desired  size  of  the  strings.  In  earlier  times 
this  yucca  leaf  was  reduced  to  fiber  and  made  into  cloth, 


148  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOCIST.  Vol.    s,    No.    1 


ropes,  cords,  etc.     The  Y.  ylauca  leaf  is  also  used  as  "moc- 
casin strings,"  cords,  and  as  counters  in  various  games. 

A  certain  acorn  (Quercus  undulata,  var.),  called  chechil 
by  the  Apaches,  is  hulled  and  the  kernel  then  ground  and 
mixed  with  flour  or  meal  in  parts  one  to  five  and  made  into 
bread.  "Coffee"  is  also  made  out  of  this  preparation,  by 
browning  the  acorns ;  and  they  are  also  eaten  raw. 

Pumpkins  are  eaten  much  as  we  use  them.  The  common 
pumpkin  when  only  half  grown  is  also  cut  into  slices  and 
cooked  (boiled)  seeds  and  all  and  then  eaten  without  being 
salted.  Squash  is  also  eaten  in  the  same  way. 

Melons  are  raised  and  eaten  ripe  or  green,  rind  and  all. 
The  eating  of  green  melons  is  the  cause  of  much  sickness. 

The  leaves  of  a  certain  gourd  (Cucurbita  perennis  Gray?) 
that  grows  in  the  region  are  ground  up  and  used  as  "green 
paint"  in  making  sand  paintings.  Green  corn  is  cut  from 
the  cob  and  mashed  to  a  pulp  on  the  metates,  as  previously 
noted.  It  is  then  often  just  salted  and  made  into  a  cake 
and  baked  in  the  ashes.  The  wedding  cake,  when  one  is 
made,  and  the  coming-out  ceremonial  "cake"  are  also  made 
of  this  mashed  green  corn,  or  from  finely  ground  corn  meal. 
It  is  "sweetened"  with  a  yeast  preparation  made  from  the 
chewed  root  of  Euphorbia  serpyllifolia  Pers.,  very  similar 
to  the  way  the  Zuni,  Hopi,  and  Navajos  prepare  the  "cake" 
for  the  same  ceremonies.  The  dried  root  is  preserved  in 
sacks  for  this  use.  In  the  preparation,  a  piece  of  the  root 
is  chewed  and  kept  in  the  mouth  for  a  couple  of  days,  a 
virgin  usually  doing  this  stunt.  The  meal  is  then  chewed 
in  the  mouth  with  the  chewed-up  root,  or  in  the  "freshened 
mouth"  without  it,  to  sweeten  it.  Often  the  meal  is  just 
held  in  the  mouth  until  the  accumulation  of  the  salvia  forces 
her  to  eject  the  mass,  which  is  deposited  in  a  containing  ves- 
sel. This  is  continued  till  enough  meal  is  sweetened  for 
the  "cake."  The  Apaches  now  also  use  sprouted  corn  and 
partly  sprouted  wheat  to  produce  this  "sweetening."  The 
root  of  E.  serphy  Hi  folia  is  also  used  in  making  tiswin  and 
tulapai,  as  will  be  mentioned  later. 

Walnut  kernels  and  green  corn  are  also  mashed  together 
on  the  metates  and  baked  in  cake-form. 

The  roots  of  both  Yucca  boccata  Torr.  and  Y.  glauca  Nutt. 
are  used  as  "soapweed."  The  roots  are  collected  and  taken 


home  and  when  needed  they  are  pounded  up  into  pulp  and 
put  in  water,  which  is  soon  a  lather.  Baths  are  then  taken 
in  it.  It  is  used  especially  for  the  hair.  The  hair  is 
shampooed  in  it,  then  combed  with  a  stiff  (Bouteloua  gra- 
cilis  (H.  B.  K.)  Lag.)  blue  grama  grass  comb,  a  wisp  of 
stiff  grass  tied  in  a  bundle  by  a  cord  and  the  stiff  ends  used 
as  a  comb,  the  other  end  often  being  used  as  a  broom*.  The 
hair  is  then  hung  over  the  uplifted  arm  to  dry  in  the  sun, 
after  which  it  is  combed  and  done  up  according  to  the  cus- 
tom of  the  Apaches. 

The  hay  of  the  region  is  alfalfa  and  wild  hay.  There  is 
not  much  of  the  former  and  what  there  is,  is  put  up  some- 
what in  the  ordinary  way.  The  wild  hay,  Bouteloua 
gracilis  Lag.,  Eriocoma  cuspidata  Nutt.,  Sporobolus  stric- 
tus  (Scribn.)  Merrill,  Epicompes  rigens  Benth;  and  other 
grasses,  grows  in  bunches  as  bunch  grass  and  grasses  that 
fill  little  vales  in  the  mountains  and  along  the  canyon  sides. 
The  hay  is  sold  to  the  U.  S.  Indian  Department  and  for- 
merly to  the  Fort  and  is  cheaper  than  hay  that  is  shipped 
from  Holbrook  (?).  When  haying  time  comes,  the  In- 
dians go  to  the  hills  to  cut  hay.  As  the  hay  is  usually  in 
bunches  and  small  patches  it  is  cut  by  hand,  usually  by  the 
women  with  the  old  fashioned  sickle  and  even  with  butcher 
knives ;  if  a  scythe  is  used,  it  is  usually  wielded  by  the  men. 
When  a  sufficient  quantity  of  the  hay  is  cut,  dried  and  col- 
lected, often  being  carried  long  distances  by  arm  loads,  it  is 
loaded  on  burros  and  pack  horses  and  packed  to  the  agency 
or  military  post  for  sale ;  there  are  but  few  wagon  roads  on 
which  to  haul  the  hay.  It  is  a  picturesque  sight  to  see  a 
long  train  of  burros  descending  from  the  mountains  laden 
with  hay.  The  year  the  writer  was  at  the  Fort,  more  than 
200  tons  were  delivered  by  the  Indians  in  this  manner. 

In  the  old  times  the  seeds  of  these  same  grasses  and 
other  grasses  were  gathered,  ground,  and  made  into  bread. 
The  Apaches  told  the  writer  that  they  also  mixed  the 
ground  seeds  with  meal  and  water  and  made  the  mixture 
into  a  mush,  or  a  pone  which  they  baked  in  husks  or  in  the 
ashes. 


*  All  the  tribes  of  the  Plains  of  my  acquaintance  made  such  hair 
brushes  from  the  stiff  awns  of  Stipa  spartea  (needlegrass). — M.  R. 
Gilmore. 


150  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOG1ST.  Vol.    8,    X...    I 

In  the  making  of  baskets  and  water  jugs,  the  Apache 
women  gathers  a  great  quantity  of  willow  withes  or 
switches  of  the  younger  growth  of  Salix  irrorata  Anders 
and  stems  of  a  sumac  (Rhus  trilobata  Nutt.?).  These  she 
ties  in  bundles,  which  she  keeps  in  a  moist  place  till  used. 
When  needed,  she  splits  the  withes  into  halves  with  her 
fingers  and  teeth,  beginning  at  the  heavy  end.  Then  she 
scrapes  them  to  remove  the  bark  and  to  get  them  the  prop- 
er thickness;  the  sprouts  are  sometimes  steamed  to  aid  in 
the  splitting  process.  When  a  sufficient  number  is  pre- 
pared, the  basket  weaving  is  begun.  A  certain  number  of 
stiff  switch-sprouts  are  woven  into  a  circle  with  the  sticks 
for  a  base  or  bottom.  The  unsplit  sticks  are  then  let  pro- 
ject in  the  vertical  as  ribs  or  framework  around  which  the 
split  sticks  are  interwoven  and  intertwined,  often  so  closely 
as  to  make  the  receptacle  practically  water  tight.  Rib 
sticks  are  added  as  needed  with  the  enlarging  structure, 
and  if  the  article  is  to  be  a  jug,  they  are  cut  out  as  it  nar- 
rows-in.  To  finish  the  article,  the  rib  pieces  are  often  in- 
terwoven as  the  finishing  layer  and  the  whole  layer  tied 
down  with  buckskin  or  interwoven  slender  withes.  Some- 
times a  strong  withe  or  a  wire  is  added  to  make  it  strong, 
especially  in  the  case  of  the  carrying  baskets.  Ears  are 
also  interwoven  in  loop-form  on  the  opposite  sides  of  the 
article  for  the  attachment  of  straps,  if  the  article  is  to  be 
used  for  carrying  purposes.  In  the  making  of  the  tus,  or 
wide-mouthed  water  jug,  it  is  woven  as  carefully  as  pos- 
sible and  then  gummed  with  warm  pinon  (Pinus  edulis  En- 
gelm.)  pitch  both  inside  and  out.  A  stopper  for  it  is  then 
made  of  a  bunch  of  grass  or  small  brush,  as  needed.  In 
finishing  the  tus,  attachments  are  woven  in  the  opposite 
sides,  about  at  the  top  of  the  bulge,  for  the  fastening  of 
the  head  strap  used  in  carrying  it.  The  tus  vary  in  size, 
the  larger  carrying  ones  holding  about  five  gallons.  A 
large,  unpitched,  wide-mouthed  storage  jar  is  also  made, 
varying  in  size  from  a  few  gallons  to  a  fifty  gallon  size. 
The  baskets  vary  in  size  and  form  according  to  use.  The 
principal  kinds  are  carrying  baskets,  which  will  hold  about 
a  sack  of  grain,  and  the  smaller  baskets  made  for  sale. 
Flaring  trays  of  various  shapes  and  sizes  are  also  made  in 
large  numbers. 


Apui'hr    Plant    t'scs. 


The  gathering  of  the  cattail  flag  (Typha  latifolia  L.)  pol- 
len for  religious  use  is  done  by  the  women,  though  the 
writer  was  advised  that  some  of  it  was  collected  by  the 
members  of  the  medicine  fraternity.  This  pollen  is  called 
hadn-tin  or  hoddentin  by  the  Apaches  and  Tadatin  by  the 
Navajos.  It  is  used  in  every  important  ceremonial  per- 
formance. It  is  also  sprinkled  upon  the  surface  of  the 
water  before  crossing  a  stream. 

The  women  make  tiswin  or  tulapai  as  ordered  by  their 
husbands  or  by  the  band.  This  is  an  intoxicant  made  from 
corn  or  fermented  mescal  stalk  and  root.  If  made  from 
corn,  the  corn  is  soaked,  then  placed  under  the  sheepskin 
or  blanket  bed  and  slept  on  to  make  it  sprout.  The 
Apache  bed  is  usually  a  little  excavated  place  in  the  ground 
to  fit  the  hips  over  which  is  placed  the  bedding.  The  corn 
is  then  dried,  after  which  it  is  crushed  on  the  metates  into 
meal.  Then  various  perennial  weeds  and  roots  are  added, 
including  that  of  the  Euphorbia  serpyllifolia  Pers.,  also  a 
small  quantity  of  the  root-bark  of  the  "lignum-vitae"  tree, 
some  loco  weed,  the  peyote  bean  (the  same  part  of  the  cac- 
tus plant  as  is  used  in  the  Peyote  Society  ceremonies),  and 
also  the  juice  of  the  jimpson  weed  (Datura  meteloides  DC.), 
or  the  powdered  root  of  that  plant.  The  whole  is  then  put 
into  five  gallon  coal  oil  cans,  water  added  and  the  whole 
boiled  for  several  hours.  The  "white  water"  is  then  poured 
off  into  empty  cans  and  the  residue  recrushed  on  the  grind- 
ing slabs.  This  residue  is  then  put  into  the  "white  water" 
again  and  the  whole  reboiled.  It  is  then  set  away  and  let 
ferment  for  from  sixteen  to  twenty-four  hours  when  it  is 
ready  to  drink.  The  Indians  claim  that  it  is  nutritious, 
but  as  an  intoxicant,  it  is  proving  a  great  detriment  to  the 
tribe. 

Not  only  is  this  tulapai  or  tiswin  an  intoxicant  but  vari- 
ous herbs,  including  the  loco  and  jimpson  weed  are  often 
added  to  give  the  desired  effect,  although  they  undermine 
the  health.  This  drinking  also  causes  indolence  besides 
the  loss  of  the  grain  consumed.  While  drinking,  fights 
and  immoral  practices  that  otherwise  would  not  occur  are 
indulged  in.  The  drinking  not  only  lowers  the  Indian's 
resistence  against  disease,  but  the  exposure  often  indulged 


L52  WISCONSIN  A.RCHEOLOGIS1\  \'"1.    8,    bj 

in  while  drunk  brings  on  (or  conduces  to)  pneumonia  and 
consumption. 

An  Indian  in  one  valley  makes  his  wife  take  the  corn  the 
family  needs,  sprout  it,  and  turn  it  into  tulapai.  The  day 
it  ferments  he  invites  his  male  friends  from  far  and  near 
to  come  and  drink  with  him,  and  the  women  in  the  imme- 
diate vicinity  also  partake  of  the  liquor.  The  brawl  lasts 
throughout  the  night.  Men  and  women  get  drunk  and  do 
not  know  what  they  are  doing.  Besides  indulging  in  im- 
moral practices  and  fights,  they  lie  in  the  night  air  often 
entirely  naked,  for  hours  at  a  time  so  that  consumption 
and  pneumonia  often  decimate  the  tribe  as  a  result  of  such 
exposures.  The  next  day  there  is  a  tulapai  drinking  in 
another  valley  and  all  the  men  go  to  it,  while  the  women, 
weakened  by  the  previous  night's  brawl,  are  left  at  home 
to  do  the  farm  work  that  their  husbands  should  be  doing. 
The  next  day  there  is  a  drunk  in  another  valley,  and  so  on 
throughout  the  revolving  year. 

Drinking  mothers  often  give  this  tulapai,  in  large  quan- 
tities, to  their  children  even  when  babies.  As  an  example 
of  the  effects  of  tulapai  I  may  cite  the  instance  of  a  woman 
west  of  Fort  Apache  who  gave  her  two  weeks  old  baby 
tulapai  at  one  of  their  drunks  in  the  spring  of  1901.  The 
little  one  died  from  the  effects  before  morning. 

At  Cibicue  an  Indian  stabbed  another  in  the  bowel-region 
with  a  butcher  knife,  and  the  writer  had  to  put  his  intes- 
tines back  and  sew  him  up.  Another  Indian  stabbed  an- 
other nearly  to  death  on  Cibicue  creek  the  same  year. 
Two  chiefs  also  killed  each  other  while  drunk  there  some 
years  previous,  and  it  was  an  attempt  to  restore  these  two 
men  to  life  that  brought  on  the  battle  of  Cibicue  in  an  effort 
to  arrest  the  chief  medicine  man  Nakaidoklinni,  and  so  on. 
The  writer  has  seen  more  than  100  Apaches  drunk  on 
tulapai  at  one  time.  There  can  be  no  more  damaging  thing 
to  their  race.  Unless  stopped,  consumption  and  kindred 
diseases  will  in  time  end  this  race  of  once  hardy  people. 
The  writer  is  glad  to  note  that  the  Indian  Department  is 
using  strenuous  measures  to  suppress  the  tulapai  traffic 
and  has  special  officers,  both-  white  and  Indians,  for  that 
purpose. 

All  the  Apaches  have  fetishes  and  other  things  of  like 


Plant   Uses.  ir':: 

nature.  Some  are  arrow  heads  and  relics  from  the  ruined 
villages  of  the  region.  Feathers,  skins  of  birds  and  ani- 
mals, claws,  bear  feet,  shells  and  fossils  are  sometimes 
used  for  this  purpose.  Carvings  of  parts  of  trees  that 
lightning  has  struck,  the  wood  being  considered  sacred, 
also  scalps  of  people  killed  in  the  raids  of  the  long  ago, 
rock  crystals,  etc.,  are  used  for  the  same  purpose.  Many 
of  these  are  alleged  to  keep  their  fetish  power  if  rubbed 
with  blood  now  and  then.  Deer  or  human  blood  is  usually 
used.  The  wood  carvings  are  often  in  effigy  shape,  though 
in  miniature.  The  smaller  trinkets  are  often  worn  sus- 
pended over  the  chest  from  a  cord  surrounding-  the  neck. 
Claws,  bear  feet,  and  the  like  are  often  wrorn  as  beads  sus- 
pended from  the  neck.  They  are  also  often  inclosed  in  a 
buckskin  sack  and  worn  suspended  over  the  chest  or  tied  in 
the  clothing.  The  medicine  men  have  different  fetishes  for 
each  special  use.  The  Apaches  believe  that  these  fetishes 
give  power  in  the  sphere  in  which  the  fetish  is  supposed  to 
control,  even  conferring  supernatural  powers  to  the  medi- 
cine man.  There  are  fetishes  controlling  every  undertak- 
ing in  life,  also  those  that  control  sickness  and  death  and 
the  mysterious  powers  of  the  universe. 

The  medicine  bag  is  a  little  buckskin  sack  filled  with 
various  powders,  cat-tail  flag  pollen,  berries,  seeds,  and 
small  trinkets.  This  bag  is  concealed  somewhere  about  the 
clothing.  Its  contents  are  sprinkled  in  prayer  to  the  gods 
of  the  universe  and  over  altars  to  same,  over  people  in  the 
dances,  and  over  the  sick  in  the  medicine  ceremonies.  The 
Apache  thinks  this  "medicine"  has  the  power  to  carry  the 
prayers  of  men  to  the  deities  and  to  bring  about  the  result 
prayed  for. 

The  medicine  accoutrements  of  the  Apaches  are  their 
fetishes,  tokens,  medicine  bags  and  other  things  of  a  similar 
or  allied  nature.  Medicine  hats  and  various  forms  of  regalia 
and  the  things  of  war,  such  as  shields,  tomahawks,  bows  and 
arrows,  which  are  now  regarded  as  having  medicinal  value 
though  formerly  used  in  war,  also  medicine  staffs,  effigies, 
wooden  gods,  wooden  lizards,  wooden  snakes,  wooden  frogs, 
yucca  lath  wands,  yucca  lath  playing  sticks  used  in  the 
medicine  game,  yucca  lath  masked  hats,  the  three  dice- 
sticks  used  in  the  Setdilth  game,  medicine  hoops,  medicine 


154  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLQGIST,  Vol.    s,    No.    4 

canes,  and  many  other  things  are  used  in  doctoring  the 
sick.  These  things  are  considered  not  only  as  medicine  ac- 
coutrements, but  are  sacred  to  the  Indians;  and  it  is  with 
a  great  deal  of  reluctance  and  mental  pain  that  any  of  them 
will  be  parted  with. 

The  Apaches  are  a  much  diseased  people.  The  drinking 
of  so  much  Indian  whiskey  and  exposure  while  drunk,  filth 
and  sleepless  nights  at  medicine  ceremonies  are  breaking 
down  the  race.  The  principal  diseases  are  pneumonia  and 
tuberculosis  in  its  various  forms,  pneumonia  usually  being 
followed  by  consumption;  tracoma  and  other  eye  diseases 
and  much- stomach  trouble,  which  medicinal  practices  tend 
to  spread  rather  than  cure. 

As  remedies  for  diseases,  the  Apaches  also  effect  some 
cures  through  the  use  of  herbs  and  minerals.  For  pains 
in  the  back,  fits,  faints,  etc.,  the  patient  is  rubbed  with 
scorching  cedar  and  pinon  twigs,  or  burning  spruce  twigs. 
For  stomach  trouble,  the  root  of  the  common  reed  (Phrog- 
mites  communis  Trin.)  and  the  root  of  a  "calamus"  plant 
is  used.  The  tea  of  sassafras  bark  is  used  as  a  blood  reme- 
dy. For  gonorrhea  and  syphilis  they  take  a  tea  concocted 
from  Ephedra  nevadensis  S.  Wats,  which  colors  the  urine 
white.  For  these  same  two  diseases  they  take  certain 
quantities  of  the  saline  deposits  that  cover  the  muddy  bank 
of  Carrixo  creek,  which  seems  to  consist  of  sodium-magne- 
sium chloride,  sodium  sulphate  and  possibly  some  potas- 
sium iodine.  They  also  use  the  bark  of  several  herbs  and 
trees,  among  which  are  the  bark  of  Populus  tremuloides 
and  the  stems  of  Ephedra  nevadensis  Wats,  to  cure  ague, 
fevers  and  gonorrhea.  The  bark  and  herbs  are  pounded 
up,  crushed  into  a  semi-pulverulent  condition,  then  made 
into  a  tea  and  the  concoction  drunk  in  great  quantities.  In 
veneral  diseases  the  male  genitalia  is  wrapped  in  the  pul- 
verized decoction,  and  the  vagina  filled  with  it.  A  splint 
made  of  cedar  bark  is  also  sometimes  used  to  splint  frac- 
tures of  legs  and  arms.  As  a  remedy  for  diseases,  the 
medicine  game  is  also  played,  the  dice-sticks  being  yucca 
lath;  and  as  a  last  resort  the  sand-painting,  gunelpieya- 
yavachai  ceremonies  are  held,  ground  up  charcoal,  various 
colored  sand  rocks  and  green  leaves  being  the  principal 
paints  used  in  making  the  painting.  Following  the  said 


Apache  Plant  Uses.  155 

painting  ceremonies  comes  the  medicine  dance,  which  is 
the  final  act,  as  the  patient  usually  dies  soon  thereafter. 

LIST  OF  PLANTS  ACCORDING  TO  SCIENTIFIC  NAMES 

Agave  americana?  and  A.  decipiens'   Amaryllis  family. 

The  mescal  tubers  of  these  plants  are  baked  in  a  pit  oven 
and  eaten,  tasting  much  like  slightly  burned  squash.  A 
fermented  drink,  called  tiswin,  is  also  made  from  the  heart 
and  tubers  of  the  same  plants. 

Agropyron  repens  Beauv.  Blue  Joint  Grass.  Grass 
family.  The  seed  of  this  plant  was  formerly  eaten.  The 
grass  is  now  cut  for  hay. 

Allium  bisceptrum  Watson,  var.  Onion,  Lily  family. 
Bulbs  eaten,  both  raw  and  cooked. 

Alnus  tenuifolia  Nutt.  Alder.  Birch  family.  The  bark 
is  employed  in  dyeing  deerskin  and  other  skins  a  reddish 
brown. 

Amaranthus  albus,  A.  blitoides  S.  Wats  (Tumble  weed), 
and  A.  hybridus  paniculatus  (L.)  Uline  &  Bray  (Purple 
Amaranth) .  Amaranth  family.  The  seeds  of  the  first  two 
were  formerly  eaten,  and  the  flowers  of  the  last  were  used 
as  face  paint. 

Artemisia  tridentata  Nutt.  Sagebrush.  Composite- 
Thistle  family.  Used  as  tea  and  seasoning. 

Artemisia  wrightii  Gray.     Thistle  family.     Used  as  food. 

Asclepias  galioides  H.  B.  K.  Milkweed.  Milkweed  fam- 
ily. The  children  eat  the  first  buds  of  this  plant. 

Astragalus  diphysus  Gray.  Milk  Vetch.  Pea  family. 
The  pea  fruit  is  gathered  and  eaten  both  raw  and  cooked. 

Berberis  fremontii  Torr.  Barberry.  Barberry  family. 
Used  in  the  ceremonies,  because  of  its  yellow  wood. 

$Berula  erecta  (Huds.)  Colville.  Water  Parsnip.  Car- 
rot family.  Leaves  and  blossoms  were  occasionally  eaten 
in  the  old  times.  They  were  also  used  as  medicine. 

Bouteloua  gracilis  (H.  B.  K.)  Lag.  Blue  Grama.  Grass 
family.  Securely  wrapped  bunches  of  this  grass  serve  for 
several  purposes.  The  stump  end  is  used  as  a  hair  brush, 
while  the  other  end  is  used  as  a  broom,  when  a  brush  is  not 
used  for  that  purpose.  The  seed  of  this  plant  was  also 
eaten  in  the  old  times. 


156  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   4 

Castilleia  Integra  A.  Gray,  C.  miniata  Dougl.,  C.  parvi- 
flora  Bong.,  and  C.  minor  Gray.  Indian  Paint  brush.  Fig- 
wort  family.  The  bark  of  the  root  is  used  with  other  sub- 
stances in  coloring  various  kinds  of  skins,  especially  deer 
skin. 

ZCercocarpus  parvifolius  Nutt.  Mountain  Mahogany. 
Rose  family.  The  wood  of  this  plant  was  made  into  bows, 
and  powdered  charcoal,  made  from  it,  was  used  on  burns. 

Cereus  gigantea  and  other  Cereus  species.  Cactus  fam- 
ily. The  fruit  of  these  species,  which  is  usually  sweetish,  is 
collected  and  used  as  food,  often  being  made  into  a  kind  of 
butter. 

Chenopodium  leptophyllum  (Moq.)  Nutt.  (Pigweed  or 
Narrow-beaked  Lambs-quarter) ,  and  C.  incanum  Watson 
(Desert  Lambs-quarter).  Goosefoot  family.  The  seed  was 
ground  and  used  as  food  in  the  old  times.  The  young 
sprouts  were  also  boiled  with  meat  and  eaten. 

Chrysothamnus  bigelovii  (A.  Gray)  Greene.  Rabbit 
Brush.  Thistle  family.  Seed  ground  and  used  as  food. 
Blossoms  were  formerly  used  in  dyeing  yellow. 

Coreopsis  cardamine  folia  Torr:  &  Gray.  Thistle  family. 
Used  in  dyeing  things  a  dark  rich  red. 

$Cowania  mexicana  Don.  Cliff  Rose.  Rose  family.  Leaves 
used  as  medicine. 

ZCroton  texensis  (Klotzsch)  MuelL  Croton.  Spurge  fam- 
ily. A  tea  made  from  this  plant  is  used  for  stomach  trouble, 
and  as  a  purgative. 

Cucurbita  pepo  L.  Squash.  Gourd  family.  Used  as  food 
as  previously  described.  The  blossoms  of  the  squash  and 
pumpkins  were  also  eaten,  being  cooked  with  other  things, 
or  baked  as  parts  of  certain  kinds  of  cakes.  Watermelons 
are  also  highly  prized  by  the  Apaches,  being  eaten  whether 
ripe  or  green  and  eaten  rind  and  all. 

Cucurbita  perennis  Gray?  Gourd  family.  The  ground-up 
leaves  of  this  plant  are  used  as  "green  paint"  in  making 
sand  paintings. 

Cycloloma  artriplici folium  (Spreng.)  Coulter.  Winged 
Pigweed.  Goosefoot  family.  Flour  was  formerly  made  from 
the  seed  of  this  plant. 

Watura  meteloides  DC.  Jamestown  Weed,  Jimson  Weed, 
Thorn  Apple.  Nightshade  family,  The  juice  of  this  plant 


Apache  Plant   Uses.  157 

and  also  the  ground-up  flower  and  roots  are  used  as  a  disin- 
fectant. The  juice  or  ground-up  root  is  put  in  tulapai  to 
make  "heaven  and  earth  meet,"  and  the  straight  juice, 
mixed  with  water  and  let  ferment,  is  drunk  for  the  same 
purpose.  The  same  effect  is  also  obtained  by  eating  the 
root  and  blossom,  whether  fresh  or  dried.  The  powdered 
root  is  a  strong  narcotic,  and  is  used  in  the  religious-medi- 
cine ceremonies  to  produce  a  happy,  prophesying  state. 

This  plant  is  similarly  used  by  the  Navajos  and  Zuni.  A 
case  of  a  half  Piute-Navajo,  Natannie,  at  Kayenta,  Arizona, 
getting  drunk  on  the  Datura  root  and  being  delirious  for 
four  days  is  one  which  the  writer  and  other  white  men  had 
to  watch  to  keep  the  Indian  from  falling  into  the  fire  or 
committing  suicide. 

SDithyraea  ivislizeni  Engelm.  Spectacle-pod.  Mustard 
family.  Drunk  as  a  tea  in  some  of  the  medicine  ceremonies, 
producing  a  sort  of  intoxication  and  "much  talking,"  for 
which  effect  it  is  drunk.  It  is  also  used  as  an  external 
medicine.  The  entire  plant  is  pounded  up,  mixed  with  a 
little  warm  water  and  applied  externally  for  throat  trouble 
and  for  reducing  swellings. 

Epicampes  rigens  Benth.  Grass  family.  Seed  used  as 
food.  Grass  now  cut  as  hay. 

$Ephedra  nevadensis  S.  Wats.  Teamster's  Tea;  Mormon 
Tea.  Joint-fir  family.  A  tea,  made  from  the  stem  and 
leaves  of  this  plant,  is  drunk  as  a  beverage.  This  same 
tea  is  drunk  as  a  remedy  during  the  first  stages  of  syphilis. 
It  is  also  used  as  a  remedy  for  gonorrhea.  It  causes  the 
urine  to  be  whitish,  or  milky  in  color. 

The  Navajos  and  Zuni  also  use  the  tea  made  from  this 
plant  as  a  remedy  for  venereal  troubles.  The  Navajos  also 
use  it  for  kidney  complaints.  However,  it  is  not  given  the 
Navajo  women  as  a  remedy  for  venereal  diseases,  another 
plant  furnishing  a  remedy  for  these  diseases  in  their  case, 
a  remedy  that  makes  them  sterile  thereafter,  the  Navajos 
advise. 

Eriocoma  cuspidata  Nutt.  Grass  family.  Seed  used  as 
food  in  the  old  times.  The  grass  is  now  cut  for  hay. 

tEnogonum  jamesii  Benth.  Buckwheat  family.  Used 
as  medicine  and  in  the  medicine  ceremonies,  The  plant  is 
also  chewed  to  sweeten  the  saliva. 


158  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.   4 

Euphorbia  serpylli folia  Pers.  Spurge.  Spurge  family. 
Used  as  a  mouth  sweetener,  etc.,  as  previously  mentioned. 

ZHelianthus  annuus  L.  Sunflower.  Thistle  family.  Seeds 
were  made  into  flour  in  the  old  times.  This  plant,  with 
other  plants,  is  used  as  a  remedy  for  snake  bites.  The 
plants  are  crushed  together  on  the  metates  and  the  ground 
product  is  placed  on  the  wound. 

SJuniperus  californica,  var.  utahensis  (J.  utahensis) 
(Juniper)  ;  J.  monosperma  (Engelm.)  Sargent  (Cedar)  ; 
and  J.  occidentalis  Hook  (Cedar).  Juniper  family.  A  tea, 
made  of  the  leaves  of  the  trees  of  this  family,  was  used  for 
coughs  and  colds.  The  berries  were  also  boiled  and  eaten. 
The  tea  was  also  taken  by  women  previous  to  childbirth, 
it  being  supposed  to  cause  muscular  relaxation.  Scorch- 
ing juniper  and  cedar  twigs  are  also  rubbed  on  people,  as  a 
remedy  for  fits. 

Lactuca  pulchella  DC.  Wild  Lettuce.  Chicory  family.  A 
gummy  substance  from  the  root  is  used  as  chewing-gum. 
The  Navajos  and  Zuni  also  chew  this  gummy  material  as 
chewing-gum. 

Lavauxia  triloba  (Nutt.)  Spach.  Evening  Primrose. 
Evening  Primrose  family.  The  ground-up  root  was  occa- 
sionally used  as  food  in  the  old  times. 

-Linum  puberulum  (Engelm.)  Heller.  Yellow  Flax.  Flax 
family.  The  "juice  of  the  berry"  of  this  plant  is  used  as  eye 
medicine,  at  times. 

Lycopcrdon  sp.  Puffball.  Puff  ball  family.  Puff  balls,  just 
before  reaching  the  powdered  state,  and  mushrooms  are 
gathered  and  eaten,  but  their  preparation  is  unknown  to 
the  writer. 

$Malacothrix  glabrata.  Arizona  Dandelion.  Composite 
family.  Roots  used  as  a  blood  medicine. 

Mamillaria  sp.  Cactus  family.  After  the  removal  of  the 
outer  portion  the  inner  part  is  used  as  food,  and  is  good 
eating. 

VMentzelia  pumila  Torr  &  Gray.  Stick-leaf.  Loasa  family. 
A  very  common  pest  in  the  region.  The  powdered  root  is 
sometimes  used  as  medicine  for  constipation. 

zNicotiana  attenuata  Torr.,  and  N.  palmeri  Wild.?  Wild 
Tobacco.  Nightshade  family.  Smoked  in  the  medicine  cere- 


Apache  Plant  Uses.  159 

monies.  It  was  smoked  more  formerly  than  at  present, 
commercial  tobacco  taking  its  place. 

Opuntia  arborescens  Engelm.,  and  O.  whipplei  Engelm. 
Cane  Cactus.  Cactus  family.  The  spines  on  the  fruit  of  these 
plants  are  carefully  rubbed  off.  The  fruit  is  then  usually 
eaten  raw,  though  it  is  occasionally  stewed.  It  is  also 
sometimes  dried  for  winter  use. 

*Pentstemon  torreyi  Benth?  Bear-tongue.  Figwort  fam- 
ily. Used  as  magic  medicine. 

Phaseolus  angustissimus  A.  Gray.  Wild  Bean.  Pea  fam- 
ily. The  use  of  this  plant  was  not  learned. 

Phaseolus  vulgaris  L.  Bean.  Pea  family.  Beans  of  all 
kinds  are  eaten  by  the  Apaches. 

zPhragmites  communis  Tri.  Common  reed.  Grass  family. 
The  root  of  this  plant  is  used  as  medicine  for  stomach 
trouble,  diaorrhea,  and  kindred  diseases.  The  reed,  be- 
tween the  joints,  is  used  as  pipe  stems,  and  the  reed  stalk 
is  used  as  an  arrow  shaft  when  hunting  small  birds  with 
arrows.  The  reed  between  the  joints  is  also  used  as  a 
cigaret,  much  as  the  Navajos  use  it.  The  hollow  is  filled 
with  tobacco  and  ignited.  The  smoker  then  puffs  the  smoke 
in  turn  to  each  of  the  sacred  regions. 

Physalis  fendleri  A.  Gray.  Ground  Cherry.  Nightshade 
family.  The  fruit  of  this  plant  is  eaten  both  raw  and 
cooked,  though  not  eaten  as  much  as  formerly. 

-Pinus  edulis  Engelm.  Pinon.  Pine  family.  The  nut  of 
this  tree  is  eaten  raw  and  prepared  for  use,  as  previously 
described.  The  chewed  leaves  are  used  as  a  remedy  for 
venereal  diseases. 

SPolygonum  lapathi  folium  L.  Smart  weed.  Buckwheat 
family.  Used  as  medicine,  much  the  same  as  the  whites 
used  to  use  it. 

Populus  angusti folia  James,  and  P.  wislizeni  (S.  Wats) 
Sargent.  Cottonwood.  Willow  family.  The  buds  of  these 
trees  are  eaten,  or  used  as  chewing-gum.  They  are  also 
similarity  used  by  the  Navajos  and  Zuni. 

tPseudotsuga  mucronata  (Raf.)  Sudw.  (Douglas  Fir), 
and  p.  taxifolia  (Spruce).  Pine  family.  The  pitch  of  these 
two  trees  is  used  as  gum,  also  in  pitching  tusses,  etc.,  also 
for  coughs. 


160  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,   No.    4 

Psilostrophe  tagetina  (Nutt.)  Greene.  Thistle  family. 
A  yellow  dye  is  produced  from  the  blossoms. 

tPtiloria  tenuifolia  (Torr.)  Raf.  Chicory  family.  Said 
to  be  a  cure  for  rattle-snake  bite.  The  ground-up  powder 
of  the  dried  plant  is  applied  to  the  bite,  the  wound  being 
first  sucked  to  draw  out  the  poison. 

Quercus  undulata  Torr.,  var,  and  Q.  gambellii  Nutt. 
Rocky  Mountain  Oak.  Oak  family.  The  acorn  of  the  oak 
is  eaten,  as  previously  described.  The  bark  is  also  used  in 
tanning  skins. 

Rhus  trilobata  Nutt.  Sumac.  Sumac  family.  Used  in 
basket  weaving.  The  berries  were  also  eaten  in  the  old 
times. 

Ribes  inebrians  Lindl.,  and  other  Ribes  species.  Wild 
Currant.  Gooseberry  family.  The  fruit  is  eaten  both  raw 
and  cooked. 

Robinia  neo-mexicana  Gray.  Locust.  Pulse  family.  (Le- 
guminosae) .  The  beans  and  pods  are  eaten,  as  previously 
described. 

$Rumex  mexicanus  Weinn.  Dock.  Buckwheat  family. 
Used  as  a  sore-throat  remedy,  the  remedy  being  a  tea  made 
from  the  leaves.  The  tea  is  also  given  to  childless  women 
so  they  will  become  pregnant. 

Sambucus  racemosa  L.  Elder.  Honeysuckle  family.  The 
berries  are  eaten. 

Salix  irrorata  Anders.  Willow.  Willow  family.  Willow 
withes,  tied  together,  are  used  in  stirring  mush  and  other 
foods  that  are  being  cooked  over  the  fire.  The  poles  and 
hoops  used  in  the  pole  game  are  of  willow.  The  three 
dice  sticks  (throwing  sticks)  used  in  the  setdilth  game  are 
halves  of  green  willow.  The  split  withes  are  also  used  in 
basketry,  and  tepee  and  wick-e-up  thatching,  as  has  been 
previously  mentioned. 

ZSolanum  elaeagni folium  Cav.  Bull  Nettle.  Nightshade 
family,  also  S.  fendleri  A.  Gray,  of  the  same  family.  The 
former  is  used  as  medicine,  but  how  and  for  what  purpose 
was  not  learned.  The  latter  (the  native  potato)  is  eaten 
both  raw  and  cooked. 

Sporobolus  striatus  (Scribn.)  Merrill.  (Drop  Seed 
Grass),  and  S.  cryptoandrus  Gr.  Grass  family.  Used  in 
thatching. 


Apache  Plant  Uses.  1H1 

Svida  stolonifera  riparia  Rydb.  Dogwood.  Dogwood 
family.  Use  unknown  to  the  writer,  but  probably  con- 
nected with  the  medicine  ceremonies. 

Triticum  vulgar e  L.  Wheat.  Grass  family.  The  breads 
made  from  flour  have  been  previously  mentioned,  to  which 
the  reader  is  referred. 

ZTypha  lati folia  L.  Cat-tail  Flag.  Gat-tail  family.  The  use 
of  the  Cat-tail  flag  pollen  has  already  been  given.  The 
flags  are  used  in  thatching  the  tepees  and  wick-e-ups. 

Ustilago  zeae.  Corn  smut.  This  smut  is  boiled  and  eaten. 
Once  the  writer  saw  an  Apache  making  a  meal  on  smut  and 
wild  honey. 

SXanthium  commune  Britton.  Cocklebur.  Ragweed  fam- 
ily. In  the  old  times  the  seeds  of  this  plant  were  ground 
and  made  into  bread,  usually  being  mixed  with  meal.  A 
blood  medicine  was  also  made  from  the  roots  and  leaves  of 
this  plant. 

Yucca  baccata  Torr.  (Datil),  and  Y.  glauca  Nutt.  (Soap- 
weed).  Lily  family.  The  uses  which  are  made  of  these 
plants  have  been  previously  given  in  detail,  to  which  the 
reader  is  referred. 

Zea  mays  L.  Corn.  Grass  family.  The  various  uses  made 
of  corn  have  been  previously  given. 


LCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.    8,   No.   4 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 


Meetings 

A  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was  held  at  the 
Milwaukee  Public  museum  on  Monday  evening,  May  20,  1928. 
President  Huron  H.  Smith  occupied  the  chair.  In  the  absence  of 
Secretary  Charles  E.  Brown,  who  was  returning  from  attendance  at 
the  Conference  on  Midwestern  Archaeology  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri, 
Vice  President  W.  W.  Oilman  was  appointed  to  act  as  secretary. 
Mr.  Arthur  P.  Kannenberg  of  Oshkosh,  a  vice  president  of  the  So- 
ciety, presented  a  very  interesting  paper  on  Indian  Earthenware 
Vessels  in  which  the  described  particularly  a  series  of  these  now  in 
the  collections  of  the  Oshkosh  Public  museum.  This  paper  was 
afterward  discussed  by  the  members  present. 

Mr.  Roy  S.  Corwin  gave  an  interesting  illustrated  talk  on  The 
-Ohio  Valley-Arterial  Highway  of  Pioneers.  Dr.  Barrett  presented 
a  report  on  the  Conference  on  Midwestern  Archaeology  at  St.  Louis, 
and  President  Smith  a  report  on  the  meeting  of  the  Central  Section  of 
the  American  Anthropological  Association,  at  Evanston,  Mr.  Ru- 
dolph Boettger  exhibited  specimens  collected  from  Muskego  Lake 
sites. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board,  held  earlier  in  the  evening, 
there  were  elected  as  annual  members  of  the  Society  Clarence  Stark, 
E.  W.  Dieffenbach,  Karl  Aichelen,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  L.  L.  Greget, 
Dr.  N.  P.  Justin,  Arthur  Nolde,  D.  E  Roberts  of  Milwaukee,  and 
Iran  Otto  of  Fairwater.  Governor  Walter  J.  Kohler  was  elected  an 
honorary  member.  Princess  Chinquilla,  a  Cheyenne  woman,  and 
Albert  Thunder  and  Mike  White  Eagle,  members  of  the  Winnebago 
tribe,  were  elected  Indian  honorary  members.  Resolutions  on  the 
death  of  Mr.  William  H.  Vogel,  a  recently  deceased  vice  president  of 
the  Society,  prepared  by  a  special  committee,  the  Messrs.  Dr.  A.  L. 
Kastner,  Geo.  A.  West  and  Dr.  E.  G.  W.  Notz,  were  adopted.  Mr. 
West  reported  that  Mr.  Walter  Schroeder  had  generously  agreed  to 
place  on  the  Hotel  Schroeder  at  Milwaukee  a  tablet  marking  the 
site  of  the  Potawatomi  Indian  village  once  located  there.  This  at  the 
request  of  the  special  committee,  Messrs.  C.  E.  Brown,  Geo.  A.  West 
and  J.  G.  Gregory,  appointed  to  urge  the  marking  of  this  and  other 
local  Indian  villages. 

The  Messrs.  Vetal  Winn,  Louis  Pierron,  Anton  Sohrweide,  and 
Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  were  appointed  to  report  on  the  condition  of  the 
existing  Milwaukee  County  Indian  mounds,  and  the  desirability  of 
preserving  and  marking  those  at  present  unprotected  and  unmarked. 
The  Messrs.  Winn,  Notz,  Rev.  Thomas  M.  Schmitz  and  Milo  C.  Rich- 
ter  were  appointed  a  committee  to  report  on  the  condition  of  the 
mounds  preserved  in  State  Fair  Park  at  West  Allis.  Mr.  Robert  P. 
Ferry  was  authorized  to  make  further  improvements  at  Aztalan 
Mound  Park. 

The  directors  again  voiced  their  interest  in  the  movement  begun 
by  the  History  and  Landmarks  Committee,  Wisconsin  Federation  of 
Women's  Clubs,  to  preserve  the  old  U.  S.  Indian  Agency  House  at 
Portage.  Messrs.  Edward  F.  Richter,  Chas.  G.  Schoewe  and  W.  W. 
Gilman  were  appointed  a  committee  to  cooperate  in  this  worthy  un- 
dertaking. Appointments  of  several  members  and  others  to  assist  in 
archaeological  researches  in  several  counties  were  made. 

An  invitation  extended  by  Mr.  Robert  J.  Kieckhefer  to  hold  a  meet- 


Archeolog-ical  Notes.  163 

ing  at  this  woodland  preserve   at  Brookfield,  on   Saturday,  June  15, 
was  accepted. 

An  invitation  received  from  the  Winnebago  County  Archeological 
and  Historical  Society  to  attend  the  unveiling  of  a  tablet  on  the  site 
of  the  Grignon-Porlier  trading  post  at  Butte  des  Morts  on  June  16, 
was  also  accepted. 

The  Eighth  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Central  Section,  American  An- 
thropological Association  was  held  at  Harris  Hall,  Northwestern  Uni- 
versity, Evanston,  Illinois,  on  Friday  and  Saturday,  May  10  and  11, 
1929.  Dr.  Carl  E.  Guthe,  of  Ann  Arbor,  president  of  the  Association, 
conducted  the  meetings. 

Of  twenty-five  very  interesting  papers  presented  at  this  meeting, 
nine  were  presented  by  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society. 

These  were  as  follows: — Comparison  of  the  Upper  Palaeolithic  of 
Algeria  with  that  of  France,  Dr.  Geo.  L.  Collie;  Plants  Used  by  the 
White  Mountain  Apache  of  Arizona,  Dr.  Albert  B.  Reagan;  Notes  on 
the  Natives  of  Africa,  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett;  Ethnobotany  of  the  Winne- 
bago Indians,  Huron  H.  Smith;  The  Isle  Royale  Archeological  Ex- 
pedition, Geo  A.  West;  The  Algonquin  in  Iowa;  Prof.  Chas.  R. 
Keyes;  Cartographic  Symbols  for  Archeological  Survey  Maps,  Charles 
E.  Brown ;  Maps — New  and  Old  of  the  Great  Lakes  Region,  Dr.  W. 
B.  Hinsdale,  and  Megalithic  Monuments  of  Madagascar,  Prof.  Ralph 
Linton. 

Mr.  George  R.  Fox,  director  of  The  Warren  Foundation,  Three 
Oaks,  Michigan,  is  the  very  efficient  secretary-treasurer  of  the  Cen- 
tral Section. 

On  the  afternoon  of  Saturday,  June  15,  a  field  meeting  of  Milwau- 
kee and  other  members  .of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was 
held  at  the  woodland  nature  preserve  of  Mr.  Robert  J.  Kieckhefer,  at 
Brookfield,  in  Waukesha  County.  Among  those  who  were  in  attend- 
ance at  this  gathering  of  archeologists  were,  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner, 
Chas.  G.  Schoewe,  Charles  E.  Brown,  Huron  H.  Smith,  Edward  F. 
Richter,  Joseph  Ringeisen,  T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Theodore  T.  Brown,  Dr. 
Frank  Ehlman,  Alfred  R.  Rogers,  Edward  Grobben,  Irving  McHenry, 
Dr.  William  H.  Brown,  Frank  Ames  and  Richard  Phillip.  An  op- 
portunity was  given  to  view  the  fine  log  cabin  retreat  which  is  being 
erected  on  the  edge  of  this  large  woodland  preserve  and  to  visit  the 
Indian  wigwams,  tipis,  and  other  structures  erected,  and  the  woodland 
trails  laid  out  by  Mr.  Oliver  Lemere.  A  campfire  supper  was  served 
by  Mr.  Kieckhefer.  The  meeting  was  in  every  respect  a  most  en- 
joyable and  interesting  one.  An  old  Indian  camp  site  is  located  in 
one  of  the  Kieckhefer  fields,  which  borders  on  the  Fox  (Pishtaka) 
river.  Near  at  hand  are  the  well  known  Showerman  Indian  mounds. 

The  Winnebago  County  Archeological  and  Historical  Society  on  the 
afternoon  of  Sunday,  June  16,  1929,  unveiled  a  boulder  monument  on 
the  site  of  the  old  Grignon-Porlier  fur-trading  post,  on  the  Overton 
farm  at  Butte  des  Morts.  A  large  company  of  members  of  the  so- 
ciety and  of  friends  from  Oshkosh  and  neighboring  cities  and  vil- 
lages were  present  during  the  very  interesting  ceremonies.  Miss 
Gene  Sturtevant,  corresponding  secretary  of  the  society  lead  the  com- 
pany in  singing  at  the  opening  of  the  program.  President  Robert  J. 
Barnes  introduced  the  speakers.  Mr.  George  Overton  gave  a  very 
interesting  account  of  the  early  history  of  the  region  and  of  the  trad- 
ing post  which  was  situated  on  one  of  the  fields  of  his  farm  on  the 
Lake  Butte  des  Morts  shore.  Three  young  people  of  the  Overton 
family  unveiled  the  monument.  Following  the  unveiling  Mr.  Charles 
E.  Brown,  secretary  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  delivered 


164  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    8,  No.   4 

an  address  on  "Augustin  Grignon,  Fur  Trader",  in  which  he  paid  a 
fine  tribute  to  the  memory  of  this  most  noted  of  French  traders," 
whose  influence  during  the  early  years  of  the  nineteenth  century  ex- 
tended from  Green  Bay  to  the  Mississippi  River,"  and  whose  very 
interesting  recollections  the  State  Historical  Society  published.  An- 
other song,  directed  by  Miss  Sturtevant,  closed  the  program.  Many 
of  those  attending  the  dedication  afterwards  ate  their  picnic  suppers 
together  on  the  lawn  of  the  hospitable  Overton  farm  home.  Here 
Mr.  Overton  displayed  a  large  collection  of  American  trade  imple- 
ments and  Indian  stone  implements  collected  from  the  site  of  the  old 
trading  post.  Some  of  those  present,  under  the  guidance  of  Mr. 
Thomas  Petford,  made  a  visit  to  a  number  of  plots  of  old  Indian  gar- 
den beds  in  the  pasture  of  the  old  Petford  farm.  Some  of  these  were 
reported  to  have  had  growing  crops  upon  them  when  the  owner's 
father  came  as  a  pioneer  settler  to  the  region.  The  monument  erec- 
ted by  Mr.  Overton  to  mark  the  old  post  site  is  unique  among  boulder 
markers  in  Wisconsin.  It  consists  of  a  pyramid  of  large  boulders 
firmly  cemented  together  on  the  top  of  which  a  large  upright  boul- 
der has  been  placed.  This  bears  an  artistic  bronze  tablet.  Mr.  Arthur 
P.  Kannenberg  was  Mr.  Overton's  principal  assistant  in  erecting  this 
fine  monument  which  stands  by  the  side  of  the  Oshkosh  to  Butte  des 
Morts  highway. 

The  Conference  on  Midwestern  Archaeology  arranged  by  the  Com- 
mittee on  State  Archaeological  Surveys,  Division  of  Anthropology 
and  Psychology,  National  Research  Council,  was  held  at  Hotel  Cor- 
onado,  St.  Louis,  on  Friday  and  Saturday,  May  17  and  18,  1929. 

The  meeting  began  with  an  open  meeting  of  the  Committee  on 
State  Archaeological  Surveys,  at  which  various  matters  connected 
with  the  surveys  in  different  states  were  discussed.  Papers  were  pre- 
sented by  Dr.  Warren  K.  Moorehead,  Dr.  Greenman,  Peter  Brannon, 
Dr.  S.  L.  Barrett  and  W.  C.  McKern.  In  the  afternoon  a  visit  was 
made  to  Monks  Mound  of  the  Cahokia  Mound  Group  at  East  St. 
Louis,  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  Moorehead.  In  the  evening  H.  C. 
Shetrone,  director  of  the  Ohio  State  Museum,  gave  an  illustrated  lec- 
ture on  "The  Ancient  Indians  of  the  Mississippi  Valley"  in  the  audi- 
torium of  the  Medical  Society  building. 

The  Saturday  program  included  papers  on  "The  Conservation  of 
Public  Sites  by  Prof.  Fay  Cooper-Cole,  on  "The  importance  of  Sys- 
tematic and  Accurate  Methods  of  Investigation"  by  Dr.  F.  W. 
Hodge,  "The  Values  of  Prehistoric  Sites  to  the  States  in  Which 
They  Lie",  by  Dr.  Arthur  C.  Parker,  and  "The  Human  Interest  of 
Archaeology",  by  Dr.  Clark  Wissler.  All  of  these  papers  were  ful- 
ly discussed.  A  banquet  was  served  in  the  evening. 

The  arrangement  of  this  fine  meeting  of  American  archeologists 
reflects  great  credit  on  Dr.  Knight  Dunlap,  chairman  of  the  Division, 
and  on  Dr.  Carl  E.  Guthe,  chairman  of  the  Committee,  which  con- 
sists of  the  Messrs.  Peter  A.  Brannon,  Amos  W.  Butler,  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Roland  B.  Dixon,  Frederick  W.  Hodge,  Chas.  R.  Keyes,  A. 
V.  Kidder,  Warren  K.  Moorehead,  and  H.  C.  Shetrone. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  good  obtained  from  this  Conference  was  not 
the  scholarly  papers  read,  or  the  discussions  which  followed,  but  the 
personal  contacts  which  many  archeologists  from  the  Middle  West, 
the  East,  the  South  and  West  were  thus  enabled  to  thus  make  with 
each  other.  Of  the  representatives  from  the  Southern  and  Western 
states  many  brought  with  them  fine  collections  of  interesting  speci- 
mens which  they  exhibited  in  their  hotel  rooms  after  the  meetings. 

Among  the  many  who  were  in  attendance,  and  who  are  not  else- 
where mentioned,  were  Dr.  Calvin  Brown  and  George  Williams  of 
Mississippi,  Dr.  S.  C.  Dellinger,  Harry  J.  Lemley  and  Jay  L. 


Archeologieal  Notes. 


Taylor  of  Arkansas,  Dr.  Franz  Blom  of  Louisiana,  Prof.  J.  E.  Pearse 
of  Texas,  E.  E.  Baird  and  Dr.  F.  P.  Titherington  of  Missouri,  P.  E. 
Cox  of  Tennessee,  William  Webb  of  Kentucky,  Lawrence  K.  Fox 
and  W.  H.  Over  of  South  Dakota,  G.  F.  Will  of  North  Dakota,  Wil- 
loughby  M.  Babcock  of  Minnesota,  Geo.  R.  Fox  and  Dr.  W.  B.  Hins- 
dale  of  Michigan,  H.  K.  Putnam  of  Iowa,  Dr.  Don  C.  Dickson  of  Illi- 
nois, and  Theodore  Brown  of  Wisconsin. 

On  Friday,  June  14,  1929  (Flag  Day),  a  fine  bronze  tablet  mounted 
on  a  huge  glacial  boulder  was  formally  unveiled  on  the  site  of  a 
group  of  four  prehistoric  Indian  effigy  and  other  mounds  located  in 
the  new  Soldiers'  Memorial  plot  of  Forest  Hill  Cemetery,  at  Madison, 
by  the  ladies  of  John  Bell  Chapter,  D.A.R.  Mr.  Charles  E.  Brown, 
director  of  the  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  delivered  the  un- 
veiling address. 

These  mounds  are  the  remaining  earthworks  of  a  group  of  seven 
formerly  located  here  and  which  were  first  surveyed  by  Dr.  A.  B. 
Stout,  for  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  on  July  4,  1905.  Aft- 
er lying  in  a  neglected  state  for  years  the  preservation  of  these 
mounds  was  urged  upon  the  cemetery  board  by  the  landmarks  com- 
mittee of  the  Chapter,  at  Mr.  Brown's  suggestion  and  their  restora- 
tion and  preservation  secured.  Of  the  effigies  two  are  fine  examples 
of  the  panther  type,  one  having  a  length  of  121  and  the  other  of  163 
feet.  A  linear  mound,  in  line  with  these,  has  a  length  of  115  feet. 
A  small  wild  goose  effigy  is  to  be  restored.  These  mounds  are  beau- 
tifully located  for  public  inspection  in  a  fine  grove  of  tall  oak  trees. 

On  Saturday,  July  8,  a  pilgrimage  was  made  by  a  large  number  of 
representatives  of  state  and  county  historical  societies  to  the  old  U. 
S.  Indian  Agency  House  on  the  Fox  River,  at  Portage.  This  was 
conducted  under  the  auspices  of  the  Committee  on  History  and  Land- 
marks of  the  Wisconsin  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs,  of  which  Mrs. 
Charles  E.  Buell  of  Madison,  is  the  present  chairman.  The  arrang- 
ments  for  the  meeting  were  made  by  a  Madison  committee  consisting 
of  Mr.  Theodore  T.  Brown,  chairman,  Mr.  Burt  Williams,  Mrs.  E. 
H.  Van  Ostrand,  and  Mr.  Albert  O.  Barton.  A  local  committee,  of 
which  Mr.  H.  E.  Andrews  was  chairman,  cooperated  with  the  Madi- 
son Committee. 

The  members  of  the  pilgrimage  gathered  beneath  the  three  great 
elms  on  the  Agency  House  lawn  at  noon  and  here  a  picnic  lunch  was 
served.  The  program  consisted  of  addresses  by  the  following:  — 
Judge  Chester  A.  Fowler,  "Early  Wisconsin  History";  Burt  Wil- 
liams, "The  Plan  Proposed  for  Preserving  the  Old  Agency  House"; 
Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  "The  Historic  Significance  of  the  Agency 
House";  Col.  Howard  Greene,  "State  Landmarks",  Charles  E.  Brown, 
"The  Present  Need  of  Preserving  Additional  Historic  Sites;"  and  H. 
E.  Andrews,  "Early  Life  Within  the  Old  Agency  House." 

The  plan  of  various  organizations  for  preserving  the  old  Indian 
Agency  House,  beneath  whose  roof  Mrs.  John  H.  Kinzie  wrote  "Wau- 
Bun",  is  the  most  important  historical  undertaking  now  before  the 
people  of  the  state. 

The  Michigan  State  Archaeological  Society  held  a  two-day  meet- 
ing at  Three  Oaks,  on  June  24  and  25,  which  was  very  well  attended. 

Among  the  many  interesting  papers  presented  was  one  by  Mr.  Ed- 
ward Stevens  of  Kalamazoo  who  gave  an  account  of  a  state  archaeo- 
logical map  which  he  had  prepared,  and  exhibited  a  section  showing 
the  Indian  village  sites,  mounds  and  trails  of  southwestern  Michi- 
gan. Dr.  Alvin  LaForge  of  Chicago  presented  a  report  on  the  Isle 
Royale  Archaeological  Expedition,  of  which  he  was  a  member.  Dr. 


166  WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Carl  E.  Guthe  gave  an  illustrated  talk  on  "The  Hidden  Story  of  the 
Indian".  Mr.  Geo.  R.  Fox,  Mrs.  Vina  S.  Adams  of  Battle  Creek, 
Robert  Burgh  of  Three  Oaks,  Dr.  H.  T.  Montgomery  of  South  Bend, 
Mr.  L.  Ben  Reber  of  Royalton,  Mr.  Wilbur  D.  Marshall  of  Paw-Paw, 
Mrs.  Fred  Dustin  of  Saginaw  and  Mr.  Michael  Williams  also  pre- 
sented interesting  papers. 

On  the  second  day  of  the  meeting  a  pilgrimage  was  made  to  the 
Warren  Woods,  the  Warren  Dunes,  and  to  Indian  village  sites  at 
Glendora  Corner,  Painterville,  Bear  Cave  and  near  Three  Oaks. 

The  indoor  meetings  were  held  in  the  Chamberlain  Memorial  Mu- 
seum. Mr.  Geo.  R.  Fox  was  re-elected  president  of  the  Society  and 
Mr.  Edward  Stevens,  secretary  treasurer,  Mr.  Fred  Edinger  was 
elected  vice-president. 

On  Decoration  Day,  May  30th,  the  Geneva  Lake  Historical  So- 
ciety unveiled  a  metal  tablet  marker  on  the  site  of  the  grave  of  one 
of  the  wives  of  the  early  Potawatomi  chief  Big  Foot  at  Williams 
Bay.  Simon  Kahquados,  an  aged  chief  of  the  Forest  County  band, 
whose  mother  was  a  Williams  Bay  Indian  woman,  delivered  the  prin- 
cipal address  on  this  occasion.  A  large  number  of  citizens  and 
others  were  present.  Dr.  Paul  B.  Jenkins  deserves  particular  praise 
for  his  activity  in  bringing  about  the  marking  of  historical  sites 
about  beautiful  Lake  Geneva.  % 

On  Saturday,  July  13,  Mr.  Charles  E.  Brown  conducted  the  annual 
excursion  of  University  of  Wisconsin  Summer  Session  students, 
nearly  150  participating  in  the  pilgrimage.  Two  steamboats  made 
the  circuit  of  Lake  Mendota  landing  at  the  State  Hospital  grounds, 
Morris  Park,  West  Point  and  the  University  farm  where  features  of 
scenic,  archeological  and  historic  interest  were  visited.  Dr.  Louise 
P.  Kellogg,  Mr.  H.  R.  Briggs  and  Chief  Albert  Thunder,  a  Winne- 
bago  Indian,  were  the  speakers  at  the  several  points  visited.  At 
West  Point  the  company  were  entertained  by  a  quartette  of  Sioux 
Indian  singers  who  came  from  the  pageant  ground  at  Kilbourn  for 
this  purpose. 

New  Publications 

Mr.  George  A.  West  is  the  author  of  a  monograph  bearing  the 
title,  "Copper  :Its,  Mining  and  Use  by  the  Aborigines  of  the  Lake 
Superior  Region",  and  which  is  published  by  the  Milwaukee  Public 
Museum.  Part  1  of  this  bulletin  is  devoted  to  a  very  interesting  re- 
port on  the  McDonald-Massee  Isle  Royale  Expedition  of  1928  of  which 
Mr.  West  and  Mr.  Geo.  11.  Fox  were  the  archoeologist  members. 
Part  II  is  devoted  to  a  consideration  of  "Prehistoric  Copper  Mining," 
and  Part  III  to  "Aboriginal  Copper  Artifacts".  This  bulletin  is  well 
illustrated.  The  author  acknowledges  the  assistance  given  in  its  pre- 
paration by  many  fellow  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeclogical 
Society,  and  of  other  investigators  in  this  interesting  field. 

Mr.  West  has  been  a  devoted  investigator  of  Wisconsin  archaeolo- 
gical history  for  many  years.  We  expect  to  often  refer  to  his  report 
in  future  issues. 

The  Museum  of  the  American  Indian,  Heye  Foundation,  New  York, 
has  published  a  fine  monograph  on  "Beads  and  Beadwork  of  the 
American  Indians",  by  William  C.  Orchard,  being  a  study  based  on 
specimens  in  that  institution.  In  the  introduction  of  this  contribu- 
tion the  author  says: — "Beads  owe  their  origin  to  the  desire  by  prim- 
itive man  for  personal  adornment;  but  so  ancient  are  they  that  at- 
tempts to  trace  their  earliest  sources  have  thus  far  been  futile.  So 


Archeological  Notes.  167 

far  as  the  New  World  is  concerned,  beads  in  a  great  variety  of 
shapes  and  materials  have  been  found  on  prehistoric  sites  almost 
everywhere,  and  some  of  them  are  undoubtedly  of  great  age.  It  is 
therefore  quite  evident  that  early  aborigines  of  the  Western  Hemis- 
phere were  quite  familiar  with  the  use  of  beads  for  purposes  of 
adornment,  in  some  cases  as  potent  charms  and  in  others  as  a  medium 
of  exchange.  But  many  of  the  uses  to  which  beads  have  been  put  by 
early  man  can  only  be  surmised.  Their  use  was  and  is  worldwide." 

Bulletin  86  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology  is  a  monograph  by  Frances 
Densmore  on  "Chippewa  Customs."  It  is  a  very  welcome  addition  to 
our  knowledge  of  the  customs  of  the  people  of  this  numerous  Ameri 
can  Indian  tribe,  and  presents  information  gathered  among  these 
Indians  in  Minnesota,  Wisconsin  and  Canada.  Chapters  are  devoted 
to  the  results  of  a  study  of  their  history,  totemic  system,  dwellings, 
clothing,  food,  life  cycle,  dreams,  Midewiwin,  games,  and  industries. 
Every  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  should  secure 
a  copy  of  this  report  while  it  is  available. 

Professor  Warren  K.  Moorehead  is  the  author  of  a  fine  report  on 
"The  Cahokia  Mounds",  this  presenting  an  account  of  the  explora- 
tions carried  on  at  this  great  group  of  Indian  earthworks  located  in 
the  American  Bottoms,  near  the  city  of  East  St.  Louis,  during  the 
years  1922,  1924  and  1927.  The  "Mound  Technique"  is  by  Dr.  Moore- 
head's  able  assistant,  Jay  L.  B.  Taylor.  Part  II  of  this  report  con- 
sists of  a  paper  on  "The  Geological  Aspects  of  Some  of  the  Cahokia 
(Illinois)  Mounds"  by  Morris  M.  Leighton,  chief  of  the  Illinois  Geo- 
logical Survey.  Dr.  Frank  C.  Baker  has  made  a  report  on  "The  Use 
of  Molluscan  Shells  by  the  Cahokia  Mound  Builders."  The  Cahokia 
report  is  published  by  the  University  of  Illinois. 

Among  other  recent  anthropological  publications  is  one  on  "Poly- 
chrome Guanaco  Cloaks  of  Patagonia",  by  S.  K.  Lothrop,  printed  by 
the  Museum  of  the  American  Indian.  Lewis  H.  Morgan  Chapter, 
The  New  York  State  Archeological  Association,  has  published  a  bul- 
letin, "Notes  on  Eock  Crevice  Burials  in  Jefferson  County  at  Point 
Peninsula."  The  Green  Bay  Historical  Society  has  printed  a  bulletin 
on  "Fort  Howard  (1824-1832).  This  is  one  of  the  last  papers  print- 
ed by  our  late  co-worker,  Mr.  Arthur  C.  Neville  of  Green  Bay.  A 
University  of  Wisconsin  Summer  Session  leaflet  on  "Insect  Lore",  is 
written  by  Charles  E.  Brown.  George  B.  Catlin  has  contributed  to 
the  spring  number  of  the  Michigan  History  Magazine  a  paper  on 
"Michigan's  Early  Military  Roads."  The  National  Museum  of  Can- 
ada, Ottawa,  has  issued  a  report  of  the  activities  of  the  museum  for 
1926.  It  contains  anthropological  papers  by  Harlan  I.  Smith  and  D. 
Jenness.  Dr.  W.  B.  Hinsdale  has  published  in  the  report  of  the 
Michigan  Academy  of  Science  a  paper  on  "Indian  Mounds,  West 
Twin  Lake,  Montmorency  County,  Michigan". 

Researches 

Mr.  T.  M.  N.  Lewis  has  explored  with  interesting  results  the 
Heger  group  of  Indian  mounds  near  Aztalan  in  Jefferson  County. 
Mr.  M.  K.  Hulburt  has  made  a  re-survey  of  the  Brooks  group  of 
mounds  near  Reedsburg  and  reported  on  a  number  of  village  and 
camp  sites  in  Sauk  County.  Mr.  J.  P.  Schumacher  has  reported  on 
certain  village  sites  and  burial  places  in  Manitowoc,  Kewaunee  and 
Shawano  counties.  Mr.  L.  R.  Cooper  excavated  an  effigy  mound  at 
Morris  Park.  Mr.  C.  E.  Brown  has  prepared  a  report  on  the  exca- 


168  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   8,  No.   4 

vation  of  a  grave  at  Crystal  Lake  and  the  excavation  of  a  bird  effigy 
mound  at  Mendota.  Mr.  T.  T.  Brown  is  engaged  in  preparation  of 
trails  maps.  Dr.  Gerend  has  supplied  information  concerning  the  lo- 
cation and  character  of  mounds  and  sites  in  Wood  and  Portage  coun- 
ties. Messrs.  Geo.  Overton  and  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  are  engaged  in 
surveys  and  investigations  in  Winnebago  County.  Rev.  F.  P.  Day- 
ton is  continuing  his  researches  in  the  region  about  New  London. 
Other  members  and  friends  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
are  sending  reports  of  new  discoveries  and  investigations  to  Secre- 
tary C.  E.  Brown  at  Madison.  Other  members  are  requested  to  en- 
gage in  field  work,  as  the  opportunity  offers  during  the  summer  and 
autumn,  and  to  send  to  him  the  results  of  their  surveys  and  investi- 
gations. Report  forms  will  be  supplied  on  request. 


©ctofcet,  1929 

NEW   SERIES 


Jfto.  I 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 
MILWAUKEE 


tBfje 


W.  9 


©ttober,  1929 

NEW  SERIES 


J?o.  I 


INDIAN  VILLAGE  AND  CAMP  SITES 

OF  THE 

LOWER  ROCK  RIVER  VALLEY 
IN  WISCONSIN 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec. 
1103,  Act,  Oct.  3,  1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


arcfjeologtcal  g>ocfetp 
Jflfltoaufcee, 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

H.  H.  Smith 


VICE-PRESIDENTS 


C.  G.  Schoewe 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand 

A.  T.  Newman 


Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 
W.  W.  Oilman 
Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 


A.  P.  Kannenberg 


Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett 
M.  C.  Richter 
Vetal  Winn 


DIRECTORS 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer 
E.  F.  Richter 
L.  R.  Whitney 
W.  C.  McKern 


Dr.E.J.W.Notz 
Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner 
Geo.  A.  West 


TREASURER 

,   G.M.  Thorne 
National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  G.  Mc- 
Lachlan,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  C.  E.  Brown,  W.  C.  McKern,  T.  L. 
Miller,  A.  W.  Pond,  Geo.  Overton,  Frank  Thomlinson,  T.  M.  N. 
Lewis  and  M.  F.  Hulburt. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— W.  W.  Gilman,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  Dr. 
A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Mrs.  Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Louise 
P.  Kellogg,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Main,  R.  A.  Maas,  J.  W.  Norris,  Mrs. 
F.  R.  Melcher,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  and  G.  L.  Pasco. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  A.  C. 
Neville,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  P.  Hamilton,  William  Horlick, 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Olson,  Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner  and  R.  S.  Van  Handel. 

MEMBERSHIP— C.  G.  Schoewe,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  A.  R.  Rogers, 
A.  C.  Cloos,  Vetal  Winn,  C.  G.  Weyl,  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner,  W. 
P.  Morgan,  A.  E.  Koerner,  Louis  Pierron,  C.  Baerwald  and  D.  S. 
Rowland. 

MAN  MOUND  PARK— M.  F.  Hulburt,  E.  A.  Gilman  and  Miss  Emma 
Richmond. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK— R.  P.  Ferry,  M.  G.  Troxell,  and  W.  W. 
Gilman. 

PUBLICITY— A.  O.  Barton,  Mrs.  W.  F.  Bauchle,  M.  C.  Richter,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre  and  R.  K.  Coe. 

BIOGRAPHY— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  C.  G.  Schoewe  and  H.  H.  Smith. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologrist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce.  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  9,  No.  1,  New  Series 


ARTICLES 

Page 
Indian  Village  and  Camp   Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in 

Wiscnsin,  Charles  E.  and  Theodore  T.  Brown 7 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Chief  Simon  Kaquados,  Prairie  Potawatomi Frontispiece 

Archeological  Map  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin. 

Plate  Facing  Page 

1.  Pierce  Village  Site,  at  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong 26 

Power  Dam  at  Indian  Ford. 

2.  Rock  River  below  Indian  Ford 40 

The  Mill  on  Bass  Creek  at  Afton. 


CHIEF  SIMON  KAQUADOS 
Prairie   Potawatomi 


Ci)e 


Published    Quarterly   by   the   "Wisconsin   Archeological    Society 

Vol.  9  MADISON,  WIS.,   OCTOBER,  1929  No.  1 

New  Series 


INDIAN  VILLAGE  AND  CAMP  SITES  OF  THE  LOWER 
ROCK  RIVER  IN  WISCONSIN 

(Logan  Survey) 
Charles  E.  and  Theodore  T.  Brown 

THE  ROCK  RIVER 

From  the  southern  extremity  of  Lake  Koshkonong  the 
Rock  River  pursues  a  winding  southwesterly  course 
through  Fulton  Township  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Catfish 
or  Yahara  River  at  Fulton,  then  it  flows  in  a  southeasterly 
direction  to  the  northwest  corner  of  Janesville  Township 
and  from  there  continues  in  the  same  direction  as  far  as  the 
city  of  Janesville.  In  the  southern  part  of  Janesville  it 
makes  a  turn  and  flows  west  for  a  distance  of  about  two 
miles.  From  this  point  it  flows  in  a  southwesterly  direc- 
tion through  Rock  Township  to  the  village  of  Afton.  Here 
its  course  changes  and  it  flows  in  a  southeasterly  direction 
to  Riton.  From  this  point,  in  the  northeastern  corner  of 
Beloit  Township,  it  flows  south  to  the  city  of  Beloit  in  the 
southeastern  corner  of  this  township.  From  the  foot  of 
Lake  Koshkonong  to  Beloit  the  distance  along  the  river 
bank  is  thirty-two  miles. 

The  principal  streams  which  merge  their  waters  with 
those  of  the  Rock  along  this  part  of  its  course  in  Wisconsin 
are  the  Catfish  or  Yahara  which  drains  the  beautiful  Four 
Lakes  at  Madison;  and  which  enters  the  Rock  at  Fulton; 
Three  Mile  Creek,  which  flows  into  the  Rock  at  a  distance 
of  a  mile  and  a  half  north  of  Janesville,  and  Bass  Creek 
which  flows  into  it  at  Afton.  All  of  these  flow  into  the 
Rock  on  its  western  bank.  Turtle  Creek,  which  has  one  of 
its  sources  in  Delavan  Lake,  unites  with  the  Rock  at  Beloit, 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.  1 


on  its  eastern  bank.  A  small  creek  flows  into  the  Rock  on 
its  eastern  bank  about  a  mile  north  of  Riton  and  a  similar 
brook  enters  it  on  its  western  bank  at  about  the  same  dis- 
tance south  of  this  place. 

The  Rock  in  this  part  of  Wisconsin,  after  ninety  years  of 
occupation  of  its  shorelands  by  white  settlers,  who  have 
placed  these  under  cultivation  or  put  them  to  other  uses, 
have  drained  its  lowlands,  and  built  cities  and  established 
summer  resort  colonies,  is  still  a  very  attractive  stream.  Of 
the  rather  dense  forests  which  once  clothed  its  banks  wood- 
ed areas  of  considerable  size  remain  at  different  places 
along  its  course,  and  trees  fringe  its  banks  in  other  places. 

In  the  rear  of  its  bluffs  and  lowlands  there  formerly 
stretched  broad  prairies  with  oak  openings.  South  of  Lake 
Koshkonong  and  east  of  Indian  Ford  was  a  large  prairie 
to  which  early  maps  and  settlers  gave  the  name  of  Prairie- 
du  Lac.  South  of  it  was  Rock  Prairie. 

The  old  Winnebago  Indian  name  for  the  Rock  was 
E-neen-ne-shun-nuck,  or  "river  of  big  stones."  An  early 
Algonkian  Indian  name  was  Assini-sipi,  or  stone  river. 
Since  this  stream  became  known  to  white  men  it  has  borne 
the  names  of  "Kicapoue  R.",  "Stoney  R."  and  "Rocky  R.", 
and  other  names.  Louis  Hennepin's  map  of  1683  names 
the  Rock  as  the  "Seignelai  R."  and  shows  the  Illinois  located 
north  (east)  of  it. 

The  Catfish  or  Yahara  River  appears  on  some  early  maps 
as  the  "Goosh-ke-hawn"  (Koshkonong?),  "Cos-ca-ho-e- 
nah,"  and  "River  of  the  4  Lakes." 

Its  Winnebago  Indian  name  was  Ho-wich-ra,  "catfish." 

The  Winnebago  Indian  name  for  Turtle  Creek  is  given 
by  Dr.  N.  P.  Jipson  as  Ke-chunk-nee-shun-nuk-ra.*  This 
stream  is  described  in  the  "History  of  Rock  County" : — "A 
stream  flowing  out  of  Turtle  Lake  in  the  northwestern  cor- 
ner of  the  town  of  Richmond  in  Walworth  County,  unites 
near  the  west  line  of  the  town  of  Delavan  with  the  outlet  of 
Delavan  Lake,  and  the  united  streams  form  Turtle  Creek, 
which  following  a  westerly  course  enters  Rock  County  on 
Sec.  13  in  the  town  of  Bradford,  flows  west  and  southwest 
and  empties  into  Rock  River  just  below  the  State  line  at 
Beloit." 


*  2  Wis.  Archeo.,  3,  p.  128,  n.  s. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.  9 

To  this  information  Mr.  Robert  H.  Becker  has  added: 
"This  description  of  Turtle  Creek  tells  nothing  of  the 
beauty  of  this  stream  and  the  fertile  valley  through  which 
it  flows.  Near  Beloit,  where  the  Creek  is  quite  large  it  is 
especially  beautiful,  cutting  deep  into  the  limestone  hills, 
or,  as  it  winds  through  broad  rolling  valleys,  joined  here 
and  there  by  brooks  of  clearest  spring  water."* 

The  length  of  this  creek  is  about  twenty-five  miles. 

EARLIEST  ROCK  RIVER  MAPS 

A  Dutch  map  of  Marquette  and  Joliet  printed  by  Pieter 
Vander  Aa,  at  Leyden,  1673,  gives  the  name  of  the  Rock  as 
the  "Kicapoue  R."  It  is  shown  as  flowing  from  the  western 
shore  of  Lake  Michigan  directly  west  to  the  "R.  Missipy." 
The  "Maskoutenten"  are  shown  as  occupying  the  lands  di- 
rectly north  of  the  Rock,  and  the  Kikabeux,"  Miamis  and 
"Illinoysen"  those  directly  south  of  it. 

Louis  Hennepin's  map  of  1683  names  the  Rock  as  the 
"Seignelai  R."  with  the  Illinois  located  north  of  it. 

A  French  map  of  "Louisiana  and  Course  of  the  Missis- 
sippi," dated  1718,  shows  the  "R.  a  la  Roche"  flowing  from 
the  region  of  the  "Mascouten  or  Fire  Nation,"  west  of  Chi- 
cagou,"  straight  westward  to  the  Mississippi  instead  of  in 
a  southwesterly  direction  to  that  stream.  On  an  English 
map  of  1720  the  course  of  the  river  is  the  same  and  its  name 
is  given  as  "Assenini  or  R.  a  la  Roche."  The  John  Senex 
map  of  1718-21  also  gives  this  course  and  this  name  for  the 
Rock.  On  all  of  these  maps  the  presence  of  a  "Christal  de 
Roche"  or  "Christal  Rock"  is  indicated  south  of  the  river, 
not  far  from  its  mouth. 

An  English  "Map  of  the  Western  Parts  of  the  Colony  of 
Virginia,"  1754,  gives  the  name  of  "Assenisipi  R."  to  the 
Rock  river.  On  Debrett's  "Map  of  the  United  States  of 
America,"  1795,  the  stream  is  called  the  "Rocky  R."  This 
map  and  some  other  maps  of  this  time  show  a  range  of  hills 
or  mountains  extending  westward  from  near  the  foot  of 
Lake  Michigan  toward  the  mouth  of  the  Rock.  Thos. 
Hutchin's  "Map  of  the  Western  Parts  (Etc.)"  1778,  shows 
the  "Riviere  a  la  Roche"  flowing  in  its  proper  direction. 

*  12  Wis.  Archeo.,  1,  p.  7. 


10  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

The  name  "R  a  la  Roche''  or  "Stoney  R."  appears  on  a 
United  States  map  of  1783.  This  map  shows  a  "carrying 
place"  or  portage  between  the  headwaters  of  the  Rock  and 
those  of  the  Fond  du  Lac  river.  Another  map  of  the  same 
date,  engraved  by  Wm.  Faden,  carries  the  name  "Rocky  R." 
and  shows  the  Kickapoo  located  on  its  south  bank  midway 
between  its  source  and  mouth.  Other  American  and  for- 
eign maps  of  the  years  1790  to  1820  carry  the  names  "R. 
Assenisipi  or  Rocky  R.",  "Stony  R."  or  "R.  Roche."  On 
the  J.  Warr.  Jr.,  map,  1825,  the  name  "Rock  River"  ap- 
pears. 

Some  of  the  maps  of  the  years  1796  to  1817  are  curious 
in  that  they  show  the  Rock  river  as  a  rather  insignificant 
small  stream.  In  at  least  one  map  it  is  shown  as  flowing 
into  the  Illinois  river. 

The  Rock  River  does  not  appear  on  Jean  Boisseau's  map 
of  New  France,  1643,  on  Joliet's  map  of  1674,  or  on  Lahon- 
tan's  map  of  the  Longue  River,  1703.  It  is  apparently  in- 
dicated by  a  small  stream  on  Hennepin's  map,  1698.  Sam- 
uel de  Champlain's  interesting  map  bears  the  date  1632,  two 
years  before  Jean  Nicollet's  discovery  of  Wisconsin. 

ROCK  RIVER  TRAILS 

A  considerable  number  of  Indian  trails  connected  the  In- 
dian camp  and  villages  on  the  lower  Rock  River  in  south- 
eastern Wisconsin  with  each  other  and  with  other  similar 
sites  at  a  distance  in  every  direction.  These  ancient  trav- 
elways  were  of  two  kinds,  those  which  followed  the  course 
of  the  stream  from  north  to  south,  and  those  which  ap- 
proached it  from  various  directions.  The  courses  of  some 
of  these  aboriginal  paths  are  preserved  on  the  government 
maps,  and  others  on  other  early  Wisconsin  maps  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  Wisconsin  Historical  Society.  The  courses 
of  some  others  and  which  the  pioneer  settlers  of  this  part 
of  Wisconsin  knew  and  traveled,  are  not  shown  on  any 
known  map. 

One  of  the  most  important  of  the  early  trails  of  the  lower 
Rock  River  region  in  southeastern  Wisconsin  came  from  the 
present  location  of  Newville,  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshko- 
nong.  This  trail  followed  down  the  east  bank  of  the  river 
avoiding  the  marshy  lands  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Ful- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         11 

ton  Township,  then  following  more  closely  the  bank  of  the 
stream  to  the  site  of  the  present  settlement  of  Indian  Ford. 
For  this  place  the  Winnebago  residents  of  this  river  had  the 
name  of  Ho-ru-tchka-ch,  or  "stream  crossing."  Here,  in 
the  shallows,  the  Indians  waded  across  the  Rock  to  its  west- 
ern shore. 

From  Indian  Ford  settlement  a  trail  ran  down  the. east 
bank  of  the  Rock  to  the  present  site  of  Janesville.  This  ap- 
pears on  Capt.  T.  J.  Cram's  "Map  of  Wiskonsin  Territory/' 
1839.  A  small  remnant  of  this  old  east  bank  trail  is  pre- 
served in  a  small  tract  of  woodland  near  Newville. 

On  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock  a  trail  from  the  foot  of 
Lake  Koshkonong  traversed  the  high  land,  following  the 
curves  of  the  river  rather  closely  to  Indian  Ford  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Yahara  River.  From  this  point  it  continued 
in  a  southeasterly  direction  to  the  site  of  the  present  city  of 
Janesville.  Here  it  crossed  the  Rock  at  a  ford,  and  contin- 
ued in  a  southerly  direction  through  the  townships  of  Rock 
and  Beloit  to  the  present  city  of  Beloit.  In  Rock  Township, 
south  of  Janesville,  this  trail  was  in  places  from  a  mile  and 
a  half  to  two  miles  east  of  the  river.  In  Beloit  Township 
it  followed  the  river  rather  closely. 

Another  trail,  from  the  southwest  shore  of  Lake  Kosh- 
konong, ran  in  a  southwesterly  direction  over  the  southern 
part  of  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Edgerton  and  on  to 
Fulton.  Here  the  west  bank  trail  united  with  this  trail, 
which  crossed  the  Catfish  River  at  Fulton  and  continued  in 
a  southwesterly  direction.  In  Section  9  of  Fulton  Town- 
ship (in  present  Edgerton)  a  trail  from  the  west  shore  of 
Lake  Koshkonong  united  with  the  Lake  Koshkonong-Edger- 
ton-Fulton  trail. 

OTHER  TRAILS 

A  trail  from  the  present  site  of  Koshkonong  Station  on 
the  east  shore  of  Lake  Koshkonong  ran  southward  across 
the  prairies  to  the  present  site  of  Milton,  and  from  that 
point  in  a  southwesterly  direction  to  the  site  of  Janesville. 
The  portion  of  this  trail  which  runs  through  Milton  Town- 
ship is  shown  on  a  map  prepared  by  William  C.  Whitford  and 
published  in  the  Milwaukee  Sentinel,  February  25,  1900. 
He  designates  it  as  the  "Army  Trail."  He  shows  two  other 


12  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

trails  west  of  this  one  and  leading  southward  across  the 
prairies  from  an  Indian  village  site  and  the  Thibault  and 
other  French  traders'  cabin  sites  on  the  southeast  shore  of 
Lake  Koshkonong.  The  eastern  of  these  two  trails  forked, 
the  east  fork  running  in  a  southeasterly  direction  for  three 
miles  and  uniting  with  the  Army  trail.  The  western  trail 
ran  to  Janesville.  All  of  these  trails  united  with  or  inter- 
sected a  trail  running  from  the  northern  end  of  Lake  Kosh- 
konong to  the  present  site  of  Newville  at  the  foot  of  the 
lake.  Just  before  reaching  the  foot  of  the  lake,  in  Section 
8,  this  trail  forked,  the  northern  fork  crossing  the  Rock  at 
a  ford  at  the  foot  of  the  lake,  the  other  following  southward 
along  the  river  bank  as  already  described. 

A  trail  from  "Caramanee,"  an  early  "paper  city"  located 
south  of  the  mouth  of  the  Catfish  River  at  Fulton,  ran  west- 
ward across  Rock  County  to  the  Sugar  River  at  Livingston. 
It  continued  on  to  Monroe. 

A  trail  from  "Rockport,"  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock, 
opposite  Janesville,  pursued  a  northwest  direction  across 
Rock  County  toward  the  Madison  lakes.  Another  trail 
from  the  site  of  present  Janesville  ran  across  the  Rock 
County  prairies  in  a  southeasterly  direction  to  the  site  of 
present  Delavan  in  Walworth  County. 

These  trails  and  the  trail  from  Janesville  to  Milton  and 
Lake  Koshkonong,  appear  on  Capt.  Thomas  J.  Cram's  "Map 
of  Wiskonsin  Territory,"  1839.  The  trail  from  Fulton  to 
Livingston  is  also  shown  on  a  map  of  Tanner's  Wisconsin 
atlas  of  1844.  This  map  shows  the  Delavan  to  Janesville 
trail  continuing  westward  from  Janesville  to  De  Munn's 
trading  post,  "Centerville,"  on  the  Sugar  River  near  Brod- 
head  in  Green  County.  A  trail  from  the  east,  from  "Wau- 
keeshah,"  also  came  to  Janesville.  It  appears  on  Farmer's 
map,  1830. 

Beloit  was  a  center  for  a  number  of  trails  besides  the  one 
already  noted.  One  trail  ran  from  the  west  bank  of  the 
Rock,  above  Beloit,  in  a  northwest  direction.  In  the  south- 
east corner  of  Section  17  of  Beloit  Township  this  trail 
forked,  the  north  fork  running  in  a  northwest  direction  to 
Orfordville  and  on  to  the  Sugar  River.  The  south  trail  ran 
in  a  northwest  direction  to  the  vicinity  of  present  Brodhead 
on  the  Sugar.  These  are  shown  on  Tanner's  map.  Most 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         13 

of  these  trails  also  appear  on  Aug.  Mitchell's  map  of  Wis- 
consin and  Iowa,  1838. 

A  trail  from  Fontana,  at  the  western  end  of  Lake  Geneva, 
ran  to  Beloit.  This  was  the  Chicago  trail.  Fontana  was 
the  location  of  Chief  Big  Foot's  Potawatomi  village.  Its 
curving  course  was  at  different  points  from  two  to  six  miles 
south  of  Turtle  Creek. 

At  a  distance  of  about  three  miles  east  of  the  present  lim- 
its of  Beloit  this  trail  was  intersected  by  a  trail  running 
west  from  the  site  of  Delavan.  This  trail  crossed  the  Creek 
and  ran  in  a  southwest  direction  to  the  mouth  of  the  Creek 
in  Beloit.  These  appear  on  Cram's  map  of  1839.  A  trail 
also  followed  the  north  bank  of  Turtle  Creek. 

A  trail  from  the  southwest  shore  of  Lake  Kegonsa  in 
Dane  County  ran  down  the  we^t  bank  of  the  Catfish  River 
to  about  two  miles  below  Dunkirk  where  it  crossed  the  river. 
It  continued  down  the  east  bank  to  Fulton  where  it  again 
crossed  the  river.  Its  course  is  shown  on  the  Milwaukee 
Land  District  map,  1840. 

FORDS 

The  Rock  River  was  forded  by  the  early  Indians  in  a 
number  of  the  shallow  places  along  its  course.  The  exact 
site  of  some  of  these  river  crossings  is  well  known.  One  of 
these  was  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong  at  the  site  of 
present  Newville.  At  Indian  Ford  the  river  crossing  is  re- 
ported to  have  been  at  the  river  bend  just  north  of  the  set- 
tlement. The  Indians  are  also  said  to  have  crossed  at  times 
in  the  shallows  just  below  the  present  highway  bridge  and 
power  dam. 

There  was  a  ford  about  a  half  mile  below  the  mouth  of 
the  Catfish  River  where  a  highway  bridge  was  afterwards 
erected  and  later  removed.  Another  ford  was  located  op- 
posite the  Parish  and  Shoemaker  farms  at  the  Four  Mile 
bridge,  north  of  Janesville.  At  Janesville  there  were  sev- 
eral fords,  "Rock  Ford,"  the  best  known  crossing,  being  near 
the  present  Janesville  to  Beloit  highway  bridge,  formerly 
known  as  the  Monteray  bridge. 

Another  crossing  was  probably  north  of  the  mouth  of 
Bass  Creek  at  Afton.  At  Beloit  there  were  several  cross- 


14  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

ings  of  the  Rock,  and  at  least  one  of  Turtle  Creek.  The  ex- 
act locations  of  these  we  have  been  unable  to  learn.  One 
was  near  the  northern  limits  of  the  city. 

ROCK  RIVER  INDIANS 

A  Dutch  map,  elsewhere  referred  to,  evidently  based  on 
the  explorations  of  Marquette  and  Joliet,  printed  at  Leyden, 
in  1673,  names  the  Rock  the  "Kicapoue."  On  this  map  the 
"Maskoutenten"  (Mascouten)  are  shown  as  occupying  the 
lands  on  one  side,  and  the  "Kikabeux"  (Kickapoo),  "Mia- 
mis"  and  "Illinoysen"  (Illinois)  those  on  the  opposite  bank. 
Hennepin's  map  of  1683  shows  the  Illinois  located  there. 
Doubtless  they  had  camps  and  villages  along  the  Rock  in 
both  Northern  Illinois  and  southeastern  Wisconsin. 

In  1^27  some  of  the  Winnebago,  who  were  at  and  near 
Green  Bay,  moved  to  the  Rock  River.  By  1742  half  of  the 
tribe  were  located  on  this  river.  From  that  time  on  the 
Rock  River  Band  maintained  its  position  on  the  Rock  with 
villages  at  Horicon,  Hustisford,  Watertown,  Lake  Koshko- 
nong,  Janesville  and  other  places  in  Wisconsin,  and  others 
in  Illinois  to  as  far  south  as  Dixon.  Dr.  N.  P.  Jipson  has 
written  an  account  of  the  history  of  the  Winnebago  villages 
located  between  Lake  Koshkonong  and  Dixon  and  which  has 
been  freely  drawn  upon  in  preparing  parts  of  this  survey 
report.* 

Royal  B.  Way  in  his  book,  "The  Rock  River  Valley," 
says:  "The  Winnebago  Indians  were  the  first  settlers  of 
the  county  (Rock) .  From  the  north  line  of  the  county  near 
the  south  end  of  Lake  Koshkonong  to  the  State  line  at  Be- 
loit,  along  the  Rock  River,  an  almost  continuous  line  of  In- 
dian mounds,  villages  and  camp  sites  testify  to  the  fact. 
Before  1835  and  the  advent  of  the  white  man  the  Indians 
had  left. 

The  Winnebagoes  never  had,  however,  unassailed  posses- 
sion of  the  county.  The  Sauk  and  Foxes  and  Pottawato- 
mies  claimed  with  them  an  ownership  of  the  Rock  River 
country,  while  the  Pottawatomies  disputed  the  possession 
of  Rock  County  with  them.  The  first  treaty  made  by  the 
United  States  for  any  of  the  lands  of  the  Rock  River  was 


2  Wis.  Archeo.  3,  n.  s. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         15 

made  with  the  Winnebagoes,  January  30,  1816,  followed  by 
those  of  1826  and  1833.  The  remaining  part  of  the  county 
was  secured  to  the  United  States  by  the  treaty  with  the 
Chippewa,  Ottawa  and  Pottawatomie  Indians  at  Chicago  in 
September,  1833.  All  doubt  as  to  the  title  was  removed  by 
the  treaty  with  the  Winnebagoes  in  1838  in  which  that  tribe 
ceded  all  of  their  lands  east  of  the  Mississippi. 

"The  treaty  of  1832  with  the  Winnebagoes  secured  to  the 
United  States  for  settlement  the  western  half  of  Rock 
County,  while  that  of  1833  with  the  Ottowas,  Chippewas 
and  Pottawatomies  secured  the  east  half  of  the  county." 

TRADERS  AND  TRADING  POSTS 

The  many  Indian  villages  located  along  the  course  of  the 
Rock  River  between  its  source  and  its  mouth  made  this 
stream  a  rich  field  for  the  fur  traders.  The  earliest  of  the 
French  traders  came  from  the  post  at  Green  Bay,  visiting 
the  Indian  villages  and  gathering  the  furs  and  skins  which 
their  inhabitants  possessed.  In  later  years  British  and 
American  traders  operated  over  the  same  route.  Some  of 
these  traders  came  by  canoe  following  a  water  trail  up  the 
Fox  river  to  Lake  Winnebago,  then  going  to  the  foot  of  the 
lake  and  up  the  Fond  du  Lac  river.  At  its  source  was  a 
portage  or  "carrying  place"  across  which  they  transported 
their  goods  to  the  head  of  the  Rock  river.  Another  route 
was  by  way  of  the  Fox  and  Wisconsin  and  from  the  latter 
river  by  means  of  Pheasant  Branch  to  Lake  Mendota.  In 
wet  years  the  waters  of  these  two  streams  so  closely  ap- 
proached each  other  that  no  portage  between  them  was 
necessary.  The  remainder  of  the  route  to  the  Rock  was 
through  the  Madison  lakes  and  down  the  Yahara  or  Catfish 
river  to  the  larger  stream.  In  1778  Charles  Gauthier  de- 
Verville  made  a  journey  over  this  course  from  Green  Bay 
to  the  Rock.* 

One  of  the  early  traders  on  the  Riviere  Roche  was  Pierre 
La  Porte,  a  Canadian  Frenchman,  who  worked  for  the  old 
American  Fur  Company  for  a  great  many  years.  Begin- 
ning with  the  nineteeth  century,  and  for  a  period  before 
that  time,  he  had  as  his  territory  the  Rock  River  running 


*  W.  H.  Colls.,  10-72. 


16  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

from  a  point  just  above  where  Janesville  is  now  located." 
"The  great  double  bend  about  half  way  up  the  Ouisconsin 
line  was  one  of  the  camping  spots  or  trading  stations.  The 
mouth  of  the  Rock  River  was  the  downstream  terminal.  On 
a  few  occasions  LaPorte  traded  up-stream  along  Rock  River 
and  at  the  end  of  such  trips  he  sold  his  furs  at  Green  Bay."* 

Capt.  Thomas  A.  Anderson  spent  a  winter  in  trading 
with  the  Winnebago  on  Rock  river,  probably  at  the  foot  of 
Lake  Koshkonong,  in  1802  and  1803.  There  were  some 
French  traders  located  near  him  at  the  time.* 

Two  trading  cabins  were  located  on  the  shores  of  Lake 
Koshkonong.  One  of  these  was  located  on  the  west  shore 
of  the  Lake  on  the  Bingham  farm  on  Crabapple  point.  Here 
on  a  former  Indian  village  site,  Mr.  Rufus  Bingham  in  1839 
found  the  excavation,  rotting  timbers,  and  fallen  stone  of 
an  old  trading  cabin  and  its  chimney.  Nothing  is  known  of 
the  trader,  whom  Rev.  Stephen  D.  Peet  supposes  to  have 
been  Le  Sellier.  This  site  is  about  three  miles  from  the  foot 
of  the  lake.*  On  the  east  shore  of  the  lake,  about  a  mile 
north  of  its  Rock  River  outlet,  was  located  until  the  winter 
of  1837-38  the  log  cabin  home  of  Joseph  Thibault  (Thie- 
beau).  Three  other  traders,  Charley  Poe,  Elleck  (Alex.) 
Le  Hear  (Lemere)  and  Cavelle,  occupied  three  other  log 
cabins  in  this  first  white  settlement  on  the  shores  of  the 
lake.  Thibault  was  an  agent  for  the  Milwaukee  trader,  Sol- 
omon Juneau,  who  is  reported  to  have  made  more  than  one 
visit  to  the  lake  to  see  him.  He  was  a  Canadian,  the  earli- 
est settler  at  Beloit.  He  had  two  Indian  wives  and  three  01 
four  children.* 

Joseph  Thibault  was  the  American  Fur  Co.  trader  at  the 
Winnebago  village  at  Turtle  Creek  at  Beloit  for  about  a 
dozen  years  before  1836.* 

Other  traders  who  supplied  the  Indians  of  the  Rock  River 
villages  with  trade  goods  in  return  for  their  furs  were 
Shephen  Mack,  whose  post  in  1829  was  at  Bird's  Grove,  on 
the  Rock  at  the  mouth  of  the  Pecatonica  River,  in  Illinois. 
The  Indians  were  very  fond  of  him  and  he  settled  many 
disputes  between  the  Winnebago  and  Potawatomi.  At 


*  A.  B.  Way,  The  Rock  River  Valley,  137. 
*Wis.  Archeo.,  7,  78-79;  99-100. 

*  A.  B.  Way,  The  Rock  River  Valley,  141. 

*  W.  H.  Colls.,  9-152. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         17 

Grand  Detour  on  the  Rock  was  the  trading  post  of  Pierre 
Lasaliere  (Le  Sellier),  a  Canadian  and  long  an  employee  of 
the  American  Fur  Co.  His  name  is  mentioned  as  one  of  its 
employees  at  Mackinac  in  1818-19.  He  made  visits  to  the 
Indians  of  the  Rock  and  Wisconsin  in  the  fur  trade  interests 
as  early  as  1813.  Near  Dixon  was  located  the  trading  post 
of  John  Dixon,  founder  of  the  Illinois  city  which  bears  his 
name.  Other  traders  located  not  far  distant  from  the  Rock 
were  Jules  de  Munn  whose  trading  house  was  on  the  Sugar 
River  near  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Brodhead ;  on  the 
shore  of  Lake  Kegonsa  at  its  Yahara  River  outlet  the  cabin 
of  the  trader  Abel  Rasdall,  and  in  Madison  the  post  of  the 
French  trader,  Oliver  Armel.  De  Munn  was  a  near  rela- 
tive of  the  Choteaus,  the  noted  company  of  St.  Louis  Indian 
traders.*  All  of  the  later  traders  also  traded  with  the  Rock 
River  Indians. 

LITERATURE 

In  "The  Antiquities  of  Wisconsin,"  published  by  the 
Smithsonian  Institution  in  1855,  Dr.  Increase  A.  Lapham 
devotes  a  chapter  to  a  description  of  the  "Ancient  Works  in 
the  Basin  of  Rock  River  and  its  Branches."  He  describes 
and  figures  the  group  of  mounds  located  on  the  Beloit  Col- 
lege campus,  another  group  three-fourths  of  a  mile  north  of 
Beloit,  those  at  "Indian  Hill"  at  the  mouth  of  the  Catfish 
River,  the  enclosure  at  Fulton,  and  mentions  some  of  the 
other  mound  groups  formerly  existing  near  the  latter  place. 

Rev.  Stephen  D.  Peet,  in  Prehistoric  America  (v.  2)  fig- 
ures and  describes  the  principal  mound  groups  in  the  Rock 
River  valley  between  Beloit  and  Lake  Koshkonong.  He  pre- 
sents a  map  prepared  by  James  Wilson,  Jr.,  C.  E.  of  the  In- 
dian mound  groups  located  along  the  Rock  River  and  its 
tributary,  Turtle  Creek,  in  the  vicinity  of  Beloit.  Twelve 
mound  groups  are  located  on  the  Wilson  map  which  appears 
to  have  been  carefully  prepared.  Dr.  Peet's  book  was  pub- 
lished in  1895.* 

In  1908  the  Messrs.  A.  B.  Stout  and  H.  L.  Skavlem  pub- 
lished in  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist  (v.  7,  no.  2)  their  re- 
port on  "The  Archeology  of  the  Lake  Koshkonong  Region/' 


*  Lower  Rock  River  Winnebago  Villages,  Wis.  Archeo.  2-3. 

*  Papers  first  printed  in  The  American  Antiquarian. 


18  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

This  report  contains  descriptions  of  the  mounds  and  vil- 
lage sites  at  Newville,  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong,  and 
which  are  within  the  river  region  covered  by  the  present  in- 
vestigations. 

Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  in  1914  published  a  description  and 
plat  of  the  mound  group  at  "Indian  Hill"  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Catfish  River.  This  is  a  correction  of  the  survey  made 
by  Dr.  Lapham  in  1850.  (Wis.  Archeo.,  v.  13,  no.  2). 

A  report  on  the  Indian  mounds  and  village  sites  on  the 
banks  of  Turtle  Creek  was  published  by  Robert  H.  Becker 
in  1913.  (Wis.  Archeo.  v.  12,  no.  1).  In  1919,  Mr.  Ira  M. 
Buell  published  a  report,  "Beloit  Mound  Groups,"  in  which 
he  presented  the  results  of  a  re-survey  with  illustrations  of 
the  Indian  mound  groups  on  the  banks  of  the  Rock  River 
and  Turtle  Creek  near  Beloit.  (Wis.  Archeo.,  v.  18,  no.  4). 
He  mentions  the  surveys  made  in  previous  years  of  some  of 
these  groups  by  Lapham,  Lathrop,  Peet,  Collie,  Riner, 
Riggs,  Becker  and  Hyde. 

A  paper  on  the  "Winnebago  Villages  and  Chieftains  of 
the  Lower  Rock  River  Region"  in  Wisconsin  and  Illinois 
was  published  in  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist  (v.  2,  no.  3, 
n.  s.)  in  1923. 

Other  references  to  Lower  Rock  River  Indian  history  and 
prehistory  occur  in  the  Wisconsin  Historical  Collections,  in 
other  volumes  of  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist,  and  in  the 
several  histories  of  Rock  County.  Both  Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem 
and  the  late  Mr.  W.  P.  Clarke  have  published  descriptions 
of  Mound  groups  at  Janesville,  Afton  and  elsewhere  in  the 
Rock  River  valley  in  past  issues  of  the  Janesville  Gazette. 


INDIAN  SITES  AND  MOUND  GROUPS 
MILTON  TOWNSHIP 

Black  Hawk  Village  Site 
(Cent.  Sec.  7) 

The  site  of  the  camp  ground,  occupied  by  the  Sauk  chieJ 
Black  Hawk  and  his  warriors  in  1832,  is  described  by  Geo. 
W.  Ogden  in  the  History  of  Rock  County,  published  in  1856 : 

"We  left  Milwaukee  in  the  month  of  September,  1836, 
with  an  ox  team  wending  our  way  westward  for  the  Rock 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  MAP  OF  THE  LOWER  ROCK  RIVER 

The  numbers  correspond  with  those  on   the   map    cdioming 


1.  Black  Hawk  Village  Site 

2.  Quarry  Mound 

3.  Newville  Cache 

4.  Rock  River  Village  Site 

5.  Pierce  Village  Site 

6.  Newville  Village  Site 

7.  Riverview  Resort  Village  Site 

8.  Ridgeview  Village  Site 

9.  South  Bank  Camp  Sites 

10.  Oak  Ridge  Village  Site 

11.  River  Bend  Shell  Heap 

12.  Edgerton  Camp  Sites 

13.  Miller  Camp  Site 

14.  Devil's  Oven 

15.  Brown  Camp  Site 

1 6.  Southworth  Farm  Village  Site 

17.  Indian  Ford  Camp  Site 

18.  Indian  Ford  Heights  Camp  Site 

19.  South  Indian   Ford  Camp  Site 

20.  Indian  Ford  Flats  Village  Site 

21.  Rainbows  End  Corn  Field 

22.  Indian  Hill  Mound  Group 

23.  Catfish  Village 

24    Stone  Farm  Village  Site 

25.  Murwin  Camp  Site 

26.  Hubbell  Village  Site  and  Mounds 

27.  Beggs  Camp  Site 

28.  Northwest  Sections  Camp  and  Village 

29.  Four  Mile  Bridge  Village  Site 

30.  Parish  Camp  Site 

31.  Elmhurst  Village  Site 

32.  Three  Mile  Creek  Camp  Sites 

33-  Wixon  Hill  Site 

34-  Riverside  Park  Village  Site 

35.  Sutherland  Graves 

36.  Crystal  and  Hiawatha  Springs  Village 
37-  Stonehenge  Camp  Site 

38.  Broege  Island  Camp  Site 
39-  Riverbank  Camp  Sites 

40.  West  Bank  Camp  Sites 

41.  Pearl  Street  Cache 

42.  Round  Rock  Village 

43-  South  Palm  Street  Camp  Site 

44-  Spring  Brook  Mounds 

45-  Bailey  Mounds  and  Corn  Fields 
46.  Eastern  Avenue  Village  Site 

47-  Kellogg  Corn  Field 
48.  West  Janesville  Mounds 
49-  Rulondale  Camp  Site 

50.  Afton  Mound  Group 

51.  Afton  Mill  Camp  Site  and  Mounds 

52.  Holzapfel  Camp  Site 

53-  Antisdell  Village  Site 

54-  Mouth  of  Bass  Creek  Camp  Site 

55-  Bass  Creek  Site 

56.  M.  E.  Church  Picnic  Ground  Camp  Site 
57-  River  Heights  Camp  Site 
58.  Willard  School  Camp  Site 
59-  Riverside  Camp  Site 

60.  Coates  Camp  Site 

61.  Woodstock   Mounds 

62.  Oakley  Farm  Camp  Site 

63.  Inman  Camp  Site 

64.  Rasmussen  Camp  Site 

65.  Rice  Camp  Site 

66.  Clam  Shell  Site 

67.  West  Bank  Camp  Sites 

68.  Big  Hill  Camp  Site 

69.  Poe  Mound 

70.  West  Beloit  Camp  Sites 

71.  Roth  Mounds 

72.  The  Oaks  Camp  Site 

73-  Yost  Park  Village  Site*  and  Mound 

74-  Baldwin  Mound 

75-  Weirick  Mound  Group 

*  Standing  Post  Village. 


76.  Beloit  Country  Club  Camp  Site 

77.  Henderson   Effigy 

78.  U.  S.  51  Camp  Site 

79.  Adams  Mounds 

80.  Water  Tower  Mounds 

81.  Beloit  College  Mound  Group 

82.  Turtle  Village 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         19 

River  Valley.  We  reached  Rock  River  at  the  foot  of 
Lake  Koshkonong.  Here  we  concluded  to  stop  and  com- 
mence our  future  home.  My  claim  included  the  camp 
ground  of  Black  Hawk  and  from  indications  the  Indians 
must  have  remained  several  weeks  living  on  clams,  fish,  wild 
rice  and  game.  We  found  heaps  of  clam  shells,  three  or 
four  feet  across  and  a  foot  deep.  And  even  at  the  present 
day  (1856),  I  frequently  run  my  plow  through  these  heaps 
of  shells.  This  old  camp  ground  covered  nearly  two  acres. 
The  tent  poles  were  then  standing  together  with  his  flag 
pole  painted  in  a  fantastic  manner.  These  poles  remained 
standing  several  years.  Here  were  several  recent  graves, 
also  one  skeleton  placed  in  a  wood  trough  with  another 
turned  over  it,  inside  of  a  small  pen  laid  up  of  small  poles  all 
on  the  surface  of  the  ground.  I  have  plowed  out  at  various 
times  large  shells  at  least  a  foot  and  a  half  in  length,  shaped 
like  the  periwinkle  (undoubtedly  sea-shells)  but  how  they 
came  there  is  the  question. 

A  large  number  of  ancient  mounds  are  here.  I  have, 
however,  leveled  several  of  them  with  my  plow  and  turned 
out  various  relics,  such  as  human  bones,  heads,  pieces  of 
wampum,  stone  battle  axes,  etc.  The  Indians  in  consider- 
able number  remained  around  in  this  vicinity  for  several 
years  (after  1836)  and  even  until  very  recently  they  have 
made  annual  visits  to  fish  and  gather  rice." 

Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  describes  this  village  site : 

"At  the  south  end  of  Lake  Koshkonong  the  river  is  again 
confined  within  its  ordinary  channel.  Near  the  center  of 
Section  7,  Town  of  Milton,  the  shore  on  the  south  side  is  low 
and  marshy  for  some  distance  back  from  the  river. 

It  gradually  rises  to  a  dry  and  sandy  plane.  Back  of  this 
to  the  south  and  east  are  moranic  gravel  ridges  rising  from 
40  to  70  feet  above  and  enclosing  this  almost  level  plateau, 
forming  a  beautiful  amphitheatre  of  several  hundred  acres. 
Here  is  where  the  pioneers  located  Black  Hawk's  camp  in 
1832.  Vestiges  of  the  shell  heaps  mentioned  by  Mr.  Ogden 
are  still  discernible  in  the  plowed  fields  and  the  mounds  de- 
scribed as  being  leveled  by  his  plow  can  still  be  located."* 

This  village  site,  located  south  of  the  Rock  River  at  the 
foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong,  was  an  important  one  being  sit- 

7-1  Wis.  Archeologist,  74. 


20  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

uated  on  the  Indian  trail  which  ran  down  the  east  shore  of 
the  lake,  and  which  forded  the  river  at  this  point.  A  fork 
of  this  trail  followed  the  south  bank  of  the  river. 

There  were  Winnebago  camps  on  this  site  for  many  years 
before  its  temporary  occupation  by  the  Sauk  Indians  of 
Black  Hawk's  band,  in  1832.  Small  numbers  of  Winnebago 
continued  to  camp  here  for  some  years  after  1836. 

Large  numbers  of  stone,  and  some  bone,  shell,  copper  and 
other  implements  and  ornaments  have  been  collected  from 
the  fields  of  this  site  in  past  years,  the  character  of  some  of 
which  appear  to  indicate  that  it  was  also  occupied  by  some 
Algonquian  people  before  its  Winnebago  residents  erected 
their  rush  and  bark  covered  wigwams  here. 

Among  the  specimens  collected  there  were  stone  celts, 
grooved  axes,  adz-celts,  chisels,  grooved  hammers,  mauls, 
notched  sinkers,  balls,  rubbing  stones,  grinding  stones,  flint, 
blanks,  arrow  and  spearpoints,  knives,  scrapers  and  per- 
forators, of  many  different  shapes,  bone  awls,  flakers  and 
scrapers,  copper  knives  and  spearpoints,  a  hematite  celt  and 
cone,  pieces  of  cut  antler,  lumps  of  galena  ore.  A  slate  gor- 
get, stone  beads,  shell  disk  beads  and  an  oval  shell  pendant, 
stone  discoidal,  fragmentary  pottery  pipe,  rectangular  cat- 
linite  pipe,  sea-shell  pendant,  lead  disk  bead,  bone  tube,  wam- 
pum beads  and  two  stone  plummets.  Some  of  these  spec- 
imens were  in  the  collection  of  W.  P.  Clarke,  the  former 
Milton  collector.  The  unearthing  by  the  plow  of  a  cache  of 
several  large  sea  shells  has  been  mentioned.  Burned  hearth- 
stones were  scattered  over  the  site.  Potsherds  were  once 
commonly  found.  Some  of  these  were  cord-marked  and 
crushed-rock  tempered,  some  were  unornamented  sand-tem- 
pered sherds,  and  others  were  ornamented  with  indented  and 
incised  markings  and  made  of  shell  and  sand-tempered  clay. 
Years  ago  much  more  might  have  been  learned  from  an  ex- 
amination of  this  site.  Mr.  Clarke  found  that  both  flint  im- 
plement manufacture  and  stone  celt  or  axe  making  had  been 
engaged  in  on  this  site. 

Near  this  site  on  a  hill  crest  Messrs.  Stout  and  Skavlem 
found  two  conical  mounds,  and  about  300  feet  west  of  these 
on  a  slight  ridge  another.  Five  hundred  feet  beyond  were 


*  Wis.  Archeo.,  v.  7,  no.  2,  p.  50. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         21 

two  nearly  leveled  earthworks  of  the  same  class.  About  one- 
quarter  of  a  mile  to  the  southeast,  near  the  farm  buildings 
(N.  W.  %  of  S.  E.  14  Sec.  7)  were  three  linear  mounds. 
These  mounds  they  have  named  the  "Ogden  Group."* 

Quarry  Mound 

(NW.  %  Sec.  7) 

A  solitary  conical  mound,  about  45  feet  in  diameter  and  3 
feet  high  at  its  middle,  is  located  on  a  river  field  of  the  W. 
Splitter  farm  near  Newville.  It  is  in  a  grassy  pasture  near 
the  marshy  bank  of  the  Rock  River.  This  pasture  is  on  the 
west  side  of  the  new  highway  from  Newville  to  Fort  Atkin- 
son. The  mound  is  about  60  feet  from  the  highway  and  150 
feet  from  the  edge  of  a  small  abandoned  limestone  quarry. 
It  shows  indications  of  having  been  dug  into  at  its  middle. 
Of  the  results  of  this  digging  nothing  was  learned.  We 
mention  this  mound  because  it  appears  to  have  been  missed 
in  earlier  surveys  of  the  archeological  remains  of  this  re- 
gion. 

Flint  chips  and  fragments  and  some  hearthstones  were 
found  in  this  field  which  is  very  likely  a  camp  site.  Being 
under  sod  other  evidences  of  this  could  not  be  found.  Some 
flint  implements  and  burned  stones  have  also  been  found  in 
the  cultivated  fields  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road.  In 
times  of  high  water  the  pasture  field  would  be  subject  to  at 
least  partial  overflow. 

Winnebago  Indians  camped  along  this  shore  in  early 
years  of  white  settlement.  The  cabin  of  Joseph  Thibault,  a 
trader,  was  located  two  miles  north  of  this  site  on  the  east 
shore  of  Lake  Koshkonong. 

Newville  Cache 

(NW.  %  Sec.  7) 

A  cache  or  hoard  of  leaf -shaped  flint  blanks  was  found 
some  years  ago  by  Louis  Pierce  of  Newville  on  the  present 
August  Rutz  farm,  on  the  highway  from  Newville  to  Mil- 
ton. These  were  found  in  a  small  area  having  been  un- 
earthed and  scattered  by  the  cultivation  of  the  land.  They 
had  probably  been  placed  beneath  the  surface  of  the  soil  by 
their  former  Indian  owner  to  keep  the  material  in  good  con- 
dition for  later  use  in  implement  making.  A  few  speci- 


22  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

mens  from  this  deposit  of  blanks  are  in  the  collection  of  his 
brother,  W.  S.  Pierce,  at  Newville.  These  specimens  are 
about  2]/2  inches  in  length. 

Similar  caches  of  blanks  and  blades  have  been  found  on 
many  Indian  village  sites  in  Wisconsin.  Several  are  in  the 
collections  of  the  State  Historical  Museum  at  Madison. 

Rock  River  Village  Site 

(SW.  14  Sec.  6  and  NW.  %  Sec.  7.) 

Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  has  described  this  village  site  in  The 
Wisconsin  Archeologist  issue  of  April-June,  1908.* 

"Here  are  abundant  indications  of  an  extensive  aborigi- 
nal village  site  and  long  continued  occupation. 

On  the  extreme  edge  of  the  steep  river  bank,  which  here 
rises  from  ten  to  twenty  feet  abruptly  above  the  water,  are 
extensive  shell  and  refuse  heaps  several  feet  in  depth  and 
extending  along  the  edge  of  the  river  bank  for  several  hun- 
dred feet.  Lake  erosion  of  the  river  bank  shows  this  "kjok- 
ken  modding"  in  some  places  to  be  over  3  feet  in  depth  and 
extending  back  and  some  distance  up  and  along  the  sides  of 
the  larger  tumuli.  Remains  of  shell  heaps  and  the  burned 
stones  of  fireplaces  are  scattered  over  an  area  of  at  least  a 
hundred  acres.  Broken  pottery,  large  quantities  of  flint- 
arrow  and  spear  points,  spalls  and  chips,  hammerstones, 
stone  axes,  mauls,  celts  and  gouges  and  numerous  copper 
spears,  axes  and  knives,  have  been  collected  on  these 
grounds.  Iron,  brass  and  copper  materials  of  trade  origin, 
appear  to  be  of  rare  occurrence." 

This  village  site  begins  north  of  the  creek  bed  which 
forms  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  Pierce  Village  Site.  It 
occupies  the  fields  of  the  Morris  Cooper  (formerly  Benja- 
min Cooper)  farm  on  both  sides  of  the  road,  and  extends 
on  to  the  more  elevated  lands  of  the  Herman  Krueger  farm 
beyond  on  the  Lake  Koshkonong  shore.  Mr.  Skavlem's  de- 
scription applies  more  particularly  to  the  latter  part  of  this 
site. 

On  the  Cooper  farm  the  richest  part  of  the  site  occupies  a 
level  field  about  two  city  blocks  in  extent  on  the  south  or 
river  side  of  the  road.  It  is  elevated  only  a  few  feet  above 
the  waters  of  the  river.  It  extends  from  the  hillside  slope  in 


*  7 — 2  Wisconsin  Archeologist,  73,  50-51. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         23 

the  rear  of  the  Krueger  home  westward  to  the  line  of  sum- 
mer resort  cottages  known  as  "Koshkonong  Retreat"  and 
most  of  which  face  the  creek  bank. 

Across  this  field  and  the  adjoining  lands  formerly  ex- 
tended the  group  of  eleven  conical  mounds  described  by  Dr. 
Arlow  B.  Stout  in  1908  as  the  "Rock  River  Group."*  Most 
of  these  mounds  have  now  been  plowed  out  of  existence  or 
removed.  Two  remain  near  the  Cooper  house  and  in  the  or- 
chard west  of  it.  One  is  indicated  by  a  slight  dark  eleva- 
tion in  the  Cooper  river  shore  field,  and  one  is  located  by  the 
side  of  the  road  (the  Milton-Fulton  town  line)  in  a  grove  of 
oak  trees  near  the  "Shadow  Hill"  shack  of  the  Retreat  cot- 
tages. This  mound  is  24  feet  in  diameter  and  about  1%  feet 
high.  An  oak  tree  about  one  foot  in  diameter  stands  on  its 
top.  Human  bones  were  recently  disturbed  in  digging  a 
hole  for  a  telephone  pole  in  the  mound  near  the  Cooper 
house. 

Evidences  of  aboriginal  occupation  are  abundant  in  the 
river  shore  field.  Hearthstones  and  flint  refuse  are  abun- 
dant. Here  and  there  along  the  river  bank  and  in  the  field 
itself  are  traces  of  former  clam  shell  heaps  and  pits  of  small 
size.  One  appears  to  have  encroached  on  one  side  of  a  for- 
mer mound.  The  largest  was  located  on  the  river  bank 
just  east  of  one  of  the  Retreat  cottages.  All  of  the  former 
shell  heaps  the  plow  has  demolished  and  scattered. 

Deer  and  other  animal  bones  and  pieces  of  turtle  shell 
were  in  some  of  these  heaps.  The  part  of  this  village  site 
in  the  Cooper  field  on  the  north  side  of  the  road  also  shows 
traces  of  former  shell  deposits. 

The  number  of  flint  implements,  chiefly  arrow  and  spear- 
points,  collected  from  the  Cooper  fields  has  been  very  large. 
Mr.  Morris  Cooper  states  that  in  the  past  twenty-nine  years 
fully  one  thousand  of  these  have  been  gathered  here.  Three 
collections  of  these  have  been  made  one  of  which  is  the  prop- 
erty of  Horatio  Marsden  at  Albion  and  another  remains  in 
his  own  possession.  Of  his  collection  about  250  specimens 
are  displayed  in  a  frame  in  his  house.  Seven  of  these  are 
perforators  of  the  simple  stemless  form  and  the  balance  ar- 
row and  spearpoints  of  the  triangular,  stemmed,  notched 
and  barbed  forms.  Twelve  are  small  triangular  points.  A 


*  7—2  Wisconsin  Archeologist,  73,  50-51. 


24  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

fine  notched  spearpoint  with  a  finely  serrated  edge  is  about 
three  inches  long.  Another  is  of  about  the  same  shape  and 
length  without  the  serration.  These  points  are  made  of 
white,  grey,  bluish-grey,  red,  light  brown,  pink  and  flesh- 
colored  flint,  fragments,  and  chips  of  which  material  are 
scattered  over  the  surface  of  the  site.  Three  of  the  notched 
points  are  made  of  light  brown  quartzite. 

On  October  17  we  excavated  a  small  refuse  pit  located 
within  a  few  feet  of  the  "Koshkonong  Retreat"  cottages. 
This  was  located  on  the  river  bank.  This  small  pit  about 
three  feet  in  diameter  and  two  feet  deep  was  entirely  filled 
with  closely  packed  valves  of  partly  decomposed  clam  shells. 
This  heap  must  have  once  extended  above  ground.  Near  it 
small  pieces  of  shell  are  scattered  by  the  plow  over  an  area 
about  sixty  feet  long  and  ten  or  more  feet  wide.  Test  pits 
were  dug  elsewhere  in  this  vicinity  but  no  other  shell  depos- 
its were  encountered. 

One  hundred  and  fifty  potsherds  dug  from  or  collected 
from  the  surface  of  the  western  third  of  this  site  on  October 
11  and  12  are  evidently  fragments  of  vessels  of  both  large 
and  small  sizes.  All  are  crushed  rock  tempered.  Of  these 
sherds,  the  majority,  are  thick  and  made  of  brown  clay. 
Some  are  made  of  red  clay,  some  of  these  are  thick,  others 
thin.  Some  are  of  dark  colored  clay,  surfaced  on  one  or 
both  surfaces  with  red  clay. 

Of  six  rim  pieces,  four  have  straight  and  two  outward 
turned  rims.  Three  thick  brown  clay  rims  show  no  orna- 
mentation. One  (brown  ware)  is  surfaced  on  both  sides 
with  red  clay.  Its  rim  is  ornamented  with  small  indenta- 
tions and  its  outer  surface  with  faint  markings. 

One  piece  (brown  ware)  is  ornamented  below  the  rim 
with  small  elliptical  diagonal  indentations.  One  (thin  red 
ware)  is  unornamented. 

Three  sherds  (dark  brown  clay)  are  ornamented  with 
rows  of  parallel  incised  lines  unequal  distances  apart.  One 
shows  twelve  such  lines. 

Forty-one  sherds  (brown  ware,  and  brown  ware  surfaced 
with  red  clay)  are  ornamented  with  coarse  or  fine  twisted- 
cord  impressions. 

One  sherd  (brown  ware  surfaced  on  the  outer  surface 
with  red  clay)  is  ornamented  with  two  parallel  rows  of  small 
roulette  impressions. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         25 

One  sherd  (thin,  red  clay)  is  ornamented  with  several 
parallel  rows  of  small  oval  indentations. 

One  sherd  (brown  ware)  shows  cord  impressions  and  a 
single  incised  line  below  them. 

One  sherd  (thin,  red  clay),  the  best  ornamented  of  the 
lot,  is  ornamented  with  a  series  of  twisted-cord  impressions 
above  which  is  an  incised  curved  line  above  which  are  sev- 
eral parallel  lines  of  small  circular  impressions  probably 
made  with  a  hollow  plant  stem. 

So  far  as  known  no  perfect  vessel  has  as  yet  been  ob- 
tained from  the  black,  sandy  soil  of  this  field. 

Test  pits  dug  at  a  number  of  points  on  this  village  site 
show  that  in  places  the  village  refuse  (flint  chips  and  frag- 
ments, pieces  of  broken  bone,  shell  fragments,  etc.),  the 
relic-bearing  layer,  extends  at  least  from  three  to  four  feet 
beneath  the  surface. 

The  Lake  Koshkonong  west  shore  trail  passed  over  or 
near  this  site,  which  appears  to  have  been  an  early  Algon- 
quian  place  of  residence. 


FULTON  TOWNSHIP 

Pierce  Village  Site 
(SE.  %  Sec.  1) 

At  Newville  on  the  north  side  of  the  Rock  River  road  on 
the  Henry  Pierce  farm  is  a  very  sandy  cultivated  field.  In 
this  field,  extending  back  from  the  highway,  are  four  sand 
ridges  elevated  but  a  few  feet  above  the  road.  On  the  top 
of  these  ridges  evidences  of  aboriginal  occupation  are  very 
abundant.  Hearthstones  of  all  sizes  are  of  very  frequent 
occurrence.  Flint  chips,  flakes,  spalls  and  fragments  of 
various  colors  and  kinds  of  flint  are  very  numerous.  Nearly 
three  hundred  of  these  were  counted  on  the  top  of  the  most 
westerly  ridge  within  a  radius  of  about  thirty  feet. 

Although  this  site  has  been  frequented  by  collectors  for 
the  past  twenty  or  more  years  and  hundreds  of  flint  arrows 
and  spearpoints,  and  many  scrapers,  perforators,  knives 
and  some  axes  and  celts  collected  we  were  able  to  gather 
from  the  several  wigwam  and  workshop  sites  on  the  three 
ridges  in  less  than  an  hour's  search  a  number  of  flint  blanks, 


26  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

entire  and  broken,  several  arrowpoints,  a  scraper,  several 
rejects,  several  entire  and  broken  hammerstones,  flint  peck- 
ing hammers,  broken  flint  nodules,  an  anvil  stone,  a  red 
sandstone  smoothing  stone,  and  two  notched  stone  net 
weights.  A  single  cord-ornamented  potsherd  was  also 
found. 

These  three  low  ridges  are  about  400  feet  north  of  the 
river  bank.  The  most  westerly  ridge  is  separated  from  the 
one  east  of  it  by  a  distance  of  about  175  feet,  and  this  one 
from  the  next  east  by  a  shorter  distance.  Each  of  these 
ridges  appears  to  have  been  occupied  at  some  time  by  a  wig- 
wam, the  west  ridge  probably  by  two. 

On  the  east  side  of  the  road,  in  the  NE.  1/4  Sec.  2,  evi- 
dences of  former  camp  life  also  occur,  though  not  so  abun- 
dantly, on  several  knolls  or  elevated  spots  in  a  field  thinly 
overgrown  with  grass  and  in  use  as  a  pasture.  Such  evi- 
dences also  occur  on  knolls  and  level  places  in  a  field  adjoin- 
ing this  one  on  the  west. 

At  the  eastern  end  of  this  rich  village  site  a  brook  flows 
down  to  the  river  through  a  small  marshy  bed  from  a  high 
wooded  ridge  in  the  rear.  The  river  bank  is  here  steep  and 
abrupt. 

The  two  net-weights  found  on  the  Pierce  site  are  rather 
unique.  The  largest,  made  of  red  sandstone,  is  2%  inches 
in  length  and  1%  inches  in  width  and  11/4  inches  thick.  Its 
surface  is  roughly  flaked.  Its  two  edges  are  notched  by  the 
use  of  a  pecking  hammer.  The  other  specimen,  made  of  red 
granite,  is  21/4  x  1%  x  11/4  inches  in  size.  It  is  roughly 
flaked,  the  notches  at  the  two  sides  being  made  in  the  same 
manner.  They  were  found  within  a  short  distance  of  each 
other.  Several  similar  specimens  have  been  collected  here. 
They  may  be  part  of  a  set  or  quantity  of  such  weights. 

The  flint  worked  here  is  largely  of  greyish-white,  buff, 
and  flesh  (to  pink)  colors.  Blanks  of  all  of  these,  some 
broken,  occur  here  in  fair  numbers.  All  is  Wisconsin  ma- 
terial and  its  source  was  probably  not  distant.  Other  flint 
used  in  implement  manufacture  is  of  bluish-grey,  white  and 
dark  red  colors.  This  is  not  as  common.  One  rhyolite 
(black)  and  one  quartzite  (buff)  chip  were  found. 

Mr.  Geo.  H.  Sherman  of  Newville  has  in  his  collection  five 
pieces  or  lumps  of  galena  or  lead  ore  which  he  collected  at 


PIERCE    VILLAGE    SITE,    AT    FOOT    OF    LAKE    KOSHKONONG 


POWER  DAM  AT   INDIAN  FORD 
Plate  1 


Indian  Village  and  Cainp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         27 

different  times  from  the  Pierce  farm  site.  The  largest  of 
these  weighs  5  pounds  and  the  smallest  about  one  pound. 
Mr.  Sherman  has  in  his  collection  of  about  one  thousand 
flint  implements  many  which  were  found  here. 

Opposite  both  the  Rock  River  and  the  Pierce  village  sites 
there  were  when  the  first  white  settlers  came  to  this  region 
large  beds  of  wild  rice  which  the  Winnebago  Indians  then 
encamped  here  gathered.  Mussels  were  also  abundant  in 
the  river.  Some  of  these  the  Indians  dried  for  future  use. 
Both  sites  might  be  termed  fishing  villages,  their  inhabi- 
tants depending  on  water  products  (fish,  mussels,  wild  rice 
and  the  edible  roots  of  water  plants)  to  a  very  considerable 
extent  for  food.  Both  sites  exhibit  evidence  of  having  been 
occupied  by  an  Algonkian  people  at  an  earlier  date. 

Neivville  Village  Site 
(NE.  14  Sec.  12) 

John  Farmer's  "Map  of  the  Territories  of  Michigan  and 
Wisconsin,"  published  in  1836,  shows  the  location  of  a  Win- 
nebago village  at  Newville.  This  was  on  the  south  bank  of 
the  Rock  River  a  short  distance  from  the  foot  of  Lake  Kosh- 
konong,  and  on  the  trail  leading  from  the  lake  down  the 
Rock.  On  a  map  of  "Wiskonsin  Territory/'  1837,  the  name 
of  this  village  is  given  as  Tay-cheedah,  translated  as  "mud 
village."  Of  this  village  and  the  number  of  its  inhabitants 
during  these  years  very  little  is  known.  Its  chief  or  chiefs 
were  not  sufficiently  prominent  to  have  won  historical  rec- 
ognition. It  was  a  good  fishing  locality  and  Indians  con- 
tinued to  visit  and  to  camp  in  this  locality  in  numbers  for 
many  years  after  the  white  settlers  came  to  this  region. 

L.  B.  Carswell,  who  resided  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshko- 
nong  with  his  parents  who  settled  in  this  locality  in  1837, 
stated  that  the  lake  was  a  great  resort  for  Indians  who 
camped  here  often  by  hundreds.  These  were  principally 
Winnebago  and  Potawatomi.  The  Indians  subsisted  on 
fish,  game  and  wild  rice.  The  wild  rice  was  gathered  by 
means  of  canoes  and  after  being  hulled  and  winnowed  was 
stored  for  future  use  in  sacks  made  of  hides  or  rushes.  The 
lake  had  the  appearance  in  the  summer  time  of  a  large  mea- 
dow. The  growing  wild  rice  completely  covered  it  and  wa- 
ter was  scarcely  visible.  The  water  was  uniformly  only 


28  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

four  or  five  feet  deep.  The  prairies  and  oak  openings  of 
the  locality  were  smooth  and  easily  travelled.  The  prairies 
were  very  beautiful.  The  Indians  burned  the  prairie  grass 
every  year.*  Other  old  settlers  state  that  fish  were  taken 
by  the  Indians  in  several  ways — by  spearing  and  clubbing 
them,  and  by  pinning  them  in  the  shallows  with  a  split, 
forked  pole. 

The  great  number  of  stone  implements  and  of  other  In- 
dian artifacts  collected  in  this  region,  on  both  banks  of  the 
Rock,  in  the  past  ninety  or  more  years,  appears  to  bear 
abundant  testimony  that  as  an  Indian  dwelling  place  this 
locality  goes  far  back  into  the  prehistoric  period,  and  that 
Algonquian  as  well  as  Siouan  Indians  have  occupied  it. 

On  the  William  Aids  place  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Rock 
a  camp  site  is  indicated  by  scattered  hearthstones,  ashy 
areas  in  the  soil,  bits  of  mussel  shells  and  flint  rejectage. 
Mr.  Louis  Pierce  of  Newville  has  collected  a  number  of  flint 
arrowpoints  here  and  other  collectors  have  gathered  others 
and  a  few  stone  celts  and  grooved  axes  from  these  fields  in 
past  years.  In  Newville  itself  a  few  burials  have  been  un- 
earthed in  road  construction  and  house  building.  Very  lit- 
tle exact  information  concerning  these  is  now  obtainable. 
The  Aids  property  is  in  the  northern  part  of  the  northeast 
quarter  of  Section  12.  A  Winnebago  name  for  this  locality 
is  Nee-ouitch,  or  foot  of  the  lake. 

At  Newville  Indian  camp  and  village  sites  extend  from 
the  Rock  River  bridge  down  the  north  bank  of  the  Rock  to 
the  bend  of  the  river,  a  distance  of  a  mile  or  more. 

The  first  indications  of  a  former  Indian  village  site  on  the 
north  bank  of  the  river  were  found  in  a  small  potato  patch 
on  rather  low  black,  sandy  soil  several  hundred  feet  in  the 
rear  of  the  Simon  store  in  the  village.  At  this  place,  within 
a  few  feet  of  the  river  bank,  aboriginal  camp  refuse  consist- 
ing of  hearthstones,  flint  chips  and  spalls,  blanks  and  pieces 
of  clam  shell  were  abundant.  Small  sherds  of  cord-marked 
and  indented  earthenware  were  also  found.  This  site  ex- 
tends eastward  to  the  main  street  of  Newville  but  this  por- 
tion was  occupied  by  weeds  and  tall  grass  and  could  not  be 
examined.  It  also  extends  westward  along  the  river  on 
more  elevated  land  into  a  barnyard  adjoining  the  potato 

*  Hist,  of  Rock  Co.,  C.  F.  Cooper  &  Co.,  1908. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         29 

field.  In  past  years  a  goodly  number  of  flint  points,  sev- 
eral stone  celts  and  axes,  and  several  native  copper  imple- 
ments were  gathered  from  this  site. 

Riverview  Resort  Village  Site 
(NW.  1/4  Sec.  12) 

A  short  distance  west  of  the  foregoing  site  there  is  near 
the  river  bank  a  picturesque  small  limestone  and  yellow 
sandstone  outcrop,  where  some  quarrying  has  been  done. 
At  its  base  runs  a  river  road.  On  the  grass-grown  top  of 
this  quarry  flint  chips  and  hearthstones  also  occur,  these  in- 
dications extending  into  the  cultivated  field  in  its  rear.  Be- 
yond the  quarry  flint  refuse  occurs  in  the  road  and  in  the 
road  bank.  Here  was  located  in  the  bank  a  small  deposit  of 
partly  decomposed  and  broken  clam  shell  valves.  These 
were  tightly  packed  in  a  small  cavity  or  refuse  pit,  the  de- 
posit not  exceeding  eighteen  inches  in  depth.  This  small 
pit  was  excavated  but  disclosed  only  the  clam  shells. 

Beyond  this  place  the  land  along  the  river  bank  is  rather 
level  and  covered  with  sod.  This  common,  over  which  are 
scattered  the  cottages  of  the  Riverview  resort  (most  being 
grouped  at  its  western  end)  is  about  a  thousand  feet  in 
length  and  at  different  points  from  60  to  80  feet  in  breadth. 
On  it  are  scattered  oak  and  other  trees.  It  is  traversed  by 
the  river  road.  Near  its  western  end  a  spring-fed  brook 
runs  from  an  adjoining  field  into  the  river.  Throughout 
the  entire  length  of  this  common  flint  refuse  and  hearth- 
stones of  workshop  and  wigwam  sites  are  exposed  at  inter- 
vals in  the  road  and  in  other  places  which  are  bare  of  sod. 
These  sites  extend  into  the  cultivated  fields  in  the  rear  of 
the  resort.  The  river  opposite  the  resort  is  about  400  feet 
wide  from  bank  to  bank. 

Collectors  of  Indian  artifacts  at  Edgerton,  Indian  Ford, 
Fulton  and  Janesville  have  gathered  many  flint  implements 
and  a  smaller  number  of  stone  celts,  hammers,  stone  balls 
and  sandstone  grinding  stones  here  in  past  years.  Among 
the  more  interesting  finds  were  a  bone  awl,  small  circular 
clam-shell  pendant  and  a  copper  spearpoint  with  a  tapering 
blade  and  long  pointed  tang.  No  potsherds  were  collected. 


30  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

Ridgeview  Village  Site 
(NE.  %  Sec.  11) 

Beyond  ^Riverview  the  lake  bank  is  higher  and  the  slope 
of  a  wooded  ridge  parallels  the  shore  line  for  a  short  dis- 
tance. Among  the  oaks  on  this  slope  are  grouped  half-a- 
dozen  summer  cottages.  In  a  small  sandy  garden  plot  at 
the  eastern  end  of  this  resort  flint  refuse  and  hearthstones 
of  a  former  wigwam  fireplace  were  exposed.  Similar  in- 
dications of  former  Indian  occupation  are  found  at  inter- 
vals in  the  bed  of  the  river  road  and  the  bank  of  the  cottage 
lots  fronting  on  the  road. 

In  the  sandy  road  bank  in  front  of  the  "Snug  Harbor"  cot- 
tage, with  flint  chips  and  fragments,  many  pieces  of  a  small 
cord-marked  earthen  vessel  were  dug  out  of  the  bank.  About 
120  feet  beyond  this  place  the  road  cuts  through  a  shell  heap 
which  is  irregular  in  outline.  Its  greatest  length  is  about 
50  feet  and  its  width  from  four  to  twelve  feet.  This  de- 
posit of  decomposed  and  broken  clam  shells  mixed  with 
earth  is  in  places  about  two  feet  in  thickness.  It  is  located 
about  twenty  feet  from  the  river  bank  and  from  ten  to 
twelve  feet  above  the  water.  It  is  nearly  opposite  the  last 
of  the  line  of  cottages.  We  dug  over  parts  of  this  shell 
heap  but  without  other  results. 

Beyond  this  point  the  wooded  ridge  turns  toward  the 
north  and  then  again  to  the  west.  Between  its  base  and 
the  river  shore  there  is  a  cultivated  field  from  which  a  to- 
bacco crop  had  just  been  cut  and  removed.  In  this  field, 
which  slopes  gently  from  the  base  of  the  ridge  to  the  river 
bank,  indications  of  a  former  camp  site  occur.  The  east- 
ern end  especially,  of  this  field  was  littered  with  scattered 
flint  rejectage  and  hearthstones.  Several  hammerstones  and 
flint  blanks  were  among  these.  Local  and  other  collectors 
have  found  this  field  and  several  adjoining  farm  fields  good 
collecting  grounds  for  flint  points.  The  latter  fields  were 
growing  crops  of  clover  and  alfalfa  and  could  not  be  exam- 
ined. A  narrow  grassy  common  separates  the  southern 
margin  of  all  of  these  fields  from  the  river  bank.  This 
common  the  river  road  traverses.  At  a  number  of  places 
the  top  of  the  river  bank  is  at  least  ten  feet  above  the  water 
of  the  river.  Here  a  line  of  large  granite  and  other  boul- 
ders had  been  moved  from  the  fields  to  the  river  edge  of  the 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         31 

road.  At  the  western  limits  of  these  fields  a  dirt  road  comes 
down  to  the  river  from  the  Newville  to  Edgerton  highway, 
and  unites  with  the  river  bank  road.  A  short  distance  be- 
yond this  road  camp  site  indications  are  also  found. 

On  the  shore  near  the  southward  bend  of  the  Rock  are 
other  summer  resort  homes.  Here  the  land  along  the  bank 
is  forested  and  covered  with  sod,  giving  no  present  oppor- 
tunity for  its  examination.  Beyond  this  place,  south  of  Ed- 
gerton,  the  higher  river  bluffs  come  down  to  the  river  bank 
with  farm  lands  on  their  top. 

A  seemingly  favorite  flint  in  use  by  the  former  Indian 
residents  of  these  north  bank  village  sites  between  Newville 
and  the  river  bend  is  of  an  attractive  bright  red  color.  This 
material,  in  the  form  of  chips,  flakes,  spalls,  fragments,  bro- 
ken blanks  and  small  masses,  is  distributed  over  the  length 
of  these  sites.  Other  kinds  of  flint  in  use  on  these  sites  are 
a  flesh-colored,  a  dark  bluish  grey,  and  a  grey  and  white. 
The  first  of  these  is  also  of  quite  common  occurrence.  All 
were  very  probably  obtainable  from  Rock  River  or  other 
local  sources.  Flint  implements  made  of  these  are  in  local 
and  other  collections.  Nodules  of  white  flint  occur  in  some 
of  the  fields. 

We  collected  from  these  sites  a  notched  arrowpoint  made 
of  red  flint,  a  stemmed  point  made  of  the  flesh-colored  flint 
and  broken  points  made  of  this  material,  hammerstones  en- 
tire and  broken,  a  small  lump  of  hematite,  and  pieces  of 
clam  shell  valves.  Potsherds  found  on  the  Ridgeview  site  are 
some  of  them  of  a  reddish  color,  and  some  of  a  blackish 
color.  Some  of  the  latter  are  ornamented  with  cord  im- 
pressions and  small  indentations.  All  are  tempered  with 
crushed  stone  particles.  The  pieces  of  a  small  broken  ves- 
sel found  at  "Snug  Harbor"  cottage  are  of  a  reddish  color 
and  are  ornamented  with  cord  impressions.  These  are  also 
tempered  with  crushed  stone. 

Mr.  D.  Willard  North  has  fragments  of  a  large  vessel 
which  in  the  year  1922  or  1923  he  excavated  from  beneath 
the  roots  of  an  oak  tree  standing  about  on  the  north  and 
south  boundary  line  of  Sections  11  and  12.  This  location  is 
by  the  side  of  the  old  trail  from  Newville  to  Indian  Ford  and 
the  mouth  of  the  Catfish  River.  This  vessel  was  of  a  dark 
brown  color,  its  surface  paddled  with  coarse  cord  markings, 


32  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

and  with  small  elliptical  impressions  made  with  a  small 
cross-lined  stamp  or  object,  also  with  small  circular  nodes 
punched  out  from  the  interior  of  the  vessel.  Some  of  the 
sherds  are  nearly  one-half  inch  in  thickness.  This  pot  ap- 
pears to  have  been  quite  a  large  vessel,  perhaps  a  kettle. 
The  clay  is  tempered  with  crushed  stone. 

Mr.  North  informed  the  writers  that  in  the  year  1918  he 
found  on  the  Richardson  farm  at  Newville,  the  bones  of  an 
Indian  buried  which  had  been  exposed  in  the  plowing  of  a 
field.  It  was  a  full  length  burial.  The  site  of  this  inter- 
ment was  a  short  distance  west  of  the  stone  outcrop  on  the 
river  bank  on  that  farm,  and  about  300  feet  from  the  bank. 

Mr.  North  has  numerous  flint  implements  from  the  vil- 
lage sites  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Rock  at  Newville. 

Mrs.  George  Doty  of  Edgerton  has  a  small  collection 
made  by  her  son,  Lawrence  Doty,  at  Newville  and  elsewhere 
at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong  about  thirty  years  ago.  This 
small  collection  consists  largely  of  arrowpoints  of  which 
there  are  about  one  hundred.  Of  this  number  50  are 
stemmed  points,  45  notched,  3  barbed,  and  5  triangular  in 
form  (more  common  in  Northern  Illinois)  with  truncated 
or  blunted  barbs,  one  having  serrated  edges.  There  are  a 
number  of  flint  blanks.  The  points  in  this  collection  are 
made  of  red,  flesh  colored,  pink,  grey,  white,  and  salmon  col- 
ored flint.  One  notched  point  is  made  of  light  grey  quartz- 
ite.  One  perforator  is  made  of  grey  flint,  another  of  grey- 
ish quartzite.  Both  are  simple,  elongated  leaf-shaped  forms 
lacking  a  stem.  Two  scrapers  are  both  re-chipped  arrow- 
points.  One  is  made  of  grey,  the  other  of  buff  flint.  The 
only  heavy  stone  cutting  implement  is  a  five  inch  celt. 

Mr.  Darcey  Biggar,  Louis  Pierce,  Edward  Amerpoll,  Hor- 
ace McElroy,  H.  C.  Son,  W.  P.  Clarke,  are  among  many  oth- 
ers who  have  collected  from  the  sites  at  Newville  in  past 
years.  The  total  number  of  Indian  implements  collected 
here  must  number  in  the  neighborhood  of  5,000  specimens. 

In  the  Logan  Museum  at  Beloit  there  is  an  arrowshaft 
grinder  which  was  collected  here,  and  in  the  Geo.  A.  West 
collection  in  the  State  Historical  Museum,  three  flint  perfor- 
ators from  Newville. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         33 

South  Bank  Camp  Sites 

(NW.  14  Sec.  12  and  NE.  14  Sec.  11) 

On  the  south  bank  of  the  Rock  River  indications  of  for- 
mer camp  and  workshop  sites  occur  along  the  river  road 
from  near  the  Newville  bridge  westward  to  the  Peek  farm 
at  the  bend  of  the  river.  Remains  of  these  early  Indian 
homesites  are  here  more  difficult  to  locate  than  on  the  north 
bank  of  the  river  because  of  woodland  tracts,  an  orchard 
and  other  conditions  of  the  land  which  are  unfavorable  for 
the  making  of  a  satisfactory  surface  survey. 

Several  visits  were  made  to  this  locality.  On  one  of 
these  occasions  a  deposit  of  flint  chips  and  spalls,  a  small 
workship  site,  was  removed  from  the  roadside  bank  oppo- 
site the  Charles  Zebell  farm.  Other  flint  rejectage  was 
found  in  other  places,  in  the  river  bank,  along  the  road  and 
in  gardens.  In  the  course  of  years  quite  a  number  of  flint 
points  and  some  stone  celts  and  grooved  axes  have  been 
picked  up  by  Newville  and  other  collectors  of  Indian  imple- 
ments along  this  stretch  of  river  road.  In  places  in  the  cul- 
tivated fields  of  the  Peek  farm  wigwam  hearthstones  are 
quite  numerous.  The  excavation  of  several  of  these  former 
fireplaces  produced  only  charcoal,  and  ashy  soil.  No  pot- 
tery fragments  were  found  on  these  sites. 

The  flint  in  use  in  implement  manufacture  in  this  local- 
ity is  apparently  the  same  as  that  which  was  in  use  on  the 
north  bank  sites.  Two  notched  arrowpoints  found  during 
our  investigations  are  made  of  white  flint,  a  broken  point 
and  a  portion  of  a  knife  are  both  made  of  flesh-colored  flint. 

The  river  road  above  referred  to  is  a  picturesque  country 
highway  with  scattered  summer  cottages  between  it  and 
the  rather  high  river  bank.  Beyond  the  most  western  of 
these  cottages  rather  level  cultivated  fields  extend  to  beyond 
the  river  bend.  In  early  days  of  white  settlement  small 
groups  of  both  Winnebago  and  Potawatomi  Indians  fre- 
quently camped  here. 

Oak  Ridge  Village  Site 

(E.  %  Sec.  14) 

The  Rock  River  makes  a  big  bend  to  the  west  opposite 
the  road  and  rather  level  river  fields  of  this  farm.  At  this 
bend  a  large  marsh  extends  inland  in  a  southeasterly  direc- 


34  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

tion  for  a  considerable  distance.  On  the  border  of  this 
marsh  on  the  Ulysses  0.  Miller  farm  is  a  sandy  knoll  in 
use  during  the  summer  of  1928  as  a  watermelon  patch.  Here 
were  found  the  scattered  stones  of  a  wigwam  fireplace,  flint 
refuse  and  a  broken  flint  blank.  Some  flint  points  have 
been  found  here  by  the  son  of  the  farmer.  Other  likely 
spots  in  the  Miller  fields  from  which  numbers  of  flint  points 
have  been  collected  were  covered  with  grass  and  weeds  and 
could  not  be  examined.  Across  the  marsh  from  the  farm 
fields  to  the  south  is  a  woodland. 

Indications  of  this  former  village  site  also  extend  on  to 
the  Mrs.  Will  Earl  and  adjoining  farms.  From  this  site 
Mr.  Miller  has  made  a  very  good  collection  of  Indian  imple- 
ments. Other  collectors  have  also  visited  and  gathered 
flint  and  other  implements  here.  The  manufacture  of  flint 
implements  was  quite  extensively  engaged  in.  In  re- 
cently plowing  a  field  on  the  Miller  farm  the  plowshare  cut 
through  a  deposit  of  nearly  a  bushel  of  flint  chips  and  spalls. 
In  former  years  it  frequently  happened  that  similar  depos- 
its were  disturbed  in  cultivating  some  of  these  river  bend 
fields.  Wigwam  fireplaces  and  other  hearths  were  also 
thus  disturbed  and  the  burned  stones  scattered. 

The  old  Indian  trail  from  Indian  Ford  to  the  foot  of  Lake 
Koshkonong  passed  over  the  Miller  farm.  A  remnant  of 
this  prehistoric  pathway  can  still  be  seen  in  the  woodland 
north  of  the  Miller  farm  house. 

The  Miller  collection  includes  about  350  flint  implements. 
Of  these  the  greater  number  are  arrowpoints,  largely  of 
stemmed  and  notched  forms.  A  few  are  triangular  in 
shape.  One  exceptionally  large  (3%  in.)spearpoint  of  the 
"heart-shaped"  form,  with  one  broken  barb,  is  made  of 
white  flint.  The  arrowpoints  are  largely  made  of  white 
and  grey  flint,  a  few  of  reddish  or  other  colored  flint.  Sev- 
eral are  made  of  light  brown  quartzite  and  one  stemmed 
spearpoint  of  blue  hornstone.  There  are  a  small  number 
of  scrapers  and  perforators,  the  latter  all  provided  with 
bases. 

The  heavier  stone  implements  in  this  collection  are  a  cen- 
trally grooved  stone  hammer,  a  rude  grooved  axe,  and  a 
number  of  stone  balls.  The  only  copper  implement  is  a 
small  triangular  arrowpoint.  A  small  conical  copper  point 


I 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         35 

was  also  found  here.  A  small  disk  pipe  made  of  white  lime- 
stone comes  from  the  sites  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong. 

Some  shell-tempered  potsherds  are  reported  to  have  been 
found  on  this  village  site.  We  were  unable  to  recover  any 
specimens  of  this  or  other  earthenware  fragments  during 
our  several  visits  to  this  site. 

This  site  also  extends  on  to  the  Hurd  farm  adjoining  the 
Miller  farm  on  the  west.  On  this  farm,  east  of  where  the 
C.  M.  &  St.  P.  R.  R.  line  crosses  the  Rock,  Mr.  Darcy  Biggar 
once  collected  a  grooved  stone  maul  weighing  six  pounds. 
This  site  is  in  the  SW.  %  of  Section  14. 

River  Bend  Shell  Heap 

(SW.  1/4  of  the  NW.  1/4  of  Sec.  14) 

A  shell  heap  was  formerly  located  on  the  A.  Salisbury 
farm  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Rock  in  the  big  bend  of  the 
river.  When  Mr.  Darcy  Biggar  first  noticed  this  refuse 
heap  years  ago  it  had  been  deeply  plowed  by  the  owners  of 
the  land  preparatory  to  cultivating  the  field.  He  examined 
the  ground  at  the  time  but  no  Indian  implements  were 
found  upon  or  near  it.  This  shell  mound  was  low  and  of 
small  dimensions  and  was  a  mixture  of  the  valves,  broken 
and  entire,  of  river  clams  and  earth.  It  was  in  appearance 
similar  to  other  refuse  heaps  once  located  along  the  Rock 
River  bank  between  this  point  and  the  foot  of  Lake  Kosh- 
konong. River  mussels  of,  which  there  were  formerly 
many  beds,  worked  in  recent  years  by  pearl  hunters,  appear 
to  have  been  a  quite  common  article  of  food  of  the  early  In- 
dian occupants  of  the  Rock  River. 

This  place  is  across  the  river  from  the  Oak  Ridge  village 
site  elsewhere  described.  The  north  bank  trail  from  New- 
ville  and  Lake  Koshkonong  passed  over  it. 

Edgerton  Camp  Sites 

(N.  1/2  Sec.  15) 

Camp  and  workshop  site  debris  occurs  in  several  culti- 
vated fields  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Rock  overlooking  a 
bend  of  the  river.  These  are  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile 
south  of  the  southern  city  limits  of  Edgerton.  The  river 
banks  are  high  at  this  place,  a  number  of  cottages  being  lo- 
cated on  the  river  shore.  The  camp  sites  are  on  top  of  the 


36  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

high  banks  at  a  distance  of  three  hundred  or  more  feet  from 
the  water's  edge.  The  flint  worked  at  these  wigwam  sites 
was  of  white,  bluish  grey,  light  brown  and  reddish  colors. 
Several  small  broken  flint  blanks  and  the  base  of  a  small 
leaf  shaped  point  were  found.  Of  special  interest  is  a  small 
flint  pecking  hammer.  Indications  of  its  use  in  implement 
manufacture  circle  the  edge  of  one  of  its  faces. 

The  very  weedy  condition  of  the  cornfields  in  which  these 
evidences  occur  prevented  our  making  a  larger  collection. 

Both  east  and  west  of  these  farm  fields  are  ravines  and 
woodlands.  Mr.  Darcy  Biggar  has  collected  some  flint  ar- 
row and  spearpoints  from  a  camp  site  located  in  the  NE.  1/4 
of  Section  15. 

Edgerton 

The  southern  city  limits  of  Edgerton  are  at  different 
points  within  a  half  mile  or  a  mile  north  of  the  Rock  River. 
Two  trails,  coming  from  the  northwest,  ran  across  the  site 
of  the  present  city  in  a  southwesterly  direction  and  united 
just  beyond  its  southwestern  limits,  then  continued  on  to 
the  mouth  of  the  Catfish  River.  In  various  collections  and 
in  other  hands  are  Indian  implements  found  in  past  years 
within  the  present  limits  of  Edgerton,  or  near  the  city.  The 
exact  locations  from  which  some  of  these  were  obtained  is 
unfortunately  unknown.  The  character  of  some  of  these  is 
such  that  they  deserve  to  be  mentioned  despite  this  uncer- 
tainty. These  include  an  adz-axe  made  of  greenstone,  a 
grooved  axe  with  a  pointed  poll  made  of  basalt,  a  fluted 
stone  axe  made  of  grauwacke,  and  a  bannerstone  of  the  but- 
terfly form  made  of  hornblende  schist,  all  of  which  are  in 
the  Logan  Museum  at  Beloit  College.  In  the  State  Histori- 
cal Museum  there  is  a  copper  knife  (A  2451)  found  near  the 
city.  Also  an  iron  trade  axe  cut  out  of  the  trunk  of  a  large 
white  oak  tree  at  Edgerton  and  presented  by  Matthew 
Croft.  Mr.  H.  C.  Son  has  an  antler  point  found  near  the 
city. 

Within  and  near  the  city  many  specimens  of  such  com- 
mon Indian  weapons  and  tools  as  flint  arrow  and  spear- 
points,  and  some  stone  celts  and  grooved  axes  have  beei 
found. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         37 

Miller  Camp  Site 

(NW.  1/4  Sec.  15) 

Mr.  Bert  Cox  of  Indian  Ford  reports  that  a  favorite  camp 
ground  of  the  early  Indians  was  on  the  Charles  Miller  farm 
on  the  north  bank  of  the  Rock,  in  the  northwest  corner  of 
this  quarter  section.  This  site  is  a  short  distance  northeast 
of  Indian  Ford.  The  river  trail  passed  over  it.  He  has  in 
his  collection  some  flint  points,  blanks  and  a  knife  collected 
here.  Flint  chips  and  fragments  and  burned  stones  occur  in 
a  field  on  this  place. 

Mr.  Cox  has  a  large  polished  grooved  axe  with  a  deep 
groove  and  prominent  ridges.  This  was  found  on  the  old 
Wm.  Bell  farm,  where  the  slaughter  house  stands.  It 
weighs  5  pounds.  The  Bell  farm  adjoins  the  Miller  farm 
on  the  east.  Numerous  indications  of  flint  working,  also 
occur  here.  Mr.  David  Van  Wart,  a  former  Evansville  col- 
lector, had  a  flint  hoe  made  of  tan-colored  flint  which  was 
found  on  the  Miller  farm  site.  This  implement  was  bell- 
shaped  in  form  and  8  inches  in  length.  Its  width  at  its 
squared  top  was  2i/o  inches  and  at  the  expanded  base  of  its 
blade  6  inches.  Its  curved  cutting  edge  was  polished 
through  long  use.  Hoes  of  similar  form  are  of  frequent  oc- 
currence in  southern  Illinois. 

Devil's  Oven 

(NE.  %  Sec.  16) 

Two  small  caves  occur  in  the  limestone  wall  on  the  river 
bank  on  the  William  Wille  farm.  The  larger  of  these  is 
known  as  "The  Devil's  Oven."  This  cave  is  near  the  top  of 
the  sloping  river  bank  at  a  distance  of  about  50  feet  from 
the  water's  edge.  Its  mouth  is  somewhat  circular  in  out- 
line, about  5  feet  high  and  6  feet  wide  at  the  floor.  Its 
length  is  about  18  feet.  It  becomes  lower  and  narrower 
within.  Its  floor  is  of  earth  and  loose  fragments  of  rock. 
In  an  emergency  it  might  shelter  rather  uncomfortably  four 
or  five  persons.  This  cave  has  a  local  reputation  of  having 
been  occasionally  used  by  Indians  in  former  years  as  a  tem- 
porary shelter.  A  short  distance  south  of  it  is  a  smaller 
"cave." 

The  riverbank  fields  of  the  Wille  farm  were  in  pasture 


38  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,  No.   1 

and  could  not  be  examined.  Some  stone  implements  have 
been  found  here  in  past  years  and  it  is  probable  that  camp 
and  workshop  sites  occur  here  also. 


Brown  Camp  Site 

(SE.  1/4,  NW.  1/4  Sec.  16) 

On  the  F.  T.  Brown  farm  indications  of  a  former  camp 
and  workshop  site  were  found  in  a  level  field  between  the 
farm  barn  and  the  high  river  bank.  Hearthstones,  a  bro- 
ken white  flint  blank,  and  chips  and  spalls  of  white,  grey 
and  red  flint  were  scattered  over  a  small  area  in  this  field  at 
a  distance  of  about  one  hundred  feet  from  the  top  of  the 
river  bank.  Mr.  Brown,  the  owner  of  the  farm,  has  also 
found  a  few  flint  arrowpoints  here. 

Limestone  outcrops  along  this  bank  of  the  river  and  ex- 
tends from  south  of  Cliff  Lodge  as  far  north  as  the  William 
Wille  farm  beyond  the  Brown  farm.  This  stone  has  been 
quarried  in  several  places  one  of  these  quarries  being  on  the 
Brown  and  another  on  the  river  shore  on  the  Wille  pro 
erty. 


Southworth  Farm  Village  Site 
(NE.  1/4  Sec.  16) 

An  Indian  village  site  is  located  on  the  Southworth  farm, 
formerly  the  John  C.  Kurd  farm,  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the 
third  bend  of  the  Rock  River.  Its  southern  limit  is  at  a 
distance  of  about  two  city  blocks  north  of  the  northern  lim- 
its of  Indian  Ford.  Its  northern  limit  extends  into  the 
southwest  corner  of  the  NW.  14  of  Section  15.  This  site 
is  located  on  ground  now  under  cultivation.  It  was  partly 
occupied  by  a  large  cornfield  and  partly  by  pasture  fields 
during  the  summer  of  1928. 

Along  the  river  front  of  these  fields  for  a  distance  of 
nearly  six  hundred  feet  were  scattered  groups  of  hearth- 
stones, flint  fragments,  chips,  flakes,  some  flint  nodules, 
fragments  of  animal  bones  and  of  river  mussel  shells,  and 
occasional  broken  pebble  hand-hammers. 

From  this  site,  in  past  years,  numbers  of  flint  imple- 
ments, hammerstones,  and  some  stone  celts,  hammers  and 
grooved  axes  have  been  collected.  A  pebble  pipe,  the  stem 
of  a  broken  pottery  pipe,  a  broken  slate  gorget,  a  bone  awl 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         39 

and  several  perforated  shell  disk  beads  were  also  obtained. 
Messrs.  Bert  Cox,  Darcy  Biggar,  D.  Willard  North  and 
other  collectors  have  found  these  fields  a  good  hunting 
ground.  Some  sherds  of  twisted-cord  marked  and  indented 
earthenware  are  among  other  specimens  gathered.  We 
collected  during  our  inspections  of  this  village  site  broken 
hammerstones,  flint  blanks  and  a  flint  double-end  scraper. 

The  flint  in  use  in  implement  manufacture  is  largely  of  a 
reddish  color,  with  some  chips  and  fragments  of  white 
and  bluish-grey  flint.  Years  ago,  when  some  of  these  fields 
were  first  cultivated  small  heaps  of  flint  chips  were  over- 
turned by  the  plowshare  in  different  places  in  these  river 
bank  fields.  Near  the  river  bank  were  some  shallow  circu- 
lar depressions,  probably  former  provision  cache  pits. 
Evidences  of  Indian  occupation  extend  from  150  to  300  feet 
or  more  inland  from  the  river  bank.  The  river  bank  along 
this  shore  of  the  Rock  rises  from  6  to  15  or  more  feet 
above  the  water  the  land  sloping  gradually  upward  toward 
the  east. 

The  Rock  River  trail  passed  over  this  farm  on  its  way  to 
Indian  Ford,  according  to  early  maps,  a  considerable  dis- 
tance back  from  the  river  bank. 

The  Rock  River  opposite  this  land  is  a  very  attractive 
stream,  and  is  400  or  more  feet  in  width.  The  banks  on 
both  shores  are  clothed  with  oak  trees.  On  the  opposite 
shore,  across  from  the  northern  part  of  the  Southworth 
farm,  there  is  a  limestone  quarry. 

Indian  Ford 

At  this  settlement  on  the  highway  from  Edgerton  to 
Janesville  there  was  an  Indian  crossing  or  ford  of  the  Rock 
River  from  the  trail  on  its  eastern  bank  to  that  on  its  west- 
ern. The  old  Winnebago  Indian  name  of  this  locality  was 
Nee-ru-tcha-ja,  or  "river  crossing,"  also  given  as  Ho-ru- 
tchkach.  Pioneer  and  other  old  settlers  remembered  num- 
bers of  both  Winnebago  and  Potawatomi  Indians  crossing 
the  river  in  the  shallows  at  this  place,  the  women  at  times 
rather  heavily  laden  with  bundles  on  their  backs  and  shoul- 
ders. They  were  on  their  way  to  Lake  Koshkonong  or  to 
points  down  the  river.  The  early  ford  is  reported  to  have 
been  just  above  the  present  highway  bridge.  Doubtless 


40  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No. 

there  were  other  crossings.  Even  today  the  river  bed  is 
shallow  below  the  dam  and  may  be  crossed  by  means  of 
sand  and  gravel  bars.  One  good  crossing  is  about  300  feet 
below  the  power  dam. 

On  some  maps  both  the  names  Indian  Ford  and  Fulton 
Center  appear  for  the  part  of  the  settlement  on  the  east 
bank  of  the  river. 

From  the  highway  at  the  base  of  the  river  bluffs  on  the 
east  bank  the  locality  is  quite  picturesque.  On  the  oppo- 
site shore  the  river  hills,  now  occupied  by  farm  and  other 
houses  slope  down  to  the  small  settlement  on  this  bank. 

Mr.  Bert  Cox  of  Indian  Ford  has  a  collection  of  some  five 
hundred  Indian  implements.  Some  of  his  best  specimens 
were  obtained  from  the  village  site  on  the  old  Stone  (the 
present  Flom)  farm,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  river  about  a 
mile  southwest  of  Indian  Ford.  Others  are  from  the  South- 
worth  and  other  sites  up  the  river.  Of  special  note  in  His 
collection  are  a  perforated  oval  stone  ornament  or  amulet 
with  a  groove  extending  from  the  perforation  to  the  top  and 
made  of  mica  schist,  and  a  polished  black  stone  ball  two 
inches  in  diameter.  Two  stone  celts  are  triangular  in  form 
and  from  3  to  4%  inches  in  length.  The  smaller  is  polished, 
the  larger  has  a  pecked  surface.  Three  knives  are  made  of 
rhyolite,  purple-brown  quartzite  and  light  brown  quartzite. 
These  are  from  21/2  to  3%  inches  in  length.  Six  large 
stemmed,  notched  and  barbed  spearpoints  are  from  3Va  to 
4%  inches  long.  Five  are  made  of  flint  and  one  of  light 
brown  quartzite.  A  grooved  stone  axe  has  a  blade  short- 
ened by  frequent  sharpening  of  its  cutting  edge.  Some 
flint  scrapers,  perforators  and  reamers  are  in  this  collec- 
tion. A  small  lump  of  hematite  is  of  interest. 

Indian  Ford  Camp  Site 

(SW.  1/4  Sec.  16) 

Within  the  part  of  the  village  of  Indian  Ford  located  on 
the  east  bank  of  the  Rock  traces  of  a  former  Indian  camp 
site  are  exposed  in  a  small  garden  field  adjoining  the  M.  F. 
Krueger  home  on  the  south.  In  this  field  located  between 
the  highway  and  the  river  bank  hearthstones  are  most  num- 
erous in  the  southwest  corner  at  a  distance  of  about  50  feet 
from  the  river  bank.  An  unornamented  crushed-rock  tern- 


.. 


ROCK   RIVER  BELOW   INDIAN  FORD 


THE  MILL  ON  BASS   CREEK  AT  AFTON 
Plate   2 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         41 

pered  potsherd,  a  flint  blank,  a  flint  pecking  hammer  and  an 
ordinary  hammerstone  were  found  here. 

A  short  distance  north  of  this  field  at  the  northern  limits 
of  the  village  a  brook  flows  into  the  Rock.  The  Indian  site 
probably  covers  the  entire  distance  from  this  brook  to  the 
Indian  Ford  bridge.  All  of  it  but  this  field  is  now  occupied 
by  dwellings  and  barns  of  the  village. 

Several  stone  celts  and  numbers  of  flint  implements  have 
been  found  in  this  part  of  Indian  Ford. 

Indian  Ford  Heights  Camp  Site 
(SW.  %  Sec.  16) 

On  the  west  bank  of  the  river  at  Indian  Ford  a  camp  site 
is  located  on  the  D.  Willard  North  property  on  the  heights 
overlooking  the  settlement  and  the  river  below.  This  is  in- 
dicated by  the  presence  of  a  few  scattered  hearthstones  and 
flint  chips  and  fragments  in  the  garden  south  of  the  North 
cottage.  This  site  extends  across  the  highway  into  the  gar- 
den of  the  Becker  home.  Here  many  flint  arrowpoints 
have  been  collected.  It  also  extends  over  parts  of  a  culti- 
vated field  along  the  top  of  the  river  bluff  from  the  barn  on 
the  North  place  northward  to  the  Cliff  Lodge  resort. 

Several  examinations  were  made  of  the  black  soil  of  this 
field  after  its  tobacco  crop  had  been  removed.  These  re- 
sulted in  the  finding  of  scattered  hearthstones,  chips  and 
spalls  of  light  brown  and  flesh-colored  flint  and  of  white 
quartz,  two  flake  scrapers,  a  broken  blue  hornstone  arrow- 
point,  a  sandstone  rubbing  or  smoothing  stone,  and  a  light 
grey  flint  blank.  Some  small  sherds  of  cord-marked  pot- 
tery were  also  found  in  the  North  garden. 

This  site  probably  extends  beyond  the  Cliff  Lodge  resort. 

South  Indian  Ford  Camp  Site 
(SE.  1/4  Sec.  20) 

From  Indian  Ford  in  a  southwesterly  direction  the  south 
shore  of  the  Rock  for  a  distance  of  a  mile  westward  to  the 
SE.  1/4,  of  Section  20  is  hilly  and  covered  with  woodland  ex- 
cept where  the  hills  have  been  denuded  of  trees.  A  number 
of  small  ravines  lead  from  the  tops  of  these  hills  down  to 
river  shore. 

At  one  place   along  this   stretch,  just  west  of  where  a 


42  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  >fo.   1 

brook  enters  the  Rock,  there  is  a  small  grassy  flat  between 
the  base  of  the  hills  and  the  river  shore.  This  is  about  the 
distance  of  a  city  block  west  of  the  present  tourist  camp 
ground  at  Indian  Ford.  This  small  area  was  recently  un- 
der cultivation.  It  is  known  to  have  been  an  Indian  camp 
site,  and  quite  a  few  flint  implements  have  been  found  here 
by  collectors.  Here,  in  a  spot  not  entirely  overgrown  with 
the  grass  and  weeds  which  have  again  taken  possession  of 
this  former  field,  we  found  a  group  of  fireplace  stones,  scat- 
tered chips  of  white  flint  and  a  broken  hammerstone.  The 
latter  had  probably  seen  secondary  use  as  a  fireplace 
stone.  Bits  of  clam  shell  valves  were  also  found.  The 
river  bank  opposite  this  camp  site  is  quite  high.  Opposite 
this  point  the  Rock  is  about  300  feet  wide. 

The  river  trail  passed  over  the  top  of  these  bluffs. 

Indian  Ford  Flats  Village  Site 
(NW.  1/4  Sec.  20) 

On  the  north  (west)  bank  of  the  Rock  south  of  the  village 
of  Indian  Ford  the  land  along  the  river  is  quite  level.  Along 
the  shore  south  of  the  power  plant  at  the  dam  a  number  of 
summer  cottages  have  been  erected  and  the  name  "Sunny 
View"  given  to  this  addition.  In  the  rear  of  these  is  a 
grassy  pasture  which  rises  gradually  toward  the  Fulton 
road. 

Adjoining  Sunny  View  on  the  south  is  a  large  cultivated 
field  of  the  Schofield  farm.  In  this  field,  bearing  a  crop  of 
corn  at  the  time  of  our  visit,  the  evidence  of  former  Indian 
occupation  was  abundant.  Burned  stones  from  wigwam 
fireplaces  and  fragments,  flakes  and  chips  of  flint  were  scat- 
tered over  the  entire  river  frontage  of  this  field  and  ex- 
tended for  a  considerable  distance  toward  its  rear.  Hearth- 
stones of  all  sizes  were  more  numerous  here  than  on  any 
site  along  the  river  which  we  have  recently  examined.  Small 
fragments  of  clam  shell  valves  were  also  scattered  over 
some  parts  of  the  field. 

The  flint  employed  here  in  implement  making  is  of  white, 
grey,  tan,  flesh,  and  reddish  colors.  All  or  nearly  all  of  it 
could  have  been  very  conveniently  obtained  from  some  of 
the  gravel  hills  or  gravel  slides  along  the  river  between  this 
point  and  Janesville.  The  character  of  some  of  the  numer- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  pf  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         43 

ous  flint  implements  found  on  this  site  appears  to  show, 
however,  that  some  other  flint  was  imported,  coming  from 
greater  distances.  Flakes  and  chips  of  light  colored  quart- 
zite  show  that  this  material  was  also  in  use  in  implement 
manufacture  at  this  village.  Other  artifacts  found  in  the 
course  of  a  search  of  this  site  were  pebble  hammerstones  of 
different  sizes  and  weights  (some  of  them  evidently  broken 
in  use),  sandstone  smoothers,  flake  scrapers,  flint  blanks, 
pieces  of  broken  arrow  and  spearpoints  and  knives,  flint 
nodules  and  masses  of  white  flint.  No  potsherds  were  ob- 
tained although  a  number  have  been  collected  here  by  other 
persons. 

This  village  site  extended  over  the  adjoining  grassy  field 
of  "Sunny  View,''  also  into  the  woodland  cottage  resort  of 
"Rainbow's  End,"  which  adjoins  the  Schofield  field  on  the 
west.  Mr.  W.  C.  Schofield  has  a  small  collection  of  Indian 
artifacts  collected  from  this  site.  Mr.  Darcy  Biggar  has 
collected  some  twenty-five  or  thirty  flint  arrowpoints  and 
two  or  three  flint  knives  from  here.  A  grooved  stone  axe 
has  also  been  found.  The  river  bank  opposite  this  field  is 
from  six  to  ten  or  more  feet  high  and  the  stream  opposite 
about  three  hundred  feet  wide. 

Rainbow's  End  Corn  Field 

(NW.  %  Sec.  20) 

West  of  the  Hansen  cottage  at  Rainbow's  End  woodland 
numerous  Indian  corn  hills  are  to  be  seen  near  the  river 
shore.  These  are  covered  with  sod  and  although  they  have 
been  trampled  over  by  cattle  the  hills  of  the  old  planting 
ground  are  still  fairly  distinct.  The  hills  are  not  arranged 
in  rows  but  are  scattered  about  here  and  there  and  are  quite 
close  together.  This  cornfield  covered  about  a  third  of  an 
acre  of  ground.  Some  of  the  hills  are  within  a  few  feet  of 
the  lake  bank  which  is  rather  low.  The  Indians  are  re- 
ported to  have  been  still  growing  some  corn  here  after  the 
first  white  settlers  came  to  this  part  of  Rock  County. 

Indian  Hill  Mound  Group 

(NE.  1/4  Sec.  19) 

This  interesting  group  of  mounds  was  first  described  by 
Dr.  Increase  A.  Lapham.*  It  was  replatted  in  recent  years 


*  The  Antiquities  of  Wisconsin,  1855. 


44  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,   No.   1 

by  Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  (See  Wis.  Archeologist,  v.  13,  no.  2, 
1914.) 

There  are  28  mounds  in  this  group,  nine  being  tapering 
linears  from  74  to  205  feet  in  length,  and  the  balance  short, 
straight  linears,  oval  and  conical  earthworks. 

This  group  is  located  on  the  bank  of  the  Rock  between  the 
Pratt  pasture  lands  and  the  mouth  of  the  Yahara  or  Catfish 
River.  The  mounds  are  near  the  river  bank  in  an  open 
woodland.  This  contains  but  little  underbrush  being  in  use 
as  a  pasture  and  most  of  the  mounds  can  be  plainly  seen 
from  the  lakeshore  path.  Nearly  all  of  the  conical  mounds 
have  been  dug  into  by  relic  hunters  and  some  of  the  linears 
also.  Although  thus  mutilated  (the  excavated  holes  being 
left  open)  this  group  of  ancient  earthworks  makes  a  fine 
appearance  on  the  green  woodland  sod  beneath  the  fine  oak 
and  other  trees.  In  its  arrangement,  nearly  all  of  the 
tapering  linears  being  located  at  right  angles  to  the  lake 
shore  with  their  heads  toward  the  water,  this  group  is  more 
or  less  unique  among  southern  Wisconsin  mound  groups. 
It  deserves  to  be  saved  and  preserved  as  a  county  park  by 
Rock  County. 

Brief  accounts  of  the  results  of  the  exploration  of  a  few 
of  the  mounds  have  been  published.  At  least  one  exhibited 
evidence  of  human  cremation.  One  was  excavated  by  Mr. 
Darcy  Biggar  years  ago.  In  this  conical  mound  he  found 
a  flexed  (?)  human  burial  the  bones  being  stained  with  red 
ochre.  With  this  burial  were  found  two  elliptical  blue  horn- 
stone  knives.  One  of  these  is  5%  inches  long  and  2  inches 
wide  at  its  middle,  and  the  other  5%  inches  long  and  2  3/16 
inches  wide  at  its  middle.  They  are  fine  specimens  of  this 
class  of  implements.  Dr.  Lapham  gave  the  name  of  "In- 
dian Hill"  to  this  locality. 

Catfish  Village 

(NE.  %  of  the  SW.  14  Sec.  19) 

At  the  mouth  of  the  Catfish  or  Yahara  River,  where  it 
empties  its  waters  into  those  of  the  Rock,  was  located  the 
Winnebago  Indian  village  known  as  Catfish  Village.  This 
location  is  one  and  three-quarters  miles  southwest  of  Indian 
Ford  and  less  than  a  mile  south  of  Fulton. 

This  was   a  village   site   of   some   importance.     Several 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         45 

trails  from  the  northeast,  the  north  and  the  south  centered 
here.  There  was  a  ford  across  the  Catfish  at  the  village 
and  one  across  the  Rock  a  short  distance  below  the  mouth 
of  the  Catfish  at  the  location  of  the  later  highway  bridge. 
The  Catfish  was  the  canoe  route  from  the  Four  Lakes  at 
present  Madison  to  the  Rock.  It  was  a  stopping  point  for 
Indians  passing  down  the  Rock  from  the  Indian  villages  on 
the  shores  of  Lake  Koshkonong  by  canoe  or  by  trail. 

Tradition  and  history  appear  to  indicate  that  the  Winne- 
bago  occupied  this  site  for  at  least  a  hundred  years  before 
the  first  white  settlers  arrived  in  this  region.  The  Winne- 
bago  name,  or  one  of  their  names,  for  the  site  was  Ho- 
winch,  "catfish"  The  chief  of  the  Catfish  Village  was  Lit- 
tle Priest  (Little  Chief),  whose  Indian  name  is  given  as 
Hounk-kono-nik-ka.  His  knife  and  its  sheath  are  pre- 
served in  the  State  Historical  Museum.  Whatever  may 
have  been  the  number  of  its  early  Indian  inhabitants  there 
were  only  two  lodges  with  thirty-eight  inhabitants  here 
when  U.  S.  Indian  Agent  John  H.  Kinzie  made  his  official 
census  of  the  Winnebago  in  1829.  Small  numbers  of  these 
Hochungara,  as  they  called  themselves,  continued  to  camp 
and  to  grow  corn  here  for  years  after  the  whites  appeared. 
Their  planting  ground  or  "Indian  garden"  was  on  the  river 
flat  on  the  north  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  Catfish.  This  lo- 
cality has  long  been  known  to  the  settlers  and  their  descend- 
ants by  this  name.  The  site  of  the  Indian  garden  lies  a 
short  distance  beyond  the  wooded  slope  on  which  are  located 
the  "Indian  Hill"  group  of  mounds.  Several  of  these 
mounds,  now  nearly  leveled,  intrude  on  the  village  site  on 
the  elevated  fields  above  the  garden. 

The  site  of  the  Indian  garden  is  a  tract  of  low,  flat  land 
which  has  this  year  been  under  cultivation  as  a  grain  field. 
A  broad  border  of  rank  weeds  lies  between  it  and  the  waters 
of  the  Rock,  and  a  narrow  strip  of  woodland  pasture  be- 
tween it  and  the  Catfish  River  at  its  mouth.  The  peaty 
black  soil  of  this  field  is  subject  to  occasional  (or  frequent) 
overflow.  Scattered  over  its  surface  are  numerous  shells 
of  land  and  water  snails.  In  its  rear  are  brush  and  trees, 
a  wildwood  tangle.  No  good  description  of  this  Indian 
planting  ground  has  been  preserved.  Doubtless  the  In- 
dians also  grew  beans,  gourds  and  squash  here. 


46  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,  No. 

Although  the  principal  part  of  this  Indian  village  site  was 
on  the  elevated  fields  of  the  Jensen  farm  above  and  north 
of  the  planting  ground  the  aborigines  also  camped  in,  or  on 
the  edge  of  the  garden  itself.  In  various  places  in  this 
field  the  burned  stones  of  wigwam,  and  perhaps  outdoor 
fireplaces,  flint  chips,  broken  clam  shells,  bits  of  animal 
bones,  potsherds,  flint  blanks,  and  occasional  stone  imple- 
ments are  found.  Local  and  other  collectors  have  visited 
this  planting  ground  site  for  many  years.  From  their  ac- 
counts it  appears  that  fragments  of  earthenware  vessels 
were  once  numerous  here  and  that  many  flint  and  other 
stone  implements  have  been  gathered  from  this  field. 

The  special  interest  to  us  were  the  considerable  numbe 
of  fragments  of  earthen  vessels  scattered  over  a  number  of 
places  on  its  surface.  Most  of  these  were  of  small  size, 
probably  broken  up  during  the  cultivation  of  the  field.  The 
greater  number  of  these  sherds  were  made  of  light  brown 
clay  and  were  tempered  with  crushed  rock  and  particles  of 
sand.  Several  are  of  a  grey  color.  To  the  outer  surface 
of  one  of  these  a  light  reddish  slip  has  been  applied. 
Another  grey  sherd  has  had  a  light  reddish  slip  or  surfacing 
applied  to  both  its  inner  and  its  outer  surfaces.  One  small 
unornamented  sherd  is  of  a  black  color. 

Among  the  ornamented  sherds  (rim  and  other  pieces) 
are  ten  belonging  to  as  many  different  vessels.  These  are 
ornamented  with  twisted  cord  impressions,  the  cords  being 
applied  to  the  clay  vertically,  horizontally  and  diagonally 
in  different  sherds.  One  bears  both  diagonal  and  horizon- 
tal cord  impressions,  the  latter  being  applied  over  the  other. 
In  two  instances  cord  impressions  extend  over  the  rim  on  to 
the  interior  of  the  vessel.  Twisted  cords  of  several  thick- 
nesses, fine,  medium  and  coarse,  were  in  use  in  ornamenting 
these  vessels.  Some  of  these  sherds  are  further  orna- 
mented by  indentations  made  with  seeds  (?)  or  with 
pointed  instruments,  and  arranged  in  single  or  double  con- 
centric rows.  One  sherd  bears  a  small  perforation  as  if  the 
vessel  had  been  cracked  and  mended  by  tying  through  this 
hole. 

The  thickest  of  the  sherds  recovered  from  this  site  is  not 
quite  %  of  an  inch  thick,  and  the  thinnest  a  little  over  1/16 
inch.  Most  appear  to  be  sherds  of  vessels  of  small  or  med- 


• 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         47 

ium  size.     The  patterns   are  well-known   Algonkian  orna- 
mental patterns. 

Two  other  specimens  of  special  interest  found  on  this  site 
are  a  pebble  hammerstone  (5  inches  long,  3%  inches  wide 
at  its  widest  part,  and  21/2  inches  thick)  made  of  a  tough 
crystalline  rock  and  having  abrasions  at  its  pointed  end, 
one  edge,  and  two  sides,  the  latter  being  probably  finger- 
holds. This  tool  weighs  two  pounds. 

An  irregular  boulder  is  somewhat  conical  in  form,  the 
conical  top  being  battered  as  if  it  had  been  employed  as  an 
anvil.  This  weighed  about  five  pounds. 

A  spearpoint,  stemmed,  is  made  of  grey  flint  and  is  2% 
inches  long. 

To  the  east  and  south  of  Fulton  the  Catfish  winds  in  beau- 
tiful curves  like  a  silver  ribbon  through  an  extentive  area 
of  marshy  meadows  southward  for  a  distance  of  a  mile  to 
where  its  waters  unite  with  those  of  the  Rock  River.  At 
its  mouth  is  a  small  wooded  island  with  another  similar  is- 
land in  the  Rock  just  beyond  it. 

On  the  Paulson  (Jensen)  farm,  which  occupies  the  entire 
eastern  bank  of  the  Catfish  from  the  Fulton  to  Indian  Ford 
highway  southward  to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  evidences  of 
former  Indian  residence  are  found  on  a  large  part  of  the 
cultivated  fields  bordering  on  the  river  marsh  and  on  the 
bank  of  the  Rock  and  the  Indian  garden  already  described. 
Along  the  Catfish  this  cultivated  land,  at  its  margin,  is  in 
some  places  elevated  as  much  as  twenty  feet  above  the 
marshy  meadows. 

These  fields  we  examined,  finding  on  their  surface  numer- 
ous scattered  hearthstones,  flint-workers'  refuse,  bits  of  de- 
composed clam  shells,  burned  and  cracked  animal  bones, 
jewel  stones  of  the  sheepshead  perch,  occasional  pieces  of 
deer  antler,  fragments  of  plain  and  cord-marked  pottery, 
and  other  village  site  debris.  Among  the  implements  recov- 
ered in  our  search  were  pebble  hammerstones,  flint  blanks, 
rude  scrapers,  arrowpoints  and  a  rude  or  unfinished  stone 
celt.  A  curious  sharply-pointed  light  grey  flint  point  with  a 
deeply  serrated  edge  was  probably  fashioned  for  use  as  a 
fish  spear  or  harpoon  point.  This  is  3%  inches  in  length 
and  one  inch  wide  at  its  middle.  It  is  of  an  elongated  oval 
or  elliptical  shape. 


48 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.   9,  No.   1 


The  flint  employed  in  implement  manufacture  is  of  white, 
light  brown  and  flesh  colors.  Some  white  quartz,  and 
brown  and  bluish-grey  quartzite  was  also  in  use.  The  lat- 
ter is  probably  Waterloo  quartzite. 

The  potsherds  found  on  the  part  of  the  site  along  the  Cat- 
fish marshlands  are  plain  or  ornamented  with  twisted-cord 
or  other  indentations.  Some  are  sand  tempered,  some  sand 
and  crushed  quartz  tempered,  and  some  sand  and  shell  tem- 
pered. 

Hundreds  of  flint  points,  scrapers,  perforators  and  knives 
have  been  gathered  from  the  Paulson  fields  on  this  site  by 
local  and  visiting  collectors  in  the  course  of  the  past  thirty 
years  or  more. 

The  best  collection  made  from  this  village  site  is  that  of 
Mr.  Darcy  Biggar,  a  former  resident  of  Fulton,  who  began 
to  gather  specimens  from  these  fields  during  his  boyhood. 
His  collection,  recently  presented  by  him  to  the  State  His- 
torical Museum,  includes  quite  a  wide  variety  of  interest- 
ing Indian  materials: 


45  Flint  blanks 

2  Quartzite  blanks 
170  Flint  arrowpoints 
117  Small  flint  arrowpoints 

32  Flint  spearpoints 

2  Quartzite  spearpoints 
76  Flint  scrapers 

40  Flint  perforators  and 

reamers 
17  Flint  knives 

1  Flint  celt 

5  Stone  celts 

1  Grooved  stone  axe 

1  Stone  ball 

1  Copper  wedge 

1  Copper  stemmed    arrowpoint 

1  Clay  tube 

1  Catlinite  effigy  pendant 

3  Stone  gorgets 


2  Shell  beads 

1  Pottery  pipe,  broken 

3  Stone  pipes 

Pieces  of  worked  steatite 
1  Lead  disk  bead 
1  Bear  tooth  ornament 
1  Elk  tooth 

Pottery  fragments 

Gun  and  pistol  flints 

Gun  parts 

Section  of  gun  barrel 

Lead  musket  balls 

Galena  lumps 

Section  of  lead  bar 

Lead  steelyard  weight 

Glass  beads 

Fragments  of  brass  and  cop- 
per kettles 

Silver  button 


Of  the  small  flint  arrowpoints  sixty  are  triangular  in 
form.  The  flint  scrapers  present  quite  a  variety  of  form. 
Many  are  flint  flakes  or  spalls  one  extremity  or  edge  of 
which  has  been  chipped  for  such  use.  Others  are  oval,  cir- 
cular or  triangular  in  shape.  Others  are  broken  arrow  and 
spearpoints  which  have  been  re-chipped  for  use  as  scrapers. 

Fifty  ornamented  potsherds  in  the  Biggar  collection  are 
fragments  of  nearly  as  many  different  vessels,  nearly  all  of 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.          49 

vessels  of  small  or  medium  sizes.  This  earthenware  was 
nearly  all  of  a  dark  brown  color,  some  of  it  of  a  reddish 
brown  color.  The  majority  of  these  sherds  are  shell-tem- 
pered, some  show  no  tempering  material  in  the  clay. 

Forty-three  rim  sherds  are  as  attractively  ornamented  as 
any  found  on  any  Rock  River  site.  No  two  of  these  are 
alike  in  ornamentation.  Most  are  ornamented  with  decora- 
tive designs  made  by  impressing  thin  twisted  cords  of  short 
lengths  into  the  clay.  These  are  arranged  in  horiontal,  ver- 
tical and  oblique  lines,  or  in  combinations  of  these.  In 
some  specimens  these  extend  over  the  rim  on  to  the  interior 
surface  of  the  vessel.  The  cord-impressed  decoration  is  in 
some  sherds  varied  by  one  or  more  parallel  rows  of  indenta- 
tions made  with  blunt-pointed  implements,  or  very  short 
pieces  of  twisted  cords.  A  small  number  of  sherds  are  orna- 
mented with  trailed  parallel  lines  with  small  circular  or 
other  indentations  made  with  round  ends  of  plant  stems  or 
sticks,  fossils,  or  other  objects.  One  sand-tempered  sherd, 
of  red  clay,  has  a  cord-paddled  surface  with  rows  of  circles 
made  with  a  hollow  implement.  Several  sherds  show  small 
drilled  perforations. 

Those  who  hold  to  the  belief  that  the  Wisconsin  Siouan 
Indians  used  crushed  shell  as  a  tempering  material  more  or 
less  exclusively,  and  that  cord-impressed  decorative  pat- 
terns are  confined  to  crushed-stone  tempered  Algonkian 
earthenware,  may  find  in  this  collection  a  need  to  modify 
their  ideas  on  this  subject. 

Mr.  Harvey  Pease  of  Fulton  and  other  collectors  have 
also  gathered  many  interesting  specimens  from  the  Catfish 
Village  site.  A  catlinite  disk  pipe,  bone  awls,  stone  bead 
and  a  pottery  disk  are  among  these. 

Several  of  the  conical  and  oval  mounds  of  the  Indian  Hill 
group  occur  in  the  fields  of  the  Catfish  Village  site.  These 
have  been  under  cultivation  for  many  years  and  have  been 
pretty  well  leveled. 

In  early  days  of  settlement  Indians  also  camped  now  and 
then  on  the  lands  on  the  south  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  Cat- 
fish River.  On  this  side  of  the  river  the  fields  are  sod- 
grown  and  in  use  as  cattle  pastures.  They  have  been  in 
such  use  for  many  years.  The  digging  of  a  few  test  pits 


50  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

and  examination  of  the  river  bank  produced  no  evidence  of 
an  earlier  occupation,  traces  of  which  may,  however,  yet  be 
revealed. 

A  few  willow  trees  grow  along  the  river  bank  which  is 
six  feet  high  in  one  place  and  low  and  marshy  in  others. 
Along  the  Rock  River  frontage  of  these  fields  the  land  is 
also  marshy.  A  broad  marshy  area  lies  west  of  the  pas- 
ture. At  a  distance  of  about  150  feet  from  the  Catfish  bank 
is  what  appears  to  have  been  a  low  oval  mound.  Its  out- 
lines have  been  disturbed  by  the  feet  of  cattle  and  other 
causes.  Its  present  length  is  45  feet  and  its  width  24  feet. 

Maps  of  1836  and  later  locate  a  "chalybeate"  spring,  or 
spring  with  iron-charged  waters,  south  of  the  mouth  of  the 
Catfish.  This  the  Indians  are  reported  to  have  regarded  as 
a  medicinal  spring.  There  are  a  number  of  springs  now  in 
this  locality.  South  of  the  mouth  of  this  stream  was  the  lo- 
cation of  the  early  Rock  County  "paper  city"  of  Caramanee, 
plotted  here  by  land  speculators.  The  name  is  no  doubt  ob- 
tained from  that  of  the  noted  early  Winnebago  chief  Kar- 
ramaunee. 

The  character  of  some  of  the  implements  recovered  from 
the  Catfish  Village  site  and  other  evidence  at  present  avail- 
able appears  to  indicate  that  this  site  has  been  inhabited  by 
Algonkian  people  before  its  later  Winnebago  occupancy. 

Stone  Farm  Village  Site 

(SE.  1/4  and  SW.  1/4  Sec.  19,  and  NW.  1/4  of  Sec.  30) 

This  village  site  is  located  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock  a 
mile  and  a  quarter  southwest  of  Indian  Ford.  A  part  of  it 
lies  directly  across  the  river  from  the  Catfish  Village  site. 
This  village  site  appears  to  have  extended  over  the  fields 
and  pastures  along  the  banks  of  the  river  for  a  mile  or 
more.  Only  a  part  of  this  site,  the  northern  and  southern 
ends,  were  in  condition  for  examination,  the  balance  of  the 
land  being  under  a  covering  of  thick  grass. 

For  many  years  the  old  Stone  farm,  now  the  Ellingson 
and  Flom  farm,  has  been  a  quite  widely  known  collecting 
ground.  Mr.  Biggar,  Bert  Cox,  Mr.  North,  Horace  McEl- 
roy  and  others  have  visited  this  site  in  past  years  and  been 
rewarded  by  the  finding  of  many  interesting  and  some  rath- 
er unusual  specimens.  A  Dr.  McChesney  collected  thirty- 
three  flint  arrowpoints  during  one  visit  to  this  site. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         51 

The  most  productive  part  of  this  site  during  our  investi- 
gations was  in  a  tobacco  field  on  the  river  bank,  in  the  rear 
of  the  farmhouse  and  barns.  Here  hearthstones  from  In- 
dian fires  were  numerous.  Broken  flint  blanks,  and  chips 
and  spalls  of  white,  grey,  brown  and  flesh-colored  flint  were 
scattered  about  among  the  tobacco  plants.  In  several 
places  in  this  field  were  quantities  of  broken  clam  shells. 
We  collected  several  broken  pebble  hammer  stones,  a  single 
stemmed  flint  arrowpoint  and  fragments  of  other  points. 
No  potsherds  were  found. 

The  land  along  the  river  shore  on  this  farm  is  rather  level 
for  the  entire  distance.  All  of  it  except  a  narrow  strip  at 
the  southern  end  of  the  farm  is,  or  has  been  under  cultiva- 
tion. 

Beyond  the  southern  end  of  this  site  a  small  creek  enters 
the  river.  On  a  small  knoll  on  the  south  side  of  its  mouth 
the  hearthstones  of  a  wigwam  fireplace  were  found.  In  this 
pasture  field,  at  a  distance  of  about  300  feet  back  from  the 
shore  a  remnant  (about  300  feet)  of  the  river  shore  trail  is 
still  to  be  seen.  This  is  nearly  a  foot  in  depth  in  places,  and 
three  or  more  feet  wide. 

Some  Winnebago  camped  on  the  river  bank  on  this  site  in 
pioneer  days.  Mr.  Geo.  St.  John  of  Stoughton  reported 
that  in  about  the  year  1888  an  Indian  burial  was  disturbed 
in  digging  for  the  foundation  of  a  cattle-shed  on  the  Stone 
farm.  This  site  was  about  eight  or  ten  rods  south  of  the 
east  and  west  road  to  the  river  bank,  among  the  present 
farm  buildings.  It  was  four  or  five  feet  beneath  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground.  So  far  as  known  no  implements  or 
other  Indian  materials  accompanied  this  burial. 

Mr.  Darcy  Biggar  states  that  Mr.  Stone  in  former  years 
pastured  his  hogs  in  the  field  at  the  northeastern  limits  of 
this  large  farm.  These  rooted  up  the  sod  and  the  soil  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  make  collecting  easy.  He  collected 
nearly  two  hundred  flint  arrowpoints  of  a  great  variety  of 
forms  from  this  site,  also  notched  flint  scrapers  and  some 
perforators,  a  broken  pipestone  pipe,  stone  celt,  quartzite 
knife,  flint  saw  and  a  broken  gorget  made  of  mica  schist.  A 
son  of  Mr.  Flom  has  a  collection  of  flint  arrowpoints  from 
this  site. 


52  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

The  east  bank  trail  passed  over  the  old  Stone  farm.  Op- 
posite this  farm  there  was  a  river  ford  to  the  west  bank. 

Murwin  Camp  Site 

(NE.  14,  Sec.  31) 

A  camp  site  is  located  on  the  James  Murwin  farm,  south 
of  the  Ellingson  and  Flom  farm,  on  the  east  bank  of  the 
Rock.  Here  a  creek  flows  westward  into  the  Rock.  We 
found  here  a  few  flint  chips,  hearthstones,  flint  nodules 
and  a  single  sherd  of  plain  shell-tempered  pottery.  Mr. 
Dell  Murwin  has  a  small  collection  of  flint  arrow  and  spear- 
points  obtained  here. 


Hubbell  Village  Site  and  Mounds 
(Sees.  30  and  31) 

Miss  Minnie  F.  Hubbell  informed  us  of  the  former  exist- 
ence of  a  group  of  isolated  Indian  mounds  on  the  Alfred 
Hubbell  farm  (SW.  %  Sec.  30  and  NW.  %  Sec.  31),  on  the 
west  bank  of  the  Rock  River,  at  a  distance  of  one  and  one- 
half  miles  south  of  Fulton.  One  large  mound  was  located 
where  is  now  the  farm  garden  and  another  at  the  barnyard 
gate,  both  near  the  Hubbell  farmhouse.  These  have  been 
obliterated. 

Other  mounds,  conical  and  linear  in  form  were  located  in 
a  field  north  of  the  farm  buildings,  between  the  river  bank 
and  the  road  to  Fulton.  All  but  one  of  these  have  been 
completely  destroyed.  This  conical  mound,  which  must 
have  been  of  large  size,  now  appears  as  a  slightly  elevated 
earth  heap  near  the  middle  of  the  field.  It  is  at  present 
about  33  feet  in  diameter  and  li/2  feet  high  at  its  center. 
This  field  is  very  level.  The  mound  is  situated  at  a  distance 
of  about  200  feet  east  of  the  road  and  300  feet  from  the 
river  bank  to  the  north. 

This  site  was  covered,  with  grass  at  the  time  of  our  visit 
to  it  on  August  30  but  scattered  hearthstones,  flint  chips, 
spalls  and  occasional  flint  pebbles  were  found  all  along  its 
northern  and  eastern  margin. 

South  of  this  field  and  separated  from  it  by  a  sparkling 
spring  brook  which  flows  to  the  Rock  from  the  west,  is 
another  very  level  field,  at  this  time  in  use  as  a  pasture. 
This  is  a  part  of  the  old  Indian  village  site  from  which 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         53 

many  flint  and  stone  artifacts  have  also  been  collected.  This 
village  site  has  been  referred  to  locally  as  an  Indian  "battle- 
field." The  very  level  fields  of  this  site  are  bordered  on  the 
south  and  west  by  a  semicircle  of  hills  and  elevated  land 
once  covered  with  forest. 

Mr.  Horace  McElroy  reported  three  tumuli  on  the  Alfred 
Hubbell  farm,  on  Section  30,  one  mile  south  of  the  mouth 
of  the  Catfish  River.*  Some  flint  implements  and  a  stone 
celt  collected  here  were  in  his  collection.  The  mounds  are 
probably  those  formerly  located  in  the  level  field  near  the 
brook. 

The  Hubbell  family  have  a  number  of  flint  arrowpoints, 
a  large  flint  blank  or  knife,  a  portion  of  a  broken  stone  celt, 
and  the  blade  of  an  iron  trade  axe  from  their  farm.  They 
formerly  also  had  a  large  grooved  stone  axe.  Many  other 
stone  implements  were  collected  here  by  persons  interested 
in  making  collections.  We* were  unable  to  learn  where  these 
were. 

Beggs  Camp  Site 

(Cent.  Sec.  31) 

A  camp  site  is  located  on  the  M.  S.  Beggs  farm,  south  of 
the  Hubbell  farm,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock.  Here  and 
on  the  adjoining  Farrington  farm  some  flint  points  and 
scrapers  have  been  collected.  This  site  is  slightly  over  a 
mile  and  a  half  south  of  the  Catfish,  as  the  river  runs. 


JANESVILLE  TOWNSHIP 

Northwest  Sections  Camp  and  Village  Sites 

(Sees.  6,  5,  9  and  10) 

Up  to  as  late  as  the  70's  small  groups  of  Winnebago  In- 
dians occasionally  camped  on  the  Rock  River  banks  at  dif- 
ferent places  on  both  sides  of  the  stream  in  Sections  6,  5  and 
9.  In  the  cultivated  fields  in  these  localities  hearthstones, 
flint  fragments  and  the  finding  of  occasional  flint  arrow  and 
spearpoints  indicate  that  Indian  folk  have  camped  on  or  near 
some  of  these  same  spots  in  the  distant  past.  One  of  these 
sites  is  on  the  Reid  farm  in  the  S.  of  Section  5.  On  the 


Hist.  Rock  County,  59 


54  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

west  bank  of  the  river  near  where  the  north  and  south  cen- 
ter line  of  Section  9  meets  the  river  bank  Mr.  Horace  Mc- 
Elroy  about  twenty  years  ago  collected  flint  points  and  a 
stone  celt  from  a  camp  site.  This  was  on  the  Pahl  and 
Diehls  farms  where  camp  site  debris  was  scattered  over  cul- 
tivated fields. 

Cooper's  History  of  Rock  County  (p.  59-60)  mentions 
this  site,  which  was  discovered  in  breaking  up  eleven  acres 
of  land  in  1908:  "The  writer  and  Mr.  Horace  McElroy 
procured  from  this  locality  a  large  number  of  broken  chert 
spear  and  arrow  heads,  one  stone  axe  and  110  knives,  spear 
heads  and  arrow  points  that  were  intact.  These  imple- 
ments were  made  of  a  variety  of  differently  colored  cherts, 
some  hornstone,  chalcedony,  quartzites,  and  one  arrow  head 
of  agate,  a  material  not  found  in  this  part  of  the  country." 

Another  village  site  is  located  on  the  M.  O.  Connor  farm 
in  the  SE.  %  of  Section  9  and  the  SW.  14  of  Section  10.  A 
ravine  or  wash  extending  down  to  the  Rock  River  separates 
the  two  parts  of  this  site  which  shows  the  usual  indications 
of  a  former  Indian  camp  ground.  Here  Mr.  C.  C.  Babbitt 
of  Janesville  has  collected  flint  arrowpoints,  perforators,  a 
scraper,  a  small  flint  knife,  pebble  hammerstones  and  a 
"drill-weight." 

We  were  not  successful  in  finding  any  potsherds  here. 

In  the  rear  of  the  summer  resort  cottages  on  the  Hack- 
barth  farm,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock,  in  the  SE.  1/4  of 
the  SW.  %  of  Section  10,  the  presence  of  fireplace  stones 
and  flint  chips  and  fragments  furnish  evidence  of  another 
camp  site.  At  this  place  the  old  Janesville  highway  crosses 
the  Rock  over  the  old  "Four-mile"  iron  bridge. 

Four  Mile  Bridge  Village  Site 

(SE.  1/4  Sec.  10  and  NE.  1/4  Sec.  15) 

This  site  is  located  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Rock  River 
on  land  forming  a  part  of  the  Shoemaker  stock  farm.  It  is 
opposite  the  Four  Mile  bridge  crossing  of  the  Edgerton  to 
Janesville  highway.  This  highway,  running  in  an  east  and 
west  direction  at  this  point,  cuts  this  site  in  two.  The  part 
of  this  site  located  north  of  the  road  is  on  rather  level 
ground  which  rises  gradually  to  the  east  to  elevated  ground. 
This  field  was  under  cultivation  when  examined  and  but  lit- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         55 

tie  information  could  be  obtained  concerning  its  early  In- 
dian inhabitants.  Flint  rejectage  was  found  in  several 
places,  a  broken  hammerstone  and  several  small  pieces  of 
shell-tempered  earthenware.  Mr.  Horace  McElroy  was 
among  those  who  have  collected  Indian  implements  here  in 
former  years.  A  Mr.  John  Thompson  is  reported  to  have 
collected  hundreds  of  flint  points  and  some  stone  celts  and 
axes  here  in  about  the  year  1902  and  later.  A  river  road 
runs  northward  along  the  river  bank  passing  this  site. 

The  part  of  the  site  lying  south  of  the  highway  is  in  pas- 
ture at  this  time  and  could  not  be  examined  for  traces  of 
former  Indian  occupation.  This  land  is  similar  in  charac- 
ter to  that  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  highway^ 

Parish  Camp  Site  and  Burial 
(W.  1/2,  NE.  1/4  Sec.  15) 

An  old  Indian  crossing  of  the  Rock  to  the  Shoemaker 
fields  on  the  east  (opposite)  bank  was  located  opposite  the 
Ed.  Parish  "Riverside"  farm  on  the  west  bank.  There 
were  several  springs  here  and  small  groups  of  Winnebago 
Indians  are  reported  to  have  erected  their  wigwams  in  a 
fine  oak  grove  located  here,  in  early  days  of  white  settle- 
ment. 

About  the  fine  spring  at  the  southern  end  of  this  prop- 
erty Mr.  C.  C.  Babbitt  and  others  have  collected  some  flint 
arrowpoints. 

Mr.  Babbitt  states  that  flint  refuse  and  other  indications 
of  a  camp  site  were  formerly  exposed  on  the  slope  between 
the  river  bank  and  the  Parish  farm  cottage.  A  single  In- 
dian grave  was  formerly  located  near  the  river  bank  south 
of  this  point.  This  was  exhumed  by  a  man  named  Chapelle 
and  a  stone  pipe  found  with  the  burial.  Every  trace  of  this 
burial  place  has  been  lost  by  the  cutting  away  of  the  river 
bank  by  the  waters  of  the  Rock. 

Elmhurst  Village  Site 
(SE.  %  Sec.  15) 

A  short  distance  south  of  the  Parish  site  Three  Mile 
Creek,  a  clear  and  very  attractive  stream,  flows  from  the 
west  through  the  northern  part  of  the  farm  of  Louis  Ander- 
son, called  "Elmhurst,"  into  the  Rock  River.  The  creek  is 


56  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

from  fifteen  to  eighteen  feet  wide  in  places  and  its  banks 
lined  with  willow  and  other  trees. 

The  soil  of  the  level  fields  of  the  Anderson  farm  is  clay. 
These  fields,  once  covered  with  rather  heavy  forest  were  a 
very  favorable  location  for  an  Indian  village  site.  In  pio- 
neer days  Indian  dugout  canoes  were  occasionally  seen  pass- 
ing this  place  or  drawn  up  on  its  banks. 

Only  a  part  (the  central  part)  of  the  fields  of  the  Elm- 
hurst  farm  could  be  examined  for  traces  of  former  Indian 
occupation.  Numerous  fireplace  stones  were  found  scat- 
tered over  the  entire  river  frontage  of  this  particular  field 
and  ashy  areas  indicated  where  these  had  probably  been  im- 
bedded in  the  soil  in  shallow  hearths  until  disturbed  by  the 
plow  and  harrow.  The  sites  of  at  least  three  former  wig- 
wams appeared  to  be  thus  indicated.  Near  these  locations 
the  manufacture  of  flint  implements  had  been  carried  on, 
small  areas  disclosing  fragments  and  chips  of  white,  grey 
and  flesh  colors.  Here  also  were  found  a  small  notched 
spearpoint  made  of  flesh-colored  flint,  and  parts  of  several 
broken  points.  Nodules  of  white  flint,  entire  or  broken,  lay 
in  several  places.  Several  small  fragments  of  cord-marked 
pottery  were  also  obtained. 

Mr.  Anderson  had  recently  found  here  a  dark  bluish-grey 
blade,  a  knife  or  spearpoint,  five  inches  in  length ;  a  notched 
pink  flint  spearpoint,  4^  inches  in  length;  a  broad  greyish- 
white  flint  spearpoint  with  oblique  notches,  about  2%  inches 
long,  and  a  light  brown  stemmed  quartzite  spearpoint  about 
2%  inches  long.  During  the  past  thirty  years  of  his  resi- 
dence on  this  farm  he  has  given  away  to  friends  many  other 
flint  implements  found  here. 

The  south  field  of  the  Anderson  farm  we  were  unable  to 
examine  as  they  were  under  grass  on  the  occasion  of  our 
visits  to  this  place.  This  field,  opposite  the  river  bend,  Mr. 
C.  C.  Babbitt  regards  as  the  richest  part  of  this  village  site. 
Here  the  manufacture  of  flint  implements  was  also  carried 
on  and  scattered  hearthstones  are  numerous.  Mr.  Babbitt 
has  collected  from  this  site  in  past  years  numerous  flint  ar- 
row and  spearpoints  and  some  scrapers,  pebble  hammers,  a 
flaked  stone  celt,  and  a  copper  spearpoint.  Mr.  McElroy 
also  found  this  site  a  rich  collecting  ground.  He  collected 
here  a  plummet  made  of  porphyrtic  syenite.  Its  tip  is  en- 
circled by  a  shallow  groove. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         57 

Across  the  Janesville  highway  from  the  Elmhurst  farm 
is  the  suburban  residence  plat  advertised  as  "Sunshine 
Hills." 

Three  Mile  Creek  Camp  Sites 
(Section  15) 

Camp  sites  occur  at  a  number  of  different  places  along 
the  course  of  Three  Mile  Creek.  One  of  these  is  on  the  Wil- 
liam Hackbarth  farm  (SW.  1/4,  Sec.  15),  at  a  distance  of 
about  a  half  mile  west  of  the  Elmhurst  site.  Mr.  Babbitt 
has  collected  here  a  grooved  stone  axe,  hammerstones,  and 
flint  points  and  scrapers,  and  other  stone  implements.  This 
site  extends  to  both  banks  of  the  creek. 

This  creek  is  nearly  eleven  miles  in  length,  having  its 
source  in  the  northwest  part  of  Center  Township  of  Rock 
County  and  flowing  in  an  easterly  direction  through  Leyden 
Township  and  Janesville  Township.  At  different  places 
along  its  course  former  camp  sites  are  indicated.  The  im- 
plements collected  from  these  and  other  places  are  chiefly 
flint  points  and  several  stone  celts.  Some  of  these  were  in 
the  former  David  Van  Wart  collection  at  Evansville. 

Wixon  Hill  Site 

(SW.  14  Sec.  14) 

Across  the  Rock  River  from  the  Elmhurst  site  are  wooded 
river  bluffs.  One  of  these,  Wixon  Hill,  has  the  local  repu- 
tation of  having  been  a  camp  site  of  the  Sauk  Indian  chief, 
Black  Hawk,  during  his  northward  flight  with  his  warriors 
to  Lake  Koshkonong,  in  1832.  On  its  top  we  found  in  a  few 
spots  barren  of  sod  numbers  of  flint  chips  indicating  the 
presence  of  a  small  workshop.  The  crest  of  this  particular 
portion  of  the  bluffs  is  bare  save  for  a  small  group  of  prick- 
ly ash  shrubs,  some  hop  hornbeam  trees  and  a  single  hickory 
tree.  A  fine  view  of  the  surrounding  river  country  is  ob- 
tained from  Wixon  Hill. 

Riverside  Park  Village  Site 

(S.  line  of  Sec.  14  and  NE.  14  of  Sec.  23) 
What  is  probably  the  most  important  old  Indian  village 
site  north  of  the  City  of  Janesville,  in  Janesville  Township, 
is  located  in  the  Big  Bend  of  the  Rock  River,  on  the  west 
bank  of  that  stream. 


58  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

In  this  beautifully  located  recreation  park  of  the  City  of 
Janesville  traces  of  former  Indian  residence  were  found  on 
the  grounds  of  the  park  -athletic  field.  This  field  occupies  a 
large  level  grassy  river  flat  and  is  now  occupied  by  a  base- 
ball diamond,  tennis  courts,  a  park  pavilion  and  a  curving 
river  road.  To  the  south  of  this  playground  are  the  high 
hills  of  a  municipal  golf  course,  the  sides  of  which  are  cov- 
ered with  forest  trees.  In  the  river  bed,  opposite  the  east- 
ern edge  of  the  athletic  field,  is  a  long  narrow  island  bearing 
a  growth  of  tall  willow  trees,  and  with  a  luxuriant  growth 
of  arrowhead  about  its  shores  and  extending  downstream 
for  a  considerable  distance  from  its  point. 

The  rhizomes  of  this  abundant  plant  of  the  water  plan- 
tain family  furnished  the  water  potato,  a  favorite  food  of 
the  Winnebago  and  of  other  Wisconsin  Indians,  being  boiled 
or  roasted  by  them  in  the  ashes  of  their  fires. 

The  river  bank  along  the  eastern  and  northern  edge  of 
the  athletic  field  is  elevated  at  different  places  from  four  to 
fifteen  feet  above  the  water. 

This  village  site  was  a  favorite  collecting  ground  of  Mr. 
Horace  McElroy  in  past  years.  From  the  then  cultivated 
fields  on  this  river  flat  he  obtained  in  the  course  of  his  col- 
lecting jaunts  quite  a  large  number  of  specimens,  these  in- 
cluding many  flint  implements,  pebble  hammers,  stone  balls, 
axes,  celts  and  other  artifacts.  Some  of  his  finest  quartzite 
points  and  knives  were  found  here.  It  is  to  be  regretted 
that  he  is  not  alive  to  contribute  such  information  as  he  pos- 
sessed regarding  his  collecting  experiences  here. 

Being  under  grass  this  site  was  in  poor  condition  for  ex- 
amination during  the  year  1928.  The  evidences  of  aborigi- 
nal residence  found  by  ourselves  were  obtained  in  the  then 
thinly  grassed  strip  of  land  between  the  river  road  and  the 
river  bank,  which  is  here  fringed  with  a  growth  of  ash,  oak 
and  maple  trees.  Here,  despite  the  thin  sod,  we  recovered 
quite  numerous  chips,  flakes  and  fragments  of  white,  grey 
and  flesh-colored  flint,  clusters  of  hearthstones,  a  large  leaf- 
shaped  grey  quartz  blank,  a  flint  pecking  hammer,  a  rude 
white  flint  scraper,  a  grey  flint  notched  arrowpoint,  and 
parts  of  several  broken  points.  One  of  the  employes  of  the 
park  force  informed  us  that  he  had  frequently  picked  up 
flint  points  on  this  field  in  the  course  of  his  labors.  No 
potsherds  were  obtained. 


I 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         59 

We  examined  the  river  banks  south  of  this  site  to  far  be- 
yond the  south  road  entrance  to  Riverside  Park  but  without 
further  results. 

Sutherland  Graves 

(NE.  14  Sec.  34) 

Several  Indian  graves  were  located  on  the  Geo.  S.  Suther- 
land farm  at  Black  Hawk,  just  outside  the  western  limits  of 
Janesville.  Mr.  Harry  Young  of  Whitewater  reported  to 
the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  in  1922  that  two  of 
these  had  been  excavated.  With  the  human  bones  which 
they  contained  were  found  a  stone  axe,  a  stone  celt  and  sev- 
eral flint  arrowpoints.  The  Indian  trail  to  Janesville 
passed  this  locality. 

Crystal  and  Hiawatha  Springs  Village  Site 
(SW.  %  Sec.  14) 

This  property,  located  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Rock 
River,  across  the  stream  to  the  north  of  the  Riverside  Park 
site,  was  formerly  known  as  Burr  Springs,  and  in  an  earlier 
day,  according  to  Mr.  George  Richardson  of  Janesville,  as 
Pope  Springs,  being  so  named  for  Anson  Pope,  the  early 
owner  of  this  land.  A  portion  of  this  property  is  at  present 
in  use  as  a  tourist  camp  ground.  It  is  about  a  mile  and  a 
half  north  of  the  city  of  Janesville.* 

The  Indian  site  at  this  place  is  on  a  rather  narrow  river 
flat  at  the  base  of  a  range  of  high  wooded  river  bluffs.  The 
land  is  posted  as  a  Wild  Life  Refuge.  At  the  eastern  end  of 
this  property  a  crystal  brook  flows  from  a  spring  (Crystal 
Spring)  at  the  base  of  the  bluffs,  through  a  small  area  of 
marshy  ground  to  the  river  bank.  This  spring  Mr.  Geo.  S. 
Parker  of  Janesville  has  kindly  informed  us  was  in  former 
years  visited  by  a  large  number  of  Indians.  He  believes 
their  name  for  it  to  have  been  Mushawaba.  This  name  Mr. 
Daniel  Shepard,  a  Wisconsin  Potawatomi,  translates  as 
meaning  "rabbit  man."  He  thinks  that  this  designation  may 
have  been  given  to  it  because  of  the  transformation  of  an 
Indian  into  a  rabbit  at  or  near  this  place.  The  spring  was 
very  probably  a  "sacred  or  medicine"  spring. 


*  Here  the  late  Capt.  Buckles  formerly  maintained  a  public  picnic 
ground. 


60  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

In  a  small  ravine  or  draw  at  the  western  end  of  the 
tourist  camp  another  fine  clear  spring  (Hiawatha  Spring) 
supplies  the  campers  with  water.  A  former  bottling  works 
building  stands  in  the  rear  of  the  camp  ground.  Years  ago 
some  deer  antlers  and  other  animal  bones  are  reported  to 
have  been  removed  from  this  spring  or  the  brook  which 
flows  from  it.  This  may  have  been  another  "spirit"  spring? 

Midway  between  these  two  springs  another  brook  (dry 
during  the  summer  of  1928)  flows  from  the  hills  to  the 
river. 

The  Indian  camp  site  at  this  place  extends  over  the  whole 
of  the  property,  the  evidence  of  the  redman's  former  occu- 
pation being  now  largely  obscured  beneath  the  sod.  Traces 
of  it,  however,  are  found  here  and  there.  Hearthstones  and 
and  large  flakes  of  white  flint  were  found  in  the  roadway 
in  front  of  the  old  bottling  works  building.  Some  distance 
beyond  the  Hiawatha  Spring  flint  chips  were  found  in  a 
small  cottage  garden.  At  the  northern  end  of  the  park  in 
a  disturbed  place  in  the  rear  of  another  cottage  chips  of 
grey  and  flesh-colored  flint  were  found  and  a  fine  barbed, 
white  flint  spearpoint,  3%  inches  in  length. 

On  a  grassy  flat  south  of  the  Crystal  Spring  brook  white 
flint  chips  and  a  pebble  hammerstone  were  collected.  C.  C. 
Babbitt  has  collected  flint  points  near  this  place. 

Many  flint  points  have  been  picked  up  here  in  past  years 
by  collectors.  Mr.  George  S.  Parker's  country  estate,  Stone- 
henge,"  lies  a  short  distance  south  of  this  site,  at  the  bend 
of  the  Rock  River. 

North  of  the  park  the  bases  of  high  gravel  hills  come 
down  to  the  river  bank.  These  are  forested  on  their  slopes 
and  tops,  except  at  one  place  where  there  is  a  large  gravel 
slide.  Among  its  pebbles  and  boulders  are  many  rocks  of 
white  and  other  flint  which  could  have  been  utilized  by  the 
natives  for  implement  manufacture.  These  hills  extend 
along  this  bank  of  the  stream  for  nearly  a  mile. 

This  village  site  may  be  the  one  referred  to  in  the  "Diary 
of  Aaron  P.  Walker/'  an  early  settler  of  Janesville,  as  the 
location  of  "an  Indian  village  on  the  east  side  of  Rock  River, 
about  three  miles  north  of  the  Janes'  tavern,  where  a  small 
brook  entered  the  river." 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         61 

Stonehenge  Camp  Site 
(NE.  14  Sec.  23) 

A  camp  site  is  located  on  the  cultivated  fields  of  the  Knut- 
son  and  Cosgrove  properties  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock 
just  north  of  the  city  limits  of  Janesville.  On  the  river 
fields  of  both  of  these  small  "farms"  scattered  hearthstones 
and  flint  fragments  and  chips  occur  and  a  few  flint  points 
have  been  collected  in  the  course  of  cultivating  the  fields.  Mr. 
C.  C.  Babbitt  has  collected  some  arrowpoints  in  the  field  ad- 
joining the  Knudson  place  on  the  south. 

"Stonehenge,"  the  beautiful  country  estate  of  Mr.  Geo.  S. 
Parker,  adjoins  the  Cosgrove  place  on  the  north.  This  es- 
tate occupies  a  high  wooded  ridge  with  picturesque  lime- 
stone outcrops  along  its  river  bank  frontage. 

The  Indian  trail  from  the  north  to  Janesville  passed  over 
this  property.  A  few  flint  arrowpoints,  probably  lost  by 
Indian  hunters,  have  been  picked  up  on  the  Stonehenge 
bluffs  and  along  the  river  bank.  From  "Stonehenge"  a  fine 
view  is  obtained  across  the  river  of  Riverside  Park.  Over 
the  river  bluffs,  a  short  distance  west  of  Stonehenge  are  the 
Crystal  and  Hiawatha  springs  elsewhere  described. 

Broege  Island  Camp  Site 
(Janesville) 

Indications  of  a  former  Indian  camp  site  occur  in  a 
cultivated  field  at  the  southern  end  of  this  island.  Here  we 
collected  a  large  oval  pebble  hammerstone,  a  granite  ball, 
a  white  flint  reject  and  some  stone  chips  and  hearthstones. 
Mr.  Frank  F.  Broege,  the  proprietor  of  the  Rock  River 
Service  Station  located  by  the  side  of  the  Janesville  high- 
way, opposite  the  island,  states  that  in  cultivating  this  site 
quite  a  few  flint  implements  have  been  collected  by  himself 
and  others. 

This  island  in  the  Rock  River  at  the  northern  limits  of 
Janesville,  now  largely  overgrown  with  weeds  and  grass, 
was  in  former  years  occupied  by  large  trees.  It  is  about 
a  third  of  a  mile  in  length  and  four  hundred  or  more  feet 
wide  at  its  southern  extremity.  The  soil  is  black,  some- 
what sandy  and  gravelly.  It  is  elevated  but  a  few  feet 
above  the  river.  A  road  now  connects  it  with  the  river 
shore.  The  water  between  it  and  the  river  bank  is  being 
gradually  filled  in. 


62  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

The  Winnebago  name  of  this  former  camp  ground  is  giv- 
en as  Weetch-chi-nuk,  "island  camp." 

South  of  this  island  is  Goose  Island  which  by  filling  in  has 
now  been  attached  to  the  river  bank. 

Riverbank  Camp  Sites 
(E.  %  Sec.  23) 

On  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock  north  of  the  City  of  Janes- 
ville  indications  of  former  camp  sites  occur  in  cottage  and 
other  gardens  between  the  highway  and  the  river  bank.  The 
late  Horace  McElroy  of  Janesville  had  in  his  former  collec- 
tion a  small  number  of  flint  arrow  and  spearpoints  and  sev- 
eral knives  collected  along  this  shore,  between  Stonehenge 
and  the  city  limits. 

In  past  years  Indian  burials  have  been  disturbed  in  dig- 
ging for  gravel  in  the  hills  on  the  east  side  of  the  highway, 
north  of  the  city.  As  they  were  unearthed  by  the  caving 
of  the  walls  of  the  pits  but  little  attention  was  paid  to  them 
by  the  men  engaged  in  the  digging. 

West  Bank  Camp  Sites 
(Sees.  26  and  36) 

On  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock  River  in  the  City  of  Janes- 
ville the  river  banks  are  high.  Indians  camped  on  these 
wooded  bluffs,  sometimes  in  considerable  numbers,  when 
the  first  white  settlers  came  to  this  region.  Some  stone 
celts  and  axes  and  flint  implements  have  been  found  on  these 
bluffs.  This  locality,  lying  east  of  N.  Washington  Avenue, 
is  now  quite  largely  occupied  by  streets  and  buildings. 

According  to  the  early  land  survey  map  an  Indian  trail 
from  the  west  forded  the  Rock  River  in  the  southeast  cor- 
ner of  Section  36,  in  the  present  limits  of  Janesville. 

Mr.  Horace  McElroy  reported  the  presence,  years  ago,  of 
three  Indian  conical  mounds  near  the  river  in  the  northeast 
corner  of  Section  26.  Every  trace  of  these  appears  to  have 
disappeared. 

Pearl  Street  Cache 

A  cache  or  deposit  of  five  blue  hornstone  knives  of  the 
prized  "turkey-tail"  type  was  obtained  in  November,  1903  by 
laborers  engaged  in  digging  a  trench  at  the  corner  of  Pearl 
and  Elizabeth  Streets  in  Janesville.  Three  of  these  speci- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  .of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         63 

mens  were  in  perfect  condition  and  two  were  broken,  only 
parts  of  the  latter  being  obtained.  With  them  were  found 
the  pieces  of  a  broken  brown  hornstone  knife.  All  were  un- 
earthed at  a  depth  of  nearly  four  feet  beneath  the  surface 
of  the  undisturbed  prairie  soil.  No  human  remains  were 
found  with  the  deposit  although  the  ground  was  carefully 
dug  over.  A  slight  discoloration  of  the  soil  suggested  a  pos- 
sible burial. 

The  three  unbroken  knives  were  5%,  5%  and  6%  inches 
in  length,  and  1%,  1%  and  1%  inches  in  width  at  the  broad- 
est part  of  their  long  leaf  shaped,  pointed  blades.  Their 
notched  tangs  were  the  short  triangular  stems  of  this  very 
graceful  form  of  prehistoric  Ohio  and  Indiana  blue  horn- 
stone  knife.  Mr.  W.  H.  Elkey,  a  former  Milwaukee  col- 
lector, reported  the  finding  of  this  cache  to  the  Wisconsin 
Archeological  Society  in  1903,  Mr.  Horace  McElroy  furnish- 
ing the  detailed  information  on  January  30,  1907. 

Mr.  McElroy  retained  the  three  perfect  blades  in  his  col- 
lection, the  fragmentary  ones  being  given  to  Mr.  W.  P. 
Clarke  of  Milton,  and  the  broken  knife  to  the  Milwaukee 
Museum. 

A  Mr.  Kenyon,  who  resided  at  a  distance  of  about  fifty 
feet  from  the  Pearl  Street  corner,  reported  to  Mr.  McElroy 
that  when  he  built  his  home  here  there  was  a  round  mound 
on  the  premises.  This  he  removed  to  fill  his  yard.  This 
locality  Mr.  McElroy  stated  to  be  at  a  distance  of  about  fifty 
rods  from  the  bank  of  the  Rock  River,  on  the  west  side  of 
the  City. 

ROCK  TOWNSHIP 


Round  Rock  Village 

(Near  N.  Line  of  Sees.  1  and  2) 

The  most  important  historic  Winnebago  village  between 
the  Catfish  Village  near  Fulton  and  the  Turtle  Village  at 
Beloit  was  the  village  located  on  the  Rock  River  at  Janes- 
ville.  The  Indian  name  of  this  village  was  E-nee-poro-poro, 
meaning  "round  rock  or  stone,"  taking  its  name  from  the 
large  stone  outcrop  in  the  river  known  as  Monteray  Point. 

John  H.  Kinzie  in  his  Winnebago  Indian  census  of  1829- 
1832  gives  the  name  of  this  village  as  Round  Rock  and  its 


64  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

distance  from  his  agency  at  Fort  Winnebago  as  sixty  miles. 
He  reports  that  at  that  time  it  contained  two  lodges  and  31 
inhabitants.  Coming  Lightning,  Jump-ho-ha-ga,  was  its 
chief.  A  few  years  later  the  number  of  Indians  camping 
here  had  largely  increased. 

This  village  was  located  on  the  north  bank  of  the  river  in 
the  part  of  Janesville  located  along  Western  Avenue  and 
known  in  former  years  as  Monteray. 

Of  this  village  site,  which  must  have  been  occupied  by  In- 
dians for  a  long  period  of  time,  the  only  traces  which  now 
remain  are  a  few  flint  chips  and  spalls  which  occur  in  a 
few  of  the  gardens  and  vacant  spaces  along  Western  Ave- 
nue and  River  Street.  This  section  of  the  city  has  long 
been  occupied  by  homes  and  other  buildings.  Mr.  Horace 
McElroy,  the  formerly  well  known  Janesville  collector  of 
Indian  artifacts,  knew  this  site  well  and  mentions  it  in  an 
article  contributed  to  the  History  of  Rock  County  (C.  F. 
Cooper  &  Co.,  Chicago,  1908,  p.  60).  He  states  that  many 
stone  implements  have  been  collected  here.  Of  these  he 
himself  possessed  several  grooved  stone  axes  and  celts,  and 
many  flint  arrow  and  spearpoints.  Other  collectors  state 
that  flint  workshop  sites,  wigwam  sites  (marked  by  hearth- 
stones, charcoal  and  ashy  soil),  occasional  clam  shell  de- 
posits and  other  village  site  debris  were  found  in  favorable 
locations  at  various  points  back  from  the  river  bank  along 
nearly  the  entire  distance  of  a  mile  or  more  from  near  Cen- 
ter Avenue  eastward  to  the  bend  of  the  Rock. 

This  part  of  the  Rock  River  was  in  early  Indian  days, 
and  still  is,  a  good  fishing  ground.  In  the  broad  bed  of  the 
stream,  opposite  Western  Avenue,  there  is  an  extensive 
marsh  area  composed  of  arrowhead,  cattail  and  other  aqua- 
tic growth.  This  extends  from  east  of  the  Center  Avenue 
Rock  River  bridge  as  far  east  as  the  foot  of  Stone  street. 

Monteray  Point,  a  picturesque  narrow  point,  extends  into 
the  river  from  near  the  north  side  of  the  Rock  River  bridge 
at  Center  Avenue.  An  ice  house  building  stands  at  its  base. 
Its  narrow  apex  is  a  limestone  and  sandstone  outcrop.  At 
its  tip  is  a  small  cave  about  20  feet  in  length,  10  feet  across 
at  its  mouth  and  about  8  feet  high.  This  is  excavated  in  the 
light  colored  sandstone  with  a  layer  of  limestone  at  its  top. 
The  cave  mouth  is  about  25  feet  above  the  water.  It  has 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         65 

been  stated  that  years  ago  there  were  on  the  walls  of  this 
cave  some  rude  incised  markings  thought  to  have  been  In- 
dian pictographic  records.  These  have  gone.  The  Winne- 
bago  name  of  this  rock  appears  to  have  been  E-nee-wa-kan- 
junk,  "medicine  rock  or  spirit  stone." 

Opposite  the  "Big  Rock"  on  Monteray  Point  was  the  In- 
dian ford  from  the  one  bank  of  the  river  to  the  other.  It 
was  early  known  as  "Rock  Ford,"  the  rock  serving  as  a 
guide  to  the  river  crossing.  Rev.  H.  Foote  in  discussing 
this  ford  in  1856  said  that  the  water  in  the  river  was  then  a 
third  lower  than  when  the  white  settlers  came  in  1836.* 
Many  settlers  and  travelers  coming  over  the  Indian  trail 
from  Beloit  crossed  the  river  at  this  ford.  The  rock  itself 
appears  to  have  had  some  traditional  sacred  significance  for 
the  early  Indian  inhabitants  of  this  region,  the  exact  nature 
of  which  has  not  been  recorded.  In  the  State  Hisotrical 
Museum  are  eighteen  flint  arrowpoints  found  by  W.  H. 
Prisk  here  at  the  "Rock  Ford." 

Mr.  Levi  St.  John,  who  settled  at  Janesville  in  1836,  says 
of  the  early  Indian  inhabitants  of  this  vicinity:  "At  that 
early  day  the  Indians  were  quite  numerous  in  this  part  of 
Wisconsin.  I  have  frequently  visited  their  camps,  gone 
into  their  wigwams  and  bought  honey  and  maple  sugar  from 
them.  At  times  as  many  as  a  dozen  Indians  have  rode  up  to 
my  house  armed  with  tomahawks,  knives  and  loaded  guns ; 
and  I  have  at  such  times  thought  how  easy  a  matter  it  would 
be  for  them  to  butcher  my  family,  if  they  were  so  disposed. 
It  was  reported  from  time  to  time  that  they  intended  to  have 
a  general  uprising.  But  they  were  always  friendly  to  me 
and  I  have  traded  a  great  deal  with  them.  They  learned  to 
.be  quite  shrewd  in  their  traffic.  If  they  had  a  large  lot  of 
peltries  or  fish  to  sell,  they  would  show  only  a  few  of  the 
poorest  at  first,  then  producing  more,  and  so  on  until  sold 
out."** 

South  Palm  Street  Camp  Site 

Hearthstones  were  found  on  a  small  plot  of  cultivated 
ground  at  the  southwest  corner  of  Western  avenue  and  S. 
Palm  Street  in  Janesville.  Others  and  a  few  flint  chips  and 

*  Guernsey  and  Willard's  History  of  Rock  County,  1856,  p.  153. 
**  Do.,  p.  173. 


66  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

fragments  were  found  in  gardens  along  Western  Avenue 
as  far  west  as  the  Afton  road.  The  S.  Palm  street  locality 
is  one  block  north  of  the  Rock  River  bank.  Some  flint  ar- 
row and  spearpoints  and  a  hammerstone  or  two  have  been 
collected  on  the  land  in  the  rear  of  the  R.  F.  Murphy  home 
on  S.  River  Street. 

Spring  Brook  Mounds 
(Section  1) 

Two  Indian  mounds  were  located  on  the  edge  of  a  very 
steep  gravelly  bluff  overlooking  the  Rock  River  and  its  wan- 
dering tributary,  Spring  Brook,  at  the  southeastern  city 
limits  of  Janesville.  This  locality  was  east  of  the  bend  of 
the  river  and  east  of  Main  Street. 

One  of  the  mounds  was  a  tapering  linear  earthwork 
("tadpole"),  with  a  length  of  85  feet,  its  greatest  width  be- 
ing about  24  feet,  and  its  greatest  height  61/9  feet.  Its  axis 
lay  "in  a  north  by  30  degrees  east  direction,  with  the  head, 
or  larger  part  to  the  northeast.  The  attenuated  part  is 
about  as  long  as  the  main  body  with  an  elevation  of  about 
one  foot  and  a  width  of  five  feet.  The  whole  south  side  is 
cut  out  by  erosion.  A  depression  in  the  center  of  the  high- 
est part  indicates  a  partial  excavation  of  the  mound." 

About  80  paces  (240  feet)  east  of  the  "tadpole"  mound, 
and  about  30  feet  from  the  edge  of  the  bluff  there  was  a 
round  mound  55  feet  in  diameter  and  31/2  feet  high."  Ex- 
cavations recently  made  in  this  mound  near  its  center  re- 
vealed several  thin,  irregular  layers  of  charcoal.  The  mound 
was  constructed  of  sandy  loam,  similar  to  that  of  the  sur- 
rounding surface  soil."  These  mounds  were  later  destroyed 
by  workmen  engaged  in  "stripping"  the  bluff  to  obtain  ma- 
terial for  the  Janesville  Cement  Post  Co. 

Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  described  the  mounds  and  published  a 
copy  of  his  survey  of  them  in  the  June  19,  1907  issue  of  The 
Janesville  Gazette. 

The  above  information  is  quoted  from  his  description. 

Bailey  Mounds  and  Corn  Fields 

(SE.  %,  NW.  %  Sec.  1) 

Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  described  and  figured  in  the  June  19, 
1907  issue  of  The  Janesville  Gazette  a  group  of  three  coni- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  ,of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         67 

cal  mounds  located  on  the  level  plain  or  bottom  land  just 
south  of  Eastern  Avenue,  and  about  thirty  feet  west  of 
where  this  thoroughfare  crosses  the  north  and  south  center 
line  of  Section  1  of  Rock  Township.  They  were  between 
Eastern  Avenue  and  the  C.  M.  &  St.  P.  R.  R.  tracks.  All 
had  been  much  levelled  by  long  cultivation  of  the  land.  Dr. 
J.  W.  St.  John  remembered  when  they  were  well  preserved 
Indian  earthworks  the  largest  perhaps  25  feet  in  diameter 
and  from  5  to  6  feet  high.  The  other  two  were  of  consider- 
ably smaller  size.  Mound  No.  2  was  located  20  paces 
(about  60  feet)  south  of  the  largest  mound  (No.  1),  and 
mound  No.  3  about  the  same  distance  south  of  No.  2.  The 
largest  mound  had  been  excavated  years  ago  and  some  In- 
dian implements  reported  found,  presumably  with  a  burial 
or  burials. 

Some  distance  southwest  of  the  mound  group,  in  a  strip 
of  woodland  locally  known  as  the  "Bailey  Woods,"  were 
plots  of  Indian  corn  hills.  These  were  on  both  sides  of  the 
C.  &  N.  W.  R.  R.  tracks.  Mr.  Skavlem's  plat  shows  two  or 
three  separate  plots  of  these,  two  being  north  of  the  railroad 
tracks  and  one  south  of  them.  They  were  on  gently  sloping 
land.  Dr.  St.  John  informed  Mr.  Skavlem  that  when  the 
first  settlers  came,  in  1836,  cornstalks  were  still  standing  on 
some  of  these  corn  hills. 

Eastern  Avenue  Village  Site 
(Sees.  1  and  2) 

Another  Indian  village  site  was  located  along  present 
Eastern  Avenue  and  adjoining  city  streets  on  the  south 
bank  of  the  Rock  River  in  the  southern  part  of  Janesville. 
This  site  appears  to  have  extended  from  the  Monteray 
bridge  crossing  of  the  Rock  (present  Center  Avenue)  east- 
ward along  the  river  bank  to  beyond  the  point  where  Spring 
Brook  flows  into  the  Rock  at  the  proposed  Jeffris  city  park. 
This  part  of  the  city  is  now  occupied  by  the  buildings  of  the 
Chevrolet  automobile  factory  and  the  homes  of  its  employes 
and  others. 

The  land  along  the  river  in  this  part  of  the  city  is  level 
with  hills  some  distance  in  the  rear  to  the  south.  In  gar- 
dens and  bare  spots  along  the  river  bank  flint  rejectage  and 
hearthstones  occur.  When  the  prairie  sod  is  removed  from 


68  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

some  of  the  unoccupied  grass  lots  and  small  tree  and  brush- 
grown  tracts  further  evidence  of  early  aboriginal  occupa- 
tion is  likely  to  be  found.  Mr.  McElroy  years  ago  collected 
a  few  flint  and  some  heavier  stone  implements  here.  Some 
Winnebago  camped  on  this  bank  of  the  river  in  the  thirties 
and  later. 

Other  Janesville  Implements 

Numbers  of  Indian  artifacts  have  been  found  in  past 
years  at  different  places  about  the  city,  specimens  lost  or 
left  by  their  former  Indian  owners  at  the  scattered  points 
where  they  were  recovered  in  the  progress  of  house  build- 
ing, garden  making  or  in  other  ways. 

Mr.  Horace  McElroy  had  in  his  collection  a  fine  specimen 
of  long-bitted  axe.  This  granite  axe  was  lO1/^  inches  in 
length.  It  had  a  diagonal  handle  groove  with  a  prominent 
ridge  below.  He  also  had  the  head  of  a  broken  birdstone 
with  prominent  eye  disks.  The  exact  locations  of  the  find- 
ing of  these  are  unknown.  Some  of  his  flint  implement* 
are  in  the  local  Legion  museum. 

In  the  State  Historical  Museum  there  is  a  notched  speai 
point  10  inches  in  length  which  was  found  at  Janesville. 

Kellogg  Corn  Field 

(Sec.  2) 

Mr.  M.  S.  Kellogg  reported  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeologi- 
cal  Society  in  1911  that  a  plot  of  Indian  corn  hills  was  for- 
merly located  on  the  land  occupied  by  Kellogg's  Nursery. 
This  location  was  in  the  Fourth  Ward  of  the  City  of  Janes- 
ville. The  corn  hills  were  on  the  edges  of  an  oak  grove. 
Every  trace  of  this  planting  ground  had  been  destroyed 
about  twenty  years  before. 


WEST  BANK  OF  THE  ROCK  RIVER  BEYOND  AND  BELOW 
JANESVILLE 

West  Janesville  Mounds 

(NE.  %  Sec.  3) 

A  short  distance  west  of  the  City  of  Janesville,  north  of 

the  road  to  Afton,  Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  located  three  small 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         69 

round  mounds,  the  existence  of  which  he  reported  in  1907. 
They  were  located  between  the  river  and  the  railroad  track. 
They  were  east  of  the  creek,  which  flows  in  a  southeasterly 
direction  into  the  Rock.  On  the  north  side  of  the  mouth  of 
this  creek  traces  of  a  small  camp  site  were  located.  This  is 
in  the  NW.  %  of  the  SE.%  of  Section  3  of  Rock  Township. 

A  camp  site  is  also  located  on  the  south  side  of  this  creek 
in  cultivated  fields  extending  from  the  Janesville  to  Afton 
highway  to  the  Rock  River  bank.  These  fields  could  not  be 
carefully  examined  because,  of  the  heavy  crop  of  corn  with 
which  they  were  largely  occupied.  This  site  is  also  in  the 
NW.  i/4  of  the  SE.  %  of  Section  23. 

Between  this  place  and  Afton  much  of  the  land  along  the 
Rock  River  bank  is  low  and  unfit  for  camp  locations. 

Rulondale  Camp  Site 
(SW.  14  Sec.  10) 

A  camp  site  is  reported  to  exist  in  a  field  located  on  the 
bank  of  the  Rock,  on  the  L.  A.  Markham  Rulondale  Farm. 
This  field  is  situated  between  the  river  bank  and  the  C.  M.  & 
St.  P.  R.  R.  track.  Between  it  and  the  Afton  road,  where 
the  farm  buildings  are  situated,  there  is  a  marshy  meadow. 
At  its  southern  edge  a  spring  brook  flows  eastward  into  the 
Rock.  From  this  site  a  few  flint  implements  have  been  col- 
lected. The  field  was  in  pasture  during  the  present  sum- 
mer and  could  not  be  examined. 

Afton  Mound  Group 

(SE.  %  of  NE.  %  Sec.  28) 

This  group  of  twenty-two  mounds  was  located  about  a 
mile  and  a  half  north  of  the  village  of  Afton.  A  survey  of 
it  was  made  by  H.  L.  Skavlem  and  Horace  McElroy  for  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  on  June  1,  1907.  Of  these 
mounds,  which  formed  a  rather  compact  group,  five  were 
round  mounds,  two  oval  mounds,  three  straight  linear  and 
seven  tapering  linear  mounds,  four  mammal  effigies  and  one 
a  bird  effigy.  They  were  located  in  a  wooded  pasture  and 
were  all  well  preserved.  The  direction  of  all  of  the  effigies 
and  of  the  linear  mounds  was  to  the  southeast. 

When  we  visited  this  site  on  July  20,  1928  there  remained 
of  this  fine  group  of  prehistoric  Indian  earthworks  only  a 


70  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

short  straight  linear  mound  and  a  remnant  of  another,  all 
of  the  other  mounds  having  been  destroyed  in  the  operation 
of  the  immense  gravel  pit  of  the  Central  Lime  &  Cement 
Company  of  Chicago.  The  single  remaining  mound  is  situ- 
ated about  50  feet  in  the  rear  of  the  Afton  public  school. 

An  effort  should  be  made  by  the  local  school  trustees  to 
preserve  this  last  mound  of  a  once  great  group  of  prehisto- 
ric monuments. 


Afton  Mill  Camp  Site  and  Mounds 
(SW.  1/4  Sec.  27) 

On  the  north  bank  of  Bass  creek  east  of  the  Afton  Mill  in 
the  village  of  Afton  is  a  cultivated  field.  This  small  field 
lies  between  the  creek  bank  and  the  C.  &  N.  W.  R.  R.  track. 
Its  soil  is  black  and  sandy  and  it  is  elevated  about  six  feet 
above  the  river  at  its  highest  parts.  Flint  chips  and  frag- 
ments and  hearthstones  are  scattered  over  several  small 
areas  in  this  field  where  wigwams  were  probably  once  lo- 
cated. An  oval  hammerstone  was  also  found.  Village 
boys  have  found  quite  a  few  flint  arrowpoints  here.  The 
flint  chipped  here  is  from  local  sources  (reddish,  white, 
light  brown  and  flesh-colored).  A  single  potsherd,  sand- 
tempered,  and  ornamented  with  cord-marked,  indented  and 
trailed  markings  was  also  found  here. 

In  an  irregular  line  along  the  creek  edge  of  this  field  ar 
four  and  possibly  five  Indian  mounds.     The  first  of  these 
is  about  300  feet  east   of  the   Mill,  and  about  50  feet  fro 
the  water's  edge.     Eighteen  feet  east  of  it  is  another  small 
conical  mound,  and  20  feet  beyond  this  a  third  small  mound 
of  the  same  character.     About  100  feet  beyond  this  is  what 
appears  to  have  been  a  slightly  tapering  linear  mound.     Its 
outline  has  been  greatly  disturbed  by  long  cultivation  and 
not  much  can  now  be  made  of  it.     Twenty  feet  beyond  this 
is  another  small  conical  mound. 

All  of  these  mounds  have  been  long  under  cultivation. 
Their  present  dimensions  and  heights  are  as  follows : 

No.  1  Diameter  30  feet,  height  1V2  feet. 
No.  2  Diameter  28  feet,  height  2V2  feet. 
No.  3  Diameter  21  feet,  height  2V2  feet. 
No.  4  Length  about  125  feet,  width  24  and  18  feet,  height 

to  2  feet. 
No.  5     Diameter  15  feet,  height  1  foot. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         71 

This  group  appears  not  to  have  been  previously  recorded. 
We  were  unable  to  learn  whether  any  of  the  mounds  had 
been  excavated.  East  of  the  mounds  is  a  piece  of  rather 
low  rough  pasture  land. 

It  is  likely  that  this  camp  site  extends  along  the  river 
bank  west  of  the  Mill  into  the  gardens  of  a  few  of  the 
village  homes. 

Holzapfel  Camp  Site 

(SW.  %  Sec.  27) 

A  camp  site  is  also  indicated  on  the  Holzapfel  land  on  the 
opposite  (south)  bank  of  the  Bass  Creek  in  a  small  culti- 
vated field  where  the  usual  indications  of  aboriginal  occupa- 
tion have  been  found.  Potatoes  had  been  dug  and  corn  har- 
vested on  this  field  so  that  no  examination  of  its  surface  was 
possible. 

Antisdell  Village  Site 

(SW.  %  and  SE.  i/2  of  Sec.  19) 

From  a  village  site  on  the  Simon  Antisdell  farm  on  the 
north  side  of  Bass  Creek,  about  two  and  a  half  miles  west  of 
Afton,  Mr.  Horace  McElroy  collected  many  flint  points  and 
some  perforators.  Considerable  numbers  of  potsherds 
were  also  found.  A  flint  workshop  was  located  in  the 
southeastern  corner  of  this  farm.  An  Indian  camp  site  was 
also  located  on  the  old  Bartels  (now  the  Gokey)  farm  on 
Bass  Creek  above  Afton.  Here  many  flint  points  are  re- 
ported to  have  been  found. 

Mouth  of  Bass  Creek  Camp  Site 
(SE.  14  Sec.  27) 

In  early  days  of  settlement  the  Winnebago  Indians 
camped  at  the  mouth  of  Bass  creek  at  Afton.  The  level  field 
at  the  mouth  of  this  pretty  stream  is  bounded  on  the  east  by 
the  Rock  River,  on  the  north  by  a  river  slough  and  on  the 
south  by  the  creek  bank.  In  its  rear  is  the  C.  &  N.  W.  R.  R. 
track.  It  was  in  use  as  a  pasture  and  could  not  be  exam- 
ined for  evidence  of  early  Indian  occupation.  Wild  tobacco 
plants  formerly  grew  here  probably  self-seeded  from  earlier 
Indian  plantings. 

Tn  the  Rock  River  opposite  this  camp  site  is  Inman  Island, 
an  island  reported  to  be  about  12  acres  in  extent.  This  is- 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


rol.   9,  No. 


land  the  Indians  also  camped  upon.  It  is  approached  from 
the  mainland  by  a  ford  across  a  gravel  bar,  the  water  be- 
ing shallow  there  at  this  time. 

This  island  is  well  elevated  above  the  water  and  is  prob- 
ably not  overflowed  by  the  Rock  except  in  years  of  very  high 
water.  It  is  a  very  attractive  place.  On  its  shores  are  tall 
elm,  maple,  ash  and  other  trees.  In  its  middle  is  a  large 
clearing  carpeted  with  tall,  soft  matted  grass.  At  its  north- 
ern edge  are  a  number  of  large  burr  oaks  which  this  year 
are  yielding  an  abundant  harvest  of  acorns.  Large  grape 
vines  clamber  over  several  of  the  trees.  Here  also  are  sev- 
eral patches  of  the  stately  mullein.  The  greatest  length  of 
this  island  appears  to  be  about  600  feet.  At  various  places 
in  the  river  bed  in  its  vicinity  are  beds  of  river  clams.  This 
locality  is  today  and  has  long  been  a  good  locality  for  the 
catching  of  catfish. 

Bass  Creek  Site 

(SE.  14  Sec.  27) 

On  the  south  bank  of  Bass  Creek,  near  its  union  with  the 
Rock  River,  between  the  creek  bank  south  of  the  road  to  Af- 
ton,  there  is  a  small  cultivated  field.  In  this  field  hearth- 
stones and  scattered  flint  rejectage  occur.  Many  flint  im- 
plements have  been  found  here.  This  site  is  a  short  dis- 
tance east  of  the  Holzapfel  site,  of  which  it  may  be  merely 
an  extension. 

M.  E.  Church  Picnic  Ground  Camp  Site 
(SW.  1/4  Sec.  26) 

At  this  place  the  land  along  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock 
River  is  very  level.  At  this  picnic  ground  indications  of  a 
former  Indian  camp  site  occur  in  a  field  near  the  river  bank 
which  in  1928  had  been  recently  plowed  and  sown  with  a 
crop  of  winter  wheat.  The  soil  of  this  field  is  black  and 
sandy.  Lying  on  its  surface  we  found  a  stemmed  arrow- 
point,  several  flint  blanks,  hearthstones,  clam  shell  frag- 
ments and  scattered  flint  chips.  No  potsherds  were  ob- 
tained. The  river  bank  at  this  place  is  high  and  fringed 
with  trees. 

Indications  of  former  wigwam  sites  also  occur  in  the  cul- 
tivated fields  of  the  Henbest  farm  both  south  and  west  of 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         73 

the  above  site,  these  extending  into  the  SE.  1/4  of  Section  27 
and  the  NW%  of  Section  35.  In  the  latter  locality  Bass 
Creek  flows  into  the  Rock. 

Three  Indian  mounds  were  reported  as  existing  in  the 
Henbest  fields  adjoining  the  Picnic  Ground.  These  were 
oval  in  form.  They  have  been  under  cultivation  for  many 
years.  These  are  the  mounds  reported  to  the  Wisconsin 
Archeological  Society  by  Mr.  Horace  McElroy  in  1908. 
They  are  in  the  NW.  i/i  of  Section  35. 

Indications  of  a  camp  site  also  occur  in  the  river  fields  in 
the  S.  of  the  NE.  of  Section  35. 


EASTERN  BANK  OF  ROCK  RIVER  BELOW  JANESVILLE 

River  Heights  Camp  Site 
(SE.  %  Sec.  3) 

On  the  farm  fields  of  the  State  School  for  the  Blind,  on  the 
east  bank  of  the  Rock  at  River  Heights,  southwest  of  Janes- 
ville,  traces  of  a  small  camp  site  were  formerly  to  be  seen. 
A  few  arrowpoints  have  been  collected  here.  These  fields 
were  grass  grown  and  could  not  be  examined.  They  lie 
high  above  the  water.  Traces  of  this  camp  site  probably 
extend  into  the  farm  grove  pasture  north  of  the  buildings, 
at  a  bend  of  the  river. 

In  a  small  case  in  one  of  the  school  rooms  of  the  institu- 
tion is  a  lot  of  about  a  dozen  flint  points,  blanks  and  knives, 
some  of  which  were  probably  collected  here. 

From  the  School  for  the  Blind  lands  southward  as  far  as 
the  Frances  Willard  country  school  building  the  river  banks 
are  generally  high  and  in  cultivation  and  in  pasture.  In 
some  of  the  pastures  and  on  the  banks  are  scattered  speci- 
mens or  small  groups  of  young  cedar  trees,  these  adding 
much  to  the  attractiveness  of  the  green  pasture  banks. 
Here  the  river  road  is  some  distance  east  of  the  river  bank. 
Beyond  (south  of)  the  Willard  schoolhouse  it  follows  the 
river  bank  more  closely  to  as  far  south  as  the  Afton  Rock? 
River  bridge.  In  many  places  it  is  not  more  than  25  or  30 
feet  from  the  river  bank.  Along  this  stretch  the  river  is 
from  200  to  300  feet  wide.  Farm  lands  and  occasional  oak 
groves  lie  along  the  entire  course  of  this  picturesque  but  lit- 


74  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

tie  traveled  dirt  road  for  over  three  miles.     The  banks  of 
the  coffee-colored  Rock  are  curtained  with  a  fringe  of  trees. 
In  the  river  opposite  the  State  School  farm  is  a  small  wil- 
low-overgrown island. 

Willard  School  Camp  Site 
(NE.  %  Sec.  15) 

Remains  of  a  small  camp  site  are  scattered  through  a  part 
of  a  small  field  near  the  river  bank  on  a  farm  which  adjoins 
on  the  north  the  yard  of  the  tiny  frame  school  building 
which  Frances  Willard  attended  during  her  childhood. 
Her  early  home  (Forest  Home,  1846-1858)  is  located  about 
half-a-mile  north  of  this  place,  and  is  marked  with  a  tablet 
erected  by  the  Rock  County  W.  C.  T.  U. 

The  flint  in  use  in  implement  making  at  this  site  is  of  grey 
and  light  brown  colors.  A  few  flint  blanks  and  arrowpoints 
have  been  found  here. 

Riverside  Camp  Site 
(SW.  %  Sec.  15) 

Some  flint  arrowpoints  have  been  collected  in  the  south- 
ern fields  of  the  E.  Zeaman  "Riverside"  farm.  Here  hearth- 
stones and  the  scattered  refuse  of  a  small  flint  workshop 
were  found. 

This  farm  is  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock.  The  old  river 
trail  passed  over  it. 

Coates  Camp  Site 

(NW.  1/4,  Sec.  22) 

Opposite  the  small  Marion  Coates  farm  a  brook  flows 
down  to  the  Rock  River  through  a  small  ravine  which  the 
river  road  crosses.  In  a  cultivated  field  on  the  east  side  of 
the  road,  south  of  the  brook,  evidences  of  a  former  camp 
site  occur.  Other  similar  evidences  (hearthstones  and  flint 
chips)  occur  on  the  west  side  of  the  road  in  a  cultivated  field 
south  of  the  Coates  farm  house,  also  in  another  field  of  the 
Emerson  farm  adjoining  this  on  the  south.  This  latter 
field  is  a  river  flat  bordering  on  a  bend  of  the  river.  South 
of  this  field  is  a  small  tract  of  woodland. 

On  this  camp  site,  with  scattered  indications  of  the  sites 
of  about  three  or  four  wigwams,  the  flint  in  use  in  imple- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         75 

ment  fashioning  is  of  white,  grey  and  light  brown  colors.  It 
was  very  probably  obtained  from  some  local  source.  Here 
we  also  found  a  broken  white  flint  notched  arrowpoint,  the 
tip  of  another,  and  two  flake  scrapers. 

Farmer  boys  have  collected  a  few  arrowpoints  here.  The 
river  bank  is  low,  with  a  fringe  of  trees  along  the  edge  of 
the  Coates  field. 

Woodstock  Mounds 

(NE.  14  NW.  %  Sec.  22) 

The  existence  of  a  group  of  three  conical  mounds  on  the 
Arthur  Woodstock,  formerly  the  J.  Kilmer  farm,  was  re- 
ported by  H.  L.  Skavlem,  on  May  19,  1907.  The  mounds 
were  then  in  a  cultivated  field.  Two  were  20  and  one  24 
feet  in  diameter.  They  were  then  from  a  foot  to  li/2  feet 
high.  Mr.  Horace  McElroy  reported  the  same  group  in 
1908. 

Oakley  Farm  Camp  Site 

(SW.  14  Sec.  22) 

A  camp  site  was  located  on  the  T.  J.  Oakley  farm,  on  the 
edge  of  a  cultivated  field  on  the  east  side  of  the  river  road, 
north  of  the  farm  house.  Here  hearthstones  were  found 
grouped  in  two  places,  probably  wigwam  sites,  with  a  few 
flint  chips  and  fragments  scattered  over  the  ground  in  their 
vicinity.  The  flint  was  of  grey  and  light-brown  colors. 
These  sites  are  within  about  thirty -five  feet  of  the  river 
bank.  A  few  flint  arrowpoints  have  been  found  here  and  in 
the  field  south  of  the  Oakley  farm  bulidings. 

Inman  Camp  Site 

(NW.  1/2  Sec.  27) 

The  river  lands  along  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock  River 
from  the  Afton  bridge  road  southward  to  the  bridge  cross- 
ing of  the  river  on  the  south  boundary  line  of  Rock  township 
are  for  the  most  part  broad  and  level  areas  with  low  hills 
rising  in  their  rear.  None  are  elevated  more  than  a  few 
feet  above  the  river  and  some  are  so  low  as  to  be  overflowed 
in  years  of  high  water.  Most  of  these  fields  are  this  year  in 
grass  and  in  use  as  pastures  for  cattle.  Groves  of  oak  and 
other  trees  occupy  some  areas  and  other  fields  are  over- 
grown with  young  trees  and  brush.  Trees  line  the  river 
bank. 


76  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.  9,  No.  1 

On  the  broad  fields  of  the  former  Inman  Estate  running 
southward  from  opposite  the  Afton  bridge  for  nearly  half  a 
mile  along  the  river  bank  the  indications  of  former  camp  and 
workshop  sites  were  found  to  be  quite  abundant.  These  fields 
are  not  under  cultivation  this  year  but  despite  the  growth 
of  grass  and  weeds  with  which  they  are  covered  hearth- 
stones, flint  rejectage,  pieces  of  clam  shells  and  fragments 
of  animal  bones  occur  in  a  number  of  places  not  far  from 
the  edge  of  the  river  bank  where  Indian  wigwams  were  once 
located.  Other  specimens  recovered  during  an  inspection 
of  these  places  were  a  granite  hammerstone,  several  broken 
hammerstones,  broken  flint  blanks,  a  broken  leaf -shape  ar- 
rowpoint,  a  small  white  flint  core.  In  past  years  several 
flint  celts  and  numerous  flint  implements  have  been  collected 
from  these  fields.  When  they  are  again  under  cultivation 
additional  specimens  are  almost  certain  to  be  found.  Search 
was  made  in  one  of  the  fields  for  traces  of  a  refuse  pit 
said  to  have  existed  here  but  no  trace  of  it  could  be  found. 

Rasmussen  Camp  Site 
(SE.  %  Sec.  27) 

Brush  overgrown  fields  of  the  Schuette  farm  separate  the 
Inman  sites  from  a  well  marked  camp  site  on  the  river  bank 
farm  fields  of  Mr.  C.  L.  Rasmussen.  These  fields  are  sandy 
and  well  elevated  above  the  water.  Near  the  southern  edge 
of  these  fields,  at  a  short  distance  from  the  river  bank,  In- 
dian camp  and  workshop  site  refuse  is  scattered  over  the 
surface  of  the  ground.  Here  were  found  hammerstones, 
sandstone  rubbing  stones,  broken  flint  blanks  and  a  bluish 
gray  flint  notched  arrowpoint.  Mr.  Rasmussen  has  a  white 
flint  stemmed  spearpoint,  about  three  inches  in  length  which 
he  found  here  in  cultivating  this  land.  This  farm  was  for- 
merly owned  by  H.  Fessenden. 

Adjoining  this  field  on  the  south  is  a  tract  of  pasture  land 
in  which  are  a  number  of  tall  walnut  trees,  being  the  surviv- 
ors of  a  former  considerable  number  of  such  trees  once  lo- 
cated here.  This  pasture  land  is  sometimes  overflowed  by 
the  river. 

According  to  old  settlers  in  this  locality  an  old  Winnebago 
Indian  who  employed  his  time  in  making  splint  baskets, 
once  lived  on  this  land.  His  dwelling  was  a  dugout,  roofed- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         77 

over  place  in  a  bank  at  a  distance  of  about  600  feet  from  the 
river  shore.  This  site  is  now  marked  by  a  group  of  young 
poplar  trees. 

In  the  river  opposite  the  Rasmussen  fields  is  a  small  tree- 
covered  island  which  is  subject  to  overflow  in  high  water. 

Rice  Camp  Site 

(NW.  1/2,  NE.  %  Sec.  35) 

Beyond  the  Rasmussen  site  a  camp  site  occurs  on  the  Rice 
farm  and  the  Noyes  farm  adjoining  it  on  the  east.  Here 
hearthstones,  flint  refuse  and  clam  shell  fragments  occur  in 
the  river  fields. 

Clam  Shell  Site 

(SW.  %  Sec.  36) 

Less  than  a  half  mile  beyond  The  Oaks  site,  between  the 
highway  and  the  river  bank,  is  a  small  field,  the  land  areas 
to  the  north  and  south  of  which  are  boggy,  grassy  pastures. 
This  field  consists  of  very  black  soil  and  was  occupied  by 
a  corn  crop.  No  evidences  of  a  camp  site  were  found  here. 
Scattered  over  its  surface  in  a  number  of  places  are  pieces 
of  partly  decomposed  and  broken  valves  of  river  clams,  the 
probable  refuse  of  clam  hunting  in  the  river  by  the  Indians, 
possibly  of  small  shell  heaps  which  the  plow  has  scattered. 
A  battered  and  broken  granite  pebble  hammerstone  was 
picked  up  in  this  field.  The  weeds  and  tumbled  corn  stalks 
(partly  leveled  by  a  recent  windstorm)  prevented  a  more 
careful  examination  of  this  field. 


BELOIT  TOWNSHIP 
West  Bank  of  Rock  River 

West  Bank  Camp  Sites 

(Sees.  2,  11  and  14) 

On  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock  indications  of  former  camp 
sites  are  scattered  along  the  edge  of  the  cultivated  fields 
along  the  river  bank  from  the  old  Kellogg  farm  in  Section  2, 
at  the  northern  line  of  the  township  southward  through  the 
western  halves  of  Sections  11  and  14,  nearly  to  the  "Big 
Hill"  opposite  Beloit.  These  indications,  consisting  of 


78  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   I 

hearthstones  and  scattered  flint  chips,  are  widely  separated 
from  each  other.  A  few  flint  points  have  been  found  in 
these  places. 

A  narrow  strip  of  pasture  land  lies  along  the  river  bank 
along  the  edge  of  these  fields.  The  river  bank  is  in  different 
places  from  6  to  12  feet  high,  the  river  from  200  to  250  feet 
wide.  The  fields  are  very  level  and  the  soil  black  and  sandy 
in  places. 

Just  north  of  the  "Big  Hill"  a  spring  brook  courses 
through  a  flat  to  the  Rock.  Opposite  its  mouth  is  a  marshy 
area.  Along  the  north  bank  of  this  brook  are  cultivated 
fields.  These  were  examined  but  no  indications  of  former 
Indian  residence  found  here. 

Big  Hill  Camp  Site 

On  the  top  of  this  high  hill  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock 
River,  opposite  Beloit,  the  Sauk  chief  Black  Hawk  is  re- 
ported to  have  camped  during  his  northward  flight  from  Ill- 
inois in  1832. 

This  high  hill  rising  several  hundred  feet  above  the  river 
is  largely  covered  with  a  fine  oak  forest.  It  is  now,  through 
the  efforts  of  the  Beloit  Izaak  Walton  League  chapter,  be- 
come a  wild  life  sanctuary  park. 

There  is  at  the  southern  end  of  this  hill  a  place  where 
there  is  more  or  less  of  an  open  space.  Here  we  examined 
a  number  of  bare  places  where  the  sod  had  been  removed  or 
killed  out,  In  these  spots  we  found  several  hearthstones,  a 
small  number  of  flint  chips,  two  small  leaf  shaped,  greyish- 
white  flint  blanks,  and  a  small  grey  flint  scraper. 

The  presence  of  these  specimens  appears  to  indicate  that 
Indians  have  camped  upon  this  hill  long  before  the  Sauk 
warriors  reached  it.  The  Winnebago  Indian  name  of  Big 
Hill  was  Cha-cha-tay. 

"When  the  first  agricultural  settlers  came  into  Rock 
County,  the  tent  poles  and  remains  of  the  Indian  camp  fires 
were  still  to  be  found  in  Black  Hawk's  Grove,  and  are  re- 
membered by  some  of  these  settlers,  who  are  still  with  us. 
They  indicated  a  more  permanent  camp  than  that  of  re- 
treating Indian  foes."* 


*  Hist,  of  Rock  Co.,  Guernsey  &  Willard,  1856,  p.  20. 


Indian  Villag-e  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         79 

Poe  Mound 

(NE.  %  Sec.  26) 

Mr.  Ira  M.  Buell  in  his  report  on  the  Beloit  Mound  Groups 
*says  of  this  mound  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Rock  River : 
"Directly  across  the  river  from  this  group  (the  Adams 
group  in  Beloit) ,  in  the  midst  of  a  grove  on  the  river  bottom 
and  north  of  a  little  inlet  is  the  site  of  a  mound  now  obliter- 
ated. This  conical  burial  mound  was  small,  less  than  twen- 
ty feet  in  diameter  and  about  one  and  one-half  feet  high. 
This  inconspicuous  "hummock"  when  disturbed  disclosed 
seven  burials,  a  central  form  encircled  by  four  others  and  at 
one  side  two  skeletons,  one  lying  partly  upon  the  other. 
These  burials  were  close  to  the  surface,  the  bones  being  un- 
covered by  the  plough  in  grading  the  field.  No  other  re- 
mains were  found." 

West  Beloit  Camp  Sites 

In  early  days  of  white  settlement  groups  of  Winnebago 
and  of  Potawatomi  Indians  frequently  camped  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Rock  River  in  West  Beloit.  A  band  of  Winne- 
bago, gathered  here  for  removal,  were  encamped  here  when 
Caleb  Blodgett  came  to  Beloit  in  1836.*  Others  were  here 
in  1837  and  other  Indians  camped  here  from  time  to  time  in 
small  numbers  for  many  years  afterward.  A  search  made 
by  ourselves  failed  to  locate  any  evidence  of  earlier  camp 
sites  in  likely  places  along  the  river  banks  between  this  lo- 
cality and  the  Big  Hill.  In  the  city  such  evidence  has  beerft 
destroyed  by  the  erection  of  buildings  and  grading  of 
streets. 

East  Bank  of  the  Rock  River 

Roth  Mounds 

(SE.  1/4  Sec.  1) 

A  brief  description  of  these  mounds  on  the  Roth  farm  is 
given  by  Mr.  Ira  M.  Buell  in  his  report  on  the  "Beloit  Mound 
Groups,"  published  by  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
in  November,  1919.  The  two  short  linear  or  oval  mounds 
located  here  he  reports  as  being  about  70  feet  long,  35  feet 


*  Wis.  Archeo.  18,  no.  4. 

*  Cooper's  History  of  Rock  County,  p.  24. 


80  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.          .  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

wide  and  3  feet  high.  He  says  that  they  are  among  the 
largest  tumuli  in  the  Beloit  region.  These  mounds  are  lo- 
cated on  the  brow  of  the  river  terrace.  In  the  cultivated 
field  in  the  rear  of  the  mounds  are  faint  traces  of  several 
other  mounds.  Flint  refuse,  scattered  by  the  plow,  indi- 
cates the  former  location  of  a  camp  site  here. 

Mr.  H.  L.  Skavlem  in  about  the  year  1902  aJ«o  located 
these  two  mounds  on  the  Roth  farm. 

The  Oaks  Camp  Site 
(NW.  %  Sec.  11) 

Adjoining  the  Yost  Park  summer  resort  settlement  on  the 
north  is  a  large  grassy  field  not  at  present  under  cultivation. 
Beyond  this  is  another  large  field  this  year  under  a  fine  crop 
of  corn.  This  field  we  examined  as  carefully  as  possible.  In 
this  field  nearly  all  of  the  evidences  of  former  aboriginal  oc- 
cupation are  in  the  part  nearest  the  bank  of  the  Rock  River. 
A  narrow  strip  of  uncultivated  land,  not  more  than  thirty  to 
thirty-five  feet  wide  with  a  few  scattered  young  oaks  grow- 
ing upon  it  separates  the  western  edge  of  this  field  from  the 
low  river  bank.  All  along  the  edge  of  this  field  scattered 
Indian  fireplace  stones  are  very  common.  Most  occur  no 
farther  than  50  feet  from  the  edge  of  the  field. 

With  them  were  found  scattered  chips  and  flakes  of  pink 
and  white  flint,  three  broken  pebble  hammerstones  and  a 
small  rudely  made  white  flint  implement,  probably  a  scrap- 
er. No  hearthstones  were  found  more  than  about  100  feet 
from  the  edge  of  the  field.  Doubtless  this  site  extends  into 
the  grassy  field  previously  mentioned.  Here  the  Indian 
wigwams  must  have  been  located  very  near  the  river  bank 
as  indicated  by  the  scattered  hearthstones.  Arrowpoints 
have  also  been  collected  here.  The  highway  is  here  hun- 
dreds of  feet  east  of  the  river  bank. 

The  Oaks  Gasoline  and  "Tourist  Rest"  station  is  located 
by  the  side  of  the  highway,  north  of  this  camp  site.  Beyond 
this  is  a  bridge  across  the  river. 

Yost  Park  Village  Site  and  Mound 

(SW.  14  Sec.  11) 

At  this  place,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock  River,  on  the 
John  A.  Yost  farm  and  at  Yost  Park  adjoining  its  fields  on 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         81 

the  north  was  located  the  early  Winnebago  Indian  village  of 
"Standing  Post."  Its  location  is  given  as  about  two  miles 
north  of  Beloit.  Its  Winnebago  name  is  given  as  Ho-bo-sa- 
che-nug-ra.  U.  S.  Indian  Agent  John  H.  Kinzie  gives  the 
number  of  its  inhabitants  in  1829  as  seventeen,  and  Kaw- 
ray-kaw-saw-kaw,  White  Crow,  as  their  chief.  According 
to  Dr.  N.  W.  Jipson  White  Crow  was  also  a  chief  of  the  Win- 
nebago of  Turtle  Village  at  that  time.* 

Mr.  Yost  states  that  in  cultivating  the  very  level  fields 
along  the  river  bank  on  his  farm  many  flint  implements  and 
one  stone  axe  have  been  found  in  past  years.  These  fields 
were  in  pasture  during  the  summer  of  1928  and  could  not  be 
carefully  examined.  Scattered  hearthstones  were  found  at 
different  places  in  them.  When  his  father  settled  here 
these  very  level  lands  were  covered  with  a  forest.  There 
were  two  good  springs  on  the  river  bank.  Several  former 
Beloit  collectors  of  Indian  implements  have  obtained  flint 
arrow  and  spearpoints  from  the  Yost  fields. 

Adjoining  the  Yost  farm  on  the  north  is  the  Beloit  sum- 
mer resort  settlement  known  as  Yost  Park. 

On  the  side  of  the  ridge  on  the  east  side  of  the  highway 
(U.  S.  51)  opposite  the  Yost  farm  house  is  the  single  short 
linear  mound  described  by  Mr.  Ira  M.  Buell.**  He  gives  its 
length  as  80  and  its  width  as  16  feet.  He  gives  its  location 
as  in  the  center  of  the  SE.  %  of  Section  11. 

The  preservation  of  this  mound  the  Beloit  Historical  Soci- 
ety should  now  endeavor  to  secure.  Bur  oak  trees  grow  on 
the  ridge  about  the  mound  and  it  is  crossed  by  a  wire  fence. 
A  small  ravine  lies  south  of  it.  Here  are  the  Beloit  Gun 
Club  grounds,  now  no  longer  in  use. 

Baldwin  Mound 

(SE.  14  Sec.  14) 

Mr.  Buell  in  his  re-survey  of  the  Beloit  mound  groups 
found  a  single  conical  mound  about  25  feet  in  diameter  on 
the  edge  of  the  terrace  on  the  F.  and  H.  C.  Baldwin  farm. 
Two  other  mounds  located  here  by  Mr.  James  Wilson,  Jr.,  in 
1898  had  probably  been  destroyed  by  the  erection  of  the 

*  Wis.  Archeo.  2,  no.  3,  n.  s.,  130. 
**  Wis.  Archeo.  18,  no.  4,  126. 


82  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

farm  buildings.  This  mound  was  excavated  some  years  ago 
but  without  the  finding  of  human  remains  or  implements  ac- 
cording to  Buell. 

Weirick  Mound  Group 
(NE.  14  of  Sec.  23) 

These  mounds  were  located  on  the  W.  C.  Weirick  farm  on 
the  Rock  River  road,  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  north  of 
the  northern  city  limits  of  Beloit.  Mr.  Buell  gives  a  de- 
scription and  plat  of  the  group  of  fifteen  mounds,  five  of 
which  were  located  on  the  terrace  east  of  the  highway  and 
ten  in  the  river  fields  west  of  it.  Seven  of  the  mounds  were 
effigies,  five  were  linear  mounds,  and  three  conical  and  oval 
mounds. 

Some  indications  of  a  former  Indian  camp  site  were 
found  in  the  river  fields  near  the  mounds.  Relic  hunters 
have  dug  into  and  mutilated  most  of  the  mounds  of  this  once 
fine  group.  One  effigy  mound  was  destroyed  in  construct- 
ing the  electric  line  right-of-way. 

Of  the  mounds  in  the  river  fields  twro  linear  mounds  of  a 
group  of  three  still  exist  on  the  Conrad  Hansen,  Joseph  Ma- 
son and  William  Wilford  residence  properties,  opposite  the 
electric  line  station  known  as  Ridgeway  and  near  the  B< 
loit  Country  Club  grounds.     The  finest  of  these,  a  taperii 
club  shaped  linear,  is  on  the  Hansen  property,  and  rui 
from  the  electric  line  tracks  to  the  front  entrance  of  the  res 
idence.  This  mound  is  126  feet  in  length,  and  24  feet  ii 
width  at  its  head,  where  it  is  about  3!/4  feet  high.  The  oth< 
mound  runs  diagonally  across  the  Mason  lot  (south  of  tl 
Conrad  place),  its  head  extending  under  the  Wilford  resi- 
dence. A  third  mound  was  destroyed  when  the  Earl  Matsoi 
house  on  the  lot  adjoining  the  Hansen  place  on  the  nortl 
was  erected.     This  was  a  linear  of  the  straight  type  wil 
rounded  extremities.    It  had  a  projection  on  one  side  of  th( 
end  nearest  the  electric  line.     The  highway  passes  nej 
these  mounds.     The  other  river  field  mounds  of  this  grou] 
were  a  short  distance  north  of  these. 

Faint  traces  of  a  camp  site  were  found  in  back  yard! 
along  the  river  bank  near  these  mounds.  The  Hansel 
mound,  being  a  fine  specimen  and  conveniently  located  foi 
inspection,  should  be  marked  with  a  metal  tablet. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         83 

Beloit  Country  Club  Camp  Site 

An  examination  was  made  of  the  grounds  of  the  Beloit 
Country  Club  along  their  Pleasant  Street  frontage  for  evi- 
dences of  former  aboriginal  occupation.  Every  dirt  road- 
way and  bare  spot  was  examined  both  on  the  top  and  at  the 
base  of  the  ridge.  There  were  many  of  the  latter.  On  the 
top  of  a  knoll  where  dirt  had  been  removed  in  making  some 
small  road  improvements  a  fine  English  gunflint  was  found 
and  near  it  a  small  number  of  white  flint  chips.  Other  chips 
and  fragments  of  the  same  material  were  recovered  from  a 
bare  spot  at  the  base  of  the  ridge  a  short  distance  beyond 
this  point.  Additional  chips  were  found  in  other  places 
where  the  sod  had  been  disturbed.  The  knoll  where  the 
gunflint  was  found  is  about  225  feet  north  of  the  clubhouse. 

The  other  spots  where  evidence  of  flint  working  was 
found  extend  northward  as  far  as  Henry  Avenue.  The 
land  along  the  edge  of  Pleasant  Street  is  rather  level,  rising 
gradually  to  the  ridge  (knolls)  above.  The  trees  on  the 
ridge  and  slope  are  oaks.  The  distance  from  the  edge  of 
the  street  to  the  river  bank  is  about  150  feet.  Opposite  this 
land  the  river  is  at  present  about  500  feet  wide. 

I  am  informed  that  in  former  years  many  flint  points 
were  found  on  this  part  of  the  Country  Club  grounds. 
Hearthstones  have  been  dislodged  in  a  number  of  places  on 
and  at  the  base  of  the  ridge  where  wigwams  were  probably 
once  located. 

Henderson  Effigy 

(SE.  14  Sec.  23) 

This  turtle  effigy  is  on  the  terrace  edge  on  the  Henderson 
property  less  than  a  half  mile  north  of  the  Beloit  city  limits. 
Buell  gives  an  illustration  and  brief  description  of  this 
mound.* 

U.  S.  51  Camp  Site 

Another  Indian  camp  site  is  located  in  a  small  tract  of 
cultivated  land  on  the  Rock  River  bank  on  the  east  side  of 
U.  S.  51  highway  (Wisconsin  13  and  26) ,  being  an  extension 
of  Pleasant  Street  of  the  City  of  Beloit.  This  field,  especially 
along  the  river  bank  is  rather  low  and  doubtless  at  times 
subject  to  overflow  of  the  river.  On  a  small  rise  of  land  in 

*  Wis.  Archeo.,  18,  no.  4. 


84  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

this  field,  at  a  distance  of  about  150  feet,  scattered  Indian 
hearthstones  were  found,  chips  and  fragments  of  white  and 
pink  flint,  a  broken  pebble  hammerstone,  a  tiny  fragment  of 
a  pottery  vessel  and  a  well  made  white  flint  notched  arrow- 
point.  These  tell  plainly  of  the  former  location  of  a  wig- 
wam at  this  place.  A  few  chips  were  also  found  in  another 
small  field  recently  plowed  adjoining  this  field  on  the  north. 
This  field  was  growing  a  crop  of  corn  at  the  time  of  our  in- 
spection of  it.  William  Acker,  a  Beloit  collector,  has  a 
stone  celt  which  was  collected  on  or  near  this  site.  This 
specimen  is  oval  in  form  and  six  inches  in  length.  Near  its 
rounded  cutting  edge  and  poll  its  width  is  about  2%  inches. 
Just  beyond  this  place  are  the  Hansen  and  other  mounds 
visited  on  one  of  our  previous  visits  to  this  vicinity.  The 
tourist  camp  ground  maintained  by  the  Beloit  Real  Estate 
Board  is  opposite  these  mounds.  These  grounds  were  also 
examined  but  without  result,  these  being  covered  with  a 
tough  sod.  Yost  Park  lies  north  of  these  places. 


Adams  Mounds 

This  mound  group  "is  at  the  north  end  of  an  80  acre  tract 
now  a  part  of  the  Fairbanks  Morse  Co.  property  (Pageant 
Park)/'  Buell  gives  a  plat  and  brief  description  of  it. 
The  group  consisted  of  thirteen  mounds.  Three  of  the 
mounds  were  turtle  effigies,  four  conical  mounds,  and  si 
oval  and  short  linear  mounds. 

Dr.  S.  D.  Peet  also  presents  an  illustration  of  this  grou 
in  his  book  Prehistoric  America,  II,  (Fig.  162) .     This  is  in- 
correct and  shows  ojily  seven  of  the  mounds. 

In  1920  one  of  the  mounds  of  this  group  was  destroyed : 
"It  happened  at  the  location  of  the  new  Fairbanks,  Mors 
&  Co.  plant  on  the  Riverside  drive  where  the  Leonard  Con- 
struction Co.  is  excavating.     Shovels  were  scraping  the  sur- 
face from  a  hillock   when   the   mound   suddenly  collapsed 
Digging  deeper  into  the  mound  workmen  uncovered  a  skel 
eton,  believed  to  be  that  of  an  Indian.     The  red  man  was 
lying  on  his  back,  his  knees  drawn  up  over  his  breast  almost 
to  his   chin   and   his   arms   outstretched,  the  palms  of  his 
hands  up.     There  were  no  stone  or  copper  implements  in 
the  grave."* 


*  Beloit  Daily  News,  Oct.  1,  1920. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         85 

In  the  Rock  River,  opposite  the  Fairbanks,  Morse  Co. 
plant  there  is  in  the  stream  a  very  attractive  large  bed  of 
arrowhead  (Sagittaria  sp.)  This  floral  "island"  is  long 
and  narrow,  about  two  city  blocks  in  length  and  at  its  wid- 
est part  about  150  feet  across.  The  tops  of  the  plants  are 
a  foot  or  more  above  the  top  of  the  water.  There  is  a  bed 
of  these  plants  also  along  the  Pleasant  Street  shore  of  the 
stream.  The  Indians  ate  the  root  of  this  plant  and  if  these 
beds  or  any  part  of  them  were  here  in  early  days  of  Indian 
occupation  there  was  at  hand  an  abundant  food  supply. 

Some  indications  of  a  former  camp  site  were  found  in 
past  years  on  the  site  of  the  Fairbanks,  Morse  Co.  factory. 
These  included  flint  points  and  a  small  knife  and  several 
pebble  hammerstones.  Mr.  Theodore  Dustrude  of  Beloit 
has  a  stone  axe  and  a  flint  knife  which  he  picked  up  on  land 
along  the  switch  track  of  the  plant. 

Water  Tower  Mounds 

Buell  mentions  that  some  mounds  formerly  surrounding 
the  Beloit  water  tower  have  been  destroyed.  Vague  out- 
lines of  several  remain. 

Beloit  College  Mound  Group 

In  1855  Dr.  Increase  A.  Lapham  published  in  The  Antiq- 
uities of  Wisconsin  Prof.  S.  P.  Lathrop's  survey  of  the 
group  of  Indian  mounds  surrounding  Beloit  College  and  of 
the  road,  an  old  Indian  trail,  which  crossed  the  campus, 
running  between  and  also  over  some  of  the  mounds.  This 
original  map  shows  fourteen  conical  and  five  linear  mounds. 
Mr.  Buell  gives  a  rather  full  description  of  this  group  and 
presents  a  plat  of  the  remaining  mounds  of  it  as  preserved 
among  the  buildings  on  the  campus  today.  This  shows  a 
total  of  21  mounds  14  of  which  are  conical  or  round  mounds, 
1  oval,  5  linear,  and  1  effigy  (a  turtle)  mound.  A  fine  tab- 
let now  marks  this  group.  Some  of  the  mounds  have  been 
excavated.* 

Logan  Museum,  in  whose  exhibition  halls  Dr.  Frank  G. 
Logan,  Dr.  George  L.  Collie  and  Mr.  Alonzo  Pond  have  in 
recent  years  gathered  so  rich  a  collection  of  the  world's 
archeological  treasures,  stands  near  this  imposing  group  of 

*  Wis.  Archeo.  18,  no.  4. 


86  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

prehistoric  earthworks,  the  early  wisdom  of  the  permanent 
preservation  of  which  has  inspired  so  many  Wisconsin  and 
other  archeologists. 

We  examined  the  ridge  of  the  Beloit  College  campus  along 
Pleasant  Street  and  especially  the  area  about  the  Turtle 
Mound.  This  ridge  is  about  a  half  block  east  of  the  bank  of 
the  Rock  River.  The  top  of  the  ridge  is  at  least  thirty  feet 
above  the  street.  Opposite  this  place  the  river  is  about  200 
feet  wide. 

Owing  to  the  ridge  top  being  largely  in  sod  no  evidence 
of  aboriginal  occupation  could  be  found.  Some  flint  and 
other  stone  implements  have  been  reported  as  found  here  in 
past  years. 

We  also  examined  the  east  bank  of  the  Rock  (gardens  and 
lots)  from  the  Portland  Street  bridge  northward  along 
Fourth  and  Fifth  Streets  to  Goss  Addition  and  the  cultivated 
farm  lands  beyond,  but  with  no  results. 

Turtle  Village 

The  present  site  of  the  City  of  Beloit  was  the  early  site  of 
a  large  and  important  Winnebago  Indian  village,  being  the 
largest  of  the  historic  Winnebago  villages  along  the  Rocl 
River  between  the  Illinois-Wisconsin  boundary  and  the  fool 
of  Lake  Koshkonong.  Concerning  the  history  of  the  Tur- 
tle Village  there  is  much  scattered  information  in  the  Wis- 
consin Historical  Collections,  The  Wisconsin  Archeologisl 
and  the  Rock  County  histories. 

This  village  was  located  on  the  former  bottom  lands  b< 
tween  the  Rock  River  and  the  mouth  of  its  tributary,  Turtl< 
Creek.  North  of  it  were  high  hills  with  broad  prairie  land; 
on  their  tops. 

Dr.  S.  D.  Peet  gives  a  description  of  this  village :  "There 
was  a  council  house  and  garden  beds  at  Beloit.  The  gar- 
den beds  were  situated  on  the  bank  of  the  Rock  River,  near 
where  the  Northwestern  depot  formerly  stood.  The  first 
settlers  raised  their  first  vegetables  on  the  spot  where  the 
garden  beds  had  been.  There  were  corn  fields  on  the  bot- 
tom of  Turtle  Creek,  near  where  the  athletic  grounds  are 
present.  A  council  house  built  of  bark,  forty  feet  square, 
with  poles  in  the  center  supporting  the  roof,  stood  near  Tur- 
tle Creek,  where  the  road  to  Shopiere  crosses  the  creek  with 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  .of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         87 

wigwams  around  it.  There  were  trails  which  led  to  Rock- 
ton  and  to  Janesville,  on  each  side  of  the  river,  and  another 
leading  across  the  prairie  toward  Delavan  Lake.  One  of 
these  crosses  the  campus  through  the  group  of  mounds."* 

Where  the  cemetery  or  burial  places  of  this  village  were 
located  has  not  been  recorded.  Burials  are  reported  to 
have  been  unearthed  at  Beloit  in  the  construction  of  streets 
and  buildings  at  various  times  since  1850. 

The  Winnebago  Indian  name  for  Turtle  Village  was  Ki- 
chunck,  the  name  for  Turtle  Creek,  Ki-chunk-ne-shun-nuck- 
er-rah.  U.  S.  Indian  Agent  John  H.  Kinzie  in  his  Wiscon- 
sin Winnebago  census  of  1829-32  gives  the  Indian  popula- 
tion of  "Turtle  River"  (Turtle  Village)  as  thirty-five  lodges 
with  six  hundred  inhabitants.  General  Atkinson,  who 
passed  through  Turtle  Village,  then  deserted,  with  his 
troops  in  pursuit  of  the  Sauk  chief  Black  Hawk  and  his 
warriors,  on  June  30,  1832,  said:  "It  is  a  considerable 
Winnebago  town,  but  it  was  deserted."** 

The  early  Winnebago  chief  of  this  village  is  reported  to 
have  been  Walking  Turtle,  or  Karramaunee,  an  Indian  of 
considerable  prominence  among  the  Winnebago  chiefs  of 
his  time.  Mr.  P.  V.  Lawson  in  his  monograph,  "The  Win- 
nebago Tribe,"  presents  a  very  full  account  of  his  life  his- 
tory.*** Karramaunee's  calumet,  1832,  a  pipe  of  Siouan 
type  made  of  catlinite,  lead-inlaid,  is  preserved  in  the  Green 
Bay  Public  Museum. 

Kinzie's  census  shows  that  White  Crow  (Kaw-ray-kaw- 
saw-kaw),  the  Lake  Koshkonong  chief,  became  its  leader  in 
1829.  In  1832,  sub-Indian  agent  Henry  Gratiot,  designated 
Whirling  Thunder,  "a  man  of  great  repute  for  his  sagacity 
in  council,"  as  chief  of  Turtle  Village.  His  Indian  name  is 
given  as  Wau-kaun-ween-wak,  or  Wau-kon-ge-weka.  Little 
Priest  or  Little  Chief  (Mor-ay-tshay-kaw),  chief  in  1829  of 
the  Catfish  Village,  was  also  identified  with  Turtle  Village. 

By  the  provisions  of  a  treaty  concluded  with  the  Winne- 
bago at  Washington  on  November  1,  1337,  that  tribe  ceded 
to  the  United  States  the  balance  of  their  lands  in  Wiscon- 
sin. Their  removal  followed. 


*  Prehistoric  America,  II,  1898,  p.  391. 
**  West.  Hist.  Co.,  Hist.  Rock  Co.,  p.  331. 
***  Wis.  Archeo.  6,  no.  3,  pp.  150-152. 


88  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   1 

Their  lands  along  the  Rock  they  ceded  to  the  Government 
in  1832. 

The  Indian  trader  at  Beloit  was  Joseph  Thibault,  a 
French  Canadian,  and  the  agent  of  the  Milwaukee  trader, 
Solomon  Juneau.  His  log  cabin  trading  post  is  reported  to 
have  been  located  in  1836  "at  the  south  end  and  west  side 
of  what  is  now  State  Street. 

He  claimed  to  have  been  living  in  the  general  region 
about  twelve  years.  He  was  succeeded  as  trader  by  Alex. 
Lemere,  who  occupied  his  post  for  the  next  eight  years.* 

In  past  years,  when  the  City  of  Beloit  was  being  settled, 
considerable  numbers  of  Indian  relics,  including  flint  imple- 
ments, stone  axes,  celts,  hammers,  some  stone  ornaments 
and  pipes,  and  some  copper  implements  and  beads,  were 
found  by  residents  and  others  on  and  near  the  site  of  the 
Indian  village  and  gardens.  Very  few  of  these  remain  in 
private  hands  and  a  very  small  numoer  appear  to  have 
found  their  way  into  the  collections  of  the  Logan  Museum 
at  Beloit  College.  There  are  several  small  collections  in  the 
city  but  their  contents  are  largely  from  other  parts  of  Wis- 
consin and  from  other  states.  A  flint  spade  found  here 
years  ago  is  7%  inches  in  length  and  3%  inches  in  width  at 
its  widest  part. 

The  museum  of  the  Beloit  Historical  Society  has  not  been 
in  existence  long  enough  to  have  assembled  any  local  Indian 
implements. 

THE  MOUNDS 

Our  survey  permits  the  making  of  a  count  of  the  Indiai 
mounds  located  in  the  Rock  River  Valley  between  the  fool 
of  Lake  Koshkonong  and  Beloit.  This  count  gives  the  fol- 
lowing figures : 

Township                                       Conical  Oval  Linear  Effigy     Totals 

Milton    17  1  18 

Fulton    18  2  14  34 

Janesville 7  7 

Rock   19  5  12  5             41 

Beloit   _                                           .   26  1  18  12             57 


87  8  45  17  157 

This  total  of  157  mounds  does  not  include  several  mounds 
on  the  Hubbel  farm  which  have  been  destroyed  and  of 


*  Hist,  of  Rock  Co.,  C.  F.  Cooper  &  Co.,  1908,  p.  128. 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         89 

which  no  accurate  record  exists,  or  of  several  mounds  on  the 
Roth  farm  north  of  Beloit  of  which  Buell  found  faint  traces 
remaining.  Nor  does  it  include  the  so-called  Waterworks 
mounds  in  Beloit,  a  small  group  of  which  there  appears  to 
have  been  no  survey  made  before  they  were  destroyed. 

In  making  this  count  we  acknowledge  our  indebtedness  to 
the  Messrs.  A.  B.  Stout  and  H.  L.  Skavlem  who  published  a 
report  on  the  Lake  Koshkonong  mounds  in  1908,  to  H.  L. 
Skavlem  and  Horace  McElroy  who  surveyed  and  reported 
on  the  Janesville  and  Afton  mounds  in  1907  and  1914,  and 
to  Ira  U.  Buell,  who  re-surveyed  the  Beloit  groups  and 
published  a  report  on  these  in  1919. 

The  several  largest  mound  groups  along  the  banks  of  tne 
Rock  River  between  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong  and  Be- 
loit were  the  Rock  River  group  at  Lake  Koshkonong  with  11 
mounds,  the  Indian  Hill  group  at  the  mouth  of  the  Catfish 
River  with  28  mounds,  the  Afton  group  at  Afton  with  22 
mounds,  the  Weirick  and  Adams  groups  north  of  Beloit 
with  13  mounds  each,  and  the  Beloit  College  group  with  21 
mounds.  Of  the  17  effigy  or  animal  shaped  mounds  located 
in  these  surveys  in  the  five  different  groups  which  include 
effigy  mounds  (in  the  Afton,  Weirick,  Henderson,  Adams 
and  Beloit  College  groups)  7  are  mounds  of  the  turtle,  2  of 
the  bear,  2  of  the  panther,  2  of  the  mink,  and  1  of  the  bird 
type.  Three  are  nondescript  effigies. 

COLLECTIONS 

kFor  the  past  eighty  years  or  more  collectors  of  Indian  im- 
lements  have   made   collections,  small   or   quite  extensive, 
rom  the  numerous  camp  and  village  sites  along  the  banks 
of  the  Rock  River  between  Beloit  and  the  foot  of  Lake  Kosh- 
konong.    Most  of  these  collections  have  been  either  sold,  or 
given  away,  or  been  carried  away  to  other  states  or  other 
parts  of  Wisconsin  by  their  owners.     Very  little  of  the  ma- 
terial gathered  from  these  sites  or  from  the  cultivated  fields 
along  the  river  banks  is  preserved  in  Wisconsin  museums. 
This  public  loss  appears  to  emphasize  the  need  of  establish- 
ing public  historical  museums  at  Beloit,  Janesville  and  Ed- 
gerton  where  such  collections  and  specimens  can  be  assem- 
bled in  the  future  and  saved  for  educational  purposes. 


90  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOL.OGIST.  Vol.  9,  No.  1 

The  most  widely  known  collector  in  this  region  was  Mr. 
Horace  M.  McElroy  of  Janesville.  Most  of  the  specimens 
in  his  large  collection  were  obtained  from  Indian  sites  with- 
in and  near  the  present  limits  of  the  city  in  which  he  re- 
sided. Others  were  collected  from  sites  as  far  south  along 
the  river  as  Afton,  and  as  far  north  as  Lake  Koshkonong. 
He  also  obtained  specimens  from  other  parts  of  Rock  Coun- 
ty. Before  his  death  Mr.  McElroy  sold  many  of  his  choic- 
est specimens.  His  widow  and  some  of  his  friends  present- 
ed what  remained  of  his  collection  to  the  Janesville  public 
library  in  1916.  These  specimens  consisting  of  flint,  quartz, 
rhyolite,  chalcedony  and  other  arrow  and  spearpoints, 
knives,  scrapers  and  perforators  are  mounted  in  glass 
frames.  One  frame,  containing  about  fifty  such  artifacts, 
is  labelled  "Rock  River."  Most  of  the  other  specimens  are 
from  other  regions  and  from  other  states.  In  the  Rock 
River  frame  are  five  of  the  broad,  barbed  spearpoints  made 
of  white  and  grey  flint.  No  catalogue  of  Mr.  McElroy's 
former  collection  appears  to  exist.  Fortunately  sketches  of 
some  of  his  specimens  were  made  during  his  lifetime  and 
these  are  available  for  study. 

At  Fulton  collections  of  Indian  artifacts  were  made  by 
Mr.  Darcy  Biggar,  Mr.  Harvey  Pease  and  Mr.  J.  T.  Thomp- 
son. All  were  very  active  collectors.  Mr.  Biggar  began  to 
collect  specimens  in  his  boyhood.  Most  of  his  collecting 
was  from  the  site  of  the  Catfish  Village  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Catfish  River  and  from  the  old  Stone  Farm  site  on  the  op- 
posite bank  of  the  Rock.  He  also  gathered  specimens  from 
other  sites  along  the  Rock  River  banks  as  far  north  as  New- 
ville.  His  interesting  collection  was  recently  presented  by 
him  to  the  State  Historical  Museum  at  Madison.  Mr. 
Thompson's  collection  was  on  exhibition  in  a  case  in  the  Ed- 
gerton  high  school.  It  has  recently  been  withdrawn. 

At  Indian  Ford  Mr.  D.  Willard  North  and  Mr.  Bert  Cox 
both  have  interesting  collections  made  from  local  sites.  At 
Edgerton  Mr.  Harry  C.  Son  has  a  collection  made  from  sites 
at  Newville  and  Lake  Koshkonong. 

A  collection  made  by  George  Doty,  deceased,  from  this 
same  region  is  in  existence. 

One  of  the  best  collecting  grounds  along  the  entire  lower 
Rock  River  region  in  Wisconsin  was  at  Newville.  There  in- 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         91 

teresting  collections  were  made  by  George  H.  Sherman, 
Henry  Pierce,  Ulysses  G.  Miller,  Edward  Amerpoll  of 
Janesville,  the  late  W.  P.  Clarke  of  Milton,  and  C.  A.  Ski- 
breck  of  Stoughton. 

At  Beloit  Theodore  Dustrude  has  a  small  collection.  A 
collection  made  by  C.  C.  Babbitt  of  Janesville  is  deposited  in 
the  Oshkosh  Public  Museum.  Miss  Minnie  Hubbell  of  Ful- 
ton has  a  small  number  of  specimens  from  a  site  on  the 
Hubbell  farm  at  that  place.  Other  less  important  collec- 
tions and  specimens  are  in  the  possession  of  various  persons 
residing  on  some  of  the  river  farms. 

The  Logan  Museum  of  Beloit  College  has  a  comparatively 
small  number  of  lower  Rock  River  region  specimens  in  its 
otherwise  rich  collections.  Unfortunately  none  of  these 
have  any  definite  data  as  to  the  exact  locations  where  they 
were  obtained.  Among  them  are  a  bannerstone  of  the  but- 
terfly type,  made  of  hornblende  schist,  and  collected  at  Ed- 
gerton,  a  grooved  stone  axe  of  the  pick  type,  with  a  battered 
poll,  found  at  Albion,  and  a  sandstone  arrowshaft  grinder 
found  at  Newville.  Other  Rock  River  specimens  are  a 
fluted  stone  axe,  an  adz-axe,  and  five  other  grooved  stone 
axes. 

Outside  of  those  contained  in  the  Darcy  Biggar  collection 
the  State  Historical  Museum  has  only  a  small  number  of 
specimens  from  Rock  River,  Rock  County  sites.  Among 
these  is  a  large  flint  spearpoint  10  inches  in  length.  This 
is  from  Janesville.  There  are  a  copper  knife  found  at  Ed- 
gerton,  and  a  copper  perforator  from  near  the  Catfish  Vil- 
lage, and  flint  implements  and  potsherds,  sinkers,  hammer- 
stones,  and  other  artifacts  from  sites  at  Newville,  Indian 
Ford,  Janesville  and  Afton. 

A  few  Rock  River  implements  collected  by  W.  P.  Clarke 
are  in  the  museum  at  Milton  College. 

VILLAGE  AND  CAMP  SITES 

After  urging  for  some  years  the  importance  of  engaging 
in  a  survey  of  the  prehistoric  and  historic  Indian  village 
and  camp  sites  located  along  the  banks  of  the  Rock  River  in 
the  region  between  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong  and  the 
Wisconsin-Illinois  boundary,  this  very  desirable  undertak- 


rISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.   9,  No.  1 


ing  was  at  last  made  possible  through  the  generous  interest 
of  Dr.  Frank  G.  Logan,  who  supplied  the  funds  required  for 
a  surface  survey.  Very  little  or  nothing  was  known  con- 
cerning the  location  or  character  of  any  of  these  camp  and 
village  sites.  Survey  field-work  was  begun  during  the 
early  summer  of  1928  and  continued  to  near  the  end  of  tHe 
year.  Some  of  the  sixty-five  camp  and  village  sites  and 
other  aboriginal  remains  located  along  the  Rock  River  were 
re-visited  during  the  summer  of  1929.  As  the  funds  avail- 
able were  not  sufficient  to  engage  in  more  than  a  small 
amount  of  excavating  such  work  must  wait  until  some  fu- 
ture time.  A  condensed  report  of  our  researches  is  pre- 
sented in  this  bulletin.  A  report  on  the  sites  along  the  Cat- 
fish River  between  Lake  Kegonsa  and  its  mouth,  at  the  Rock 
at  Fulton,  is  being  held  for  future  publication. 

The  results  of  our  investigations  show  that  some  of  these 
village  sites  are  Algonkian,  some  are  Siouan,  and  some  ap- 
pear to  have  been  occupied  successively  by  representatives 
of  both  Indian  stocks.  Some  are  contact  sites.  The  pres- 
ence of  artifacts  characteristic  of  both  the  Cahokia  and 
Hopewell  cultures  on  the  sites,  and  in  some  of  the  mounds 
excavated  by  others,  probably  indicates  an  early  residence 
of  some  of  these  prehistoric  Indians  in  the  Lower  Rock 
River  valley  also. 

We  have  the  pleasure  of  realizing  that  through  our  efforts 
much  useful  information  concerning  the  early  Indian  inhab- 
itants of  the  Rock  River  valley  has  been  rescued  from  more 
or  less  complete  loss.  We  wish  to  strongly  recommend  the 
permanent  preservation  and  marking  of  some  of  the 
mounds  yet  remaining  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Koshkonong,  at 
"Indian  Hill"  at  Fulton,  and  along  the  Rock  River  highway 
north  of  Beloit.  The  interest  of  the  county  board  and  of 
the  local  historical  societies  and  women's  clubs  should  be 
aroused  in  the  great  value  of  their  preservation  as  historical 
landmarks.  Their  loss  would  be  greatly  deplored  by  pres- 
ent and  future  residents  of  the  Rock  River  cities.  Markers 
should  also  be  placed  on  the  sites  of  the  historic  Winnebago 
villages  of  the  region,  especially  on  the  sites  of  those  located 
at  Beloit,  Janesville,  Fulton  and  Newville.  We  hope  to  see 
the  archeological  collections  in  the  museums  at  Janesville 


Indian  Village  and  Camp  Sites  of  the  Lower  Rock  River  in  Wisconsin.         93 

and  Beloit  greatly  increased  and  made  educationally  useful 
to  the  public.  At  Edgerton  a  public  museum  should  be  es- 
tablished. 

We  desire  to  express  our  thanks  to  the  many  good  friends 
who,  in  one  way  and  another,  have  assisted, us  in  this  work. 


,  1930 

NEW  SERIES 


TRAILS 
PETROQLYPHS  AND  PICTOGRAPHS 

STONE  ADZES 
HORNSTONE  KNIVES 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  In   Sec 
L103,  Act,  Oct.   3,  1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


Utecorartn  grcfjeological  g>ocfetj> 
JHtltoaufcee, 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

H.  H.  Smith 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

C.  G.  Schoewe  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  W.  W.  Oilman 

A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

A.  P.  Kannenberg 


Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett 
M.  C.  Richter 
Vetal  Winn 


DIRECTORS 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer 
E.  F.  Richter 
L.  R.  Whitney 
W.  C.  McKern 


Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz 
Mrs.  A.  E.  Koerner 
Geo.  A.  West 


TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thorne 

National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  G.  Mc- 
Lachlan,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  C.  E.  Brown,  W.  C.  McKern,  T.  L. 
Miller,  A.  W.  Pond,  Geo.  Overton,  Frank  Thomlinson,  T.~M.  N. 
Lewis  and  M.  F.  Hulburt. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— W.  W.  Gilman,  Dr.  F.  C.  Rogers,  Dr. 
A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Mrs.  Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Louise 
P.  Kellogg,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Main,  R.  A.  Maas,  J.  W.  Norris,  Mrs. 
F.  R.  Melcher,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  and  G.  L.  Pasco. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  Mrs. 
A.  C.  Neville,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  E.  P.  Hamilton,  William  Horlick, 
Mrs.  H.  A.  Olson,  W.  F.  Bauchle  and  R.  S.  Van  Handel. 

MEMBERSHIP— C.  G.  Schoewe,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  A.  R.  Rogers, 
Vetal  Winn,  C.  G.  Weyl,  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner,  W.  P.  Morgan,  Louis 
Pierron  and  D.  S.  Rowland. 

MAN  MOUND  PARK— M.  F.  Hulburt,  E.  A.  Gilman  and  Miss  Emma 
Richmond. 

AZTALAN  MOUND  PARK— R.  P.  Ferry,  M.  G.  Troxell,  and  W.  W. 
Gilman. 

PUBLICITY— A.  O.  Barton,  Mrs.  W.  F.  Bauchle,  M.  C.  Richter,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre  and  R.  K.  Coe. 

BIOGRAPHY— Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  C.  G.  Schoewe  and  H.  H.  Smith. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  9,  No.  2,  New  Series 


ARTICLES 


Page 
99 


"Turkey-tail"  Points,  Charles  E.  Brown 

The  Chicago-Milwaukee-Green  Bay  Trail,  Louise  P.  Kellogg 103 

The  Hopewell  People  _.  -106 

Indian  Trade  Beads 109 

Urn  Burials  in  Alabama 110 

Cache  of  Indian  Stone  Adzes 112 

Indian  Overland  Travelways 114 

The  Huff  Mandan  Village  Site,  Charles  E.  Brown 120 

Brule  River  Copper  Sources,  John  A.  Bardon 122 

Petroglyphs  and  Pictographs 123 

Thunderbird  Legend  of  the  Post 128 

Winneboujou 130 

Archeological  Notes    _  131 


BLUE   HORNSTONE    POINTS 

"Turkey-tail  Point"  at  the  Right 

Courtesy  of  Ohio  State  Archeological 

and  Historical  Society 


Ct)e  ^fsconstn  arcfjeologtfit 


Published  Quarterly   by  the   Wisconsin   Areheolo^icnl    Society 

Yol.   l>  MADISON,   WIS.,  JANUARY,   1930  \o.   2 

New  Series 


"TURKEY-TAIL"  POINTS 

By  this  fanciful  name  there  have  long  been  known  to  col- 
lectors of  Indian  implements  throughout  the  Middle  West 
a  class  of  flint  implements  of  very  graceful  form,  and  quite 
generally  conceded  to  be  among  the  very  best  productions  of 
the  prehistoric  Indian  flint  worker.  A  specimen  of  these 
implements  is  illustrated  in  the  frontispiece  of  this  issue 
of  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist. 

The  first  published  description  of  these  very  interesting 
implements  appeared  in  a  monograph,  "The  Implement 
Caches  of  the  Wisconsin  Indians",  published  in  1907.*  A 
part  of  this  description  is  here  quoted:  "The  points  are 
generally  elliptical  in  shape  and  are  provided  with  two 
notches  near  one  extremity,  producing  a  short,  angular  or 
rounded  tang.  [This  tang  is  triangular  or  somewhat 
lozenge-shaped.]  They  are  generally  considered  to  be  best 
adapted  for  use  as  knives,  the  tang  being  generally  too 
short  and  fragile  in  comparison  with  the  length,  breadth 
and  weight  of  the  blade  to  permit  of  their  being  very  se- 
curely hafted  for  service  as  spearpoints. 

"In  almost  every  one  of  several  hundred  Wisconsin  col- 
lections in  existence  to-day,  there  are  to  be  seen  one  or  more 
of  these  implements.  Many  of  them  are  known  to  have  been 
found  en  cache,  indeed  it  is  an  open  question  whether  the 
majority  of  them  were  not  so  obtained,  the  continual  sell- 
ing and  exchanging  going  on  among  collectors  and  the  fre- 
quent carelessness  of  the  finders  being  responsible  for  our 
present  inability  to  trace  the  facts  of  their  original  disposi- 
tion. 

"The  material  from  which  these  implements  are  fash- 
ioned is  generally  the  bluish  or  grayish  hornstone,  identical 


*  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist,  V.  6,  No.  2.     See  also  V.  20,  No.  1, 
p.  12. 


100  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,   No.   2 

with,  or  resembling  that  of  the  Wyandotte  cave  region  in 
[southwestern]  Indiana.  Some  exhibit  traces  of  brown 
color  mingled  with  the  blue  or  grey.  [Some  are  dark  blue 
in  color  or  almost  black.]  All  are  admirable  examples  of 
the  flint  chipper's  art." 

A  description  of  the  caches  or  deposits  of  these  "turkey- 
tail"  points  recovered  up  to  that  time,  the  year  1907,  is 
given. 

1.  Cache  of  fourteen  found  in  about  the  year  1878  on  the 
Bonn  farm,  in  Section  31,  Two  Rivers  Township,  Manito- 
woc  County. 

2.  Cache  of  six  found  in  Section  18,  Ellington  Township, 
Outagamie  County. 

3.  Cache  of  four  found  beneath  a  stump  near  Boltonville, 
Washington  County. 

4.  Cache  of  eight  found  in  1904  by  Seymour  Harris  with- 
in the  limits  of  New  Lisbon,  Juneau  County. 

5.  Cache  of  six  reported  found  on  the  east  shore  of  Pe- 
waukee  Lake,  Waukesha  County. 

6.  Cache  of  three  found  at  the  corner  of  Pearl  and  Eliza- 
beth Streets,  in  Janesville,  Rock  County. 

A  few  sets  of  these  knives  have  accompanied  interments 
in  mounds.  A  set  of  eighteen  were  obtained  by  Dr.  Al- 
phonse  Gerend  in  the  excavation  of  a  mound  located  on  the 
edge  of  the  Sheboygan  Marsh,  in  Sheboygan  County.  These 
were  found  near  the  right  and  left  hands  of  a  burial  and 
were  wrapped  in  pieces  of  rawhide.  Three  of  these  imple- 
ments accompanied  a  burial  in  a  mound  at  Lisbon,  Wauke- 
sha County. 

No  attempt  to  plot  the  distribution  of  these  notched  blue 
hornstone  knives  in  Wisconsin  has  yet  been  made.  This 
may  be  possible  with  the  cooperation  of  collectors  of  Indian 
implements.  We  know  that  in  eastern  Wisconsin  they  range 
at  least  as  far  to  the  north  as  the  shore  of  Green  Bay  and 
that  at  least  one  specimen  has  been  found  in  Chippewa 
County  in  northern  Wisconsin.  Their  northward  distribu- 
tion in  the  Mississippi  Valley  counties  remains  to  be  deter- 
mined. The  secretary  will  be  pleased  to  receive  informa- 
tion on  this  subject  from  members  and  friends  located  in 
these  and  other  parts  of  the  state. 

Concerning  the  distribution  and  frequency  of  occurrence 


"Turkey-Tail"   .Points.  loi 

of  these  blue  hornstone  implements  in  the  neighboring 
states  of  Michigan,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Iowa  and  Minnesota 
there  is  a  deplorable  lack  of  information.  Published  arche- 
ological  reports  contain  very  little  information  concerning 
them.  We  look  to  our  brother  archeologists  in  those  states 
to  rectify  this  lack  of  data.  By  every  right  both  caches  of 
these  implements  and  single  specimens  should  be  quite  nu- 
merous in  Indiana  and  Illinois.  We  should  expect  to  find 
them  not  uncommon  also  in  southern  Michigan  and  eastern 
Iowa.  Moorehead  has  figured  a  single  specimen  secured  by 
Harlan  I.  Smith  in  the  Saginaw  Valley,  Michigan.  He 
states  that  this  form  "is  peculiar  to  Indiana,  Illinois,  Michi- 
gan, Canada,  etc."*  He  also  illustrates  a  specimen  from 
Tennessee.  The  finding  of  a  cache  of  six  in  Christian 
County,  Kentucky,  is  mentioned.  We  would  expect  them  to 
be  of  not  uncommon  occurrence  in  these  states  south  of  the 
Ohio  River. 

During  the  month  of  November  1929  the  writer  wrote  to 
Mr.  H.  C.  Shetrone,  director  of  the  Ohio  State  Archaeologi- 
cal and  Historical  Society,  at  Columbus,  for  information 
concerning  these  interesting  knives.  To  this  communica- 
tion Mr.  Shetrone  replied  also  enclosing  outline  drawings 
of  specimens  of  thes-e  and  several  related  forms  in  the  col- 
lections of  the  Ohio  State  Museum. 

"These  specimens,  conforming  to  a  very  definite  type  and 
made  exclusively,  insofar  as  I  am  aware,  of  the  hornstone 
or  nodular  flint,  presumably  from  the  Wyandot  Cave  region 
of  southern  Indiana,  are  most  intriguing.  I  had  known  that 
their  distribution  is  rather  wide  but  I  am  surprised  to  find 
them  occurring  as  far  north  as  Wisconsin. 

"Whether  or  not  they  are  peculiar  to  any  given  'culture' 
I  have  been  unable  to  determine.  This  particular  variety 
of  flint  was  used  by  the  Hopewell  peoples  but  I  cannot  say 
that  the  specific  type  is  theirs.  The  type  is  purely  a  double 
pointed  oval  with  or  without  notches,  usually  notched  how- 
ever. I  consider  the  two  specimens  which  you  outline  as 
being  identical,  the  only  difference  being  that  one  has  re- 
ceived the  notches. 

"A  number  of  caches  of  this  interesting  type  have  been 


*  Prehistoric  Implements. 


102  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,   No.   2 

found  in  Ohio,  the  most  notable  being  one  of  more  than  a 
hundred  specimens,  ranging  in  size  from  three  inches  to 
more  than  one  foot,  found  not  more  than  fifteen  inches  be- 
low the  surface  in  excavating  for  a  basement  near  Chilli- 
cothe,  Ross  County.*  The  place  of  the  finding  of  this  cache 
was  immediately  adjacent  to  the  Mound  City  Group,  Hope- 
well  culture,  but  since  they  were  unaccompanied  by  any 
other  objects  there  was  nothing  to  indicate  definitely  affin- 
ity with  Hopewell.  Their  wide  distribution,  close  conform- 
ity to  type  and  the  fact  that  they  are  made  from  identical 
or  very  similar  nodular  or  concretionary  chert  or  hornstone 
is  very  striking. 

"As  of  possible  interest  to  you  I  am  outlining  several 
specimens  from  the  Chillicothe  cache,  and  some  others  from 
another  cache  found  near  Fort  Ancient  and  constituting 
absolutely  the  highest  artistic  development  in  flint-chipping 
which  we  have  observed  here  in  Ohio/' 

The  Fort  Ancient  cache  was  one  of  forty-five  specimens. 
These  differ  in  form  from  those  of  the  Chillicothe  cache  and 
those  in  the  Wisconsin  caches  in  that  they  have  longer  and 
more  substantial  tangs,  larger  and  deeper  notches  giving  a 
pronounced  shoulder  with  a  suggestion  of  a  barb.  The 
edges  of  the  blade  from  the  base  nearly  to  the  middle  are 
nearly  parallel  or  slightly  curved.  From  the  middle  they 
curve  to  the  point.  These  also  are  narrower  implements 
than  those  commonly  included  under  the  head  of  "turkey- 
tail"  points.  Their  shape  and  stout  tangs  would  permit 
their  use  as  spearpoints,  which  they  probably  were.  Imple- 
ments of  this  particular  form  also  occur  in  Wisconsin. 

From  them  it  is  only  a  step  to  the  stemmed  blue  horn- 
stone  spearpoint.  For  the  present  at  least  we  may  conclude 
that  the  blue  hornstone  disks  (of  which  8,000  were  obtained 
from  one  of  the  Hopewell  Mounds)  the  double-pointed 
hornstone  knives,  the  "turkey-tail"  knives,  the  notched 
spearpoints,  and  the  stemmed  spearpoints,  and  perhaps 
other  implements  made  of  this  attractive  material,  can  all 
be  traced,  to  the  workshop  sites  of  the  same  prehistoric 
aboriginal  people.  It  will  be  interesting  to  learn  through 
the  future  investigations  of  the  archeologists  of  Indiana, 

*  Probably  the  Spetnagel  Cache. 


"Turkey-Tail"   Points.  103 

Ohio  and  Illinois  just  where  these  workshops  were  situated, 
how  the  hornstone  was  obtained  and  transported,  and  who 
these  people  probably  were.  Brother  archeologists  in  many 
states  will  be 'pleased  to  have  this  and  other  information 
which  should  be  procurable.  Implements  of  various  kinds 
made  of  this  fine  and  attractive  material  are  very  numerous 
throughout  the  states  of  the  Middle  West. 

To  date  no  actual  evidence,  or  only  faint  evidence,  of  the 
manufacture  of  any  blue  or  brown  hornstone  inplements  on 
Wisconsin  workshop  or  village  sites  has  been  reported. 
Several  unworked  or  roughly  worked  nodules  have  been  re- 
covered. It  would  appear  that  most,  if  not  all,  of  the  speci- 
mens must  have  been  brought  to  this  region  in  their  already 
finished  state  from  centers  of  their  manufacture,  over  well 
known  trade  routes. 

The  largest  blue  hornstone  "turkey-tail"  knife  as  yet 
found  in  Wisconsin,  a  specimen  from  the  Ellington  Town- 
ship, Outagamie  County  cache,  measures  9Vi  inches  in 
length  and  31/2  inches  in  width  at  the  widest  part  of  its 
blade.  It  is  in  the  H.  P.  Hamilton  collection  in  the  State 
Historical  Museum.  Only  the  fine  specimen  in  the  Chilli- 
cothe  cache,  measuring  about  10%  inches  in  length  and 
about  2%  inches  in  width,  exceeds  it  in  size. 

— CHARLES  E.  BROWN. 


THE  CHICAGO-MILWAUKEE-GREEN  BAY  TRAIL 
Louise  Phelps  Kellogg 

An  Indian  trail  from  time  immemorial  ran  somewhat 
back  from  the  Lake  Michigan  shore,  connecting  the  three 
historic  places  of  Chicago,  Milwaukee,  and  Green  Bay.  It 
may  have  been  there  when  heroic  Tonty  in  1680  wandered 
through  the  woods  of  southeast  Wisconsin  on  his  retreat 
from  Illinois  before  the  dreaded  Iroquois.  If  so  he  and  his 
companions  did  not  find  it,  but  stumbled  on  half-starved 
until  rescued  on  the  Sturgeon  Bay  portage  trail  by  friendly 
Indians.  No  doubt  the  trail  was  worn  in  1684  when  La 
Durantaye,  commandant  at  Green  Bay,  hastened  to  the  aid 
of  the  beleaguered  garrison  on  what  is  now  known  as 
"Starved  Rock",  on  the  Illinois  River,  near  Ottawa.  All 


UST. 


through  the  eighteenth  century  there  was  communication 
between  these  three  favored  sites  on  Lake  Michigan.  Fur 
traders  and  voyageurs  came  and  went,  war's  alarm  was 
hurriedly  carried  from  one  place  to  another.  During  the 
American  Revolution,  it  was  at  one  time  feared  that  Gen- 
eral George  Rogers  Clark  would  march  north  and  capture 
Mackinac.  The  fort  at  that  place  was  transferred  to  the 
island,  where  it  has  since  remained ;  detachments  were  hur- 
ried to  the  mouths  of  the  Milwaukee  and  Chicago  rivers; 
but  Clark  and  his  men  never  came  nearer  than  Rock  River, 
and  the  British  officers  retained  control  of  Lake  Michigan's 
shore  until  almost  the  close  of  the  century. 

It  was  not  until  the  Americans  in  1816  built  Fort  Howard 
at  Green  Bay  and  rebuilt  Fort  Dearborn  at  Chicago,  that 
this  trail  became  an  important  link  in  the  military  occupa- 
tion of  the  Northwest,  and  troops,  mail  carriers,  cattle 
drivers,  and  others  than  Indians  began  to  use  it.  Travel 
by  land  was  almost  wholly  confined  to  the  winter  months, 
the  communication  in  summer  being  wholly  by  boats.  At 
Fort  Howard  a  soldier  was  detailed  to  make  the  long  five 
hundred  mile  round  trip  with  mail  to  Fort  Dearborn  and 
return.  He  went  on  foot  with  an  Indian  or  half-breed  com- 
panion, carrying  both  mail  and  provisions  on  their  backs. 
The  journey  took  a  month  in  good  weather  and  the  mail- 
carrier  was  often  delayed  by  storms  and  bad  weather  be- 
yond the  customary  time.  It  was  a  trip  of  great  danger 
since  there  were  no  human  habitations  except  at  Milwau- 
kee, and  later  at  Skunk  Grove  west  of  Racine  until  the 
vicinity  of  Chicago  was  reached  where  Antoine  Ouilmette 
[Wilmette]  cared  for  the  weary  travelers. 

One  such  mail  carrier  has  given  his  route  on  the  trail ; 
he  said  he  saw  the  lake  only  at  Two  Rivers  and  Sauk  River, 
now  Port  Washington,  and  again  at  Gros  Point,  Ouilmette's 
home.  In  detail  the  trail  has  been  thus  defined  from  Chi- 
cago northward.  Starting  at  the  north  bank  of  Chicago 
River,  now  the  end  of  the  Michigan  Boulevard  bridge,  the 
trail  ran  north  along  the  height  of  land,  on  about  what  is 
now  Rush  Street  to  Chicago  Avenue.  Thus  it  turned  north 
northwest  a  mile  to  the  present  intersection  of  Clark  Street 
and  North  Avenue,  then  followed  North  Clark  Street  to 
Ridge  Avenue,  Evanston.  The  trail  then  turned  at  Demp- 


"Turkey-Tail"   Points.  105 

ster  Street  into  Greenwood  Avenue,  thence  north  to  Simp- 
son Avenue,  swinging  in  an  eastward  curve  through  Wil- 
mette.  From  here  it  ran  north  through  Kenilworth  to  the 
Sheridan  Road,  which  it  followed  almost  to  Lake  Bluff. 
There  it  turned  northwesterly  to  three  miles  west  of  Wau- 
kegan.  Here  the  trail  went  due  north  and  came  into  Wis- 
consin on  what  is  now  United  States  Highway  41.  This 
road  was  followed  to  State  Highway  50,  five  miles  west  of 
Kenosha,  thence  it  ran  west  a  short  distance  then  turned 
north  through  what  is  now  Franksville,  passing  five  miles 
west  of  Racine.  Thence  it  continued  north  through  Cale- 
donia and  Oak  Creek,  falling  into  what  is  now  State  High- 
way 15  at  about  the  present  town  of  Cudahy.  From  here 
the  trail  turned  northwest,  crossed  Kinnikinnic  Creek  just 
beyond  Twenty-second  Avenue,  Milwaukee,  here  again  co- 
inciding with  United  States  Highway  41.  From  this  point 
what  is  now  Forest  Home  Avenue  was  followed  to  Lincoln 
and  Seventeenth  Avenue,  then  to  Vieau's  post  in  the  present 
Mitchell  Park.  From  Vieau's  place  the  trail  followed  the 
south  bank  of  the  river  to  Walker's  Point,  now  South  Water 
and  Reed  Streets.  There  the  Milwaukee  River  was  crossed 
either  by  swimming  or  later  by -a  ferry,  and  the  line  of 
East  Water  Street  was  followed  to  Juneau's  post  at  the 
present  East  Wisconsin  Avenue. 

On  leaving  Milwaukee  those  who  followed  the  trail  kept 
quite  near  the  east  bank  of  Milwaukee  River  up  as  far  as 
the  present  Grafton  or  a  little  beyond.  Thence  they  turned 
northeast  to  the  lake  shore  at  w^hat  is  now  Port  Washing- 
ton. From  there  the  height  of  land  was  followed  as  far  as 
Manitowoc  Rapids,  keeping  near  but  not  exactly  on  United 
States  Highway  141  and  following  that  from  the  Rapids  all 
the  way  northwest  to  Green  Bay. 

The  trail  which  was  worn  deep  by  the  moccasined  feet 
of  many  Indians  and  white  travelers  was  not  a  straight 
road,  it  wound  in  and  out  about  obstacles  or  water  courses 
and  took  its  leisurely  way  along.  After  American  settlers 
began  to  come  in,  they  shortened  the  trail  at  many  points, 
cutting  across  curves  and  straightening  links  in  the  old 
trail.  In  1832  Congress  passed  a  law  to  build  a  military 
road  between  Fort  Dearborn  and  Fort  Howard,  but  this  did 
not  become  much  of  a  road  until  1838.  Even  then  wagons 


106  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

could  only  go  as  far  as  Milwaukee  and  that  only  in  the  most 
favorable  time  of  the  year. 

The  Wisconsin  Society  of  Chicago  has  begun  to  mark  this 
old  trail  and  the  early  road  which  succeeded  it  with  mark- 
ers a  mile  apart.  A  number  have  been  set  beside  the  road, 
and  before  long  the  entire  road  from  Chicago  to  Green  Bay 
will  be  carefully  followed  by  these  historic  markers. 


THE  HOPEWELL  PEOPLE 

In  an  address  on  "Mound  Areas  in  the  Mississippi  Valley 
and  the  South"  delivered  by  him  at  the  Conference  on  Mid- 
western Archaeology,  held  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  on  May 
18,  1929,  Professor  Warren  King  Moorehead,  said  of  the 
Hopewell  people  and  the  so-named  Hopewell  culture:* 

"As  to  the  origin  of  the  Hopewell  culture,  I  might  offer  a 
theory.  Years  from  now,  when  explorations  throughout 
the  Mississippi  Valley  shall  have  been  completed,  more  com- 
petent observers  will  probably  solve  the  question  of  origins. 
My  hypothesis  may  not  be  correct,  although  I  desire  to  have 
it  recorded.  It  cannot  be  set  forth  very  briefly. 

"I  have  never  believed  that  the  Hopewell  people  origi- 
nated in  the  lower  Scioto  valley  [in  Ohio] .  There  is  no  evi- 
dence that  they  dominated  Kentucky  to  the  South,  which  is 
a  buffer  state  between  the  Tennessee-Cumberland  and  the 
Ohio.  The  Kanawha  valley  has  not  been  explored,  but  such 
specimens  as  are  available  indicate  a  considerable  diver- 
gence from  pure  Hopewell.  The  Muskingum  in  eastern 
Ohio  is  probably  Hopewell,  or  closely  allied  to  it.  No  Hope- 
well  objects  were  carried  down  into  the  South  so  far  as  we 
can  ascertain.  There  may  be  some  in  Kentucky,  but  I  am 
speaking  generally,  keeping  in  mind  preponderance  of  evi- 
dence. Trade  objects  at  Hopewell  indicate  a  knowledge  of 
the  South,  and  that  is  more  recent  than  the  Southern  works. 
"Far  up  in  the  Northwest  have  been  found  a  few  monitor 
or  platform  pipes,  log  burials  occur  in  the  Liverpool  district 
(Illinois),  human  maxillaries  worked  into  ornaments,  and 
grizzly  bear  tusks — favorite  Hopewell  trophies — and  some 
other  objects.  It  may  be,  as  claimed  by  some,  that  this  in- 
dicates an  offshot  of  Hopewell  in  southern  Illinois,  eastern 


The  HopeweU  People.  107 

Iowa,  or  central  Wisconsin.  With  due  respect  to  my  dis- 
tinguished co-workers  who  differ  with  me  in  this  matter, 
permit  me  to  state  that  while  objects  may  have  been  intro- 
duced through  barter,  or  small  colonies  sent  out  by  the  home 
village,  I  do  not  believe  that  that  is  the  correct  solution. 

"My  theory  is  to  the  effect  that  a  certain  band  or  tribe  of 
Indians — probably  very  early  Algonkin — reached  or  origi- 
nated in  eastern  Iowa.  One  branch  may  have  worked  up 
into  Wisconsin.  The  other  proceeded  eastward  through 
Illinois  and  Indiana  to  central  Ohio.  The  objection  to  the 
southern  theory  of  origin  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  ceramic 
art  so  prominent  in  the  South  is  not  in  evidence  to  any  ex- 
tent in  the  Hopewell  tumuli ;  that  is,  they  have  found  a  few 
pots,  but  in  the  scores  of  mounds  explored  from  whence 
they  (Putnam,  Mills,  Shetrone  and  I)  took  hundreds  of 
burials,  it  may  be  said  that  pottery  is  practically  absent. 
On  the  Nettler  farm  in  1927  in  one  tumulus  we  found  con- 
siderable pottery,  six  or  seven  typical  Hopewell  axes  of  cop- 
per, cut  human  jaws,  etc.  This  is  the  region  where  it  is 
now  claimed  there  was  distinct  Hopewell  development. 

"Mr.  Charles  C.  Willoughby,  who  has  given  some  atten- 
tion to  the  subject,  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  solution  to  this 
mound  problem  lies  in  a  complete  study  of  symbolism,  and 
that  there  were  very  highly  developed  mound  cults  regard- 
ing which,  at  present,  we  know  little  or  nothing.  He  has 
not  perfected  his  study  of  the  earthwork  and  cosmic  sym- 
bols as  evidenced  in  copper,  on  bones,  or  presented  by  the 
earthworks  themselves.  All  of  us  join  in  the  hope  that  at 
some  future  time  he  will  undertake  this  important  investi- 
gation." 

THE  CAHOKIA  PEOPLE 

"I  have  purposely  omitted  the  great  Cahokia  group  from 
my  remarks.  It  is  in  a  class  by  itself.  It  is  distinctly 
southern.  Five  seasons  spent  at  that  place  in  extensive 
work  have  not  yet  produced  the  mortuary  edifice  of  these 
people.  It  is  the  largest  known  village  north  of  Mexico, 
being,  by  actual  tests,  about  six  miles  in  extent.  That  so 
large  a  population  made  use  of  one  or  more  structures  for 
the  interment  of  their  distinguished  dead  no  one  doubts. 
Until  this  discovery  is  made,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  pre- 


108  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

sent  conclusions  worthy  of  the  name  concerning  the  Caho- 
kians,  for,  obviously,  we  cannot  study  art  unless  we  possess 
art  objects. 

THE  ETOWAH  PEOPLE 

"I  have  said  nothing  as  to  the  origin  of  mound  building 
in  general  in  our  country.  That,  as  writers  say,  is  another 
story  and  too  lengthy  to  be  inserted  here.  One  might  re- 
mark, however,  that  Mrs.  Nuttall  has  found  seven  distinct 
comparisons  between  early  Toltec  art  and  our  Etowah  finds. 
Whether  this  is  a  mere  coincidence,  or  whether  it  indicates 
that  the  Etowahans  worked  their  way  gradually  from  cen- 
tral Mexico  to  Georgia,  is  problematical. 

" A  chief  objection  to  this  theory  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  is 
some  1500  miles  from  the  last  tumuli  of  central,  northern 
Mexico  to  the  first  mounds  of  size  in  eastern  Texas.  Indi- 
ans, familiar  with  mound  building,  would  scarcely  traverse 
1500  miles  and  leave  no  remains.  Yet  how  are  we  to  ex- 
plain [the  presence  of]  the  monolithic  axe,  idol  heads, 
plumed  serpent,  seated  figures,  and  other  similarities?" 

DISCUSSION 

In  discussing  Professor  Moorehead's  paper  Professor 
Fay-Cooper  Cole  said :  "I  agree  very  heartily  with  Dr. 
Moorehead  on  the  desirability  of  the  study  of  skeletal  mate- 
rial. However,  we  must  not  depend  too  much  upon  such 
studies  for  this  reason:  that  if  we  go  to  any  ethnological 
situation — in  California,  for  instance — we  find  a  very  simi- 
lar culture  spread  over  a  large  number  of  tribes  and  groups. 
If  we  consider  our  ethnological  field  in  general  we  find  a 
similar  culture  will  spread  over  diverse  physical  groups. 
It  is  quite  evident  from  the  little  work  we  have  done  in  Illi- 
nois that  there  are  several  physical  types  in  this  culture 
area.  While  it  is  important  to  study  skeletal  material,  the 
results  obtained  do  not  necessarily  affect  cultural  history." 


Indian  Trade  Beads.  109 


INDIAN  TRADE  BEADS 

The  Museum  of  the  American  Indian  has  published  a 
monograph  by  William  C.  Orchard  on  "Beads  and  Bead- 
work  of  the  North  American  Indians."  It  covers  this  very 
interesting  subject  very  fully  and  is  finely  illustrated.  Of 
"Trade  Beads"  the  author  writes :  "Early  explorers  in  all 
parts  of  the  world  found  beads  of  glass,  porcelain,  and 
metal  so  acceptable  to  the  aborigines  of  the  lands  in  which 
they  traveled,  that  a  flourishing  industry  was  established  in 
Venice  for  the  manufacture  of  glass  beads,  in  the  early  part 
of  the  14th  century,  and  probably  before.  Among  these 
aboriginal  peoples  the  Indians  of  America  were  no  excep- 
tion, for  they  at  once  recognized  the  value  of  beads  as  a 
medium  of  exchange  through  which  to  express  their  estheti- 
cism  and  soon  developed  an  art  which  has  nowhere  been 
surpassed. 

"The  variety  of  beads  most  commonly  used  as  gifts  and 
for  trade  was  known  as  seed-beads,  a  flattened  globular 
form  ranging  in  size  from  about  a  sixteenth  to  an  eighth 
of  an  inch  or  more  in  diameter. 

"The  colors  are  of  almost  unlimited  range.  A  preference 
prevailed,  however,  for  bright  red,  blue,  yellow,  green  and 
opaque  white.  Intermediate  shades  were  acceptable,  but 
were  used  sparingly  in  comparison  with  others.  Beads  of 
clear,  colorless  glass,  commonly  known  as  crystal,  and  black 
beads,  were  also  used.  The  seed-beads  were  used  chiefly 
for  covering  surfaces  with  fanciful  designs,  rather  than  for 
stringing  as  necklaces.  Larger  varieties  of  many  forms 
were  introduced  for  which  other  uses  were  found.  These 
consisted  of  spherical,  ovoid,  tubular,  and  various  bizarre 
shapes  and  sizes ;  indeed  they  are  in  such  great  variety  that 
only  a  representative  selection  can  here  be  considered." 

He  describes  and  figures  a  number  of  varieties  of  glass 
beads  such  as  "star"  or  "chevron"  beads,  Moorish  beads, 
corn  kernel,  and  polychrome  beads.  He  also  discusses  the 
trade  values  of  beads  such  as  were  established  by  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  for  their  Indian  trade. 


110  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 


URN  BURIALS  IN  ALABAMA 

At  the  Conference  of  Midwestern  Archaeology,  held  at 
St.  Louis  on  May  18,  1929,  Mr.  Peter  A.  Brannon  of  the 
Alabama  Anthropological  Society  presented  an  interesting 
account  of  urn  burials  in  Alabama.* 

"The  custom  of  placing  the  dead  in  pots  at  interment  is 
said  to  have  been  a  Choctaw  culture  indication ;  if  so,  these 
people  extended  their  influence  as  far  east  as  the  source  of 
the  Alabama  River.  The  traditions  of  these  people  say  they 
put  the  bodies  out  on  pole  racks  or  brush  arbors  when  death 
occurred,  and  then  when  the  flesh  had  sufficiently  decayed, 
they  gathered  up  the  bones  and  buried  them.  The  finding 
of  a  group  of  vessels  suggesting  that  they  were  all  placed 
in  the  grave  at  the  same  time  corroborates  these  traditions. 

"Recent  finds  of  pottery  washed  by  the  rains  of  early 
spring  (1929)  from  their  original  deposit  place,  at  a  site 
known  in  later  years  as  Autosse,  in  Macon  County,  indicate 
these  people  as  having  been  far  above  their  later  descend- 
ants, as  far  as  their  cultural  status  went.  The  vessels  are 
of  a  heavy  earthenware,  shell  tempered,  glazed  with  charred 
grease,  and  some  of  them  of  a  capacity  of  eight  gallons. 
One  recent  day's  work  by  five  members  of  our  Society  re- 
sulted in  the  taking  out  of  eleven  of  these  fine  pots,  all  in  a 
perfect  condition.  A  number  in  fragments,  beyond  recov- 
ery, were  also  found.  These  had  no  skeletal  remains  in 
them  and  do  not  indicate  a  use  other  than  economic.  I  be- 
lieve that  they  were  used  to  store  walnut  oil,  a  commodity 
much  prized  in  this  section. 

"Less  than  thirty  days  ago,  Edgar  M.  Graves,  Dr.  P.  R. 
Burke  and  Howard  H.  Paulin  of  Montgomery  located  in  a 
cache-like  arrangement  twelve  urns,  every  one  covered  with 
a  bowl,  and  all  containing  skeletal  remains.  The  largest  is 
twenty-six  inches  in  diameter,  about  two  feet  deep,  and  had 
in  it  eight  skulls  and  the  larger  number  of  the  bones  of 
these  skeletons.  Several  were  adults  but  there  were  also 
children  and  babies.  Several  of  the  other  pots  or  urns  had 
more  than  one  skeleton  in  them.  The  smallest  is  just  eight 
inches  in  diameter,  but  in  it  was  the  complete  skeleton  of  a 


*  Bull.  Nat.  Research  Council,  No.  74. 


Urn  Burials  in  Alal>;mi:t.  Ill 

baby.  The  arrangement  of  the  group  of  vessels  may  have 
been  intended  to  represent  a  constellation.  The  vessels  were 
very  close  to  the  surface,  in  fact  plowing  had  carried  off 
the  cover  of  one  of  them. 

"The  first  indication  of  this  kind  of  an  arrangement  of 
vessels  noted  in  this  state  was  on  this  same  stream,  Pint- 
lala  Creek,  but  nearer  the  mouth  than  those  found  in  April 
of  this  year.  Several  years  ago  we  found  nine  urns  grouped 
around  a  central  zone.  In  this  case  a  vault-like  placing  had 
been  attempted.  A  hole  about  twenty-five  feet  in  diameter 
was  apparently  first  cut  in  the  solid  red  clay.  Into  this  was 
poured  quartz  gravel,  then  periwinkle  and  river  mussel 
shells  from  the  kitchen  middens  or  refuse  piles,  and  into 
this  ashes. 

"The  vessels  after  arrangement  were  surrounded  with 
layers  of  gravel,  shell  and  ashes,  and  then  covered  with  clay. 
This  had  been  hardened  by  burning,  indications  of  fires  on 
the  pile  being  very  evident. 

"Frequently  interments  in  the  earth  alone  accompany 
those  within  the  pots  and  are  apparently  contemporaneous. 
In  most  cases  these  are  flexed;  that  is,  bent  up  with  the 
knees  under  the  chin  and  sometimes  with  the  elbow  over  the 
head.  Occasionally,  bark  or  wood  slabs  were  used  in  cover- 
ing vessels,  and  in  casing  the  loose  burials,  though  usually 
an  attractive  bowl  was  used  to  cover  the  vessels.  Burial- 
urns  are  nearly  always  of  a  thin,  poor  quality  of  earthen- 
ware, and  suggest  that  they  wrere  made  altogether  for  this 
purpose,  and  rarely  served  any  previous  economic  need. 
The  bowls  which  we  find  serving  as  covers  are  nearly  al- 
ways works  of  art,  many  having  the  ornamentation  on  the 
inside  of  the  lip.  No  bowls  and  few  pots  have  handles. 
Whenever  a  vessel  does  have  handles,  it  is  more  apt  to  have 
six  than  four.  In  no  case  have  we  ever  found  a  burial  urn 
with  legs. 

"The  conventional  roll-forward  and  loop-back  serpent 
scroll  design,  and  the  design  in  some  manner  suggesting  the 
rising  sun,  are  the  most  common  from  central  Alabama, 
while  the  woodpecker  and  the  hand  and  eye  are  found  most 
common  in  our  Moundville  culture. 

"Mr.  Clarence  B.  Moore,  of  Philadelphia,  first  noted  our 
urn  burials.  Those  most  prominently  figured  by  him  are 


112  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

located  at  Durants  Bend  on  the  Alabama  River.  In  recent 
years,  most  of  our  finds  have  been  in  Lowndes  County  at  a 
site  passed  by  DeSoto  in  September,  1540,  and  noted  by  one 
of  his  chroniclers  as  "an  old  abandoned  town."  No  evi- 
dences of  European  contacts  have  ever  been  suggested  in 
connection  with  urn  burials  indicating  that  the  custom  was 
obsolete  here  before  the  explorers  passed  through." 


CACHE  OF  INDIAN  STONE  ADZES 

At  Prairie  du  Chien  in  a  hog  yard,  which  occupies  a  part 
of  a  former  Indian  village  site,  probably  prehistoric,  a  cache 
or  deposit  of  three  stone  adzes  was  recently  found.  Two  of 
these  large  implements  were  each  nearly  a  foot  in  length, 
the  third  was  broken  in  two,  only  a  half  of  it  being  recov- 
ered. The  two  perfect  adzes  each  weigh  about  three  pounds. 
They  are  long  and  narrow  implements  with  a  flat  lower  sur- 
face or  base,  and  a  ridged,  slightly  curved  back.  One  ex- 
tremity is  pointed  and  the  other  ground  to  a  cutting  edge. 
They  are  triangular  in  section.  In  their  form  they  are  like 
other  implements  of  this  character  which  have  been  found 
in  the  state  and  are  preserved  in  Wisconsin  museums. 
Doubtless  they  were  once  mounted,  or  intended  to  be  mount- 
ed, on  stout  wooden  handles.  These  adzes  are  considered 
by  archeologists  to  have  been  wood-working  tools  and  were 
probably  used  in  shaping  timbers,  shaping  and  excavating 
dugout  canoes,  and  in  performing  similar  woodworking 
tasks,  with  or  without  the  aid  of  fire.  The  smaller  speci- 
mens could  be  best  employed  in  the  fashioning  of  both  up- 
right and  horizontal  mortars,  sap  troughs,  wooden  bowls 
and  similar  utensils. 

In  1903  Mr.  H.  A.  Crosby  published  in  The  Wisconsin 
Archeologist  the  first  known  description  of  specimens  of 
this  class  of  Indian  stone  implements.  He  described  nine 
of  these  adzes  these  being  found  on  Indian  sites  located  at 
different  places  in  Racine,  Sheboygan2,  Columbia,  Richland2, 
Vernon,  Wood  and  Waupaca  counties,  a  rather  wide  dis- 
tribution in  southern  Wisconsin.*  Illustrations  of  two  of 
these  implements  were  given.  The  specimens  described 


*  V.  2,  No.  4,  91-93. 


Cache  of   Indian  Stone  Ad/cs.  113 

were  from  six  to  eighteen  inches  in  length.  The  largest 
was  obtained  on  the  old  Richland  City  village  site,  in  Rich- 
land  County. 

Since  the  publication  of  this  paper,  twenty-seven  years 
ago,  additional  examples  of  these  implements,  in  large  and 
small  sizes,  and  occasionally  broken,  have  been  found  on 
Indian  sites  in  Waukesha,  Rock,  Dane,  Dodge,  Sauk,  Win- 
nebago  and  Crawford  counties.  Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  the 
well-known  Milwaukee  collector,  at  a  recent  meeting  of  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  exhibited  a  series  of  six 
of  these  triangular  adzes,  all  being  especially  fine  speci- 
mens. The  largest  of  these,  16  inches  in  length,  was  ob- 
tained in  Sumpter  Township,  Sauk  County.  The  others 
came  from  Richland  Township,  Richland  County;  Pewau- 
kee  Township,  Waukesha  County;  Fox  Lake  Township, 
Dodge  County;  Omro  Township,  Winnebago  County,  and 
Vernon  Township,  Waukesha  County.  The  smallest  was 
about  seven  inches  in  length.  Mr.  Ringeisen  also  exhibited 
three  adz-celts  at  this  time,  one  of  these,  a  most  unusual 
form,  having  a  groove  across  its  back  between  the  middle 
of  the  implement  and  its  poll.  This  specimen  and  another 
ungrooved  adz-celt  were  found  lying  together  on  an  Indian 
site  in  Norway  Township,  Racine  County.  Doubtless  these 
adzes  were  implements  in  fairly  common  or  at  least  occa- 
sional use  at  many  early  aboriginal  villages  and  the  recov- 
ery of  many  more  is  to  be  looked  for  in  coming  years.  Mem- 
bers and  friends  are  requested  to  report  the  finding  of  such 
specimens  to  the  secretary's  office. 

It  will  be  interesting  to  learn  whether  such  implements 
also  occur  in  Michigan,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Iowa  and 
Minnesota.  We  request  our  members  and  friends  in  those 
states  to  be  on  the  lookout  for  them  and  to  report  them  in 
order  that  more  information  may  be  available  concerning 
their  distribution.  Photographs,  sketches,  measurements, 
weights,  and  other  descriptive  and  historical  data  should  be 
provided. 

Mr.  W.  J.  Wintemberg  of  the  National  Museum  of  Can- 
ada, Ottawa,  mentions  the  finding  of  a  number  of  broken 
specimens  on  a  site  in  eastern  Canada.*  These  are  very 


*  1928  Report. 


114  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

similar  to  our  Wisconsin  specimens  in  form.  These  he  says 
seem  to  have  been  from  about  8  to  10  inches  long.  He  has 
not  seen  adzes  of  the  same  type  anywhere  else  in  eastern 
Canada.  He  was  interested  to  learn  of  their  occurrence  in 
Wisconsin. 

INDIAN  OVERLAND  TRAVELWAYS 

In  a  paper  presented  at  the  Geography  Conference  of  the 
Michigan  Schoolmasters'  Club  in  April  1929,  Dr.  W.  B. 
Hinsdale,  an  honorary  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeo- 
logical  Society,  presented  a  very  interesting  paper  on 
"Trade  and  Lines  of  Overland  Travel  of  the  Michigan  In- 
dians." From  this  paper,  with  the  author's  kind  permis- 
sion, we  take  the  liberty  of  extracting  some  information 
which  our  members  may  find  of  particular  interest.  We  re- 
gret that  the  entire  paper  may  not  be  re-printed. 

In  his  paper,  which  is  accompanied  by  a  map,  the  author 
describes  the  course  of  some  of  the  important  overland  In- 
dian trails  of  the  region  lying  east  of  the  Mississippi  River 
and  which  lead  to  or  through  the  State  of  Michigan,  one  of 
these  the  well-known  Chicago-Green  Bay-Sault  Ste.  Marie 
trail,  also  passing  through  the  State  of  Wisconsin. 

One  of  the  most  important  of  these  old  aboriginal  trails 
had  its  beginning  on  the  shore  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  on 
the  northwest  coast  of  Florida.  From  this  place  it  ran 
northward  through  the  country  of  the  Muskhogean  tribes 
in  Georgia,  crossed  Tennessee,  then  crossed  Kentucky  to 
Cumberland  Gap.  It  crossed  the  Ohio  River  and  passed  up 
the  east  side  of  the  Scioto  River  in  Ohio.  From  the  head- 
waters of  this  stream  it  passed  on  to  the  Sandusky  River 
and  up  its  west  side  to  Sandusky  Bay  of  Lake  Erie.  In 
Kentucky  this  trail  was  the  famous  "Warriors  Path"  of 
early  American  history.  A  main  trail  from  the  Georgia 
coast  united  with  this  trail  in  eastern  Tennessee.  "Over 
these  lines,  many  of  them,  went  Michigan  copper  and  back 
came  shells  from  the  Gulf". 

The  Potomac  Trail  from  the  shore  of  Chesapeake  Bay 
passed  through  Maryland  and  West  Virginia  to  the  Scioto 
in  Ohio  crossing  the  Allegheny  Mountains  on  its  way.  Its 
course  is  in  part  followed  by  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Rail- 


Indian  Overland  Travelways.  115 

road.     From  the  point  where  this  trail  reached  the  Ohio 
River  a  trail  ran  northward  to  the  shore  of  Lake  Erie. 

"A  most  important  line  of  travel  coming  into  Michigan 
and  now  paralleled  by  great  arteries  of  commerce,  was  the 
Great  Trail,  probably  so  designated  because  of  its  special 
importance  in  Indian  and  pioneer  affairs.  Its  eastern 
branches  came  from  the  country  around  Chesapeake  and 
Delaware  Bays.  It  connected  with  two  or  three  branches 
as  it  bent  around  the  west  end  of  Lake  Erie,  and  the  Sauk 
or  Chicago  Trail.  It  was  a  continuous  path  between  the 
tidewater  and  the  Great  Lakes.  Over  it,  in  prehistoric  and 
historic  times,  traveled  men,  savage  and  civilized,  upon  mis- 
sions of  vital  importance  in  their  domestic  and  political  af- 
fairs. For  uncounted  years,  moccasin-footed  Indians,  then 
Indians  upon  ponies,  soldiers  mounted  and  on  foot,  pioneers 
with  ox-teams  and  travelers  in  stage  coaches,  all  upon  some 
mission  or  other,  war,  adventure,  trade,  chase,  exploration, 
home-seeking,  passed  over  this  trail.  From  the  East  the 
trail  came  to  the  junction  of  the  Monongahela  and  Alleg- 
heny Rivers,  which  form  the  Ohio  where  Fort  Pitt  and 
afterwards  Pittsburg  were  built."  From  this  point  the 
trail  extended  to  the  Ohio  border,  then  continued  almost 
due  west  and  forded  the  Tuscarawas  at  the  site  of  old  Fort 
Laurens.  Then  it  ran  in  a  westerly  direction  to  Mohican 
Johns  Town.  A  few  miles  west  of  this  place  it  bent  north- 
westerly, passing  Sandusky  Bay  of  Lake  Erie  to  Perrys- 
burg  at  the  Maumee  Rapids.  One  branch  extended  west 
from  this  ford  of  the  Maumee,  turned  northwest  and  en- 
tered Michigan,  where  Morenci  is  now  situated.  It  con- 
tinued northward  and  joined  the  main  Chicago  trail.  The 
main  trail  bent  north  to  where  Toledo  is  now  located. 

"The  Shore  Trail,  as  it  is  known  historically,  followed  the 
southern  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  going  east  from  the  various 
Michigan  trails  that  converged  at  Toledo.  It  paralleled  the 
Great  Trail  to  Sandusky  Bay  where  the  two  met  and 
parted.  The  Shore  Trail  then  led  on  to  Erie,  Pennsylvania, 
and  to  Buffalo  and  Niagara,  New  York.  In  western  New 
York  the  same  kind  of  branching  of  the  main  trail  that 
existed  at  its  western  end  made  connections  with  various 
points  in  the  Iroquoian  territory.  The  direct  Iroquois  trail 
followed  down  the  Mohawk  River  to  the  Hudson.  There 


116  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOL.OGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

were  trails  leading  from  the  Hudson  River  to  Massachu- 
setts Bay.  The  Shore  Trail  led  through  bloody  country ;  the 
country  that  had  been  held  by  the  unfortunate  Erie  or  Cat 
Tribe,  who  were  virtually  exterminated  by  the  Five  Na- 
tions, their  own  relatives.  The  highway  from  Cleveland 
and  other  cities  of  the  Lake  Erie  shore  followed  closely  the 
old  Shore  Trail." 

"The  Mohawk  Trail  was  an  extension  of  the  Shore  Trail 
connecting  the  middle  west  with  the  Hudson  and  points 
east.  Not  only  were  there  trails  to  New  England  but  there 
was,  for  instance,  a  branch  of  the  Mohawk  Trail  in  west 
central  New  York  going  to  the  old  Iroquois  town,  Tioga,  in 
northern  Pennsylvania  where  the  Chemung  joins  the  Sus- 
quehanna.  It  was  the  gateway  towards  the  Chesapeake  and 
Virginia." 

"The  Sauk  or  Chicago  Trail.  There  was  a  trail  connect- 
ing Detroit  with  the  Sauk  town  at  the  confluence  of  the 
Rock  with  the  Mississippi  in  Illinois.  The  old  road  from 
Detroit  to  Chicago  follows  this  route  to  a  point  near  La 
Porte,  Indiana.  It  deflects  around  the  head  of  Lake  Michi- 
gan and  leads  on  through  Chicago  to  the  wild  rice  fields  of 
Green  Bay,  the  Lakes  of  Wisconsin  and  far  away  to  the 
copper  mines  of  Lake  Superior.  Article  6  of  the  Treaty  of 
Chicago,  August  29,  1821,  states:  The  United  States  shall 
have  the  privilege  of  making  and  using  a  road  through  the 
Indian  country,  from  Detroit  and  Fort  Wayne,  respectively, 
to  Chicago.'  As  a  matter  of  fact  what  has  been  referred  to 
as  the  Sauk  or  Chicago  Trail  was  only  a  small  section  and 
finally  a  branch  of  a  two-thousand  mile  thoroughfare.  Un- 
der the  name  of  the  Montreal  Trail  we  mention  a  branch 
which  crossed  the  Detroit  River  and  went  through  Canada 
to  Niagara  Falls  and  Montreal.  That  part  of  this  long  path 
that  extends  through  Michigan  is  now  known  as  Trunk 
Line  U.  S.  112. 

"Montreal  Trail.  According  to  maps  of  John  H.  Eddy, 
1816,  and  Thomas  Hutchins,  1778,  a  road,  which  undoubt- 
edly had  been  a  very  old  trail  coming  from  Montreal  and 
following  the  Chicago  Trail  from  Detroit,  branched  off 
from  Fort  St.  Joseph  and  led  south  to  the  Tippecanoe  River 
in  Indiana  to  Prophet's  Town  and  Quiatanon  upon  the  Wa- 
bash.  From  this  village  there  was  water  communication  by 


Indian   Overland   Travel  wa  vs.  117 

way  of  the  Wabash,  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Rivers  to  New 
Orleans,  the  total  distance  being  given  by  Eddy  as  1,871 
miles." 

Besides  the  long  trails  here  described  the  author  also 
gives  the  courses  of  several  of  the  more  important  trails  of 
the  State  of  Michigan,  among  these  being  the  Saginaw 
Trail,  the  Grand  River  Trail,  and  the  "Territorial"  and 
"Pottawatomie"  Trails. 

In  discussing  incentives  to  travel  the  author  says:  "At 
what  stage  in  culture  men  became  traders  and  engaged  in 
commerce  is  a  question  that  anthropologists  may  not  have 
settled,  although  it  is  probably  true  that  they  became  trav- 
elers and  hunters  before  they  traded.  One  of  the  differen- 
tiating traits  between  the  prehuman  and  human  stage  was 
the  development  of  cultures.  The  wants  of  animals  are 
fully  gratified  with  food  and  life-preserving  shelter.  Man 
wants  more.  He  has  acquired  desires  for  something  besides 
food  and  protection  from  heat,  cold  and  storm.  Early  in 
his  quest  for  what  nature  did  not  supply  immediately,  he 
looked  for  materials  to  be  wrought  into  implements.  Later, 
he  began  to  give  the  products  of  his  hands  a  kind  of  em- 
bellishment, that  is,  a  neatness  in  form  and  finish.  He  ac- 
quired a  fancy  for  colorful  flint  and  stone.  This  may  have 
been  the  beginning  of  the  aesthetic  sense,  although  it  is 
probable  that,  earlier,  such  sense  was  manifested  by  per- 
sonal adornment.  A  simple  arrow  head  will  illustrate. 
There  was  a  necessity  for  such  a  tool  or  weapon  which  a 
rough  chert  nodule  near  home  would  satisfy;  but  later  the 
workman  strove  to  have  his  arrow  look  pleasing  to  the  eye, 
as  well  as  adapted  to  the  hand,  after  it  was  finished,  so  he 
went  afield  searching  for  materials  with  texture  and  color 
that  had  the  desired  qualities.  He  began  to  travel  for  other 
purposes  than  the  securing  of  food.  He  made  contacts  with 
others  in  distant  parts  who  had  something  he  wanted  and 
took  with  him  something  that  those  others  would  take  in 
exchange.  They  "swapped" ;  the  beginnings  of  barter,  the 
first  step  in  commerce." 

"It  is  not  necessary  here  to  discuss  the  beginnings  of 
commerce,  because  the  aborigines  of  the  region  under  sur- 
vey were  sufficiently  advanced  to  be  engaged  in  it,  however 
acquired.  It  may  be  stated  that  there  were  three  major  in- 


118  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

centives  to  primitive  travel.  There  was  the  hunt  for  food 
quest,  there  was  war,  and  there  was  the  search  for  mate- 
rials to  be  used  in  the  industrial  and  decorative  arts.  Of 
course,  these  three  factors  often  worked  together,  as  when 
upon  expeditions  of  hostility,  the  warriors  had  to  hunt  for 
subsistence.  In  case  a  war  party  was  victorious,  trophies 
varying  from  prisoners  to  accoutrements  were  brought 
back.  The  New  York  Iroquois,  for  instance,  ranged  as  far 
as  the  Black  Hills.  Returning,  victorious  with  captives  and 
spoils,  they  lost  implements  along  the  path  or  fragments  of 
choice  pipestone;  at  least  such  an  explanation  would  ac- 
count for  the  occasional  finding  of  artifacts  made  of  ob- 
sidian and  catlinite  in  the  southern  parts  of  the  state.  The 
illustration  may  show  how  foreign  specimens  may  have  be- 
come scattered  about.  Copper  from  the  Lake  Superior 
mines  traveled  as  far  as  the  Atlantic  and  Gulf  Coasts. 
Shells  from  the  Gulf  have  been  found  in  a  great  many 
Michigan  burial  grounds,  and  it  would  appear  that  the  In- 
dians had  a  peculiar  and  reverential  fondness  for  them 
when  they  were  made  into  ornaments  and  implements. 
Artifacts  that  must  be  regarded  as  intrusive  and  obtained 
either  by  trade,  raids,  or  brought  by  sojourners  from  a  dis- 
tance, are  found  in  our  fields.  The  numerous  occurrences 
in  ancient  graves  of  articles  made  of  materials  not  natural 
to  the  vicinity  is  proof  of  the  extent  and  variety  of  early 
commerce  on  all  of  the  continents." 

"What  has  been  said  must  have  convinced  the  reader  that 
the  Indians  traveled  considerably,  and  that  communication 
was  more  developed  than  is,  perhaps,  commonly  supposed. 
The  Indian  had  no  draft  animal  except  the  dog,  no  wheeled 
vehicle,  but  he  was  strong  and  inured  to  outdoor  life,  and 
traveled  long  distances  both  by  canoe  and  on  foot.  As  with 
the  waterways  he  used  the  trails  in  war,  in  trade,  in  the 
hunt,  and  for  various  other  purposes,  from  local  visiting, 
we  may  suppose,  to  general  wanderlust.  In  the  course  of 
events  some  trails  became  specialized  as  war  trails,  or  hunt- 
ing routes,  and  these  uses,  linking  up  with  the  general  geo- 
graphical and  cultural  situation,  were  important  thereafter 
as  determiners  of  the  social  process. 

"The  Indian  was  not  in  all  cases  the  first  or  only  one  to 
locate  the  paths.  Deer  and  buffalo  also  had  the  habit  of 


Indian  Overland  Travelways.  119 

filing  through  the  forest  and  across  the  openings.  'With  an 
instinct  no  less  shrewd  than  that  displayed  on  the  highland 
trail,  the  buffalo  and  the  Indian  found  with  great  sagacity 
the  best  crossing-places  over  the  streams  of  America.' 
Many  of  our  substantial  and  costly  bridges  are  built  over 
streams  at  places  the  Indian  had  located  as  the  most  fea- 
sible crossings.  By  trial  and  error,  the  large  ruminants 
and  Indians  chose  the  best  possible  paths,  avoiding  obstruc- 
tions and  mire,  and  selecting  hard  ground,  not  failing,  by 
almost  uncanny  cunning,  to  come  out  at  a  point  aimed  for. 
These  were  not  blazed  trails.  Blazing  was  a  white  man's 
invention.  The  Indian  had  other  and  just  as  unfailing 
signs  for  picking  the  way  as  if  he  had  blazed. 

"Many  of  our  present  roads  follow  these  ancient  high- 
ways. Those  that  do  not  follow  the  points  of  the  compass, 
that  turn  and  slant  by  diagonals  and  wind  with  curves  for 
long  distances  are  generally  pursuing  the  courses  of  the  old 
trails.  The  stages  of  change  have  been  about  as  follows : 
the  Indian's  narrow  foot-paths,  'cleared  road',  corduroy 
road,  dirt  road,  gravel  pike,  cement  highway;  although  a 
few  went  through  the  stage  of  'planking.' ' 

In  the  closing  paragraph  of  his  paper  the  author  says: 
"The  trails  which  they  made  were  involved  in  their  decline 
and  our  rise.  The  native  tribes  had  thus  prepared  helps  for 
their  own  subjugation  when  the  subduers  arrived.  They 
had  covered  the  entire  country,  like  a  prodigious  spider- 
web,  with  a  network  of  trails  through  the  forests  and  moun- 
tain passes  and  across  the  plains,  connecting  village  with 
village,  running  to  hunting  grounds  and  bodies  of  water 
whence  many  derived  the  large  part  of  their  food  supplies. 
Along  these  foot  paths,  with  or  without  resistance,  the  In- 
dian himself  frequently  acting  as  guide,  the  white  intruders 
pushed  their  way  into  the  new  country.  The  streams  which 
served  them  so  well  became  tracks  for  the  conqueror  also, 
when  the  Indians'  tool,  the  canoe,  had  been  borrowed.  Had 
it  not  been  for  these  threads  in  the  wilderness  labyrinth, 
in  Michigan  as  much  or  more  than  elsewhere,  white  occu- 
pancy would  have  been  prevented  or  slowed  down  for  many 
years.  It  was  by  the  Red  Man's  own  methods  of  communi- 
cation that  he  was  compelled  "slowly  and  sadly  to  climb  the 
distant  mountains  and  to  read  his  doom  in  the  setting  sun." 


120  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 


THE  HUFF  MANDAN  VILLAGE  SITE 

During  the  past  summer  the  writer  was  given  the  oppor- 
tunity of  visiting  under  the  guidance  of  Mr.  George  F.  Will, 
well-known  archeologist,  and  Mr.  Russell  Reid,  curator  of 
the  State  Historical  Museum  of  North  Dakota,  a  consider- 
able number  of  the  old  Mandan  and  other  Indian  village 
sites  located  along  the  Missouri  River  near  Bismarck. 

Among  these  sites  was  the  one  which  Mr.  Will  has  de- 
scribed as  the  Huff  Mandan  site  and  which  is  located  on 
the  steep  bank  of  the  Missouri  near  the  settlement  called 
Huff.*  This  site  was  visited  and  surveyed  by  Mr.  Will  and 
Dr.  H.  J.  Spinden  in  1919.  This  is  Mr.  Will's  description 
of  it,  which  in  his  report  is  accompanied  by  a  map : 

'This  site  proved  perhaps  the  most  interesting  of  any 
visited,  especially  because  it  is  in  the  best-preserved  con- 
dition of  any  of  the  ancient  sites,  never  having  been  plowed 
or  materially  disturbed.  Some  of  the  other  nearby  sites 
may  have  been  presented  as  interesting  and  unusual  fea- 
tures, but  they  are  now  so  nearly  obliterated  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  tell.  The  map  made  showed  many  features 
which  differentiated  this  site  from  any  of  the  others,  the 
most  prominent  feature  being  its  almost  perfectly  rectang- 
ular shape.  The  rectangle  lying  along  the  high  bluff  over- 
looking the  river  is  well  outlined  by  a  wall  and  ditch,  still 
of  considerable  depth,  with  a  number  of  regularly  placed 
bastions.  The  river  side  is  protected  only  by  the  very  pre- 
cipitous bank.  An  area  of  about  twelve  acres  is  enclosed 
within  the  wall,  making  this  perhaps  the  largest  enclosed 
site  we  have  found.  Most  of  this  site  is  owned  by  the  North 
Dakota  Historical  Society. 

"A  coulee  cuts  into  the  bluff  a  short  distance  beyond  both 
the  north  and  south  ends  of  the  site.  A  bastion  occurs  at 
each  corner  as  well  as  those  at  regular  intervals  along  the 
three  sides.  Within  the  wall  the  ground  is  now  compara- 
tively level,  although  the  house  rings  are  easily  distinguish- 
able. Apparently  the  site  has  drifted  in  with  sand  and  dust, 
as  very  little  trace  of  occupancy  can  be  found  without  dig- 
ging well  down  beneath  the  present  sod.  The  house  rinj 

*  Anthro.  Papers,  The  Am.  Mus.  of  Nat.  Hist.,  B.  XXII,  pt.  VI. 


Huff  Mandan  Village  Site.  121 

are  spaced  much  further  apart  than  usual  and  seem  to  be 
laid  out  more  or  less  in  lines  or  rows  with  linear  areas  that 
might  pass  for  streets.  Pottery  found  here  seems  to  re- 
semble strongly  that  from  Fort  Rice,  and  the  Schermer 
and  Glencoe  sites,  although  it  was  much  more  difficult  to 
find  in  quantities  since  none  of  the  area  had  been  plowed. 
In  connection  with  the  unusual  features  of  this  site,  it  is 
interesting  to  recall  its  traditional  importance.  Supposedly 
this  is  the  site  of  the  first  village  built  by  the  culture-hero 
chief,  Good  Furred  Robe,  when  the  Mandan  reached  this 
vicinity.  One  Mandan  tale  relates  that  the  site  was  laid 
out  with  straight  lines,  the  houses  more  or  less  in  rows,  to 
imitate  the  laying  out  of  a  field  of  corn,  all  as  directed  by 
the  chief.  A  number  of  the  oldest  stories  are  also  connected 
with  this  and  the  Eagle's  Nose  sites." 

Within  this  enclosure  are  104  hut  rings  and  a  number  of 
refuse  heaps.  This  Huff  site  was  of  particular  interest  to 
the  writer  because  of  a  general  resemblance  which  it  bears 
to  the  prehistoric  stockade — protected  enclosure  known  as 
Aztalan  and  located  on  the  bank  of  the  Crawfish  River  near 
Lake  Mills  in  Wisconsin.  Both  the  Huff  enclosure  and  that 
at  Aztalan  are  U-shaped  earthworks  with  the  open  side 
resting  on  a  river  bank.  The  river-front  of  the  Aztalan 
earthwork  was  protected  by  a  double  line  of  upright  tim- 
bers. The  Huff  site  may  have  been  similarly  protected  al- 
though there  was  not  the  same  necessity  here  for  such  pro- 
tection since  the  Missouri  River  banks  are  here  high  and 
very  precipitous.  Future  exploration  of  the  site  will  deter- 
mine this.  A  prominent  feature  of  the  protecting  earthen 
walls  of  both  enclosures  are  the  bastions  or  curved  enlarge- 
ments which  project  from  the  walls.  Dr.  Lapham's  survey 
of  the  Aztalan  enclosure,  made  in  1850,  shows  eight  of 
these  projections  along  the  north  wall  of  the  earthwork, 
sixteen  along  its  west  wall,  and  eight  along  its  southern 
wall.  The  Huff  site  is  a  smaller  enclosure  than  that  at 
Aztalan.  Its  greatest  length,  measured  from  the  river  bank 
to  near  the  railroad  tracks  is  only  about  700  feet,  and  its 
greatest  width  600  feet.  This  enclosure  has  four  bastions 
along  its  north  wall,  three  along  its  west  wall,  and  four 
along  its  south  wall. 

Another  North  Dakota  enclosure,  the  Schermer  Site,  also 


122  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

described  and  figured  by  Mr.  Will,  also  possesses  these  en- 
largements along  its  walls.  'This  site  is  one  of  those  in 
which  bastions  play  a  part  in  the  fortifications.  A  wall  and 
ditch  seem  to  have  surrounded  the  whole  site  except  along 
the  bench  edge  and  the  wall  projects  at  intervals  into  well 
made  bastions."  The  Molander  and  Greenshield  sites,  and 
perhaps  others,  also  have  walls  with  bastion  projections. 

These  interesting  resemblances  of  the  Huff  and  Aztalan 
enclosures  may  be  merely  accidental  but  they  offer  food  for 
serious  thought. 

—CHARLES  E.  BROWN. 

BRULE  RIVER  COPPER  SOURCES 

The  Astor  Fur  Company  prospected  for  copper  and  silver 
all  along  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Superior  in  the  early  days 
of  Wisconsin  history.  In  about  the  year  1820  they  seem  to 
have  paid  particular  attention  to  this  exploration  work. 
The  Indians  had  been  getting  copper  from  the  Brule,  in 
Douglas  County,  in  extreme  northwestern  Wisconsin  early 
in  the  eighteenth  century  and  carrying  it  as  far  east  as 
Montreal.  The  traders  there  ascertained  its  source  from 
the  Indians  and  an  expedition  was  organized  to  prospect  for 
the  mineral  along  this  rushing  stream.  This  the  Jesuit 
Relations  mention. 

In  the  early  seventies  another  period  of  copper  prospect- 
ing developed  in  the  Lake  Superior  country.  Gen.  George 
B.  Sargent,  father  of  William  C.  Sargent,  now  of  Duluth, 
headed  a  party  of  Eastern  men  in  the  copper  exploration 
of  the  South  Range.  Associated  with  them  was  the  noted 
geologist,  James  G.  Percival.  A  promising  location  for  cop- 
per was  found  on  the  Brule  River,  about  nine  miles  up- 
stream from  its  mouth,  and  where  the  river  crosses  the 
"Range."  Here  there  is  a  belt  of  amygdaloid,  carrying  na- 
tive copper.  The  rock  formation  is  the  same  as  that  of  the 
famous  Calumet  and  Hecla  of  the  northern  Michigan  dis- 
trict. The  mine  appears  on  a  map  as  the  Percival  Loca- 
tion. Considerable  prospecting  was  done,  and  much  good 
copper  was  found,  but  the  market  price  of  the  metal  de- 
clined and  for  the  lack  of  ready  funds,  the  project  was  dis- 
continued. 


Brule  River  Copper  Sources.  123 

In  1890  another  Boston  company  prospected  these  same 
lands,  and  for  practically  the  same  reasons  exploration  was 
discontinued.  Native  copper  can  be  picked  up  around  the 
old  shafts,  and  it  can  be  seen  in  the  Brule  River  at  about 
the  contact  of  the  sandstone  and  the  trap  rocks.  If  the 
price  of  copper  metal  ever  goes  back  to  where  this  copper 
can  be  mined  profitably,  there  is  no  doubt  but  that  paying 
mines  could  be  located  on  this  South  Range,  which  is  really 
the  western  extension  of  the  Michigan  copper  belt.  All  of 
this  territory  is  now  interspersed  with  farms  and  summer 
homes.  Many  of  the  summer  homes  are  very  beautiful  and 
are  owned  by  people  of  extensive  means,  the  owners  being 
from  all  parts  of  the  United  States. 

Benjamin  G.  Armstrong  mentions  the  possession  of  na- 
tive silver  by  Indians  of  the  Lake  Superior  region  in  the 
forties,  some  or  all  of  which  must  have  come  from  localities 
or  Indian  workings  along  the  Brule  River. 

— JOHN  A.  BARDEN. 


PETROGLYPHS  AND  PICTOGRAPHS 

In  a  monograph  published  by  the  University  of  Califor- 
nia, Julian  H.  Steward,  describes  the  known  "Petroglyphs 
of  California  and  Adjoining  States",  the  adjoining  states 
being  Nevada,  Utah,  Arizona  and  Lower  California.*  The 
author  explains  in  his  introduction  that  the  nucleus  of  his 
material  "is  the  accumulation  of  many  years  at  the  Depart- 
ment of  Anthropology  of  the  University  of  California  and 
is  largely  the  contributions  of  private  individuals."  This 
data  has  been  greatly  added  to  by  other  contributions  and 
extended  correspondence. 

In  Part  II  of  his  admirable  contribution  to  our  knowledge 
of  American  Indian  pictography  the  author  presents  a  gen- 
eral consideration  of  his  subject.  This  we  take  the  liberty 
of  quoting  in  part  for  the  information  of  our  own  co-work- 
ers and  for  such  other  interested  persons  to  whom  this 
monograph  may  not  be  accessible,  or  readily  accessible. 

"The  practice  of  making  petroglyphs  and  pictographs  is, 
or  has  been,  world-wide.  There  is  not  a  continent  which 
does  not  have  abundant  examples  of  petrography.  In 


124  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

America  there  are  countless  sites  outside  our  area.  They 
have  been  found  in  all  parts  of  the  United  States,  in  Can- 
ada, and  in  Mexico,  and  groups  are  described  from  all  of 
the  regions  of  South  America.  Most  of  these  groups  are 
petroglyphs  but  this  is  to  be  expected  in  view  of  the  greater 
perishability  of  pictographs." 

"As  a  rule,  all  examples  of  petrography  are  extremely 
crude.  From  the  point  of  view  of  art  and  execution  they 
are  vastly  inferior  to  ceramic,  textile  or  other  decorative 
arts.  It  is  only  in  such  regions  as  Central  America,  where 
stone  sculpturing  reached  a  high  perfection,  that  they  are 
really  good.  Here,  however,  stone  sculpturing  was  a  spe- 
cialty and  the  elaborate,  nicely  finished  carvings  can  hardly 
be  designated  as  'petroglyphs'." 

Mr.  Steward  presents  a  discussion  of  petroglyphs  and 
pictographs. 

"It  is  probably  unfair  to  put  too  much  emphasis  on  petro- 
glyphs as  products  of  art.  In  the  first  place,  the  difficulties 
of  marking  rough  rock  surfaces  with  sharp  boulders  pre- 
clude any  high  degree  of  finish.  In  the  second  place,  the 
kind  of  figures  represented  and  the  localities  in  which  the 
groups  are  placed  show  clearly  that  artistic  merit  was  sec- 
ondary in  the  mind  of  the  creator.  Elaborate  figures  con- 
sisting of  circles,  wavy  lines,  rake  designs,  and  a  multitude 
of  other  indescribable  geometric  elements  with  human,  ani- 
mal, and  possibly  plant  representations  worked  in  as  parts 
of  the  designs;  total  lack  of  symmetry  and  not  infrequent 
superimposition — all  with  a  general  absence  of  care  in  exe- 
cution, can  scarcely  be  regarded  as  attempts  to  give  aes- 
thetic pleasure.  The  usual  remoteness  of  these  groups  from 
habitation  sites  is  a  further  indication  that  they  were  gen- 
erally not  intended  for  the  scrutiny  of  the  community  at 
large. 

"The  technique  of  making  petroglyphs  is  usually  simple. 
A  comparatively  smooth  and  even  rock  surface,  usually 
vertical,  is  chosen  and  the  characters  are  formed  by  peck- 
ing with  a  hammerstone.  Small  boulders  showing  unmis- 
takable evidence  of  such  use  are  frequently  found  in  asso- 
ciation with  petroglyphs.  Sometimes  rubbing  is  also  em- 
ployed. Most  figures  show  clear  evidence  of  hasty  or  care- 
less execution.  Straight  lines  are  seldom  straight,  wavy 


IVtroylyphs  and   Viet  o.^ra  phs.  125 

and  zigzag  lines  are  uneven,  circles  are  rarely  true,  and  the 
few  attempts  at  symmetrical  figures  fall  far  short  of  true 
balance.  Anyone  who  has  attempted  to  make  a  petroglyph, 
however,  knows  that  it  is  a  laborious  task,  and  that  consid- 
erable pains  are  rewarded  by  very  unpleasing  results. 

"Petroglyphs  are  with  few  exceptions  simple  linear  fig- 
ures. Geometric  designs  while  often  complicated  in  their 
combination  of  elements  are  generally  simple  in  detail. 
They  are  seldom  more  than  body,  arms,  legs,  and  head ;  and 
while  the  general  impression  is  good,  details  and  nicety  of 
finish  are  lacking.  For  this  reason  few  quadrupeds  can  be 
identified.  Mountain  sheep  are  characteristically  repre- 
sented by  a  crescent-shaped  or  roughly  oval  body  of  solid 
pecking  with  four  "pins"  of  legs,  and  a  shapeless  head. 
Ears  are  usually  omitted  but  the  long,  recurving  horns  of 
the  ram  are  clearly  represented.  Deer  (or  elk)  may  usu- 
ally be  distinguished  by  their  antlers.  But  to  venture  a 
guess  concerning  the  identity  of  other  quadrupeds  is  ex- 
tremely hazardous.  Humans  are  likewise  crudely  done." 

PlCTOGRAPHS 

Of  these  he  writes :  "Pictographs  as  a  rule  are  superior 
in  form  to  petroglyphs.  Lines  are  straighter,  symmetry 
greater,  and  general  execution  is  superior.  We  have  no  evi- 
dence of  the  method  employed  in  making  them,  but  assume 
that  some  kind  of  a  simple  brush  was  used. 

'The  colors  comprise  red,  black,  white,  yellow  and  orange. 
»lue  and  green  have  been  reported  from  Modoc  county, 
California,  but  are  rare.  Red  is  by  far  the  most  common 
color  in  all  areas.  Black  and  white  are  next  in  importance 
in  Modoc  county,  the  Santa  Barabara-Tulare  county  re- 
gions, and  north  eastern  Arizona.  We  cannot  definitely 
state  the  ingredients  used  since  few  analyses  have  been 
made  of  the  pigments.  Red,  however,  is  probably  often 
haematite  or  ocher  and  possibly  cinnabar ;  black  is  charcoal 
or  some  manganese  compound;  white  may  be  lime;  yellow 
is  probably  ocher.  Many  mortars  containing  traces  of  pig- 
ment show  that  the  paint  was  probably  mixed  with  grease 
and  ground  in  these." 


126  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

ANALYSIS  OF  PETROGRAPHY 

In  order  to  ascertain  the  relationships  of  the  petrographs 
of  the  California  and  adjoining  regions  the  author  has 
analyzed  the  component  designs,  which  make  up  the  bulk 
of  the  petrographs,  into  fifty  elements.  Of  these  design 
elements  those  which  are  found  to  be  generally  distributed 
include  concentric  circles,  wavy  or  zigzag  lines,  human  fig- 
ures, the  sun  disk,  quadrupeds,  mountain  sheep,  hands, 
human  or  bear  tracks,  spirals,  snakes,  stars,  and  dots.  By 
means  of  a  series  of  maps  he  shows  the  frequency  and  dis- 
tribution of  each  of  these  within  the  entire  area. 

Other  elements  are  found  to  occur  in  certain  parts  of  the 
entire  area,  thus  connected  circles  and  netting,  circle  chains, 
bisected  circles,  connected  dots,  circular  and  rectangular 
gridirons,  sheep's  horns,  cross-hatchings,  angular  meanders, 
bird  tracks,  rain  symbols,  outlined  crosses  and  concentric 
diamonds  are  found  in  petroglyphs  in  the  Great  Basin  and 
Lower  California;  parallel  zigzags  in  southwestern  Cali- 
fornia; lizards,  spoked  wheels,  two-edged  saws,  ladders, 
herringbones  and  rake  designs  in  California,  and  dotted 
lines,  cogged  wheels,  human  figures,  pelts,  many-legged  in- 
sects, centipedes  and  others  in  the  Santa  Barbara  and  Tu- 
lare  regions.  In  Utah  and  Arizona  representations  of  liz- 
ards, birds  and  Jtachina-like  figures  .are  found.  Of  scat- 
tered distribution  in  southern  California  and  Arizona  are 
designs  representing  mazes,  the  horned  toad,  horned  hu- 
mans and  men  on  horseback. 

In  discussing  the  meanings  and  purpose  of  petroglyphs 
and  pictographs  the  author  says:  "The  meaning  and  pur- 
pose of  petroglyphs  and  pictographs  can  only  be  ascertained 
through  careful  study  of  the  art  and  symbolism  of  present 
Indian  groups  and  a  comparison  of  these  with  pictographic 
elements."  He  points  out  that  "many  attempts  have  been 
made  by  various  authors  to  deal  with  this  vexing  problem. 
Some  explanations  are  guesses  which  fall  within  the  bounds 
of  probability.  Others  are  theories  of  extreme  absurdity 
and  have  not  the  least  iota  of  truth."  "Innumerable  at- 
tempts have  been  made  to  ascertain  the  meanings  from 
Indians  living  at  present  in  the  regions  where  they  occur. 
These  have  invariably  met  with  failure.  The  Indians  dis- 


Potrog'lyphs  and  1  Mcto.^ra  plis.  127 

claim  all  knowledge  of  their  meaning  or  origin.  This  can 
hardly  be  due  to  reticence  for  intelligent  Indians  have  them- 
selves made  efforts  to  ascertain  something  about  the  in- 
scriptions with  no  success. 

"We  know  that  petrography  was  done  by  Indians.  And, 
as  pointed  out,  even  the  oldest  petroglyphs  probably  do  not 
date  back  more  than  a  few  thousand  years  at  the  most. 
Most  of  the  groups  are  probably  made  by  the  ancestors  of 
present  day  tribes  living  at  or  near  the  regions  of  the 
groups. 

"Since  design  elements  and  style  are  grouped  in  limited 
areas,  the  primitive  artist  must  have  made  the  inscriptions 
with  something  definite  in  mind.  He  must  have  followed  a 
pattern  of  petrography  which  was  in  vogue  in  his  area.  He 
executed,  not  random  drawings,  but  figures  similar  to  those 
made  in  other  parts  of  the  same  area.  The  elements  of  de- 
sign, then,  must  have  had  some  definite  significance  which 
was  the  same  over  wide  areas. 

"We  can  probably  never  know  precisely  why  many  of  the 
petroglyphs  and  pictographs  were  made.  But  we  can  guess 
that  many  of  them  were  made  for  some  religious  or  cere- 
monial purpose. 

Attention  is  called  to  a  custom  of  certain  Pacific  Coast 
tribes  in  which  boys  and  girls  made  pictographs  during 
their  puberty  ceremonies.  These  represented  animals  and 
objects  seen  by  them  in  dreams.  Other  petroglyphs  prob- 
ably had  to  do  with  the  hunt,  or  with  the  magical  increase 
of  game.  Other  realistic  figures  "were  possibly  clan  sym- 
bols, individual  guardian  spirits,  or  shamans  powers." 

Some  petroglyphs  are  "perhaps  of  Basjket  Maker  culture 
which  dates  back  to  1500  to  2000  B.  C.  Some  are  evidently 
Cliff  Dweller  or  early  Pueblo  culture  and  some  others  of 
Apache  or  Navajo  origin." 

"Underlying  the  petrography  of  the  areas  discussed  in 
this  paper  there  was  undoubtedly  an  older  and  more  wide- 
spread development  of  this  art.  In  widely  separated  parts 
of  both  North  and  South  America  are  found  innumerable 
groups  of  both  petroglyphs  and  pictographs.  The  wide- 
spread petroglyphs  are  frequently  strikingly  similar  to 
those  in  our  areas.  The  most  common  designs  are  curvi- 
linear and  many  are  indistinguishable  from  those  in  Area 


128  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   2 

Ao  (Great  Basin).  Human  representations,  sun  disks,  con- 
centric circles,  and  wavy  lines  are  found  everywhere.  Ani- 
mal representations  are  also  widespread,  and  vary  only 
with  the  local  species.  Hand  prints,  bear  tracks,  and  bird 
tracks  occur  throughout  the  United  States. 

"The  relation  of  our  area  to  other  areas  can  be  deter- 
mined only  by  a  study  of  those  areas.  It  may  be  that  many 
of  the  geometric  figures,  particularly  the  curvilinear,  are 
the  natural  result  of  crude  conventionalization  of  symbolism 
and  hence  in  separated  areas  represent  many  cases  of  inde- 
pendent origin  with  totally  different  purpose  and  signifi- 
cance." 

THUNDERBIRD  LEGEND  OF  THE  POST 
CHIPPEWA 

"The  Indians  believe  that  thunder  is  the  voice  of  an  im- 
mense invisible  bird  that  comes  at  times  to  warn  them  that 
the  Great  Spirit  is  displeased  with  something  they  have 
done,  and  that  it  always  comes  when  the  country  is  already 
storm-vexed,  as  the  time  is  then  opportune  to  add  its  voice 
to  the  naturally  saddened  feelings  of  the  people,  thereby 
making  its  presence  more  effective.  The  lightning  they  be- 
lieved to  be  flashes  from  the  eyes  of  this  enormous  bird, 
and  when  the  storm  is  fierce  and  the  flashes  vivid  it  is  taken 
as  a  warning  that  their  bad  deeds  are  many  and  that  their 
retribution  must  be  great.  When  one  is  killed  by  the  fluid 
they  believe  it  is  a  judgment  sent  by  the  Great  Spirit 
through  the  agency  of  this  mysterious  bird. 

"They  call  this  bird  Che-ne-me-ke.  When  they  see  dis- 
tant flashes  of  lightning  and  do  not  hear  the  voice,  as  they 
believe,  of  this  great  bird,  they  know  it  is  at  a  distance,  but 
still  believe  it  is  teaching  a  lesson  to  distant  people  and  will 
soon  be  with  them.  But  should  a  storm  pass  by  without  th< 
voice  and  the  flashes  coming  near  they  they  are  happ: 
again,  for  they  feel  relieved,  believing  that  the  bird  is  not 
angry  with  them.  They  firmly  believe  this  bird  to  be  ai 
agency  of  the  Almighty,  which  is  kept  moving  about  to  kee] 
an  eye  on  the  wrong  doings  of  the  people.  When  a  tree  is 
stricken  and  set  on  fire,  the  lesson  which  it  wishes  to  impart 


I 
I 


Thunderbird   Lr^vml  of  tin-  Post.  129 

has  been  given  and  the  rain  is  sent  to  prevent  the  fire  from 
destroying  the  country. 

"There  is  a  point  of  land  in  this  part  of  the  country  that 
the  Indians  call  Pa-qua-a-wong — meaning  a  forest  destroyed 
by  the  great  thunder  bird.  I  have  visited  this  place.  It  is 
now  almost  a  barren.  The  timber  which  was  once  upon  it 
having  been  destroyed  by  lightning  the  Indians  believed 
that  the  storm  bird  destroyed  this  forest  to  show  its  wrath, 
that  they  might  profit  by  the  lesson.  A  hunting  party  of 
Indians  was  once  caught  on  this  barren  in  a  thunder  storm, 
and  took  refuge  under  the  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree,  which  had 
been  burnt  sufficiently  on  the  under  side  to  give  them  shel- 
ter. One  of  the  party,  in  his  hurry  to  get  out  of  the  rain, 
left  his  gun  standing  against  the  log.  The  lightning  struck 
it,  running  down  the  barrel  and  twisting  it  into  many 
shapes,  and  destroyed  it,  and  the  owner  of  this  gun  was 
thereafter  pointed  out  by  the  whole  band  as  the  person  upon 
whom  the  storm  bird  desired  to  bestow  its  frowns.  (Ben- 
jamin Armstrong,  Early  Life  Among  the  Indians.) 

Pa-qua-a-wong  was  the  Chippewa  Indian  name  for  the 
locality  on  the  Chippewa  River,  in  Sawyer  County,  known 
as  The  Post,  and  where  an  Indian  trading  post  and  Indian 
settlement  was  for  many  years  located. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  how,  even  among  the  Christian 
Indians  of  our  Wisconsin  reservations,  this  superstitious 
belief  in  the  thunderbird,  or  a  flock  of  these  storm  birds, 
persists.  Last  year  a  prominent  Potawatomi  was  asked 
whether  he  had  noticed  a  thunderstorm  which  passed  dur- 
ing the  night.  He  replied  that  he  had,  and  that  he  greatly 
regretted  that  he  had  had  no  Indian  tobacco  at  hand  to  offer 
to  the  thunderer. 

Some  spherical  stones  obtained  from  a  Winnebago  Indian 
were  said  to  be  thunderbird  eggs  or  arrows,  and  were  be- 
lieved by  him  to  be  a  protection  against  lightning  strokes. 
Similar  thunder  stones  were  collected  among  the  pagan 
Menomini. 


130  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 


WINNEBOUJOU 

Winneboujou,  the  blacksmith,  was  an  all-powerful  mani- 
tou.  His  forge  was  near  the  Eau  Claire  Lakes,  in  northern 
Wisconsin.  He  used  the  highest  flat-topped  granite  peak 
for  his  anvil.  Here  he  shaped  the  mis-wa-bik,  or  native 
copper  of  the  Brule  River  region,  into  various  useful  weap- 
ons and  implements  for  the  Chippewa  Indians.  He  was  es- 
pecially skillful  at  shaping  the  strong  copper  spear  points 
and  fishhooks  required  for  the  catching  of  the  giant  sen-e- 
sug-ge-go,  or  speckled  trout,  which  abounded  in  the  clear 
spring  waters  at  the  Lake  Superior  mouth  of  the  Brule. 

Much  of  Winneboujou's  forging  was  done  by  moonlight 
and  the  ringing  blows  of  his  pe-wabik  (iron)  hammer  were 
heard  by  the  Indians  even  as  far  down  the  shore  of  Lake 
Superior  as  the  Sault  Rapids.  These  booming  noises  yet 
echo  down  the  Brule  Valley  and  the  Lake  region,  especially 
on  clear,  moonlight  nights.  The  glow  of  his  forge  fire  often 
lit  up  the  entire  sky. 

The  sound  of  the  smith's  great  hammer  was  considered 
"good  medicine"  by  the  Chippewa,  and  was  held  in  great 
awe  by  the  visiting  Sioux.  An  Indian,  hearing  the  noise 
became  possessed  with  industry  and  strength. 

Winneboujou's  summer  home  was  on  the  Brule  near  its 
source  because  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  keep  an  eye  on 
Ah-mik,  the  Beaver,  a  rival  manitou,  who  might,  if  not 
watched,  slip  across  the  o-ne-gum  (portage)  to  the  St.  Croix 
River,  and  then,  by  the  way  of  the  Mississippi  River,  reach 
the  Gulf.  (Chippewa  Myth) 


Archeological  Notes.  131 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Meetings 

October  20,  1929.  President  Huron  H.  Smith  conducted  the  meet- 
ing. There  were  sixty-five  members  and  visitors  in  attendance.  Mr. 
John  G.  Gregory  delivered  an  address  on  "The  Milwaukee  Indian 
Villages".  The  speaker  described  in  a  very  interesting  way  the  sev- 
eral Potawatomi  Indian  villages  located  in  an  early  day  in  the  east, 
south  and  west  sides  of  the  city.  These  he  stated  it  was  proposed  to 
finally  mark  with  tablets  for  the  information  of  present  and  future 
residents  of  the  city.  His  address  was  discussed  by  the  Messrs.  West, 
Brown,  Schoewe  and  other  members  present. 

Mr.  W.  C.  McKern  presented  a  report  on  recent  archeological  in- 
vestigations and  publications  in  other  states.  Secretary  Charles  E. 
Brown  reported  on  the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board,  held  earlier 
in  the  evening. 

Mr.  William  H.  Spohn,  Madison,  had  been  elected  a  life  member 
of  the  Society.  Annual  members  elected  were  Mrs.  Rudolph  Kuehne, 
Sheboygan;  Albert  H.  Griffith,  Fisk;  Harvey  W.  Radke,  West  Bend; 
L.  0.  Winterhalter,  Maywood,  Illinois,  and  W.  C.  Congdon,  Logans- 
port,  Indiana.  W.  S.  Dunsmoor,  a  junior  member,  became  an  annual 
member.  Charles  Lapham,  Milwaukee,  a  former  annual  member,  was 
elected  an  honorary  member.  The  deaths  were  announced  of  Mr. 
Arthur  C.  Neville,  Green  Bay;  Mr.  Rudolph  Kuehne,  Sheboygan,  and 
Mr.  John  M.  Wulfiing,  St.  Louis,  charter  members  of  the  Society. 

It  had  been  decided  to  unveil  the  marker  on  the  Fourth  and  W.  Wis- 
consin Avenue  Potawatomi  village  site  on  the  morning  of  October  29. 
This  tablet,  presented  by  Mr.  Walter  Schroeder,  has  been  placed  at 
the  entrance  of  Hotel  Schroeder.  Mr.  Gregory  had  been  selected  to 
give  the  unveiling  address. 

Tablets  had  been  erected  during  the  summer  on  a  group  of  mounds 
located  in  Forest  Hill  cemetery  at  Madison,  and  on  the  site  of  the 
Grignon-Porlier  fur-trading  post  at  Butte  des  Morts.  A  movement 
was  progressing  to  preserve  the  old  U.  S.  Indian  Agency  House  at 
Portage.  Mr.  C.  E.  Broughton  had  caused  the  erection  of  a  tablet  on 
an  Indian  village  site  at  Adell,  Sheboygan  County.  A  field  meeting 
of  members  of  the  Society  had  been  held  at  Mr.  Robert  J.  Kieck- 
hefer's  Pistaka  farm  preserve  at  Brookfield  Corners,  Waukesha 
County,  on  Saturday,  June  15. 

Exhibits  of  archaeological  specimens  were  made  by  C.  E.  Brown 
and  C.  G.  Schoewe. 

November  17,  1929.  This  meeting  was  held  at  the  log  cabin  of  Mr. 
Robert  J.  Kieckhefer  at  Pishtaka  Farm,  at  Brookfield.  There  were 
forty  members  and  several  guests  in  attendance.  Mr.  John  G.  Greg- 
ory, the  speaker  of  the  occasion,  gave  a  talk  on  the  "Early  Indian 
Inhabitants  of  Milwaukee  County"  describing  the  chiefs  and  redmen 
which  the  earliest  settlers  found  occupying  the  land.  His  account  was 
very  interesting  and  contained  much  information  not  recorded  in 
county  histories.  Mr.  Vetal  Winn  made  a  preliminary  report  on  the 
condition  of  some  Indian  mounds  located  in  Milwaukee  and  at  West 
Allis.  Mr.  Arthur  P.  Kannenberg  reported  that  he  had  undertaken 
a  study  of  the  Indian  earthenware  vessels  of  the  state,  the  Oshkosh 
Museum  agreeing  to  pay  the  expenses.  The  report  to  be  published 
by  the  Society. 

President  Smith  informed  the  members  that  the  meeting  was  prac- 
tically a  house  warming  of  Mr.  Kieckhefer's  fine  log  cabin  retreat. 


132  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   2 

Mr.  Kieckhefer,  being  called  upon  spoke  briefly  expressing  his 
pleasure  at  the  number  and  enthusiasm  of  those  in  attendance.  At 
the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board,  held  before  the  opening  of  the 
regular  meeting,  Mr.  Kieckhefer  was  unanimously  elected  a  member 
of  the  Board. 

Mr.  T.  M.  N.  Lewis  and  Mr.  Milton  K.  Hulburt  were  elected  mem- 
bers of  the  standing  committee  on  Survey,  Research  and  Record  in 
recognition  of  their  recent  activities  in  survey  and  exploration  work. 

Exhibits  of  specimens  were  made  by  Mr.  Paul  Joers  and  Mr.  Ru- 
dolph Boettger. 

December  23,  1929.  Meeting  held  in  the  trustee  room  of  the  Mil- 
waukee Museum.  There  were  thirty  members  present.  President 
Smith  occupied  the  chair.  Mr.  Ira  Edwards  gave  an  illustrated  lec- 
ture on  "The  Making  of  Maps,"  being  an  account  of  the  methods 
employed  by  the  U.  S.  engineers  in  making  coast  surveys. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board  at  which  directors  Smith, 
West,  Brown,  Kieckhefer,  McKern  and  Koerner  were  present,  Mr. 
W.  H.  Pugh  of  Racine  was  elected  a  life  member  and  Mr.  Arthur  C. 
Soergel  of  Elgin,  Illinois,  an  annual  member  of  the  Society.  Mr. 
Smith  announced  the  names  of  various  members  who  were  to  be  in- 
vited to  engage  in  the  study  of  various  classes  of  Indian  implements 
occurring  in  the  state.  Secretary  Brown  proposed  that  the  site  of  the 
next  early  Milwaukee  Indian  village  to  be  marked  be  that  of  the  so- 
called  Lime  Ridge  village  located  in  an  early  day  at  21st  and  Cly- 
bourne  Streets,  Milwaukee.  This  matter  was  referred  to  the  special 
committee  of  which  Messrs.  West,  Gregory  and  Brown  are  the  mem- 
bers. 

January  20,  1930.  Meeting  held  at  the  Milwaukee  Museum.  Pres- 
ident Smith  opened  the  meeting.  There  were  sixty-three  members 
and  visitors  present.  Mr.  George  A.  West  gave  an  illustrated  lecture 
on  "The  Ancient  Cave  Dwellings  of  France",  describing  particularly 
those  near  Toulouse  visited  by  him  during  the  early  part  of  the  past 
year.  Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen  exhibited  an  exceptionally  fine  collection 
of  nine  stone  adzes  and  adze-celts. 

At  the  Executive  Board  meeting  held  at  the  City  Club  Mr.  McKern, 
chairman  of  the  special  committee  consisting  of  the  Messrs.  Gilman, 
Dr.  Kastner,  Drs.  Notz  and  Thome,  appointed  to  consider  plans  for 
the  entertainment  of  the  Central  Section,  A.  A.  A.,  presented  a  tenta- 
tive report  of  his  committee.  Mr.  George  Flaskerd  of  Minneapolis 
was  elected  an  annual  member  of  the  Society.  Dr.  Barrett  stated 
that  the  Milwaukee  Museum  welcomed  the  cooperation  of  the  Society 
in  entertaining  the  Central  Section. 

The  Michigan  State  Archeological  Society  held  its  winter  meeting 
at  the  University  Museum  at  Ann  Arbor,  on  Friday,  January  24. 
Papers  of  interest  to  the  members  were  presented  by  Dr.  W.  B.  Hins- 
dale,  Edward  J.  Stevens,  Harry  L.  Spooner,  Melvin  R.  Gilmore,  Fred 
Dustin  and  Dana  P.  Smith.  A  visit  was  made  to  the  exhibition  rooms 
of  the  museum. 

Other  Items 

Mr.  Alonzo  Pond  has  returned  to  Algiers  to  continue  his  hunt  for 
remains  of  Aurignacian  man  in  that  country.  Mr.  George  R.  Fox  has 
been  conducting  archeological  researches  in  the  Bahamas  and  else- 
where. Mr.  Theodore  T.  Brown  has  succeeded  the  late  Mr.  Arthur 
C.  Neville  as  superintendent  of  the  Neville  Public  Museum  at  Green 
Bay.  This  is  the  seventy-fifth  anniversary  year  of  the  State  Histori- 
cal Museum  of  Wisconsin.  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg  has  been  selected 


ArclK'olog-ical  Notes.  133 

to  edit  a  new  edition  of  "Wau-Bun".     Col.  Fred  T.  Best  is  the  chair- 
man of  the  committee  appointed  to  prepare  for  its  publication. 

An  announcement  has  been  received  of  the  publication  of  our  late 
friend  Mr.  Harry  Ellsworth  Cole's  book,  "Stagecoach  and  Tavern 
Tales  of  the  Old  Northwest."  The  Arthur  H.  Clark  Company,  Cleve- 
land, are  its  publishers.  "The  Old  Northwest  was  settled  in  the  days 
before  railroads,  when  every  pioneer  provided  his  own  transportation 
and  every  cabin  offered  hospitality.  Soon  stagecoaches  began  to  ply 
over  the  first  primitive  roads  and  certain  frontiersmen  adopted  the 
profession  of  innkeepers — others  of  bandits.  In  these  early  taverns 
and  along  these  first  roads  occurred  many  amusing  and  tragic  inci- 
dents, rich  with  the  flavor  of  pioneer  life  and  racy  with  the  humor  of 
the  quaint  personalities  of  the  time/' 


tl,  1930 

NEW  SERIES 


.  3 


BARBED  STONE  AXES 

KOHLER  MUSEUM 

CENTRAL  SECTION  MEETING 

COPPER  KNIVES 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec.  1103, 
Act,  Oct.  3,  1917.      Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation   of  Wisconsin   antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

Charles  G.   Schoewe 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

W.  W.  Oilman  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand          W.  C.  McKern 

A.  P.  Kannenberg 

DIRECTORS 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  A.  T.  Newman  Vetal  Winn 

H.  H.  Smith  E.  F.  Richter  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm 

Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  L.  R.  Whitney  T.  L.  Miller 

Geo.  A.  West 


TREASURER 

G.    M.    Thorne 
National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  F. 
Bauchle,  Geo.  F.  Overton,  M.  F.  Hulburt,  T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Dr.  E. 
J.  W.  Notz,  0.  L.  Hollister,  Dr.  F.  G.  Logan,  T.  T.  Brown,  Dr.  B.  T. 
Best,  S  W.  Faville,  Col.  R.  S.  Owen,  G.  L.  Pasco. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Frank  Weston, 
Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr.  Orrin  Thompson,  Mrs.  F.  R.  Melcher, 
Col.  Howard  Greene,  Rev.  O.  W.  Smith,  M.  G.  Troxell,  H.  W.  Cor- 
nell, W.  P.  Morgan,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  A.  H.  Griffith. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— L.  R.  Whitney,  Col.  Marshall  Cousins, 
Mrs.  Arthur  C.  Neville,  Geo.  A.  West,  W.  M.  Babcock,  R.  N.  Buck- 
staff,  Prof.  J.  B.  MacIIarg,  Dr.  P.  B.  Jenkins,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton, 
A.  P.  Kannenberg,  Mrs.  May  L.  Bauchle,  B.  M.  Palmer. 

MEMBERSHIP — Louis  Pierron,  Paul  Joers,  A.  R.  Rogers,  Arthur 
Gerth,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  Rud.  Boettger,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  H.  W. 
Kuhm,  Mrs.  Anna  F.  Johnson,  K.  Freckman,  Geo.  Wright,  Mrs. 
Hans  A.  Olson,  Carl  Baur,  C.  G.  Weyl. 

STATE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  PARKS— R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  R.  P.  Ferry, 
D.  S.  Rowland. 

PUBLICITY— J.  G.  Gregory,  A.  O.  Barton,  E.  R.  Mclntyre,  R.  K.  Coe. 
BIOGRAPHY— H.  H.  Smith,  G.  M.  Thome,  C.  E.  Brown. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeolog-ical  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Muesum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  9,  No.  3,  New  Series 

ARTICLES 

Page 
Barbed  Stone  Axes,  Charles  E.  Brown 139 

The  Kohler  Museum 143 

The  Largest  Copper  Knives,  Theo.  T.  Brown 145 

Dr.  Louise  Phelps  Kellogg 147 

The  Bear  Dance  of  the  Ouray  Utes,  Albert  B.  Reagan 148 

A  Fluted  Handled  Celt 150 

Fraudulent  Indian  Implements 151 

The  Central  Section  Meeting 152 

State  Archeological  Survey,  1920 154 

Gerard  Fowke 157 

Hopewell  and  Cahokia  Cultures  in  Wisconsin,  W.  C.  McKern 160 

Archeological  Notes 162 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Rudolph  Kuehne Frontispiece 

Michigan  Barbed  Axes Facing  Page  140 


\ 


RUDOLPH   KUEHNE 
Wisconsin  Archeologist 


I'ublisluMl    Quarterly    by    the   Wisconsin    Archeoloftical    Society 

Vol.   1>  MADISON,  WIS,,  APRIL,   1»30  No.  3 

New  Series 


BARBED  STONE  AXES 
Charles  E.  Brown 

The  stone  axes  designated  by  Michigan  archeologists  as 
"barbed"  axes  are  distinguished  from  other  forms  of 
grooved  and  notched  axes  in  having  a  poll  or  head  which  is 
conical  or  "peaked"  in  outline  and  in  having  more  or  less 
prominent  projections  or  "barbs"  both  above  and  below 
the  handle  groove.  A  few  specimens  have  a  poll  with  a 
flattened  or  rounded  top  (not  "peaked")  Some  of  these 
singular  axes  are  merely  deeply  notched  at  the  edges  (they 
possess  no  groove)  while  others  are  encircled  by  a  well 
fashioned  groove.  This  groove  varies  in  depth  in  differ- 
ent specimens,  being  rather  shallow  in  some  and  of  fair 
depth  in  others. 

Some  of  these  axes  have  a  quite  prominent  ridge  or  ele- 
vation above  and  below  the  handle  groove.  These  ridges 
separate  the  poll  and  the  axe  blade  from  the  groove  and 
undoubtedly  helped  greatly  to  hold  the  wooden  handle  more 
firmly  in  place.  The  blades  of  these  axes  are  generally 
broad,  narrowing  gradually  toward  the  curved  or  nearly 
straight  cutting  edge.  Some  possess  blades  which  narrow 
rapidly  toward  the  bit  and  are  thus  somewhat  triangular 
in  outline.  The  surfaces  of  the  blades  of  some  are  flattened 
but  most  are  elliptical  in  section.  The  character  of  the 
blades  of  some  of  these  axes  indicates  that  they  were  oc- 
casionally or  frequently  re-sharpened  by  grinding. 

The  largest  and  best  collection  of  these  barbed  axes  is 
that  of  Mr.  M.  E.  Hathaway  of  St.  Johns,  Michigan.  But 
few  of  the  specimens  in  his  collection  are  polished.  They 
are  as  a  rule  well  made  and  smoothly  finished.  The  smal- 
lest specimen  in  his  collection  measures  5%  inches  in  length 
and  3%  inches  in  width  at  its  widest  part,  below  the  handle 
groove.  It  is  a  pretty  well  polished  axe.  Its  weight  is 


140  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   3 

17  ounces.  The  largest  axe,  a  rather  remarkable  specimen, 
is  10  inches  long,  and  is  5  inches  in  width  at  its  widest 
part,  just  below  the  handle  groove.  Its  weight  is  three 
pounds  and  ten  ounces.  Some  of  Mr.  Hathaway's  most  in- 
teresting and  best  specimens  the  writer  has  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  examining,  this  through  his  kindness. 

These  barbed  axes  are  made  from  a  variety  of  rocks, 
among  them  being  granite,  syenite,  porphyry,  greenstone 
and  diorite.  Quite  a  few  of  the  specimens  show  marks  of 
use  on  their  polls  and  blades. 

NUMBERS  AND  DISTRIBUTION 

The  number  of  these  axes  which  have  been  found  in 
Michigan  is  small  when  compared  to  the  very  large  number 
of  stone  axes  which  have  been  recovered  in  that  state. 
Mr.  Hathaway  has  sixty  specimens  in  his  own  collection 
at  St.  Johns.  His  collection  was  begun  in  the  year 
1890.  Seventy  other  specimens  are  in  the  hands  of  other 
collectors,  original  finders  and  museums  in  southern  Mich- 
igan. It  is  estimated  that  not  less  than  160  specimens 
have  been  found  to  date.  All,  so  far  as  known,  have  been 
recovered  from  fields  and  Indian  camp  or  village  sites. 
None  are  reported  from  mounds  or  graves.  No  cache  or 
hoard  of  two  or  more  has  been  reported.  Mr.  Hathaway 
has  never  seen  a  typical  barbed  axe  from  any  other  state. 

The  specimens  in  the  Hathaway  collection  were  collected 
from  the  following  closely  grouped  southern  Michigan 
counties : 


Clinton 

27 

Montcalm 

1 

Isabella 

1 

Ionia 

11 

Saginaw 

1 

Mecosta 

1 

Ingham 

___     5 

Eaton 

1 

Wexford 

1 

Shiawassee 

5 

Kent 

1 

Missaukee 

1 

Gratiot 

3 

The  area  of  distribution  of  barbed  axes  in  southern 
Michigan  is  rather  restricted.  It  may  be  roughly  outlined 
as  extending  from  near  Bay  City  at  the  head  of  Saginaw 
Bay  of  Lake  Huron  westward  through  Midland  County  and 
into  Mecosta  County.  From  Mecosta  County,  its  now 
known  western  limit  passes  southward  into  Moncalm,  Ionia 
and  Eaton  counties.  From  Eaton  County  it  continues 
eastward  into  Ingham  County,  and  then  northward  through 


MICHIGAN    BARBED    STONE    AXES' 

Hathaway   Collection 

Plate   1 


Barbed  Stone  Axes.  141 

Shiawassee  County  to  Saginaw  County.  Clinton  County 
lies  near  the  center  of  the  area  of  distribution  described. 
Mr.  Hathaway  believes  that  the  manufacture  of  these  axes 
centered  in  Clinton  County.  Most  of  his  own  specimens 
were  collected  within  a  triangle  located  between  St.  Johns, 
Pompeii  and  Pewano  in  Clinton  County.  Eaton  and  Ing- 
ham  counties  adjoin  Clinton  County  on  the  south.  Isabella 
County  was  the  known  farthest  northern  range  of 
the  barbed  axe,  but  two  specimens  have  since  been  obtained 
by  Mr.  Hathaway  from  Wexford  and  Missaukee  counties, 
two  tiers  of  counties  farther  north. 

Mr.  C.  V.  Fuller  of  Grand  Ledge,  Michigan,  a  well  known 
archeologist,  who  has  been  an  ardent  collector  of  Indian 
implements  for  sixty  years,  says  of  these  barbed  axes  in  a 
letter  bearing  the  date  of  March  2,  1930:'  "Of  the  stone 
axes  classed  under  the  head  of  barbed  forms  I  have  col- 
lected some  fifteen  specimens  all  told  during  the  past  fifty 
years  and  I  have  seen  eight  or  ten  more  in  the  hands  of 
finders.  My  opinion  is  that  they  were  put  to  the  same  uses 
that  the  less  elaborate  forms  were.  My  specimens  were  all 
found  in  the  counties  of  Eaton,  Clinton,  Ionia  and  Gratiot. 
These  counties  adjoin  each  other.  More  of  them  have 
been  found  in  Clinton  County  than  in  any  other,  so  far  as 
I  have  been  able  to  learn.  Most  of  Mr.  Hathaway's  speci- 
mens were  found  there.  They  are  not  found  to  any  ex- 
tent south  of  the  Eaton  County  line.  I  have  seen  two  speci- 
mens that  were  said  to  have  come  from  Ohio.  There  is  a 
collection  numbering  two  hundred  axes  in  the  Pioneer  Mu- 
seum at  Lansing,  Michigan,  which  were  collected  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  state  and  there  is  not  one  barbed  axe 
in  the  lot.  Yes,  they  show  use  and  many  appear  to  have 
been  re-sharpened.  I  have  seen  several  that  have  been 
broken  and  then  used  for  some  other  purpose  such  as  for  a 
maul  or  hammer  stone.  I  have  seen  others  with  one  or 
more  of  the  barbs  broken  off  and  also  with  the  poll  broken. 
The  fractures  showed  age,  as  if  broken  in  use. 

"There  are  several  collections  in  this  part  of  the  state  in 
which  there  are  one  or  more  barbed  axes,  all  local  finds. 
Several  of  these  barbed  axes  that  have  come  under  my  ob- 
servation have  knobs  or  barbs  on  the  flat  side  of  the  blade." 

My  own  attention  was  first  drawn  to  these  interesting 


142  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOC.IST.  Vol.    9,   No.    ? 

axes  about  thirty  years  ago  when  engaged  in  a  study  of 
some  of  the  heavier  stone  cutting  implements  of  the  Middle 
West  states.  The  first  specimens  of  which  I  then  obtained 
a  knowledge  were  in  the  collections  of  Rev.  James  Savage 
of  Detroit  and  of  Mr.  Fuller.  Prof.  Warren  K.  Moorehead 
has  figured  three  of  the  Savage  specimens  in  his  book  "Pre- 
historic Implements",  published  in  1900.  Two  of  these  he 
also  illustrates  in  his  other  book,  "The  Stone  Age  in  North 
America",  (Vol.  1,  Fig.  275).  These,  he  states,  were  found 
in  Washtenaw  and  Jackson  counties  in  southeastern  Michi- 
gan. These  counties  lie  south  of  Ingham  County  elsewhere 
mentioned.  A  double-bitted  barbed  axe,  also  in  the  Savage 
collection,  comes  from  Lenawee  County,  south  of  these  coun- 
ties, in  the  southeastern  corner  of  the  state.  (See  Moore- 
head's  Fig.  274.) 

Some  stone  axes,  single  specimens,  which  approach  the 
barbed  axes  in  form  but  lack  the  prominent  barbs  of  these 
implements  have  been  found  in  Maine  and  Connecticut  and 
in  the  Miami  Valley  in  Ohio.  (See  Moorehead's  Figs.  249, 
254,  258,  260,  and  265)  A  few  Wisconsin  axes  also  bear  a 
general  resemblance  to  them. 

It  appears  to  be  evident  that  the  barbed  axe  is  a  local 
type  largely  confined  in  its  distribution  to  a  more  or  less 
limited  area  in  southern  Michigan  where  it  was  probably 
Developed,  manufactured  and  used  by  some  prehistoric  In- 
dian people.  We  may  hazard  a  belief  that  it  is  an  Algonkin 
artifact.  It  is  not  a  Hopewell  or  Cahokia  culture  type. 

To  a  recent  issue  of  "Indian  Notes",  the  quarterly  publi- 
cation of  the  Museum  of  the  American  Indian,  New  York 
City,  Marshall  H.  Saville  has  contributed  a  paper  in  which 
he  illustrates  and  describes  some  of  the  very  interesting 
stone  ceremonial  axes  of  western  Mexico.1  He  describes 
four  distinct  types  of  these  figurine  axes  from  as  many  dis- 
tinct areas,  each  probably  the  product  of  a  different  pre- 
historic axe  cult.  Briefly  described  these  are:  1.  axes 
"with  animal  heads  and  more  or  less  sickle-shape  cutting 
edges",  2.  axes  with  animal  heads  and  ordinary  curved  cut- 
ting edges,  3.  axes  carved  in  human  form,  and  4.  axes  with 
a  face  worked  on  one  side  of  the  poll.  He  also  mentions 
several  other  distinct  Mexican  ceremonial  axe  forms  occur- 


1  V.  5,  No.  3,  July  1928. 


The  Kohler  Museum.  143 

ring  in  other  culture  areas.  He  concludes  his  paper  with 
the  following  information :  "The  writer  knows  of  but  two 
other  culture  areas  in  ancient  America  where  unusual  axe 
forms  are  encountered :  these  are  the  Antilles  and  Ecuador. 
In  the  Antilles  especially  are  many  one-utilitarian  axes  in 
a  bewildering  variety  of  bizarre  shapes.  In  Ecuador,  how- 
ever, the  axes  seem  to  have  been  utilitarian,  while  many  of 
the  Antillean  examples  must  have  been  purely  ceremonial, 
revealing  a  cult  of  the  axe  in  the  West  Indies.  Into  this 
category  the  monolithic  axes  treated  in  a  former  paper 
would  be  included." 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  rather  abundant 
fluted  stone  axes  of  southern  Wisconsin,  the  long-bladed 
adze-form  axes  not  so  common  in  the  same  general  region, 
the  ridged-blade  axes,  also  apparently  a  Wisconsin  prod- 
uct; the  pitted  blade  axes  of  northern  Illinois;  the  Keokuk 
type  axes  of  eastern  Iowa,  the  Missouri  axes  having  a 
groove  extending  over  the  poll  to  the  handle  groove;  the 
barbed  axes  of  southern  Michigan,  and  the  twist-grooved 
long-bladed  actinolite  axes  of  the  Pueblo  region  are  all  the 
products  of  prehistoric  Indian  axe  cults.  They  are  utili- 
tarian implements  but  probably  also  ceremonial  in  charac- 
ter. The  knobbed  gouges  of  Ontario  and  the  bevelled-edge 
celts  of  New  York  may  be  the  distinctive  implements  of 
other  prehistoric  cutting  implement  cults. 

THE  KOHLER  MUSEUM 

The  Rudolph  Kuehne  collection  one  of  Wisconsin's  rich- 
est and  most  valuable  private  archeological  collections  has 
been  acquired  by  the  Kohler  family  of  Kohler,  Wisconsin. 
It  will  form  the  nucleus  of  a  future  public  museum  at 
Kohler. 

The  donors,  Governor  and  Mrs.  Walter  J.  Kohler,  Her- 
bert V.  Kohler  and  the  Misses  Evangeline  Kohleri  Marie 
C.  Kohler  and  Lillie  B.  Kohler,  purchased  the  collection 
from  Mrs.  Emma  Kuehne,  widow  of  Rudolph  Kuehne,  the 
well-known  pioneer  jeweler-archeologist  of  Sheboygan. 
Included  with  the  purchase  is  a  natural  history  collection 


About  70  of  the   Keokuk  type  axes  have  been  found  to  date  in 
Iowa. — C.  R.  Keyes. 


144  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,  No.   3 

of  largely  local  material  and  Mr.  Kuehne's  library  of  scien- 
tific magazines  and  books. 

"Only  the  indefatigable  industry  and  painstaking  care  of 
a  watchmaker  such  as  Rudolph  Kuehne,  could  have  made 
possible  so  fine  a  collection  of  Indian  artifacts,"  Governor 
Kohler  asserted,  in  commenting  upon  the  first  step  in  the 
direction  of  the  establishment  of  a  future  public  museum 
at  Kohler.  The  Governor  had  been  a  life  long  friend  of 
Mr.  Kuehne  and  because  of  his  great  personal  interest  in 
him  encouraged  the  generous  deed  which  preserves  this 
valuable  collection  of  archeological  and  other  specimens  to 
the  people  of  Kohler  and  of  Sheboygan  County,  within 
whose  boundaries  it  was  almost  entirely  collected  by  its 
former  owner. 

Mr.  Kuehne,  a  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society  who  died  on  March  11,  1929,  began  assembling  his 
collection  some  thirty-five  years  ago,  when  conditions  for 
gathering  specimens  were  favorable.  He  lived  near  several 
former  Indian  village  sites  on  the  banks  of  the  Black  River 
south  of  Sheboygan  and  he  was  among  the  first  to  appre- 
ciate fully  the  opportunity  there  offered  to  engage  in  a 
study  of  the  life  and  customs  of  their  former  inhabitants. 

For  many  years  he  continued  to  visit  regularly  these  ab- 
original sites  and  to  place  in  his  collection  his  numerous 
finds  of  stone,  copper  and  pottery  and  other  artifacts.  He 
also  visited  frequently  a  similar  site  at  old  New  Amsterdam, 
on  the  Lake  Michigan  shore  near  Cedar  Grove.  He  also 
made  collections  in  other  parts  of  Sheboygan  County. 

Besides  a  fine  group  of  pottery  vessels,  some  of  them 
found  entire  and  others  restored  with  great  care,  the 
Kuehne  collection  contains  a  very  considerable  number  of 
native  copper  implements  and  ornaments,  and  some  fine 
fluted  stone  axes.  One  of  the  latter  is  without  a  doubt  the 
finest  specimen  of  its  class  as  yet  found  in  the  state.  It 
was  collected  near  Cedar  Grove. 

Among  the  copper  implements  in  the  collection  are  555 
fishhooks,  88  spearpoints,  24  knives,  17  perforators,  awls, 
needles,  arrowpoints,  axes,  chisels,  harpoon  points,  a  spud, 
scraper,  crescents,  bangles,  earrings,  beads  and  other  speci- 
mens. The  collection  of  flint  implements  is  very  large  and 
includes  specimens  of  a  wide  range  of  form  and  purpose. 


The  Largest  Copper  Knives.  145 

Stone  ceremonials  and  ornaments  include  23  gorgets,  10 
pendants,  6  banner  stones,  2  boat  stones,  a  tube  and  a  cone. 
There  are  a  number  of  pottery  and  stone  pipes.  There  are 
bone  awls,  needles,  harpoons,  flakers  and  other  bone  imple- 
ments. 

In  the  'collection  of  earthenware  are  5  large  vessels,  8 
medium  size  pots,  4  small  pots,  a  miniature  vessel,  and  12 
other  vessels  were  in  progress  of  restoration  at  the  time  of 
their  owners  death.  The  restoration  of  others  remains  to 
be  undertaken.  There  are  besides  no  less  than  a  thousand 
potsherds  nearly  all  showing  ornamentation. 

Milwaukee  archeologists  and  collectors  especially  fre- 
quently visited  Mr.  Kuehne  at  his  Black  River  summer 
home  during  his  life  time  and  always  spent  considerable 
time  with  him  on  the  sites  which  were  his  constant  study. 
All  are  pleased  that  his  valuable  collection  has  been  pre- 
served in  his  home  county  through  the  interest  and  genero- 
sity of  his  friends,  the  members  of  the  Kohler  family. 
When  installed  in  a  proper  museum  building  at  Kohler  it 
will  become  a  monument  to  his  interest  in  Wisconsin 
archeological  history  and  of  permanent  educational  benefit 
to  the  general  public. 

THE  LARGEST  COPPER  KNIVES 

The  largest  socketted  native  copper  knife  which  has 
come  to  our  attention  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  M.  E.  Hatha- 
way of  St.  Johns,  Michigan.  This  fine  copper  artifact  we 
have  recently  had  the  opportunity  of  examining.  It  was 
found,  its  owner  states,  by  John  Sheridan  in  Section  20, 
Fulton  Township,  Gratiot  County,  in  central  Michigan. 

The  long  slightly  curved  blade  of  this  knife  is  11  inches 
in  length  and  its  socketted  tang  or  handle  2%  inches  in 
length,  making  its  total  length  13%  inches.  The  handle 
is  about  one  inch  in  width  at  its  end  and  1%  inches  in  width 
where  it  unites  with  the  blade  of  the  knife.  The  widest 
part  of  the  blade  (one-half  inch  beyond  the  socket)  is  about 
1%  inches.  From  this  point  it  curves  gradually  to  the 
point  or  tip  of  the  blade.  At  a  distance  of  5  inches  be- 
yond the  socket  the  width  of  the  blade  is  one  inch.  The 
back  of  the  blade  of  this  knife  has  a  slight  median  ridge, 


146  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.    3 

an  uncommon  feature  in  copper  knives.  The  color  of  this 
fine  knife  is  a  very  dark  green,  almost  black. 

We  may  wonder  to  what  particular  use  so  large  a  knife 
may  have  been  put  by  its  aboriginal  owner.  Possessing 
a  socket  it  may  once  have  had  a  wooden  handle  or  have 
been  fastened  to  the  end  of  a  wooden  shaft.  If  employed 
as  a  weapon  it  was  a  formidable  one.  The  socket  does  not 
have  a  rivet  hole. 

A  large  socketted  copper  knife  in  the  H.  P.  Hamilton  col- 
lection in  the  State  Historical  Museum  at  Madison  has  a 
length  of  11%  inches.  It  was  found  in  Section  24,  Pitts- 
ville  Township,  Brown  County,  Wisconsin.  One  of  the 
largest  known  copper  knives  of  any  type  was  in  the  collec- 
tion of  the  late  James  G.  Picketts,  a  former  member  of  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society.  This  specimen  measured 
171/2  inches  in  length.  It  is  probably  with  the  other  cop- 
per specimens  of  this  collection  in  the  Oshkosh  Public  Mu- 
seum. It  had  a  pointed  tang.  It  weighed  11  ounces.*  Mr. 
Geo.  A.  West  has  described  a  curved-back  copper  knife 
found  in  Fond  du  Lac  County  which  is  12*4  inches  long.** 
This  is  in  the  Milwaukee  Museum.  There  are  in  the  Logan 
Museum  at  Beloit  and  in  the  State  Historical  Museum  six 
other  large  straight  and  curved  copper  knives  which  have 
lengths  of  9,  9%,  9%,  10-13/16,  10%  and  12  inches.  The 
latter,  a  straight  knife,  is  in  the  Hamilton  collection  pre- 
viously mentioned  and  was  found  on  Plum  Island,  Door 
County.  A  curved  knife  in  the  same  collection,  described 
as  possibly  a  sword  or  sickle,  measures  about  20  inches 
from  tip  to  tip.  This  remarkable  specimen  was  found  at 
Oconto,  Oconto  County. 

We  may  look  for  the  future  finding  of  other  large  copper 
knives  in  both  Wisconsin  and  Michigan. 


*  The  Native  Copper  Implements  of  Wisconsin,  Wis.  Archeologist, 
v.  3,  no.  2. 

**  Copper  Its  Mining  and  Use.     Bull.  Milw.  Pub.  Mus.,  v.  10,  no.  1. 


Dr.  Louise  Phelps  Kellogg.  147 


DR.  LOUISE  PHELPS  KELLOGG 

At  the  recent  Chattanooga,  Tennessee,  meeting  of  the 
Mississippi  Valley  Historical  Association ;  Dr.  Louise  Phelps 
Kellogg,  for  years  a  leading  member  of  the  staff  of  the 
State  Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin,  received  the  great 
honor  of  being  elected  president  of  the  Association,  she  be- 
ing also  the  first  woman  to  hold  that  office.  Dr.  Kellogg  is 
recognized  from  coast  to  coast  as  one  of  the  leading  investi- 
gators and  writers  in  the  field  of  American  history.  She 
is  the  leading  authority  in  her  own  special  field,  early  Wis- 
consin and  Old  Northwest  history.  She  is  the  author  of 
many  papers,  reports  and  books  on  these  interesting  sub- 
jects. She  has  spoken  on  them  also  before  various  organi- 
zations in  nearly  every  part  of  Wisconsin  and  in  adjoining 
and  other  states.  In  recognition  of  her  scholarship  she 
was  in  1927  honored  by  the  University  of  Wisconsin,  her 
Alma  Mater,  with  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Letters. 

Dr.  Kellogg  has  been  for  years  an  honored  and  greatly 
beloved  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society. 
She  has  long  been  a  member  of  some  of  its  active  commit- 
tees, she  has  spoken  or  read  papers  at  many  of  its  meetings 
held  at  Milwaukee,  Madison  and  in  other  cities,  has  par- 
ticipated in  all  of  its  field  meetings  and  pilgrimages,  and 
taken  an  active  and  helpful  interest  in  all  of  its  surveys  and 
explorations,  its  Indian  landmarks  preservation  work,  its 
museum's  organization  movement,  and  in  all  of  the  other 
important  and  valuable  work  which  this  state  society  has 
in  the  past  thirty  years  of  its  existence  undertaken,  or- 
ganized and  carried  on  for  the  educational  benefit  of  the 
public,  and  which  from  Wisconsin  have  long  been  adopted 
and  are  now  being  carried  on  in  other  states. 

Always  willing  and  never  too  busy  to  lend  a  helping 
hand  and  wise  counsel  we  are  proud  of  Louise  Phelps  Kel- 
logg and  of  what  she  has  done  for  her  native  state.  We 
are  greatly  pleased  that  through  this  great  honor  now  con- 
ferred upon  her  another  well-won  eagle  feather  has  been 
added  to  the  chaplet  of  one  of  Wisconsin's  most  distin- 
guished daughters. 


148  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOG1ST.  Vol.    9,   No.    3 

THE  BEAR  DANCE  OF  THE  OURAY  UTES 
Albert  B.  Reagan,  Ph.  D. 

The  notched  oak  drumsticks  are  again  being  rasped 
over  the  tub-drums  in  northern  Ute  land,  in  the  Uintah 
Basin,  about  Ouray,  Utah.  It  is  the  beginning  preparation 
for  the  annual  "Bear  Dance,"  so-called  because  the  Utes 
assert  that  the  bear  originated  the  ceremony  in  the  long 
ago.  It  is  always  held  at  about  the  time  the  bear  comes 
from  his  hibernation  in  the  early  spring.  It  was  formerly 
in  the  nature  of  a  courting  dance,  but  sociability  and  gen- 
eral good  feeling  appear  now  to  be  its  chief  characteristics, 
a  ceremony  in  which  the  whites  join  with  the  Utes  and  all 
have  an  enjoyable  time. 

Preparatory  to  the  dance  a  level  plot  of  ground  of  about 
100  yards  in  diameter  is  inclosed  by  a  six-foot  "fence"  of 
upright  poles,  between  which  brush  is  woven  horizontally. 
The  door  is  on  the  east  side  of  the  inclosure,  while  a  large 
drawing  of  a  bear  dancing  with  a  woman  is  hoisted  on  the 
west  side.  Under  this  within  the  inclosure  the  musicians 
are  seated  on  zinc  sheets  over  a  hollow  space  (cave)  in  the 
ground  which  is  said  to  be  connected  with  the  bear  and 
through  which  the  rasping  of  the  drumsticks  over  the  tub- 
edge  (or  some  other  upturned  hollow  thing  that  will  act 
as  a  reinforcer  of  sound)  they  produce  a  sound  "like  the 
sound  made  by  the  bear."  And  the  song  sung  is  a  glis- 
sando  on  downward  progressions  which  also  gives  an  imi- 
tation sound  like  that  made  by  the  bear. 

When  dancing  the  men  gather  on  the  north  side  of  the 
inclosure,  within  it,  and  squat  on  the  ground  against  the 
fence,  and  the  women  squat  on  the  south  side  likewise. 
Then  when  all  is  ready  the  musicians  begin  to  sing,  and  as 
soon  as  the  song  "has  warmed  up  to  a  sufficient  pitch," 
they  begin  to  keep  time  by  rubbing  an  angled  stick  side- 
wise  over  the  notched  sticks  which  are  placed  slantingly  on 
the  tub-bottoms  (or  the  notched  sticks  are  themselves  rub- 
bed over  the  edge  of  the  tub-bottoms),  producing  a  rein- 
forced, ear-grating  sound. 

After  the  first  song  on  the  final  day,  after  a  week 
of  preparation  and  rehearsing,  a  speech — prayer  service  is 


The  Bear  Dance.  149 

conducted  by  the  chief  of  ceremonies.  The  women  then 
choose  their  male  partners  by  approaching  and  waving 
their  hands  toward  the  one  of  their  respective  choice,  all 
being  togged  out  in  their  best  finery.  Preparatory  to  the 
dance  the  men  and  women  then  line  up  facing  each  other 
in  column  abreast,  the  women  in  one  column,  the  men  in 
the  other.  The  members  of  each  column  hold  hands,  one 
column  taking  two  or  more  steps  forward  and  the  other  a 
like  number  backward  to  the  time  of  the  music,  then  vice 
versa. 

Thus  is  the  dance  kept  up  till  the  final  "set,"  which  is  to 
be  an  endurance  test.  In  this  last  act  some  of  the  partici- 
pants hideously  paint  themselves,  even  as  though  blood  was 
dripping  from  their  jaws,  suggesting  the  ferocity  of  the 
bear.  At  this  juncture  a  man  and  a  woman  chase  each 
other  around  the  inclosure,  and  if  anyone  laughs  at  them  it 
is  the  custom  to  appear  ferocious,  running  toward  the  per- 
son and  pretending  to  scratch  him.  The  dancing  here  also 
changes.  The  line  of  women  approaching  the  line  of  men 
attempts  to  push  it  backwards,  often  pushing  it  across  the 
inclosure  against  the  fence.  At  other  times  it  is  changed 
to  a  single  couple's  partner  dance  in  which  the  partners 
hold  each  other  in  a  position  similar  to  that  taken  in  our 
waltzes;  the  step,  however,  is  the  same  as  before.  If  a 
dancer  falls  from  exhaustion  or  because  of  a  mistep  in  this 
act,  a  medicine  man  or  the  leader  of  the  dances  "restores 
the  dancer."  Taking  one  of  the  notched  drumsticks  as  a 
wand,  he  collects  the  evil  spirits  on  it,  then  sends  them  to 
the  four  winds :  he  lays  the  stick  first  on  the  fallen  dancer's 
feet,  then  across  his  hips,  then  across  his  breast,  then  across 
his  back,  and  lastly  on  his  head.  He  then  holds  the  notched 
stick  toward  the  sky  and  passes  the  rubbing  stick  (or  rub- 
bing bone)  upward  over  it  as"  though  he  were  brushing 
something  from  the  drumstick  into  the  air,  some  two  or 
more  of  these  treatments  being  necessary  before  the  man 
rises  and  resumes  dancing.  Unless  this  is  done  it  is  be- 
lieved some  misfortune  will  befall  him.  Thus  is  the  dance 
kept  up  till  all  the  participants  quit  of  exhaustion. 

After  the  close  of  the  endurance  fete,  the  chief  <of  cere- 
monies takes  a  cup  and  as  he  dances  he  holds  it  heavenward 
as  a  thank  offering  to  his  gods  and  as  a  prayer  for  rain. 


150  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   3 

A  feast  is  then  set  out  to  all,  after  which  they  return  to 
their  respective  homes,  believing  that  the  gods  will  bless 
them  and  give  them  a  bountiful  crop. 

A  FLUTED  HANDLED  CELT 

In  studying  the  fluted  stone  implements  of  Wisconsin  we 
have  seen  in  addition  to  the  quite  numerous  grooved  stone 
axes  which  are  thus  ornamented,  several  fluted  celts  and 
one  or  two  fluted  stone  hammers.  Recently  Dr.  A.  Gerend 
has  brought  to  our  attention  the  first  handled  fluted  stone 
celt  or  spud  which  we  have  ever  seen.  This  unique  imple- 
ment was  found  on  the  bank  of  the  Little  Eau  Pleine  River, 
in  Wood  County,  Wisconsin.  This  implement  is  6%  inches 
in  length.  Its  rectangular  blade  is  3  inches  in  length  and 
about  2%  inches  wide.  The  handle  or  lower  part  of  the 
implement  is  about  3%  inches  long.  It  is  narrower  than 
the  blade  being  about  2  inches  wide  where  it  connects  with 
the  former  and  114  inches  wide  at  its  rounded  end.  A  shal- 
low groove  separates  the  blade  from  the  handle. 

On  the  blade  of  this  implement  there  are  three  narrow 
vertical  flutes  which  extend  from  the  rounded  cutting  edge 
of  the  implement  to  a  transverse  flute  or  shallow  groove 
extending  across  the  base  of  the  blade  above  the  handle 
groove.  Of  the  narrow  vertical  flutes  or  grooves  one  ex- 
tends down  the  middle  of  the  blade  and  one  is  located  on 
each  side  of  it,  at  the  edge  of  the  blade.  All  of  these  flutes 
are  quite  distinct  though  very  shallow. 

The  implement  is  made  of  a  hard  close-grained  rock. 
Its  upper  surface  is  convex  and  its  lower  surface  flat.  The 
presence  of  a  groove  indicates  that  it  may  have  been  bound 
to  a  wooden  handle  and  used  as  an  adze,  in  which  case  it 
might  well  be  classified  as  an  adze-celt. 

A  few  handled  celts  of  this  general  form  have  been  found 
in  Wisconsin  none  of  these,  however,  are  ornamented  with 
flutes. 


Fraudulent  Indian   Implements.  151 


FRAUDULENT  INDIAN  IMPLEMENTS 

Last  year  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  appointed 
a  special  committee  to  assist  local  archeologists  and  col- 
lectors in  detecting  fake  Indian  implements  and  in  appre- 
hending and  punishing  such  offenders.  The  committee 
consists  of  the  members  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  Edward  F. 
Richter  and  George  A.  West,  all  being  residents  of  Milwau- 
kee. All  are  old  members  of  the  state  society  and  expe- 
rienced in  the  judging  of  fraudulent  implements.  Collec- 
tors and  others  desiring  the  assistance  of  the  committee  are 
requested  to  communicate  with  Mr.  Ringeisen  at  his  office 
at  606  Third  Street,  Milwaukee.  Return  postage  or  ex- 
press must  be  paid  by  persons  submitting  specimens.  On 
their  receipt  the  chairman  will  call  a  meeting  of  his  com- 
mittee and  will  thereafter  render  without  charge  a  report 
to  the  collector  or  person  submitting  the  specimen  or  speci- 
mens. A  copy  of  this  report  will  also  be  placed  in  the  So- 
ciety's files  for  future  reference. 

For  many  years  the  state  society  has  been  very  active 
in  exposing  makers  of  and  dealers  in  spurious  Indian  im- 
plements. Through  its  efforts  members  of  the  notorious 
Robinette  family  of  Flag  Pond  and  other  places  in  Virginia, 
the  once  very  troublesome  makers  of  inscribed  tablets  and 
fake  coppers  and  ceremonial  objects  in  Michigan,  the  re- 
cent Kentucky  manufactury  of  pipes,  discoidals,  and  cere- 
monials and  ornaments,  a  collector-dealer  at  Clarksville, 
Tennessee  and  other  makers  and  venders  of  fake  artifacts 
were  exposed.  In  1911  the  Society  caused  to  be  enacted 
a  state  law  making  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  fraudulent 
antiquities  of  any  class  within  the  state  an  offense  punish- 
able by  fine  or  imprisonment  or  both.  This  law  other  states 
have  copied. 

The  committee  has  the  power  to  cause  the  arrest  and 
punishment  of  offenders.  Its  appointment  and  the  serv- 
ices which  it  will  render  to  persons  interested  in  archeolo- 
gical  studies  should  be  appreciated  by  the  public. 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   3 


THE  CENTRAL  SECTION  MEETING 

The  Central  Section,  American  Anthropological  Society, 
held  its  ninth  annual  meeting  at  the  Milwaukee  Public  Mu- 
seum on  Friday  and  Saturday,  May  9  and  10,  1930,  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  and  Museum  acting  as 
hosts  to  the  enthusiastic  gathering  of  archeologists,  eth- 
nologists and  historians  from  the  states  of  Ohio,  Indiana, 
Michigan,  Illinois,  Iowa,  Minnesota,  Missouri,  Kentucky, 
Alabama  and  Wisconsin,  who  attended  the  sessions. 

At  the  opening  session,  held  in  the  trustee  room  of  the 
Museum,  Mr.  Geo.  A.  West,  president  of  the  board  of  trus- 
tees, and  a  past  president  of  the  Wisconsin  society,  deliv- 
ered an  address  of  welcome  to  which  Dr.  Ralph  Linton, 
president  of  the  Section,  responded.  The  program  of  this 
session  included  interesting  papers  by  Dr.  Wm.  M.  Mc- 
Govern  of  Northwestern  University,  Willoughby  M.  Bab- 
cock  of  the  Minnesota  Historical  Museum,  and  by  Dr.  Ber- 
thold  Laufer  and  Henry  Field  of  the  Field  Museum  of 
Natural  History.  At  the  afternoon  session  papers  were 
read  by  Dr.  A.  T.  Olmstead,  of  the  University  of  Illinois, 
Dr.  M.  J.  Herskovitz  of  Northwestern  University,  and  Mr. 
Henry  Field.  Dr.  Fay-Cooper  Cole,  chairman  of  the  Divi- 
sion of  Anthropology  and  Psychology,  National  Research 
Council,  Washington,  D.  C.,  presented  a  tentative  plan  for 
the  anthropological  section  of  the  Chicago  World's  Fair. 

On  the  evening  of  that  day  the  visiting  anthropologists 
and  their  ladies  were  entertained  by  the  Milwaukee  mem- 
bers of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  at  a  dinner  held 
in  the  banquet  room  at  the  Hotel  Schroeder,  about  one  hun- 
dred persons  being  present.  President  Charles  G.  Schoewe 
presided.  After  the  dinner  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  chairman  of 
the  Society's  committee,  in  an  interesting  address,  in  which 
he  fully  explained  its  history,  awarded  the  Lapham  Medal 
to  the  Messrs.  Dr.  Ralph  Linton,  Dr.  Carl  E.  Guthe,  Mr. 
Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  and  Mr.  W.  C.  Kern.  All  of  the 
recipients  were  pleasantly  and  agreeably  surprised  at  re- 
ceiving this  honor.  Dr.  Guthe,  chairman  of  the  Commit- 
tee on  State  Archaeological  Surveys,  delivered  an  address, 
in  which  he  presented  a  very  interesting  report  of  the 


The   fVntral  Section  Meeting.  i:.:1, 

progress  now  being  made  in  archeological  survey  and  ex- 
ploration in  many  states.  It  was  shown  that  seventy-five 
organizations  and  institutions  located  in  thirty-four  states 
were  now  engaged  in  archeological  investigations.  This 
report  was  received  with  great  enthusiasm. 

At  the  session  held  at  the  Milwaukee  Museum  on  Satur- 
day morning  papers  were  presented  by  Charles  R.  Keyes 
of  Iowa,  F.  M.  Setzler  of  Indiana,  W.  S.  Webb  of  Kentucky 
University,  Peter  Brannon  of  Alabama,  and  A.  K.  Fisher 
and  W.  C.  McKern  of  Milwaukee.  Discussions  followed 
each  paper.  Dr.  Cole  and  Mr.  Shetrone  pointed  out  the 
desirability  of  revising  the  names  being  given  by  local  ar- 
cheologists  to  the  Indian  culture  areas  now  being  created 
in  different  states.  Some  of  these  were  being  named  after 
obscure  and  little  known  regions.  Some  would  probably 
prove  to  be  sub-cultures. 

At  the  business  meeting  Mr.  H.  C.  Shetrone,  director  of 
the  Ohio  State  Museum,  was  elected  president  of  the  Cen- 
tral Section,  and  George  R.  Fox,  director  of  the  Chamber- 
lain Memorial  Museum,  Three  Oaks,  Michigan,  was  re- 
elected  its  secretary-treasurer.  The  Secretary's  report 
showed  the  Section  to  have  about  107  members. 

In  the  afternoon  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
took  the  visiting  and  local  members  on  a  pilgrimage  to  the 
Dewey  Mound  Group  at  Vernon  Center,  Waukesha  County. 
President  Schoewe  was  in  personal  charge  of  this  interest- 
ing feature  of  the  two  day's  meeting.  In  the  evening  a 
meeting  of  the  Committee  on  State  Archeological  Surveys 
of  the  National  Research  Council  was  held  at  the  Hotel 
'Schroeder  in  which  the  Messrs.  Dr.  Carl  E.  Guthe,  Dr.  Fay- 
Cooper  Cole,  H.  C.  Shetrone,  C.  R.  Keyes,  C.  E.  Brown  and 
Peter  Brannon,  participated. 

Among  the  Milwaukee  and  state  members  of  the  Wiscon- 
sin Archeological  Society  who  attended  the  sessions  and 
dinner  were  Charles  G.  Schoewe,  Geo.  A.  West,  Dr.  A.  L. 
Kastner,  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  W.  W.  Gilman,  Dr.  P.  B.  Jen- 
kins, Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  L.  R.  Whitney,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown, 
C.  R.  Keyes,  W.  M.  Babcock,  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner,  Mrs. 
Vina  S.  Adams,  G.  R.  Fox,  T.  T.  Brown,  R.  N.  Buckstaff, 
Jos.  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  Chas.  E.  Brown,  L.  R.  Cooper,  Dr.  R. 
Linton,  W.  C.  McKern,  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie,  N.  E.  Carter,  Edw. 


154 


\Y  I  S( '( )XS  I  X   A  K<  'H  E( >L(  >< '.  I  ST. 


Richter,  A.  K.  Fisher,  T.  L.   Miller,   H.   H.  Smith,  J.  G. 
Gregory,  and  E.  G.  Wolff. 

The  Central  Section  was  organized  at  a  meeting  held  in 
Milwaukee  in  1911.  It  has  since  then  held  meetings  in 
the  states  of  Ohio,  Illinois,  Michigan  and  Wisconsin.  Mr. 
Babcock  delivered  an  invitation  to  the  Section  to  hold  its 
1931  session  at  St.  Paul.  Mr.  Fox  invited  the  members  to 
meet  at  Three  Oaks,  Michigan. 


STATE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SURVEY,  1929 

The  State  Survey  was  organized  in  1911  the  Wisconsin 
Archeological  Society  receiving  an  appropriation  from  the 
state  legislature  for  that  purpose  in  that  year.  For  two 
years  thereafter  it  was  thus  possible  to  organize  and  to  pay 
the  expenses  of  field  parties  which  were  dispatched  to  va- 
rious parts  of  the  state  to  conduct  field  work.  Since  that 
time  it  has  been  necessary  to  further  the  work  of  the  survey 
almost  entirely  through  the  interest  and  activity  of  mem- 
bers who  have  also  very  generously  defrayed  their  own 
expenses. 

The  field  work  undertaken  by  the  Society  begins  in  April 
or  May  and  continues  until  about  the  middle  of  November. 
Those  who  contribute  to  this  department  of  the  Society's 
program  give  to  this  work  parts  of  their  summer  vacations 
and  such  other  time  as  they  can  spare  from  their  occupa- 
tions and  homes  during  the  spring,  summer  and  autumn 
months.  To  all  members  and  others  who  may  desire  to 
engage  in  such  work  for  the  state  the  Society  furnishes 
printed  or  written  instructions  and  printed  blanks  for  the 
making  of  their  reports.  These  reports  are  turned  in  to 
the  secretary's  office,  or,  if  not,  are  called  for  at  the  end 
of  the  year.  Each  year  a  considerable  number  of  non- 
members  also  contribute  reports  or  information  to  the  State 
records.  The  Society  also  receives  some  welcome  assist- 
ance each  year  from  persons  engaged  in  the  surveys  of  va- 
rious state  and  University  departments.  The  State  His- 
torical Museum  places  its  own  records  at  the  Society's  dis- 
posal. From  the  manuscripts  of  the  State  Historical  So- 
ciety valuable  archeological  and  historical  data  is  frequently 
copied. 


State  Archeological  Survey,  1929.  155 

The  deaths  of  recent  years  of  such  active  and  enthusiastic 
field  workers  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  as  the 
late  Harry  E.  Cole,  Dr.  Louis  Falge  and  P.  V.  Lawson,  and 
the  removal  from  the  state  of  such  devoted  former  assist- 
ants as  G.  R.  Fox,  C.  E.  Buell,  Dr.  A.  Gerend,  Robt.  H. 
Becker  and  Geo.  H.  Squier,  and  the  inactivity  through  ad- 
vancing years  of  such  men  as  H.  L.  Skavlem  has  noticeably 
retarded  the  Society's  survey  work.  The  former  assistance 
given  by  Dr.  G.  L.  Collie  and  Alonzo  Pond  has  not  been  avail- 
able because  of  the  transfer  of  the  major  activities  of  the 
Logan  Museum  of  Beloit  College  to  foreign  fields.  The  So- 
ciety has  found  it  necessary  to  continually  recruit  and  train 
new  volunteer  workers. 

Only  a  limited  number  of  the  Society's  300  active  mem- 
bers are  actively  interested  in,  or  in  a  position  to  devote 
even  a  part  of  their  time  to  conducting  even  a  small  amount 
of  field  work.  Other  members  not  participating  in  explora- 
tion work  are  serving  well  in  other  departments  of  the  So- 
ciety's work  such  as  the  organization  and  management  of 
Wisconsin  museums  (every  one  of  the  larger  and  many  of 
the  smaller  of  which  are  under  the  direction  of  a  member 
of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society),  in  the  preserva- 
tion and  marking  of  the  Indian  landmarks  of  the  state;  in 
keeping  the  general  public  informed  of  the  Society's  plans 
and  activities,  in  giving  public  lectures  on  our  own  and 
allied  subjects,  and  giving  courses  in  anthropology  and  In- 
dian history  at  some  of  our  educational  institutions. 

Of  twenty-five  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society  who  engaged  in  field  work  in  the  state  during  the 
year  1929  fifteen  have  turned  in  reports  of  researches  or  in- 
formation otherwise  obtained  to  the  secretary.  The  most 
active  of  these  field  workers  were  the  Messrs.  Milton  F. 
Hulburt  of  Reedsburg;  T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Watertown;  J.  P. 
Schumacher  and  Theodore  T.  Brown,  Green  Bay,  and  Ar- 
thur P.  Kannenberg,  Oshkosh.  Contributions  were  also 
made  by  Geo.  F.  Overton,  Butte  des  Morts ;  Franklin  Thom- 
linson,  Plum  City;  Rev.  Francis  S.  Dayton,  New  London; 
Carl  F.  Richter,  Oconto;  Don  S.  Rowland,  Madison;  S.  W. 
Faville,  Lake  Mills;  C.  G.  Weyl,  Fountain  City;  W.  F.  Yahr, 
Fredonia,  and  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm,  Milwaukee.  The  follow- 
ing non-members  also  contributed  to  the  Society's  files : 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


W.  H.  Ferber,  A.  G.  Hall,  Carl  Marty,  J.  V.  Satterlee, 
Felix  M.  Keesing,  J.  A.  Bardon,  C.  A.  Achtenberg,  H.  G. 
Dyer,  Donald  Hansen,  E.  T.  Mariner,  W.  H.  Reiter,  A.  A. 
Griebling,  Dell  Priest,  Fred  Zuehlsdorf,  S.  G.  Bradt,  B.  M. 
Apger,  J.  M.  Hamel,  H.  L.  Hoard,  W.  W.  Bartlett,  and  C.  S. 
Weir. 

These  reports  cover  certain  Indian  earthworks,  occupa- 
tion sites  and  other  features  in  the  counties  of  Ashland, 
Adams,    Bayfield,    Barren,    Buffalo,    Columbia,    Chippewa, 
Crawford,  Dodge,  Dane,  Door,  Douglas,  Forest,  Fond  du 
Lac,  Green,  Grant,  Jefferson,  Kenosha,  Kewaunee,  Lincoln, 
Langlade,   Milwaukee,   Monroe,    Oconto,   Oneida,    Ozaukee, 
Outagamie,    Pierce,    Sauk,    Sheboygan,    Shawano,   Vernon, 
Waukesha,  Waupaca,  Waushara,  Washington  and  Winne- 
bago, — 37  counties.     These  are  records  new  to  the  state 
records.     They  include  50  Indian  mounds  in  seven  differ- 
ent counties  and  in  eight  different  groups,  one  enclosure, 
75  village  and  camp  sites,  eight  workshop  sites,  one  lead 
smelter,  copper  sources,  one  quartzite  working,  four  cook- 
ing and  other  pits,  three  cemeteries,  two  single  graves,  one 
spirit  stone,  two  stationary  rock  mortars,  two  plots  of  gar- 
den beds,  one  trading  post  site,  four  caches  of  flint  and 
heavier    stone    implements,    one    pictograph,    four    spirit 
springs,  one  sugar  bush,  one  rock  shelter,  and  about  50 
trails  and  river  fords.     A  total  of  210  new  records  for  the 
state.     When  the  reports  of  several  other  members  have 
been  received  this  number  will  be  considerably  augmented. 
In  addition  to  these  new  records   a  very  considerable 
amount  of  information  concerning  archeological  evidences 
previously  reported  from  various  counties  has  been  received 
and  filed. 

Mr.  Milton  F.  Hulbert  has  done  especially  noteworthy 
work  in  Sauk  County.  He  has  prepared  an  excellent  map 
of  the  trails,  village  sites,  mounds  and  other  features  of  that 
county,  locating  a  considerable  number  of  these  not  pre- 
viously recorded.  Mr.  Lewis  has  excavated  mounds  in 
both  Jefferson  and  Sauk  Counties.  Mr.  Theodore  T.  Brown 
has  mapped  the  known  trails  of  the  state  for  the  State  His- 
torical Museum. 


Gerard  Fowke.  157 

1930  RESEARCHES 

It  is  desirable  that  during-  the  year  1930  as  many  of  the 
members  of  the  Society  as  possible  engage  in  research  work 
in  Wisconsin.  The  necessary  printed  blanks  and  instruc- 
tions for  such  investigations  may  be  obtained  from  Secre- 
tary Charles  E.  Brown  and  all  reports  and  information 
should  be  filed  with  him.  The  new  handbook  for  archeolo- 
gical  field  work  prepared  by  the  Committee  on  State  Archeo- 
logical  Surveys,  of  the  National  Research  Council  will  then 
be  ready  for  distribution. 

The  ever  increasing  demand  of  the  general  public,  state 
schools,  and  tourist  and  summer  resorters  for  information 
concerning  the  prehistory  and  recent  Indian  history  of  dif- 
ferent section  of  our  state  makes  it  more  important  than 
ever  that  the  surveys  and  explorations  of  the  Society  should 
continue  with  all  possible  momentum.  Members  who  file 
reports  or  information  with  the  institutions  with  which 
they  are  identified  are  requested  to  also  favor  the  Wiscon- 
sin Archeological  Society  with  copies  of  these.  Thus  the 
Society's  records  will  always  be  complete  and  duplication  of 
work  be  prevented.  Promises  of  cooperation  in  survey 
and  exploration  work  during  the  year  have  already  been 
received  from  various  members  and  other  interested  per- 
sons. Others  are  requested  to  communicate  with  Secretary 
Brown  at  Madison. 

GERARD  FOWKE 

A  recent  issue  of  the  Ohio  Archeological  and  Historical 
Quarterly*  contains  a  biography  of  the  late  widely  known 
American  archeologist,  Gerard  Fowke.  The  account  there 
given  of  his  ancestry  and  early  life  is  very  interesting.  For 
many  years  Mr.  Fowke  was  one  of  the  leading  archeological 
field  investigators  in  the  United  States.  The  character  of 
his  exploration  and  survey  work  was  such  as  to  earn  the 
praise  of  such  former  leading  anthropologists  as  Dr.  William 
H.  Holmes,  Dr.  Cyrus  Thomas,  Dr.  W.  J.  McGee,  Dr.  William 
C.  Mills  and  others. 


*  V.  XXXVIII,  No.  2. 


158 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.    9,   No.    3 


Mr.  Fowke's  interest  in  archeological  investigation  ap- 
pears to  have  been  begun  in  the  seventies,  when  he  was 
teaching  school  in  Ohio,  "his  vacations  being  spent  along 
the  Ohio  River  and  in  the  mountains  of  Tennessee."  The 
list  of  his  archeological  and  geological  achievements  in  the 
years  from  1881  to  1928  is  far  too  long  to  be  presented  in 
this  brief  article.  In  those  years  he  conducted  surveys 
and  explorations  of  mounds  and  other  Indian  remains  in 
the  states  of  Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  Virginia,  West  Virginia, 
Kentucky,  Tennessee,  Mississippi,  Alabama,  Louisiana, 
Arkansas,  Missouri,  Nebraska,  New  Mexico,  Indiana,  Illi- 
nois, Michigan,  New  York,  Wisconsin,  Minnesota  and  other 
states.  He  also  conducted  investigations  in  Japan  and  Si- 
beria, British  Columbia,  Mexico  and  Guatemala  and  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  In  1881,  he  made  an  examination  of 
the  country  along  the  lower  Wabash  and  Arkansas  rivers, 
and  along  the  Missouri  between  Kansas  City  and  Omaha. 

Among  his  notable  undertakings  were  extensive  re- 
searches carried  on  in  the  aboriginal  flint  quarries  at  Flint 
Ridge,  Ohio  (1884-85)  ;  in  the  flint  deposits  in  Union 
County,  Illinois  (1886)  ;  a  reconnaissance  along  the  west- 
ern shore  of  Lake  Huron,  the  northern  end  of  Lake  Michi- 
gan and  the  southern  shore  of  Lake  Superior,  and  down  the 
Mississippi  River  to  St.  Louis  (1887). 

In  1891,  he  was  engaged  in  an  examination  of  the  James 
River  Valley.  He  excavated  a  large  communal  burial 
mound  in  Orange  County,  "Virginia,  (1891)  and  located  shell 
mounds  along  the  Tennessee  River  (1893). 

In  1901  he  published  his  "Archeological  History  of  Ohio," 
a  book  which  probably  did  more  to  advance  the  scientific 
standing  of  American  archeology  than  any  other  similar 
book  of  its  time.  In  1903,  he  explored  200  caves,  also  ab- 
original flint  and  hematite  quarries  in  Indiana,  Illinois,  Mis- 
souri and  other  states.  In  1904  he  was  engaged  in  arrang- 
ing the  archeological  exhibits  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  Ex- 
position at  St.  Louis.  At  that  time  the  writer  made  the 
personal  acquaintance  of  Mr.  Fowke  and  was  so  fortunate 
as  to  be  able  to  accompany  him  and  the  well  known  patrons 
of  Missouri  archeology,  Mr.  David  I.  Bushnell,  Sr.,  Judge 
Douglas,  Pierre  Choteau,  Dr.  P.  D.  Peterson,  J.  M.  Wulfing 
and  Dr.  Henry  M.  Whelpley,  on  several  visits  to  the  Ca- 


Gerard  Fowke. 


hokia  Mound  region,  the  flint  quarries  at  Crescent,  Mis- 
souri, and  other  sites  of  archeological  interest. 

In  1905,  Mr.  Fowke  excavated  mounds  at  Montezuma  and 
East  St.  Louis,  Illinois.  In  1906  and  1907,  he  examined 
numerous  mounds  along  the  Missouri  River.  In  1912,  he 
excavated  mounds  in  Guatemala.  He  examined  numerous 
caves,  village  sites  and  burial  places  in  the  Ozark  region 
in  the  years  1918  and  1919.  In  1920  he  was  engaged  in 
archeological  researches  in  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  and  in 
1926  in  investigations  in  Ohio,  Kentucky,  Louisiana  and 
New  Mexico.  His  widespread  investigations  were  con- 
ducted at  different  times  under  the  auspices  of  the  Bureau 
of  American  Ethnology,  the  American  Museum  of  Natural 
History,  Philadelphia  Academy  of  Sciences,  Ohio  Archeo- 
logical and  Historical  Society,  Missouri  Historical  Society, 
and  the  St.  Louis  Branch  of  the  Archeological  Institute. 

"Aside  from  the  scientific  interest  attached  to  his  work, 
he  had  little  inclination  for  indoor  life  and  was  continually 
making  pedestrian  tours  into  regions  remote  from  ordinary 
lines  of  travel,  in  the  effort  to  observe  and  study  natural 
features.  It  is  a  moderate  estimate  to  say  that  he  walked 
a  hundred  thousand  miles  in  open  country,  traversing  por- 
tions of  nearly  every  state  between  Canada  and  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico  from  the  Atlantic  Ocean  to  the  Great  Plains;  and 
he  probably  knew  more  from  actual  observation  about  the 
eastern  half  of  the  United  States  than  did  any  one  else. 

"Compelled  before  the  age  of  fifteen  to  depend  entirely 
upon  his  own  efforts  for  a  living,  too  restless  to  remain 
long  in  one  place,  Fowke  had  but  little  opportunity  to  pro- 
cure an  education.  But  from  boyhood  he  was  an  omni- 
vorous reader  of  everything  he  could  comprehend,  possessed 
a  tenacious  memory,  was  a  close  and  accurate  observer,  and 
thus  managed  to  pick  up  considerable  information  on  va- 
rious subjects.  However,  his  desultory  reading  and  ramb- 
ling life  made  his  knowledge  more  satisfactory,  mentally, 
than  profitable,  financially.  He  could  never  adapt  him- 
self —  and  never  wanted  to  do  so  —  to  the  restraints  which 
were  essential  to  success  in  any  line  of  business  or  profes- 
sional life.  It  was  equally  irksome  to  him  to  follow  the 
plans  or  instructions  of  those  who  held  erroneous  ideas  in 
regard  to  conditions  as  they  existed,  or  to  the  proper  meth- 


160  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOG1ST.  Vol.    9,   No.    S 

ods  of  securing  the  best  results.  Had  he  been  more  com- 
plaisant and  diplomatic,  less  contumacious  and  determined, 
his  field  of  research  would  have  been  wider  but  his  life 
would  have  been  less  satisfying." 

A  little  anecdote  which  Mr.  Fowke  once  told  the  writer 
about  himself  illustrates  one  of  his  characteristics.  He 
was  visiting  a  collector  in  his  office  in  the  lower  Wisconsin 
River  valley,  who  had  in  his  cabinet  a  number  of  Indian 
copper  implements.  These  the  owner  was  convinced  were 
"tempered,"  and  despite  all  of  the  arguments  to  the  con- 
trary which  his  visitor  advanced  his  belief  was  not  to  be 
shaken.  Finally,  despairing  of  being  able  to  enlighten  this 
stubborn  collector,  Gerard  Fowke  drew  from  his  pocket 
the  large  and  heavy  pruning  knife  which  he  nearly  always 
carried  and  with  a  sharp  blow  cut  deeply  into  the  copper 
implement  which  he  held  in  his  hand.  Then  amid  the  vio- 
lent exclamations  of  the  owner  he  made  his  escape  by  the  of- 
fice door. 

The  bibliography  of  Gerard  Fowke's  reports,  papers  and 
articles  on  archeological  and  geological  investigations,  as 
given  in  the  Ohio  Quarterly,  is  a  long  one,  including  59 
items.  Various  manuscripts  await  publication. 

HOPEWELL  AND  CAHOKIA  CULTURES  IN 
WISCONSIN 

W.  C.  McKern 

In  a  recent  issue  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeologist*,  Profes- 
sor W.  K.  Moorehead  is  quoted**  in  regard  to  the  distribu- 
tion and  possible  place  of  origin  of  the  Hopewell  and  Caho- 
kia  cultures.  He  suggests  that  Iowa  may  eventually  be 
shown  to  be  the  center  of  Hopewell  development,  and  that 
diffusion  may  have  carried  the  culture  north  into  Wiscon- 
sin and  east  as  far  as  Ohio  from  this  center.  On  the  sub- 
ject of  the  Cahokia  culture,  he  is  content  with  the  mere 
statement  of  its  southern  origin,  an  opinion  to  which  every 
student  at  all  acquainted  with  the  relevant  data  will  prob- 
ably subscribe. 


*  V.  9,  no.  2,  106-08. 

**  Report  of  St.  Louis  Conference  on  Midwestern  Archeology. 


Hopewell  and  Cahokia  Cultures.  161 

I  note  with  personal  satisfaction  that  Professor  Moore- 
head  tentatively  accepts  the  local  interpretation  of  a  west- 
ern Wisconsin  culture  as  Hopewellian  in  basic  type.  His 
full  acceptance  of  this  classification  could  not  be  expected 
until  he  has  had  opportunity  to  examine  specimens  and 
data.  It  is  confidently .  anticipated  that  Professor  Moore- 
head's  opinion  will  concur  with  that  of  the  other  leading 
archeologists  of  the  Middle  West,  who  have  examined  the 
evidence  upon  which  the  Hopewell  classification  is  based 
ind  who,  without  exception  and  without  reservation,  have 
conceded  the  accuracy  of  our  interpretation. 

Professor  Moorehead's  statements,  as  quoted  in  the 
irticle,  refrain  from  any  direct  reference  to  our  classifica- 
tion of  the  dominant  culture  at  the  Aztalan  site  as  Cahokia. 
I  am  fully  aware,  however,  that  he  is  skeptical  regarding 
the  occurrence  of  Cahokia  culture  so  far  north  of  its  pre- 
sly  conceived  northern  boundaries,  and  is  withholding 
judgment  until  he  may  carefully  examine  the  specimens  and 
other  data  collected  at  the  well-known  Wisconsin  site.  Un- 
til that  opportunity  is  afforded  him,  he  could  not  be  expected 
to  correctly  pronounce  judgment.  As  stated  regarding  our 
[opewell  data,  those  Middle  Western  archeologists  who 
lave  examined  the  Aztalan  materials,  and  who  are  convers- 
ant with  Cahokia  culture  data,  have  agreed  unreservedly 
with  the  local  interpretation. 

The  question  of  trade  specimens  does  not  apply  to  the 
culture  assignment  problems  of  either  of  these  two  Wis- 
consin cultures.  It  is  not  the  occasional  occurrence  of  a 
specimen  of  Hopewell  or  Cahokia  type  that  has  influenced 
our  classifications.  Iroquois  specimens  are  not  infrequently 
found  in  the  province,  and  yet  I  never  subscribed  to  the  un- 
warranted conclusion  that  an  ethnic  group  with  Iroquois 
culture,  as  such,  inhabited  primitive  Wisconsin.  With  re- 
gard to  the  local  variants  of  Hopewell  and  Cahokia  cultures, 
the  data  governing  classification  can  not  logically  be  ex- 
)lained  on  the  basis  of  trade  specimens.  Both  Cyrus 
'homas  and  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  investigators 
found  entire  groups  of  mounds  producing  conclusive  evi- 
dence that  they  were  erected  by  representatives  of  an  eth- 
nic group  with  a  pure  culture  strikingly  foreign  to  all 


162  WISCONSIN   AROHKOLOdlST.  Vol.    9,   No.    3 

other  known  local  groups  and  possessing  a  dominant  com- 
plex of  specific  Hopewell  traits. 

It  is  admitted  that  a  much  richer  variant  of  the  culture 
is  found  in  Ohio,  and  it  is  suggested  that  the  Ohio  form 
represents  a  highly  specialized  local  development  of  a  simp- 
ler, widely  distributed  basic  culture,  of  which  the  Wiscon- 
sin form  is  another,  less  specialized  development.  The 
suggestion  that  the  center  of  this  basic  culture  may  have 
been  in  Iowa,  offered  by  Professor  Moorehead,  is  most  in- 
teresting and  should  contribute  materially  to  a  wide  sup- 
port, by  all  interested  students,  of  investigations  contem- 
plated and  in  operation  in  Iowa  and  adjacent  states,  includ- 
ing Wisconsin. 

As  in  the  case  of  the  Hopewell  sites,  Aztalan  was  at  one 
time  inhabited  by  an  ethnic  group  possessing  a  pure,  for- 
eign culture ;  but  this  culture  was  dominated  by  a  complex 
of  specific  Cahokia  traits.  These  not  only  include  a  highly 
developed  type  of  pottery  which  is  utterly  distinct  from  and 
superior  to  other  woodland  wares,  and  possesses  characteris- 
tics easily  recognizable,  but  such  elements  as  truncated  pyra- 
midal mounds,  stone  and  pottery  ear-spools,  disc-shaped  shell 
beads,  type  agricultural  implements  of  chipped  stone,  per- 
forated shell  implements,  a  distinct  type  arrowpoint,  and 
many  of  lesser  importance.  These  do  not  occur  sporadic- 
ally but  are  typical  of  the  site,  as  has  long  been  recognized 
by  local  students. 

The  specifically  interested  student  need  not  await  publi- 
cations covering  these  finds  precedent  to  determining  the 
accuracy  or  fallacy  of  our  deductions;  after  all,  publica- 
tions are  designed  to  serve  those  who  can  not  see  the  actual 
subject  matter,  which  should  be  examined  first-hand  where 
possible.  If  evidence  is  needed,  it  is  available,  on  request, 
to  anyone  sufficiently  concerned  to  visit  the  Milwaukee  Pub- 
lic Museum. 


Anlirological  Notes.  163 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Meetings 

On  February  17,  1930  a  meeting  of  the  'Society  was  held  at  the 
Milwaukee  Museum  at  which  fifty  members  and  visitors  were  pres- 
ent. President  Smith  occupied  the  chair.  Secretary  Brown  reported 
on  the  business  conducted  by  the  Executive  Board  at  its  meeting  held 
earlier  in  the  evening.  At  this  meeting  Mr.  Bernard  M.  Palmer  of 
Janesville  was  elected  a  life  member  and  Mr.  Emil  J.  Schaefer  of 
Milwaukee  an  annual  member.  President  Smith  announced  the  ar- 
rangements which  were  being  made  by  several  committees  appointed 
by  the  directors  for  the  Central  Section,  A.  A.  A.  meeting.  Mr. 
Charles  G.  Schoewe  spoke  of  the  plans  for  the  proposed  pilgrimage 
to  the  Dewey  Mounds.  Mr.  W.  C.  McKern  gave  a  lecture  on  "Ex- 
plorations in  Southwestern  Wisconsin"  which  he  illustrated  with  lan- 
tern slides.  He  presented  an  account  of  the  recent  excavations  of 
mounds  and  burial  places  conducted  by  the  Milwaukee  Museum  in 
La  Crosse,  Vernon,  Trempealeau  and  Crawford  counties.  He  de- 
scribed and  illustrated  some  of  the  characteristic  artifacts  of  the 
Wisconsin  Siouan  and  Hopewell  cultures.  Among  the  Siouan  arti- 
facts were  disk  pipes,  arrowshaft  grinders,  short  triangular  flint 
arrowpoints,  large  elligtical  flint  knives,  "snub-nosed"  scrapers,  and 
pottery  vessels  having  scalloped  rims  and  loop  handles. 

Mr.  Ringeisen  exhibited  a  fine  9  inch  flint  spearpoint  found  at 
Spooner,  Wisconsin. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  that  the  annual  joint  meeting  of  the 
'Society  and  of  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences  would  be  held  at 
the  University  of  Wisconsin  at  Madison,  on  April  10  and  11.  Mem- 
bers were  urged  to  attend  this  meeting.  Titles  of  papers  to  be  pre- 
sented were  to  be  handed  to  the  Society. 

The  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  held  its  annual  meeting  at 
the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  on  Monday  evening,  March  17,  1930. 
President  Smith  conducted  the  meeting.  There  were  sixty-five  mem- 
bers and  visitors  in  attendance.  Secretary  Brown  presented  his  an- 
nual report  giving  an  account  of  the  meetings  held  during  the  past 
year  and  of  the  various  activities  such  as  archeological  field  work, 
mound  preservation  projects,  museum  organization,  publication,  etc., 
in  which  the  Society  and  its  various  members  had  been  engaged. 
Treasurer  G.  M.  Thorne  presented  a  report  on  the  membership  and 
finances.  Both  reports  were  adopted. 

A  nominating  committee  consisting  of  the  Messrs.  Ringeisen,  Kas- 
tner  and  Barrett  brought  in  its  report.  There  being  no  other  nomi- 
nations these  nominees  were  regularly  elected.  President,  Charles 
G.  Schoewe,  vice-presidents,  Robert  J.  Kieckhefer,  W.  W.  Gilman, 
Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  Mrs.  Theodore  Koerner, 
W.  C.  McKern,  A.  P.  Kannenberg;  directors,  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  H.  H. 
Smith,  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  A.  T.  Newman,  E.  F.  Richter,  L.  R.  Whit- 
ney, Vetal  Winn,  Dr.  M.  W.  Kuhm,  T.  L.  Miller,  G.  A.  West.  Charles 
E.  Brown  was  elected  secretary  and  G.  M.  Thorne,  treasurer. 

Mr.  G.  A.  West  delivered  an  illustrated  address,  "An  Archeologist 
in  Britany",  in  which  he  described  the  interesting  ancient  stone  and 
other  monuments  of  that  part  of  France.  Mr.  Smith  exhibited  a 
copy  of  the  Society's  Lapham  Medal  which  was  to  be  awarded  to 
several  of  the  archeologists  attending  the  Central  Section  meeting. 
Secretary  Brown  announced  the  election  of  N.  A.  Enting,  Milwau- 


164  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   3 

kee  and  E.  F.  Rintelman,  Mukwonago,  annual  members.  Mrs.  H.  A. 
Main  had  been  elected  an  honorary  member.  President-elect  Schoewe 
spoke  briefly  of  the  history  and  activities  of  the  Society.  Mr.  E.  J. 
Schaefer  showed  a  film  of  the  1928  celebration  at  Lake  Geneva. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  .Mr.  Arthur  Gerth  exhibited  a  number 
of  fine  flint  and  quartzite  implements  and  Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr., 
an  unusually  fine  fluted  stone  axe. 

The  annual  Joint  Meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society, 
the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences,  Arts  and  Letters,  and  the  Mid- 
west Museums  Conference  was  held  in  the  auditorium  of  the  Biology 
building,  University  of  Wisconsin,  at  Madison,  on  April  11  and  12, 
1930.  The  meeting  was  very  well  attended.  Thirteen  of  the  thirty- 
six  papers  in  the  program  were  offered  by  the  Wisconsin  Archeolo- 
gical Society.  These  were  presented  by  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr. 
Albert  B.  Reagan,  Mrs.  May  L.  Bauchle,  Milton  F.  Hulburt,  E.  R. 
Mclntyre,  George  Overton,  Will  F.  Bauchle,  Theodore  T.  Brown,  John 
G.  Gregory,  M.  E.  Hathaway,  George  R.  Fox,  Rev.  Paul  B.  Jenkins 
and  John  B.  MacHarg. 

The  annual  dinner  was  held  on  the  evening  of  the  first  day  of  the 
meeting  in  the  Old  Madison  room  of  the  University  Memorial  Union 
building.  Following  the  dinner  Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  gave  an  illustrated 
address  on  "Tamest  Africa". 

The  Midwest  Museums  Conference  held  a  meeting  of  its  own  during 
the  Joint  Meeting  at  which  the  business  of  the  Conference  was  dis- 
cussed by  Mr.  Babcock,  Mr.  Buckstaff,  Mr.  Brown  and  Dr.  Barrett. 
Mr.  Willoughby  M.  Babcock  was  elected  president  of  the  organiza- 
tion, Mr.  Ralph  N.  Buckstaff,  vice-president  and  treasurer,  and  Mrs. 
May  L.  Bauchle,  secretary.  T.  E.  B.  Pope,  Theodore  T.  Brown.  Mrs. 
Ruth  M.  Shuttleworth,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton,  E.  K.  Putnam  and  A.  C. 
Burrill  were  elected  members  of  the  board  of  directors. 

President  Charles  G.  Schoewe  conducted  the  meeting  of  the  Wis- 
consin Archeological  Society  held  at  Milwaukee  on  Monday  evening, 
April  21,  1930.  The  meeting  was  very  well  attended  seventy-five 
members  and  visitors  being  present,  Among  these  were  a  number 
of  Oneida  and  Winnebago  Indians.  Secretary  Brown  announced  the 
election  to  membership  of  Mr.  Herbert  E.  Kraft,  Milwaukee;  Rich- 
ard Adams,  Reedsburg,  and  Mrs.  Vina  S.  Adams,  Battle  Creek,  Michi- 
gan, annual  members.  The  death  of  Dr.  Frederick  C.  Rogers,  Oco- 
nomowoc,  a  charter  member  and  former  officer  of  the  Society,  was 
announced.  The  President's  appointments  of  members  of  standing 
committees  were  read.  These  are  printed  on  the  beginning  pages  of 
this  issue  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeologist.  All  members  of  the  Society 
were  urged  to  attend  the  meeting  of  the  Central  Section,  American  An- 
thropological Association,  to  be  held  in  Milwaukee  on  May  9  mid  10. 
Special  invitations  to  attend  were  to  be  sent  to  all. 

The  program  consisted  of  an  illustrated  talk  by  Huron  H.  Smith 
on  "Among  the  Oneida  Indians",  this  being  an  account  of  his  ethno- 
botanical  investigations  among  these  Wisconsin  tribesmen  during  the 
summer  of  the  past  year.  Mr.  Emil  J.  Schaefer  exhibited  two  very 
interesting  Winnebago  films  prepared  by  himself,  these  bearing  the 
titles,  "The  Winnebago  Powwow  at  Pittsville",  and  "The  Winnebago 
Harvest  Dance  at  Kilbourn". 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  exhibited 
some  interesting  stone  implements  found  near  Port  Washington,  and 
Mr.  Paul  Joers  a  pipe  and  flint  points  and  an  Indian  pin  and  bone 
game. 

A  brief  account  of  the  meeting  of  the  Central  Section,  American 
Anthropological  Association,  which  was  held  at  Milwaukee  on  Friday 


Archeological  Notes.  165 

and  Saturday,  May  9  and  10,  is  printed  elsewhere  in  this  issue.  It 
was  a  fine  meeting  and  those  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society  who  were  able  to  attend  were  given  the  opportunity  of  meet- 
ing brother  archeologists  from  other  Midwest,  Southern  and  Western 
states.  For  the  birth  of  this  now  very  active  interstate  organization 
the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  is  to  the  largest  part  responsible, 
two  of  its  members,  Dr.  Barrett  and  Mr.  Brown,  proposing  the  plan, 
and  the  organization  meeting  being  held  in  Milwaukee,  nine  years 
ago.  Both  men  have  since  served  as  presidents  of  the  Association 
and  have  always  been  very  active  in  its  councils. 

By  invitation  of  the  Wisconsin  Society  of  Friends  of  Our  Native 
Landscape  a  Regional  and  Rural  Planning  Conference  was  held  at 
the  State  Capitol  building  at  Madison  on  March  27-28.  Among  the 
other  organizations  and  state  departments  participating  in  this  gath- 
ering by  means  of  their  officers  or  other  representatives  were  the 
Wisconsin  Federation  of  Womens  Clubs,  Daughters  of  the  American 
Revolution,  State  Historical  Society,  Wisconsin  Archeological  So- 
ciety, the  State  Highway  Commission,  the  State  Conservation  Com- 
mission, State  Department  of  Agriculture,  State  Land  Office,  'State 
Horticultural  Society  and  several  departments  of  the  University  of 
Wisconsin. 

The  purpose  of  the  conference  was  to  coordinate  the  work  of  all 
organizations  in  the  state  whose  functions  have  a  bearing  on  the 
benefication  of  its  lands,  parks  and  highways,  and  the  preservation 
of  its  historic  and  scenic  landmarks. 

OTHER  ITEMS 

A  movement  is  on  foot  to  make  a  historical  museum  of  the  first 
capitol  building  at  Leslie.  "At  present  there  is  nothing  aside  from 
the  old  structure  resurrected  some  years  ago  to  hold  the  interest  of 
thousands  of  visitors  who  come  here  each  summer."  It  is  pointed 
out  that  in  the  cities  in  the  vicinity  there  are  scattered  about  many 
pieces  of  old  furniture  and  other  furnishings  and  specimens  which 
would  be  available  for  converting  the  interior  of  the  old  building 
into  a  shrine  of  unusual  interest.  An  association  is  being  formed  in 
three  southwestern  Wisconsin  counties  to  undertake  this  very  desir- 
able work. 

We  are  not  fully  informed  at  this  time  as  to  what  further  progress 
has  been  made  in  the  effort  of  the  history  and  landmarks  committee 
of  the  Wisconsin  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs  to  acquire  for  the 
state  and  permanently  preserve  the  old  U.  S.  Indian  Agency  House 
at  Portage.  In  this  undertaking  a  number  of  state  societies  and  or- 
ganizations have  manifested  an  enthusiastic  interest.  Mrs.  C.  E. 
Buell  of  Madison,  chairman  of  the  committee,  has  done  some  excellent 
work  for  the  project  by  having  a  state  committee  consisting  of  promi- 
nent men  and  women  residents  of  Portage,  Madison  and  Milwaukee 
appointed  to  undertake  the  preservation  of  the  Agency  House.  We 
await  the  successful  carrying  out  of  their  plans. 

The  department  of  anthropology  of  the  University  of  Chicago  has 
undertaken  the  making  of  a  "pictorial  survey"  of  the  Indian  arti- 
facts of  the  Middle  West  states.  Mr.  F.  M.  Setzler  of  Chicago  is  en- 
gaged in  this  work  which  proposes  to  gather  photographs  and  notes 
such  as  may  be  available  to  all  American  archeologists  and  enable 
the  University  to  undertake  researches  tending  to  the  unifaction  of 
all  information  bearing  on  Indian  cultures  of  this  area.  The  Wis- 
consin Archeological  Society  has  not  yet  formally  invited  to  co- 
operate in  this  undertaking.  Mr.  Setzler  has  been  engaged  in  ex- 
amining the  collections  and  records  of  the  Milwaukee  museum. 


366  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   3 


At  Janesville  a  movement  has  been  started  by  the  local  Associa- 
tion of  Commerce  in  response  to  the  suggestions  of  the  Wsconsin 
Archeological  Society  to  mark  with  metal  tablets  a  number  of  places 
of  Indian  historical  interest  in  the  city.  These  include  the  site  of  the 
Round  Rock  village  and  Rock  Ford  and  the  old  Indian  village  sites 
and  camp  grounds  in  Riverside  Park;  on  Goose  Island  and  in  "Black 
Hawk"  Park. 

We  trust  that  this  will  inspire  our  friends  at  Beloit  to  erect  similar 
monuments  on  the  early  sites  of  Turtle  village  and  Standing  Post 
village  and  perhaps  permanently  preserve  and  mark  some  of  the 
Indian  mounds  still  remaining  along  State  Highway  51  near  the  city. 
Rock  County  should  endeavor  to  secure  and  preserve  as  a  county 
historical  park  the  site  of  the  historic  Catfish  village  and  Indian  Hill 
mound  group  at  the  mouth  of  the  Yahara  River  near  Fulton  and 
Indian  Ford.  At  the  latter  town  a  marker  should  be  placed  to  mark 
the  location  of  the  early  Indian  ford  of  the  Rock.  All  residents  of 
Rock  County  should  take  an  active  interest  in  bringing  about  these 
now  very  desirable  public  undertakings.  All  of  these  sites  are 
described  in  a  recent  Rock  River  report  of  this  Society. 

The  Hudson  Women's  Club  are  marking  a  group  of  three  mounds 
located  on  a  bluff  on  the  lake  shore.  This  property  a  Mr.  Birkenoe 
has  presented  to  the  city  of  Hudson  for  a  park. 

PUBLICATIONS 

Bulletin  86  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology  is  a  monograph 
on  "Chippewa  Customs"  by  Frances  Densmore.  All  members  of  the 
'Society  should  secure  a  copy  for  their  libraries.  The  material  pre- 
sented was  collected  at  White  Earth,  Red  Lake,  Cass  Lake,  Leech 
Lake,  and  Mille  Lac  Reservations  in  Minnesota,  and  the  Lac  Court 
Oreilles  Reservation  in  Wisconsin,  and  the  Manitou  Rapids  Reserve 
in  Ontario,  Canada. 

The  Committee  on  State  Archeological  Surveys,  National  Research 
Council  has  issued  a  "Guide  Leaflet  for  Amateur  Archeologists,"  the 
intention  of  which  is  to  encourage  systematic  study  of  our  fast  van- 
ishing Indian  remains.  Copies  of  this  leaflet  may  be  obtained  through 
the  Madison  office  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society. 

For  distribution  at  this  year's  Summer  Session  of  the  University 
of  Wisconsin  there  have  been  printed  by  the  State  Historical  Museum 
two  leaflets,  "Indian  Star  Lore"  and  "The  Birds  of  the  Campus". 
The  latter  is  of  interest  to  persons  interested  in  folklore  because  of 
chapters  which  it  contains  on  "Bird  Beliefs  of  the  Pioneers"  and 
"Indian  Bird  Lore." 

A  recent  issue  of  the  Green  Bay  History  Bulletin  is  devoted  to  an 
article  on  "Green  Bay  Plays  Important  Part  in  Early  Newspaper 
History",  by  Abigail  B.  Robinson. 

Mr.  Charles  E.  Brown  has  published  "Wigwam  Tales",  a  booklet 
collection  of  about  fifty  selected  Indian  short  stories  for  the  fireside 
and  camp  fire.  These  stories  are  chosen  from  the  best  myths  and 
legends  of  many  American  Indian  tribes.  They  are  particularly 
dedicated  to  the  use  of  storytellers  at  boys  and  girls  summer  camps. 
Cost  50  cents.  Address  2011  Chadbourne  Avenue,  Madison.  The 
author  has  previously  printed  similar  booklets  of  "Paul  Bunyan 
Tales"  and  "Cowboy  Tales". 


Wfje 
Wi&wn&in 


Julp,  1930 

NEW  SERIES 


Jto.  4 


POTTERY  SMOOTHERS 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL   SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec.  1103, 
Act,  Oct.  3,  1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


(ffltecontfm  glrcfjeologtcal 
^fliltoaukee,  Mi* 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation   of  Wisconsin   antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

Charles  G.  Schoewe 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

W.  W.  Oilman  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand          W.  C.  McKern 
A.  P.  Kannenberg 


Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett 

H.  H.  Smith 

Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz 


DIRECTORS 

A.  T.  Newman 
E.  F.  Richter 
L.  R.  Whitney 

Geo.  A.  West 


Vetal  Winn 

Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm 

T.  L.  Miller 


TREASURER 

G.    M.    Thome 
National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  F. 
Bauchle,  Geo.  F.  Overton,  M.  F.  Hulburt,  T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Dr.  E. 
J.  W.  Notz,  O.  L.  Hollister,  Dr.  F.  G.  Logan,  T.  T.  Brown,  Dr.  B.  T. 
Best,  S  W.  Faville,  Col.  R.  S.  Owen,  G.  L.  Pasco. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Frank  Weston, 
Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr.  Orrin  Thompson,  Mrs.  F.  R.  Melcher, 
Col.  Howard  Greene,  Rev.  O.  W.  Smith,  M.  G.  Troxell,  H.  W.  Cor- 
nell, W.  P.  Morgan,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  A.  H.  Griffith. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— L.  R.  Whitney,  Col.  Marshall  Cousins, 
Mrs.  Arthur  C.  Neville,  Geo.  A.  West,  W.  M.  Babcock,  R.  N.  Buck- 
staff,  Prof.  J.  B.  MacHarg,  Dr.  P.  B.  Jenkins,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton, 
A.  P.  Kannenberg,  Mrs.  May  L.  Bauchle,  B.  M.  Palmer. 

MEMBERSHIP — Louis  Pierron,  Paul  Joers,  A.  R.  Rogers,  Arthur 
Gerth,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  Rud.  Boettger,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  H.  W. 
Kuhm,  Mrs.  Anna  F.  Johnson,  K.  Freckman,  Geo.  Wright,  Mrs. 
Hans  A.  Olson,  Carl  Baur,  C.  G.  Weyl. 

STATE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  PARKS— R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  R.  P.  Ferry, 
D.  S.  Rowland. 

PUBLICITY— J.  G.  Gregory,  A.  0.  Barton,  E.  R.  Mclntyre,  R.  K.  Coe. 
BIOGRAPHY— H.  H.  Smith,  G.  M.  Thome,  C.  E.  Brown. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles .  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Muesum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thorne,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  9,  No.  4,  New  Series 

ARTICLES 

Page 
Pottery  Smoothers,  Charles  E.   Brown • 171 

Archbishop    Messmer 174 

Oliver   Lemere    175 

Indian  Implement  Manufacture  by  Halvor  L.  Skavlem 177 

Some  Village  and  Camp  Sites  in  Northern  Michigan,  C.  E.  Brown 

and  M.  F.  Hulburt 180 

Plant  Games  and  Toys  of  Chippewa  Children,  T.  T.  Brown 185 

The    Battle    of    Kings    Mountain   Anniversary    Celebration,    Ray 

Jacobs 187 

Ancient  Cities  of  Northeastern  Arizona,  Albert  B.   Reagan 188 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Pottery  Smoother,  State  Historical  Museum 


Pottery   Smoother,   State  Historical   Museum 


Cije  Wisconsin  8rcf)eolosi8t 

Published   Quarterly   by   the   Wisconsin   Archeological    Society 

Vol.  »  MADISO1V,  WIS.,  JUL.Y,   1930  No.   4 

New  Series 


POTTERY  SMOOTHERS 

Charles  E.  Brown 

It  appears  desirable  that  some  attention  should  be  paid  by 
archeologists  and  collectors  of  Indian  stone  implements  to  a 
class  of  artifacts,  which,  although  seemingly  not  particu- 
larly numerous  in  Wisconsin  are  represented  by  one  or  a 
small  number  of  specimens  in  nearly  all  of  the  larger  pub- 
lic and  private  collections  in  the  state.  These  have  long 
been  designated  by  collectors  as  "spindles"  or  "pottery 
slicks."  The  first  name  is  not  particularly  significant,  be- 
ing probably  applied  to  them  because  of  the  shape  of  some. 
The  second  name,  which  is  in  more  general  use,  indicates  a 
belief  in  their  use  as  smoothing  tools.  Professor  Moore- 
head  appears  to  have  favored  this  latter  theory.  In  his  book, 
"The  Stone  Age  in  North  America",  he  presents  a  plate  in 
which  four  of  these  interesting  implements  are  shown.*  Be- 
neath this  plate  is  the  printed  text,  "Stones  used  in  smooth- 
ing pottery,  kneading  clay,  etc."  Doubtless  Mr.  Moorehead 
possessed  very  good  reasons  for  this  belief.  Unfortunately 
for  the  student  he  does  not  give  these  in  this  volume. 
These  "pottery  smoothers"  may  be  described  as  oval  or  el- 
lipical  in  form,  and  oval,  elliptical  or  somewhat  rectangular 
or  square  in  section.  Some  have  rather  sharply  pointed 
extremities,  others  have  slightly  rounded  ends.  They  ap- 
pear to  range  in  length  from  about  3  to  8%  inches  and  from 
less  than  an  inch  to  l1/^  inches  in  diameter  or  width  at  their 
middles.  A  typical  specimen  is  shown  in  the  frontispiece 
of  this  issue  of  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist. 

It  may  be  desirable  to  briefly  describe  a  few  of  the 
specimens  of  this  class  of  implements  which  are  within 
reach  at  this  time.  An  example  in  the  collections  of  the 


*  Fig.  689,  p.  293. 


172  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   4 

Neville  Public  Museum  at  Green  Bay  was  found  on  an  In- 
dian village  site  at  The  Cove  at  Sturgeon  Bay,  in  Door 
county,  Wisconsin.  This  rather  fine  specimen  is  made  of 
limestone.  It  is  elliptical  in  form,  both  extremities  being 
pointed.  Its  length  is  about  7%  inches  and  it 3  diameter 
at  its  middle  about  1%  inches.  Mr.  John  P.  Schumacher 
collected  this  implement.  In  the  Schumacher  and  Ducha- 
teau  collections  in  this  very  active  Wisconsin  museum 
there  are  at  least  half  a  dozen  other  implements  of  this 
class  all  of  which  come  from  village  sites  in  the  Green  Bay 
region.  Descriptions  of  these  may  be  furnished  in  a  fu- 
ture article. 

In  the  Henry  P.  Hamilton  collection  in  the  State  His- 
torical Museum  there  are  three  very  good  specimens,  one 
of  these  (A5638)  being  the  largest  specimen  of  which  there 
is  a  present  record.  This  imp^ment  was  obtained  from  a 
village  site  in  Gibson  Township,  Manitowoc  County.  It  will 
be  noticed  (sea  Frontispiece)  that  in  this  specimen  one  part 
tapers  more  acutely  to  a  point  than  does  the  other.  Its 
length  is  8%  inches  and  its  greatest  width  1%  inches.  Its 
upper  and  lower  surfaces  are  flattened  and  its  sidss  rounded, 
giving  an  oval  section.  It  is  made  of  schist  and  its  weight 
is  7  ounces. 

A  second  specimen  (A5640)  is  also  elliptical  in  form  with 
pointed  extremities.  It  was  obtained  from  the  extensive 
village  sites  at  Two  Rivers,  from  which  so  very  many  of 
this  noted  collector's  choicest  artifacts  of  many  classes  were 
collected  in  past  years.  Its  length  is  5%  inches  and  its 
greater  diameter  1%  inches.  Like  the  foregoing  specimen 
its  upper  and  lower  surfaces  are  flattened  for  their  en- 
tire length  and  its  sides  rounded.  These  surfaces  show  the 
effects  of  weathering  some  of  the  otherwise  smoothed  lime- 
stone of  which  it  is  fashioned  being  scaled  or  worn  off.  It 
weighs  8  ounces,  being  heavier  though  of  smaller  size  than 
the  other  specimen. 

A  third  example  (A5639)  was  also  originally  elliptical  in 
form,  a  small  piece  of  one  end  being  broken  off  but  again 
rounded  by  use  or  otherwise. 

All  of  its  surfaces  are  flattened  for  their  entire  length, 
giving  a  rectangular  section.  It  is  made  of  limestone  and 
its  weight  is  3  ounces.  Its  length  is  4%  inches  and  its 


Pottery   Smoothers.  173 

greatest  width  15/16  of  an  inch.  It  was  also  collected  from 
the  Two  Rivers  sites. 

A  fourth  specimen,  preserved  in  the  collections  of  the 
State  Museum  (A1982),  comes  from  a  village  site  at  Big 
Suamico,  in  Brown  County.  This  specimen,  also  ellipical  in 
form,  is  made  of  a  harder  stone  than  "any  of  the  others,  prob- 
ably diorite.  Its  upper  and  lower  surfaces  are  flattened  and 
its  sides  slightly  rounded.  Its  length  is  4  inches  and  its 
greatest  width  %  of  an  inch.  One  extremity  is  injured  as 
in  the  foregoing  specimen.  Its  weight  is  3  ounces. 

Another  small  specimen  was  collected  by  J.  A.  H.  John- 
son near  Chetek,  in  Barron  County.  It  was  oval  in  form 
and  section  with  rounded  ends.  This  specimen  was  made  of 
white  quartz.  Its  length  was  4  inches  and  its  greatest  di- 
ameter l1/^  inches.  Its  weight  cannot  be  given  as  it  has 
for  some  years  been  in  other  hands  in  a  neighboring  state. 

These  descriptions  will  illustrate  the  character  of  this 
class  of  interesting  prehistoric  Indian  artifacts.  Whether 
or  not  they  were  employed  as  tools  by  our  aboriginal  potters 
in  the  smoothing  of  the  surfaces  of  their  earthen  vessels 
during  their  manufacture  remains  to  be  determined.  Fa- 
voring this  theory  are  their  generally  flattened  surfaces, 
their  light  weight  and  nature  of  the  stone  of  which  some 
or  most  specimens  are  made,  and  the  absence  on  their  sur- 
faces of  any  marks  showing  rough  usage. 

The  pointed  ends  of  some  would  be  useful  in  ornamenting 
a  green  vessel  with  indentations  and  trailed  decorations. 
No  one  will  perhaps  deny  that  they  would  not  prove  to  be 
very  convenient  tools  for  the  aboriginal  potter.  The  finding 
of  all  or  most  of  these  Wisconsin  specimens  on  well  known 
village  sites,  on  which  large  quantities  of  earthenware  ves- 
sels were  evidently  manufactured,  may  lend  further  support 
to  this  at  present  rather  accepted  theory  of  their  use. 

Similar  stone  implements  have  been  found  in  Illinois,  In- 
diana and  no  doubt  in  other  states.  We  shall  be  pleased  to 
have  our  co-workers  in  Wisconsin  and  archeologists  and 
collectors  in  other  states  correspond  with  us  concerning  sim- 
ilar specimens  in  their  collections,  and  to  the  end  that  some 
time  a  more  complete  monograph  on  this  subject  may  be 
undertaken. 


174  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 


ARCHBISHOP  MESSMER 

Archbishop  Sebastian  G.  Messmer,  head  of  the  Milwau- 
kee Catholic  archdiocese,  died  while  on  a  visit  to  his  former 
home  at  Goldach,  Switzerland,  on  Sunday,  August  3.  He 
was  eighty-three  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  his  death, 
and  is  said  to  have  been  in  point  of  years  the  oldest  Cath- 
olic archbishop  in  the  United  States.  Before  going  to 
Goldach  the  Archbishop  visited  Rome,  where  he  had  an 
audience  with  the  pope.  He  also  attended  the  Passion  Play 
at  Ober-Ammergau. 

Archbiship  Messmer  was  for  nearly  thirty  years  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  being  one  of  its 
oldest  members.  During  past  years  Secretary  Brown  ex- 
changed occasional  letters  with  him  in  matters  of  interest 
to  the  Society  in  whose  activities  in  preserving  antiquities, 
conducting  researches  and  organizing  and  assisting  Wis- 
consin museums  he  manifested  a  deep  interest.  When 
asked  to  contribute  to  any  need  of  the  Society  he  always 
willingly  did  so.  When  the  Salzmann  Museum  was  or- 
ganized at  St.  Francis  Seminary  by  the  late  Fathers  Drexel 
and  Metzdorf,  and  other  former  St.  Francis  members  of  the 
Society,  he  contributed  towards  the  purchase  of  specimens 
and  collections  and  lent  other  assistance,  At  least  one 
member  of  the  Archbishops  household  was  then  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Society.  Through  his  kindly  assistance  the 
membership  of  other  priests  of  the  Catholic  Church  was  se- 
cured. 

IA  the  death  of  this  prince  of  the  Church  the  Wisconsin 
Archeological  Society  mourns  the  loss  of  another  devoted 
friend.  The  fine  portrait  of  him  printed  in  a  recent  issue 
of  the  Milwaukee  Journal  shows  what  a  fine  kindly  gentle- 
man the  Archbishop  was.  His  friends  outside  of  his  own 
church  were  very  numerous.  Archbishop  Messmer  was 
also  for  many  years  an  officer  and  devoted  member  of  the 
Wisconsin  Historical  Society. 


Oliver  Lemere.  175 


OLIVER  LEMERE 

Oliver  Lemere,  whose  home  for  several  years  past  was  at 
Madison,  died  at  Starved  Rock  State  Park,  in  Illinois,  on 
Friday,  August  1,  after  a  very  short  illness.  He  had  gone 
to  the  Park  but  a  short  time  before  with  the  plan  of  there 
contributing  to  the  recreation  of  summer  visitors. 

Lemere  was  a  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Winnebago  tribe 
and  a  descendant  of  the  famous  Indian  daughter  of  Chief 
Four  Legs  of  the  early  Doty  Island  village,  Hopokoekau, 
"Glory  of  the  Morning".  His  boyhood  home  was  on  the 
Winnebago  Reservation  in  Nebraska.  His  great  grand- 
father, Oliver  Armel,  a  Frenchman,  had  an  Indian  trading 
post  at  Madison,  within  a  short  distance  of  the  present  cap- 
itol  building,  when  the  first  white  settlers  arrived  there  in 
1837.  Angel  Decora,  the  noted  Indian  girl  artist,  was  his 
cousin  and  grew  to  girlhood  as  a  member  of  his  father's 
family.  Between  them  there  always  existed  a  strong  fam- 
ily attachment. 

Lemere  received  his  education  at  the  former  Indian 
school  at  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania.  He  was  a  man  of  excep- 
tional intelligence  and  fine  manners  and  presence.  His 
first  appearance  in  Madison  was  in  about  the  year  1914 
when  he  spent  a  summer  in  the  city  as  assistant  to  Dr.  Paul 
Radin,  then  engaged  in  his  Winnebago  researches  for  the 
American  Bureau  of  Ethnology.  In  the  succeeding  years 
he  made  frequent  visits  to  the  city  making  the  acquaintance 
of  many  of  its  leading  citizens. 

Being  exceptionally  well  informed  on  the  ethnology,  tra- 
ditions and  history  of  his  people  Lemere  was  during  these 
years  able  to  give  much  valuable  assistance  to  both  the 
Wisconsin  Historical  Society  and  the  Wisconsin  Archeologi- 
cal  Society.  Of  the  latter  he  was  at  the  time  of  his  death 
an  always  very  helpful  member.  None  of  its  Indian  mem- 
bers has  ever  stood  higher  in  its  councils  than  Oliver 
Lemere.  To  many  of  its  members  he  was  very  well  known. 
He  was  highly  regarded  by  a  host  of  other  friends  in  Wis- 
consin. 

During  these  years  Lemere  supported  himself  by  giving 
lectures  in  the  city  schools  of  Chicago,  and  before  service 


176  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

clubs,  historical  societies,  Boy  Scouts  and  Y.  M.  C.  A.  or- 
ganizations and  other  bodies  in  Wisconsin  and  elsewhere. 
He  frequently  appeared  in  the  programs  of  the  Friends  of 
Our  Native  Landscape  and  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society.  One  summer  he  was  engaged  in  giving  a  course  in 
woodcraft  at  Culver  Military  Academy,  and  in  another  he 
was  employed  as  a  guide  at  the  Wisconsin  Dells.  Governor 
Fred  R.  Zimmerman  during  his  administration  appointed 
him  to  a  temporary  position  as  a  guide  at  the  state  capitol. 
He  also  acted  as  Indian  custodian  for  a  time  of  the  Frost's 
Woods  wild  life  sanctuary  at  Madison. 

Lemere  was  not  only  a  lecturer  and  entertainer,  he  was 
also  skilled  in  the  arts  of  the  Indian  silversmith  and  wood- 
carver.  In  the  State  Historical  Museum  and  in  other  mu- 
seums are  specimens  of  his  silver  work  and  other  valuable 
ethnological  material  obtained  through  him. 

In  1928  in  collaboration  with  Mr.  Harold  B.  Shinn  of 
Chicago  he  published  a  book,  "Winnebago  Stories",  and 
which  has  had  a  good  sale.  Some  years  previous  to  this  he 
assisted  the  late  Dr.  N.  J.  Jipson  of  Chicago  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  a  dictionary  of  the  Winnebago  language.  The  Wis- 
consin Archaeological  Society  has  at  different  times  printed 
folktales  obtained  through  him.  A  large  number  of  other 
Winnebago  myths  and  legends  collected  by  him  for  Dr. 
Radin  await  publication  by  the  American  Bureau  of  Eth- 
nology. 

He  was  at  one  time  an  officer  of  the  once  very  active 
Society  of  American  Indians.  He  stood  high  in  the  regards 
of  both  the  educated  and  other  Indians  of  his  own  and  other 
tribes. 

Oliver  Lemere  leaves  behind  a  fine  family  of  eight  boys 
and  girls.  One  of  his  sons,  Francis  Lemere,  now  connected 
with  the  Wisconsin  Dells  Indian  pageant,  is  a  vocalist  of 
more  than  local  note. 

In  closing  these  brief  notes  of  the  useful  life  of  a  dear 
friend  we  can  only  express  the  wish  that  his  fine,  gentle 
spirit  may  rest  in  eternal  peace  in  the  spirit  world  of  his 
Winnebago  warrior  forefathers. 


Indian  Implement  Manufacture.  177 


INDIAN  IMPLEMENT  MANUFACTURE  BY  HALVOR 
L.  SKAVLEM 

The  extraordinary  achievements  of  Mr.  Halvor  L.  Skav- 
lem  of  Lake  Koshkonong,  Wisconsin,  in  the  manufacture  by 
Indian  methods  of  chipped  flint  and  pecked  and  ground  stone 
implements  are  recounted  in  a  fine  monograph  prepared  by 
Alonzo  W.  Pond  and  recently  published  by  the  Logan  Mu- 
seum of  Beloit  College.  In  the  preface  of  this  bulletin, 
"Primitive  Methods  of  Working  Stone  Based  on  Experi- 
ments of  Halvor  L.  Skavlem,"*  the  author  says: 

"In  September,  1912,  Mr.  Halvor  L.  Skavlem  was  walk- 
ing through  the  cornfield  back  of  his  summer  home  at  Lake 
Koshkonong  looking  for  arrowheads,  axes  and  other  relics 
of  Indian  handiwork  as  he  had  done  many  times  a  day  for 
several  years.  On  this  particular  occasion  he  found  a 
broken  celt  and  asked  himself,  "If  I  were  an  Indian  how 
would  I  sharpen  this  broken  celt?"  Nearby  he  found  a 
piece  of  chert  and  began  to  answer  his  own  question  by 
striking  the  celt  with  it.  The  details  of  this  experiment  are 
told  later  in  this  paper.  It  is  sufficient  here  to  note  that  he 
sharpened  the  celt  with  it  and  continued  his  experiments 
with  most  satisfying  results.  Arrowheads  were  his  next 
problem  and  his  success  in  shaping  them  was  equal'y 
marked. 

"It  was  the  good  fortune  of  the  writer  to  call  on  Mr. 
Skavlem  three  or  four  days  after  these  first  attempts  at  the 
primitive  manufacture  of  stone  implements.  The  writer 
was  at  that  time  a  student  in  high  school  but  he  had  the 
pleasure  of  following  Mr.  Skavlem's  work  close1  y  from  the 
first  series  of  experiments  to  the  present  time.  It  is  in 
fact  due  to  Mr.  Skavlem's  enthusiasm  and  teaching  that  the 
writer  has  followed  the  study  of  archeology  in  America, 
Europe,  Africa  and  Asia  for  the  past  seventeen  years.  As 
no  one  else  has  had  the  opportunity  to  be  as  closely  con- 
nected with  Mr.  Skavlem's  work  as  has  the  writer,  it  is 
natural  that  he  was  asked  by  Dr.  Frank  G.  Logan  and  Dr. 
George  L.  Collie  of  Logan  Museum  to  prepare  this  manu- 


*  Bulletin,  V.  2,  No.  1. 


178  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.   4 

script  on  Mr.  Skavlem's  experiments.  "Mr.  Skavlem  is  now 
eighty-four  years  old  and  is  still  making  arrowheads  with 
the  same  skill  and  rapidity  he  showed  fifteen  and  more 
years  ago.  The  writer  appreciates  the  confidence  Mr. 
Skavlem  has  manifested  in  allowing  him  to  prepare  this 
paper  and  he  has  submitted  all  parts  of  it  for  the  experi- 
menter's approval." 

Mr.  Pond  presents  his  well-written  descriptions  of  Mr. 
Skavlem's  notable  experiments  in  six  chapters  bearing  the 
titles :— "Observations  in  Primitive  Stone- Working",  "Mak- 
ing Flaked  Implements",  "Flint  Fracture  by  Man  and  Na- 
ture", "Making  Pecked  and  Ground  Implements",  The  Skav- 
lem Axe  and  Tree  Cutting"  and  "Relation  of  Material  to 
Types,  Classes  and  Techniques".  Several  pages  at  the  end 
are  devoted  to  conclusions  and  a  number  of  others  to  a 
very  complete  and  useful  bibliography.  The  monograph  is 
finely  illustrated  with  sixty-four  plates  showing  all  of  the 
stages  of  Mr.  Skavlem's  experiments  and  of  their  interesting 
results. 

As  copies  of  Mr.  Pond's  monograph  can  be  purchased 
through  the  Logan  Museum  by  members  of  the  Wisconsin 
Archeological  Society  and  others  desiring  to  possess  copies, 
and  as  other  copies  of  it  may  also  now  undoubtedly  be  ob- 
tained from  all  of  our  leading  Wisconsin  and  other  libraries 
it  is  unnecessary  that  much  more  be  written  about  the  very 
helpful  character  of  this  bulletin  and  the  verv  use- 
ful information  contained  in  its  well  printed  near-y  150 
pages.  We  may,  however,  print  something  concerning  the 
subject  of  the  monograph  himself.  "Halvor  L.  Skavlem 
belonged  to  a  pioneer  Norwegian  family  of  Southern  Wis- 
consin. In  his  boyhood  the  Indians  lingered  in  his  neigh- 
borhood. Their  artifacts  and  other  evidences  of  their 
former  occupancy  were  then  numerous.  Naturally  of  an  in- 
quisitive mind,  young  Skavlem  began  to  ask  himse'f  how7 
they  made  these  stone  utensils.  In  his  later  life,  after  a 
long  study  of  the  matter,  he  began  making  Indian  tools  as 
he  believed  they  were  made  originally.  He  became  very 
skilful  and  adept  in  the  fashioning  of  stone." 

"Since  September,  1912,  when  Mr.  Skavlem  first  started 
making  arrowheads  and  axes  with  the  tools  of  primitive 
man  his  summer  home  on  the  site  of  Kaw-ray-kaw-saw- 


Indian  Implement  Manufacture.  179 

kaw's  (White  Crow)  village  at  Carcajou  Point  on  the  shores 
of  Lake  Koshkonong,  Wisconsin,  has  been  a  gathering  place 
for  hundreds  of  visitors  eager  to  see  how  the  Indian  made 
his  weapons.  These  visitors  have  come  from  all  parts  of 
the  United  States  and  Canada  and  many  of  them  have 
written  articles  for  publication  about  the  "charming  old 
arrowmaker  of  Lake  Koshkonong."  One  of  the  most  in- 
teresting of  these  articles  is  "The  Arrow-Maker"  by  Charles 
D.  Stewart,  which  appeared  in  the  Atlantic  Monthly  for 
June,  1923." 

Mr.  Skavlem,  as  well  as  Alonzo  W.  Pond,  Dr.  Frank  G. 
Logan  and  Dr.  George  L  Collie  have  been  active  members 
of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  for  many  years.  In 
the  passing  years  many  members  of  this  Society  have  sat 
on  the  hospitable  porch  of  the  Skavlem  home  at  Carcajou 
Point.  Here  in  a  number  of  boxes  he  kept  his  flint  and 
stone-working  tools  consisting  of  stone  breaking  and  flaking 
hand-hammers,  stone  and  flint  pecking  hammers,  bone  and 
antler  flakers  and  sandstone  grinders  and  other  tools  re- 
quired for  his  experiments.  Here  also  was  a  supply  of  flint 
and  other  stone,  raw  material  obtained  from  neighboring 
stone  heaps  or  sent  to  him  by  friends  from  aboriginal  stone 
quarries  and  other  sources.  Here,  on  request,  he  was  always 
willing  to  demonstrate  and  explain  every  step  in  the  aborigi- 
nal manufacture  of  an  arrowpoint  or  an  axe.  Many  dis- 
tinguished American  archeologists  and  ethnologists  have 
been  among  his  visitors.  Several  years  ago  a  group  of 
members  of  the  Central  Section,  American  Anthropological 
Society,  then  meeting  at  Beloit,  made  a  special  pilgrimage 
to  his  Janesville  residence  to  observe  his  experiments. 
Numerous  photographs  and  several  movie  films  of  him  at 
work  have  been  made  and  numerous  newspaper  articles  and 
several  magazine  articles  written  about  him  and  his  work. 
He  has  never  commercialized  the  results  of  his  experiments, 
no  one  has  ever  been  able  to  purchase  even  an  arrowpoint 
from  him.  In  Eastern  and  Western  museums  are  specimens 
or  series  of  specimens  of  his  manufacture  all  of  which  he 
has  freely  donated  as  contributions  to  archeological. science. 

Mr.  Skavlem  is  in  addition  to  his  extensive  archeological 


*  Pond,  pp.  7,  12-13. 


180  WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    9,   No.    4 

knowledge,  a  naturalist  of  distinction.  He  has  often  been 
referred  to  as  the  "John  Burroughs  of  Lake  Koshkonong." 
His  knowledge  of  the  flora  and  fauna  of  his  home  region 
is  profound.  His  valuable  collection  of  native  plants  is  in 
the  herbarium  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin  and  a  large 
collection  of 'mounted  birds  and  skins  in  his  Janesville  home. 
His  library  is  large  and  valuable.  He  is  the  author  of  sev- 
eral survey  reports  published  by  the  Wisconsin  Archeologi- 
cal  Society.  He  was  an  active  member  of  the  old  Wiscon- 
sin Natural  History  Society  and  is  one  of  the  oldest  living 
members  of  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences  and  of  the 
State  Historical  Society.  No  Wisconsin  scientist  of  the 
present  day  has  a  larger  circle  of  friends  who  respect  him 
for  his  scientific  knowledge  and  contributions  in  various 
fields  of  scientific  research  and  investigation  than  Halvor 
L.  Skavlem  of  Lake  Koshkonong.  To  many  a  now  success- 
ful investigator  like  AlonzoW.Pond,  he  has  been  the  boyhood 
or  young  manhood  inspiration. 


SOME  VILLAGE  AND  CAMP  SITES  IN  NORTHERN 
MICHIGAN 

C.  E.  Brown  and  M.  F.  Hulburt 

During  the  early  part  of  the  month  of  August,  with  Mr. 
Theodore  T.  Brown,  superintendent  of  the  Neville  Public 
Museum,  Green  Bay,  we  made  an  excursion  into  the 
northern  Michigan  peninsula  (Hiawatha  Land)  the  purpose 
of  which  was  that  of  a  camping  and  sightseeing  tour  rather 
than  of  an  archeological  expedition.  However,  in  the  course 
of  our  travels  some  archeological  sites  were  encountered. 
From  these  small  collections  were  made  and  some  field  notes 
and  photographs  taken. 

The  first  of  these  sites  visited  was  located  on  the  Green 
Bay  shore  of  Lake  Michigan  several  miles  north  of  the  vil- 
lage of  Cedar  River,  in  Menominee  County.  This  village 
site  is  on  the  west  side  of  Highway  35,  opposite  the  Menom- 
inee County  Park.  The  part  of  it  lying  east  of  the  road, 
between  the  highway  and  the  bay  shore  is  overgrown  with 
brush  and  trees  and  therefore  not  in  condition  for  exami- 
nation. On  the  west  side  of  the  highway  about  450  feet 


Northern  Michigan  Village  and  Camp  Site's1.  181 

of  this  site  is  exposed  in  a  series  of  shallow  sand  blows 
paralleling  the  road  in  a  pasture.  Here  we  found  clusters 
of  hearthstones  in  six  different  places,  each  doubtless  mark- 
ing the  former  location  of  an  Indian  wigwam.  None  of 
these  clusters  of  burned  and  broken  stones  had  been  much 
scattered  by  the  wind  or  other  causes  and  all  were  on  or 
very  close  to  their  original  sites.  Digging  in  the  vicinity  of 
several  of  these  exposed  small  areas  of  burned  and  ashy 
soil  and  bits  of  charcoal  no  doubt  marking  the  original  sites 
of  household  fireplaces.  On  these  wigwam  sites  were 
places  where  flint  nodules  had  been  broken  and  worked,  the 
chips,  flakes  and  spalls  of  this  material  being  scattered  over 
the  surface  of  the  soil.  The  flint  worked  here  was  of  a 
bluish  white  color  and  of  a  white  and  dark  bluish  (nearly 
black)  color.  A  few  white  quartz  flakes  and  fragments 
were  also  found.  Near  these  places  were  also  pieces  of 
broken  bones  of  the  deer,  bear  and  other  animals.  The 
specimens  recovered  from  this  site  in  the  course  of  an  hour's 
search  of  its  surface  were  a  small  triangular  point  nicely 
fashioned  of  white  flint,  blanks  and  rejects  of  the  kinds  of 
flint  above  mentioned,  a  scraper,  nearly  square  in  form  made 
of  bluish-white  flint  a  stemflake  scraper  with  a  rounded 
blade,  two  pebble  hammerstones  showing  signs  of  use,  a 
small  conical  muller  or  grinding  stone,  pieces  of  a  broken 
unfinished  celt,  the  canine  tooth  of  a  bear,  unperforated, 
and  a  notched  pebble  net  weight.  This  site  is  one  of  the 
farthest  north  that  these  sinkers  have  been  reported  on 
this  side  of  Lake  Michigan  to  date,  Manistique  is  the  other. 
Pottery  fragments  were  mostly  found  in  small  areas  near 
the  hearth  sites  where  small  and  medium-sized  vessels  had 
broken  and  disintegrated.  These  sherds  were  of  two  kinds, 
one  tempered  with  crushed  shell  and  the  other  with  crushed 
stone.  Some  of  this  earthernware  was  made  of  a  reddish 
clay,  and  some  of  it  of  a  dark-colored  clay  surfaced  on 
both  sides  with  reddish  clay.  Several  rim-pieces  have 
straight,  up-turned  rims  ornamented  on  top  and  on  the  sides 
with  small  indentations.  One  shows  twisted-cord  impres- 
sions. Deer  Creek  flows  into  Green  Bay  a  short  distance 
north  of  this  site.  Doubtless  the  site  itself  will  be  later 
found  to  extend  quite  to  the  mouth  of  the  creek.  Because 
of  its  location  near  this  county  park  this  village  site  is  un- 


182  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

doubtedly  much  hunted  over  for  arrowpoints  by  visitors  to 
this  park.  Many  were  in  the  vicinity  on  the  Sunday  after- 
noon when  we  arrived  here.  Mr.  John  P.  Schumacher,  the 
Green  Bay  archeologist,  has  in  past  years  also  collected  some 
specimens  here.  A  short  distance  north  of  the  creek  there 
is  a  place  on  the  east  side  of  the  highway  on  which  is  a 
sign  bearing  the  legend  "Old  Indian  Garden." 

White  Fish  River  Village  Site,  another  Indian  village  site 
which  we  visited,  is  situated  on  the  east  bank  of  the  White 
Fish  River  on  a  farm  owned  by  G.  M.  Berquist  in  Delta 
County.  This  site  is  located  a  short  distance  northeast  of 
the  highway  bridge  crossing  the  river.  It  is  a  sandy  field 
ten  or  more  acres  in  extent,  elevated  from  10  to  30  feet 
above  the  flat  land  along  the  river  bank  and  from  150  to 
to  200  feet  distant  from  the  stream.  Some  large  stumps 
indicate  that  this  site  was  covered  with  pine  trees.  A  short 
distance  beyond  the  northern  limits  of  this  village  site 
there  is  a  fine  spring  which  the  early  aboriginal  occupants 
of  this  place  must  have  appreciated. 

From  this  site  we  collected  ten  flint  scrapers,  square, 
circular  and  snub-nosed  in  form,  a  stemmed  spearpoint  made 
of  white  flint,  a  notched  spearpoint  made  of  grey  flint,  one 
stemmed  and  two  notched  arrowpoints  made  of  grey  flint, 
broken  flint  blanks,  a  notched  white  quartz  arrowpoint,  a 
small  piece  of  native  copper,  probably  part  of  an  implement, 
and  a  pebble  hammerstone. 

Flint  chips  and  fragments  and  animal  bones  and  burned 
stones  are  scattered  over  small  areas  in  different  parts  of 
this  site  in  such  a  manner  as  to  indicate  the  former  location 
here  of  at  least  four  or  five  Indian  habitations.  A  portion 
of  this  field  is  grass-grown  and  the  site  may  extend  over 
this  land  also. 

The  stone  worked  here  by  the  Indian  arrowmakers  we 
found  to  be  a  greyish-white  flint  (the  most  common),  a 
white  flint,  white  quartz,  flesh-colored  quartzite,  brown 
chalcedony,  and  a  grey  silica. 

No  potsherds  were  found  near  any  of  the  wigwam  sites 
but  fragments  of  a  single  medium-sized  vessel  were  found 
in  the  sandy  bank  at  the  edge  of  the  site.  This  vessel  was 
made  of  dark  colored  clay  surfaced  on  both  sides  with  red 
clay  and  tempered  with  crushed  white  quartz.  It  is  orna- 


Northern  Michigan  Village  and  Camp  Sites.  183 

mented  with  roulette  markings,  its  lower  surface  marked 
by  treatment  with  a  cord-wound  paddle. 

The  White  Fish  River  is  about  250  feet  wide  opposite 
this  site.  It  is  a  fine,  clear  stream.  To  the  north  is  a  large 
tamarack  swamp.  It  flows  southward  to  the  head  of  Little 
Bay  De  Noc.  Mr.  Schumacher  has  also  collected  from  this 
village  site. 

Manistique  Camp  Site.  At  Manistique  we  found  a  camp 
and  workshop  site  near  the  bank  of  the  Manistique  River  in 
a  small  plot  of  sandy  ground  directly  in  the  rear  of  Sell- 
man's  fish  dock.  The  backyards  of  several  city  lots  adjoin 
this  site.  The  flint  used  in  arrow  manufacture  on  this  site 
is  of  a  lustreless  light-grey  color.  Chips  and  flakes  of  it 
were  very  numerous  and  among  these  were  found  a  broken 
pebble  hammerstone  and  a  single  small  triangular  flint  ar- 
rowpoint. 

On  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river,  between  it  and  the 
Lake  Michigan  shore  are  extensive  sand  dunes  some  of  these 
being  partly  covered  with  vegetation  and  pine  and  other 
trees.  We  spent  several  hours  in  searching  the  sandy  areas 
on  and  at  the  bases  of  these  picturesque  dunes  for  Indian 
sites'  which  we  felt  must  be  there,  but  with  no  result. 

In  the  public  library  at  Manistique  there  is  a  small  col- 
lection of  largely  local  archeological  material.  There  are  in 
this  collection  about  one  hundred  flnt  arrow  and  spear- 
points,  blanks,  a  curved  knife,  several  scrapers  (bunts),  a 
hoe  blade,  a  notched  pebble  sinker  and  two  grooved  stone 
axes.  The  points  are  largely  made  of  grey  chert.  The 
largest  spearpoint,  a  stemmed  point  made  of  grey  flint,  is 
about  61/2  inches  long  and  its  blade  about  3  inches  wide. 
A  pebble  pipe  comes  from  the  Dehtin  farm  at  Indian  Lake. 
There  formerly  was  a  single  copper  spearpoint  in  this  col- 
lection. 

In  the  museum  of  old  Fort  Mackinac  on  Mackinac  Island 
there  is  an  archeological  collection  consisting  of  flint  points, 
celts,  axes,  a  gouge,  gorgets,  bannerstones,  and  a  pipe. 

Densmore's  Beach  Site.  At  this  Lake  Michigan  shore 
resort  at  St.  Ignace  there  are  evidences  of  a  village  or  camp 
site.  This  we  could  not  examine  as  most  of  the  site  was 
under  sod.  Some  flint  chips  were  found  on  the  tourist 
camp  ground  of  the  resort.  Mr.  G.  E.  Densmore,  son  of  the 


184  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

proprietor,  has  a  small  collection  of  local  material  in  which 
are  a  slate  gorget,  a  small  hemisphere,  an  unfinished  gorget, 
three  celts,  three  unfinished  celts,  a  small  rectangular  cat- 
linite  pipe,  two  iron  trade  axes  and  about  forty  flint  arrow 
and  spearpoints  and  blanks. 

Some  copper  beads  are  reported  to  have  been  found  in  a 
"mound"  with  a  burial  on  the  adjoining  Miller  summer  resi- 
dence site. 

Sault  Ste  Marie.  Mr.  F.  R.  Vigeant  who  is  the  pro- 
prietor of  the  large  and  fine  curio  store  in  this  city  has  a 
small  collection  of  Indian  implements  on  exhibition  in  a  case 
in  his  establishment.  In  this  collection  are  a  grooved  stone 
axe,  six  stone  celts  of  ordinary  forms,  a  small  rectangular 
stone  chisel  and  a  considerable  number  of  flint  arrow  and 
spearpoints.  Most  of  his  specimens  are  from  Chippewa 
County.  Mr.  Vigeant,  who  is  very  well  informed,  says 
that  Indian  implements  are  not  particularly  common  in  the 
surrounding  region. 

We  examined  a  considerable  number  of  likely  looking 
sandy  areas  in  the  region  from  Munising  to  Keweenaw 
Point  but  were  unable  to  find  traces  of  former  Indian  habi- 
tation at  any  of  these.  At  Ontonagon  there  is  a  large  sandy 
area  which  stretches  from  the  north  limits  of  the  city  to 
the  tourist  park.  An  examination  made  of  this  region  lo- 
cated only  a  single  camp  site  where  hearthstones  were  in 
evidence  and  where  white  quartz  had  been  chipped.  As  we 
were  somewhat  limited  as  to  time  we  were  unable  to  call  on 
any  of  a  considerable  number  of  archeologist  and  collector 
friends  who  reside  in  the  fine  cities  and  villages  of  this  fair 
country  of  crystal  lakes,  innumerable  inviting  streams,  pine 
and  hardwood  forests,  and  iron  and  copper  mines.  Some 
day  we  shall  adventure  there  again. 


Plant  Games  and  Toys  of  Chippewa  Children.  185 


PLANT  GAMES  AND  TOYS  OF  CHIPPEWA 
CHILDREN 

Theodore  T.  Brown 

Frances  Densmore  in  her  recent  report  on  Chippewa  In- 
dian customs  describes  some  interesting  flower  games  and 
toys  of  the  children  of  this  tribe.*  Some  of  these  we  take 
the  liberty  of  quoting  for  the  interest  of  our  members  and 
friends. 

'The  leaves  of  the  pitcher  plant  (Sarracenia  purpurea  L.) 
formed  a  favorite  plaything.  The  native  name  for  the 
plant  means  "frogs  leggings".  If  the  older  people  were 
gathering  berries  the  children  filled  the  pitcher-shaped 
leaves  with  berries  or  sand  and  used  them  in  various  forms 
of  childish  play. 

"The  gathering  and  stringing  of  certain  red  berries 
formed  an  interesting  pastime.  The  fresh  red  berries  were 
pierced  with  a  sharp  instrument  and  strung  on  nettle-fibre 
twine.  After  they  were  dry  the  husks  were  removed  by 
rubbing  with  the  hands.  No  other  berries  and  no  beads  were 
combined  with  them  and  four  or  five  strands  were  usually 
worn  around  the  neck. 

"Little  snowshoes"  were  made  of  the  needles  of  the  Nor- 
way pine.  In  making  a  little  snowshoe  the  point  of  the 
pine  needle  is  bent  over  and  inserted  in  the  socket  of  the 
needle  at  its  base,  forming  a  loop  which  somewhat  resembles 
the  frame  of  a  snowshoe.  Many  of  these  are  interlaced  and 
worn  in  a  necklace. 

"Large  flat  lichens  were  cut  from  trees  and  etched  in  pat- 
terns resembling  those  on  woven-yarn  bags.  These  were 
used  by  little  girls  in  their  play,  being  placed  on  the  walls 
in  imitation  of  the  yarn  bags  in  the  wigwams. 

"In  more  recent  times  bright-colored  autumn  leaves  were 
used  by  the  children  to  represent  letters,  and  the  children 
"played  post  office",  receiving  these  "letters"  and  pretend- 
ing to  read  them. 

"Leaves  were  selected  with  distinct  markings  which  they 
read  as  words. 


*  Bull.  86,  Bur.  of  Am.  Ethno. 


186  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

"The  little  girls  made  miniature  mats  from  rushes  and 
were  encouraged  to  take  the  bark  from  small  birch-bark 
trees  and  make  rolls  similar  to  those  used  for  wigwam  cov- 
ers ;  they  also  made  little  birchbark  utensils  similar  to  those 
made  by  their  mothers. 

"Ducks  were  made  of  bulrush  roots  and  were  floated  on 
little  pools  of  water. 

"Dolls — The  simplest  form  of  representing  a  human  being 
was  by  means  of  a  large  tuft  of  needles  of  the  Norway  pine. 
This  tuft  was  cut  squarely  across  the  end  and  about  halfway 
up  a  part  of  the  needles  were  cut  across,  suggesting  the 
length  of  the  arms,  or  perhaps  a  shawl  hanging  from  the 
shoulders.  A  bit  of  wood  was  left  at  the  top  of  the  tuft 
suggesting  the  head.  These  little  figurines  were  placed  up- 
right on  a  piece  of  zinc  or  in  a  large  tin  pan  which  was 
gently  agitated.  This  motion  caused  the  figurines  to 
tremble  in  a  manner  suggesting  an  Indian  dance  and  even 
to  move  back  and  forth,  according  to  the  skill  of  the  per- 
son manipulating  the  tin  on  which  they  were  placed.  Dolls 
were  also  made  of  green  basswood  leaves  and  of  bright 
autumn  leaves  with  little  splinters  of  wood. 

"Figures  of  men  and  women  were  made  from  a  portion  of 
the  root  of  bullrushes  that  is  below  the  water.  This  was 
partially  dried  and  made  into  figures  by  tying  it  with  bass- 
wood  fiber,  after  which  the  figures  were  thoroughly  dried 
and  could  be  handled  without  breaking. 

"A  step  higher  in  development  were  the  figures  of  men 
and  women  cut  from  the  inner  bark  of  the  slippery  elm." 

Dolls  were  also  made  of  grass,  willow  bark  and  birch- 
bark. 

Miss  Densmore's  list  of  the  plant  games  and  toys  of  Chip- 
pewa  Indian  children  is  by  no  means  complete.  These  chil- 
dren play  other  games  and  have  devised  other  toys  with 
seeds,  wild  fruits,  leaves,  stems,  bark  and  flowers  which 
remain  to  be  described. 


The  Battle  of  Kings  Mountain  Anniversary  Celebration.  187 


THE  BATTLE  OF  KINGS  MOUNTAIN 
ANNIVERSARY  CELEBRATION 

Ray  Jacobs 

"That  the  Sesqui-Centennial  Celebration  of  the  Battle  of 
Kings  Mountain  to  be  staged  on  the  battleground  on  Octo- 
ber 7,  1930,  will  eclipse  in  every  particular  all  previous  cele- 
brations of  the  anniversary  of  the  conflict,  is  conceded. 
The  nations  chief  executive,  President  Herbert  Hoover,  has 
accepted  an  invitation  to  be  the  guest  of  honor  and  the 
principal  speaker.  Rear  Admiral  Richard  Evelyn  Byrd, 
the  noted  antartic  explorer,  Sir  Ronald  Lindsay,  British 
Ambassador  to  the  United  States  and  many  other  notables 
have  been  invited  to  attend.  The  governors  of  North  and 
South  Carolina,  Virginia,  Georgia  and  Tennessee  are  all 
closely  identified  with  the  coming  celebration,  representing 
as  they  do,  the  states  which  furnished  the  soldiers  who  here 
defeated  the  British.  The  governors  of  the  other  original 
thirteen  states  have  also  been  invited  and  are  expected  to 
be  in  attendance."  * 

In  this  battle,  designated  as  "the  turning  point  of  the 
American  Revolution",  the  companies  of  American  moun- 
taineer riflemen,  "the  Back  Water  men",  from  the  states 
before  mentioned,  surrounded  and  destroyed  on  the  crest  of 
Kings  Mountain,  in  York  County,  South  Carolina,  a  British 
force  under  one  of  General  Cornwallis'  most  able  lieuten- 
ants, Colonel  Patrick  Ferguson,  sent  to  subdue  and  capture 
the  patriot  commands. 

"In  one  hour  on  the  afternoon  of  October  7,  1780,  the 
whole  course  of  America's  history  had  been  changed.  A 
volunteer  army,  untrained  and  undisciplined  had  completely 
defeated  Colonel  Ferguson's  well-drilled  militia  and  his 
trusted  guard  of  British  regulars.  Not  a  man  of  the  enemy 
had  escaped;  those  who  were  not  killed  or  wounded  were 
prisoners.  According  to  the  official  report  of  Colonel 
Campbell  and  his  associate  officers,  Ferguson's  losses  were 
206  killed  (Ferguson  himself  was  killed),  128  wounded  and 
600  taken  prisoners.  The  American  losses  were  28  killed 


*  The  Battle  of  Kings  Mountain,  Helen  Deane  Chandler,  1930. 


188  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

and  62  wounded."*  The  opposing  armies  were  nearly  equal 
in  strength. 

The  destruction  of  Ferguson's  expedition  was  a  sad  blow 
to  Cornwallis.  "He  had  hoped  to  step  with  ease  from  one 
Carolina  to  the  other,  and  from  those  to  the  conquest  of 
Virginia;  and  he  had  no  choice  but  to  retreat."  This  re- 
treat lead  to  his  surrender  to  Washington  at  Yorktown. 

The  Battle  of  Kings  Mountain  is  of  particular  interest  to 
citizens  of  Wisconsin  because  the  manuscript  records  of 
that  fight,  some  eighteen  bound  volumes,  are  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  Wisconsin  Historical  Society.  "Dr.  Lyman 
C.  Draper,  secretary  of  the  Society  in  its  early  days,  spent  a 
life  time,  commencing  at  the  age  of  15,  studying  this  famous 
battle.  The  result  of  his  studies,  research  and  visits  to  the 
battlefield  and  its  environs  was  an  exhaustive  history  of  the 
Battle  of  Kings  Mountain,  published  originally  by  Peter  G. 
Thomson,  of  Cincinnati,  in  1881.  Unfortunately  the  Thom- 
son plant  was  burned  shortly  after  the  book  was  printed 
and  all  but  about  two  hundred  copies  were  destroyed  along 
with  the  copy,  proofs  and  plates.  Hence  for  years  it  was 
impossible  to  secure  a  copy  of  Draper's  except  at  collectors 
prices  which  made  it  prohibitive  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
average  student.  Recently,  however,  a  reprint,  an  exact 
duplicate  of  the  original  edition  in  every  respect,  including 
the  illuminated  binding,  has  been  issued  by  Dauber  &  Pine 
Bookshops,  Inc.,  New  York  City." 


ANCIENT  CITIES  OF  NORTHEASTERN  ARIZONA 
Albert  B.  Reagan 

Many  people  have  read  with  interest  the  unearthing  of 
the  ruins  of  Chaco  Canyon  in  New  Mexico  and  especially 
that  of  Pueblo  Bonito  by  the  National  Geographical  Society. 
The  Mesa  Verde  ruins  in  Colorado  and  those  in  the  Gila  and 
Salt  river  valleys  of  southern  Arizona  have  also  been  of  in- 
terest. On  the  mesas  and  in  the  valleys  and  canyons  of 
northeastern  Arizona  there  are  prehistoric  communities 
with  equal  mysterious  interest. 

Some  men  of  science  say  these  towns  and  small-house 
ruins,  which  are  as  numerous  over  the  whole  region  as  farm 


Ancient  Cities  of  Northeastern  Arizona.  189 

houses  dot  central  Iowa  today,  were  built  in  the  Stone  Age. 
Others  say  they  existed  4,000  years  ago. 

The  whole  area  is  an  aggregation  of  ruins.  Their  builders 
had  a  high  degree  of  engineering  skill.  Huge  trees  were 
transported  to  the  villages  from  forests  often  sixty  miles 
away  and  great  masses  of  stone,  in  places,  were  brought 
from  far  off  quarries.  Irrigation  canals,  dams  and  reser- 
voirs, probably  some  of  the  oldest  known  to  the  civilized 
world,  are  also  found  here  and  there  in  this  region.  And 
think  of  the  enormous  labor  of  constructing  such  works 
with  stone  implements  and  of  carrying  the  excavated  earth 
away  in  wicker  baskets!  Furthermore,  to  render  the  clay 
bed  of  the  canal  impervious,  it  was  first  puddled  and  then 
by  means  of  burning  brush  and  wood,  it  was  burned  to  a 
terra  cotta  consistency.  Moreover,  the  course  of  the  canals 
now  may  be  traced,  centuries  after  they  have  been  filled 
with  sand  and  vegetation,  by  means  of  small  black  pebbles 
placed  along  the  inner  banks  by  the  inhabitants,  in  the 
belief,  held  by  the  Zunis  now,  that  they  assist  the  motion 
of  the  currents,  due  to  a  mistaken  idea  of  cause  and  effect, 
suggested  by  the  sight  of  stones  rolling  in  running  brooks. 

They  grew  great  quantities  of  corn,  some  tobacco  and 
cotton,  and  they  also  raised  beans  as  well  as  two  or  three 
varieties  of  squash.  They  had  also  domesticated  the  turkey 
and  had  developed  the  art  of  basketry  and  pottery  to  per- 
fection. Indeed,  in  places  in  the  region  one  may  walk  for 
miles  and  find  the  sandy  surface  more  or  less  mixed  with 
pieces  of  broken  pottery.  The  paint  is  still  on  them,  and 
is  not  in  the  least  faded,  though  they  have  been  exposed 
for  centuries. 

The  towns  often  consisted  of  a  central  citidel  or  "temple" 
building,  sometimes  in  circular  shape,  surrounded  with  clus- 
ters of  dwellings,  sometimes  contained  within  the  walled  in- 
closures,  which,  in  turn,  were  surrounded  by  thatched  huts.  In 
each  city  was  also  (one  or  more)  other  large  public  edifices, 
usually  oval  in  form,  twenty  to  fifty  feet  in  diameter,  and 
conjectured  to  have  been  a  place  of  worship.  Stones  and 
adobe  were  used  as  the  building  material;  and  the  main 
earth  walls  and  the  walls  of  the  outer  buildings  were  often 
formed  within  a  framework  of  timber  and  wattled  cane  and 
brush.  Thus  their  architecture,  like  their  pottery,  were 


390  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

obtained  from  original  basket  types.  The  small-house 
groups  were  similarly  made,  usually  of  a  single  tier  of 
masonry-built  rooms,  oriented  in  an  east  and  west  line,  ac- 
companied by  frailer  constructed  inclosures,  each  of  which 
was  the  camp,  refuse-dump  site. 

The  relics  taken  from  the  exhumed  buildings  and  tombs 
include  pottery,  stone  implements,  turquoise  and  other 
stones  held  in  esteem,  shells  and  shell  ornaments,  and  human 
and  animal  remains.  A  few  fragments  of  cotton  cloth  have 
also  been  preserved  from  decay,  and  considerable  yucca- 
leaf  woven  work  and  several  specimens  of  basketry. 

The  stone  axes  and  other  implements  are  particularly  nice 
in  detail  and  finish.  Some  of  the  implements  show  a  degree 
of  ingenuity  not  found  among  any  tribe  in  the  region  nowa- 
days. Many  articles  of  personal  adornment  show  that  the 
mysterious  race  was  entering  that  transition  period  which 
borders  on  the  metalic  and  stone  age.  Many  of  these  arti- 
cles are  shells  and  a  few  metals.  Skillfully  inlaid  articles 
were  made  by  these  people  by  first  coating  a  shell,  or  other 
article  with  a  black  cement,  obtained  from  the  gum  de- 
posited by  insects  on  greasewood  twigs,  and  other  gums, 
and  then  imbedding  mosaic  fragments  of  turquoise  and 
shells  in  the  matrix  thus  formed.  After  the  surface  had 
been  rubbed  down,  smooth  it  made  an  ornament  of  merit. 
The  same  gum  from  greasewood  was  made  a  lacquering  for 
preserving  the  color  of  basketry. 

Many  rock  inscriptions  have  been  found  on  the  rocks 
throughout  this  region.  They  are  purely  of  a  religious 
significance,  showing  characteristic  attitudes  of  the  people 
at  certain  festivals,  and  apparently  disclosing  nothing  of  a 
narrative  or  historic  nature.  They  give  no  idea  of  the 
ordinary  manner  of  dress  or  of  the  textile  fabric  employed, 
but  show  the  festive  gown  to  have  been  a  long  robe,  richly 
embroidered. 

Apparently,  religion  was  the  main  purpose  of  life  among 
these  people.  Each  action  appears  to  have  been  vested  with 
a  significance  of  its  own,  even  the  location  of  the  public 
structures  being  determined  by  certain  mythological  indi- 
cations. They  worshipped  the  sun,  and  had  lodge  rooms. 
Sacrificial  stones  have  been  dug  up  in  some  spots,  but  the 
nature  of  the  sacrifice  has  not  been  determined.  Like  all 


Ancient  Cities  of  Northeastern  Arizona.  191 

nature  worshippers,  these  people  endowed  each  object  with 
its  spirit  counterpart,  and  either  buried  or  burned  the  indi- 
vidual's belongings  beside  his  body,  that  they  might  ac- 
company him  on  his  spirit  journey.  Likewise,  the  burial 
urns  were  "killed"  by  cracking  or  perforating  their  sides 
in  order  that  the  soul  might  escape. 

The  ruins  divide  themselves  into  three  major  groups,  the 
Fort  Apache-Montezuma  group,  the  Black-Mesa-Segi  Can- 
yon series,  and  the  Canyon  de  Chelly  group. 

The  first  group  includes  the  ruins  in  the  White  Mountain 
Apache  country,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Roosevelt  Dam  and 
in  the  canyons  that  descend  southward  from  the  Mongollon 
Range  to  Salt  river,  among  whose  hundreds  of  ruins  are  the 
famed  Fort  Apache  Cave,  and  Montezuma's  Castle  and  the 
equally  wonderful  Montezuma's  Well  and  ruins.  In  the  sec- 
ond group  are  the  renowned  ruins  of  Snake  House,  Betata- 
kin,  and  Keetseel  in  Segi  Canyon,  besides  hundreds  of 
smaller  ones.  And  the  Canyon  de  Chelly  group  in  the 
chiseled  in,  thousand-foot  deep,  narrow  De  Chelly  canyon 
and  its  sister  Del  Muerto  Canyon,  comprise  hundreds  of 
ruins  (some  estimates  put  them  at  more  than  a  thousand), 
among  which  is  the  famed  White  House. 

The  Fort  Apache  Cliff  Cave 

This  cave  consists  of  a  series  of  chambers,  halls  and 
rooms,  running  back  northward  many  feet  beneath  the 
mesa  cap,  eighty-five  feet  above  the  valley  floor,  north  of 
the  river.  Moreover,  to  reach  the  entrance  one  must  climb 
a  notched-tree-ladder,  a  hazardous  thing  to  do  unless  one  is 
used  to  climbing  such  ladders.  Furthermore,  as  the  cave 
is  tortuous,  those  who  enter  it  carry  a  roll  of  binding  twine, 
many  candles,  and  also  flashlights.  The  twine  is  tied  at  the 
entrance  and  let  line  the  passages  traversed  so  that  on  the 
return  it  can  be  followed  back  to  the  entrance.  To  make 
the  return  more  safe  the  lit  candles  are  also  placed  at  reg- 
ular distances  and  in  conspicuous  or  dangerous  places  along 
the  passages. 

This  cave  seems  to  have  been  used  by  the  ancients  as  a 
burial  place,  and  when  first  visited  the  floors  of  several  of 
the  rooms  were  covered  with  human  skeletons.  In  one  of 
the  rooms  they  were  found  to  have  been  placed  in  a  circle  on 


192  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

the  cold  damp  floor  of  stone,  as  if  they  might  have  gath- 
ered there  for  mutual  protection  during  some  catastrophe, 
all  perishing  there;  and  a  short  distance  apart  from  them 
also  lay  the  frame  of  their  medicine  man,  leaning  against 
the  wall  opposite  the  entrance  to  the  room,  his  chin  resting 
on  his  breastbone,  apparently  just  as  he  had  died. 

Many  museums  and  private  parties  have  secured  fine  col- 
lections from  this  cave. 

Montezuma's  Castle  and  Montezuma's  Well  and  Its  Ruins 

Beaver  creek,  a  branch  of  the  Rio  Verde  in  Arizona,  pos- 
sesses a  limpid  stream  of  rippling  water,  a  boon  to  that  arid 
region.  This  life-giving  stream  is  arched  over  and  fully 
shaded  by  cotton  woods,  aspens,  juniper,  walnut,  ash,  and 
sycamore  trees,  making  the  place  a  virtual  paradise.  On 
the  right  bank  of  this  stream  above  the  line  of  green,  three 
miles  from  old  Camp  Verde,  there  is  perched  the  wonderful 
Montezuma's  Castle,  known,  also,  as  Casa  Montezuma. 

It  is  an  awe-inspiring  prehistoric  cliff-dwelling,  standing 
against  the  cliff,  under  an  overtowering  arch.  It  is  con- 
structed in  a  natural  recess  in  the  side  of  a  limestone  cliff. 
Its  base  is  three  hundred  and  forty-eight  feet  from  the  edge 
of  the  stream  and  about  forty  feet  above  it.  It  is  five 
stories  high,  exceeding  twenty-eight  feet  in  height.  .The 
outer  walls  lean  slightly  toward  the  cliff,  and  are  strongly 
but  symmetrically  curved  inward.  Some  of  the  rooms  are 
smoothly  plastered  and  smoke-blackened ;  the  plaster  bears 
finger-marks  and  impressions  of  the  thumb  and  hand.  The 
rooms  are  ceiled  with  willows  laid  horizontally  across 
rafters  of  black  alder  and  ash.  Upon  this  is  a  thick  layer 
of  reeds  placed  transversely  and  the  whole  plastered  on  top 
with  mortar,  forming  the  floor  of  the  room  above.  The 
roofs  are  made  in  the  same  manner.  The  buildings  show 
evidence  of  long  occupancy  in  prehistoric  times.  Its  origin 
is  unknown. 

Montezuma's  Well  is  equally  as  interesting  and  more  awe- 
inspiring  than  the  castle.  It  is  situated  in  the  summit  of  a 
low  mesa  on  Beaver  creek,  about  nine  miles  north  of  Camp 
Verde.  It  is  a  large  depression,  in  the  form  of  a  well  or 
tank.  Within  the  depression,  the  upper  part  of  the  "bowl," 
are  well  preserved  remains  of  several  cliff-dwellings.  The 


Ancient   Cities  of  Northeastern  Arizona.  193 

bowl  is  full  of  water  to  a  certain  level  and  never  changes. 
However,  it  gets  disturbed  at  certain  intervals,  like  the 
ancient  pool  of  Bethsaida.  This  mysterious  and  interesting 
phenomenon  has  given  rise  to  many  folk-lore  stories  about 
this  well  and  its  bubbling  waters. 

White  House 

This  ruin  is  overhung  and  blocked-in  by  large  rocks  in 
Canyon  de  Chelly  in  the  northeastern  part  of  northeastern 
Arizona.  It  is  a  double  village,  one  part  being  at  the  foot 
of  the  canyon  wall,  the  other  upon  a  shelf  in  the  wall  above 
this  one.  The  upper  one  is  fifty  feet  above  the  floor  of  the 
canyon  and  can  be  reached  only  by  ladders.  Both  are  built 
of  small,  thin  sandstone,  laid  in  mud  mortar.  The  front 
of  the  upper  village  measures  one  hundred  and  forty-six 
feet;  the  depth,  forty-seven  feet,  and  the  height  eighteen 
feet.  The  rooms  are  small,  and  the  windows  less  than  a 
foot  square.  A  circular  native  "church"  still  shows.  The 
whole  ruin  is  whitewashed  with  gypsum,  from  which  it  gets 
its  name  "White  House." 

Kinna  Zinde 

This  is  a  well  preserved  ancient  house,  situated  on  a 
promontory,  overlooking  the  flats  to  the  northward,  about 
thirty  miles  north  of  the  station  of  Chambers  on  the 
Santa  Fe  Railway,  in  Arizona.  Though  in  the  open,  it  is 
still  in  a  good  state  of  preservation,  its  stone  walls  rising 
high  above  the  foundation.  It  is  constructed  in  the  shape 
of  a  somewhat  modified  circular  tower.  Flooring  indicative 
of  two  stories  is  visible,  and  the  poles  of  an  old  ladder  by 
which  there  was  formerly  communication  from  one  story 
to  another  are  still  in  place,  the  poles  being  notched  for  the 
insertion  of  rungs.  This  ruin  was,  no  doubt,  a  lookout- 
summer  home  for  the  people  who  farmed  the  adjacent 
valley  fields. 

Snake  House 

This  is  a  cliff-house  on  the  Arizona  side,  near  Oljeto, 
Utah,  the  home  of  a  forgotten  people.  Who  these  people 
were  no  one  knows.  Why  they  departed  their  village  and 
where  they  went  we  know  less.  The  ruin  is  along  the 


194  WISCONSIN  ARCHEODOGIST.  Vol.   9,  No.   4 

southeast  face  of  a  cliff  and  in  two  massive  caves,  one  at 
each  end  of  the  ruin.  The  east  cave  is  about  one  hundred 
feet  deep — back  into  the  cliff,  and  probably  twenty  feet 
wide.  It  seems  to  have  been  a  large  council  hall.  It  is 
smoked  from  end  to  end  and  has  much  pottery  debris  on  its 
floors.  No  sign  of  Brooms  now  remains.  The  cave  at  the 
west  side  (end)  is  forty  feet  wide  at  the  entrance,  runs 
back  forty  feet,  and  then  has  two  sets  of  additional  rooms 
running  back  into  the  cliff  from  it.  The  north  room  is 
walled  in  now  and  was  used  as  a  bin.  Part  of  the  wall  that 
inclosed  the  south  room  also  shows.  Parts  of  walls  also 
show  in  the  main  cave  room.  In  addition,  it  is  inclosed 
(shut  in)  by  an  outer  wall.  Along  the  wall  between  the 
two  caves  are  the  remains  of  an  open  village  that  was  prob- 
ably twenty-five  feet  wide.  Many  of  the  rooms  are  still 
intact  with  roofs  still  on  them.  Some  are  flat  roofed. 
Some  are  built  in  half -beehive  style  against  the  wall.  All 
are  small  and  all  have  very  small  doors.  Above  the  west 
end  of  the  outer  village  is  a  large  drawing  of  a  huge  snake 
forty  feet  in  length  in  zig-zag,  with  twenty-one  joints.  Its 
head  is  two-thirds  as  big  as  a  plate  and  in  that  shape.  The 
whole  drawing  is  white.  Several  other  snake  drawings  also 
show  on  the  walls.  The  snake  clan  of  a  tribe,  probably 
the  snake  clan  of  the  Hopis,  evidently  lived  here.  The  ruin 
receives  its  name  from  the  snake  drawings  on  its  walls. 

Batatakin  and  Keetseel 

These  are  sister  ruins  in  Segi  Canyon.  They  are  sim- 
ilarly constructed,  also  containing  about  the  same  number 
of  rooms,  originally. 

As  we  proceed  up  the  canyon  there  suddenly  looms  up 
before  us  the  ghost  city  of  Keetseel,  as  Betatakin  had 
previously  flung  itself  upon  our  view.  It  is  placed  on  a 
shelf  against  the  canyon  walls  above  the  tree  tops,  under  a 
marvelous,  overtowering  arch  of  stone.  There  are  one 
hundred  fifty-four  rooms  in  it,  but  no  one  is  walking  its 
streets  and  alleys.  A  huge  log,  thirty-five  feet  in  length, 
spans  a  gap.  The  village  walls  are  of  rock;  the  mortar, 
adobe  clay.  The  roofs  are  flat  and  made  of  adobe  cement. 
There  are  no  chimneys,  but  a  porthole  in  the  roof  acted 
as  a  smoke  escape.  If  windows,  they  are  all  very  small  an 


• 


Ancient  Cities  of  Northeastern  Arizona.  195 

never  had  any  glass  in  them.  None  of  them  are  large 
enough  for  one  to  stick  his  head  through.  The  doors  are 
all  so  small  one  would  have  to  get  on  his  knees  to  crawl 
through  them.  Many  house  rooms  have  no  doors  at  all  ex- 
cept a  square  hole  in  the  flat  roof.  Several  of  the  buildings 
are  two  or  more  stories  high.  Ladders  have  to  be  used  to 
get  to  this  village  from  the  valley.  Also,  only  by  ladders 
can  the  doors  on  the  roofs  be  reached. 

Untroubled  through  the  ages  this  village  has  sat  there 
serene,  watching  the  coming  and  going  of  suns  and  the  ever 
changing  years.  It  is  a  dead  city.  Who  lived  there  can 
not  be  conjectured.  What  happened  to  them  or  where  they 
went  we  know  less.  Their  laughter,  their  crying,  and  their 
wailings  are  no  more.  They  left  no  records  but  rock  pic- 
tures and  the  peculiar  paintings  on  their  pottery.  These 
we  can  not  read.  Mute,  the  village,  its  pottery,  and  its 
rock  pictures  welcome  us  in  dead  silence.  In  awe  we  gaze 
upon  this  city.  Untroubled  it  sits  before  us  waiting  the 
slow  disintegration  of  time. 


VOLUME  10 

NEW  SERIES 
1930 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 
MILWAUKEE 


.  10 


September,  1930 

NEW  SERIES 


J?o.  I 


PINE,  BEAVER  AND  NORTH  LAKES 

(THE  CHENEQUA  LAKES) 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing-  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec.  1103, 
Act,  Oct.  3,  1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


(Wtecorartn  Srcfjeologtcal  g>odet|> 

#ltltoauUee,  Kite. 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

Charles  G.   Schoewe 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

W.  W.  Gilman  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand          W.  C.  McKern 
A.  P.  Kannenberg 

DIRECTORS 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm 

H.  H.  Smith  E.  F.  Richter  T.  L.  Miller 

Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  L.  R.  Whitney  Geo.  A.  West 

TREASURER 

G.   M.    Thorne 
National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 


SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  F. 
Bauchle,  Geo.  F.  Overton,  M.  F.  Hulburt,  T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Dr.  E. 
J.  W.  Notz,  0.  L.  Hollister,  Dr.  F.  G.  Logan,  T.  T.  Brown,  Dr.  B.  T. 
Best,  S  W.  Faville,  Col.  R.  S.  Owen,  G.  L.  Pasco. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Frank  Weston, 
Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr.  Orrin  Thompson,  Mrs.  F.  R.  Melcher, 
Col.  Howard  Greene,  Rev.  O.  W.  Smith,  M.  G.  Troxell,  H.  W.  Cor- 
nell, W.  P.  Morgan,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  A.  H.  Griffith. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— L.  R.  Whitney,  Col.  Marshall  Cousins, 
Mrs.  Arthur  C.  Neville,  Geo.  A.  West,  W.  M.  Babcock,  R.  N.  Buck- 
staff,  Prof.  J.  B.  MacHarg,  Dr.  P.  B.  Jenkins,  Rev.  F.  S.  Dayton, 
A.  P.  Kannenberg,  Mrs.  May  L.  Bauchle,  B.  M.  Palmer. 

MEMBERSHIP— Louis  Pierron,  Paul  Joers,  A.  R.  Rogers,  Arthur 
Gerth,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  Rud.  Boettger,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  H,  W. 
Kuhm,  Mrs.  Anna  F.  Johnson,  K.  Freckman,  Geo.  Wright,  Mrs. 
Hans  A.  Olson,  Carl  Baur,  C.  G.  Weyl. 

STATE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  PARKS— R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  R.  P.  Ferry, 
D.  S.  Howland. 

PUBLICITY— J.  G.  Gregory,  A.  O.  Barton,  E.  R.  Mclntyre,  R.  K.  Coe. 
BIOGRAPHY— H.  H.  Smith,  G.  M.  Thorne,  C.  E.  Brown. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the  Public  Museum  Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 

Life  Members,  $25.00  Sustaining  Members,  $5.00 

Annual  Members,  $2.00 
Junior  Members,  $  .50  Institutional  Members,  $1.50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeologrical  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Muesum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thorne,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.  10,  No.  1,  New  Series 


ARTICLES 

Page 
Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes,  Charles  E.  Brown 7 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Waubaunsee,  Potawatomi  Indian Frontispiece 

Page 
Map  of  Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes 9 


WAUBAUNSEE 

Potawatomi   Chief 

Lewis  Portfolio,   1835 


Ctje  Wisconsin  3lrtt)eologt0t 

Publish tMl    Quarterly   by   the   Wisconsin   Archeological    Society 

Vol.   10  MADISON,  WIS.,   SEPTEMBER,   1930  No.  1 

New  Series 


PINE,  BEAVER  AND  NORTH  LAKES 

Charles  E.  Brown 

THE  CHENEQUA  LAKES 

Three  Wisconsin  lakes  unsurpassed  for  scenic  beauty,  in 
the  midst  of  a  woodland  and  prairie  region  as  attractive 
as  the  lakes  themselves,  lie  either  wholly  or  partly  within 
the  boundaries  of  the  recently  incorporated  Village  of 
Chenequa,  in  Waukesha  County.  These  are  Chenequa  or 
Pine  Lake,  the  largest  of  the  three,  Beaver  Lake,  and  North 
Lake.  The  Chenequa  group  of  lakes  are  in  the  midst  of 
the  famous  Kettle  Moraine  region  of  Wisconsin,  so  called 
because  of  the  "deep  hollows  or  kettles  which  pit  much  of 
its  surface,  these  kettles  or  pot-holes  being  due  to  the  melt- 
ing during  the  glacial  period  of  buried  ice  blocks,  or  to  the 
building  of  morainic  ridges  which  enclose  undrained  de- 
pressions."* 

The  Chenequa  Lakes  are  among  the  larger  of  the  thirty- 
six  large  and  small  old  Indian  lakes  which  are  the  aquatic- 
jewels  of  the  Waukesha  County  country-side,  in  southeast- 
ern Wisconsin.  Waukesha  County,  has  been  for  many  years 
famous  in  America  for  its  beautiful  lakes  and  health-giving 
springs.  The  Chenequa  Lakes  are  in  the  fore-front  of 
these  lakes.  Near  them  are  other  lakes  of  great  charm 
and  interest.  Immediately  to  the  west  of  them  is  the  Ocon- 
omowoc  Group  of  lakes, — Okauchee,  Oconomowoc  and  La- 
Belle.  To  the  south  are  the  shimmering  lakes  of  the  Na- 
shota  Group — Nagawicka,  the  Nashotas  and  the  Nemahbins, 
and  beyond  these  are  the  smaller  Genesee  lakes.  Silver  and 
Golden  lakes  lie  a  short  distance  northwest  and  southwest 
of  the  latter.  Pewaukee,  the  largest  of  the  Waukesha  lakes, 


The  Physical  Geography  of  Wisconsin,  Lawrence  Martin. 


PINE,  BEAVER  AND  NORTH  LAKES 

(Chenequa  Lakes) 

Map  Index 

The  names  and  numbers  correspond  with  those  shown  on  the  map. 


1.  Trail  Village  Site 

2.  Chenequa  Springs 

3.  Niedecken  Point  Site 

4.  Swallow  Point 


PINE  LAKE 
East  Shore 


5.  The   Island 

6.  Anchor  Point  Site 

7.  Randall-Koehring  Point  Site 

8.  Gibson  Site 


9.  Brumder  Site 
10.  West  Bay  Site. 


West  Shore 


11.  Vogel  Bay  Site 

12.  Dorner  Point  Site 


13.  Interlachen  Site 


BEAVER  LAKE 

14.  Chenequa  Country  Club  Site 


NORTH  AND  MUD  LAKES 

15.  Mud  Lake  Site  16.  North  Lake  Site 


PINK,    BUAVKK    AXD    XOHTH  LAKES 


10  WISCONSIN  AKCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    1  • 

lies  a  few  miles  to  the  southeast,  and  Keesus  a  short  dis- 
tance to  the  northeast.  The  Muskego  lakes  are  in  the 
southeastern  corner  of  the  county,  and  the  Mukwonago 
lakes  at  its  southern  boundary. 

The  Government  survey  of  Pine  Lake  was  made  by  Mullet 
and  Brink,  during  the  months  of  July  and  August,  1835. 
The  general  description  of  Merton  township  given  by  them 
is  as  follows:  "This  township  is  rolling,  poor  second  rate 
land,  timber  white  oak,  black  oak,  ironwood,  lynn  (bass- 
wood)  hazel,  thorn,  prickly  ash,  grape-vine.  Soil-sand  and 
gravel.  In  the  east  part  of  the  township  there  can  be  some 
good  selections  made.  In  the  west  part  the  land  is  rather 
broken  and  poor  therefore  of  little  consequence."  Garrett 
Vliet  ran  the  subdivision  lines  later  in  the  same  year.  Wil- 
liam R.  Williams,  Deputy  U.  S.  surveyor,  made  a  survey  of 
the  island  in  the  lake  on  May  18,  1852,  giving  its  area  as 
1  1/100  acres. 

The  following  description  of  Pine,  Beaver  and  North 
lakes  is  quoted  from  that  given  by  Messrs.  E.  A.  Birge  and 
Chauncey  Juday  in  "The  Inland  Lakes  of  Wisconsin".* 

"This  lake  district  lies  in  and  adjacent  to  a  sag  or  break 
in  the  large  kettle  moraine  that  has  already  been  mentioned. 
The  existence  of  the  gap  or  sag  is  emphasized  by  the  fact 
that  two  parallel  streams  flow  through  or  across  the  course 
of  the  moraine  ridge.  North  of  Beaver  and  North  lakes 
the  line  of  the  moraine  is  marked  by  a  distinct  ridge  several 
kilometers  wide,  whose  trend  is  east  of  north.  It  rises  more 
than  30  m.  above  the  adjacent  country  and  fully  60  m.  above 
the  level  of  the  Oconomowoc-Waukesha  lake  district.  "Pine 
Lake.  The  basin  of  Pine  Lake  consists  of  a  large  pit  with 
an  elongated  north-south  axis.  Some  of  the  pits,  which 
are  so  characteristic  of  the  surrounding  land,  are  connected 
with  the  main  one,  thus  forming  bays  which  contribute  to 
the  irregularity  of  the  coast  line.  The  regularity  of  the 
basin  is  broken  by  an  island  situated  toward  the  east  side 
and  a  little  north  of  the  center  of  the  lake.  Its  area  is 
about  0.8  ha.  (^  a.). 

"The  water  level  seems  to  be  falling  gradually  which  is 
due  apparently  to  a  general  sinking  of  the  level  of  the 


*  Bull.  XXVII,  Wis.  Geol.  &  Nat.  Hist.  Surv.,  1914. 


I'iiic,   Ueavrr   and  North  Lakes.  11 

ground  water  in  the  vicinity.  The  level  of  the  water  is  gen- 
erally below  the  point  of  overflowing  and  it  is  only  in  ex- 
ceptionally wet  seasons  that  there  is  any  overflow.  The 
lowering  of  the  lake  level  protects  the  bases  of  the  cliffs 
from  the  action  of  the  waves.  In  seasons  with  an  average 
amount  of  precipitation  the  water  level  is  half  a  meter  or 
more  below  the  bases  of  the  present  cliffs  and  the  water's 
edge  so  that  a  band  of  beach  covered  with  gravel  and  cob- 
blestones is  found  between  the  bases  of  the  cliffs  and  the 
water's  edge.  When  the  lake  stood  at  a  higher  level,  the 
waves  actively  cut  the  cliffs ;  some  of  the  headlands  on  the 
west  side,  for  example,  have  been  worn  back  several  meters. 

"Another  evidence  of  the  activity  of  waves  and  currents 
is  shown  in  some  shoals  which  lie  about  200  m.  (655  ft.) 
off  shore  at  Pine  Lake.  They  are  covered  with  boulders  and 
appear  to  be  remnants  of  higher  elevations  which  were  cut 
down  by  the  removal  of  all  of  the  finer  morainal  material. 

"The  amount  of  material  used  for  beach  structures  is 
small  in  comparison  with  the  quantity  removed  from  the 
cliffs.  This  is  due  to  the  shape  of  the  basin  occupied  by  the 
water.  The  sides  are  so  steep  that  a  large  amount  of  ma- 
terial has  been  used  in  constructing  the  marginal  shelf.  In 
spite  of  the  large  amount  used  for  this  purpose,  enough  has 
been  worn  from  the  cliffs  to  build  bars-  entirely  across  some 
small  bays,  and  others  are  now  in  the  process  of  being 
spanned  by  bars  or  spits. 

"Also,  the  point  of  land  on  the  east  side  toward  the  south- 
ern end  of  the  lake  has  a  long,  submerged  spit  extending 
southward  from  it,  and  the  island  about  the  middle  of  the 
east  side,  has  a  similar  structure  at  its  north  end. 

"Where  the  shores  have  a  comparatively  gentle  slope  the 
beach  is  subject  to  modification  by  the  action  of  ice  and  long 
stretches  of  ice-ramparts  are  found  in  such  localities. 

The  water  of  the  lake  is  derived  chiefly  from  springs  and 
from  seepage  from  Beaver  Lake.  When  the  water  rises 
high  enough  it  overflows  into  North  Lake;  but  sometimes 
there  is  no  overflow  for  a  considerable  period  of  time.  The 
lake  also  loses  some  of  its  water  by  seepage  toward  the  north 
and  west." 

The  length  of  Pine  lake  is  slightly  over  2  1/4  miles,  its 
greatest  width  slightly  over  one  mile,  Its  maximum  depth 


12  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   1 

is  about  90  feet.     Its  area  is  nearly  700  acres.     Its  elevation 
above  sea  level  is  given  as  315  feet. 

Beaver  Lake.  "The  lake  is  fed  chiefly  by  springs  and 
during  dry  seasons  there  is  no  stream  overflow.  But  dur- 
ing seasons  of  abundant  rainfall  the  overflowing  waters 
make  a  stream  of  considerable  size.  Apparently  the  outlet 
stream  has  cut  down  its  channel  about  a  meter  so  that  the 
level  of  the  lake  is  now  lower  than  it  was  originally. 

"The  basin  of  this  lake  consists  of  two  large  pits  which 
are  nearly  equal  in  area.  A  little  above  the  present  water 
level,  there  are  several  arms  extending  out  from  the  main 
depression  which  give  the  basin  a  scalloped  appearance.  If 
the  water  were  one  or  two  meters  higher,  these  arms  would 
form  bays  and  thus  make  the  coast  line  very  irregular.  At 
present  the  immediate  shores  are  about  equally  divided  be- 
tween steep,  kame  slopes  and  the  low  flat  or  gently  sloping 
arms.  At  the  heads  of  the  latter,  however,  there  are  steep 
cliffs.  Considerable  cliff  cutting  has  been  done  in  the  past, 
but  at  present,  the  cliffs  are  protected  by  ice  ridges  at  their 
bases.  The  waves  in  summer  are  unable  to  remove  all  the 
terraces  formed  by  the  ice  in  winter  so  that  wave  action  is 
limited  to  the  shore  drift.  This  working  over  of  the  shore 
drift  keeps  a  belt  of  clean  cobble  stones  just  under  the  edge 
of  the  water. 

"Fronting  nearly  all  the  low  shores  are  fairly  high  ridges 
which  have  the  graceful  curves  of  bars.  The  irregular  ar- 
rangement of  material  in  some  of  the  ridges  indicates  that 
they  were  built  largely  or  wholly  by  the  ice." 

The  greatest  length  of  this  lake  is  slightly  over  one  mile, 
its  greatest  width  not  quite  three-fourths  of  a  mile. 
North  Lake.  "The  basins  occupied  by  North  lake  represent 
two  pits  formed,  apparently,  by  two  separate  blocks  of  ice. 
The  two  basins  are  unequal  in  size,  the  west  one  being  much 
smaller  than  the  east  one,  and  they  are  separated  by  a  nar- 
row ridge  whose  average  height  above  the  water  is  about 
half  a  meter,  at  ordinary  levels.  This  ridge  is  pierced  at 
only  one  point  and  that  is  where  the  stream  flows  from  the 
east  into  the  west  basin. 

"More  than  half  the  shore  of  North  lake  has  a  steep  slope, 
rising  abruptly  to  a  height  of  10  m.  or  12  m.  (33  ft.  to  40 
ft,) .  This  applies  particularly  to  the  eastern  basin  where  the 


Pine,   Beaver  and   North  Lakes.  13 

shores  are  high  along  the  east,  south  and  southwest  portions. 
The  north  end  is  bordered  by  an  extensive  swamp.  Most  of 
the  immediate  shore  of  the  west  basin  is  low,  but  a  short 
distance  back  from  the  lake  except  at  the  north  end,  it  rises 
to  nearly  or  quite  the  height  found  along  the  east  basin. 

"Practically  all  of  the  steep  shores  of  the  lake  are  being 
eroded,  but  this  action  is  not  progressing  vigorously  owing 
to  the  small  size  of  the  basins  and  to  the  fact  that  the  water 
now  stands  at  a  slightly  lower  level  than  formerly.  Ice- 
push  terraces  are  a  prominent  feature  of  the  beaches  and 
they  also  aid  in  protecting  the  cliffs  from  cutting.  Through 
the  action  of  vegetation  in  summer  and  ice  in  the  winter, 
the  swamp  at  the  north  end  of  the  east  basin  is  gradually 
encroaching  upon  the  lake.  At  one  point  the  old  shore  line 
lies  many  meters  behind  the  present  one,  with  swamp  be- 
tween them.  Marl  is  a  conspicuous  constituent  of  the 
beaches  of  the  west  basin.  It  is  white  in  color  and  appears 
in  the  form  of  gravel  passing  into  sand.  On  the  southwest 
side  of  this  basin  there  is  a  terrace  several  scores  of  meters 
in  width  which  is  composed  of  successive  ridges  of  this 
material. 

"The  two  most  prominent  ice  ridges  at  present  are  situ- 
ated respectively  at  the  northeast  corner  of  the  east  basin 
and  at  the  outlet,  i.  e.  at  the  northwest  corner  of  the  west  basin. 

"North  lake  receives  the  waters  of  two  branches  of  the 
Oconomowoc  river  and  of  Mason  creek.  These  streams 
drain  extensive  tamarack  swamps  situated  north  of  the  lake 
and  their  waters  have  the  usual  brownish  color  which  is 
characteristic  of  peat  stained  water.  The  waters  of  the 
lake  possess  this  same  color.  There  are  some  strong  springs 
toward  the  south  end  of  the  east  basin  which  doubtless  rep- 
resent chiefly  the  seepage  from  Beaver  and  Pine  lakes.  The 
west  basin  possesses  no  springs  and  the  only  water  received 
by  it  is  the  overflow  from  the  east  basin.  The  Oconomowoc 
river  leaves  the  west  side  near  the  north  end." 

The  length  of  North  lake  (east  basin)  is  one  and  one-third 
miles,  its  greatest  width  three-fourths  of  a  mile.  Its  eleva- 
tion above  sea  level  is  given  as  309  feet. 

A  small  body  of  water,  Mud  lake,  lies  midway  between 
the  south  end  of  North  and  the  north  end  of  Pine  lake,  a 
creek  connecting  it  with  the  two  lakes. 


14  WISCONSIN    AIU'HKOT.OGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    1 


THE  PRAIRIE  POTAWATOMI 

The  Mascouten  or  Prairie  Potawatomi,  who  formerly  in- 
habited Waukesha  County  and  other  southeastern  Wiscon- 
sin counties,  are  a  division  of  the  Potawatomi  tribe,  the 
other  division  being  the  Forest  Potawatomi,  whose  place  of 
residence  is  the  forests  of  northern  Wisconsin,  Michigan 
and  southern  Ontario.  The  Prairie  Potawatomi  are  the  In- 
dians referred  to  in  the  writings  of  the  Jesuit  fathers  as 
"The  Fire  Nation"  and  "Maskoutench."  These  Indians  are 
reported  to  possess  some  traditions  which  place  their  origi- 
nal home  with  other  Algonkian  tribes  on  the  Atlantic  sea- 
board, probably  in  New  England.  In  some  of  their  legends 
they  mention  the  Delaware  Indians  as  their  neighbors  and 
relatives.* 

Later  they  were  locrted  in  Central  New  York.  In  1641 
they  were  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Huron.  From  this  sta- 
tion they  moved  into  Michigan,  the  Mascouten  occupying 
southern  Michigan.  At  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century 
they  were  in  Indiana  and  northern  Illinois  and  had  gone 
around  the  lower  end  of  Lake  Michigan  as  far  as  the  Mil- 
waukee river,  or  beyond.  They  appear  in  Wisconsin  his- 
torical records  as  early  as  1670,  when  one  of  their  villages 
located  near  the  portage  between  the  Fox  and  Wisconsin 
rivers  was  visited  by  Father  Allouez  and  in  1673  by  Father 
Marquette. 

"In  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  they  entered  into 
a  confederacy  with  the  Kickapoos  and  Sacs  and  Foxes,  with 
the  avowed  purpose  of  exterminating  the  surviving  rem- 
nants of  the  old  Illinois  tribes.  This  done,  they  divided  the 
conquered  domain.  This  domain  up  to  the  year  1790  was 
grazed  by  great  herds  of  the  American  bison  or  buffalo. 
Their  squaws  cultivated  some  corn  but  the  savage  bands 
lived  mostly  on  the  spoils  of  the  chase.  Their  hunting  trails 
extended  from  grove  to  grove  and  from  lake  to  river. 

"The  Potawatomi  hastened  their  downfall  by  accepting 
the  leadership  and  guidance  of  the  British  agents  at  Maiden, 
Canada,  who  only  espoused  their  cause  in  order  to  reap  the 
profits  of  the  fur  trade.  These  agents  supplied  their  savage 


Skinner,  Bull.  Milw.  Pub.  Mus.  6-1. 


J'ino,    Beavei'  and  North  L<nl«'s.  15 

minions  with  rum  and  rifles,  encouraged  the  Indian  raids  on 
the  white  settlements  for  the  purpose  of  plunder  and  rapine 
and  were  instrumental  in  inducing  the  Potawatomi  to  join 
the  hopeless  confederacy  of  Tecumseh  and  the  Prophet,  who 
vainly  sought  to  unite  the  scattered  bands  and  stem  the  tide 
of  white  immigration.  With  the  death  of  Tecumseh  at  the 
battle  of  the  Thames  and  the  termination  of  the  British  in- 
fluence in  the  west,  the  Potawatomi  soon  surrendered  what 
little  domain  was  left  to  them,  ceded  all  their  lands  away 
by  treaty,  and  in  1838,  were  removed  beyond  the  Missis- 
sippi river."  * 

The  Wisconsin  Potawatomi  at  a  treaty  held  at  Chicago 
on  September  26  and  27,  1833,  ceded  all  their  lands  to  the 
United  States.  They  were  permitted  to  remain  for  three 
years  before  removing  to  a  reservation  provided  for  them 
on  the  -Missouri  river  in  Iowa.  In  1846  they  ceded  these 
lands  for  a  reservation  in  Kansas.  Some  of  the  Wisconsin 
Potawatomi  did  not  go  to  Iowa  and  roving  bands  of  these 
camped  in  Waukesha  County  for  quite  a  number  of  years 
afterwards.  Some  other  Potawatomi  returned  to  the  state. 

At  the  present  time  several  hundred  Potawatomi  are  liv- 
ing on  small  homesteads  provided  for  them  in  Forest  Coun- 
ty, and  a  small  group  near  Arpin  in  Wood  County.  Some 
of  these  are  descendants  of  southern  Wisconsin  Prairie 
Potawatomi. 

Further  information  concerning  the  history  of  this  very 
interesting  Wisconsin  tribe  may  be  obtained  from  "The 
Potawatomi"  and  "Lake  Geneva  and  Lake  Como",  two  pub- 
lications issued  by  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society ;  the 
Wisconsin  Historical  Collections,  three  bulletins  published 
by  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum,  and  The  Handbook  of 
American  Indians. 

THEIR  MANNER  OF  LIFE 

The  lodges  of  the  Waukesha  County  Potawatomi  were 
round  in  form,  about  ten  feet  in  height  and  from  12  to  20 
feet  in  diameter,  the  wooden  framework  being  covered  with 
matting,  bark  or  skins.  Mats  made  of  reeds  sometimes  lay 
on  the  floors.  In  the  center  of  the  lodge  was  the  fireplace, 

*  Elmore  Barce,  The  Land  of  the  Potawatomi. 


16  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   1 

a  cavity  scooped  in  the  ground  and  lined  with  stones.  In 
an  early  day  they  probably  covered  their  lodges  with  buffalo 
hides.  The  occupation  of  a  new  lodge  was  a  matter  of  con- 
siderable ceremony,  including  a  feast  given  by  the  owner. 

The  men  were  all  good  hunters  and  fishermen  and  general- 
ly kept  their  families  well  supplied  with  meat  and  fish. 
They  had  interesting  customs  connected  with  the  hunting 
of  the  deer  and  bear,  and  with  the  trapping  of  the  muskrat 
and  beaver.  Fish  were  speared,  shot  with  the  bow  and  ar- 
row, caught  with  fishlines  and  seines,  and  trapped  with  fish- 
traps  built  with  boulders  across  streams.  Pewaukee  lake 
was  a  particularly  noted  fishing  ground.  Fish  were  split, 
smoked  and  sun-dried  for  later  or  winter  use.  They  were 
stored  for  use  during  the  winter  season  in  shallow  pits  or 
caches  dug  in  the  ground  and  lined  with  leaves  or  bark. 

There  were  corn  fields  near  all  of  their  more  permanent 
villages,  those  at  Waukesha  and  Mukwonago  being  particu- 
larly extensive.  According  to  Solomon  Juneau  the  Indians 
at  the  latter  village  produced  as  much  as  5,000  bushels  in  a 
single  year.  Corn  was  planted  in  large  hills,  the  same  hills 
being  used  year  after  year.  The  Indians  also  grew  at  their 
planting  grounds  beans,  pumpkins,  gourds  and  tobacco.  A 
favorite  dish  of  the  natives  was  tassimanomin,  made  by 
boiling  together  corn,  wild  rice  and  fish,  and  seasoning  it 
with  herbs  and  berries.  Maple  sugar  took  the  place  of  salt 
in  their  cooking. 

Before  their  contact  with  white  men  the  Potawatomi  made 
pottery  vessels  of  several  shapes  and  sizes,  mixing  the  clay 
with  crushed  stone  and  baking  them  in  a  hot  fire.  Frag- 
ments of  some  of  these  and  a  few  unbroken  vessels  have 
been  obtained  from  their  former  village  sites.  They  also 
made  and  used  wooden  bowls,  mortars,  spoons  and  ladles. 

They  used  dugout  canoes  which  they  hewed  out  of  bass- 
wood  and  other  logs.  Some'of  these  have  been  recovered 
from  the  bottoms  of  southern  Wisconsin  lakes  and  streams. 
They  made  woven  bags  of  wild  hemp,  nettle,  basswood,  cedar 
and  other  fibres.  These  the  Wisconsin  and  Kansas  Pota- 
watomi still  continue  to  make.  The  weapons  of  the  Indians 
were  the  wooden  war  club,  the  spear  and  the  bow  and  ar- 
row. They  were  fond  of  sports.  At  Mukwonago  and  Mil- 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  17 

waukee  a  favorite  sport  was  pony  racing,  these  races  being 
often  of  a  wild  and  exciting  character. 

The  Waukesha  County  Potawatomi  *  "buried"  some  of 
their  dead  above  ground,  the  corpse  being  wrapped  in  a 
blanket  and  seated  on  the  ground.  With  it  were  placed  a 
pipe,  tobacco  and  food.  The  burial  was  then  surrounded 
with  an  enclosure  of  branches  to  protect  it  from  wild  ani- 
mals and  birds.  Sometimes  the  corpse  was  tied  to  a  tree 
trunk,  or  placed  in  the  limbs  of  a  tree.  Other  burials  were 
made  in  shallow  graves  and  covered  with  logs  or  stones. 
These  several  types  of  burial  may  have  been  those  of  differ- 
ent tribal  clans.  Well-known  burial  places  were  at  Wau- 
kesha, Mukwonago,  Pewaukee  and  Big  Muskego,  and  small- 
er cemeteries  elsewhere  in  the  county. 

Alanson  Skinner  has  recovered  in  recent  years  much  in- 
formation concerning  the  social  life,  material  culture, 
mythology  and  folklore  of  the  Prairie  Potawatomi  of  Wis- 
consin and  Kansas.* 

In  'The  Potawatomi"  the  late  Publius  V;  Larson  has  re- 
corded the  history  of  both  divisions  of  this  once  numerous 
tribe.* 

PINE  LAKE  REDMEN 

Old  settlers  of  the  Town  of  Merton  and  of  adjoining  Wau- 
kesha townships,  some  of  whom  were  interviewed  on  this 
subject  years  ago,  all  stated  that  Indians  were  still  quite 
numerous  in  the  region  of  the  Chenequa  lakes  in  the  late 
thirties  and  early  forties  and  continued  to  camp  or  pass 
through  the  lake  country  for  many  years  afterwards. 

John  H.  Hall,  one  of  these  stalwart  pioneers,  who  settled 
in  Merton  township  in  1842,  stated  that  at  this  time :  "This 
land  was  accessible  by  Indian  trails.  Indians  of  the  Pota- 
watomi and  Menomonie  tribes  were  numerous,  and  all  kinds 
of  game  was  plentiful." 

"Mrs.  Abner  Dayton,  daughter  of  James  and  Barbara  Gib« 
son  Rea,  came  to  Merton  township  with  her  parents  in  1843 
Mrs.  Dayton  well-remembered  the  Indians  having  a  camp 

*  Bulls.,  Milw.  Pub.  Mus.   1924_27. 

*  Wis.   Archeologist,   19_2,   1920. 


18  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOT.OGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   1 

near  her  home."  Other  old  settlers,  now  dead,  had  similar 
stories  to  relate  about  the  Indians  who  were  always  friend- 
ly and  to  whom  they  occasionally  gave  food,  clothing  and 
shelter. 

Mr.  Christ.  Schwartz  (N.  C.  Schwartz),  a  resident  of 
Chenequa,  states  that  in  his  boyhood,  in  about  the  year  1869 
and  later,  groups  of  Potawatomi  from  Pewaukee  lake  came 
to  Pine  lake  to  spear  and  trap  muskrats.  There  were  some- 
times as  many  as  fifty  Indians,  men,  women  and  children, 
in  these  groups.  They  erected  their  lodges  in  the  sheltered 
hollow  on  the  south  shore  of  Beaver  lake,  south  of  the  high 
knoll  upon  which  the  Interlaken  hotel  buildings  now  stand. 
This  hollow  is  situated  between  the  highway,  which  follows 
the  old  Indian  trail,  and  the  lake  shore.  These  lodges  were 
built  of  poles  leaning  together  in  the  form  of  a  cone  and  the 
wooden  framework  was  covered  with  skins,  cloth  and  blan- 
kets. Such  lodges  were  quickly  erected  and  as  quickly  taken 
down  again  when  necessary.  There  were  at  times  ten  or  a 
dozen  such  dwellings  in  the  hollow.  They  but  seldom  re- 
mained here  for  more  than  a  week  or  two,  then  moving  on 
to  North  lake  or  Okauchee  lake. 

The  nearby  muskrat  hunting  ground  of  the  Indians  was 
in  Tuley's  (Wilson's)  bay  of  Pine  lake  in  a  reedy  marsh 
extending  from  opposite  the  Chenequa  hotel  property  south- 
ward across  the  bay  to  the  wooded  Niedecken  point.  Their 
muskrat  spears  were  long  pointed  and  barbed  iron  rods  in- 
serted in  or  bound  to  a  stout  wooden  handle.  They  speared 
the  rats  through  their  houses,  seeming  to  know  just  where 
they  were.  Muskrats  were  prepared  for  eating  by  skin- 
ning and  roasting  them  in  the  fire,  or  by  cooking  the  meat 
in  kettles.  Some  of  the  meat  -was  cut  into  strips  and  dried. 
These  Indians  had  no  ponies.  They  had  a  number  of  dogs. 
The  last  Indians  to  camp  at  this  end  of  Pine  lake  on  the 
Beaver  lake  shore  came  in  the  year  1881. 

Mr.  Charles  Rudberg,  whose  father,  John  0.  Rudberg, 
settled  on  the  northeast  shore  of  Pine  lake  in  1842,  says  that 
the  Indians  came  from  Pewaukee  lake  over  the  trail  now 
followed  in  a  general  way  by  the  highway  on  the  east  side 
of  Pine  lake  and  running  between  Pine  and  Beaver  lakes. 
In  his  father's  time  they  passed  over  this  trail,  going  and 
coming,  in  numbers  in  both  the  spring  and  the  autumn.  He 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  19 

does  not  remember  that  they  had  any  guns.  They  used  the 
bow  and  arrow  in  hunting. 

The  Indians  at  some  time  or  other  camped  on  nearly 
every  sheltered  point  and  bay  on  the  shores  of  Pine  and  also 
upon  the  shores  of  Beaver  and  North  lakes  of  the  Chenequa 
lake  group.  Mud  lake  was  a  muskrat  hunting  and  trapping 
ground.  They  were  chiefly  Prairie  Potawatomi  (Mashko- 
tens)  with  occasionally  a  few  Menomini  or  Chippewa  among 
them.  These  Potawatomi  appear  to  have  chiefly  come  from 
the  Indian  villages  at  Pewaukee  and  Waukesha,  6  1/2  and 
10  miles  distant  by  trail,  or  from  the  nearby  smaller  village 
site  at  the  head  of  Nagawicka  lake.  Some  were  from  Pike 
lake  at  Hartford.  Others  came  from  even  greater  distances. 
Family  or  larger  groups  of  Menomini  came  to  or  through 
the  region  from  their  villages  at  Menomonee  Falls  fourteen 
or  more  miles  to  the  northeast  or  from  the  "Wild  Marsh" 
camp  south  of  it.  Some  Indians  were  always  moving  over 
the  trail  toward  Milwaukee  or  westward  to  the  Four  Lakes. 
Groups  of  Winnebago  Indians  also  occasionally  passed  over 
the  Chenequa  trails  on  their  way  to  the  Rock  river  and  Lake 
Koshkonong. 

Among  the  Potawatomi  chiefs  who  visited  the  Chenequa 
region  was  Kewaskum  (Kiwaskum,  "goes-back-on-his- 
tracks")  who  had  a  village  at  Pike  lake,  Monches  of  the 
Oconomowoc  river  village,  and  Leatherstrap  of  the  Wau- 
esha  village. 

So  far  as  the  early  settlers  noted  there  was  but  little  dif- 
ference in  the  dress  of  the  families  or  groups  of  Potowa- 
tomi.  Some  of  the  men  were  attired  in  buckskin  shirts, 
long  leggings  and  moccasins.  Some  wore  shirts,  trousers 
and  other  cloth  garments  obtained  from  the  settlers  or  from 
stores  or  trading  posts.  Their  headgear  was  often  a  piece 
of  colored  cloth  or  a  handkerchief  bound  around  the  head. 
Some  wore  a  strip  of  fur  in  place  of  a  hat,  a  piece  of  otter- 
skin  ornamented  with  a  single  feather  or  bits  of  ribbon. 
Some  had  trade  blankets.  In  summer  some  of  the  men  wore 
only  a  breech  cloth.  The  women  wore  cloth  waists  and 
skirts  and  buckskin  moccasins.  Some  wore  buckskin  gar- 
ments, often  with  fringes.  Silver  brooches  and  bead  neck- 
laces were  their  common  ornaments.  Some  of  the  women 
carried  on  their  backs  babies  strapped  to  cradleboards. 


20  WISCONSIN  AKCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    1 

Most  bore  bundles  of  spare  clothing  or  camp  equipment. 
Some  carried  kettles.  Some  had  a  few  ponies  and  these 
were  often  heavily  laden.  Some  of  the  hunters  carried 
guns,  these  being  flint-locks,  and  of  a  poor  quality. 

John  Shawano,  Nawquakeshik  (Noon  Day),  great-grand- 
son of  Waika  or  Wakusha,  at  present  living  in  Forest  Coun- 
ty, states  that  the  Chenequa  lakes  were  a  part  of  the  hunt- 
ing grounds  of  the  Potawatomi  of  his  Waukesha  village. 
They  were  very  particular  about  their  hunting  territories 
and  would  never  permit  any  other  tribe  to  trespass  on  them. 
This  may  have  been  true  before  the  white  settlers  came  to 
this  region.  The  Menomini  certainly  also  hunted  about  the 
lakes  in  the  early  forties. 

No  one  remembers  seeing  any  Indian  log  canoes  on  Pine 
lake,  yet  the  Potawatomi  must  have  had  them  as  they  did 
on  Pewaukee,  Nagawicka  and  North  lakes. 

Wild  animals  were  numerous  in  the  regions  about  the 
Chenequa  lakes  when  the  first  white  settlers  came.  Deer 
were  everywhere  to  be  seen.  Bear  were  occasionally  killed. 
Among  the  smaller  animals  were  the  wolf,  wild  cat,  musk- 
rat,  otter,  mink,  raccoon,  skunk,  woodchuck,  weasel  and 
squirrel.  Wild  fowl  were  abundant  both  in  the  woods  and 
on  the  waters  of  the  lakes.  The  lakes  were  filled  with  fish. 


THE  NAMES  OF  THE  CHENEQUA  LAKES 

The  early  Wisconsin  maps,  up  to  the  year  1839,  give  no 
names  for  the  lakes  of  the  Chenequa  group.  A  "map  of 
Wiskonsin  Territory,  1839",  prepared  by  Capt.  Thomas  J. 
Cram,  government  topographical  engineer,  gives  the  name 
of  Gay  lake  to  Pine  lake,  Peekor  to  Beaver  lake,  and  Ahko 
to  North  lake.  Lake  Keesus  is  here  named  Meeshel  lake. 
Where  he  obtained  these  names  is  unknown.  Farmer's 
map,  1848,  doubtless  copying  Cram,  gives  the  name  of  Gay 
lake  to  Pine,  and  Peekor  to  Beaver. 

The  name  Gay  is  probably  derived  from  the  Prairie  Pota- 
watomi word  que  (quay),  woman,  or  the  Chippewa  word 
ikwe  or  akwe.  Peekor,  the  name  given  to  Beaver  lake,  may 
be  a  slight  distortion  of  the  Winnebago  word  pee  ka,  signify- 
ing "good",  or  "beautiful".  The  Potawatomi  word  for  bea- 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  21 

ver  is  mak  or  muk,  and  the  Chippewa  word  amik.  Ahko, 
the  name  given  to  North  lake,  is  the  Potawatomi  word  for 
doe  (ako). 

On  a  "Map  of  the  Milwaukee  Land  District,  1840",  the 
name  of  Pine  lake  appears  as  the  name  for  that  lake.  This 
name  also  appears  on  the  Milwaukee  Land  District  Map  of 
1846,  Nagawicka,  Pewaukee  and  Oconomowoc  lakes  being 
the  only  other  northern  Waukesha  County  lakes  which  bear 
any  names. 

Dr.  Increase  A.  Lapham  may  be  credited  with  having 
first  given  the  attractive  name  of  Chenequa  to  Pine  lake. 
In  his  book,  "Wisconsin",  published  by  P.  C.  Hall  at  Mil- 
waukee in  1844,  he  says :  "Pine  Lake,  lies  immediately  north 
of  Nagowicka,  two  miles  long,  three-fourths  of  a  mile  wide, 
five  and  a  quarter  around,  and  has  an  area  of  six  hundred 
and  ninety  acres;  being  exactly  the  same  as  Nagowicka. 
The  Indian  name  is  Chenequa  or  Pine,  given  in  consequence 
of  a  few  pine  trees  having  been  found  on  a  small  neck  of 
land  or  island  in  this  lake." 

North  Lake  (or  Shunakee)  lies  north  of  Pine  Lake  in 
the  town  of  Warren,  is  one  mile  and  a  quarter  long,  three 
fourths  of  a  mile  wide,  and  has  an  area  of  five  hundred  and 
eighty-one  acres.  The  Oconomowoc  Creek  passes  through 
this  lake. 

Labraugh  (Beaver)  Lake  lies  half  a  mile  east  from  Pine 
Lake  into  which  it  discharges  its  waters.  It  is  eighty-three 
chains  long,  sixty-nine  wide,  and  occupying  an  area  of  four 
hundred  and  twenty  acres." 

Indians  of  both  the  Prairie  Potawatomi  and  Menomini 
tribes  had  camps  and  villages  at  Milwaukee  in  1836,  and 
Winnebago  villages  were  not  far  away.  He  may  have  had 
his  lake  names  from  any  of  these.  Although  in  Prairie 
Potawatomi  territory,  Pine  lake  was  visited  by  Menomini 
Indians  who  had  a  village  at  Menomonee  Falls  and  camps 
elsewhere  in  Menomonee  township  only  a  dozen  miles  away 
to  the  east,  also  by  groups  of  Winnebago,  who  were  on 
friendly  terms  with  the  Potawatomi  and  occasionally  wan- 
dered through  the  region.  The  Potawatomi  word  for  pine 
is  shquak  and  the  Chippewa  word  jingwak.  The  pronun- 
ciation and  spelling  of  both  words  is  sufficiently  like  Chene- 
qua (the  name  given  by  him  to  Pine  lake)  so  that  Dr.  Lap- 


22  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    1 

ham  may  readily  have  derived  his  spelling  of  the  name  from 
hearing  either  of  them  spoken.  The  Menomini  word  for 
pine  is  aska. 

A  distinctive  feature  of  Pine  lake  are  the  group  of  pine 
trees  on  the  Island  and  several  other  groups  of  the  same 
formerly  and  still  existing  on  its  eastern  shore.  These  the 
Potawatomi  always  remembered,  and  it  is  but  natural  that 
they  should  have  named  this  lake  for  them. 

Rev.  E.  P.  Wheeler,  an  authority  on  Wisconsin  Indian 
names,  thinks  that  the  name  Chenequa  may  have  been  de- 
rived from  the  Potawatomi  word  gih  chih  in  nah  quak",,  or 
"big  tree  grove".  John  Blackhawk,  an  authority  on  the 
language  and  customs  of  his  tribe,  thinks  that  the  name 
might  have  been  derived  from  the  Winnebago  word  chenu- 
kra,  or  "the  village". 

Huron  H.  Smith,  the  ethno-botanist,  states  that  the  word 
Chenequa  means  "Indian  woman"  or  "Indian  maiden",  and 
the  word  is  a  Chippewa  rather  than  a  Potawatomi  one. 
"Chene"  is  an  abbreviation  of  "inishinabe",  meaning  Indian 
and  pronounced  "shini"  or  "shunay".  Ikwe  or  akwe  is  the 
word  for  woman. 

The  Potawatomi  of  the  present  day  give  to  the  lake  the 
name  Shquak  mbes,  or  Pine.  lake. 

Lapham  gives  the  Indian  name  of  North  lake  as  Shuna- 
kee.  This  name  Simon  Kahquados,  chief  of  the  Potawatomi 
group  near  Blackwell  and  Laona  in  Forest  County,  believes 
to  be  a  shortening  of  the  name  Shanakoonebis,  meaning 
"south  cloud  water".  Shanakoo  was  a  Potawatomi  chief 
whose  village  was  at  this  lake.  John  Blackhawk  says  that 
the  name  may  have  been  derived  from  the  Winnebago  word 
chunaka,  or  "the  blue  one". 

The  name  Labraugh  given  by  Lapham  to  Beaver  lake 
John  Blackhawk  suggests  may  be  a  slight  distortion  of  the 
Winnebago  word  "lubra"  or  "rubra",  meaning  beaver. 

There  is  no  doubt  but  that  the  Prairie  Potawatomi,  Me- 
nomini and  Winnebago  all  had  names  for  the  Chenequa 
lakes. 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  23 

CHENEQUA  OR  PINE  LAKE 

EAST  SHORE 

Trail  Village  Site. 

An  Indian  camp  site  is  plainly  indicated  on  the  James  A. 
Friend  property  on  the  northeast  shore  of  Pine  lake.  Evi- 
dence of  this  former  occupation  by  the  aborigines,  consist- 
ing of  burned  and  broken  stones  from  wigwam  fireplaces 
and  chips  and  fragments  of  grey  and  white  flint,  the  refuse 
of  former  implement  manufacture,  occur  in  the  gardens 
of  the  late  Jacob  E.  Friend;  on  a  piece  of  level  land  which 
stretches  from  the  James  Friend  residence  on  a  prominent 
knoll  in  its  rear  down  to  the  lake  shore.  A  portion  of  this 
field  had  been  fall-plowed  during  our  first  visit  to  this  site 
and  no  doubt  camp  refuse  had  been  thus  turned  under,  but 
a  considerable  number  of  hearthstones  of  fist-size  and 
smaller  were  found  scattered  over  limited  areas  in  several 
parts  of  this  field.  The  former  sites  of  at  least  three  wig- 
wams appeared  to  be  thus  recognized.  Near  these  places 
the  flint  refuse  and  a  small  piece  of  red  pipestone  were  also 
found.  Doubtless  many  other  hearthstones  have  been  re- 
moved from  this  site  during  the  years  of  its  cultivation.  If 
other  parts  of  this  tract,  now  under  sod,  are  again  plowed 
other  lodge  sites  and  refuse  should  be  disturbed. 

This  site  has  long  been  known  to  collectors  of  Indian  im- 
plements. Mr.  Christ.  Schwartz  is  among  those  who  have 
collected  here.  From  these  and  other  sources  we  learn  that 
there  have  been  recovered  here  a  considerable  number  of 
flint  arrow  and  spearpoints  of  various  forms,  several  flint 
knives,  a  number  of  flint  scrapers,  a  flint  perforator,  several 
pebble  hammerstones,  a  stone  celt  or  hatchet,  and  two 
grooved  stone  axes,  one  of  these  with  .a  blade  much  worn  and 
shortened  through  long  use  and  re-grinding.  No  potsherds 
have  been  found  by  ourselves  or  reported  found  here  by 
others.  These  remain  to  be  collected.  They  certainly 
should  occur,  especially  if  this  camp  site  is  a  fairly  old  one, 
as  it  appears  to  be.  Its  early  Indian  inhabitants  may,  how- 
ever, have  employed  bark  or  wooden  vessels  in  their  domes- 
tic arts. 

Years  ago  scattered  deer  and  other  animal  bones  were 


24  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   1 

seen  here,  also  scattered  mussel  shells.  Some  of  the  bones 
had  been  split  to  obtain  the  marrow.  If  there  were  any 
refuse  pits  in  connection  with  this  site  they  have  not  been 
discovered. 

This  land,  from  the  east  and  west  road  at  its  northern 
limits  southward  to  the  creek  joining  Pine  and  Beaver  lakes, 
formed  the  estate  of  the  late  Judge  M.  F.  Tuley.  The  por- 
tion of  it  occupied  by  this  camp  site  was  in  former  years  a 
flat  covered  with  forest  trees.  The  fotawatomi  claim  this 
as  a  former  camp  site.  They  certainly  camped  here  in  small 
numbers  in  early  days  of  settlement,  spearing  and  trapping 
fish  in  the  stream  conecting  Pine  and  MucT  lakes,  and  hunt- 
ing deer  and  other  game  in  the  surrounding  country.  This 
locality  was  a  sheltered  one  and  otherwise  favorable  for  the 
location  of  an  Indian  camp.  South  of  it  extending  along 
the  lakeshore  is  a  high  wooded  ridge  upon  which  is  the  J. 
V.  Quarles  home,  in  its  rear  is  the  elevated  ground  of  the 
James  A.  Friend  property,  and  west  of  it  another  promi- 
nent ridge  upon  which  stands  the  residence  of  Robert  E. 
Friend.  A  fork  of  the  old  Indian  trail  between  Pine  and 
Beaver  lakes,  on  its  way  to  the  creek  crossing  between  the 
head  of  Pine  and  Mud  lake,  touched  or  crossed  this  village 
site. 

On  the  shore  of  Indian  or  Outlet  bay,  at  the  base  of  the 
ridge  upon  which  the  Robert  E.  Friend  residence  is  located, 
is  a  path  reported  to  be  a  remnant  of  an  old  lake-bank  trail. 
This  can  be  traced  from  this  point  along  the  bay  shore 
northward  for  a  distance  of  several  hundred  feet  to  where 
the  Friend  garage  is  located.  This  continued  northward  to 
the  shore  of  Mud  lake. 

Chenequa  Springs. 

On  the  Pine  lake  shore  at  the  base  of  the  high  wooded 
lake  bank  a  short  distance  north  of  the  Chenequa  Springs 
hotel  are  several  fine  springs.  These  springs  the  Pota- 
watomi  knew  and  used  when  encamped  in  the  vicinity. 
Their  name  for  these  is  reported  to  have  been  Tkepmbes,  or 
"springs  at  the  lake."  A  spring  on  the  Rudberg  place  a 
short  distance  west  of  the  house  was  also  known  to  the  In- 
dians. It  appears  in  the  Waukesha  County  atlas  of  1873 
as  a  mineral  spring. 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  25 

Game  was  very  plentiful  in  former  days  on  the  north- 
east shore  of  Pine  lake.  The  early  settlers  killed  many 
deer  and  now  and  then  a  bear.  Mr.  Christ.  Schwartz  and 
Mr.  Charles  Rudberg  both  speak  of  the  great  numbers  of 
passenger  pigeons.  Their  flights  in  the  spring  of  the  year 
continued  all  day  long,  flight  after  flight.  In  returning  in 
the  autumn  they  roosted  in  the  woods,  feeding  on  the  abun- 
dant acorns.  Forty  years  ago  Mr.  Schwartz  shot  numbers 
of  them  from  the  top  of  the  hill  upon  which  the  Chenequa 
Hotel  stands.  Flocks  of  the  beautiful  wood  duck  as  well 
as  of  other  ducks  were  numerous.  Muskrats  were  numer- 
ous in  the  marshes.  Raccoon  were  frequently  shot.  On  the 
George  Vits  place  beyond  the  Tuley  log  cabin  was  a  small 
marshy  area.  Here  Mr.  Schwartz  shot  many  partridges  in 
a  poplar  thicket.  Fish  were  very  abundant,  the  Indians 
occasionally  spearing  them.  In  Tuley  bay  and  extending 
across  to  Niedecken  point  was  a  marsh  in  which  the  Indians 
speared  and  trapped  muskrats.  This  has  been  elsewhere 
described. 

Niedecken  Point  Camp  Site. 

In  the  forties  and  fifties  a  few  Potawatomi  occasionally 
camped  on  this  wooded  point  on  the  south  shore  of  Tuley's 
bay.  Here  the  creek  outlet  of  Beaver  lake,  flowing  through 
farm  and  pasture  lands  of  the  John  0.  Rudberg  estate,  en- 
ters Pine  lake.  This  end  of  the  once  marshy  bay  was  an 
excellent  muskrat  hunting  ground.  The  Indians  erected 
their  lodges  on  the  lands  near  the  mouth  of  the  creek. 

This  site  must  also  have  been  occupied  by  redmen  long 
before  the  pioneer  whites  came  to  this  region.  The  farm 
field  adjoining  and  near  the  creek  has  yielded  many  flint 
arrow  points  in  past  years.  Evidence  of  flint  working 
(broken  nodules,  spalls,  flakes  and  chips  of  white  and  grey 
and  other  flint)  were  also  to  be  seen  here.  Mr.  Christ. 
Schwartz  found  a  Siouan-type  red  catlinite  pipe  in  the  field 
on  the  south  side  of  the  creek.  .Mr.  Louis  W.  Jacobson  has 
a  blue  hornstone  knife  found  on  this  site.  Other  artifacts 
collected  here  are  a  stone  celt,  flint  blanks,  a  stemmed  flint 
scraper,  a  copper  spearpoint  with  a  socket,  a  bone  awl,  a 
fragmentary  mussel  shell  pendant,  a  glass  bead  .and  an  iron 
harpoon  point.  Several  small  fragments  of  a  pottery  ves- 


26  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   1 

sel  are  made  of  reddish  clay,  tempered  with  crushed  rock 
and  unornamented. 

In  a  small  garden  near  the  Niedecken  home  we  found 
scattered  fireplace  stones,  a  pebble  hand-hammer,  a  broken 
flint  blank,  and  numbers  of  flint  chips  and  spalls. 

Niedecken  point  is  a  picturesque  gravel  knoll,  at  its  high- 
est part  fifty  or  more  feet  above  the  waters  of  the  lake.  On 
its  top  are  a  stand  of  cedar  and  other  trees.  The  Niedecken 
home  stands  on  another  attractive  knoll. 

Swallow  Point. 

Adjoining  the  Niedecken  property  on  the  south  and  ex- 
tending along  the  Pine  lake  shore  is  a  fine  oak  woodland. 
The  land  rises  gradually  from  the  lakeshore,  sloping  to  the 
east,  and  is  rolling  in  character.  It  is  a  part  of  the  John  0. 
Rudberg  estate.  It  is  an  extension  of  the  old  Indian  camp 
site  at  the  mouth  of  the  creek  at  Niedecken  point.  Here 
the  Indian  women  in  early  days  of  settlement  gathered 
acorns,  the  supply  being  generally  abundant.  At  the  south- 
ern extremity  of  this  woodland  tract  is  Swallow  point,  a 
high  rounded  point  occupied  by  several  summer  residences. 
This  point  was  years  ago  known  as  Leuthstroms  point  being 
the  place  of  residence  of  Dr.  C.  A.  Leuthstrom,  a  widely 
known  specialist  in  chronic  diseases.  Mr.  Christ.  Schwartz 
reports  that  an  Indian  burial  was  disturbed  when  a  ditch 
was  dug  at  that  time  on  the  Leuthstrom,  now  a  part  of  the 
Anna  M.  Cudahy  property.  These  bones  a  son  of  Dr.  Leuth- 
strom re-buried.  No  particulars  concerning  this  burial  ap- 
pear to  be  available.  Other  Indian  burials  are  said  to  have 
been  made  here  but  these  have  not  been  found. 

The  Island. 

In  Pine  Lake,  at  a  distance  of  over  six  hundred  feet  west 
of  Swallow  point,  is  a  pear-shaped  island  owned  by  the  Pine 
Lake  Yacht  Club.  This  picturesque  island  is  a  hog-back 
rising  out  of  the  lake  with  a  group  of  pine  and  other  trees 
growing  on  its  top  and  sides.  Its  northern  end  is  produced 
in  a  long  narrow  point,  its  southern  extremity  rounded. 
Its  general  direction  is  northeast  and  southwest.  Its  length 
is  given  as  about  seven  hundred  feet  and  its  greatest  width 
as  about  two  hundred  feet.  Some  of  the  deepest  water  of 
Pine  lake  (79  to  84  feet)  lies  off  the  west  shore  of  this 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  •  .  27 

island.       Between  its  eastern  shore  and  the  mainland  its 
depth  is  50  feet  in  places. 

This  island,  once  known  as  Sands  island,  belonged  in  the 
seventies  to  Josiah  J.  Sands,  who  had  an  estate  on  the  main- 
land at  Anchor  point  the  next  point  south  of  Swallow 
(Leuthstrom)  point.  The  Indian  name  for  this  island  is 
given  as  Shquak  mineshe,  taking  its  name  from  the  pine 
trees.  Some  flint  points  have  been  collected  on  this  island 
and  picked  up  along  its  shore,  the  latter  being  probably 
washed  up  from  the  lake.  Years  ago  an  Indian  burial  was 
also  unearthed  on  this  island.  Particulars  concerning  its 
character  are  not  obtainable. 

Anchor  Point  Camp  Site. 

Another  former  Indian  camp  site  was  on  the  old  Sands 
estate  on  the  shore  of  Sands  bay  lying  north  of  Anchor  point. 
The  Josiah  Jones  Sands  estate  in  1873  extended  from  the 
present  north  boundary  of  the  Mayer  estate  northward  to 
the  north  boundary  of  the  present  Wahl  estate.  It  included 
in  its  extent  the  present  Finkler,  Hanson,  Briggs  and  Wahl 
(Weld)  properties.  North  of  it  was  the  former  J.  A.  Kirk 
estate  (Kirkwood),  which  extended  from  the  present  Wahl 
place  northward  to  the  Cudahy  property,  and  included  the 
present  Elser,  Ott  and  Helmer  places.  Along  the  front  of 
the  former  Kirk  estate  the  shore  bank  is  high. 

Along  the  Sands  bay  shore  the  land  along  the  lake  shore 
is  rather  level  and  sheltered  by  the  higher  land  to  the  north 
of  it.  It  was  in  the  early  days  occupied  by  a  fine  oak  forest 
through  which  deer  and  bear  roamed.  To-day  velvet  lawns 
slope  from  the  lake  shore  eastward  to  the  fine  homes  on  the 
higher  land  a  short  distance  beyond.  If  these  lawns  are 
ever  disturbed  evidence  of  the  former  early  Indian  camp 
site  must  be  found.  A  few  Indian  flint  points  have  been 
found  here  in  recent  years  in  preparing  flower  beds  and  in 
making  other  improvements  of  these  estates.  Mr.  Edward 
Krause,  the  well-known  Hartland  collector,  reports  the  find- 
ing of  two  native  copper  spearpoints  on  the  former  Kirk 
property,  on  the  present  Helmer  and  Ott  places.  Several 
stone  celts  and  a  number  of  flint  arrow  points  were  obtain- 
ed from  fields  on  this  estate  when  Mr.  Kirk  was  its  owner. 


28  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.      •  Vol.   10,  No    1 

Burned  stones  and  ashy  soil  in  one  of  these  fields  indicated 
the  site  of  the  early  location  of  a  wigwam  home. 

Anchor  point  takes  its  name  from  its  shape  which  has  a 
curved  projection  on  either  side  of  its  rounded  extremity. 
It  is  a  part  of  the  beautiful  Ida  Finkler  estate.  The  point 
is  a  high,  narrow  gravel  ridge  covered  with  a  grove  of  oak, 
cedar  and  some  pine  trees.  There  is  an  especially  fine  stand 
of  tall  pine  trees  at  its  base.  On  the  southern  side  of  these 
is  a  small  strip  of  cattail  marsh  in  early  days  more  exten- 
sive than  today.  It  was  a  muskrat  hunting  ground. 

From  the  point  southward  the  Finkler  land  along  the 
lake  shore  has  high  banks  and  is  covered  with  a  fine  wood- 
land of  oak  and  other  trees.  There  are  a  number  of  pic- 
turesque kettle  holes,  some  circular  and  others  ravine-like. 
At  its  southern  limits  a  small  marshy  tract  now  partly  in 
use  as  a  hay  meadow  extends  eastward  to  the  Pine  lake 
highway.  This  was  another  muskrat  hunting  ground  of 
the  early  Indians.  In  the  gardens  of  the  Finkler  estate 
flint  arrow  points  have  been  found.  A  grooved  stone  axe 
was  found  in  removing  a  stump  on  this  property. 

Because  of  the  many  kettle-hole  depressions  this  land  has 
the  Potawatomi  designation  Mttesh  wan  kquetwen.  The 
lake  a  short  distance  east  of  Anchor  point  attains  a  depth 
of  55  feet. 

Randall-Koehring  Point  Camp  Site. 

South  of  the  Anchor  point  property,  on  the  southeast 
shore  of  the  lake,  and  separated  from  it  by  the  Mayer  estate 
property  is  a  curious  T-shaped  point,  now  an  island  and 
connected  with  the  mainland  by  a  small  bridge.  This  forms 
a  part  of  the  Philip  A.  Koehring  and  Marjorie  G.  Randall 
(Rock  Terrace)  estates  on  the  lakeshore  opposite  it.  The 
T-shaped  end  of  this  point  is  over  1300  feet  in  length  and 
about  300  feet  in  width  at  its  widest  part,  near  its  middle. 
In  former  years  there  was  a  small  bay  with  a  cattail  marsh 
both  on  the  north  and  on  the  south  side  of  the  point.  This 
has  been  partly  filled  in  and  this  area  converted  into  lawns 
and  flower  gardens. 

In  early  days  of  settlement  a  few  Potawatomi  Indians 
occasionally  camped  on  this  point.  The  former  marshland 

'Mtte  is  pronounced  like  che. 


I'ine,   Beaver  and  North  Lukes.  29 

(Sheshko  wabshkoke,  muskrat  marsh)  at  the  southern  end 
of  the  lake,  a  narrow  strip  of  which  still  fringes  the  lake- 
shore  from  the  Koehring  property  southward  along  the  Gib- 
son shore,  furnished  good  muskrat  hunting  for  the  Indians. 
A  few  flint  arrowpoints  have  been  found  on  the  Point  in 
planting  shrubbery  and  making  other  improvements. 
Some  have  been  found  in  the  lake  itself. 
^  The  Koehring  and  Randall  properties  were  formerly  the 
Best  estate.  On  the  Koehring  place  the  lake  banks  are  high, 
with  pot-holes  in  their  rear. 

Gibson  Site. 

The  Gibson  lands  at  the  southern  end  of  Pine  lake  are 
rolling  in  character  and  largely  in  use  as  pasture.  Grow- 
ing on  top  of  the  high  lake  banks  are  oak  and  cedar  trees, 
some  of  the  latter  being  of  quite  good  size.  At  their  base 
is  a  narrow  strip  of  cattail  marsh.  The  east  and  west  In- 
dian trail  from  Pewaukee  lake  to  the  Oconomowoc  lakes 
passed  by  the  southern  end  of  Pine  lake.  The  Gibson  lands 
were  a  convenient  camp  ground  for  Indians  passing  on  that 
trail,  or  those  residing  at  the  village  on  the  northeast  shore 
of  Nagawicka  lake,  a  half-mile  south  of  Pine  lake. 

Some  flint  arrow  and  spearpoints  have  been  found  in  the 
Gibson  fields  back  from  the  lake  bank  on  the  east  and  west 
sides  of  the  lake.  If  the  present  pasture  lands  are  ever 
plowed  the  finding  of  additional  stone  and  other  implements 
and  other  evidence  of  early  aboriginal  occupation  is  to  be 
expected. 

WEST  SHORE 

Brumder  Shore  Vilage  Site. 

The  site  of  an  early  Indian  village  was  on  the  northwest 
shore  of  Pine  lake  extending  over  the  present  residence 
properties  of  the  several  members  of  the  Brumder  family. 
This  site  appears  to  have  extended  from  near  the  head  of 
Indian  bay  at  the  north  end  of  the  lake  southward  along  the 
shore  of  the  lake  to  Oakland  point,  a  distance  of  half  a  mile 
more  or  less.  Along  this  shore  the  land  along  the  lake  bank 
is  rather  level  with  wooded  hills  rising  in  the  rear.  Much 
of  the  land  along  the  lake  bank  was  in  former  years  under 
cultivation  as  a  part  of  the  J.  Jacobson  farm  and  in  these 


30  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   1 

fields,  now  occupied  by  the  lawns  of  the  Brumder  homes, 
the  scattered  hearth  stones,  flint  workshop  refuse,  broken 
animal  bones  and  clam  shell  fragments,  scattered  by  the 
plow  and  harrow,  were  in  former  years  to  be  seen.  Here 
many  stone  and  other  implements  have  been  collected. 
Others  have  since  been  found  by  workmen  in  gardening  and 
engaged  in  other  work  on  these  properties. 

In  a  very  good  archeological  collection  owned  by  Louis  W? 
Jacobson  are  ma*ny  flint  implements  and  other  specimens 
collected  from  the  former  cultivated  fields  at  this  place. 
Especially  notable  among  these  are  a  grooved  stone  axe, 
several  rude  stone  celts,  stone  balls,  a  flint  flaking  imple- 
ment, a  quartzite  scraper,  a  flattened  piece  of  native  copper, 
a  rhyolite  celt  or  blank,  and  several  large  flint  blanks.  Of 
flint  arrow  and  spearpoints  he  has  a  large  number  of  vari- 
ous forms  (leaf  shaped,  triangular,  stemmed,  notched  and 
barbed)  :  of  perforators,  scrapers  and  knives  there  are  a 
number  of  specimens.  Among  many  other  specimens  gath- 
ered here  in  past  years  by  other  collectors  are  several 
grooved  stone  axes  and  two  socketted  copper  spearpoints. 
Flint  arrowpoints  are  still  now  and  then  picked  up  in  the 
garden  plots  near  the  residences.  Several  sherds  of  cord- 
marked  earthenware  vessels  have  been  found  on  this  site. 
The  late  Mr.  George  Brumder  is  reported  to  have  also  pos- 
sessed some  specimens  from  this  site.  Indications  are  that 
this  is  the  former  site  of  an  early  Algonkian  village,  of  just 
what  date  we  may  never  know.  There  may  have  been  some 
connection  between  this  site  and  that  on  the  opposite  shore 
of  the  bay. 

In  pioneer  days  small  numbers  of  Potawatomi  ocasionally 
erected  their  wigwams  on  this  site.  Both  the  fishing  and 
the  hunting  were  good  at  this  place.  Some  fish  were 
speared  and  others  caught  with  seines.  Turtles  were  also 
caught  in  shallow  places  and  thrown  on  the  banks  to  be 
killed  and  the  meat  removed.  At  this  place  the  trail  run- 
ning between  Mud  and  Pine  lakes  was  intersected  by  the 
trail  along  the  west  shore  of  Pine  lake. 

There  probably  was  a  planting  ground  connected  with 
this  site  but  no  one  appears  to  now  possess  any  certain  in- 
formation concerning  it.  Some  red  willow,  the  bark  of 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  31 

which  was  used  by  the  Indians  for  smoking,  still  grows 
here.     Their  name  for  this  kinnikinnik  is  pokkeegan. 

West  Bay  Site. 

Another  Indian  camp  site  was  located  on  the  shores  of 
the  fine  large  bay  located  on  the  west  shore  of  Pine  lake,  a 
short  distance  south  of  the  site  on  the  Brumder  estates. 
This  bay  cuts  into  the  lands  in  a  well-rounded  curve,  at  its 
opening  on  the  north  shore  being  Oakland  point  (now  oc- 
cupied by  Dr.  Henry  Hitz  and  Wm.  K.  Winkler)  and  on  its 
south  shore  Pritzlaff  point.  Fronting  on  this  fine  bay  are 
the  Fagg,  Vilter,  Upmeyer,  Messer,  Schultz,  Geeser,  Weigel, 
Lynch,  Spiegel,  Pritzlaff  and  other  attractive  homes.  High, 
wooded  hills  are  in  the  rear  of  some  of  these  estates. 

This  is  an  Indian  site  of  whose  prehistory  and  history 
we  possess  only  meager  information.  As  the  shores  of  West 
bay  are  completely  occupied  by  residences,  lawns  and  gar- 
dens there  is  now  no  opportunity  of  recovering  much  of  it 
from  the  soil.  A  few  flint  points  are  occasionally  found  in 
garden  plots.  In  past  years  more  implements  were  found. 
Louis  W.  Jacobson  has  in  his  collection  a  small  well-made 
stone  celt  or  hatchet  found  on  the  Winkler  place;  also  a 
notched  stone  sinker  found  on  the  Dorestan  place.  This 
latter  specimen  is  oval  in  form  and  made  of  a  black  gritty 
stone.  The  notches  are  pecked  into  the  top  and  bottom 
edges  rather  than  into  the  sides  of  the  implement  as  is  most 
frequently  the  case.  Flint  arrowpoints  are  from  some  of 
the  neighboring  properties.  From  the  Jacobson  farm  in  the 
rear  of  the  estates  on  the  north  side  of  the  bay  he  has  a 
number  of  flint  arrow  and  spearpoints,  stone  balls,  a  pebble 
hand-hammer  and  a  grooved  stone  axe.  A  small  rectangu- 
lar piece  of  grey  steatite  (soapstone)  from  this  place  is 
about  1  1/8  inches  in  length,  and  one-half  inch  wide  with 
flattened  edges.  It  has  been  perforated  in  two  places  and 
has  been  broken  at  a  third  perforation.  It  is  probably  an 
ornament. 

In  former  years  a  few  flint  arrows  and  spearpoints  were 
also  found  on  the  then  J.  C.  Iverson  place  on  the  north  shore 
of  the  bay.  Other  persons  have  found  in  past  years  on  the 
west  shore  of  the  bay  flint  points,  a  grooved  axe  and  a  few 
shell  heads. 


32  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.    1 

The  few  Potawatomi  who  camped  here  from  time  to  time 
in  pioneer  days  were  chiefly  engaged  in  spearing  and  catch- 
ing fish,  some  of  which  they  dried  for  future  use.  The  old 
west  shore  Indian  trail  passed  this  site. 

Vogel  Bay  Site. 

About  half  a  mile  south  of  West  bay  a  smaller  bay  indents 
the  west  shore  of  Pine  lake.  On  its  north  shore  is  the  sum- 
mer residence  of  Mr.  August  H.  Vogel  and  in  its  rear  the 
Vogel  farm  and  Paulines  Wood  Co.  property,  likewise  the 
summer  residences  of  Mrs.  Emilie  Nunnemacher,  Mrs.  Hed- 
wig  Earth  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  August  C.  Helmholz.  This 
property  was  the  former  homestead  of  William  Schuchardt, 
who  settled  here  in  1852,  and  was  sold  after  his  death  to 
the  late  Rudolph  Nunnemacher,  and  purchased  by  Frederick 
Vogel,  Senior,  in  1885,  whose  descendants  have  resided  here 
since  that  date.  The  south  shore  of  this  bay  is  high  and 
steep  with  a  number  of  pretty  summer  homes  on  its  top.  At 
the  head  of  this  bay  hearthstones  and  a  few  flint  chips  were 
found  in  the  rear  of  a  small  cottage  in  a  spot  from  which  the 
sod  had  recently  been  removed.  Others  were  found  on  the 
adjoining  cultivated  field  of  the  Vogel  farm.  At  least  one 
Indian  wigwam  was  at  some  time  located  here.  A  few  flint 
points  and  a  chert  pecking  hammer  have  been  picked  up  in 
this  field.  The  west  shore  trail  crossed  these  lands. 

Dorner  Point  Camp  Site. 

Scattered  stones  from  an  Indian  wigwam  fireplace  were 
found  in  a  vegetable  garden  and  small  vineyard  on  the  Fred 
H.  Dorner  summer  residence  property.  Scattered  near  these 
were  flint  chips  and  fragments  and  it  is  evident  that  the 
manufacture  of  at  least  a  small  number  of  flint  implements 
must  have  been  carried  on  here  at  some  time  by  the  occu- 
pants of  this  primitive  dwelling  site.  Inquiry  of  the  em- 
ployes on  neighboring  properties  brought  no  information  of 
other  sites  on  this  pretty  point.  Mr.  Edward  Krause  years 
ago  collected  twelve  flint  arrowpoints  from  the  fields  of  the 
E.  Krause  farm  of  which  this  site  formerly  formed  a  part. 

The  garden  on  the  Dorner  place  is  on  the  top  of  a  high 
lake  bank.  From  this  place  a  gravel  road  leads  down  to 
a  hook-shaped  point  on  the  lake  bank  below.  Mr.  Louis  R. 
Bunde,  Jr.  states  that  years  ago  there  was  located  on  this 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes. 


point,  a  short  distance  southeast  of  the  house,  a  boulder 
heap  which  he  and  others  undertook  to  examine.  They  re- 
moved the  stones  until  they  came  to  a  stone-lined  excava- 
tion, possibly  an  Indian  burial  place,  but  went  no  further  in 
their  exploration.  No  further  information  concerning  it 
appears  to  be  now  available. 

A  wooded  ravine  or  kettle  hole  is  in  the  rear  of  the  Dor- 
ner,  Ott  and  other  summer  homes  on  this  point.  A  wild 
cat  is  reported  to  have  been  killed  in  this  locality  in  pioneer 
days.  On  the  Waukesha  atlas  map  of  1914  the  region  on 
the  west  shore  of  Pine  lake  from  the  north  line  of  the  Nun- 
nemacher  property  northward  to  Dorners  point  is  designat- 
ed as  Pine  Lake  Park. 

BEAVER  LAKE 

(Lubra) 
Interlachen  Camp. 

Mr.  Christ.  (N.  C.)  Schwartz,  a  resident  of  Chenequa, 
states  that  in  his  boyhood,  in  about  the  year  1874  and  later, 
groups  of  Potawatomi  Indians  from  Pewaukee  lake  and  else- 
where came  to  Pine  lake.  There  were  sometimes  as  many 
as  fifty  Indians,  men  women  and  children,  in  this  company 
of  prairie  folk.  They  erected  their  lodges  in  the  sheltered 
hollow  on  the  shore  of  Beaver  lake  south  of  the  high  knoll 
upon  which  the  Interlachen  hotel  now  stands.  This  de- 
pression is  between  the  highway  (the  old  Indian  trail)  and 
the  lake  bank.  These  lodges  they  built  of  poles  which  they 
leaned  together  in  the  form  of  a  cone,  the  wooden  frame- 
work being  covered  with  skins  or  cloth.  Sometimes  there 
were  nearly  a  dozen  habitations  of  this  nature  in  the  hollow. 

The  Indians  seldom  remained  in  camp  here  for  more  than 
a  week  or  two,  moving  on  from  this  spot  to  Mud,  North  and 
Okauchee  lakes.  Some  came  to  hunt  muskrats,  these  ani- 
mals then  abounding  in  the  marshes.  Their  muskrat  spears 
were  long  pointed  and  barbed  iron  rods  fastened  to  a  wood- 
en shaft.  They  speared  the  animals  through  the  roofs  of 
their  rush  and  mud  house.  Muskrats  were  prepared  for 
eating  by  removing  the  skins  and  roasting  the  carcass  in 
the  fire  or  by  cooking  the  meat  in  a  kettle.  These  kettles 
were  of  sheet  metal  and  light  enough  to  be  transported. 


34  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   1 

The  nearest  muskrat  hunting  ground  was  in  Tuleys  or  Wil- 
son's bay,  only  a  few  rods  away,  in  a  grassy  and  reedy  marsh 
extending  from  the  bank  below  the  Chenequa  hotel  across 
this  Pine  lake  bay  to  Niedecken  point.  These  Indians  had 
no  ponies.  They  always  Jiad  a  number  of  dogs  of  the  Indian 
breed.  The  last  Indians  whom  Mr.  Schwartz  remembers 
camping  in  this  locality  came  in  1881. 

Mr.  Charles  Rudberg,  whose  father,  John  0.  Rudberg, 
settled  on  the  northeast  shore  of  Pine  lake  in  1842,  states 
that  the  Indians  came  from  Pewaukee  lake  (some  four  and 
a  half  males  distant  to  the  southeast)  over  the  trail,  now 
the  road  between  Pine  and  Beaver  lakes.  In  his  father's 
day  they  passed  over  the  trail  in  both  the  spring  and  au- 
tumn, sometimes  in  considerable  numbers.  They  had  no 
guns,  using  the  bow  and  arrow  in  their  hunting. 

There  were  still  many  Indians  camping  about  the  Chene- 
qua lakes  in  the  late  thirties  and  early  forties.  Other  old 
settlers  and  their  descendants  remember  that  some  of  these 
natives  came  from  other  camps  at  Keesus  and  Nagawicka 
lakes. 

Chenequa  Country  Club  Camp  Site. 

All  traces  of  a  former  Indian  camp  site  located  on  the  Bea- 
ver lake  shore  of  the  Chenequa  Country  Club  have  been  ob- 
literated in  recent  years  by  the  construction  of  the  golf  fair- 
ways, clubhouse  and  road.  The  only  traces  of  this  site 
which  remained  exposed  to  view  in  November,  1928,  were 
a  few  scattered  hearthstones,  flint  fragments  and  chips,  a 
broken  flint  blank  and  a  small  hammerstone  which  were 
found  in  a  small  vegetable  garden  on  a  small  property  (care- 
taker's house)  belonging  to  the  George  Vits  summer  home 
on  the  opposite  (west)  side  of  the  Chenequa  highway.  This 
small  tract  adjoins  the  southwest  corner  of  the  Country 
Club  property.  Mr.  Frank  Opithka,  the  caretaker,  has  a 
three  inch  notched  spearpoint,  made  of  light  brown  flint, 
which  was  recently  found  in  this  garden.  In  preparing  the 
golf  course  a  few  flint  points  were  found. 

Below  this  garden  and  between  it  and  the  gravel  ridge 
upon  which  the  Interlachen  hotel  buildings  now  stand  is  a 
small  hollow  where  in  former  years  a  few  Potawatomi  In- 
dians are  reported  to  have  occasionally  camped.  It  was  a 


Pinr,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  35 

sheltered  spot  and  opens  on  to  the  Beaver  lake  shore.  A 
former  hotel  keeper  at  Interlachen  was  Dr.  John  A.  Rice 
whose  interest  in  Indian  history  and  ethnology  was  well 
known. 

Two  conical  mounds  are  located  on  the  west  shore  of 
Beaver  lake.  These  are  beyond  the  limits  of  Chenequa  Vil- 
lage, on  sloping  ground  near  the  road  to  the  Country  Club. 
They  are  within  about  one  hundred  feet  of  the  lake  shore. 
Near  them  indications  of  an  Indian  camp  site  (flint  refuse 
and  a  few  arrowpoints)  have  been  found.* 

MUD  LAKE 

(Askewee) 
Mud  Lake  Camp. 

Mud  Lake  is  a  small  body  of  water,  between  Pine  and 
North  lakes.  It  is  almost  completely  surrounded  by  high, 
wooded  hills.  The  body  of  open  water  in  its  middle  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  cattail  marsh  of  considerable  extent.  This 
pond  was  in  former  days,  because  of  the  good  muskrat  hunt- 
ing and  for  other  reasons,  a  favorite  camp  ground  of  the 
Potawatomi  who  erected  their  lodges  on  the  lower  land  at 
the  southeastern  end  of  the  ridge  and  a  short  distance  north 
of  the  end  of  Indian  bay  of  Pine  lake.  Here  the  Indian 
trail  on  its  way  to  Mouse  (Moose)  and  Okauchee  lakes 
passed  between  Pine  and  Mud  lakes,  the  present  highway 
marking  the  former  course  of  the  earlier  Indian  pathway. 

In  Mud  lake  the  Indian  women  dug  the  roots  of  the  arrow- 
head (white  potato)  for  cooking  or  roasting.  Here  they 
also  cut  and  dried  the  leaves  of  the  cattail  for  the  making 
of  matting.  Old  settlers  remember  seeing  some  of  the  In- 
dian women  carrying  bundles  of  rushes  on  their  backs. 

NORTH  LAKE 
(Shanakoo) 

North  Lake  Village  Site. 

At  the  foot  of  this  very  attractive  lake,  about  one-half 
mile  north  of  the  head  of  Pine  lake,  there  is  an  area  of  marsh 
above  which  there  towers  a  semi-circle  of  high  oak-clad  hills. 


Wis.  Archfeologist,  2 — 1,  n.  s. 


WISCONSIN   A.RCHEOL,<  M  V<  I.    lii.   No.    I 


rl'his  cattail  marsh  was,  like  thai  surrounding  Mud  lake,  a 
favorite  rnuskrat  hunting  ground  of  the  early  Indians,  who 
rame  over  I  he  trails  from  their  villages  at  IVwaukee,  Naga- 
wieka  and  elsewhere  to  supply  themselves  with  muskrat 
flesh  and  skins.  Some  of  the  meat,  cut  in  strips,  was 
smoked  or  dried  in  the  sun.  A  creek  connects  the  southern 
end  of  North  lake  with  Mud  lake  lying  south  of  it. 

The  site  of  an  early  Indian  village  appears  to  have  been 
on  the  south  shore  of  North  lake  extending  from  the  very 
picturesque  high  point,  once  known  as  Riedeburg's  point, 
westward  along  the  south  shore  of  the  west  lobe  of  the  lake, 
on  property  now  owned  by  Mr.  Geo.  W.  Adams. 

On  the  point  the  greater  part  of  the  land  is  turf -covered 
so  that  no  evidence  of  this  village  was  obtainable  at  the  time 
of  its  examination.  On  the  Adams  subdivision  west  of  its 
base  this  was  also  largely  the  case.  Both  here  and  on  the 
point  numbers  of  flint  implements  and  some  stone  axes  and 
other  Indian  tools  and  weapons  have  been  collected  in  past 
years  when  parts  of  this  land  were  being  farmed.  . 

In  a  small  garden  spot  in  the  rear  of  a  solitary  cottage  on 
the  west  bay  shore  hearthstones,  a  pebble  hammerstone,  a 
small  triangular  flint  arrowpoint  and  a  few  flint  chips  were 
found.  A  short  distance  west  of  this  wigwam  site  another 
small  site  was  located  in  a  cultivated  field  overlooking  a 
marsh  now  partly  drained.  This  level  field  is  elevated  about 
thirty  feet  above  the  marsh.  At  two  different  places  near 
the  edge  of  this  Held  two  separate  groups  of  fireplace  stones 
were  found,  doubtless  marking  two  former  wigwam  loea- 
•tions.  In  this  field,  which  lies  to  the  west  of  the  entrance 
driveway  into  the  Adams  subdivision  some  flint  points  have 
also  been  found. 

This  locality  at  the  south  end  of  North  lake  may  have 
been  the  site  of  the  village  of  the  Potawatomi  chief  Shiina- 
ko6.  The  only  information  available  concerning  him  or  his 
village  is  that  North  lake  once  bore  his  name  Shanakoonebin 
or  "south  cloud  water",  and  that  his  son,  Shawananuquot. 
was  born  here,  or  near  this  place.  Shunakee  is  a  slight  dis- 
tortion of  these  names. 

From  the  foot  of  North  lake  northward  as  far  as  the 
northern  boundary  of  ('heiieqiia  Village  the  east  shore  of  the 
lake  is  high  and  with  a  woodland  of  oak  and  some  cedar 


Pine,  Beaver  and  Noi-th  Ivak.-s.  37 

trees.  In  its  rear  are  numerous  kettle  holes.  Some  at- 
tractive summer  homes  are  perched  on  this  bank  of  the  lake. 
Over  these  properties  ran  the  Indian  trail  to  the  Oconomo- 
woc  river  at  the  head  of  the  lake.  Other  Indian  camp  sites, 
generally  of  small  extent,  are  on  the  other  shores  of  North 
lake.  From  these,  in  recent  years,  many  flint  points,  several 
stone  axes  and  celts,  stone  balls,  a  slate  gorget  and  several 
socketted  copper  points  have  been  collected.  Several 
crushed  stone  tempered  unornamented  and  cord-marked 
potsherds  have  been  found. 


INDIAN  IMPLEMENTS 

The  Indian  camp  and  village  sites  on  the  shores  of  the 
Chenequa  lakes  have  produced  a  quite  large  number  of  stone 
and  other  implements,  weapons  and  ornaments  since  the 
cultivation  of  the  first  lands  in  the  region  by  the  pioneer 
settlers.  Only  a  comparatively  small  number  of  these  are, 
however,  to  be  seen  in  private  or  public  collections  at  the 
present  time.  One  wonders  what  has  become  of  the  many 
Indian  artifacts  found  on  these  sites  during  the  past  eighty 
or  more  years.  They  have  been  given  away  to  friends, 
some  have  been  sold  to  collectors  and  to  dealers  in  Indian 
relics,  others  have  been  lost  or  destroyed.  But  very  few 
have  found  way  into  Wisconsin  museums. 

In  the  extensive  archeological  collections  of  the  Milwau- 
kee Public  museum  there  is  a  single  socketted  copper  spear- 
point  and  two  flint  arrow  points  from  Pine  lake  and  a  cop- 
per spearpoint  with  a  single-notched  tang  from  Beaver  lake. 
From  Hartland,  near  Pine  lake,  there  is  a  socketted  copper 
spearpoint  and  another  with  a  rattail  tang.  Two  pieces  of 
worked  catlinite  (pipestone)  come  from  the  same  locality. 
There  are  no  specimens  from  North  lake. 

In  the  Logan  museum  at  Beloit  College  there  is  a  knife 
made  of  dark  brown  quartzite,  five  inches  in  length,  and  a 
chisel  made  of  greenstone  from  North  lake,  a  flint  knife 
4  :i/4  inches  in  length,  and  a  fluted  stone  axe  with  faint 
grooves  from  Hartland,  a  spud  made  of  black  diorite,  a  cat- 
linite gorget  of  an  oval  form  with  one  perforation  from  Lake 
Keesus,  a  brown  quartzite  spearpoint  and  a  spatula-shaped 


38  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGI&T.  Vol.   10.   No.    1 

copper  spearpoint  from  Merton.  In  the  State  Historical 
museum  there  are  several  flint  arrowpoints  from  Pine  lake, 
a  curved-blade  scraper  made  of  brown  chalcedony  from 
Hartland,  and  three  socketted  and  one  spatula-shaped  cop- 
per spearpoint  from  Merton. 

The  best  collection  from  the  vicinity  of  Pine  lake  is  that 
of  Mr.  Louis  W.  Jacobson.  His  specimens  are  largely  from 
village  and  camp  sites  on  its  northwest  shore.  This  collec- 
tion contains  about  five  hundred  flint  implements  (arrow 
and  spearpoints,  knives,  perforators  and  scrapers),  flint 
blanks,  grooved  axes,  celts,  stone  balls,  hammerstones,  a 
a  stone  sinker,  a  steatite  ornament,  a  piece  of  worked  cop- 
per and  a  single  socketted  copper  spearpoint. 

In  private  collections  at  Waukesha,  Pewaukee,  Oconomo- 
woc  and  Milwaukee  are  a  few  other  specimens  from  sites 
and  other  places  on  the  shores  of  the  Chenequa  lakes. 

THE  CHENEQUA  TRAILS 

Of  the  trails  or  Indian  pathways  which  passed  through 
the  Chenequa  lakes  region  the  principal  one  was  the  trail 
which  ran  from  the  Potawatomi  and  Menomini  villages  at 
Milwaukee  to  the  Oconomowoc  lakes,  and  westward  to  the 
Four  Lakes  at  Madison.  This  important  trail,  traveled  in 
succession  by  Indians,  fur  traders  and  early  white  settlers, 
became  the  early  road  from  the  Lake  Michigan  shore  to 
western  Wisconsin.  It  passed  through  the  present  villages 
of  Pewaukee  and  Hartland  and  very  close  to  the  southern 
extremity  of  Chenequa  (Pine)  lake  in  its  westward  course. 
It  appears  on  the  Milwaukee  Land  District  map  of  1840  and 
on  other  early  state  maps.  Its  course  is  still  largely  fol- 
lowed by  state  highway  19. 

A  well-traveled  trail  ran  from  the  Potawatomi  village  on 
the  Fox  river  at  Waukesha  to  Chenequa.  From  Waukesha 
(Prairieville)  this  Indian  path  pursued  a  northwesterly  di- 
rection to  opposite  the  western  end  of  Pewaukee  lake  (Pee- 
waunawkee),  continuing  then  in  the  same  direction  to  the 
site  of  a  Potawatomi  village  at  the  northeast  side  of  Naga- 
wicka  lake.  From  this  place  it  turned  northward,  a  dis- 
tance of  about  one-half  mile  to  the  southern  end  of  Chenequa 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  39 

(Pine)  lake,  where  it  intersected  the  Milwaukee  trail.  This 
trail  appears  on  the  "Map  of  Wiskonsin  Territory,  1839." 

Trails  were  also  located  on  both  shores  of  Chenequa  lake. 
The  trail  on  its  east  shore  followed  a  northward  course 
through  the  woodlands  from  the  foot  of  the  lake  to  the  creek 
joining  Chenequa  and  Beaver  lakes.  Beyond  this  point  it 
continued  northward  near  the  east  shore  of  North  lake  and 
on  toward  Monches,  two  and  a  half  miles  northeast  of  the 
lake.  In  the  early  forties  Potawatomi,  and  occasionally 
groups  of  Menomini  and  Winnebago  Indians,  were  constant- 
ly passing  over  this  trail  on  foot  or  sometimes  with  a  few 
ponies,  going  both  north  and  south  on  their  way  to  their 
camps  and  hunting  grounds,  or  to  trade  with  the  whites  at 
Waukesha. 

Mrs.  Charles  E.  Christenson,  the  wife  of  an  early  Danish 
settler  residing  on  the  east  shore  of  Chenequa  lake,  once  had 
an  interesting  experience  with  one  of  the  redmen  on  this 
trail.  She  was  walking  through  the  forest  when  she  unex- 
pectedly encountered  an  Indian  going  in  the  same  direction. 
Greeting  her  he  immediately  afterward  asked  her  "to  be 
his  squaw".  This  very  unexpected  proposal  so  frightened 
the  young  woman  that  she  took  the  first  opportunity  to  climb 
over  a  rail  fence  near  at  hand  and  flee  to  her  log  cabin  home. 

A  trail  from  the  direction  of  the  present  village  of  Merton 
on  the  Bark  river  passed  along  the  north  shore  of  Beaver 
lake  and  united  with  the  Chenequa  trail  beyond.  A  similar 
trail  from  the  same  locality  ran  along  the  south  shore  of 
Beaver  lake  and  united  with  the  same  trail  near  the  creek. 

When  Mr.  John  0.  Rudberg,  the  early  Pine  lake  surveyor 
and  settler,  was  laying  out  the  roads  of  this  region  he  pre- 
served as  nearly  as  possible  the  course  of  these  early  Indian 
trails. 

On  the  west  shore  of  Chenequa  lake  a  trail  also  ran  north- 
ward from  the  southern  end  of  the  lake.  It  passed  the 
heads  of  the  several  fine  bays  in  its  course  through  the 
woods,  and  at  the  head  of  the  lake  and  Mud  lake  intersected 
the  trail  running  toward  present  Stone  Bank,  and  passed 
northward  to  the  Indian  village  site  on  the  south  shore  of 
North  lake. 

From  the  foot,  on  the  west  side  of  Chenequa  lake,  a  trail 
also  ran  in  a  northwesterly  direction  to  the  Indian  camp 


40  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   1 

sites  on  the  northeast  shore  of  Okauchee  lake.  Its  course 
was  between  this  lake  and  Moose  (Mouse  on  the  early  maps) 
lake  and  on  to  Stone  Bank.  A  shore  trail  also  ran  along  the 
lake  shore  on  the  west  side  of  Chenequa  lake.  This  trail 
some  of  the  early  settlers  knew  well. 

Some  of  the  Waukesha  County  trails  are  described  as 
from  20  inches  to  2  feet  deep,  and  more  like  troughs  than 
paths.  They  were  in  use  in  both  summer  and  winter.  In- 
dians on  snowshoes  were  occasionally  met  following  them. 

INDIAN  NAMES  OF  OTHER  WAUKESHA  COUNTY  LAKES 

Both  the  Prairie  Potawatomi  and  the  Menomini  had 
names  for  the  Waukesha  County  lakes,  the  Potawatomi  for 
all  of  them,  the  Menomini  for  some.  Of  the  Potawatomi 
names  some  have  survivied.  A  larger  number  of  lakes  in 
this  county  bear  Indian  names  than  in  any  other  county  in 
southern  or  central  Wisconsin.  The  significance  of  the 
names  of  several  of  these  lakes  has  only  recently  been  re- 
covered. 

Okauchee Okatci,   "something    small";     Okidji,   a  "pipe- 
stem" 

Keestis   _ Kisobis,  "sun  lake" 

Tuckkipping  (Lapham),  "spring"  or  "Well" 

Peewaukee Peewaunawkee,  "flinty  place" 

Pewaukeeneening    or    Pewaukeenee,    "lake    of 

shells"  or  "snail  lake" 

Nibeewuhkih,  "watery  or  soggy  ground" 

Nagawicka    Nagawicke,  "sandy" 

Nagamowike,  "songstress" 

Nashota Nishota,  "twins" 

Nijode,  "twins" 
Nemahbin    Nahmabin,  "shiner" 

Miskonabin,  "sucker" 

Namebin,  "sucker" 
Ashhippun Kshpun,  "raccoon" 

Asepan,  Essiban,  "raccoon" 

Oconomowoc   Koonomowok,  "name  of  a  waterfall" 

Crooked   Pouack  (Lapham) 

Mouse  (now  Moose)   __Wabkerioshques,  "mouse" 

Mud    Askewee,  "mud" 

Silver Joniia  or  Shoneeah,  "silver" 

Golden    Wissauwa,  "yellow" 

Mishwawa,  "elk" 
Muskego Muskikwa,  "a  sunfish" 

Mashkig,  "swamp" 

Muskeguack,  "fishing  place" 

Little  Muskego Monish   (Lapham) 


Pine,   Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  41 


Other  Names 

Mukwanago    Mukwa,  "bear"   (place  of  the  bear) 

Mequariigoick,  "ladle" 

Waukesha    Wakusha,  "fox" 

Wawgoosha,  "little  fox" 
Walka,  "fox" 


INDIAN  VILLAGES  OF  THE  SURROUNDING  REGION 

In  the  years  1820  to  1846  there  were  a  considerable  num- 
ber of  Prairie  Potawatomi  villages  on  the  banks  of  the 
streams  and  lakes  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Chenequa  group  of 
lakes.  Some  of  these  were  permanent  villages  and  others 
seasonal  or  occasional  camps.  Well-trodden  trails  across 
the  prairies  and  through  the  forests  connected  all  of  them. 

Tcheegascoutak 

Of  these  early  Potawatomi  villages  the  largest  and  the 
most  important  was  the  one  located  on  the  present  site  of 
.the  city  of  Waukesha.  Its  Indian  name  was  Tcheegascou- 
tak, meaning  "burnt,  or  fire-land",  a  name  given  to  it  be- 
cause the  broad  prairie  lands  in  its  vicinity  were  frequently 
ravaged  by  prairie  fires.  The  village,  which  was  a  perman- 
ent one  until  the  year  1837,  was  located  in  the  veryheart  of 
the  present  city  centering  in  the  vicinity  of  present  Cutler 
Park.  It  is  reported  to  have  been  about  a  mile  in  extent. 
Some  wigwams  were  also  located  at  the  base  and  also  on 
the  crest  of  the  wooded  ridge  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the 
Fox  river.  It  was  surrounded  by  quite  extensive  corn  fields 
and  gardens.  The  wigwams  of  the  Indians  were  built  of 
bent  saplings  fastened  with  strips  of  bark  and  covered 
with  bark  or  skins. 

The  number  of  Indian  inhabitants  of  the  Waukesha  vil- 
lage in  1836  was  probably  one  thousand  or  more.  In  1827 
Ebenezer  Childs  found  four  hundred  warriors  in  Tcheegas- 
coutak. 

The  chief  of  this  village  was  Wakusha,  the  Potawatomi 
name  for  "a  fox".  He  is  described  as  "tall  and  athletic, 
proud  in  his  bearing,  dignified  and  friendly".  His  clothing 
and  ornaments  were  richly  decorated  skins,  strings  of  beads 
and  shells  and  tufts  of  feathers. 


42  WISCONSIN   AUCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10.    No.    1 

In  1837  the  Waukesha  Indians  began  to  remove  from 
Wisconsin  to  the  reservation  provided  for  them  by  the  Gov- 
ernment in  Kansas.  In  the  forties  small  parties  of  Pota- 
watomi,  who  apparently  never  left  the  state,  camped  on  the 
ridge  on  the  north  side  of  the  river. 

Okatci 

Several  Potawatomi  Indian  camps  were  located  on  the 
shores  of  Okauchee  (Okatci)  lake.  One  of  these  was  in  the 
forties  on  its  northern  shore.  In  1845  there  were  twenty- 
five  or  more  Indians  in  camp  here.  Some  continued  to 
camp  in  this  locality  until  the  year  1876. 

Another  group  of  these  Indians  had  a  camp  on  Railroad 
bay  on  the  south  shore  of  the  lake.  A  third  camp  was  situ- 
ated on  the  west  shore  of  Garvin  lake  and  the  nearby  north- 
east shore  of  Okauchee  lake.  They  also  had  camps  in  the 
forties,  and  perhaps  earlier,  on  the  north  shore  of  Moose 
(Mouse)  lake,  and  on  the  west  side  of  the  Oconomowoc 
river  at  Stone  Bank. 

Koonomowauk 

In  Oconomowoc  there  was  an  Indian  camp  on  the  east 
bank  of  the  Oconomowoc  river.  There  was  a  pond  here  on 
the  Worthington  place  which  furnished  good  muskrat  trap- 
ping. This  is  reported  to  have  been  a  Menomini,  but  it  prob- 
ably was  a  Potawatomi  Indian  camp.  Another  camp  was  on 
Hewitts  point  on  the  north  side  of  Oconomowoc  lake.  At 
Silver  lake,  one  and  a  half  miles  southwest  of  Oconomowoc, 
a  Potawatomi  village  was,  up  to  the  year  1837,  located  on 
its  south  shore.  Here  the  priests  of  the  Nashota  mission 
preached  to  the  Indians. 

Nagdwicke 

On  the  shore  of  Nagawicka  lake  a  Potawatomi  camp  was 
located  on  the  northeast  shore  of  the  Bark  river  entrance  to 
the  lake.  Fifty  or  more  Indians  were  sometimes  in  this 
camp.  It  was  a  more  or  less  permanent  camp  the  natives 
sometimes  remaining  through  the  winter,  fishing  through 
the  ice  and  hunting  small  game. 

At  the  outlet  of  the  lake  in  present  Delafield  there  was  a 


Pine,   Beaver   and  North  Lakes.  43 

village  of  at  times  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  Indians.  These 
Indians  speared  fish  in  both  the  lake  and  in  the  Bark  river. 
A  favorite  camp  ground  was  about  a  spring  on  the  Warren 
farm,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Bark  river,  about  one-half 
mile  south  of  Hartland. 

Peeivdunudwkee 

At  Pewaukee  lake  the  Potawatomi  village  was  on  the  east 
shore  in  the  present  village  of  Pewaukee.  This  village  was 
in  existence  as  early  as  the  year  1827  and  the  Indians  con- 
tinued to  camp  here  up  to  as  late  as  1846.  In  the  former 
year  its  number  of  inhabitants  was  four  hundred.  This 
number  very  probably  included  the  inhabitants  of  several 
other  smaller  camps  on  the  south  shore  of  the  lake.  These 
contained  from  thirty  to  forty  Indians.  In  these  years  the 
east  end  of  the  lake  was  marsh  thru  which  a  small  stream 
flowed. 

Monches 

At  Monches  on  the  Oconomowoc  river  there  was  a  Pota- 
watomi (?)  village  of  which  Monches  was  the  chief.  He  is 
buried  in  the  Indian  cemetery  located  there. 

Menomini  Villages 

At  Menomonee  Falls,  about  thirteen  miles  northeast  of 
the  Chenequa  lakes,  there  was  a  village  of  Menomini  In- 
dians. A  large  Menomini  village  was  located  in  1842  on 
the  edge  of  the  so-called  "Wild  Marsh"  south  of  Menomo- 
nee Falls. 

Other  Villages 

Other  important  Prairie  Potawatomi  villages  in  Wau- 
kesha  County  were  located  at  Mukwonago  and  at  Muskego 
lake.  An  estimate  of  the  total  number  of  these  Indians  in 
the  county  at  the  time  of  the  coming  of  the  earliest  white 
settlers  places  their  number  at  nearly  2000. 

At  this  time  they  also  had  villages  at  Milwaukee,  Racine, 
Kenosha,  Burlington,  Delavan  lake,  Geneva  lake  and  Lake 
Koshkonong.  North  of  Milwaukee  there  were  Potawatomi 


44  AVISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    1 

villages  at  Waubeka,  Cedar  Grove,  Sheboygan,  Manitowoc 
Rapids,  Two  Rivers  and  other  places. 

Vieau  Trading  Post 

"In  early  times,  Waukesha  County  was  a  rich  field  for 
trappers,  owing  to  the  large  number  of  lakes  within  her 
borders.  This  was  known  to  the  early  traders  who  sent 
agents,  usually  Indians  or  half-breeds,  from  Green  Bay,  or 
across  from  Prairie  du  Chien  for  furs".*  Jacques  Vieau, 
the  Milwaukee  trader,  visited  large  Potawatomi  villages  at 
Waukesha  and  Mukwonago  in  1804-05,  in  the  interests  of 
his  business.  Andrew  J.  Vieau,  his  son,  acting  as  his  agent, 
established  a  trading  post  at  Waukesha  in  1827.  His  log- 
cabin  store  was  located  where  St.  Josephs  Catholic  church 
now  stands. 

To  his  post  came  nearly  all  the  Waukesha  County  Indians. 
In  exchange  for  the  muskrat,  mink,  otter  and  other  skins, 
which  they  brought  to  him,  he  provided  them  with  cloth, 
beads,  jewelry,  axes,  hoes,  firesteels,  knives,  awls,  guns, 
powder  and  shot,  and  other  articles  which  they  required.  In 
1837  he  sold  his  stock  of  goods  to  Solomon  Juneau.  He  also 
visited  during  the  ten  years  nearly  all  of  the  Indian  villages 
and  camps  in  Waukesha  County. 

After  the  removal  of  the  Prairie  Potawatomi  to  the  Mis- 
souri river  in  Iowa  some  Indians  are  reported  to  have  re- 
turned over  the  trails,  all  the  way  to  Waukesha  County,  to 
trade  with  favorite  traders. 

CLOSING  REMARKS 

The  information  presented  in  this  report  on  the  Indian 
history  of  the  Chenequa  Lakes  region  was  obtained  from  an 
investigation  of  the  portions  of  the  shores  of  the  three  lakes 
which  lie  within  the  boundaries  of  the  Village  of  Chenequa, 
made  at  the  request  of  prominent  residents  of  the  Village; 
also  from  the  records  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  So- 
ciety, through  interviews  and  correspondence  with  old  set- 
tlers and  the  descendants  of  pioneers  and  with  Wisconsin 
Indians,  through  the  examination  of  local  and  other  private 
archeological  collections  and  those  in  the  museums  at  Madi- 


Pine,  Beaver  and  North  Lakes.  45 

son,  Milwaukee  and  Beloit,  through  a  study  of  the  maps, 
manuscripts  and  literature  in  the  State  Historical  Library 
at  Madison,  and  from  other  sources.  A  more  detailed  and 
attractively  printed  and  illustrated  report  is  being  printed 
by  the  Village  officers  for  its  residents. 

Acknowledgment  is  made  elsewhere  in  this  monograph 
to  some  of  the  many  persons,  including  Wisconsin  Indians 
of  the  Potawatomi  and  Winnebago  tribes,  who  have  con- 
tributed valuable  assistance  in  its  preparation.  All  others 
who  have  helped  are  also  requested  to  accept  our  grateful 
thanks. 


Ardtntlnrjtfit 


Ufll.  in  Sanitary,  1931  Nn.  2 

NEW  SERIES 


PUBLISHED   «V>I"AK'I'K11J,Y   BV  THJW 

WFS«1nXSTN    AK('FiKOLO<;il'A.L    SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Wtoottam 


10  3amtarn,  1931  No.  2 

NEW  SERIES 


FIRE-STEELS 

TECHNIQUE  IN  ARCHAEOLOGY 
OLD  BEACH  CAMP  SITES 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGICAL   SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Ses.  1103, 
Act,  Oct.  3,  1917.    Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


,  His 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing-  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 

OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

Charles  G.  Schoewe 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner 

W.  W.  Gilman  Mrs.  Theo.  Koerner 

Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  W.  C.  McKern 

A.  W.  Pond  A.  P.  Kannenberg 

DIRECTORS 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  A.  T.  Newman  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm 

H.  H.  Smith  E.  F.  Richter  T.  L.  Miller 

Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  L.  R.  Whitney  Geo.  A.  West 

TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thorne 
National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 

SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

STATE  SURVEY— Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  W.  F. 
Bauchle,  Geo.  F.  Overtoil,  M.  F.  Hulburt,  T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Dr.  E. 
J.  W.  Notz,  O.  L.  Hollister,  Dr.  F.  G.  Logan,  T.  T.  Brown,  Dr.  B. 
T.  Best,  S.  W.  Faville,  Col.  R.  S.  Owen,  G.  L.  Pasco. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Frank  Weston, 
Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr.  Orrin  Thompson,  Mrs.  F.  R.  Melcher, 
Col.  Howard  Greene,  Rev.  0.  W.  Smith,  M.  G.  Troxell,  H.  W. 
Cornell,  W.  P.  Morgan,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  A.  H.  Griffith. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— L.  R.  Whitney,  Col.  Marshall  Cousins, 
Mrs.  Arthur  C.  Neville,  Geo.  A.  West,  W.  M.  Babcock,  R.  N. 
Buckstaff,  Prof.  J.  B.  MacHarg,  Dr.  P.  B.  Jenkins,  Rev.  F.  S. 
Dayton,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  Mrs.  May  L.  Bauchle,  B.  M.  Palmer. 

MEMBERSHIP — Louis  Pierron,  Paul  Joers,  A.  R.  Rogers,  Arthur 
Gerth,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  Rud.  Boettger,  A.  P.  Cloos,  Dr.  H.  W. 
Kuhm,  Mrs.  Anna  F.  Johnson,  K.  Freckman,  Geo.  Wright,  Mrs. 
Hans  A.  Olson,  Carl  Baur,  C.  G.  Weyl. 

STATE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  PARKS— R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  R.  P.  Ferry, 
D.  S.  Rowland. 

PUBLICITY— J.  G.  Gregory,    A.  O.  Barton,  E.  R.  Mclntyre,  R.  K.  Coe. 
BIOGRAPHY— H.  H.  Smith,  G.  M.  Thome,  C.  E.  Brown. 


These  are  held  in  the  Trustee  Room  in  the   Public  Museum   Build- 
ing, in  Milwaukee. 

During  the  months  of  July  to  October  no  meetings  are  held. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 
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All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
or  to  the  "Wisconsin  Archeologist"  should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E. 
Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office,  State  Historical  Museum,  Madison, 
Wisconsin.  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Mil- 
waukee. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.   10,   No.   2,   New   Series 
ARTICLES 

Page 

Suggestions  on  Technique  in  Archaeology,  Alonzo  W.  Pond 45 

Old  Beach  Camp  Sites  in  Winnebago  County,  George  Overton 54 

A  Macgregor  Bay  Cemetery,  Geo.  R.  Fox 61 

Fire-Steels,  C.  E.  Brown 65 

Red  Metal,  James  K.  Jamison 69 

Large  Copper  Implements 72 

New  York  Stone  Pestles,  P.  L.  Worth 74 

Preservation  of  the  Old  Indian  Agency  House 77 

The  Mound-Builders 80 

Archeological    Notes 83 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Charles  G.   Schoewe Frontispiece 

Plate  Facing  Page 

1.  Ringing  Rock,  La  Cloche  Island 61 

2.  Prehistoric  Burial,  La  Cloche  Island 63 

3.  Fire-Steels__  _  66 


1 


CHAKL.KS   (1.   SrHOKWK 
I 'resident.   Wisconsin   Archeolo.u'ical   Society 


Published   Quarterly   by   the   Wisconsin    Archeologicnl    Society 

VOL.   10.  MADISON.  WIS.,  JANUARY,  1931  No.  2 

New  Series 


SUGGESTIONS  ON  TECHNIQUE  IN 
ARCHAEOLOGY 

Alonzo  W.  Pond 

The  1930  Logan-African  Expedition  of  Beloit  College 
depended  on  college  students,  most  of  them  undergraduates, 
all  but  one  of  them  without  previous  experience,  to  collect 
data  from  the  shell  mounds  of  Algeria.  These  untrained 
students,  excavated,  sorted,  treated  with  preservatives  and 
packed  in  three  months  over  36,000  artifacts  and  thirty 
human  skeletons  besides  several  packing  cases  of  animal 
bones.  They  made  the  necessary  notes  concerning  the  work 
so  we  are  able  to  report  ten  times  the  scientific  results  we 
could  have  accomplished  in  the  same  period  without  the 
help  of  students. 

The  experience  with  students,  conversations  with  a  num- 
ber of  enthusiastic  amateurs  and  the  recollection  of  my  own 
early  problems  are  my  excuse  for  attempting  this  paper  on 
technique  in  prehistoric  archeology. 

First  let  me  say  that  the  amateur  archaeologist  is  an  es- 
sential help  to  the  science.  He  can  and  does  gather  data 
which  materially  adds  to  our  knowledge.  There  are  many 
problems  which  he  can  solve  more  efficiently  than  the  pro- 
fessional. There  are  often  problems  located  in  his  own 
locality  on  which  he  can  spend  his  spare  time  for  several 
years  if  necessary.  Finally,  with  an  intimate  knowledge 
of  his  region  he  can  explain  those  peculiarities  of  cultures 
which  are  influenced  by  the  special  conditions  of  his 
locality. 

Many  amateurs  begin  their  work  in  Archaeology  as  col- 
lectors only ;  by  that  I  mean  their  interest  is  centered  in  se- 
curing beautiful  specimens  or  specimens  different  from 
those  in  some  other  collection.  All  of  us  admit  a  thrill  of 


46  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,    No.    2 

pleasure  in  the  exceptional  specimen  and  such  pieces  have 
an  important  place  in  science,  but  they  are  not  all  import- 
ant. 

The  real  archaeologist  whether  amateur  or  professional 
recognizes  that  broken  and  unfinished  specimens  often 
throw  more  valuable  light  on  scientific  problems  than  the 
most  beautiful  or  perfect  specimens  ever  found. 

Probably  Mr.  Skavlem's  experimental  work  on  the  prim- 
itive methods  of  working  stone  is  the  best  example  of  the 
value  of  broken  and  unfinished  pieces.  It  was  through  a 
study  of  such  specimens  that  he  learned  his  technique  of 
making  stone  tools  and  has  been  able  to  answer  some  of  the 
most  puzzling  questions  asked  by  amateurs  and  profes- 
sionals from  Alaska  to  Australia. 

Many  consider  that  archaeology  is  a  cultural  science ; 
that  it  is  studied  merely  for  the  pleasure  it  gives;  that 
knowledge  of  its  facts  only  satisfies  man's  cultural  curi- 
osity. I  like  to  think  of  it  as  the  foundation  of  the  larger 
study,  Anthropology,  which  may  be  described  as  the  science 
'of  understanding  human  beings.  That  gives  the  anthropol- 
ogist a  big  place  in  the  world  but  there  is  constant  evidence 
of  his  need  wherever  modern  civilization  comes  into  con- 
tact with  primitive  people.  The  anthropologist  learns  to 
understand  the  uncivilized  people  who  work  under  him. 
Through  that  understanding  he  is  able  to  get  them  to  co- 
operate to  a  greater  extent  than  those  who  try  to  .force  their 
own  way  of  doing  things  without  a  knowledge  or  consider- 
ation of  the  primitive  customs  with  which  they  conflict. 

As  a  background  or  foundation  for  understanding  human 
beings  and  their  doings  archaeology  has  an  excuse  for  be- 
ing, even  in  a  practical  world  of  affairs.  It  helps  to  answer 
those  age-old  questions,  "where  do  we  come  from?"  and 
"where  are  we  going?"  It  answers  them  by  tracing  the 
steps  over  which  we  have  climbed  to  our  present  state.  It 
reveals  the  many  false  starts  and  abandoned  lines  of  effort 
which  mark  the  road  from  yesterday  to  tomorrow.  The 
scientist  with  the  knowledge  of  those  efforts  can  help  prog- 
ress to  profit  by  the  experiences  of  the  past. 

The  archaeologist  who  is  only  a  collector,  who  is  inter- 


Technique  in  Archaeology.  47 

ested  only  in  the  most  perfect  specimen  is  accordingly  miss- 
ing half  the  fun.  He  is  contributing  little  to  the  science 
and  often  destroys  more  than  he  contributes.  There  are 
hundreds  and  thousands  of  problems  to  be  solved.  All  of 
them  are  of  some  importance,  for  the  whole  story  of  the 
past  will  never  be  complete  until  all  those  problems  are 
solved.  Each  solution  adds  something,  no  matter  how  little, 
to  the  chain  and  when  all  the  archaeologists,  amateurs  and 
professionals  realize  the  real  importance  of  the  science  they 
will  be  less  likely  to  be  satisfied  with  only  the  collector's 
pleasure. 

While  working  with  fourteen  college  students  in  the 
shell  mounds  of  Algeria,  there  was  one  rule  repeated  almost 
every  day.  It  is  the  first  rule  of  all  sciences  and  must  be  ad- 
hered to.  GET  ALL  THE  FACTS!  If  one  is  working  a 
village  site  in  Wisconsin  or  in  the  Sahara  Desert,  if  he  is 
excavating  a  Mound  Builder  tumulus  or  a  Snail  Eater 
shell  mound  every  fragment  of  flint,  bone,  stone,  charcoal 
or  other  material  has  some  significance  and  the  scientist 
working  it  must  know  that  significance  before  he  discards 
any  fragment. 

My  students  handled  360,000  fragments  of  flint  last 
spring.  All  of  them  were  examined  at  least  three  times  be- 
fore ninety  percent  were  thrown  away.  Thousands  of  bone 
fragments  were  examined  to  be  sure  that  no  fragment  was 
discarded  which  had  any  possibility  of  being  identified  by 
the  paleontologists  or  which  gave  any  evidence  of  being 
worked  or  used  by  man.  Hundreds  of  hearthstones  were 
handled  to  be  certain  they  had  no  story  other  than  that 
they  had  been  in  the  fire.  Tiny  fragments  of  charcoal  were 
collected  so  that  the  paleobotanist  will  be  able  to  tell  what 
sort  of  plants  or  trees  were  used  as  fuel  by  the  Snail  Eaters 
thousands  of  years  ago.  Great  collections  of  snail  shells 
were  made  to  determine  the  different  species  eaten  by  those 
ancient  people.  As  far  as  we  were  able  we  tried  to  get  all 
the  facts.  To  do  that  we  sifted  every  shovel  full  of  dirt  and 
ashes  that  was  excavated  from  the  mound.  Our  methods 
enabled  us  to  collect  hundreds  of  tiny  flints  not  over  half 
an  inch  long  and  we  sifted  about  ten  cubic  yards  of  ma- 


48  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 

terial  each  day  to  get  them.  Hunting  for  the  needle  in  a  hay 
stack  really  isn't  an  impossible  job — provided,  of  course, 
that  the  needle  is  going  to  throw  some  tiny  ray  of  light  on 
the  problems  of  archaeology. 

Another  rule  of  our  African  camp  was  at  first  hard  to 
enforce.  It  was  LABEL  EVERYTHING.  Some  students 
would  bring  in  their  material  intending  to  label  it  in  camp. 
By  the  time  they  got  around  to  it  again  they  had  forgotten 
whether  it  came  from  the  vicinity  of  Skeleton  #10  or  level 
three.  Occasionally  bags  of  material  got  mislaid  for  sev- 
eral days  without  a  label.  Such  material  was  thrown  away 
unless  there  were  characteristic  specimens  in  it  which  could 
be  given  to  camp  visitors  as  souvenirs  but  it  was  never  in- 
cluded in  the  collections  for  study.  After  the  first  few  days, 
however,  the  students  saw  the  importance  of  labeling. 

Light  canvas  bags  11  inches  long  by  71/2  inches  wide  were 
provided  in  quantities.  For  the  fragile  specimens  the  usual 
accumulation  of  match  boxes  and  small  tin  cans  found  at 
any  camp  were  used.  Everyone  in  camp  had  indelible  pen- 
cils and  by  wetting  the  canvas  bags  with  water  or  saliva 
they  could  mark  the  location  of  the  material  beyond, any 
danger  of  confusion.  Paper  labels  were  also  placed  inside 
the  bag  so  that  often  only  a  number  appeared  on  the  out- 
side. Large  stones  etc.,  which  were  too  big  for  the  bags 
were  given  a  number  with  indelible  pencil  on  the  specimen. 
Often  a  small  piece  of  white  adhesive  tape  was  stuck  to  the 
specimen  and  the  number  of  other  label  written  indelibly  on 
its  white  surface. 

When  it  came  to  sorting  the  material  the  rule  was  still 
in  force.  A  paper  label  was  made  out  bearing  the  site 
number  as  well  as  the  classification  of  the  material  in  each 
sorting  can.  Trays  were  provided  for  grouping  and  hand- 
ling the  cans.  Excellent  sorting  boxes  can  be  made  by  cut- 
ting condensed  milk  cans  in  two  with  a  knife  and  hammer 
or  a  pair  of  heavy  shears.  The  sharp  edges  can  be  bent 
over  with  pliers  and  battered  down  with  axe  and  hammer, 
so  that  there  is  little  danger  of  cutting  one's  self.  But  above 
all  else  material  must  be  kept  labeled  at  all  times. 

One  of  the  questions  I  am  most  often  asked  even  by  ama- 


Technique  in  Archaeology.  49 

teurs  who  have  good  sized  collections  is,  "How  do  you  know 
where  to  look  for  material?"  Most  prehistoric  peoples 
whose  only  records  are  archaeological,  were  to  a  large  ex- 
tent nomad  hunters  dependent  on  food  supplies  which  they 
did  not  control.  To  find  these  records  the  archaeologists 
must  search  for  the  localities  most  likely  to  have  been  fav- 
orable to  their  camp  sites.  Naturally  such  places  can  not  be 
too  far  from  water.  In  North  Africa  we  hunt  along  ancient 
stream  beds.  Any  place  which  looks  like  a  good  camping 
place,  which  was  at  the  time  of  habitation  near  water  and 
fuel  is  a  good  locality  to  examine  carefully. 

In  the  Gobi  Desert,  Mongolia,  we  found  the  most  likely 
places  were  solidified  sand  dunes  in  valleys.  Probably  these 
dunes  were  active  at  the  time  they  were  inhabited  by  pre- 
historic people.  They  furnished  shelter  from  the  hard  winds 
and  supplied  fuel  as  there  was  more  vegetation  on  the  dunes 
than  on  the  plain. 

In  Wisconsin  we  know  that  the  junction  of  two  streams 
was  usually  a  favorable  habitation  site  for  prehistoric  man. 
Strategic  points  on  lake  shores  and  stream  banks  were 
suitable  localities. 

Once  the  general  type  of  spot  most  favored  for  a  camp 
in  any  given  region  is  known  there  is  only  one  way  to  find 
evidence  of  prehistoric  habitation.  That  is  to  go  back  and 
forth  with  eyes  on  the  ground.  Quarter  the  region  like  a 
dog  hunting  for  a  scent.  If  the  land  is  under  cultivation  and 
can  be  examined  without  damage  to  the  crop,  the  most  fav- 
orable time  is  after  a  rain.  Then  flints  etc.,  i^ill  be  washed 
free  of  dirt  and  are  more  easily  recognized.  If  vegetation 
covers  the  region,  about  the  only  likely  method  of  search 
is  to  follow  the  banks  of  streams  examining  them  carefully 
for  flints,  pottery,  bones,  etc.,  which  are  always  plentiful  on 
village  sites.  Mounds  are  generally  visible  even  on  vegeta- 
tion covered  land.  Like  village  sites,  they  are  found  only  by 
careful  search,  aided  by  questioning  the  inhabitants  of  the 
locality. 

When  the  habitation  site  or  mound  has  been  located  the 
next  step  for  the  scientist  is  to  record  it.  If  possible  this 
should  be  done  as  accurately  as  may  be  on  the  largest  scale 


50  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   2 

map  obtainable.  If  no  map  is  available  one  can  make  a 
sketch  including  the  important  geographical  features  by 
which  the  place  can  be  found  again. 

Notes  should  be  taken  even  if  the  sketch  is  drawn  to  scale. 
At  least  one  and  preferably  two  or  more  fixed  points  should 
be  included.  Trees  die,  creeks  and  rivers  change  their  banks 
so  that  if  possible  it  is  well  to  include  section  corners  or 
other  surveyors  points  in  the  notes  and  sketch.  Give  the  ac- 
curate distance  and  directions  from  such  fixed  points  and 
tell  how  they  were  arrived  at,  pacing,  measuring  or  estim- 
ating. 

If  excavations  are  to  be  undertaken  photographs  should 
be  made  of  the  site  first,  and  an  accurate  drawing  made  be- 
fore dirt  is  removed.  For  the  drawing,  cross  sectioned  paper 
is  most  desirable.  A  base  line  should  be  run  through  the 
nearest  point  (section  corner,  etc.,  corner  of  large  founda- 
tion to  building,  center  of  spring,  bridge  buttress,  any- 
thing likely  to  be  permanent  or  of  sufficient  importance  that 
even  if  removed  its  location  can  be  found  in  later  years), 
and  a  second  base  line  run  at  right  angles  to  the  first. 
Example — first  line  is  north  and  south;  second  east  and 
west.  These  base  lines  can  be  marked  at  stated  intervals 
with  stakes.  Five  foot  intervals,  1  yard  or  1  meter  inter- 
vals  are  handy.  If  both  base  lines  are  outside  the  area 
mapped  references  are  more  easily  made  as  all  are  in  the 
same  quadrant.  For  instance  A.  is  4.5  N,  3  E  and  is  located 
as  quickly  as  a  point  on  a  map  where  latitude  and  longitude 
are  given.  When  it  is  desired  to  mark  the  exact  location  of 
an  object  in  an  excavation  the  point  can  be  given  as  above 
and  its  distance  from  the  bottom  of  the  excavations  or  from 
the  surface  recorded  in  the  notes  unless  the  worker  cares  to 
make  cross  section  drawings  to  show  each  find  of  import- 
ance. 

If  the  whole  of  a  given  area  is  to  be  excavated  and  that  is 
the  desirable  thing  to  do  whenever  possible,  a  trench  should 
be  started  outside  the  site  along  or  parallel  to  one  of  the 
base  lines.  The  surface  of  the  site  should  always  be  cleared 
ahead  of  the  trench  which  should  be  extended  or  widened 
in  the  direction  of  the  second  base  line.  As  soon  as  an 


Technique  in  Archaeology.  51 

archaeological  stratum  (pay  dirt)  is  reached  extreme  care 
must  be  exercised. 

All  of  the  non  archaeological  deposit  above  the  pay  dirt 
should  be  removed  and  the  interesting  stratum  attacked 
from  above.  In  this  way  all  skeletons,  pottery,  flints,  axes 
or  other  furniture  can  be  exposed  so  that  photographs  and 
drawings  can  be  made  to  show  the  relation  of  each  article 
to  all  others.  In  working  from  above  there  is  no  risk  of 
specimens  falling  out  of  place  before  one  is  ready  for  them 
to  be  removed. 

Skeletons  or  parts  of  skeletons  should  not  be  removed 
until  the  whole  has  been  exposed  and  photographed.  Care 
should  be  taken  not  to  move  any  bones  before  a  photograph 
showing  the  whole  skeleton  in  place  is  made. 

For  ordinary  trenching  and  for  removing  the  dirt  above 
an  archaeological  deposit  pick  and  shovel  may  be  used,  but 
as  soon  as  pay  dirt  is  reached  small  hand  trowels,  small  hand 
picks,  whisk  brooms  and  two-inch  wide  paint  brushes  are 
better  tools.  Pocket  and  case  knives  are  also  handy.  With 
such  tools  carefully  handled  the  most  fragile  skeleton  may 
be  exposed  for  photographing.  Expose  all  objects  from 
above  so  that  they  may  finally  be  lifted  out  of  the  deposit. 

Bones,  both  human  and  animal  are  often  extremely  frag- 
ile. To  remove  them  at  all  requires  care.  Once  they  are 
brushed  free  of  dirt  with  a  fine  paint  brush  they  can  be 
treated  with  a  dilute  solution  of  shellac.  This  is  sprinkled  on 
with  a  paint  brush.  Ordinary  commercial  shellac  is  about 
"four  pound  cut."  This  may  be  diluted  with  three  or  four 
parts  of  denatured  alcohol.  That  is,  one  part  shellac  and 
three  or  four  times  as  much  alcohol.  This  makes  it  very  thin 
so  that  it  will  easily  penetrate  the  exposed  bone.  When 
the  alcohol  has  evaporated  the  shellac  will  hold  the  part- 
icles of  bone  in  place.  If  the  shellac  is  well  diluted  there 
will  be  no  glossy  or  unnatural  appearance  to  the  specimen. 
It  must  be  thoroughly  dry  before  being  moved  or  the  speci- 
men will  surely  fall  apart. 

Either  ordinary  or  white  shellac  may  be  used  but  the 
white  is  less  likely  to  color  specimens.  If  a  piece  is  espec- 
ially fragile  it  may  be  desirable  to  treat  it  with  a  less  dilute 


52  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   2 

solution.  However,  the  thin  solution  should  be  applied  first 
to  strengthen  the  central  portions  and  the  thicker  solution 
applied  later.  If  too  concentrated,  the  shellac  leaves  a  glassy 
surface  which  can  be  removed  with  a  soft  cloth  or  brush 
soaked  in  alcohol. 

After  a  specimen  has  been  photographed  and  is  ready 
to  be  taken  from  the  deposit  every  care  to  keep  it  from  be- 
ing broken  is  necessary.  Pieces  well  hardened  with  shellac 
may  be  wrapped  in  excelsior  or  other  packing  material  and 
then  boxed  if  they  are  to  be  shipped.  All  packages  should  be 
labeled  inside  as  well  as  outside. 

There  is  much  more  to  the  'technique  of  the  science  of 
archaeology  but  if  the  foregoing  will  answer  some  of  the 
questions  of  the  amateur  it  has  served  its  purpose. 

As  a  summary  may  I  include  the  rules  each  student  on 
the  Logan-African  Expedition  knew. 

FRAGILE!  DON'T  BREAK!  LABEL! 

These  are  the  laws  of  the  archeologist. 

1.  "UNE  FOUILLE  BIEN  FAIT  VAUT  UNE  CENTAINE  GRAT- 
TE,"  Pitard.    One  job  well  done  is  worth  a  hundred  started. 

2.  A  FLINT  OR  BONE  WITHOUT  A  LABEL  IS  JUST  A  PIECE 
OF  JUNK  BUT  A  FLINT  OR  BONE  WITH  LABEL  CORRECT 
IS  A  SCIENTIFIC  FACT. 

3.  WE  HAVE  BUT  ONE  JOB:  GET  ALL  THE  FACTS. 

4.  NOTHING  IS  TOO  TRIVIAL  TO  NOTICE,   BUT  DON'T  GET 
LOST  IN  THE  FOREST  OF  TRIFLES.    (Don't  let  trifles  blind 
you  to  the  importance  of  the  general  problem.) 

5.  GET  ALL  THE  DATA  ON  THE  SITE  YOU  ARE  WORKING. 

6.  LABEL  THE  DATA  AS  ACCURATELY  AS  POSSIBLE  WITH 
THE  TIME  AT  YOUR  DISPOSAL,  BUT  LABEL  IT. 

7.  CLASSIFY  YOUR  DATA.  MAKE  YOUR  NOTES  SO  UNDER- 
STANDABLE THAT  IF  THEY  ARE  FOUND  A  HUNDRED 
YEARS  FROM  NOW  YOUR  WORK  WILL  NOT  HAVE  BEEN 
LOST  AND  CAN  BE  PUBLISHED  BY  SOMEONE  ELSE. 

8.  ACCOUNT  FOR  YOUR  DAY.  WRITE  IT  UP  EACH  NIGHT  IF 
ONLY  A  WORD. 

9.  REPORT   UNCERTAINTIES    IMMEDIATELY.     Any    condition 
in  the  deposit  you  are  working  which  you  do  not  understand  is 


Technique   in  Archaeology.  53 

an  uncertainty.  Report  it  to  headquarters  camp  and  see  that  it  is 
so  protected  that  headquarters  can  study  the  problem  on  arrival. 

10.  IF  YOU  FIND  A  SKELETON  STOP  YOUR  WORKMEN,  keep 
everyone  away  from  your  diggings.    Expose  the  complete  skele- 
ton  yourself,    carefully   and   meticulously.     Use   a   camel's   hair 
brush.    It's  fragile.    Don't  break  it.    Send  for  your  nearest  col- 
league as  soon  as  you  are  sure  that  you  have  a  skeleton.    Notify 
headquarters  camp  immediately.    Don't  dare  to  leave  the  skele- 
ton until  precautions  for  its  preservation  have  been  taken.    Keep 
everyone  away  from  the  trench  even  if  you  must  use  force. 

11.  RELATIONS  ARE  IMPORTANT. 

Your  problem  will  be  solved  only  when  you  know  the  relation- 
ship of  every  item  in  a  deposit  to  everything  else  in  the  deposit. 
The  primary  object  of  the  expedition  is  to  know  the  relationship 
of  each  one  of  hundreds  of  sites  to  all  of  the  others. 

Mohammedanism  holds  millions  of  followers  because  seven  times 
each  day  they  repeat.  "Allah  is  great,  Allah  is  all  powerful,  there  is 
no  God  but  Allah  and  Mohammed  is  His  Prophet."  Archaeology  is 
less  exacting.  Read  its  laws  once  a  day. 


54  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    2 

OLD  BEACH  CAMP  SITES  IN 
WINNEBAGO  COUNTY 

George  Overton 

The  student  of  archaeology  who  has  followed  the  action  of 
the  natural  elements,  as  well  as  the  manipulation  of  natural 
resources  by  aggressive  man,  can  bear  true  witness  to  the 
changes  wrought  in  a  lifetime.  For  students  who  seek  old 
camp  sites  I  shall  relate  my  observations  having  played  and 
worked  much  on  the  adjoining  waters. 

Our  Lake  Region  consists  of  a  group  of  three  lakes  above 
and  to  the  westward  of  Lake  Winnebago — Lake  Butte  des 
Morts,  three  miles  west  of  Lake  Winnebago,  is  about  five 
miles  long.  Lake  Winneconne,  six  miles  above,  is  about  two 
and  a  half  miles  across.  Lake  Poygan  is  about  three  quar- 
ters of  a  mile  west  of  Lake  Winneconne,  but  the  connecting 
river  was  about  two  miles  long.  A  long  narrow  point  along 
the  south  side  of  the  lake  separates  lake  and  river. 

In  1847  the  outlet  of  Lake  Winnebago  was  first  harnessed 
for  power.  The  charter  for  the  first  dam  provided  that 
there  should  be  no  raise  in  the  level  of  the  lake.  Gradually, 
however,  the  dams  were  built  up  several  feet  which  raised 
the  levels  of  all  the  lakes.  The  lakes  overflowed  their  na- 
tural banks  and  the  low  lands  adjacent  were  converted  into 
marshes  while  the  old  marshes  were  washed  away. 

The  crowding  and  heaving  of  expanding  ice  in  early  win-: 
ter,  the  pounding  and  grinding  of  the  spring  breakups,  fol- 
lowed by  the  monstrous  waves  of  the  spring  gales  tore  the 
natural  barriers  away.  The  undertow  of  the  wave  action 
on  the  soft  bottom  lands  carried  all  the  lighter  particles  out 
into  deep  water.  Roots,  stems  and  partly  decomposed  veg- 
etable matter  were  washed  ashore  and  deposited  in  ridges 
along  a  new  margin.  All  the  heavier  material  such  as 
stones,  pebbles  and  other  debris  together  with  the  coarser 
sand  was  left  practically  undisturbed.  The  old  beaches  be- 
came mere  sandbars  covered  by  from  two  to  four  feet  of 
water  according  to  the  season.  Back  of  these  bars  were 
mud  flats  which  during  summer  were  generally  covered  by 
aquatic  plants.  The  fringe  of  bulrushes  which  in  the  old 


Old  Beach  Camp  Sites.  55 

era  bordered  the  lake  persisted  under  the  changed  condi- 
tions. To  this  day  they  may  be  seen  growing  out  in  deep 
water,  from  a  quarter  to  half  a  mile  from  the  present  shore, 
indisputably  marking  the  former  outline  of  the  lakes. 

Beginning  in  1889  and  continuing  during  the  next  four 
years  the  mills  drew  the  water  down  to  practically  its  orig- 
inal stage.  The  old  beaches  appeared  as  smooth  hard  packed 
sand  with  here  and  there  a  trace  of  the  old  shingle  on  their 
outer  margin. 

My  first  archeological  find  happened  on  the  north  shore 
of  Lake  Winneconne  in  the  fall  of  1889.  I  was  hauling  a 
rowboat  across  a  stretch  of  shingle.  Between  my  feet  I 
noticed  a  stone  with  a  groove  across  it.  I  picked  up  the  first 
stone  ax  I  had  ever  found.  Crude  and  badly  battered,  but 
none  the  less  a  prehistoric  artifact  which  I  proudly  cherish 
to  this  day.  Immediate  search  was  soon  rewarded  by  find- 
ing another,  and  then  the  hunt  was  on.  We  were  working 
on  the  lake  at  the  time  and  had  some  leisure  every  day  to 
search  the  beach.  We  found  two  or  three  more  axes  and 
several  celts  all  within  a  distance  of  ten  rods  from  the  place 
of  the  original  find. 

Farther  down  the  beach  we  found  a  number  of  arrow 
points  and  an  occasional  perforator.  Broken  deer  bones  and 
fragments  of  antler  were  very  much  in  evidence.  Potsherds 
were  quite  abundant  but  in  our  youthful  ignorance  few 
were  preserved.  When  the  fall  winds  came  on  and  drifted 
the  sand  pickings  were  better.  My  first  copper  was  a  very 
perfect  awl  pointed  at  both  ends. 

The  next  fall  (1890)  I  was  again  living  in  the  same  vicin- 
ity. Our  first  trip  to  the  beach  after  the  water  went  down 
netted  a  pocket  full  of  arrow  points,  a  socketed  copper 
spear  five  and  a  half  inches  long,  a  copper  arrow  point,  and 
a  seven  inch  slender  square-butt  flint  spear  point. 

Several  trips  during  the  next  few  weeks  resulted  in  re- 
covering about  a  dozen  coppers,  three  more  axes,  four  celts, 
numerous  arrow  points,  a  very  thick  brown  quartzite  pike 
head,  several  perforators  and  two  large  chalcedony  arrow 
points  one  of  which  is  practically  perfect. 

The  beaches  by  this  time  had  been  exposed  for  two  seas- 


56  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.  2 

ons  and  the  wind  had  blown  away  much  of  the  lighter 
sandy  deposit.  We  now  learned  where  to  look  for  relics. 
When  we  found  a  place  where  finely  crumbled  rotted  stone 
and  pebbles  were  mixed  with  the  sand  we  knew  the  old 
beach  was  exposed,  and  careful  search  seldom  went  unre- 
warded. 

The  beach  I  have  described  is  located  on  the  south  half 
of  section  32,  Town  20,  Range  15  east.  It  is  on  the  farm  of 
the  late  Jas.  Clark  estate. 

A  very  fruitful  beach  was  on  the  east  side  of  Lake  Winne- 
conne.  This  beach  extended  from  the  mouth  of  Mud  Creek 
south  the  whole  length  of  the  Olen  farm.  Here  C.  T.  Olen, 
as  a  boy,  started  the  Olen  Collection  which  is  the  largest 
and  most  representative  collection  of  Winnebago  County 
prehistoric  implements. 

South  of  Lake  Winneconne,  on  the  extremity  of  the  nar- 
row ridge  which  separates  it  from  the  Wolf  River,  now 
called  Goose  Island  but  then  a  part  of  the  main  ridge,  C.  T. 
Olen  came  upon  a  camp  site  near  a  small  spring.  He  found 
several  coppers  and  also  twenty  flint  arrow  points  grouped 
in  a  small  space,  evidently  a  cache  that  had  been  washed 
out. 

Scattered  around  a  spring  on  a  small  island  in  Kenneley's 
Bay,  an  enlargement  of  the  Wolf  River  between  Lakes  Win- 
neconne and  Poygan,  Fred  Clark  found  four  copper  points, 
several  flint  arrow  points  and  other  debris  indicating  an 
old  camp  site. 

LAKE  POYGAN. 

The  south  shore. of  L.  Poygan  did  not  yield  a  great  amount 
of  material  in  any  particular  locality  such  as  would  in- 
dicate a  large  or  long  used  camp  site.  A  birdstone  came 
from  near  the  Pay  Grounds.  Coppers,  flints,  celts,  axes, 
hoes,  ceremonials  and  a  scattering  number  of  trade  imple- 
ments were  found  by  various  residents  and  relic  hunters. 
It  is  impossible  to  detail  a  list  of  finds  or  give  an  accurate 
description  of  the  individual  pieces  at  this  late  date.  I  am 
convinced  from  what  evidence,  first  hand  and  hearsay,  that 
I  have  been  able  to  gather  that  a  considerable  amount  of 


Old  Beach  Camp  Sites.  57 

material  was  collected  at  different  times  and  places  during 
the  years  of  low  water. 

The  one  outstanding  find  on  the  south  shore  was  the 
Sacred  Spring  near  the  Bohn  farm  where  Loren  Leaman 
and  three  companions  raked  out  an  immense  quantity  of 
prehistoric  material  that  had  evidently  been  thrown  in  as  a 
sacrificial  offering  to  the  spirit  who  made  this  pool  his 
habitation.  (Vol.  7,  No.  4,  Wisconsin  Archeologist.) 

The  west  shore  of  Norwegian  Bay  yielded  a  very  large 
number  of  pieces.  This  site  differed  from  the  others  in  this 
respect,  a  large  and  evidently  a  populus  village  occupied 
the  high  land  just  back  of  the  beach,  at  the  upper  or  north- 
ern end.  The  late  Chas.  Freer  who  lived  in  that  vicinity 
worked  this  field  very  thoroughly.  He  discovered  and  ex- 
plored two  sacred  springs  in  that  locality.  The  Freer  Spring 
yielding  the  largest  amount  of  well  preserved  material  of 
any  spring  so  far  recorded  in  Wisconsin.  A  large  part  of  his 
finds  are  on  display  in  the  Mitchell  Collection  at  the  Oshkosh 
Public  Museum.  (Vol.  7,  No.  4,  Wisconsin  Archeologist.) 

The  east  shore  of  Haulover  Bay  showed  a  camp  site  of 
considerable  magnitude.  This  bay  gets  its  name  from  the 
fact  that  the  head  of  the  bay  was  only  a  short  distance  from 
the  channel  of  the  Wolf  River.  By  making  a  portage  here 
more  than  three  miles  could  be  saved  nearly  all  of  it  against 
a  strong  current  in  the  river.  This  cutoff  was  especially  im- 
portant in  windy  weather  when  the  lake  was  rough  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Old  River.  The  camp  site  was  very  probably 
used  by  voyageurs  when  the  lake  below  was  unsafe  for  their 
canoes.  Haulover  Bay  and  vicinity  was  a  splendid  rice  bed 
which  also  made  it  an  excellent  hunting  ground. 

Haulover  Bay  was  a  favorite  camping  place  for  later 
white  travelers  and  hunters.  The  late  Henry  Heuer  and  his 
.sons  had  a  trapping  lodge  at  this  point  for  many  years. 
C.  T.  Olen  informed  me  that  while  camping  here  he  col- 
lected several  hundred  arrow  and  spear  points  of  flint,  sev- 
eral coppers  including  a  fine  knife  and  a  number  of  axes 
and  celts.  A  large  number  of  the  arrows  found  were  ap- 
parently a  cache  that  had  been  washed  out  during  previous 
high  water. 


r,s  WISCONSIN    ARCHEOLOGIftT.  Vol.  10,  No.  2 

The  east  end  of  Lake  Poygan  was  one  continuous  camp 
site  for  nearly  three  quarters  of  a  mile.  The  eastern  end  of 
the  lake  was  subjected  to  more  severe  pounding  by  the 
waves  and  ice  than  the  shores  on  the  shorter  diameter.  The 
old  shores  were  pushed  back  farther  and  the  silting  in  of 
the  old  beaches  was  deeper.  It  took  longer  for  wind  action 
to  dig  down  to  the  original  strata.  It  was  not  until  the  early 
'90s  that  the  beach  proved  prolific. 

Mr.  C.  T.  Olen  reported  the  finding  of  a  cache  of  600 
flints  largely  arrow  points,  also  a  number  of  coppers  and 
other  artifacts,  a  perfect  three-barbed  bone  harpoon  per- 
forated for  a  line,  and  several  other  fragmentary  bone  har- 
poons and  awls.  He  also  picked  up  a  very  large  grooved  ax. 

Fred  Clark  told  of  finding  a  copper  knife  and  several 
awls  and  points  as  well  as  numerous  flints. 

Two  commercial  fishermen,  who  had  a  shanty  on  the  NW. 
quarter  of  Sec.  6,  T.  19,  R.  15  E.,  picked  up  a  great  many 
flints  near  their  landing.  The  late  Chas.  Richter  told  me  of 
their  having,  as  he  described  it,  "a  peck  of  artifacts".  He 
spoke  of  the  perfection  and  beauty  of  shape  of  many  of  the 
points  but  could  not  identify  the  stone  they  were  made  of 
other  than  to  say  they  were  of  "all  kinds." 

In  my  early  searches  I  did  not  get  to  this  site  very  many 
times  and  finds  were  meager. 

I  still  have  in  my  collection  about  seventy-five  good  ar- 
row points  all  from  the  Clark  Beach.  The  patina  on  many 
of  the  points  is  of  a  peculiar  reddish  tint.  Iron  occurs  be- 
tween the  strata  of  an  outcrop  of  Lower  Magnesian  lime- 
stone nearby.  This  iron  in  the  sand  may  have  given  the 
red  coloring.  Some  broken  pieces,  repointed  by  flaking, 
showed  the  flint  to  be  a  grayish  cream  color. 

The  lateral  edges  of  the  barbed  arrow  and  spear  points 
were  convex.  This  made  them  appear  broad  and  blunt. 
Even  the  square-butt  type  had  this  characteristic.  The 
quartz,  quartzite  and  chalcedony  points  did  not  have  this 
reddish  cast  and  were  straight  edged. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  characteristic  pieces:— 
1   Black  flint  scraper,  2  Vz  "  long  by  1  V2  "  wide. 


OM    B<-;,rh   Camp  s  59 

1   Butt  end  of  knife,  3J/£"  long  by  2"  wide,  "turkey-tail"  very  thin. 

1   Red  quartzite  celt,  4"  long  by  2"  wide. 

1   Red  quartzite  pike  head,  3%"  long,  1  Vz  "  w.,  1"  thick. 

1   White  quartzite  spear,  5"  long,  1  %  "  wide. 

1  Red  patinated  spear,  4%"  long,  2"  wide. 

3  Winged  hand  drills  from  1"  to  3"  long. 

Several  broken  drills,  beautiful  chipping. 
1   Chalcedony  turtleback  scraper. 
1   Grooved  stone  hammer. 
1   Grooved  net  weight. 
8  Grooved  axes. 
1   Grooved  ax,  fluted. 
6  Celts. 

1   Copper  socketed  spear,  5  Vz  "  long,  1  V»  "  wide. 

3   Copper  awls,  double  pointed,  5  Vz  "  long,  to  6  Vz  "  long,  square  sec- 
tion 5/32"  to  3/16"  wide.    Very  sharp. 
6   Copper  socketed  arrow  heads,  1  %  "  to  2  %  "  long. 
1   Copper  arrow,  long  flat  tang,  3  *A  "  by  %  ". 
1   Copper  arrow,  flat  tang,  1  %  "  by  %  ". 
1   Copper  arrow,  notched,  beveled  edges,  2  Vz  "  by  % ". 
1   Copper  knife,  3l/z"  long. 
1   Copper  knife,  broken,  2"  long,  curved,  ornamented  by  six  punch 

marks  %  "  apart. 
5   Copper  awls,  square,  pointed  one  end.    2"  to  3Vs"  long. 

Several  badly  corroded  fragments  of  knives,  awls  and  arrows. 

The  few  large  potsherds  are  practically  all  shell  tem- 
pered. The  heavier  ones  are  burned  red  and  the  thin  pieces 
of  a  clay  that  came  out  black.  The  black  sherds  are  from 
one-eighth  to  three-sixteenths  of  an  inch  in  thickness.  One 
large  piece,  nearly  flat,  is  three-eights  of  an  inch  thick.  One 
piece  is  ornamented  with  broad  incised  lines  making 
squares  one  and  a  quarter  inches  across.  All  others  are 
plain  except  that  the  rims  are  scalloped  by  the  fingers. 

A 'study  of  the  geographical  location  of  these  camp  sites 
reveals  the  fact  that  they  were  never  located  on  a  direct 
line  of  travel.  There  might  be  a  small  camp  site,  perhaps 
used  in  time  of  peace,  on  a  line  of  travel  as  that  at  Goose 
Island  or  the  smaller  island  above.  The  large  sites  were  off 
to  one  side  of  the  main  route  often  a  mile  or  more.  Their 
location  on  low  alluvial  ridges  with  low  land  or  marsh  back 
of  them  forebade  their  use  as  permanent  village  sites.  They 
were  submerged  a  few  weeks  every  spring  by  the  floods  of 
the  Wolf  River.  The  Camp  sites  were  always  near  large 


60  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 

rice  beds.  The  name  Poygan,  a  Menominee  word,  was  orig- 
inally Pwa-a-con-nee  abbreviated  to  Poygan,  and  meant 
threshing  place  (for  wild  rice). 

The  camp  sites  were  always  near  the  best  fishing  grounds. 
Broad  sandy  shallows  just  off  the  beaches  made  ideal  con- 
ditions for  'jack  light'  spearing.  I  know  that  Indians 
made  a  practice  of  spearing  fish  at  night.  I  think  we  may 
safely  assume  that  the  custom  was  handed  down  from  re- 
mote times.  Adjacent  marshes  provided  waterfowl  and 
muskrats. 

The  fascination  of  searching  these  Old  Beach  camp  sites 
remains  with  a  few  of  us  "old  timers",  though  nearly  forty 
years  has  passed.  They  were  exposed  with  all  their  wealth 
of  archeological  lore  for  a  few  years  for  a  brief  time  in  the 
autumn.  We  young  fellows  roamed  over  their  sandy 
stretches  marveling  at  the  abundance  and  perfection  of  our 
finds.  We  were  interested  in  hunting  relics  giving  little 
heed  to  gathering  material  which  would  piece  out  the  story 
of  the  old  aboriginal  struggle  for  existence.  They  were 
swallowed  again  by  the  water  which  is  now  stringently 
regulated  by  the  Federal  Government  in  the  interests  of 
navigation,  perhaps  for  all  time. 


IMXC1XC    ROCK,    LA   CLOCHE    ISLAND 
Plate   1 


A  Macgregor  Bay  Cemetery.  61 

A  MACGREGOR  BAY  CEMETERY 

George   R.   Fox 

Commander  Eugene  F.  McDonald  had  for  some  years 
known  of  an  Indian  site  in  the  Georgian  Bay  region  in  Can- 
ada. This  burying  ground  was  reported  as  of  the  fur-trade 
period  with  chances  of  its  having  also  been  used  by  the  pre- 
historic inhabitants  of  the  region. 

On  August  8,  1930  an  expedition  organized  to  investigate 
this  aboriginal  burying  ground  and  consisting  of  the  writer, 
Commander  McDonald,  Dr.  Alvin  W.  La  Forge,  Mr.  Hal 
Strotz,  and  five  others  left  Chicago  for  this  locality. 

On  its  arrival  at  Little  Current,  the  principal  town  on 
Manitoulin  Island,  the  helpful  services  of  Father  Papineau, 
the  resident  priest,  were  secured.  He  lead  the  party  to  the 
site  and  pointed  out  the  location  of  the  graves.  Through  him 
permission  from  the  Canadian  government  and  from  the 
Jesuits,  who  exercise  control  in  the  region,  was  obtained  to 
undertake  investigations.  Evidence  of  the  looting  of  graves 
was  to  be  seen  on  every  hand.  It  was  believed,  however, 
that  some  of  the  graves  had  not  been  disturbed. 

The  cemetery  was  located  at  the  eastern  end  of  La  Cloche 
Island.  Its  name  (meaning  "The  Bell")  comes  from  a  large 
boulder  found  near  the  burial  place  and  the  village  site 
which  it  served.  This  rock  when  struck,  rang  like  a  bell. 
Tradition  said  that  the  sound  could  be  heard  for  three 
miles.  Dr.  La  Forge,  who  conducted  extensive  experiments 
with  the  rock  and  others,  found  that  half  a  mile  was  the 
limit  at  which  the  sound  of  a  blow  struck  on  this  boulder 
could  be  heard.  His  work  proved  that  not  one  but  many 
ringing  stones  were  scattered  over  the  plain  within  a  mile 
of  this  village  site.  All  were  glacial  boulders.  Only  a  few 
possessed  the  peculiar  vibratory  quality  of  The  Bell  rock. 

La  Cloche  was  the  name  of  the  Indian  trading  post  once 
located  here.  From  this  the  name  was  given  to  the  entire 
island,  and  later  to  a  water  passage,  to  a  river,  and  finally, 
to  the  chief  mountain  range  of  the  region. 

La  Cloche  Island  lies  neither  in  Georgian  Bay,  nor  in 
Back  Bay,  the  water  lying  between  the  mainland  and  Man- 


62  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 

itoulin  Island,  but  in  a  bay  named  Macgregor  lying  between 
the  two.  This  region  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  geologic- 
ally in  America.  On  La  Cloche  Island  the  bedrock,  fos- 
siliferous  limestone,  is  bare  in  nearly  every  direction.  Prim- 
itive man  could  not  have  buried  there,  unless  in  a  cave,  for 
he  had  no  tools  with  which  to  penetrate  the  rock  strata  had 
he  not  been  aided  by  a  glacier.  As  the  ice  melted  away  a 
lake  many  feet  higher  than  the  present  level  of  Lake  Mich- 
igan was  formed.  This  nearly,  but  not  quite  covered  the 
island.  Along  the  northern  edge  is  an  old  beach  some  thirty 
feet  wide  and  from  twelve  inches  to  three  feet  in  depth. 

This  beach  afforded  an  ideal  place  for  burials;  it  was 
easily  excavated  and  clean.  At  its  eastern  end  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  fur-trade  village  deposited  the  bodies  of  their 
dead.  There  were  more  than  fifty  such  interments.  Stones 
were  used  in  covering  the  remains. 

The  graves  were  dug  down  to  the  bed-rock.  In  the  bottom 
were  placed  strips  of  cedar  bark  and  on  top  of  these  birch- 
bark.  The  body  dressed  in  all  of  its  finery  and  accompanied 
by  its  cherished  possessions,  wrapped  in  a  woollen  blanket 
and  then  in  a  felt  blanket,  was  placed  in  this 'grave.  Lime- 
stone slabs  were  then  placed  over  the  body  and  the  hole 
filled  with  sand.  By  the  use  of  a  steel  probe  the  members  of 
the  expedition  located  the  grave,  then  dug  down  and  re- 
moved the  stones.  Many  artifacts  made  by  the  Indians 
were  found  but  more  commonly  the  materials  accompany- 
ing the  burials  were  articles  supplied  by  the  fur  traders. 

One  grave  yielded  a  mirror,  a  decayed  pouch  once  con- 
taining red  paint,  a  silver  bracelet,  copper  bells,  brass  but- 
tons, head  ornaments,  thimbles,  remains  of  an  iron  kettle, 
painted  wooden  objects,  beads,  and  various  iron  objects  so 
badly  rusted  as  to  make  their  original  nature  undetermin- 
able. One  was  probably  a  sword.  The  skull  was  crushed. 
On  one  side  was  a  hole  made  by  a  bullet.  On  the  burial  plot 
by  far  the  most  common  objects  were  trade  beads.  Two 
hundred  and  ninety-nine  of  these  were  obtained  from  a 
single  shovelful  of  sand. 

On  this  site  there  have  been  found  pieces  of  uniforms, 
coins  and  medals  connected  with  the  English  military  ac- 


PREHISTORIC  BURIAL,  LA  CLOCHE  ISLAND 
Plate  2 


A  Macg'regor  Bay  Cemetery.  63 

tivities  in  Canada  at  about  the  time  of  the  war  of  1812. 
Epaulettes  were  found  on  the  shoulders  of  one  body.  With 
this  burial  were  also  two  King  George  III  silver  Indian 
medals.  These  are  of  two  different  issues,  one  bearing  the 
date  1814.  Thimbles  were  common,  usually  perforated  for 
attachment  to  robes  as  ornaments.  Many  small  cone-shaped 
sheet  copper  "tinklers"  were  also  found. 

On  a  small  peninsula  having  a  magnificent  outlook  over 
the  bay  and  the  mountains  was  found  a  section  of  the  beach 
ridge  with  a  depth  of  over  three  feet.  Because  of  the 
beauty  of  the  view  and  knowing  the  predilection  of  prim- 
itive man  for  burying  his  dead  in  such  attractive  places,  it 
was  felt  that  there  should  be  a  grave  or  graves  here. 

After  hours  of  patient  probing,  during  which  over  fifty 
stonebeds  were  unearthed,  a  cairn  was  discovered.  When 
the  last  stone  of  this  heap  was  removed,  the  skeleton  of  a 
man,  somewhat  crushed  but  otherwise  intact,  was  revealed. 
He  was  buried  on  his  left  side  with  limbs  drawn  up.  This 
was  no  Indian  of  the  fur  trade  period.  Dr.  La  Forge  deter- 
mined that  this  native  had  died  when  about  twenty-five 
years  of  age.  The  burial  was  probably  made  not  less  than 
three  hundred  years  ago  and  probably  nearer  five  hundred 
years.  One  thousand  years  would  be  the  extreme  limit. 

Under  the  right  hand  of  the  skeleton  were  three  fine 
chert  spearpoints,  at  his  feet  a  huge  blade.  About  his  neck 
was  a  string  of  three  shell  gorgets  supposedly  cut  from  Gulf 
of  Mexico  conch  shells,  and  a  necklace  of  more  than  35 
shells  from  which  the  tips  had  been  cut  to  permit  of  their 
being  strung.  The  small  shells  appear  to  have  been  painted. 
A  single  stone  bead,  an  inch  in  length  hung  at  the  throat.  It 
had  been  reduced  to  a  form  roughly  cylindrical  by  hours 
of  patient  rubbing.  Perforated  by  a  hole  formed  of  two 
funnels  meeting  at  the  center,  it  bespoke  not  only  hours 
and  days  of  labor,  but  skill  in  the  manipulation  of  the  reed 
drill,  twirled  by  hand  while  immersed  in  sand  and  water. 

On  the  breast  hung  his  breast-plate  made  of  a  bear's  jaws 
and  teeth.  Each  tooth  and  each  fragment  of  jaw  had  been 
ground  away  and  pierced  with  a  hole  for  inserting  it  on  a 
pin,  probably  of  wood,  thrust  through  the  hide  breast  or- 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.   10,   No.    2 


nament.  Traces  of  what  may  have  been  red  paint  were 
found  in  this  grave. 

Many  minor  discoveries  were  made  by  the  expedition. 
Numbers  of  former  wigwam  hearths  were  located.  Two 
huge  stone  beds,  made  of  flags  laid  edge  to  edge  were  un- 
covered. Roughly  circular  and  twelve  feet  in  diameter  the 
purpose  of  the  first  was  undetermined.  The  sand  burned 
black  for  a  depth  of  a  foot  or  more  beneath  the  stone  in- 
dicated that  the  second  may  have  been  the  site  of  some  clan 
or  tribal  feast. 

Indians  still  live  in  numbers  in  the  region  about  Mac- 
gregor  Bay.  After  many  days  of  extensive  work  and  in- 
vestigations in  this  region  the  "Mizpah"  sailed  away,  leav- 
ing much  exploratory  work  to  be  done.  On  the  last  days  of 
our  stay  at  Macgregor  Bay  reports  of  the  location  of  two 
mound  groups  were  received  and  another  cemetery  was 
found.  We  sailed  north  into  Lake  Superior  for  a  brief  visit 
at  Isle  Royal  and  returned  to  Chicago  on  September  1. 


Fire-steels.  65 


FIRE-STEELS 

The  use  of  the  fire-steel  as  a  means  of  producing  fire  was 
early  introduced  to  the  Indians  of  the  Old  Northwest  by  the 
French  traders.  All  or  most  of  these  early  fur  merchants 
regularly  carried  at  least  small  numbers  of  fire-steels  in 
their  trading  stocks  both  for  trading  with  the  natives  and 
for  the  convenience  of  the  employees  of  the  trading  posts 
established  in  the  Wisconsin  forests. 

At  this  time  the  Wisconsin  Indians  were  producing  fire 
by  means  of  at  least  two  fire-making  devices  of  their  own, 
the  most  effective  of  which  was  probably  the  fire-drill.  This 
consisted  of  a  short  wooden  bow  strung  with  a  strip  of  raw- 
hide, buckskin  or  bark  cord,  a  short  dull-pointed  wooden 
drill  or  shaft  and  a  block  or  piece  of  wood  called  a  hearth, 
hearth-board  or  fire-board.  The  bow  revolved  the  drill  in  a 
shallow  depression  at  the  edge  of  the  hearth.  Powdered 
wood  was  ground  off  and  ignited  by  the  friction  and  con- 
ducted by  means  of  a  small  cut  to  the  edge  of  the  hearth. 
Here  the  coal  fell  on  the  tinder  of  pounded  cedar  bark  or 
other  easily  ignitable  material.  The  fire  was  then  encour- 
aged by  blowing  or  faning  until  a  flame  was  produced.  The 
drill  may  also  have  been  used  without  the  bow,  the  shaft 
being  revolved  on  the  hearth  with  the  hands. 

The  Wisconsin  Winnebago,  Menomini,  Potawatomi, 
Sioux  and  Sauk  and  Fox  all  used  the  fire-drill  in  fire-mak- 
ing. Fire  sets  of  this  nature  have  been  collected  from  the 
modern  descendants  of  all  of  these  tribes.  Among  the  Win- 
nebago and  Potawatomi  this  appartus  is  still  in  use  on  some 
ceremonial  occasions.  Fire-making  sets  occur  in  Winnebago 
war  bundles  unless  lost  or  removed.  The  number  of  black- 
ened depressions  along  both  long  edges  of  some  of  these 
hearths  show  how  often  they  have  been  used. 

The  hearth  in  one  of  these  bundles  is  a  piece  of  flat  ash 
wood  11  inches  long,  2  inches  wide  and  %  °f  an  incn  thick. 
The  ash  drill  is  9  inches  long  and  %  of  an  inch  in  diameter. 
Both  extremities  are  roundly  pointed.  Another  drill  is  6 
inches  in  length. 

Among  the  Winnebago  fire  was  considered  a  sacred  pos- 


66  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 

session  of  the  Thunderbird  clan.  A  myth  tells  how  the  Thun- 
derers made  the  first  fire  with  their  fire-sticks. 

The  Chippewa  used  the  fire-plow  in  their  fire  making. 
This  rather  simple  device  consisted  of  a  piece  of  wood  with 
a  shallow  groove  traversing  its  length.  In  this  groove  the 
fire-stick  was  pushed  rapidly  back  and  forth.  "The  fire  they 
started  by  friction,  always  carrying  with  them  a  thorough- 
ly dried  black-ash  stick  with  a  groove  worked  in  one  side 
of  it  and  a  dry  piece  of  white  cedar  to  match  the  groove. 
When  they  wanted  to  start  a  fire  they  would  lay  a  piece  of 
dry  rotten  wood  or  punk  on  top  of  the  black-ash  stick,  hold- 
ing it  there  with  one  hand,  and  with  the  other  would  rub 
the  cedar  stick  in  the  groove  of  the  ash  block  with  all  the 
rapidity  they  were  capable  of  until  it  created  sparks,  which 
would  ignite  the  punk  and  from  this  a  fire  was  soon  kin- 
dled."* They  also  used  the  fire-drill. 

"Three  methods  of  obtaining  a  spark  of  fire  were  used 
among  the  Chippewa:  The  simplest  method  was  the  strik- 
ing together  of  two  stones,  the  "punk"  being  held  in  the 
same  hand  as  one  of  the  stones.  Next  in  probable  develop- 
ment may  be  placed  the  striking  together  of  stone  and 
metal,  and  in  later  times  the  obtaining  of  a  spark  by  fric- 
tion between  two  pieces  of  wood,  the  apparatus  comprising 
a  bow,  a  stick  of  ash,  and  a  cedar  hearth  with  shredded 
bark"  to  catch  the  spark".  Birch  and  cedar  bark  were  used 
but  the  latter  was  considered  the  more  inflammable  of  the 
two. 

The  obtaining  of  fire  by  use  of  flint  and  steel  was  the 
more  common  of  the  three  customs  above  noted.  The  form 
of  the  steel  varied  from  a  broken  file  to  a  well-shaped  piece 
of  iron,  suggesting  the  work  of  a  blacksmith." 

"A  Chippewa  said:  The  greatest  wonder  that  ever  came 
to  the  Indians  was  fire.  Like  everything  else  it  came  to 
them  through  the  Hide.'  Some  one  asked,  'What  do  you 
want  us  to  do  with  this?'  A  man  replied,  This  is  for  warmth 
and  for  cooking.'  The  Indians  were  afraid  of  it  at  first,  but 
soon  learned  that  it  was  useful. f  They  found  that  the  fire 
burned  them,  causing  pain,  but  the  Mide  provided  a  'medi- 
cine' which  they  could  put  on  their  hands  and  on  the  soles 


FIRE-STEELS 
Plate   3 


Fire-steels.  67 

of  their  feet,  after  which  they  could  thrust  their  hands  into 
the  fire  or  walk  in  the  flames  without  being  hurt.  A  song 
was  sung  when  this  'fire-charm'  was  used." 

In  Wisconsin  French  accounts  of  1721  fire-steels  are 
priced  at  108  livres  a  gross.  A  livre  was  equal  to  about  20 
cents.  In  1804  at  the  Lac  du  Flambeau  trading  post  six 
fire-steels  were  priced  as  equal  to  a  "plus",  or  one  good 
beaver  skin.  At  this  post,  as  well  as  at  others,  fire-steels 
were  given  to  the  Indians  among  other  things  such  as  cloth, 
cheap  jewelry,  etc.  as  presents  to  gain  their  good  will  and 
trade.*  Some  American  traders  later  priced  fire-steels  at 
two  shillings,  or  twenty-five  cents,  in  trade. 

No  mention  is  made  of  the  furnishing  of  any  flint  to  the 
Indians  with  the  fire-steels.  No  doubt  the  large  gunflints 
carried  by  all  of  the  traders  were  much  employed  for  this 
purpose.  "Steel  boxes"  are  mentioned  in  some  trading  in- 
voices. These  were  boxes  designed  as  receptacles  for  the 
carrying  of  the  fire-steel,  flint  and  "punk". 

The  fire-steels  furnished  by  the  traders  to  the  natives 
were  cheaply  made.  A  blacksmith  would  take  a  piece  of 
iron,  heat  and  flatten  it  and  bend  it  in  an  oval  or  other 
form.  One  of  the  largest  of  these  oval  steels  has  a  central 
opening  large  enough  to  permit  of  the  insertion  of  the 
three  middle  fingers  of  the  hand. 

Many  rusted,  and  broken,  fire  steels  have  been  found  on 
Indian  village  sites  in  Wisconsin  and  on  old  trading  post 
sites.  Some  have  been  obtained  from  Indian  graves. 

In  the  accompanying  illustration  the  forms  of  some  Wis- 
consin Indian  and  other  fire-steels  are  shown. 

No.  1  Carcajou  village  site,  Lake  Koshkonong.  Length  2  %  inches. 
No.  2  Carcajou  village  site,  Lake  Koshkonong.  Length  2  %  inches. 
No.  3  Grignon-Porlier  fur-trading  post,  Butte  des  Morts.  Length  3  % 

inches. 
No.  4  From  a  Colonial  tinder  box,  Lexington,  Massachusetts.  Length 

2%    inches.    Name  "Harris"  stamped  on  one  face   of  the 

blade. 

No.  5  Carcajou  village  site,  Lake  Koshkonong.  Length  2  %  inches. 
No.  6  Brought  to  Wisconsin  in  1848  by  a  settler  from  the  Rhine 

Valley,  Germany. 
No.  7  Chippewa  Indian  fire-steel. 
No.  8   Chippewa  Indian  fire-steel. 


68  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   2 

The  writer  will  be  pleased  to  hear  from  members  of  the 
Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  or  from  other  friends  who 
possess  specimens  of  these  or  other  forms  of  Indian,  or 
other  fire-steels.  Thus  it  may  be  possible  to  some  time  con- 
tribute another  article  on  this  subject. 

CHARLES  E.  BROWN 


*  Benjamin  Armstrong,  Life  Among  the  Indians,  Ashland,  1892. 
f  Frances  Densmore,  Chippewa  Customs,  Bull.  86,  Bu.  Am.  Ethno. 


Red   Metal.  69 


RED  METAL 

The  following  account  of  the  discovery  of  copper  in  the 
Ontonagon  country  in  northern  Michigan  is  obtained  from 
a  pamphlet,  "Red  Metal"  printed  by  James  K.  Jamison, 
the  historian  of  this  region,  in  1930. 

"In  1847  Mr.  Samuel  Knapp  paused  now  and  then  to 
scratch  his  head  in  a  quandary.  He  was  slowing  working 
across  the  south  slope  of  a  hill,  tracing  out  a  long  line  of 
slight  depressions.  He  wondered  about  those  depressions; 
he  didn't  understand  just  why  they  were  there. 

"Mr.  Samuel  Knapp  was  up  looking  for  copper.  He  put 
up  with  Jim  Paul  at  the  Mouth  for  a  spell  and  then  went  up- 
river  to  look  around  a  bit.  Thus  he  had  prospected  here  and 
there  until  at  last  he  was  on  the  south  slope  of  that  hill, 
tracing  out  that  singular  line  of  depressions  and  scratching 
his  head. 

"One  of  the  depressions  aroused  his  curiosity  to  the  point 
where  he  turned  speculation  into  action.  He  put  a  shovel 
into  it.  He  cleaned  out  the  brush  and  the  leaves  and  he  dug 
out  a  considerable  quantity  of  loose  earth.  He  didn't  find 
what  h£  was  looking  for,  not  immediately.  He  made  a  dis- 
covery but  he  was  a  very  surprised  man.  What  he  discov- 
ered, what  he  began  throwing  out  of  that  hole  was  a  quan- 
tity of  stone  hammers.  Not  just  a  few,  but  dozens,  scores  of 
them.  I  imagine  Mr.  Knapp's  curiosity  mounted.  I  imagine 
he  dug  with  considerable  ardor.  Pretty  soon  he  realized 
that  he  was  at  the  bottom  of  that  particular  hole,  that  he 
had  struck  solid  rock.  What  he  found  when  he  cleaned  that 
hole  up  a  bit  was  a  vein  of  pure  copper.  There  it  was  and 
anybody  could  see  for  himself  that  chunks  of  copper  had 
been  knocked  off  that  vein  with  these  stone  hammers. 

"Samuel  Knapp  realized  now  what  that  regular  line  of  de- 
pressions meant :  they  marked  the  vein  for  several  hundred 
feet.  To  prove  it  he  went  to  the  bottom  of  every  one  of 
those  pits.  One  of  them  impressed  Knapp  especially.  It 
was  twenty-five  feet  deep,  filled  with  accumulated  drift.  At 
eighteen  feet,  he  hit  a  mass  of  copper  ten  feet  long,  three 
feet  wide  and  two  feet  thick.  This  mass  resting  on  timbers 


70  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   2 

of  oak,  crudely  hewed,  and  this  bridging  built  up  cob-wise, 
was  holding  it  several  feet  off  the  floor  of  the  excavation. 

"Somebody,  Mr.  Samuel  Knapp  realized,  had  preceded 
him.  That  was  a  busy  winter  for  Samuel  Knapp.  I  suppose 
in  a  sense  he  had  discovered  the  Minnesota  Mine:  but  as  a 
matter  of  fact  he  had  only  opened  up  a  mine  already  dis- 
covered by  someone  else.  Nobody  was  quicker  to  admit  that 
than  Samuel  Knapp  himself.  Indeed  he  gathered  all  of  the 
evidence  he  could  find  to  prove  it:  more  than  ten  wagon- 
loads  of  those  stone  hammers,  hardheads  of  greenstone, 
and  porphyry,  weighing  from  one  to  ten  pounds  each. 

"He  gave  some  time  to  the  question  of  the  age  of  these 
ancient  diggings.  In  one  of  the  depressions  he  found  the 
stump  of  a  pine  tree  thirty  inches  in  diameter.  The  tree 
itself  was  fallen  and  gone  and  the  stump  was  so  decayed  he 
could  break  it  up  with  his  hands.  Well,  the  hole  had  to  fill 
by  natural  causes  before  the  pine  seed  could  have  germinat- 
ed there.  And,  of  course,  some  time  must  have  elapsed  be- 
for  the  seed  was  cast  on  a  possible  growing  place.  Perhaps 
the  tree  would  disintegrate  and  the  stump  decay  in  a  cen- 
tury, thought  Samuel  Knapp.  Since  this  is  1847,  that  would 
put  the  breaking  off  of  the  pine  at  about  1747.  How  long 
had  it  taken  the  tree  to  grow  to  a  diameter  of  thirty  inches  ? 
Two  centuries,  perhaps.  That  would  mean  that  the  seed 
germinated  there  about  1547.  Why  there  was  not  an  Eng- 
lish colony  in  America  then,  Samuel  Knapp  reflects,  and  it 
was  only  a  few  years  before  that  Columbus  discovered 
America.  But  wait,  says  Mr.  Knapp  to  himself.  How  long 
a  time  might  have  elapsed  after  the  hole  was  filled  \\ith 
drift  before  the  seed  was  dropped  there?  That,  Mr.  Knapp 
considered,  was  a  matter  of  pure  guessing.  It  might  have 
been  one  year  or  five  centuries.  And  how  long  had  it  taKen 
the  excavation  to  fill  by  natural  causes,  a  twenty-five  foot 
hole  up  on  a  hill  ?  Do  the  Indians  know  anything  about  min- 
ing, asks  Samuel  Knapp.  No.  No  we  have  no  stories,  no 
legends  handed  down  by  generations  about  that  business, 
these  Indians  tell  him.  Mr.  Knapp  gives  it  up,  as  well  he 
might.  He  was  not  ungrateful;  he  was  willing  to  acknow- 
ledge the  activities  of  these  stone  hammer  gentlemen.  He 


Red  Metal.  71 

could  afford  it:  they  showed  him  a  property  that  paid  sev- 
eral million  dollars  in  dividends. 

"Knapp  went  ahead.  In  1848  he  started  six  tons  of  cop- 
per down  the  river.  In  1852  he  paid  thirty  thousand  dollars 
in  dividends  and  by  1860  his  mine  had  struck  its  stride. 
One  of  the  chief  problems  was  the  cutting  up  of  masses 
into  pieces  small  enough  to  hoist  to  the  surface.  There  was 
one  in  particular.  It  weighed  four  hundred  and  twenty 
tons.  These  stout  Cornish  and  Irish  miners  were  at  it 
for  months  with  chisels  and  sledges.  Here  was  the  Federal 
government  clamoring  for  copper  to  fight  the  War  of  Re- 
bellion, glad  to  pay  sixty  cents  a  pound  for  it.  That  single 
mass  at  that  rate  was  worth  a  half  million  dollars. 

"The  Minnesota  Mine  became  a  lordly  concern,  the  pride 
and  pattern  of  all  the  Lake  Superior  mines.  It  built  for 
itself  a  glorious  tradition  and  in  its  hey-day  its  'operative 
organization  was  almost  feudal.  In  1852  it  paid  a  ten  dol- 
lar dividend,  in  1853  a  twenty  dollar  dividend,  in  1854  a 
thirty  dollar  dividend.  Between  1852  and  1856,  it  doubled 
its  investor's  money." 

JAMES  K.  JAMISON 


72  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   2 


LARGE  COPPER  IMPLEMENTS 

Among  the  recently  found  native  copper  implements 
which  nearly  every  year  find  a  resting  place  in  some  Wis- 
consin collection  there  are  always  a  few  pieces  which  are 
of  exceptional  size  and  craftmanship. 

One  of  these  specimens  was  added  during  the  past  sum- 
mer to  the  rich  and  extensive  collection  of  Mr.  Joseph 
Ringeisen,  Jr.,  the  widely-known  Milwaukee  collector,  and 
a  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society. 

This  fine  specimen  of  aboriginal  copper-smithing  is  a 
long,  slender  harpoon  point  with  a  single  sharply-pointed 
barb  projecting  from  one  side.  It  is  the  kind  of  an  imple- 
ment which  was  very  probably  employed  by  the  pre-historic 
redmen  of  Wisconsin  in  harpooning  sturgeon  and  other 
large  fish.  It  is  a  long  rod  of  copper,  circular  in  section  and 
tapering  to  a  point  at  each  extremity.  Its  length  is  12% 
inches.  Its  width  near  its  middle  is  about  5/16  of  an  inch. 
The  barb  is  about  31/4  inches  from  one  extremity.  This 
harpoon  point  is  in  perfect  condition  as  found,  not  having 
been  mutilated  or  "cleaned"  by  its  finder.  It  was  found  near 
Ogdensburg,  Waupaca  County.  Weight  4  ounces. 

Twenty-seven  years  ago,  when  we  first  described  harpoon 
points  of  this  nature,  the  largest  known  example  was  in  the 
collection  of  Mr.  William  H.  Ellsworth  at  Milwaukee.  Its 
length  was  10%  inches.*  Quite  a  number  of  additional 
specimens  have  since  then  been  found.  These  both  Mr.  Geo. 
A.  West  and  the  writer  have  described.** 

A  large  copper  pike  recently  found  near  Aztalan,  Jeffer- 
son County,  is  11%  inches  long.  One  extremity  tapers  to 
a  point  and  the  other  is  bent  in  the  form  of  a  small  curved 
hook.  The  latter  is  a  rather  uncommon  feature  in  pikes. 
This  pike  is  likewise  curious  in  that  the  heavier  and  thicker 
portion  of  it,  from  its  point  to  near  its  middle,  is  square 
in  section,  and  the  remainder  of  the  implement,  from  its 
middle  to  the  hook-shaped  extremity,  circular  in  section. 


*  3  Wis.  Archeologist,  No.  2. 

**  Bull.  Milw.  Pub.  Museum,  V.  10,  No.  2;  7  Wis.  Archeo.,  No.  1. 


Large  Copper  Implements.  73 

At  its  middle  this  pike  is  %  of  an  inch  wide.  Its  weight  is 
11/4  pounds.  This  fine  implement  is  in  the  collection  of  Dr. 
L.  V.  Sprague,  a  Madison  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeo- 
logical  Society. 

The  largest  known  copper  pike  is  in  the  collections  of 
the  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History  at  Chicago.  Its  length 
is  nearly  40  inches.  Its  weight  is  given  at  5*4  pounds.  The 
second  largest  specimen,  in  the  Henry  P.  Hamilton  col- 
lection in  the  State  Historical  Museum,  is  29  inches  long. 
It  weighs  2%  pounds. 

Some  knives,  spearpoints  and  chisels  are  among  the  cop- 
per implements  of  exceptional  size  which  have  recently 
been  found. 


74  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 


NEW  YORK  STONE  PESTLES 

In  visiting  museums  and  some  private  collections  in  the 
State  of  New  York  archaeological  investigators  from  Wis- 
consin cannot  help  being  impressed  with  the  large  size, 
graceful  form  and  state  of  perfection  of  some  of  the  stone 
pestles  obtained  from  Indian  sites  in  that  state.  A  few  of 
these  may  be  mentioned. 

In  the  fine  archaeological  collections  of  the  museum  of 
the  Buffalo  Historical  Society  there  is  to  be  seen  in  the  Dr. 
A.  L.  Benedict  collection  a  fine  15  inch  pestle  of  the  long 
tapering  form.  This  is  labeled  as  from  an  Iroquois  site. 
Stone  pestles  and  mortars  of  ruder  form  are  in  the  same 
collection.  The  collection  of  stone  pestles  in  the  New  York 
State  Museum  at  Albany  is  especially  fine.  Some  of  these 
are  very  large  and  heavy.  Some  have  carved  animal  heads 
at  the  handle  ends.  Four  exceptionally  long  cylindrical  pes- 
tles come  from  Green  Island.  The  largest  of  these  is  about 
26  inches  long  and  31/2  inches  in  diameter  at  its  middle.  It 
tapers  from  the  middle  toward  both  ends.  Another  stone 
pestle  from  "Albany  and  Renssalaer"  is  about  28  inches  in 
length.  Another  long,  tapering  cylindrical  pestle  was  ob- 
tained in  the  Hoosick  Valley.  Other  large  stone  pestles  are 
from  a  site  or  sites  at  the  Big  Bend  of  the  Hudson  River  in 
Warren  County.  One  has  an  animal  head.  The  mortars  are 
of  a  ruder  character,  some  being  merely  stone  slabs  with 
shallow  depressions.  In  the  Alvin  H.  Dewey  collection  in 
this  museum  there  may  be  seen  two  large,  highly  polished 
stone  pestles  of  the  graceful  bell  shaped  form.  One  is  about 
8  inches  high  and  6  inches  in  diameter  at  its  base. 

The  American  Muesum  of  Natural  History  in  New  York 
City  exhibits  large  stone  pestles  from  Pennsylvania  and 
from  Maine.  Other  New  York  museums  also  possess  large 
and  fine  pestles  from  15  to  25  or  more  inches  long.  Private 
collectors  in  several  cities  have  others  quite  as  large  and  as 
well  fashioned.  Some  of  these  ancient  pestle-makers  were 
certainly  masters  of  their  craft.  Of  the  stone  pestles  from 
the  Eastern  United  States  shown  in  the  United  States  Na- 
tional Museum  some  are  over  three  feet  in  length.  They  also 


New  York  Stone  pestles.  75 

are  Indian  tools  worthy  of  the  admiration  of  the  archeolo- 
gist. 

Dr.  Wiljiam  M.  Beauchamp,  writing  in  1897,*  had  this  to 
say  of  the  pestles  of  the  New  York  Indians:  "Pestles  are 
everywhere  found,  as  might  be  expected,  but  were  very 
sparingly  used  by  the  Iroquois,  who  preferred  their  wooden 
pestles  and  mortars,  as  they  do  still.  The  Jesuit  mission- 
aries among  the  Hurons  expressed  the  same  preference,  al- 
though  they  had  a  hand  mill  which  the  Indians  delighted 
to  turn.  Mr.  Fowke  thinks  the  cylindrical  pestle  was  used 
as  a  rolling  pin,  but  has  taken  no  notice  of  the  long,  flat- 
tened pebbles,  so  frequent  in  parts  of  New  York.  It  may  be 
they  were  sparingly  used  elsewhere.  Stone  mortars  are 
more  common  towards  the  coast  and  the  ordinary  pestle 
or  pounder  must  often  have  been  used  with  them.  Prof.  G. 
H.  Perkins  described  a  pestle  with  a  carved  head  in  Ver- 
mont, and  there  is  one  of  these  in  the  State  Museum  at  Al- 
bany. Mr.  Wagman  had  a  fine  one  of  this  kind  from  Lake 
George,  with  an  animal  head  at  one  end.  It  was  24  inches 
long  and  two  thick.  Several  have  been  seen  in  the  central 
part  of  the  state.  Mr.  Wagman  had  23  long  pestles,  varying 
from  seven  to  21  inches  long.  They  are  quite  as  large  else- 
where, but  vary  in  form." 

He  describes,  among  others,  a  number  of  large  pestles, 
these  being  from  14  to  26  inches  long. 

Arthur  C.  Parker,  when  state  archeologist  of  New  York, 
had  this  to  say  about  New  York  stone  pestles.**  "Cylin- 
drical pestles  were  worked  out  by  a  chipping,  pecking  and 
abrading  process.  Some  are  more  than  2  feet  in  length, 
others  not  more  than  8  inches.  Some  are  well  rounded  and 
polished  and  others  only  roughly  chipped  to  form.  Diame- 
ters vary  from  li/2  inches  to  3  or  even  4  inches.  One  class 
of  cylindrical  pestle  has  the  upper  end  carved  in  the  shape 
of  some  conventionalized  animal  head.  These  have  been 
found  in  the  Seneca  River  region,  the  Hudson  valley  near 
Albany  and  near  Glens  Falls. 


*  Bull.  N.  Y.  State  Mus.,  V.  4,  No.  18. 
**  Bull.  N.  Y.  State  Mus.,  Nos.  235,  236. 


76  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    2 

"Cylindrical  pestles  are  found  almost  entirely  on  Algon- 
kian  sites  of  all  periods.  A  few  very  early  Iroquoian  sites 
in  the  State  have  cylindrical  pestles  but  they  do  not  appear 
in  later  sites.  To  the  contrary,  pestles  are  found  on  the 
most  recent  of  Algonkian  sites  and  frequently  old  colonial 
families  still  have  in  their  possession  pestles  that  are  found 
in  the  cabins  of  Algonkian  Indians  on  their  estates,  or 
given  them  with  the  stone  or  wooden  mortar. 

"Bell  pestles  are  comparatively  rare  and  most  specimens 
have  come  from  the  Genesse  valley  above  Mount  Morris. 
A  considerable  number  were  found  by  Mr.  F.  C.  Crofoot  at 
Sonyea.  Bell  pestles  are  generally  found  on  old  sites  that 
may  or  may  not  be  Algonkian.  They  seem  to  belong  in 
some  cases  to  the  mound-builder  culture." 

P.  L.  WORTH 


Preservation  of  the  Old  Indian  Agency  House.  77 

PRESERVATION  OF  THE  OLD  INDIAN 
AGENCY  HOUSE 

The  idea  of  the  preservation  of  the  old  U.  S.  Indian 
Agency  House  as  a  State  historical  monument  originated 
with  Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand  and  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellog.  Both 
had  visited  the  locality  and  had  become  impressed  with  the 
desirability  and  possibility  of  saving  this  historic  building 
to  posterity.  They  secured  the  interest  of  Mrs.  Charles  E. 
Buell,  chairman  of  the  History  and  Landmarks  Committee 
of  the  Wisconsin  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs.  Mrs.  Buell 
labored  diligently  and  enthusiastically  for  the  fruitition  of 
the  cherished  project.  Several  meetings  were  held  on  the 
grounds.  The  assistance  of  Mr.  Burt  Williams,  Col.  Howard 
Greene,  Col.  Fred  C.  Best,  Mr.  Theodore  T.  Brown,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Andrews,  Mrs.  H.  J.  Puffer,  Mr.  C.  E.  Brown,  Mrs. 
Jessie  R.  Skinner,  Col.  Marshall  Cousins,  Miss  Amelia 
Stevens,  Mrs.  Hobart  Johnson,  Mr.  L.  S.  Hanks  and  other 
friends  in  Madison,  Portage  and  Milwaukee  was  secured. 
A  committee  was  appointed  and  the  Old  Indian  Agency 
House  Association,  a  non-profit  sharing  company,  incor- 
I^prated  under  the  laws  of  the  state.  Mrs.  Buell  herself  se- 
cured many  subscriptions  from  members  of  the  Women's 
Clubs.  Citizens  of  Portage  also  raised  a  considerable  sum 
of  money  through  stock  subscriptions.  Through  the  activ- 
ity and  generosity  of  Mrs.  Hobart  Johnson  and  Mrs.  Arthur 
N.  Holbrook  the  Wisconsin  Colonial  Dames  undertook  the 
duty  of  raising  the  balance  of  the  money  required  to  com- 
plete the  purchase  of  the  property. 

This  historic  building,  constructed  of  hand-hewn  timbers, 
stands  on  the  bank  of  the  Fox  River  across  that  stream 
from  the  former  location  of  the  famous  old  frontier  Fort 
Winnebago,  at  Portage.  It  was  erected  in  1831  for  U.  S. 
Indian  Agent  John  Harris  Kinzie  and  his  charming  wife, 
Juliette  Magill  Kinzie.  They  were  its  occupants  for  three 
interesting  years. 

In  the  front  yard  of  the  old  building  are  tall  elm  trees,  in 
its  rear  a  collection  of  barns,  sheds  and  other  buildings,  and 
about  it  cultivated  fields  and  pasture  lands. 


78  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 

In  the  day  of  its  erection  Major  David  E.  Twiggs,  a  sol- 
dier, who  afterwards  fought  in  the  Mexican  War,  was  in 
command  of  Fort  Winnebago.  Jefferson  Davis  was  sta- 
tioned there  as  a  lieutenant.  At  the  Agency  House  there 
gathered  in  those  days  the  noted  Wisconsin  Winnebago 
chiefs,  Four  Legs,  Yellow  Thunder  and  other  chiefs  with 
their  tribesmen.  From  the  fields  all  about  the  old  building 
hundreds  of  Indian  stone  and  other  implements  and  orna- 
ments have  been  collected  in  the  years  from  1831  to  the 
present  date.  The  character  of  these  indicates  that  the  site 
has  been  occupied  by  redmen  as  a  dwelling  place  since  pre- 
historic time. 

In  its  long  life  of  a  hundred  years  the  old  building  has 
had  many  vicissitudes  of  fortune.  It  was  for  a  time  a  tav- 
ern where  many  travelers  were  entertained.  During  re- 
cent years  it  served  as  a  farm  house. 

While  in  residence  in  this  historic  building  Mrs.  Kinzie 
obtained  the  material  for  her  delightful  book,  WAU-BUN, 
or  the  "Early  Day"  in  the  Northwest.  "What  happened  to 
her,  what  she  experienced,  enjoyed,  and  endured  she  has 
embodied  in  her  book.  Wau-Bun  is  thus  in  part  an  auto- 
biography, the  account  of  the  years  1830  to  1833  spent  at 
Fort  Winnebago  and  the  journeys  thither  and  thence.  It' 
was  not  written  at  the  time  the  events  occurred ;  it  is  found- 
ed on  memories,  the  memories  of  an  unusually  intelligent 
actor  and  observer."  Her  book  was  completed  in  1855  and 
published  the  following  year  simultaneously  in  New  York 
and  Cincinnati.  The  six  illustrations  were  from  the  au- 
thor's own  drawings.  A  second  edition  appeared  in  Chi- 
cago in  1857.  In  1873,  a  third  edition  was  printed  in  Phil- 
adelphia. This  without  illustrations.  Two  editions  were 
printed  in  Chicago  in  1901.  One  was  printed  by  the  Caxton 
Club  of  Chicago,  Dr.  Reuben  G.  Thwaites  being  the  editor. 
The  other  was  prepared  by  Mrs.  Kinzie's  eldest  daughter, 
Eleanor,  wife  of  Geneeral  William  W.  Gordon  of  Savannah. 

In  order  to  further  assist  in  the  purchase,  repair  and  re- 
furnishing of  the  Old  Indian  Agency  House  Dr.  Louise  P. 
Kellogg  very  generously  undertook  in  1930  the  preparation 
of  a  sixth  edition  of  this  classic  volume.  This  has  now  been 


Preservation  of  the  Old  Indian  Ag-ency  House.  79 

printed  in  most  attractive  style  by  the  George  Banta  Pub- 
lishing Company  of  Menasha,  Wisconsin.  Mr.  Banta,  who 
is  himself  greatly  interested  in  the  preservation  of  the  Old 
Indian  Agency  House,  is  very  generously  contributing  all  of 
the  profits  of  the  publication  to  the  Indian  Agency  House 
fund. 

The  cost  of  the  book  is  $2.50.  Every  member  of  the  Wis- 
consin Archeological  Society  will  wish  to  obtain  a  copy  of 
Wau-Bun  for  his  home  library.  Orders  for  copies  should  be 
sent  to  Mr.  George  Banta,  Jr.  at  Menasha. 

The  site  of  the  Old  Indian  Agency  House  has  already 
become  a  place  of  pilgrimage  for  all  persons  interested  in 
Wisconsin  history.  It  is  expected  that  thousands  of  visitors 
will  gather  there  during  the  present  year.  Plans  for  the  re- 
pair and  re-furnishing  of  the  building  are  now  receiving 
consideration.  No  doubt  a  caretaker  for  the  building  and 
grounds  will  be  appointed. 

Persons  who  wish  to  contribute  to  the  cost  of  the  im- 
provements may  communicate  with  Mrs.  C.  E.  Buell  or  Mrs. 
Hobart  Johnson  at  Madison. 


80  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 


THE  MOUND-BUILDERS 

In  his  book,  The  Mound-Builders,  but  recently  off  the 
presses,  Henry  Clyde  Shetrone,  has  made  a  notable,  wel- 
come and  very  useful  contribution  to  American  archeolog- 
ical  literature.  It  is  introduced  to  those  interested  in  arch- 
eological  history  as  "a  reconstruction  of  the  life  of  a  pre- 
historic American  race,  through  exploration  and  interpre- 
tation of  their  earth  mounds,  their  burials  and  their  cul- 
tural remains."  After  reading  it  none  will  perhaps  deny 
that  its  author  has  not  made  the  most  of  his  experience 
and  knowledge  in  its  preparation  for  the  use  of  the  student 
and  other  interested  readers. 

Mr.  Shetrone  was  for  years  the  active  and  experienced 
chief  assistant  of  the  late  lamented  Dr.  William  C.  Mills, 
until  his  death  in  1928,  director  of  the  Ohio  State  Arch- 
aeological and  Historical  Society  and  for  many  years  the 
acknowledged  "leading  exponent  of  scientific  mound  ex- 
ploration" in  America.  After  his  death  Mr.  Shetrone  suc- 
ceeded his  former  chief  as  director  and  archeologist  of  the 
Society  and  of  its  museum  at  Columbus.  He  has  also  been 
for  some  years  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  State  Arch- 
eological  Surveys  of  the  National  Research  Council. 

In  the  preface  of  his  book,  Mr.  Shetrone  states  that  The 
Mound-Builders  "is  dedicated  to  the  average  man  and  wom- 
an who,  although  fully  awake  to  the  human  interest  in  their 
story,  lack  time  and  opportunity  for  digesting  the  rather 
extensive  but  often  unavailable  literature  on  the  subject. 
This  volume  is  intended  to  afford  a  belated  answer  to  the 
oft-heard  query  'Where  can  I  find  a  book  that  will  give  me 
the  important  facts  regarding  the  Mound-builders?'  If  the 
professional  prehistorian  also  finds  the  book  a  handy  com- 
pendium of  the  archaeology  of  the  general  mound  area,  its 
publication  will  be  more  than  justified. 

"In  a  sense,  the  preparation  of  The  Mound-Builders  has 
been  a  pioneer  undertaking,  in  that  it  attempts  to  combine 
scientific  accuracy  and  popular  presentation.  Difficulties  ad- 
mittedly have  been  numerous;  but  the  recent  gratifying 


The  Mound-Builders.  81 

tendancy  to  popularize  science  and  the  encouragement  and 
assistance  tendered  by  the  author's  co-workers  in  the  field 
have  removed  all  cause  for  hesitation. 

"Planning  the  book  with  the  idea  of  obtaining  something 
of  order  and  sequence  and  of  sustaining  human  interest  was 
not  the  least  of  the  problems  involved.  Considerable  license 
admittedly  has  been  taken  in  attempting  to  effect  the  de- 
sired result.  Outside  of  a  few  restricted  areas  the  mound- 
building  complex  has  been  only  partly  analyzed,  and  there- 
fore is  difficult  to  compass  as  a  whole.  Technical  archaeo- 
logical method,  with  its  emphasis  on  culture  groups  and 
areas,  with  their  present  lack  of  definition,  proved  to  be  im- 
practical for  popular  use.  "Cultures,"  so-called,  and  "cul- 
ture areas"  are  adaptable  as  working  bases,  but  they  defy 
specific  application  in  a  presentation  of  this  character. 

"The  scheme  of  mound  areas  herein  employed  is  the  au- 
thor's method  of  meeting  the  difficulties  which  impose 
themselves.  While  these  assumed  areas  have  considerable 
basis  of  justification,  they  are  not  ultimately  satisfactory— 
an  admission  which  emphasizes  the  need  of  concerted  and 
exhaustive  exploration  of  the  mound  area  as  a  whole  and 
coordination  of  resultant  findings." 

There  are  twenty  chapters  in  Mr.  Shetrone's  508  page 
volume.  The  titles  of  these  may  be  mentioned: —  "Early 
Theories  as  to  Origin  And  Identity",  "Distribution  and 
Classification  of  the  Mounds",  "Architecture  and  Engineer- 
ing", "Agriculture,  Commerce  and  Industry,"  "The 
Mound-Builder  Burial  Complex",  "The  Mound-Builder  as 
an  Artist",  "Tobacco  Pipes  and  Smoking  Customs",  "The 
Ohio  Area:  'I,  Adena  and  Fort  Ancient  Cultures",  "The 
Ohio  Area:  II,  The  Hopewell  Culture",  The  Ohio  Area: 

III,  Fortifications  and  Effigy  Mounds",  "The  Ohio  Area: 

IV,  Marginal    Subareas",    "A   Tour   of   the    Ohio   Mound 
Area",  "The  Great  Lakes  Area",  "The  Upper  Mississippi 
Area :  I,  Wisconsin,  Minnesota,  and  the  Dakotas",  "The  Up- 
per Mississippi  Area: II,  Northern  Illinois,  Iowa  and  Mar- 
ginal Districts,"   The  Lower  Mississippi  Area:I,  Southern 
Illinois,  Western  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  Southern  Miss- 
ouri  and   Arkansas,"   "The   Lower   Mississippi   Area:    II, 


82  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   2 

Louisiana,  Mississippi  and  Alabama,"  "The  Tennessee- 
Cumberland  Area",  "The  Pennsylvania  Area",  and  "Sum- 
mary and  Conclusions". 

"The  Mound-Builders"  is  not  only  well  written,  it  is  very 
well  printed  and  profusely  and  finely  illustrated.  There  are 
299  figures.  Opposite  the  title  page  there  appears  a  fine 
colored  plate,  a  reproduction  of  the  life-size  figure  by  the 
sculptor,  Edwin  F.  Frey,  representing  "The  Prehistoric 
Sculptor",  now  on  exhibition  in  the  Ohio  State  Museum  at 
Columbus. 

Opposite  page  28  there  is  a  very  useful  map  showing  the 
"Distribution  of  Mounds  and  Earthworks  in  the  Eastern 
United  States." 

The  value  of  Mr.  Shetrone's  book  is  added  to  by  the 
printing  at  its  close  of  a  bibliography  of  works  on  general 
anthropology,  the  American  Indian,  and  the  archaeology 
of  the  mound  area. 

As  we  were  among  those  who  encouraged  Mr.  Shetrone 
in  his  purpose  of  preparing  this  very  interesting  and  use- 
ful book  we  wish  to  now  congratulate  him  on  the  very 
successful  manner  in  which  he  has  carried  out  this  arduous 
undertaking. 

The  Mound-Builders  is  printed  by  D.  Appleton  and  Com- 
pany, New  York  City.  Its  cost  is  $7.50,  carriage  prepaid 
$7.75.  We  heartily  recommend  its  purchase  by  members  of 
the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  and  its  friends.  It  is 
the  kind  of  a  book  that  is  not  likely  to  slumber  on  one's 
library  shelves. 


Archeological  Notes. 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Meetings 

Meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  held  at  the  Mil- 
waukee Public  Museum  on  Monday  evening,  October  20,  1930.  There 
were  thirty  members  in  attendance.  President  Charles  G.  Schoewe 
presided.  Mr.  Huron  H.  Smith  acted  as  secretary. 

Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  exhibited  a  Potawatomi  Dream  Dance  pipe  ob- 
tained by  him  during  the  past  summer  and  gave  an  account  of  its 
history  and  use.  Mr.  Paul  Joers  exhibited  a  beaded  buckskin  pouch, 
and  Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen  a  fine  copper  harpoon  obtained  in  Waupa- 
ca  County.  Mr.  Louis  Pierron  showed  a  collection  of  lantern  slides 
made  between  40  and  50  years  ago  and  illustrating  old  cycling  days 
in  Milwaukee. 

Mr.  A.  P.  Kannenberg  exhibited  three  volumes  of  photographs  of 
Wisconsin  aboriginal  earthenware  vessels  representing  the  Algonkian, 
Siouan  and  Cahokia  cultures.  He  gave  an  account  of  the  manner  in 
which  these  were  obtained.  Dr.  Kastner,  Dr.  Notz,  Dr.  Kuhm  and 
other  members  took  part  in  the  discussion  of  his  report.  Mr.  Kan- 
nenberg stated  that  one  copy  was  to  become  the  property  of  the 
Society. 

Mr.  Geo.  A.  West  gave  an  account  of  an  expedition  made  by  a 
Milwaukee  Public  Museum  expedition  to  Nevada  and  Utah.  Mr.  West 
joined  the  party  after  they  had  completed  their  work  at  the  Yose- 
mitee.  They  visited  Zion  Canyon,  Brice  Canyon,  Red  Canyon  and 
Cedar  Breaks.  These  localities  he  described  as  beautiful  beyond  de- 
scription. They  visited  Gypsum  Cave,  where  an  expedition  of  the 
Southwest  Museum  was  conducting  explorations.  They  crawled  into 
the  300  rooms  and  saw  seven  different  layers  of  deposits  some  con- 
sisting of  bones  of  the  giant  sloth,  camel,  sabre-tooth  tiger  and  moun- 
tain sheep. 

In  their  trip  to  the  Lost  City  they  viewed  the  ruins  of  2000  build- 
ings and  collected  many  pottery  fragments.  Cemeteries  were  also 
visited.  Rock  salt  had  been  mined  there  by  the  aborigines  to  a  depth 
of  several  hundred  feet.  Deposits  of  mammoth  and  other  ancient 
animal  bones  were  seen.  Death  Valley  and  the  Boulder  Dam  were 
also  visited.  Of  these  he  gave  interesting  descriptions.  The  Cliff 
Palace  and  other  ancient  ruins  in  southern  Colorado  were  visited  at 
the  close  of  the  expedition. 

President  Schoewe  announced  the  deaths  of  Most  Rev.  Sebastian 
G.  Messmer,  a  charter  member  of  the  Society,  and  of  Chief  Oliver 
Lemere,  an  Indian  member.  Obituaries  of  both  were  being  prepared 
by  Secretary  Brown. 

Mr.  G.  M.  Thorne,  treasurer,  stated  that  a  report  on  the  fund 
raised  for  the  entertainment  of  the  Central  Section,  A.  A.  A.,  was 
being  prepared. 

Mr.  Kannenberg  invited  the  attendance  of  the  members  of  the  So- 
ciety at  the  unveiling  of  a  marker  at  the  Indian  mounds  preserved 
in  Elisha  D.  Smith  Park  at  Menasha.  This  was  to  be  provided  by  the 
Winnebago  County  Archeological  and  Historical  Society. 

Because  of  the  very  large  attendance  of  200  or  more  members  and 
visitors  the  November  17,  1930  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeolo- 
gical Society  was  held  in  the  auditorium  of  the  Milwaukee  Public 
Museum.  President  Schoewe  conducted  the  proceedings. 


84  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    2 


Secretary  Charles  E.  Brown  presented  a  report  of  the  business 
transacted  at  the  meeting  of  the  Executive  Board,  held  earlier  in  the 
evening.  At  this  meeting  there  had  been  elected  to  annual  member- 
ship E.  Ralph  Guentzel,  Boscobel;  P.  M.  Flatten,  Green  Bay;  Perry 
J.  Stearns,  Milwaukee,  and  Ellison  Orr,  Waukon,  Iowa.  Mr.  Alonzo 
W.  Pond  of  the  Logan  Museum,  Beloit,  had  been  elected  a  member  of 
the  Executive  Board  to  take  the  place  of  Mr.  Vetal  Winn,  resigned. 
Mr.  Louis  Pierron,  chairman  of  th'e  Membership  Committee  had  been 
requested  to  conduct  a  membership  campaign.  Mr.  West,  chairman 
of  the  special  Committee  on  the  Marking  of  Local  Sites,  had  been 
requested  to  urge  upon  the  village  of  Shorewood  the  preservation 
and  marking  of  the  small  mound  group  located  on  the  Milwaukee 
River  bank  at  the  old  White  City  location.  The  Darien  Woman's 
Club  had  placed  a  marker  on  the  old  Chicago  to  Madison  trail,  Mr. 
Pond  delivering  the  dedication  address.  Articles  and  papers  were 
requested  for  the  January  issue  of  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist.  Mr. 
Kuhm  had  offered  to  undertake  a  study  of  the  works  of  American 
artists  who  have  been  prominent  in  painting  or  drawing  Indian  sub- 
jects. 

Mr.  Alonzo  W.  Pond  of  the  Logan  Museum,  Beloit  College,  de- 
livered a  lecture  on  "Archaeological  Explorations  in  Algiers,"  giving 
a  very  interesting  account  of  the  several  Logan  Expeditions  conduct- 
ed by  himself  in  that  very  interesting  and  fruitful  North  African 
country  in  the  search  for  remains  of  Dawn  Man.  These  expeditions 
had  been  very  successful,  thousands  of  stone  Palaeolithic  and  other 
stone  implements  and  other  significant  and  valuable  remains  having 
been  brought  back  to  this  country  for  study.  A  group  of  young  in- 
vestigators from  the  University  of  Wisconsin,  Beloit  College  and 
other  cities  had  been  among  the  active  workers  of  the  1930  expedi- 
tion. Mr.  Pond  illustrated  his  very  interesting  and  instructive  lecture 
with  three  rolls  of  movie  films.  After  the  lecture  many  members 
asked  questions  which  the  lecturer  answered. 

Mr.  Brown  reported  on  the  publication  by  D.  Appleton  and  Com- 
pany, New  York,  of  the  book,  "The  Mound-Builders,"  by  Henry 
Clyde  Shetrone,  director  of  the  Ohio  State  Archaeological  and  His- 
torical Society.  He  also  told  of  the  printing  of  the  Geo.  Banta  Pub- 
lishing Company,  Menasha,  of  Mrs.  John  H.  Klinzie's  classic  book, 
"Wau-Bun,  or  the  Early  Day  in  the  Northwest."  Members  were 
urged  to  secure  copies  of  both.  Mr.  Harry  E.  Cole's  book,  "Stage- 
coach and  Tavern  Tales  of  the  Old  Northwest"  (The  Arthur  H. 
Clark  Company,  Cleveland),  was  also  now  on  sale.  Mr.  Cole  had 
been  for  many  years  a  very  active  officer  of  the  Society. 

Members  were  urged  to  see  the  movie  film,  "The  Big  Trail,"  now 
being  shown  at  a  Milwaukee  theatre. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  Mr.  Ringeisen  exhibited  a  very  fine 
pipe  made  of  rose  quartz,  from  Pennsylvania,  and  Mr.  Arthur  Gerth 
gome  fine  Sioux  and  Chippewa  quill  and  beadwork  ornamented  arti- 
cles. These  were  greatly  admired. 

The  December  17,  1930  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society  was  held  in  the  trustee  hall  of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum. 
President  Charles  G.  Schoewe  in  the  chair.  There  were  80  members 
and  visitors  in  attendance. 

Secretary  Brown  reported  the  election  by  the  Directors  of  the  So- 
ciety of  the  following  new  annual  members: — Arthur  J.  Ivens,  Otto 
Halvorson,  Herbert  Currie  and  H.  R.  Dineen,  Milwaukee;  Geo.  Foeh- 
ringer,  Cassville;  H.  S.  Sherwin,  Black  Falls,  and  E.  A.  Bright, 
Prairie  due  Chien.  The  Eli  Lilly  Co.,  Indianapolis,  had  been  elected 


Archeolog'ical  Notes.  85 


an  industrial  (library)  member.  Messrs  James  W.  Wampum  (Pota- 
watomi),  Blackwell,  and  Francis  Lemere  (Winnebago),  had  been 
elected  Indian  members.  Governor-elect  Philip  LaFollette  had  been 
elected  an  honorary  member.  The  death  of  Chief  Simon  Kahquados, 
a  Potawatomi  Indian  member  of  the  Society,  had  been  announced. 
Kahquados  was  to  be  buried  in  Peninsula  State  Park  in  Door  County. 

President  Schoewe  discussed  briefly  a  fine  native  copper  spud  ex- 
hibited by  Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  and  a  hawk  feather  from  a 
Winnebago  war  bundle  brought  to  the  meeting  by  himself.  Mr.  Mc- 
Kern  stated  that  there  was  being  offered  for  sale  by  Ulysses  S.  White, 
an  Indian  member,  a  Winnebago  war  bundle.  He  briefly  discussed 
its  contents. 

Mr.  John  W.  Gosling  (White  Feather),  a  Chippewa  member  of  the 
Society,  who  was  present,  gave  a  short  talk  on  the  present  poverty- 
stricken  condition  of  many  Wisconsin  Indian  families  and  the  de- 
sirability of  creating  a  greater  interest  among  white  residents  of  the 
state  in  their  control  by  the  Federal  government,  their  health,  edu- 
cation, etc.  He  told  a  Chippewa  Indian  folktale  of  the  creation  by 
Manabus  of  the  white,  red  and  black  races. 

Mr.  Charles  E.  Brown  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "Paul  Bun- 
yan  and  His  Logging  Crew,"  being  a  collection  of  the  tall  tales  of  the 
exploits  of  this  mythical  prince  of  the  American  lumberjacks  form- 
erly told  in  the  Wisconsin  logging  camps.  Next  to  those  of  the  Ameri- 
can Indian  these  exaggerated  stories  of  the  old-time  lumberman  were 
now  considered  an  important  contribution  to  American  folklore.  He 
traced  the  westward  spread  of  these  folktales  from  Maine  and  New 
Brunswick  to  Ontario,  Michigan  and  Wisconsin,  and  from  this  region 
to  the  forests  of  Oregon,  Washington  and  California.  Closely  related 
to  them  were  the  Tony  Beaver  tales  of  the  South,  and  the  Pecos  Bill 
yarns  of  the  western  cowboys.  Wisconsin  men  and  women  who  had 
collected  and  published  collections  of  Paul  Bunyan  stories  in  book 
or  pamphlet  form  were  Eugene  S.  Shepard,  Bernice  Stewart,  Luke 
S.  Kearney,  Prof.  E.  R.  Jones  and  Wm.  W.  Bartlett.  Mr.  Brown  in- 
troduced to  the  members  Mr.  Matt.  Stapleton,  Mr.  Luke  S.  Kearney, 
and  a  number  of  other  former  Wisconsin  and  Ontario  lumberjacks 
who  were  present  at  the  meeting. 

Members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  have  two  spring 
meetings  to  look  forward  to — the  annual  Joint  Meeting  of  the  So- 
ciety with  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences,  to  be  held  during  the 
Easter  recess  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin,  and  the  meeting  of  the 
Central  Section,  American  Anthropological  Association  which  will 
meet  at  the  Chamberlain  Memorial  Museum,  Three  Oaks,  Michigan, 
in  May.  Announcement  of  both  meetings  is  made  long  in  advance 
of  their  dates  in  order  that  members  may  have  ample  time  to  pre- 
pare papers  to  be  included  in  the  programs.  Both  promise  to  be  very 
interesting  gatherings  and  as  largely  attended  as  in  previous  years. 

Reminders   for  Members 

The  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  is  seeking  new  members  in 
every  part  of  Wisconsin.  Present  members  are  requested  to  enlist 
as  annual,  sustaining,  or  life  members  any  persons  of  good  reputa- 
tion who  are  interested  in  the  collection  and  study  of  Indian  imple- 
ments, in  the  preservation  and  marking  of  Indian  mounds,  sites  and 
monuments;  in  Indian  history;  in  Indian  and  other  folklore;  in  local 
aboriginal  surveys  and  explorations,  in  the  improvement  of  conditions 
of  our  living  Indians;  in  ethnological  researches;  in  the  advancement 


86  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   2 


of  our  city,  county  and  state  museums,  and  in  all  other  departments 
of  American  anthropology.  All  will  find  in  the  ranks  and  in  the 
meetings  of  the  Society  a  fine  and  helpful  fellowship.  Not  only  active 
members  but  patrons  of  anthropological  science  are  wanted  in  every 
city  and  village  in  Wisconsin.  If  you  lack  for  application  blanks  ad- 
dress the  Secretary  or  Mr.  Louis  Pierron,  chairman  of  the  State 
Membership  Committee,  3133  Downer  Avenue,  Milwaukee. 

Interested  persons  in  adjoining  and  other  states  may  also  become 
members  or  patrons  of  the  Wisconsin  Society.  Its  priveleges  are  also 
extended  to  them. 

Members  of  the  Society  who  are  in  doubt  about  the  genuineness 
of  any  stone,  metal  or  other  Indian  artifact  which  may  be  offered 
for  sale  to  them  by  alleged  finders  or  dealers  in  Indian  relics,  or  be 
in  their  collections,  may  communicate  for  advice  and  service  with 
Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  chairman  of  the  Society's  Committee  on 
Fraudulent  Indian  Implements.  His  address  is  1804  Third  Street,  Mil- 
waukee. Mr.  Ringeisen  is  one  of  the  Society's  active  members  and  is 
himself  a  collector  of  long  experience.  A  Wisconsin  state  law  makes 
it  possible  to  prosecute  all  makers  of  and  dealers  in  fraudulent 
Indian  implements.  Offenders  should  be  promptly  reported  to  Mr. 
Ringeisen  or  the  Secretary.  Mr.  E.  F.  Richter  and  Mr.  Geo.  A.  West 
of  Milwaukee  are  members  of  the  Society's  Committee.  Both  are 
experienced  collectors  and  reliable  judges  of  fraudulent  Indian  arti- 
facts. 


It  is  reported  that  there  are  just  now  ranging  through  Wisconsin, 
Illinois,  Iowa,  and  other  Middle  West  States,  men  who  claim  to  be 
collecting  Indian  implements  for  the  Chicago  World's  Exposition  to 
be  held  in  that  city  in  1933.  These  men  are  trying  to  purchase,  loan, 
or  obtain  by  other  means  Indian  artifacts  which  they  propose  to  ex- 
hibit at  the  Exposition.  One  of  their  modes  of  procedure  will  prob- 
ably be  the  same  as  that  pursued  in  Wisconsin  and  other  states 
previous  to  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  held  at  Chicago  in 
1893,  when  many  owners  and  collectors  of  Indian  implements  were 
given  a  silver  dollar  and  a  printed  receipt  for  specimens  delivered  to 
an  alleged  Exposition  agent  and  told  that  they  could  redeem  their 
relics  after  the  close  of  the  Exposition  by  presenting  the  receipt. 
The  Exposition  management  has  not  authorized  anyone  to  act  as  its 
agent  in  the  collecting  of  Indian  artifacts,  and  will  not  do  so.  Ex- 
perienced collectors  will  not  be  taken  in  by  such  frauds,  but  other 
people  may  be.  Members  of  the  Society  are  requested  to  be  on  the 
alert  for  the  detection  and  apprehension  of  such  "agents,"  and  to 
warn  others  of  their  presence  and  methods.  These  same  men  may  ask 
the  permission  of  farmers  to  "dig  up"  an  Indian  mound,  or  "open" 
an  Indian  grave  under  the  pretense  that  the  "relics"  will  be  shown 
at  the  Exposition,  with  the  generous  owner's  name  appearing  on  the 
label.  We  ask  our  members  to  aid  in  preventing  such  destructiveness. 


During  the  coming  season  every  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Arche- 
ological  Society  who  has  any  spare  time  on  his  hands  is  urged  to  as- 
sist in  the  work  of  the  State  Archeological  Survey  by  conducting 
some  survey  and  exploration  work  in  his  home  locality  or  elsewhere 
in  the  State.  There  is  no  region,  no  matter  how  carefully  it  may 
have  been  worked  by  some  previous  investigator,  that  cannot  be  re- 
examined  with  interesting  results.  An  unrecorded  camp  or  village 


Archeological  Notes.  87 


site,  workshop  site,  spring  shrine,  graves,  remnant  of  a  trail,  or  even 
an  Indian  mound  or  mounds  may  be  located.  Take  a  small  region 
and  work  it  thoroughly,  the  banks  of  a  stream  or  a  lake  will  furnish 
a  good  laboratory  for  the  investigator. 

The  Society  furnishes  a  guide  book  for  amateur  investigators. 
Copies  of  this  pamphlet  and  of  printed  blanks  to  be  used  in  reporting 
results  of  investigations  and  in  preparing  field  maps  can  be  obtained 
from  the  Secretary's  office  at  Madison.  Reports  should  be  filed  with 
him. 


Members  are  requested  to  lend  -their  assistance  to  the  municipal, 
county  and  state  museums  in  their  home  neighborhoods.  There  are 
nearly  a  hundred  museums  in  the  state  at  present.  It  is  desirable 
that  these  be  given  every  encouragement,  and  that  others  be  estab- 
lished in  cities  where  there  are  none  at  present.  Thus  we  may  be 
able  to  save  to  future  citizens  of  Wisconsin  representative  collection^ 
illustrating  local  archeology,  ethnology  and  history.  Collectors  should 
be  encouraged  to  place  their  accumulations  in  these  institutions  and 
to  see  to  it  that  these  are  properly  recorded,  exhibited  and  labelled. 
Past  and  present  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
have  been  directly  responsible  for  the  establishment  of  many  of  the 
present  Wisconsin  museums. 

The  preservation  to  the  public  of  additional  groups  or  examples  of 
Wisconsin  Indian  mounds,  of  plots  of  Indian  corn  hills  and  garden 
beds,  of  Indian  cemeteries,  and  of  spirit  stones,  and  of  other  features 
of  the  State's  Indian  prehistory  and  history  is  greatly  to  be  desired. 
With  the  help  of  city  and  county  officials  and  local  organizations 
these  should  be  secured,  and,  if  possible,  preserved  in  city  and  county 
parks.  The  importance  of  their  preservation  must  be  apparent  to  all 
intelligent  citizens.  Trails  and  river  fords  should  be  marked  with 
proper  tablets.  All  members  of  the  Society  are  requested  to  promote 
and  to  assist  in  such  undertakings  in  their  home  neighborhoods.  Much 
has  been  accomplished  by  the  Society  in  this  direction  but  very  much 
remains  to  be  done.  The  attention  of  those  who  feel  that  they  need 
inspiration  and  encouragement  can  be  directed  to  what  the  State  of 
Ohio  has  accomplished,  and  is  doing,  to  preserve  its  Indian  monu- 
ments. 

Other  Notes 

Mr.  Mark  G.  Troxel,  a  Madison  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Arche- 
ological Society,  died  in  his  office  on  December  20,  1930.  He  was 
managing  editor  of  The  American  Thresherman,  a  periodical  pub- 
lished in  his  home  city.  Mr.  Troxell  was  a  fine  type  of  a  man,  widely 
known  and  liked  for  his  helpful  friendship.  He  was  interested  in 
everything  that  pertained  to  the  American  Indian.  He  served  at  dif- 
ferent times  as  a  member  of  the  Society's  standing  committees. 

Two  other  recent  deaths  of  old  and  valued  members  of  the  Society 
were  those  of  Mr.  George  W.  Ogden  and  Mr.  Henry  R.  King  of  Mil- 
waukee. Both  were  old  settlers  of  the  city. 

Mr.  Louis  Pierron,  chairman  of  the  Membership  Committee,  has 
undertaken  a  campaign  for  increasing  the  Society's  membership  in 
Milwaukee  and  the  State.  All  members  who  have  prospective  mem- 
bers in  view  are  requested  to  secure  their  applications  at  this  time. 


88  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    2 


Opposite  the  opening  page  of  this  issue  of  The  Wisconsin  Arche- 
ologist  there  appears  a  picture  of  Mr.  Charles  G.  Schoewe,  president 
of  the  Society.  Mr.  Schoewe  is  in  winter  garb  prepared  for  a  snow- 
shoe  hike  over  one  of  the  trails  in  the  Moose  Lake  region  in  Wauke- 
sha  County.  Mr.  Schoewe  has  been  for  years  active  in  the  Society's 
interests. 

The  Geneva  Lake  Historical  Society  is  preparing  to  celebrate  dur- 
ing the  present  year  the  Centennial  of  the  discovery  of  Lake  Geneva 
by  the  whites  in  1831.  Dr.  Paul  B.  Jenkins  has  been  appointed  chair- 
man of  the  committee  on  organization. 


Wisnmmtt 


UuL  10  April,  1031 

NEW  SERIES 


COPPER  IMPLEMENTS 
SILVER  ORNAMENTS 

INDIANS  IN  PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE 
PREHISTORIC  VERTEBRAL  PATHOLOGY 


PUBLISHED    QUARTERLY   BY   THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


EDITORIAL  BOARD 

W.  C.  McKern   (Editor),  Ira  Edwards,  H.  W.  Kuhm, 
Charles  E.  Brown,  Charles  G.  Schoewe 


Accepted  for  mailing-  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec.  1103, 
Act,  Oct.  3,  1917.     Authorized  Jan.  28,  1921. 


n  Ardjenlogtral 


Incorporated  March  23,  1903,  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  study  and 
preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

Charles  G.  Schoewe 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

W.  C.  McKern  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm 

Dr.    A.    L.    Kastner  E.  F.  Richter 

W.  W.  Gilman  Paul  Joers 

R.  J.  Kieckhefer 

DIRECTORS 

Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  T.  L.  Miller 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  Huron  Smith  L.  R.  Whitney 

George  A.  West  Mrs.  Theodore  Koerner    Alonzo  Pond 

A.  P.  Kannenberg 

TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thorne 
National    Bank   of    Commerce,    Milwaukee,   Wis. 

SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State   Historical   Museum,    Madison,   Wis. 

MEMBERSHIP  FEES 

Life   Members,    $25.00  Endowment    Members,    $500.00 

Sustaining    Members,    $5.00  Annual    Members,    $2.00 

Institutional  Members,  $1.50  Junior  Members,  $   .50 


All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E.  Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office, 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wisconsin.  Contributions  to  the  Wis- 
consin Archeologist  should  be  addressed  to  W.  C.  McKern,  Editor,  Public 
Museum,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  or  to  the  Secretary.  Dues  should  be 
sent  to  G.  M.  Thorne,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwau- 
kee, Wisconsin. 


COMMITTEES 

REGULAR 

STATE  SURVEY — T.  L.  Miller,  Walter  S.  Dunsmoor,  G.  L.  Pasco, 
T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  Alonzo 
Pond,  Geo.  F.  Overton,  M.  F.  Hulburt,  W.  M.  Maier,  O.  L.  Hoi- 
lister,  Dr.  F.  G.  Logan,  David  A.  Blencoe,  S.  W.  Faville,  Col. 
R.  S.  Owen,  Robert  R.  Jones. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Frank  Wes- 
ton,  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr.  Orrin  Thompson,  Mrs.  F.  R. 
Melcher,  Col.  Howard  Greene,  Rev.  O.  W.  Smith,  J.  J.  Knudsen, 
H.  W.  Cornell,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  A.  H.  Griffith. 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Milwaukee  Public  Museum  (Dr.  S.  A. 
Barrett),  Wisconsin  State  Historical  Museum  (Dr.  Joseph  Scha- 
fer),  Oshkosh  Public  Museum  (Niles  J.  Behnke),  Green  Bay 
Public  Museum  (T.  T.  Brown),  New  London  Museum  (Rev.  F. 
S.  Dayton),  Lawrence  College  (Prof.  J.  B.  MacHarg),  White- 
water Museum  (Prof.  N.  F.  Heyer),  La  Crosse  State  Teachers 
College  (Prof.  A.  H.  Sanford),  Kohler  Museum  (Miss  Marie 
Kohler),  Logan  Museum  (Dr.  Geo.  L.  Collie),  Minnesota  State 
Historical  Museum  (Willoughby  M.  Babcock),  St.  Francis  Mu- 
seum (Rev.  Dr.  A.  J.  Muench.) 

MEMBERSHIP — Louis  Pierron,  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Paul  Joers, 
Arthur  Gerth,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  W.  F.  Yahr,  Mrs.  Anna  F. 
Johnson,  K.  Freckman,  Geo.  Wright,  Mrs.  Hans  A.  Olson,  Carl 
Baur,  C.  G.  Weyl,  A.  R.  Rogers. 

STATE  A'RCHEOLOGICAL  PARKS— Geo.  A.  West,  R.  J.  Kieckhef- 
er,  R.  P.  Ferry,  D.  S.  Rowland,  Walter  Holsten. 

PUBLICITY— J.  B.  Gregory,  A.  O.  Barton,  E.  R.  Mclntyre,  R.  K. 
Coe. 


SPECIAL 

BIOGRAPHY— H.   H.   Smith,  G.  M.   Thome,  Milo  C.   Richter. 

FRAUDULENT  ARTIFACTS— Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  E.  F.  Richter, 
Geo.  A.  West. 

POTTERY   SURVEY— A.   P.  Kannenberg,  Ray  Van  Handel,   R.   N. 
Buckstaff. 

PROGRAM — H.   H.    Smith,   Milo   C.   Richter,  Joseph   Ringeisen,  Jr., 
Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  T.  L.  Miller. 

MARKING  MILWAUKEE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SITES— W.  W.   Gil- 
man,  Dr.  Paul  B.  Jenkins,  L.  R.  Whitney. 

PUBLICATION— W.  C.  McKern,  Dr.  Ira  Edwards,  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.    10,   No.  3,  New   Series 

ARTICLES  Page 

Superimposed  Aboriginal  Implement,  Geo.  A.  West 89 

Silver  Ornaments  from  Grand  Butte,  Geo.  Overton 91 

The  American   Indian  in   Painting  and   Sculpture,   Herbert  W. 

Kuhm    99 

Lake  Poygan  Indians,  Arthur  Gerth 102 

Vertebral  Pathology  of  Prehistoric  Wisconsin  Indians,  Alton  K. 

Fisher 105 

An  Unusual  Type  of  Copper  Knife,  W.  C.  McKern Ill 

A  Wisconsin  Bird-stone,  Charles  G.  Schoewe 114 

The  Joint  Meeting  at  Ripon,  Charles  E.  Brown 116 

Archeological   Notes 119 


ILLUSTRATIONS 
A  Re-worked  Copper  Gouge  or  Chisel Frontispiece 

Plate                                                                                               Facing  Page 
1.   Copper  Knife  from  Juneau  County 112 


A  RE-WORKED  COPPER  GOUGE  OR  CHISEL 
(Milwaukee   Public  Museum   Print) 


Published   Quarterly  by  the  Wisconsin  ArcheoloKiVnl   Society 

VOL,.  10.  MADISON,  WIS.,  APRIL,  1931  No.  3 

New  Series 


SUPERIMPOSED  ABORIGINAL  IMPLEMENT 

Geo.  A.  West 

Stone  artifacts  are  frequently  found  indicating  re-work- 
ing or  repair.  Arrow  points  occasionally  show  evidence  of 
having  been  re-chipped  or  re-pointed.  Stone  axes  with  bro- 
ken cutting  edges  have  been  pecked  into  shape  for  further 
use.  But  there  is  no  way  of  determining  if  the  repairs 
were  made  by  the  original  owners  or  by  subsequent  ones  who 
found  them  perhaps  centuries  later,  repaired  them  and  put 
them  into  service. 

The  village  sites  of  the  aborigines  of  Wisconsin  were  usu- 
ally located  convenient  to  some  lake,  waterway  or  spring. 
These  sites  were  successively  occupied  for  centuries  before 
white  men  came,  and  now  many  of  them  are  occupied  by  our 
cities  and  villages. 

The  ancient  village  sites  have  produced  a  large  percent- 
age of  the  aboriginal  products  of  the  past  which  we  have 
recovered,  and  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  suc- 
cessive occupants  of  these  sites  in  centuries  past  have 
found,  used  and  lost  again  many  of  the  specimens  that  fill 
our  cabinets  of  today. 

Evidences  of  superimposed  work  on  an  aboriginal  copper 
implement  is  undisputably  shown  upon  the  object  herein 
figured  and  described  (Frontispiece). 

This  interesting  object  was  found  in  November,  1928, 
about  twelve  inches  below  the  surface,  on  the  Tripoli  Golf 
Grounds,  township  of  Granville,  near  the  city  limits  of  Mil- 
waukee, by  Mr.  W.  C.  Neilson.  It  is  of  beaten  copper  and 
would  usually  be  classified  as  a  chisel  or  gouge.  Its  length 
is  seven  inches  with  an  inch  or  more  of  the  narrowest  end 
missing.  Its  cutting  edge  is  one  and  one-half  inches  in 
width  and  is  bevelled  entirely  from  one  side,  which  is  slight- 
ly concave  from  end  to  end.  Its  maximum  thickness  is 


90  WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.  10,   No. 


about  three-eighths  of  an  inch.  It  is  very  heavily  coated 
with  verdigris  and  deeply  pitted  in  places.  It  has  all  indica- 
tions of  great  age  and  of  having  been  in  contact  with  the 
soil  for  a  long  period  of  time. 

This  specimen  might  not  be  considered  exceptional  were 
it  not  for  the  fact  that  it  shows  unmistakable  evidence  of 
having  been  fabricated,  lost  and,  probably,  after  the  lapse 
of  centuries,  recovered  by  some  Indian,  reworked  and  again 
lost.  It  then  remained  undisturbed  for  possibly  hundreds 
of  years,  until  recently  found  and  now  installed  in  my 
cabinet. 

The  alteration  of  this  implement,  before  it  was  lost  the 
second  time,  consisted  in  the  hammering  of  a  groove  around 
its  mid-section,  evidently  by  the  use  of  a  stone  hammer,  and 
the  breaking  off  of  its  smaller  end  which  was  then  smoothed 
by  grinding.  The  object  of  the  groove  was  evidently  for 
the  attachment  of  a  handle,  thus  converting  it  into  an  adze, 
or  possibly  a  very  serviceable  tomahawk.  The  breaking  off 
of  the  smaller  end  was  likely  accidental  as  it  was  broken  at 
an  angle  that  left  one  side  of  the  object  one-fourth  of  an 
inch  longer  than  the  other. 

Both  the  groove  and  the  broken  end  are  of  a  dark  mahog- 
any color,  with  traces  of  verdigris,  in  contrast  to  the  re- 
mainder of  the  instrument  which  is  heavily  coated  with 
the  carbonate  of  copper,  and  contains  numerous  pits  and 
ridges  in  relief,  the  result  of  erosion. 

The  story  of  this  specimen,  as  one  reads  from  it,  is  that 
its  metal  was  obtained  in  the  usual  way  from  the  prehistoric 
mines  of  the  Lake  Superior  District,  transported  with  all 
the  accompanying  hardships  and  dangers  to  some  village  in 
Eastern  Wisconsin,  where  it  was  fabricated  and  used,  per- 
haps for  generations.  It  was  finally  lost  and,  after  hundreds 
of  years,  as  its  eroded  surface  would  indicate,  recovered  by 
some  later  Indian  who  re-worked  it  and  put  it  to  a  use  for 
which  it  was  not  originally  intended.  After  an  indefinite 
period  of  use,  it  was  again  lost  and  remained  undisturbed 
long  enough  for  the  accumulation  of  a  foot  of  soil  above 
it  and  the  first  step  in  erosion  to  be  made.  White  men  un- 
earthed it  in  an  age  when  its  usefulness  as  an  implement 
had  ceased,  but  its  value  as  a  record  of  the  past  is  inesti- 
mable. 


Silver  Ornaments. 


91 


SILVER  ORNAMENTS  FROM  GRAND  BUTTE 

Geo.  Overton 

The  Grand  Butte  des  Morts  has  long  been  clothed  in  a 
glamour  of  romance.  Legends  are  related  of  painted  and 
highly  decorated  warriors  drifting  about  in  their  high- 
prowed  canoes  or  lolling  at  ease  among  their  wigwams  of 
rushes ;  of  rollicking  voyageurs  pushing  the  heavy  boats  of 
the  trader  up  a  smiling  river.  Black  robed  missionaries  are 
pictured  preaching  to  attentive  groups  of  painted  savages 
or  being  instructed  in  the  directions  for  reaching  the  great 
Father  of  Waters.  There  are  tales  of  levying  tribute  and 
retaliation;  siege  and  surrender;  councils  and  smoking  the 
calumet  of  peace.  There  are  stories  of  terrible  battles  be- 
tween whites  and  savages  in  which  hundreds  were  slain 
and  their  bodies  gathered  and  buried  in  a  great  mound,  the 
hill  upon  which  the  village  now  stands. 

Patient  research  among  documents,  records  and  old  let- 
ters fails  to  reveal  •  the  slightest  evidence  to  substantiate 
any  of  these  highly  colored  legends.  The  only  battle  any- 
where in  this  vicinity  between  the  French  and  the  Indians 
was  the  second  engagement  of  the  Morand  expedition 
against  the  Foxes.  This  action  was  fought  on  the  Robert 
Grignon  place  nearly  four  miles  up  the  Fox  River. 

Legends  giving  many  different  locations  as  the  place 
where  the  "great  battle"  was  fought  between  two  Indian 
tribes  are  related  by  descendents  of  early  settlers  as  having 
been  told  to  them  by  Indians.  Most  of  these  stories  are 
probably  true.  Not  one  but  scores  of  battles  have  been 
fought  in  this  territory  between  various  tribes.  The  abun- 
dance of  easily  procurable  food,  clothing  and  shelter  sup- 
plied by  the  forests,  marshes  and  waters  made  this  region 
highly  attractive  to  the  aborigines.  The  numerous  village 
sites,  the  extensive  garden  beds  and  corn  hills  are  mute 
evidence  of  a  numerous  population.  Situated  as  it  is  on  a 
thru  route  of  travel  and  being  known  far  and  near  as  a 
land  of  plenty,  it  is  inevitable  that  there  would  be  con- 
troversy and  battle  between  rival  tribes. 


92  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   3 


The  builders  of  the  mounds  apparently  did  not  occupy 
this  site  as  the  nearest  mounds,  the  Overton  Group,  are  a 
mile  and  a  half  down  the  river.  The  south  shore  of  Lake 
Butte  des  Morts,  four  miles  distant,  originally  had  more 
than  fifty  mounds,  some  of  which  are  very  fine  effigies. 

The  Winnebago  are  supposed  to  have  been  the  earliest 
inhabitants  of  this  part  of  Wisconsin.  For  a  time  the 
Outagamis  were  in  control.  Following  the  downfall  of  the 
Outagamis  the  Menomini  took  possession  and  lived  on  the 
banks  of  the  Fox  River,  its  tributary  streams  and  their 
expansive  lakes. 

Butte  des  Morts — Hill  of  the  Dead — has  always  been  re- 
vered as  sacred  ground  by  the  Indians.  Here  they  erected 
the  long  wikiup  and  made  medicine  with  elaborate  and  long 
drawn-out  ceremonies.  Here  were  held  the  dances  and 
feasts  to  their  various  dietties.  The  stately,  mournful 
booming  of  the  Dream  Dance  drum  or  the  jolly  rhythmic 
beat  of  the  tom-tom  and  water  drum  led  the  chant  of  their 
songs,  ritualistic  or  convivial. 

Each  nation  in  turn  buried  its  dead  on  or  near  the  low 
hill  that  rises  abruptly  from  the  north  bank  of  the  river 
opposite  the  great  marsh.  The  bodies  of  those  who  perished 
on  hunting  or  other  expeditions  were  placed  on  scaffolds, 
or  otherwise  secured  from  harm,  till  the  party  returned 
when  they  were  brought  back  to  the  Grand  Butte  and  in- 
terred with  fitting  ceremony. 

Bundle  burials  show  that  the  dead  were  not  always 
brought  back  the  same  season.  The  fact  that  they  were 
eventually  brought  back  and  buried  indicates  conclusively 
the  veneration  in  which  this  ground  was  held  by  these  peo- 
ple. Menepoos  was  there!  Menepoos  would  watch  over  his 
children. 

The  Indian  code  appears  to  have  recognized  absolute 
ownership  of  personal  property.  Long  drawn  out  probate 
proceedings  were  not  necessary  nor  required  to  dispose  of 
the  deceased's  implements,  weapons  or  ornaments.  No 
covetous  heirs  .squabbled  over  his  earthly  possessions.  They 
were  buried  with  him  that  he  might  have  them  to  use  in  his 
future  abode.  The  hereafter  is  to  the  Indian  an  absolute 
reality.  He  was  provided  with  everything  needful  for  his 


Silver  Ornaments.  93 


journey  to,  and  for  his  life  in  The  Happy  Hunting  Ground. 

Since  the  settlement  of  Butte  des  Morts  in  the  '40's  of 
the  last  century,  and  the  consequent  cultivation  of  gardens, 
many  graves  have  been  uncovered.  Practically  every  plot 
near  the  river  has  yielded  its  quota  of  remains.  I  excavated 
a  bundle  burial  under  the  northeast  corner  of  the  Butte 
des  Morts  garage.  E.  L.  Benedict  found  a  burial  which  con- 
tained many  specimens  of  Indian  culture.  The  outstanding 
piece  was  a  string  of  crude  prehistoric  copper  beatfs.  The 
beads  were  about  half  an  inch  in  diameter  and  perforated 
thru  the  solid  copper.  Thos.  Petford  relates  having  ob- 
served as  a  boy  the  exhuming  of  a  large  number  of  bodies 
by  the  Indians  when  a  road  was  relocated  across  one  of 
their  burying  grounds.  These  bones  were  later  taken  up  the 
river  and  reinterred  (Wis.  Arch,  Vol.  8,  No.  3).  Early  set- 
tlers told  of  the  abundance  and  variety  of  the  finds  that 
followed  the  annual  plowing  of  gardens.  The  finders  usu- 
ally were  loath  to  part  with  their  relics  but  in  the  end  some 
persistent  beggar  carried  them  off  piecemeal.  Any  attempt 
at  this  late  date  to  enumerate  this  material  or  to  even  esti- 
mate the  amount  and  kind,  further  than  to  say  that  there 
was  a  great  deal  of  it,  would  be  so  wholly  devoid  of  ac- 
curacy as  to  be  valueless. 

In  the  spring  of  1930,  Mr.  Albert  Berg  erected  a  resi- 
dence on  lot  11,  block  13  of  the  original  plat  of  Butte  des 
Morts.  On  April  17  Robert  Kitz,  while  excavating  for  a 
porch  post,  dug  up  a  large  silver  ornament.  Further  work 
revealed  a  burial  very  rich  in  silver  trade  goods.  With  the 
assistance  of  Walter  Buyeski  they  uncovered  the  largest 
find  ever  made  in  this  vicinity.  Museum  workers  were 
notified  and  came,  but  the  grave  had  been  stripped  of  every- 
thing. The  metal  ornaments  and  weapons  were  piled  in  one 
box  and  the  broken  bones  had  been  thrown  in  another. 
Careful  work  with  a  sieve  on  the  excavated  material  re- 
sulted in  the  recovery  of  about  two  dozen  small  silver  ring 
brooches,  largely  damaged  by  shovels.  Next  morning  the 
material  that  went  thru  the  sieve  yielded  95  semi  transpar- 
ent porcelain  beads  and  a  few  of  wampum. 

Workmen  digging  a  sewer  to  the  river  found  grave  No. 
2  about  four  feet  south  of  grave  No.  1.  In  spite  of  requests, 


94  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 

pleadings  and  even  supplications,  that  in  case  of  another 
find,  things  be  left  intact  till  expert  hands  could  do  the  un- 
covering, the  former  misguided,  ruthless  destruction  was 
repeated.  Each  tried  to  see  who  could  pick  out  the  most 
pieces  in  the  shortest  time.  As  a  spectator  put  it;  "The 
whole  thing  was  a  grab  fest." 

A  few  feet  nearer  the  river  a  skull  was  found  in  the 
isewer  trench.  This  grave,  No.  3,  was  carefully  excavated 
by  workers  from  the  Oshkosh  Public  Museum.  Measure- 
ments and  photographs  were  taken.  The  only  thing  of  in- 
terest in  this  grave,  other  than  the  position  and  condition 
of  the  bones,  was  a  small  broken  pot.  This  pot  has  been 
restored  and  is  now  in  the  collection  of  the  Oshkosh  Public 
Museum. 

Graves  Nos.  1  and  2  were  prone  burials,  heads  to  the 
west.  The  bodies  did  not  lie  exactly  east  and  west,  the  feet 
being  a  few  degrees  to  the  north  of  due  east.  They  were 
an  adult  male  and  a  female,  respectively.  No.  3,  a  young 
adult  male,  lay  with  the  head  to  the  east,  the  body  extended 
toward  the  southwest  with  the  legs  partly  flexed.  Grave 
No.  1  was  placed  19  inches  below  the  original  surface  at 
its  deepest  point.  However,  this  lot  had  been  used  as  a  gar- 
den for  many  years  and  had  probably  washed  considerably. 
No.  3  was  right  on  the  brow  of  the  escarpment  and  was 
deeper  than  the  others.  In  my  opinion  this  burial  had  no 
connection  with  the  others  being  merely  a  chance  juxta- 
position. 

Grave  No.  1,  inventories  as  follows: 

Silver  Arm  band  ($5.33  per  pair). 

2  in.  wide  by  9  in.  long.  Raised  line  of  beading  along  each 
side.  The  outside  edge  is  folded  under  iV  in.  to  form  a  small 
bead.  The  corners  and  the  ends  are  not  perfectly  square.  Two 
holes  are  in  each  end. 

A  conventional  Dragon  is  engraved  on  the  face  of  band.  This 
figure  is  2  in.  long  by  %  in.  high.  Mouth  open,  tongue  protrud- 
ing. Upper  jaw  has  five  fangs  and  low  has  three.  Horns  similar 
to  a  cow.  Front  legs  have  paws  and  hind  legs  talons,  and  the 
tail  is  like  that  of  a  panther. 

Marked  on  one  end  "MONTREAL,"  and  on  the  other  "RC." 

Silver  arm  band. 

2  in.  wide  by  9  in.  long.  Beading  %  in.  wide  along  each  side. 
A  broad  bead  outside  and  two  narrower  beads  inside.  Corners 
are  rounded.  Three  holes  iV  in.  in  diameter  in  each  end.  Has 
an  engraved  bird,  with  a  hooked  beak,  probably  an  eagle,  1% 
in.  long.  No  hall  mark. 


Silver  Ornaments.  95 

Silver  Brooch 

4%  in.  in  diameter,  concavity  %  in.  deep.  Line  of  engraving 
TG  in.  wide.  &  in.  from  the  edge.  Between  this  line  and  the 
outer  edge  is  a  serpentine  line  of  similar  engraving  the  undula- 
tions of  which  are  %  in.  apart.  The  central  figure  is  a  crude 
swan  1  V2  in.  high  by  1  %  in.  long.  Above  the  swan  are  two  but- 
tons or  bosses  fs  in.  diameter;  the  shanks  extend  thru  the  plate 
and  terminate  in  ^4  in.  loops  at  the  back.  Hall  mark  very  in- 
distinct, resembles  CA. 

Boat-shaped  brooch. 

2  %  in.  long  by  V2  in.  wide  at  middle,  tapering  in  a  curved  line 
to  p  in.  at  the  ends.  The  face  is  convex  and  the  back  flat. 
i36  in.  thick  at  the  middle  and  iV  in.  at  the  ends.  The  brooch 
has  an  outward  curve  of  %  in.  Made  of  thin  silver,  hollow,  the 
ends  originally  ornamented  by  the  ball  of  an  ear-bob  held  in 
place  by  a  thong  drawn  thru  the  inside  of  the  brooch.  Hall 
marked  II. 

Diamond-shaped  brooch  (Cut  out). 

Ii3e  in.  long  by  1%  in.  wide.  The  diamond  is  %  in.  long 
by  %  in.  wide.  Each  point  surrounded  by  a  cut-out  crescent 
showing  the  points  of  the  diamond.  Has  a  tongue  across  middle. 
Hall  mark  RC. 

Double  heart. 

Itk  in.  long  by  1  in.  wide.  Made,  of  about  20  gauge  silver, 
by  cutting  out  two  overlapping  hearts  from  one  piece.  The  in- 
ner part  of  the  hearts  is  cut  out  leaving  a  strip  •£>  in.  wide. 
The  left  heart  has  the  edges  indented  and  the  right  has  an  en- 
graved line  on  its  face^.  The  whole  is  surmounted  by  a  Royal 
Crown  having  the  outer  edge  indented.  Hall  mark  RC. 

Small  Crosses. 

Silver  ear  bob  with  three  "Small  Crosses"  attached  to  the  wire 
ring.  Crosses  are  liV  in.  by  %  in.  Hall  mark  RC. 

"Small"  silver  ear  bob. 

2  "Large"  silver  ear  bobs. 

2  Silver  finger  rings. 

Silver  hair  band.    1%  in.  long  by  •&  in.  wide.    One  edge  beaded. 

Silver  hair  band.  3  in.  long  by  1  in.  wide.  One  edge  beaded,  corners 
clipped.  Hole  in  one  end. 

Circular  brooch.    %  in.  in  diameter.    Circle  re  in.  wide.    Marked  RC. 

Small  circular  brooch.  Same  as  above  but  %  in.  in  diameter.  No 
mark. 

Silver  ring  brooches.  There  were  more  than  150  in  all.  90  of  these, 
in  four  sizes,  %  in.,  TG  in.,  %  in.  and  %  in.,  are  preserved  in- 
tact. Many  are  still  fastened  together  by  the  original  ribbon. 
The  others  are  damaged  or  were  lost. 

15  Hammered  copper  cones. 

These  cones  varied  from  %  in.  to  %  in.  long  and  were  about 
1A  in.  in  diameter  at  the  large  end  and  TSG  in.  at  the  small 
end.  The  cones  were  crudely  hammered  out  of  native  copper. 
These  coppers  are  generally  listed  as  'tinklers'  for  the  adornment 
of  medicine  bags  and  other  like  uses.  Those  found  in  this  burial 
had  tufts  of  hair  in  the  large  end,  some  quite  well  preserved. 
From  their  position  in  the  grave  they  were  probably  a  necklace. 

Copper  fish  hook. 

21/4  in.  long.  Shank  flattened  32  in.  wide  and  s32  in.  thick, 
tapering  to  a  point  at  the  upper  end. 


96  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    3 


Large  bone  beads. 

Six  perfect  and  two  fragmentary  bone  beads,  1%  in.  long  by 
%  in.  in  diameter.  Found  near  skull.  Part  of  feather  head  dress. 

Part  of  bone  awl. 

1  %  in.  long,  */4  in.  square,  pointed,  butt  broken  off. 

Four  large  metal  buttons.    1  in.  in  diameter.    Badly  corroded. 

Two  hundred  porcelain  beads  and  a  few  of  wampum. 

Fragments  of  a  pouch  of  some  sort  of  fine-grained  skin. 

Trace  of  red  paint.    Near  pouch. 

Two  gun  flints  and  a  painted  flint  scraper. 

One  painted  flint  arrow  point. 

Steel  scalping  knife.    9  in.  long  over  all,  blade  5  in.  long.    Badly  cor- 
roded. 

Iron  spear  head. 

8  in.  long,  blade  6}4  in.  long  and  2%  in.  wide  at  base.  Sides 
of  blade  taper  straight  to  the  point.  Tang  %  in.  wide  with  a 
deep  notch  on  each  side  %  in.  from  the  end. 

Fire  steel.    3%  in.  long.    Oval  in  shape. 

Squaw  hatchet.  5%    in.  long,  2x/4    in.  wide  at  the  bit.    Eye,  1%   in. 
in  diameter,  still  has  traces  of  wood. 

Grave  No.  2.    Adult  Female 

Two  silver  double  crosses  ($10.33  per  C). 

These  are  the  "small  double  crosses".  They  are  2%  in.  long, 
with  lower  bar  1  Vs  in.  and  the  upper  bar  1  in.  long.  The  bars 
and  the  upper  part  are  &  in.  wide;  the  lower  part  is  &  in. 
wide.  Cut  out  of  sheet  silver  of  about  20  gauge.  One  cross  is 
ornamented  with  punch  marks  and  the  other  by  engraved  short 
curved  lines  and  X  marks.  Hall  mark  RC. 
Silver  bracelet. 

6%   in.  long  by   %   in.  wide.    Edges  ornamented  by  lines  of 
beading.    Ends  cut  round.    Hole  in  each  end.    No  mark. 
Silver  bracelet. 

5%  in.  long  by  H  in.  wide.  Ends  cut  in  segment.  Hole  in 
each  end.  Hall  mark  RC. 

2  Hair  bands. 

3y8    in.   and   3iV   in.   long  and    y2    in.   wide.     A   bead    iV   in. 
wide,   l/s   in.  from  each  edge.    One  end  is  square  and  the  other 
is  rounded,  with  a  hole  in  the  rounded  end.    Made  flat  by  ham- 
mering.  Hall  mark  very  indistinct,  SI  or  SJ. 
Cover  of  a  'Patch  Box'. 

Oval,   1%   in.  long  by  1  %   in.  wide.    Convexity   1A    in.  deep. 
The  hinge  had  been  broken  off.    Other  part  of  box  missing. 
Diamond-shaped  brooch. 

Similar  to  that  in  grave  No.  1. 

3  Small  silver  cones,   %   in.  long  by  ^4  in.    Very  thin  sheet.    Crude. 

Evidently  Indian  made. 
Ear  bobs. 

%    in.  silver  wire  ring  with  six  large  ear-bobs  strung  on  it. 
One  had  a  square  tinkler.    Four  small  ear-bobs.    Some  damaged. 
Silver  ring  brooches. 

26  Vz  in.,  22 tl  in.,  6%  in.,  447/8  in.  and  21,  broken,  of  differ- 
ent sizes,  making  119  in  all. 


Silver  Ornaments.  97 


Fire  steel.    Oval.    3  in.  long.    Badly  corroded.    Two  Indian  made  gun 

flints. 

One  hand  made  buckshot. 
Parts  of  a  round  metal  box. 
Small  metal-backed  mirror.    Diameter  2  in. 
78  Porcelain  beads  and  9  feet  of  wampum. 

The  above  enumerated  articles  have  now  become  the 
property  of  the  Oshkosh  Public  Museum  and  are  on  display. 

Mr.  Berg  recovered  a  catlinite  pipe  from  grave  No.  1. 
After  looking  at  it  awhile  he  tossed  it  aside.  It  never  ap- 
peared again. 

There  were  at  least  four  of  the  diamond-shaped  brooches 
in  grave  No.  2,  but  only  one  stayed  in  the  basket. 

Two  large,  elaborately  chased,  silver  double  crosses,  the 
rarest  and  most  highly  prized  of  all  relics  of  early  Wiscon- 
sin, were  taken  from  grave  No.  2,  but  they  went  the  way 
of  the  will-o-the-wisp. 

An  old  flintlock  pistol  was  found  in  one  of  the  graves. 
Extreme  length  14!/2m.,  barrel  8  in.,  bore  about  9-16  in. 
Lock  plate  is  missing.  Brass  ball  butt,  mask  face  butt  plate. 
Two  tapering  brass  straps  extend  from  the  butt  along  the 
sides  of  the  stock.  The  front  part  of  the  trigger  guard  plate 
is  made  in  the  form  of  an  acorn.  The  plate  opposite  the  lock 
is  highly  ornamented  by  being  cut  in  fanciful  design  and  en- 
graved, that  part  toward  the  stock  terminating  in  a  conven- 
tional leaf  form.  The  bottom  of  the  trigger  guard  was 
engraved  with  some  sort  of  conventionalized  sun-burst. 
Metal  name  plate  on  top  of  stock  had  no  mark. 

This  type  of  pistol  may  date  anywhere  from  1760  to  1775, 
and  very  probably  was  of  English  make.  Has  been  restored 
as  far  as  possible. 

The  approximate  date  of  the  pistol  and  the  hall  marks 
on  the  silver  fix  the  date  of  the  burial  some  time  in  the 
later  years  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Mr.  L.  B.  Porlier  is 
my  authority  for  the  assertion  that  the  Menomini  did  not 
use  the  Grand  Butte  as  a  general  cemetery  very  long  after 
the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Most  certainly 
the  French  who  settled  here  in  the  second  decade  of  the 
nineteenth  century  would  have  made  some  mention  of  the 
death  and  burial  of  persons  of  such  importance  as  these 
appear  to  have  been. 


98  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 

The  Oshkosh  Museum  is  indeed  fortunate  to  get  this  col- 
lection, and  to  preserve  it  as  an  example  of  the  extreme 
height  of  the  culture  of  this  locality  as  it  was  influenced 
by  the  early  traders.  In  the  clumsy  rifling  of  these  burials 
a  crime  has  been  committed.  Again  history  and  archeology 
lose  valuable  data  thru  the  sheer  ignorance  and  unholy 
greed  of  mere  relic  hunters. 


Indian   in   Painting  and  Sculpture. 


THE  AMERICAN  INDIAN  IN  PAINTING  AND 
SCULPTURE 

Herbert  W.   Kuhm 

The  very  unrest,  the  questioning  spirit  in  our  day,  is 
leading  us  to  a  more  wholesome  respect  for  the  simple  re- 
actions of  primitive  races.  We  are  even  discovering  that 
there  is  some  subtlety  there.  No  longer  cocksure  of  our- 
selves and  of  the  ultimate  value  of  our  civilization,  we  have 
become  interested  in  many  aspects  of  primitive  life. 

A  fascinating  record  is  that  of  the  American  -Indian  be- 
fore white  civilization  touched  him.  Something  of  the  joy, 
the  beauty  and  the  pathos  of  his.  life  has  been  reflected  in 
many  of  our  works  of  art. 

We  are  deeply  indebted  to  the  scientific  research  worker 
for  his  painstaking  record  of  Indian  history;  yet  how  elo- 
quently speaks  the  canvas  of  the  artist-historian.  What  the 
former  must  describe  in  hundreds  of  words,  the  latter  de- 
picts with  vivid  words  taken  from  his  palette;  and  all  in 
a  simple  language  that  young  and  old,  educated  or  illiterate, 
scientists  or  layman,  can  appreciate  and  understand. 

The  treatment  of  the  American  Indian  as  a  subject  for 
art  has  been  characterized  as  the  youthful  sin  of  every 
American  artist.  Yet  no  artist  aiming  at  a  sympathetic 
and  sincere  expression  of  the  American  spirit  should  neglect 
entirely  this  truly  American  motif  in  his  work,  for  it  is 
basic  and  as  solidly  American  as  the  Indian  himself. 

Much  that  is  encouraging  has  come  to  pass.  The  paint- 
ing of  the  colony  of  artists  who  have  settled  at  Taos  and 
Santa  Fe  in  New  Mexico  has  sought  to  reveal  Indian  life  in 
the  primitive  beauty  of  our  own  Southwest.  In  Santa  Fe  a 
new  Museum  has  been  dedicated  to  the  preservation  of  the 
native  culture  of  that  region.  Indian  designs  have  found 
their  way  into  our  textiles.  Anthologies  of  Indian  verse 
have  been  compiled.  Poets  have  begun  to  experiment  with 
the  idiom  of  the  Indian  song-poem  form  and  musical  com- 
positions based  on  Indian  themes  are  heard  in  our  concert 


100  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 


halls  and  over  the  radio.  Truly,  at  last  we  have  awakened 
to  the  artistic  riches  which,  as  Dr.  Lyman  Abbott  said,  lie 
hidden  like  the  gold  in  the  rocks  of  our  native  land. 

Nearly  a  century  ago,  the  War  Department  attempted  tc 
gather  a  collection  of  Indian  paintings  so  that  authentic 
portraits  of  this  fast  vanishing  race  might  be  laid  up  in 
the  archives  of  the  Government  for  safekeeping. 

James  Lewis  and  Charles  Bird  King  were  commissioned 
to  paint  a  number  of  Indian  portraits,  and  these  became  the 
nucleus  of  the  War  Department's  gallery. 

This  initial  move  to  preserve  the  Indian  through  art  re- 
ceived a  serious  blow  when  the  gallery  in  the  Smithsonian 
Institution  at  Washington,  where  the  pictures  were  housed, 
was  destroyed  by  fire  in  1865. 

Fortunately  for  posterity,  the  Government  recommenced 
the  project,  beginning  this  time  with  the  paintings  of 
George  Catlin,  who  from  1832  to  1839  traveled  and  lived 
among  many  native  tribes,  making  hundreds  of  paintings 
portraying  their  life  and  customs.  These  paintings  now 
form  the  famous  Catlin  Gallery  of  the  United  States  Na- 
tional Museum  at  Washington. 

Of  interest  to  us  in  Wisconsin  is  the  fact  that  Catlin's 
itinerary  brought  him  to  Mackinaw  and  Sault  Ste.  Marie. 
He  went  up  the  Fox  River  and  down  the  Wisconsin  in  a 
bark  canoe,  and  his  illustrations  show  the  Ojibwa  catching 
whitefish  with  scoop  nets;  also  an  Ojibwa  canoe  race. 
While  at  the  "Soo",  Catlin  made  a  number  of  portraits  of 
Ojibwa  Indians. 

Before  Olin  Warner  made  his  remarkable  series  of  Indian 
portraits  in  relief,  the  American  artist  who  used  the  red 
man  as  a  model  at  all  was,  with  few  exceptions,  disposed  to 
make  him  a  romantic  figure  after  the  literary  fashion  of 
James  Fenimore  Cooper  of  Leatherstocking  fame,  or  to 
invest  him  with  somewhat  theatrical  significance.  Pieces  of 
the  simplicity  and  sincerity  of  J.  Q.  A.  Ward's  "Indian 
Hunter"  were  rare.  Warner's  reliefs  signalized  a  newer 
and  saner  conception  of  the  one  intensely  picturesque  type 
that  had  been  left  to- us,  and  that  we  had  foolishly  sought 
to  conventionalize. 


Indian  in  Painting  and  Sculpture. 


When  Frederic  Remington's  opportunity  came  to  portray 
the  Indian  after  his  own  manner  of  thinking,  he  faced  the 
task  from  Warner's  honest  point  of  view.  When  he  went 
West  and  found  picturesquesness,  he  did  not  make  it  an  af- 
fair solely  of  Indians  in  war  paint  and  feathers.  Rather,  he 
became  interested  in  the  Indians'  everyday  life  and  thought, 
not  merely  in  the  most  spectacular  manifestations  of  it.  The 
Indian  appealed  to  him  not  in  any  histrionic  way,  not  as  a 
figure  materialized  from  the  pages  of  "Hiawatha,"  but  just 
as  a  human  creature,  sometimes  resplendant  in  the  char- 
acter of  a  militant  chief  defending  his  people  against  the 
encroaching  white  pioneers,  sometimes  merely  an  unkempt, 
illsmelling  weakling  loathesomely  drunk  on  white-man's 
liquor.  It  would  be  stupid  to  be  ungrateful  for  the  Indian 
pictures  which  have  happened  to  indealize  and  make  the 
Indian  seem  an  exotic,  if  not  legendary,  personage.  Oc- 
casionally they  may  have  been  very  good  pictures.  But  the 
tendency,  latterly,  has  been  in  the  direction  which  Ward 
and  Remington  indicated. 

Truly,  we  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude  to  those  individuals 
who,  by  their  intellectual  penetration,  artistic  intuition  and 
sympathetic  understanding  of  the  ways  of  the  Indian,  have 
recorded  for  all  time  the  beauty  of  the  Indian's  culture. 
Their  art  will  serve  as  a  ministry  of  service  in  human 
advancement  through  its  broad  appeal  for  a  humane  treat- 
ment of  a  deeply  misunderstood  and  richly  gifted  race,  and 
for  some  method  of  adjusting  the  Indian  to  the  alien  civi- 
lization around  him,  not  by  stamping  out  all  that  was  na- 
tive to  him  in  the  futile  belief  that  he  might  thus  be 
transformed  into  a  white  man,  but  by  developing  his  char- 
acter through  the  preservation  and  fostering  of  all  that  was 
valuable  in  his  own  distinctive  culture. 

.  The  painters  and  sculptors  who  have  portrayed  and  de- 
picted the  American  Indian  have  lent  a  hand  to  a  dying 
nation,  and  have  snatched  from  a  hasty  oblivion  what  could 
be  saved  for  posterity,  and  perpetuated  it  as  a  fair  and 
just  monument  to  the  memory  of  a  truly  lofty  and  noble 
race. 


102  WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.   3 


LAKE  POYGAN  INDIANS 

Arthur   Gerth 

Back  in  the  year  1888  and  during  a  few  years  following, 
I  accompanied  my  father  every  spring  up  into  the  Lake 
Poygan  country.  I  was  but  a  small  lad  at  the  time  and  my 
father,  Stephen  Gerth,  a  painter,  made  these  annual  visits 
to  engage  in  work  for  the  farmers  residing  at  Tustin, 
Brushville,  Weyauwega,  Poysippi,  Fremont  and  Omro.  It 
was  during  these  trips,  which  occurred  at  about  the  same 
time  each  year,  that  I  had  the  opportunity  of  observing  the 
roving  habits  of  the  Menomini  Indians,  who  each  spring 
came  to  this  locality  to  tap  the  maple  trees  for  sap  and  re- 
mained long  enough  to  convert  the  sweet  fluid  into  tasty 
bars  of  maple  sugar,  before  continuing  their  trek  to  the 
next  sap-gathering  site. 

My  interest  was  aroused  in  this  little  wandering  band  of 
nomads  as  they  appeared  year  after  year,  not  unlike  mi- 
gratory birds  that  return  in  the  wake  of  winter  to  their 
favorite  feeding  haunts.  The  little  band,  comprising  four 
or  five  bucks  with  their  squaws  and  children,  apparently 
was  made  up  of  two  or  three  families  traveling  thus  always 
together.  Shabbily  dressed  in  what  might  have  been  the 
cast-off  clothing  of  their  white  brethren,  about  the  only 
identifying  mark  of  the  aborigine  which  they  bore  was  the 
moccasins  worn  by  all.  The  men  were  always  hatless,  like 
our  present-day  collegians;  the  women,  gypsy-like,  wore 
shawls  and  dresses  of  gaudily  colored,  cheap  printed  cloth. 
Chubby  papooses  peeked  out  at  the  world  from  leather 
cradles  suspended  from  bands  about  their  mothers'  heads. 
The  picture  was  completed  by  a  dozen  or  so  of  frisky  little 
Indian  ponies,  some  hitched  between  the  shafts  of  the  tra- 
vois  heaped  up  with  camp  luggage,  others  ridden  bareback 
by  bucks  whose  poise  and  grace  astride  their  mounts  de- 
noted the  born  equestrian. 

That  this  group  had  a  fixed  itinerary  which  they  traversed 
each  year,  I  am  quite  sure,  for  they  always  came  from  the 
west  and  departed  toward  the  north,  in  the  direction  of 


Lake  Poygan   Indians.  103 

Fremont.    I  learned  that  Weyauwega  and  Poysippi  were 
also  visited  during  their  round  of  sugar  making. 

Arriving  in  Tustin,  their  camp  was  pitched  in  the  woods 
adjoining  the  town.  Sometimes  their  camp  site  would  be 
in  Bergner's  woods.  The  owner  of  this  tract,  Christ.  Berg- 
ner,  was  a  pioneer  in  this  section  and  an  old  settler  who 
had  hewn  his  home  and  farm  out  of  the  virgin  forests 
flanking  the  waters  of  beautiful  Lake  Poy^an.  The  rude 
log  house  that  was  the  first  Bergner  home  was  still  stand- 
ing on  their  farm  at  that  time,  more  than  forty  years  ago. 
The  present  owner  of  these  lands  is  Charles,  a  son.  In  the 
shadowy  woods  ringing  the  lake  the  Menomini  would 
erect  crude  lean-tos  and  pitch  their  tepees  and  go  about  the 
business  of  collecting  the  maple  sap.  The  white  farmers 
had  no  objections  to  this  for  the  demand  on  their  time  was 
so  great,  what  with  farming  their  cleared  lands  and  clear- 
ing off  the  rocks  and  trees  to  extend  their  arable  acres, 
that  the  rather  profitless  making  of  maple  sugar  offered 

little  inducement. 

i 

The  Indians,  during  their  three  or  four  days  sojourn, 
were  somewhat  of  a  nuisance  because  of  their  borrowing 
and  foraging  activities,  but  the  farmers  were  good-natur- 
edly tolerant  of  the  wanderers  and  relations  were  always 
most  friendly.  Although  anything  to  replenish  their  table 
fare  was  acceptable  to  the  Indians,  they  were  particularly 
fond  of  fresh  white  bread  which  the  farmers'  wives  baked. 
As  a  gesture  of  payment  for  the  many  favors' they  received 
during  their  visit  ,the  Indians  usually  presented  their  bene- 
factors with  cakes  of  maple  sugar  before  taking  leave. 

All  hands,  men,  women  and  children,  took  active  part  in 
the  sugar  harvest.  Placing  in  the  tapped  trees  tubes  of 
wood  fifteen  to  eighteen  inches  long,  serving  as  spouts,  they 
collected  the  sap  in  earthen  jars.  Huge  iron  kettles  were 
borrowed  from  the  Julius  Bartel  farm  which  adjoined  the 
Bergner  lands.  "Reke"  Bartel,  a  son  of  old  Julius,  is  the 
present  owner.  The  work  would  continue  for  three  or  four 
days,  then  the  little  caravan  would  break  camp  and  bid 
goodbye  to  Lake  Poygan  for  another  year. 

On  the  Bartel  farm,  in  a  field  about  300  yards  north  of 
the  kitchen,  stood  a  giant  oak.  Under  its  gnarled  limbs 


104  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 

was  heaped  a  weed-grown  Indian  burial  mound.  There  a 
Menomini  warrior  slept.  And  to  this  isolated,  lonely  grave, 
our  little  group  of  wandering  sugar  makers  came  yearly  to 
pay  their  respects  to  a  departed  sire.  Each  year  the  request 
was  made  to  old  Julius  Bartel  by  the  Indians  that  the  rest- 
ing place  of  their  ancestor  be  spared  from  the  plow-share, 
and  every  year  the  kindly  Bartel  renewed  to  them  his 
promise  that  "As  long  as  I  own  this  farm  that  grave  will 
never  be  disturbed."  The  situation  impressed  me  as  being 
pathetically  ironical:  once  masters  of  these  broad  fields  and 
woods  and  lakes,  the  remnants  of  that  proud  race  begging 
of  the  conqueror  for  enough  ground  to  house  the  remains 
of  a  fallen  tribesman.  I  do  not  know  whether  or  not  the 
years  and  the  ruthless  advance  of  civilization  have  erased 
the  old  burial  mound  on  the  Bartel  farm. 

That  the  region  surrounding  Lake  Poygan  was  one 
especially  favored  by  the  tribes  in  this  section  is  attested 
by  the  abundance  of  Indian  implements  found  on  all  of  the 
farms.  Finding  them  in  the  plowed  fields  was  of  such  com- 
mon occurrence  that  little  or  no  value  was  attached  to  the 
relics.  I  remember  seeing  some  beautiful  flints  eight  to  ten 
inches  long  lying  about  in  a  farmer's  granary.  At  Berg- 
ners  Point  (where  the  Bergner  lands  farmed  a  tiny  penin- 
sula in  Lake  Poygan)  there  were  three  large  boulders,  and 
a  carpeting  of  flint  flakes,  chips  and  broken  arrowpoints 
covered  the  ground  nearby,  mute  evidence  that  here,  before 
the  sturdy  vanguard  of  pioneers  came  to  wrest  homes  and 
farms  from  this  primeval  wilderness,  this  wooded  point 
served  as  a  workshop  where  the  red  man  fashioned  flint 
implements  in  this  primitive  armory.  I  have  in  my  collec- 
tion several  of  these  stone  implements  which  my  father 
gathered,  including  a  stone  axe  and  celts  from  the  Tustin 
locality. 


Vertebral  Pathology  of  Prehistoric  Wis.  Indians.  105 


THE  VERTEBRAL  PATHOLOGY  OF 
PREHISTORIC  WISCONSIN  INDIANS 

Alton    K.    Fisher 

In  recent  years  an  interest  has  been  awakened  with  re- 
gard to  the  diseases  of  prehistoric  peoples.  To  some  the 
problems  connected  with  this  subject  already  have  their 
solutions,  while  to  others  the  question  remains  an  open  one. 
The  data  obtained  through  researches  in  this  field  are  suffi- 
cient to  cause  one  to  be  suspicious  of  the  most  current  the- 
ory on  the  subject,  namely,  that  primitive  man  was  not 
affected  by  the  pathological  processes  which  afflict  mod- 
ern, civilized  man.  One  often  has  heard  from  the  layman, 
that  primitive  men  were  models  of  physical  perfection  and 
health,  and  even  medical  men  have  been  guilty  of  the  state- 
ment that  most  disease  is  a  result  of  civilization.  This 
theory  is  by  no  means  a  new  one,  and  it  is  obviously  a  ra- 
tionalization, for  it  came  into  being  long  before  any  re- 
searches had  been  conducted  in  the  field  of  prehistoric 
pathology.  It  is  a  theory  which  is  easy  to  believe  without 
further  investigation  and  it  was  a  pleasant  subject  for  dis- 
cussion for  there  were  no  concrete  facts  available  through 
which  one's  arguments  could  be  refuted.  However,  a  critical 
consideration  of  the  causes  of  disease  ought  to  convince  one 
of  the  absurdity  of  this  theory.  From  the  available  infor- 
mation on  the  subject  it  seems  that  the  basic  biological  laws 
are  constant  and  universal  in  operation.  When  a  living 
organism  is  so  functioning  that  it  may  continue  in  its  nor- 
mal life  processes,  it  is  said  to  be  in  a  healthy  condition.  On 
the  other  hand,  where  there  is  an  abnormality  of  structure 
or  function  in  a  living  organism,  it  is  in  a  condition  of  dis- 
ease. Inasmuch  as  all  grades  of  living  organisms  are  sub- 
jected to  countless  influences  which  alter  their  normal 
structures  and  functions,  it  is  unreasonable  to  suppose  that 
life  can  exist  without  the  presence  of  pathological  pro- 
cesses. It  is  true  that  abnormal  environments,  such  as  those 
produced  by  civilization  do  cause  certain  pathological  pro- 
cesses to  manifest  themselves  in  certain  peculiar  forms, 


106  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.    3 

but  our  present  state  of  knowledge  compels  us  to  believe 
that  the  basic  pathological  processes  are  the  same. 

In  dealing  with  primitive  man  in  Wisconsin  we  are  con-, 
sidering  the  American  Indian,  and  of  these  prehistoric  In- 
dians we  have  only  the  skeletal  remains.  These  bones  as  a 
rule  are  poorly  preserved.  Most  of  the  burials  are  so  badly 
decomposed  that  an  accurate  examination  of  the  bone  struc- 
ture is  impossible.  When  one  recovers  bones  showing 
pathological  lesions,  and  sufficiently  intact  to  permit  a 
thorough  examination  of  these  lesions,  he  is  indeed  for- 
tunate. It  is  very  probable  that  the  prehistoric  Wisconsin 
Indians  suffered  from  a  variety  of  pathological  afflictions, 
but  we  can  be  certain  of  only  those  abnormal  conditions 
which  involve  the  bone. 

In  studying  the  bone  pathology,  as  well  as  the  pathology 
of  the  other  systems  of  the  body,  one  finds  that  many 
causes  of  disease  produce  very  similar  conditions  of  the 
organs  under  consideration.  Forgetting  for  the  moment  the 
predisposing  factors  which  may  be  conducive  to  disease, 
such  as  age,  sex,  heredity,  environment  and  idiosyncrasies, 
it  is  possible  to  observe  at  least  the  grosser  immediate  or 
determining  causes  of  the  abnormalities  of  structure  and 
function.  Traumatic  or  mechanical  injuries  of  various  sorts, 
extreme  physical  conditions  of  heat  and  light,  certain 
poisons  and  many  bacteria  produce  in  living  tissue,  in  ad- 
dition to  other  changes,  certain  circulatory  disturbances.  In 
the  skeletal  and  associated  tissues  disturbances  of  circula- 
tion may  occur  in  the  bone  and  associated  membranes  and 
medullary  contents,  in  the  certilage,  or  rather  in  the  peri- 
chondrium,  and  in  the  adjacent  tendons.  One  of  the  most 
frequently  encountered  disturbances  of  circulation  is  that 
of  hyperemia,  and  it  is  now  believe^  that  there  can  be  no 
resorption  without  the  existence  of  this  condition. 

It  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  bone,  cartilage  and  tendon 
are  all  derivatives  of  connective  tissue,  and  therefore  it  is 
not  strange  that  under  abnormal  circumstances  these  tis- 
sues should  change  their  forms,  bone  becoming  cartilagin- 
ous, and  cartilage  and  tendon  becoming  either  ossified  or 
calcified.  In  the  case  of  calcification  the  involved  tissues 
become  impregnated  with  calcium  salts  without  a  change 


Vertebral  Pathology  of  Prehistoric  Wis.  Indians.        •  107 

to  true  osseous  tissue.  In  a  transformation  to  real  bone  the 
involved  connective  tissue  derivatives  have  a  tendency  to  re- 
vert to  an  embryonic  or  less  highly  differentiated  state  in 
which  condition  they  are  ossifiable  mediums.  Hyperemic  con- 
ditions of  the  structures  in  question  are  apt  to  produce  the 
changes  just  described. 

In  hyperemic  conditions  in  which  bony  tissue  is  resorbed 
or  altered,  the  calcareous  substances  may  be  and  frequently 
are  redeposited  in  adjacent  tissues  of  the  same  type.  When 
this  process  occurs  in  bones  close  to  the  joints  in  the  body, 
the  calcium  salts  from  the  bones  may  be  placed  in  the 
cartilages  of  the  joints  due  to  the  fact  that  the  cartilage 
may  have  been  involved  in  the  disease  process.  When  the 
cartilage  is  ossified  or  calcified  a  bony  fusion  or  ankylosis 
of  the  joint  is  apt  to  occur,  in  which  condition  the  joint  is 
no  longer  active. 

Among  the  skeletal  remains  of  the  prehistoric  Wisconsin 
Indians  I  have  observed  four  cases  in  which  the  vertebral 
columns  have  been  involved  in  very  pronounced  pathological 
processes,  every  case  resulting  in  a  bony  ankylosis  of  the 
vertebrae.  Case  Number  1  was  that  of  an  adult  individual 
recovered  from  a  burial  in  a  mound  in  Marquette  County. 
Parts  of  sixteen  vertebrae  are  present,  including  thoracic 
and  lumbar  elements  from  the  column  of  an  adult  male. 
Most  of  the  intervertebral  discs  of  fibro-cartilage  have  been 
ossified,  tending  to  make  the  column  a  fairly  inflexible  struc- 
ture. In  the  upper  thoracic  region  lips  of  bone  have  formed 
at  the  margins  of  the  superior  and  inferior  surfaces  of  the 
bodies  of  some  other  vertebrae.  This  so-called  lipping  is 
quite  characteristic  of  spondylitis  deformans  or  arthritis 
deformans  of  the  vertebral  column.  When  one  is  dealing 
only  with  bony  structures  it  is  quite  impossible,  as  a  rule, 
to  definitely  state  the  cause  of  arthritis  deformans.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  unless  the  agent  producing  the  abnormality 
is  still  present  in  the  bone,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  name 
the  exact  cause  of  any  diseased  condition  of  the  bone,  for 
as  I  have  said  before,  many  agents  may  produce  the  same 
effect.  In  the  parts  of  the  specimen  which  have  been  pre- 
served there  are  no  evidences  of  traumatic  injuries  to  the 
vertebrae.  In  comparative  safety  we  may  exclude  the  possi- 


108  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    3 


bility  of  extreme  physical  conditions  and  external  poisons 
as  causative  agents.  Although  the  following  statement  is 
by  no  means  conclusive,  it  is  quite  probable  that  bacteria 
were  the  cause  of  this  case  of  arthritis  deformans.  The 
seat  of  the  original  infection  may  have  been  in  some  other 
part  of  the  body,  such  as  in  diseased  tonsils,  nasal  sinuses, 
infections  resulting  from  lacerations  of  the  skin,  or  from 
periapical  infections  of  the  teeth.  My  researches  in  the 
dental  pathology  of  the  prehistoric  Wisconsin  Indians  have 
shown  that  about  twenty-five  per  cent  of  the  individuals 
examined  were  afflicted  with  alveolar  abscesses.  Quite 
probably  the  bacteria  from  one  of  the  possible  infected 
areas  escaped  into  the  blood  stream  and  were  distributed 
throughout  the  body.  As  a  result  some  of  them  apparently 
were  lodged  in  the  tissues  of  the  vertebral  column  where 
the  pathological  process  just  described  took  place. 

Case  Number  2  is  much  less  spectacular,  for  the  specimen 
consists  of  only  the  arches  of  three  thoracic  vertebrae,  but 
it  is  fully  as  interesting.  This  specimen  was  obtained  from 
a  bundle  burial  in  a  mound  in  Dodge  County.  The  laminae 
are  quite  firmly  united  by  masses  of  bone  produced  as  a 
result  of  an  inflammatory  process  which  may  have  been 
caused  by  an  infection  of  the  tissues  of  the  vertebral  col- 
umn. The  left  articular  facet  of  the  upper  vertebra  has 
been  partially  destroyed  by  resorption,  and  on  its  margins 
are  small  exostoses.  The  roots  of  the  vertebral  arches  ap- 
pear to  have  been  largely  resorbed,  and  extending  back  into 
the  laminae  are  to  be  observed  several  fairly  large  canals, 
suggesting  that  the  pathological  process  may  have  been  a 
suppurative  one.  As  in  Case  Number  1,  it  is  impossible  to 
locate  the  origin  of  the  affliction,  but  it  may  have  been 
caused  by  an  infection  in  some  other  part  of  the  body,  or  it 
may  have  been  coincident  with  a  traumatic  injury  in  the 
region  of  these  vertebrae. 

From  a  burial  in  La  Crosse  County  was  obtained  the 
specimen  which  is  the  subject  for  Case  Number  3.  It 
consists  of  six  ankylosed  thoracic  vertebrae  from  a 
youth  about  fifteen  years  of  age.  In  this  case  there  is  a 
very  pronounced  lateral  curvature,  with  the  convex  side  of 
the  curve  toward  the  right.  At  present  it  has  not  been  de- 


Vertebral  Pathology  of  Prehistoric  Wis.  Indians.  109 

termined  definitely  whether  the  ankylosis  is  a  result  of  the 
curvature,  or  the  curvature  a  result  of  the  ankylosis.  How- 
ever, a  careful  examination  of  the  specimen  seems  to  indi- 
cate that  the  ankylosis  was  caused  by  the  abnormal 'Curva- 
ture, and  may  have  resulted  from  impaired  or  abnormal 
muscular  function.  If  the  muscles  on  the  left  side  of  the 
vertebral  column  were  stronger  than  those  on  the  right 
side,  the  upper  portion  of  the  column  would  be  pulled  over 
to  the  left,  as  has  happened  in  this  case.  If  this  posture 
was  permanent,  the  tissues  on  the  left  side  of  the  column 
would  have  been  subjected  to  an  abnormal  pressure  which 
would  first  cause  a  disturbance  of  circulation  in  these 
tissues.  This  might  have  paved  the  way  for  other  pathol- 
ogical processes  which  eventually  resulted  in  the  observed 
ankylosis.  This  view  is  substantiated  by  the  fact  that  the 
ankylosis  is  more  pronounced  on  the  left  side  of  the  verte- 
bral column,  where  the  pressure  was  greater,  than  on  the 
right. 

Two  ankylosed  vertebrae  taken  from  a  burial  on  the 
southwest  shore  of  Lake  Koshkonong  supply  the  material 
evidence  for  Case  Number  4.  This  specimen  is  apparently 
from  the  upper  lumbar  region  of  an  adult  male.  In  this 
unique  case  the  cause  of  the  abnormality  was  quite  appar- 
ent, for  a  fragment  of  a  stone  arrowpoint  still  remained 
imbedded  in  the  bodies  of  the  vertebrae.  After  making  a 
careful  study  of  the  specimen,  including  a  radiographic  ex- 
amination, it  was  determined  that  the  arrow  had  pierced 
the  victim's  abdomen  and  penetrated  the  vertebral  column 
so  as  to  cause  the  point  to  protrude  sufficiently  into  the 
vertebral  canal  to  impinge  upon  the  nerves  in  that  region. 
The  course  of  the  arrow  within  the  body  was  such  that  the 
bodies  of  the  two  vertebrae  were  pinned  together  by  the 
large  fragment  of  the  stone  point  which  remained  in  the 
bone  when  the  shaft  of  the  arrow  was  withdrawn.  The 
protruding  point  must  have  pressed  upon  the  spinal  nerves 
with  .sufficient  severity  to  produce  a  pronounced  disturb- 
ance of  the  individual  locomotive  and  lower  visceral  func- 
tions. This  man  did  not  die  immediately  after  this 
extremely  unpleasant  incident  but  survived  for  at  least 
from  six  months  to  a  year.  A  marked  suppurative  process 
followed  the  infection  of  the  tissues  by  the  unsterile  arrow, 


110  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   3 

after  which  the  bone  repair  was  accomplished.  All  this  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  the  abnormally  produced  bone  is 
perforated  by  canals  which  probably  served  as  drains  for 
the  pus  resulting  from  the  infection.  Furthermore,  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  time  is  required  to  produce  the  solid 
abnormal  bone  which  this  specimen  exhibited,  and  to  com- 
pletely ossify  the  intervertebral  cartilage  disc. 


An  Unusual  Type  of  Copper  Knife.  Ill 


AN  UNUSUAL  TYPE  OF  COPPER  KNIFE 

W.   C.   McKern 

One  of  the  outstanding  archeological  problems  of  Wis- 
consin regards  the  culture  status  of  the  great  majority  of 
copper  implements  found  at  sites  scattered  over  a  major 
part  of  the  state.  Copper  celts  of  a  certain  type  and  awl- 
like  artifacts  are  known  to  have  been  used  by  prehistoric 
possessors  of  the  Basic  Hopewell  culture,  anciently  inhabit- 
ing parts  of  Wisconsin,  and  awls  and  chisel-like  objects  have 
been  found,  though  rarely,  in  effigy  mounds.  This  leaves  out 
of  the  account  the  many  projectile  points,  cutting  and  chop- 
ping knives,  axes,  adzes,  spuds,  gouges,  harpoons,  fish 
hooks,  pikes,  needles,  spatulas  and  other  forms,  less  easily 
named,  that  are  present  among  the  thousands  of  copper 
implements  in  Wisconsin  collections.  Who  fashioned  and 
used  these  tools,  and  at  what  prehistoric  period  was  their 
use  most  prevalent? 

A  comprehensive  classification  of  Wisconsin  copper  im- 
plements and  a  growing  knowledge  of  their  distribution 
should  eventually  insure  the  solution  of  those  problems.  It 
follows  that  any  detailed  information  regarding  such  im- 
plements is  of  importance  and  should  be  placed  on  record 
to  facilitate  the  research  of  interested  students,  and  that 
any  rational  speculation  as  to  their  manufacture  and  use, 
if  founded  on  fact,  promises  to  be  profitable. 

A  recent  accession  to  the  collections  of  the  Milwaukee 
Public  Museum  is  a  copper  knife,  found  near  Elroy,  Juneau 
County,  by  Mr.  Millard  Haase  (Plate  1).  The  knife  has  a 
maximum  length  of  eleven  inches.  It  may  be  briefly  de- 
scribed as  straight  backed  in  type  with  a  spatulate  tang 
tapering  from  a  width  of  one  inch  at  its  juncture  with  the 
blade  to  a  width  of  one-quarter  inch  at  its  outer  extremity. 
The  implement  has  a  maximum  thickness  of  one-eighth  inch 
near  the  base  of  the  blade.  The  blade  is  somewhat  triangu- 
lar in  lateral  shape,  one  and  one-half  inches  in  width  at  the 
base  and  tapering  gradually  to  a  rounded  point.  One  broad 
surface  of  the  artifact  is  absolutely  flat,  and  as  it  lies  on 


112  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 

this  flat  surface  with  the  point  away  from  the  observer, 
the  single  sharpened  edge  is  on  the  lefthand  side.  The 
green  patina,  where  not  eradicated  through  recent  handling, 
is  the  heavy  crust  which  only  follows  extremely  prolonged 
exposure,  and  the  entire  surface  is  deeply  pitted  and  scarred 
as  a  further  indication  of  age. 

The  unusual  size  of  the  specimen  is  not  its  most  inter- 
esting feature.  To  one  familiar  with  the  type  of  knife  here 
represented,  two  peculiarities  immediately  demand  the  at- 
tention. First,  the  basal  extremity  of  the  tang  is  bent 
sharply  up  and  back  toward  the  point  to  form  a  hook-  or 
U-shaped  culmination  one  and  one-quarter  inches  in  length. 
The  bent  end  of  the  tang  is  one-half  inch  distant  from  the 
main  shaft  of  the  tang  which  it  parallels.  Thus,  if  the  tang 
were  straightened  the  implement  would  have  a  total  length 
of  twelve  and  three-quarters  inches. 

It  is  quite  apparent  that  the  existing  shape  of  the  tang 
is  not  accidental  but  a  planned  part  of  the  object.  The  ab- 
rupt upward  and  forward  turns  are  sharply  angular,  as 
though  shaped  over  a  hard  form,  and  the  heavy  coating  of 
patina  is  as  thick  in  the  angles  of  these  bends  as  elsewhere. 
The  artifact  was  intentionally  shaped  as  it  is  and,  no  doubt, 
for  some  good  purpose. 

The  tang  of  such  a  knife  is  patently  intended  to  serve  as 
the  foundation  for  an  applied  handle,  possibly  of  some  such 
material  as  wood  or  bone.  It  is  conceivable  that  after  con- 
siderable use  the  applied  handle  might  tend  to  slip  off  a 
straight  tang,  and  an  experience  of  this  sort  might  induce 
the  owner  of  the  knife,  in  manufacturing  a  new  implement, 
to  attempt  a  correction  of  this  tendency  by  creating  a  hook 
at  the  end  of  the  tang  to  clinch  the  applied  handle,  thus 
preventing  a  recurrent  accident  of  this  nature.  A  similar 
explanation  may  apply  to  the  bent  tangs  which  have  been 
reported  for  a  number  of  other  copper  implements  deposited 
in  Wisconsin  collections.  Apropos  to  this  interpretation,  the 
term,  clinch-tang,  is  suggested  for  this  peculiarity. 

The  second  peculiarity  of  the  specimen  in  question  is 
that  the  upper  side  of  the  knife  edge  is  sharply  beveled  to 
a  breadth  of  from  one-quarter  inch  near  the  point  to  seven- 
sixteenths  of  an  inch  at  the  base  of  the  blade.  I  have  seen 


COPPER  KNIFE  PROM  JUNEAU  COUNTY 

(Milwaukee  Public  Museum  Print) 

Plate  1 


An  Unusual  Type  of  Copper  Knife.  113 

projectile  points  with  opposite  edges  beveled,  but  this  is 
the  first  knife  with  but  a  single  edge  beveled  that  has  come 
under  my  observation.  Mr.  Geo.  A.  West,  Dr.  S.  A.  Bar- 
rett, Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen  and  others  who  have  examined 
this  peculiarity  report  that  it  is  unique  in  their  experience. 

The  suggestion  that  this  feature  indicates  European  in- 
fluence is  controverted  by  the  heavy  layer  of  copper  car- 
bonate which  is  as  thick  on  the  beveled  surface  as  elsewhere 
on  the  specimen.  This  fact  obviates  the  possibility  of  sec- 
ondary shaping  of  an  old  specimen  at  a  more  recent  time. 
The  surface  of  the  implement,  including  the  beveled  area, 
shows  uniform  ageing. 

The  beveled  surface  is  noticeably  concave.  The  use  of  a 
rounded  stone  as  a  hammer  would  naturally  result  in  such 
a  concavity,  but  this  fact  hardly  warrants  the  conclusion 
that  this  detail  of  shape  is  not  intentional  rather  than  the 
accidental  result  of  a  rounded  tool. 

As  regards  probable  use,  the  rounded  point  and  single 
cutting  edge  suggest  that  it  was  employed  as  a  cutting 
rather  than  piercing  implement,  and  the  flat  under  surface 
and  beveled  upper  surface  would  render  it  very  serviceable, 
among  other  uses,  for  such  processes  as  the  removal  of 
fleshy  elements  from  a  hide. 

The  writer  would  like  to  know  if  other  knives  of  this 
type,  exhibiting  either  of  the  peculiar  features  described 
for  this  specimen,  are  known  to  the  readers. 


114  WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    3 


A  WISCONSIN  BIRD-STONE 

Charles   G.    Schoewe 

The  Oconomowoc  River,  after  leaving  North  Lake  in 
Waukesha  County,  lazily  meanders  westward  to  finally 
empty  into  Okauchee  Lake.  About  one-half  mile  west  of 
North  Lake,  the  river  passes  one  of  those  interesting  pre- 
historic Indian  camp  sites  so  frequently  encountered  in 
Waukesha  County.  Here  a  grassy  slope  gently  rises  from 
the  bank  of  the  lazy  river  until  a  fair  height  is  attained, 
sufficient  to  give  the  camp  site  protection  from  cold  north 
winds.  Directly  west  of  and  adjacent  to  the  site,  the  land 
rises  very  abruptly  to  form  a  high  ridge  which  extends  for 
some  distance  in  a  westerly  direction  parallel  to  the  river. 
Here,  most  likely,  the  aborigines  built  their  signal  fires  and 
stationed  sentinels  for  the  safety  of  the  camp.  From  this 
point  of  vantage  they  could  gaze  southward  for  long  dis- 
tances over  low  lands  extending  toward  Moose  Lake,  origi- 
nally Mouse  Lake  (wabikenoshques).  To  the  east  they 
could  see  the  departure  of  canoes  from  North  Lake  or, 
turning  westward,  the  approach  of  friends  or  enemies  pad- 
dling up  stream  from  Okauchee  Lake. 

The  advantages  of  the  geographic  location  and  the  pres- 
ence of  a  well  fed  spring,  the  overflow  of  which  filtered 
through  a  mass  of  water  cress  to  empty  into  the  river,  made 
the  site  ideal.  Moreover,  the  soil  was  loose  and  quite  grav- 
elly, thereby  facilitating  good  drainage  and  so  keeping  the 
camp  site  dry.  In  selecting  such  a  site,  the  aborigines  could 
not  be  influenced  too  greatly  by  the  natural  beauty  of  the 
spot  alone.  Other  important  factors  had  to  be  borne  in 
mind;  namety,  protection  against  enemies  and  elements, 
proper  drainage  and  good  water  supply.  In  a  large  measure 
their  problems  were  like  our  own,  but  involved  additional 
difficulties. 

One  rainy  morning,  July  27,  1923,  I  visited  this  site,  not 
for  the  first  time,  however,  since  on  different  occasions  I 
had  found  here  numerous  arrowheads,  flint  flakes  and 
hearth  stones.  On  this  particular  occasion  I  had  not  come 


A  Wisconsin   Bird  stone.  115 

with  great  expectations  of  finding  many  arrowheads,  since 
the  site  was  in  stubble.  It  was  just  the  love  of  being  there, 
of  dreaming  of  the  people  who  formerly  toiled,  fought  and 
played  there  that  had  attracted  me  to  the  spot.  I  was  in 
a  romantic  frame  of  mind  this  morning  as  I  slowly  walked 
about  the  field,  scanning  the  ground  from  force  of  habit,  I 
suppose.  Suddenly  I  spied  a  stone,  lying  flat  on  its  side, 
the  outline  of  which  I  recognized  at  a  glance.  I  experienced 
a  thrill  of  pleasure,  for  it  was  one  of  the  rarest  of  artifacts 
that  an  archeologist  could  wish  to  find — a  bird-stone.  It 
was  made  of  banded  Huronian  slate  with  a  grain  resembling 
that  of  wood.  According  to  some  of  our  foremost  archeol- 
ogists  these  artifacts,  which  resemble  birds  in  shape,  were 
used  for  adorning  primitive  Indian  flutes.  This  specimen 
was  fashioned,  perhaps  some  three  hundred  or  four  hun- 
dred years  ago,  by  Wisconsin  Indians  presumably  belonging 
to  the  Algonkian  stock,  since  bird-stones  have  never  been 
found  outside  the  territory  over  which  the  Algonkian  tribes 
wandered.  The  fact  that  only  about  sixty  of  these  stone 
objects  have  been  reported  as  found  in  Wisconsin  renders 
any  new  find,  such  as  that  recorded  here  for  the  first  time, 
particularly  interesting. 

I  washed  the  stone  in  the  clear,  cool  spring,  made  a  to- 
bacco offering  to  the  Indian  spirits,  and  thanked  the  red 
gods  for  this  fortunate  find. 


116  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 

THE  JOINT  MEETING  AT  RIPON 

Charles   E.   Brown 

The  annual  Joint  Meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society,  the  Wisconsin  Academy  of  Sciences,  Arts  and  Let- 
ters and  the  Midwest  Museums  Conference  was  held  at 
Ripon  College,  Ripon,  Wisconsin,  on  Friday  and  Saturday, 
April  10  and  11,  1931. 

Dr.  Silas  M.  Evans,  president  of  Ripon  College,  delivered 
the  address  of  welcome  to  the  members  of  the  three  socie- 
ties at  the  opening  meeting  held  in  The  Little  Theatre  on 
the  College  campus,  on  Friday  morning,  President  Charles 
E.  Allen  of  the  Academy  responding  in  behalf  of  the  or- 
ganizations represented. 

The  meeting  of  Section  A.,  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society,  was  held  in  the  Theatre,  directly  following  the 
opening  ceremony.  There  were  about  forty  members  and 
visitors  in  attendance.  Secretary  Charles  E.  Brown  pre- 
sided over  this  meeting.  Seven  members  of  the  Society 
presented  papers  at  this  session,  in  the  following  order: 

Silver  Ornaments  from  Grand  Butte.  George  Overton, 
Butte  des  Morts. 

An  Effigy  Pipe  from  Pepin,  Wisconsin.  Charles  E.  Brown, 
Madison. 

Indian  Mound  Photography.  Illustrated.  John  B.  Mc- 
Harg,  Appleton. 

Central  Pennsylvania  Archeology.  Illustrated.  Robert  R. 
Jones,  Wild  Rose. 

Pleasant  Lake  Mound  Groups  (By  title).  Kermit  Freck- 
man,  Milwaukee. 

A  Lower  Palaeolithic  Site  in  the  Sahara  Desert.  Illus- 
trated. Alonzo  W.  Pond,  Beloit. 

Vertebral  Pathology  of  Prehistoric  Wisconsin  Indians. 
Illustrated.  Alton  K.  Fisher,  Milwaukee. 

Section  B.,  the  Academy,  met  at  the  same  time  in  the 
Biology  lecture  room. 


Joint  Meeting  at  Ripon.  117 

The  afternoon  session  of  Section  A.,  was  also  held  in  the 
Theatre.  Members  of  the  Society  who  appeared  in  the  pro- 
gram of  this  meeting  were : 

Observations  on  the  Pleistocene  of  the  Black  River  Falls 
Quadrangle,  Wisconsin.  Ira  Edwards,  Milwaukee. 

The  Brush  Creek  Region  in  Northeastern  Utah.  Albert 
B.  Reagan,  Ouray,  Utah. 

The  Albert  H.  Mill  Collection    (By  title).    Theodore  T." 
Brown,  Green  Bay. 

Where  the  West  Begins,   Will  F.  Bauchle,  Beloit. 

Lincoln  Literature,  Collectors  and  Collections.  Albert  H. 
Griffith,  Fisk. 

Early  Homes  of  the  Lincolns.  Illustrated.  John  B.  Mc- 
Harg,  Appleton. 

After  the  Joint  Meeting  dinner,  held  in  the  dining  room  of 
the  Grand  View  Hotel,  on  Friday  evening,  Mr.  Alonzo  W. 
Pond  gave  an  interesting  illustrated  lecture  to  a  large  audi- 
ence of  members  and  Ripon  College  students  in  the  College 
Chapel,  on  the  subject  of  "Reliving  the  Past."  In  this  lec- 
ture the  speaker  presented  an  account  of  his  recent  archeo- 
logical  and  ethnological  investigations  in  North  Africa,  Cen- 
tral Asia  and  Western  Europe. 

On  Saturday  morning  the  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Ar- 
cheological  Society  and  the  Midwest  Museums  Conference 
held  a  joint  session  in  the  Theatre.  At  this  meeting  Rev. 
Francis  S.  Dayton  presented  a  paper  on  "A  Winnebago 
Camp  Site."  At  noon,  at  a  general  session  of  the  three  so- 
cieties, Huran  H.  Smith  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "The 
Ethnobotany  of  the  Oneida  Indians." 

At  the  business  meeting  of  the  Midwest  Museums  Con- 
ference, held  in  advance  of  the  morning  session  and  presided 
over  by  Charles  E.  Brown,  vice-president,  the  reports  of 
Conference  officers  were  received  and  the  following  officers 
elected : 

President  Nile  C.  Behncke,  Oshkosh 
Vice-president  Alton  K.  Fisher,  Milwaukee 
Secretary  May  L.  Bauchle,  Beloit 
Treasurer,  Ralph  N.  Buckstaff,  Oshkosh 


118  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   3 

Board  of  Directors — John  B.  McHarg,  Appleton 

Theodore  T.  Brown,  Green  Bay 
Gilbert  Raasch,  Madison 
Marie  Kohler,  Kohler 

Although  Ripon  is  rather  difficult  of  ready  access  by  rail 
or  motor  bus  some  twenty-five  members  of  the  Wisconsin 
Archeological  Society  were  in  attendance  at  the  Joint 
meeting. 


Archeological  Notes.  119 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Pottery   Survey 

The  Oshkosh  Public  Museum,  represented  by  Mr.  A.  P.  Kannen- 
berg,  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  co-operatively  assisted  by 
the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum,  has  recently  compiled,  at  no  little  ex- 
pense of  money,  time  and  effort,  a  series  of  albums  containing  photo- 
graphs of  know  whole  or  restored  Wisconsin  Indian  pottery  vessels, 
with  all  available  information.  Data  were  secured  from  many  distant 
as  well  as  local  sources,  including  the  Peabody  Museum  at  Harvard, 
the  Museum  of  the  American  Indian,  New  York,  and  the  United 
States  National  Museum.  In  all,  ninety-six  vessels  are  accounted  for. 
These  are  classified  according  to  culture  status  and  grouped  under 
the  separate  headings:  Lake  Michigan  ware,  Upper  Mississippi  ware, 
Cahokia-Aztalan  ware,  Wisconsin  Hopewell  ware,  Miscellaneous  ware. 

Copies  of  these  albums,  available  to  any  interested  student,  are  in 
the  Oshkosh  and  Milwaukee  public  museums.  Additional  informa- 
tion regarding  newly  discovered  vessels,  vessels  missed  by  this  sur- 
vey or  vessels  included  therein  is  earnestly  solicited.  Write  to  Mr. 
Kannenberg  or  to  Mr.  T.  L.  Miller,  Public  Museum,  Milwaukee 

Reasearch 

Mr.  E.  R.  Weed  of  Pelican  Lake,  Oneida  County,  who  for  many 
years  has  been  actively  interested  in  the  archeology  of  his  district,  has 
recently  been  engaged  in  excavating  a  mound  near  his  home.  Asso- 
ciated with  a  burial,  he  found  some  very  interesting  materials,  in- 
cluding two  most  unusual  specimens.  Quoting  from  his  letter: 

"I  found  two  articles  very  much  out  of  the  ordinary;  vis.,  two  small 
pieces  of  copper  incased  in  strips  of  wood  and  bound  with  what  ap- 
pears to  be  rawhide  on  one,  and  a  cord  around  the  other.  One  of 
these  pieces  of  copper  is  about  two  inches  in  length  and  about  the 
width  of  a  coarse  awl.  It  comes  to  a  sharp  end  which  projects  beyond 
the  binding  of  wood  and  rawhide.  The  other  is  quite  similar  except 
that  it  has  a  blunt  end/' 

Regarding  the  cluster  of  materials  which  included  these  unique 
finds,  Mr.  Weed  continues: 

"I  am  enclosing  a  picture  taken  of  this  group  of  material  before  it 
was  removed  from  the  mound.  You  will  note  the  pottery  pipe,  the 
bone  harpoon,  the  carved  antler  with  the  tooth  socketed  through  it, 
and  a  small  portion  of  the  birch  bark  upon  which  these  articles  were 

placed Close  to  the  pipe  is  a  tooth  similar  to  that  in  the  deer 

antler." 

Quantities  of  red  ochre  were  present  with  this  cache  of  artifacts. 
The  bone  harpoon  is  an  exceptional  specimen  over  eight  inches  in 
length  with  four  unilateral  barbs  and  a  perforated  base.  The  pot- 
tery pipe  is  of  the  short-stemmed  elbow  type. 

It  is  hoped  that  Mr.  Weed  will  favor  us  in  the  near  future  with  a 
complete  report  of  his  work. 

During  the  early  spring  of  1931,  W.  C.  McKern,  on  behalf  of  the 
Milwaukee  Public  Museum,  spent  approximately  one  month  assisting 
archeologists  from  the  universities  of  Chicago  and  Illinois  in  ex- 
cavating the  Powell  Mound,  one  of  the  Cahokia  Group  near  Collins- 
ville,  Illinois.  The  work  was  under  the  personal  direction  of  Mr. 
Thome  Deuel. 


12.0  WISCONSIN  AKCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   3 

The  Powell  Mound  was  a  great  elliptical  tumulus  thirty-five  feet 
in  height  and  over  two  hundred  feet  in  length.  The  owners  were  re- 
moving the  structure  with  a  steam  shovel  to  obtain  soil  for  land- 
filling  purposes  when  scientific  attention  was  directed  to  the  opera- 
tion. The  Powell  brothers  kindly  co-operated  to  permit  scientific 
study  of  the  contents  as  the  work  proceeded. 

The  base  of  the  mound  yielded  no  specific  interior  features,  but 
the  story  of  construction  told  by  soil  profiles  was  most  interesting 
and  informative.  A  primary  mound,  presumably  Cahokian  in  cul- 
ture, as  judged  from  its  truncated  pyramidal  shape,  had  been  used 
as  a  burial  platform  by  an  ethnic  group  not  specifically  Cahokian, 
as  the  culture  is  known,  and  the  burial  had  been  covered  by  a 
secondary,  elliptical  mound  which  completely  capped  the  primary 
platform  structure.  The  burial  of  fragmentary  disarticulated  bones, 
disposed  between  layers  of  bark,  was  accompanied  by  a  number  of 
remarkable  specimens.  These  included :  two  necklaces  of  large  spheri- 
cal and  cylindrical  beads  fashioned  from  the  columella  of  tropical 
conch  shells;  two  double  cones  of  wood  covered  with  thin  sheet  cop- 
per; literally  hundreds  of  thousands  of  small  tropical  sea  shells  per- 
forated for  attachment  as  beads  and  sowed  in  regular  rows  to  some 
material  entirely  disintegrated  when  found.  The  apparent  traits  are 
new  for  the  Cahokia  district. 

The  material  of  the  secondary  mound,  to  which  the  burial  be- 
longed, was  homogeneous,  but  the  primary  mound  was  divided  from 
bottom  to  top  into  four  sections  by  lines  of  structural  unconformity. 
These  lines  seemed  to  mark  the  end  of  one  season's  building  oper- 
ations— at  the  arrival  of  winter,  and  the  start  of  a  new  season's  work 
— with  the  arrival  of  spring.  There  was  also  evidence  that  marsh  land 
had  been  filled  to  complete  a  level  base  for  the  primary  mound,  and 
there  had  been  a  period  of  water  erosion  about  the  margins  of  the 
primary  mound,  and  a  subsequent  depositing  of  stratified  sand  over 
the  eroded  area,  preceding  the  erection  of  the  secondary  mound. 

Of  particular  interest  to  Wisconsin  students  is  the  fact  that  a  de- 
tailed study  of  potsherds  found  in  the  primary  mound,  which  are 
typically  Cahokian  in  type,  showed  that  the  peculiar  traits  of  this 
ware  are  the  characteristic  traits  of  the  dominant  pottery  at  the  Az- 
talan  site,  Jefferson  County,  Wisconsin. 

Field  Work 

All  members  and  friends  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
are  invited  to  assist  in  its  field  work  during  the  season  of  1931.  It  is 
desired  that  as  many  as  possible  will  do  so.  The  Chairman  of  the 
Survey  Committee,  Mr.  Towne  L.  Miller  of  the  Public  Museum  of 
Milwaukee,  will  be  glad  to  assign  certain  territories  or  help  you  with 
suggestions  or  advice  if  you  will  write  him.  Other  members  of  the 
committee  will  be  pleased  to  do  the  same. 

On  your  trips  through  the  State  any  information,  no  matter  how 
trivial  or  how  elaborate,  will  be  appreciated  by  your  Society.  Send 
this  information  to  the  Secretary,  Mr.  Charles  E.  Brown,  State  His- 
torical Museum,  at  Madison,  or  to  the  Chairman  of  the  Survey  Com- 
mittee. In  either  case  all  records  will  be  filed  in  the  archives  of 
the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society. 

Descriptions  of  collections  and  specimens,  or  photographs  and  draw- 
ings of  the  same,  maps  and  sketches  of  mounds,  campsites  and  other 
interesting  aboriginal  features  are  wanted. 


Unl.  10  August  1931 

NEW  SERIES 


BONE  IMPLEMENTS 
FLORIDA  BURIAL  MOUND 

KEOKUK  AXES 
UTAH  ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 


PUBLISHED  QUARTERLY  BY  THE 

WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 

MILWAUKEE 


EDITORIAL    BOARD 

W.  C.  McKern   (Editor),  lira  Edwards,  H.  W.  Kuhm, 
Charles   E.   Brown,   Charles   G.   Schoewe 


Accepted  for  mailing  at  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in  Sec.  1103, 
Act,  Oct.   3,   1917.    Authorized  Jan.   28,    1921. 


Incorporated    March    23,    1903,    for   the    purpose   of   advancing-   the   study 
and  preservation  of  Wisconsin  antiquities 


OFFICERS 

PRESIDENT 

Charles   G.   Schoewe 

VICE-PRESIDENTS 

W.  C.  McKern  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm 

Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner  E.  F.  Richter 

W.   W.   Oilman  Paul  Joers 
R.  J.  Kieckhefer 

DIRECTORS 

Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.       Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  T.  L.  Miller 

Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett  Huron  H.  Smith  L.  R.  Whitney 

George  A.  West  Mrs.  Theodore  Koerner  Alonzo  Pond 

A.  P.  Kannenberg 

TREASURER 

G.  M.  Thome 
National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwaukee,  Wis. 

SECRETARY 

Charles  E.  Brown 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wis. 


COMMITTEES 

REGULAR 

STATE  SURVEY — T.  L.  Miller,  Walter  S.  Dunsmoor,  G.  L.  Pasco, 
T.  M.  N.  Lewis,  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  J.  P.  Schumacher,  Alonzo 
Pond,  Geo.  F.  Overton,  M.  F.  Hulburt,  W.  M.  Maier,  O.  L.  Hoi- 
lister,  Dr.  F.  G.  Logan,  David  A.  Blencoe,  S.  W.  Faville,  Col. 
R.  S.  Owen,  Robert  R.  Jones. 

MOUND  PRESERVATION— Mrs.  E.  H.  Van  Ostrand,  Frank  Wes- 
ton,  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg,  Dr.  Orrin  Thompson,  Mrs.  F.  R. 
Melcher,  Col.  Howard  Greene,  Rev.  O.  W.  Smith,  J.  J.  Knudsen, 
H.  W.  Cornell,  Dr.  E.  G.  Bruder,  A.  H.  Griffith, 

PUBLIC  COLLECTIONS— Milwaukee  Public  Museum  (Dr.  S.  A. 
Barrett),  Wisconsin  State  Historical  Museum  (Dr.  Joseph  Scha- 
fer),  Oshkosh  Public  Museum  (Niles  J.  Behnke),  Green  Bay 
Public  Museum  (T.  T.  Brown),  New  London  Museum  (Rev.  F. 
S.  Dayton),  Lawrence  College  (Prof.  J.  B.  MacHarg),  White- 
water Museum  (Prof.  N.  F.  Heyer),  La  Crosse  State  Teachers 
College  (Prof.  A.  H.  Sanford),  Kohler  Museum  (Miss  Marie 
Kohler),  Logan  Museum  (Dr.  Geo.  L.  Collie),  Minnesota  State 
Historical  Museum  (Willoughby  M.  Babcock),  St.  Francis  Mu- 
seum (Rev.  Dr.  A.  J.  Muench.) 

MEMBERSHIP — Louis  Pierron,  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Paul  Joers, 
Arthur  Gerth,  Dr.  W.  H.  Brown,  W.  F.  Yahr,  Mrs.  Anna  F. 
Johnson,  K.  Freckman,  Geo.  Wright,  Mrs.  Hans  A.  Olson,  Carl 
Baur,  C.  G.  Weyl,  A.  R.  Rogers. 

STATE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  PARKS— Geo.  A.  West,  R.  J.  Kieckhef- 
er,  R.  P.  Ferry,  D.  S.  Rowland,  Walter  Holsten. 

PUBLICITY— J.  B.  Gregory,  A.  0.  Barton,  E.  R.  Mclnyre,  R.  K. 
Coe. 

SPECIAL 

BIOGRAPHY— H.  H.  Smith,  G.  M.  Thome,  Milo  C.  Richter. 

FRAUDULENT  ARTIFACTS — Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.,  E.  F.  Richter, 
Geo.  A.  West. 

POTTERY  SURVEY— A.  P.  Kannenberg,  Ray  Van  Handel,  R.  N. 
Buckstaff. 

PROGRAM — H.  H.  Smith,  Milo  C.  Richter,  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr., 
Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  T.  L.  Miller. 

MARKING  MILWAUKEE  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SITES— W.  W.  Gil- 
man,  Dr.  Paul  B.  Jenkins,  L.  R.  Whitney. 

PUBLICATION— W.  C.  McKern,  Dr.  Ira  Edwards,  Dr.  H.  W. 
Kuhm. 


MEMBERSHIP  FEES 

Life    Members,    $25.00  Endowment    Members,    $500.00 

Sustaining  Members,   $5.00  Annual  Members,   $2.00 

Institutional  Members,  $1.50  Junior  Members,  $    .50 

All  communications  in  regard  to  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society 
should  be  addressed  to  Charles  E.  Brown,  Secretary  and  Curator,  Office, 
State  Historical  Museum,  Madison,  Wisconsin.  Contributions  to  the  Wisr 
consin  Archeologist  should  be  addressed  to  W.  C.  McKern,  Editor,  Public 
Museum,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  or  to  the  Secretary.  Dues  should  be 
sent  to  G.  M.  Thome,  Treasurer,  National  Bank  of  Commerce,  Milwau- 
kee, Wisconsin. 


CONTENTS 


Vol.   10,   No.  4,   New  Series 

ARTICLES 

Page 

Two  bone  implements  from  Sheboygan,  M.  S.  Thomson 121 

A  Florida  burial  mound,  T.  M.  N.  Lewis 123 

Grooved  Axes  of  the  Keokuk  Type,  C.  R.  Keyes 130 

Archeological  Notes  from  the  Brush  Creek  region,  Northeastern 

Utah,  Albert  B.  Reagan 133 

The  non-professional  archeologist,  A.  H.  Sanford 140 

Archeological    notes 142 


ILLUSTRATIONS 
Bone  awl,  Black  River  sites,  Sheboygan  County Frontispiece 

Figure  Page 

1.  Basket  maker  pictographs 134 

2.  Map  of  the  Brush  Creek  region 135 

3.  House  plans 137 

4.  Plan  of  Cave  No.l.  ,  133 


BONE  AWL 

Black  River  Sites,   Sheboygan  County 
M.  S.  Thomson  Collection 


Published    Quarterly   by   the   Wisconsin   Areheolo^rieal    Society 

VOL,.  10.  MADISON,    WIS.,    AUGUST,    1931  No.  4 

New  Series 


TWO  BONE  IMPLEMENTS  FROM  SHEBOYGAN 

M.  S.  Thomson 

While  bone  implements  as  surface  finds  are  rather  un- 
common these  days,  I  have  been  fortunate  enough  to  pick 
up  two  at  the  sand  dunes  south  of  Sheboygan.  The  first  of 
these,  found  in  October,  1929,  is  an  awl  or  dagger,  made 
from  the  leg  bone  of  a  deer.  The  total  length  is  nine  and 
one-quarter  inches  and  the  handle  is  one  and  one- 
quarter  inches  wide.  This  piece  is  identical  to  many  fc  ,  A 
in  the  Bluff  culture  of  Illinois  and  is  typical  of  the  Hope- 
well  culture.  The  Dickson  mound  at  Lewistown,  Illinois,  has 
yielded  quite  a  number  identical  to  this  piece.  Apparently 
it  had  lain  exposed  for  many  years  without  any  one  rei  g- 
nizing  it,  for  the  point  has  been  somewhat  weathered  away 
by  the  shifting  sands.  The  position  in  which  it  was  found 
indicated  that  it  had  been  picked  up  and  thrown  down  in 
a  spot  other  than  its  original  resting  place,  as  it  was  lying 
on  top  of  the  wind-deposited  sand  on  which  the  sparse  grass 
of  that  locality  had  obtained  a  good  foothold.  The  deposit  of 
sand  at  this  point  was  several  feet  in  height  above  the 
original  camp  site  surfaces. 

Had  I  not  been  familiar  with  this  type  of  implement,  I 
certainly  would  have  passed  it  up  as  some,  discarded  piece 
of  bone,  as  others  apparently  had  done,  but  the  moment  I 
saw  it,  before  picking  it  up,  I  recognized  the  type  of  imple- 
ment. 

The  second  find  was  an  awl  made  of  the  shoulder  blade 
of  a  deer,  (frontispiece) .  It  is  in  a  fine  state  of  preservation, 
with  a  point  that  is  nicely  polished  and  very  sharp.  The 
handle  end  is  ground  off  to  conform  to  the  hand  and  the 
abrading  marks  of  a  sharp  stone  show  where  a  splinter  of 
bone  was  sawed  off  the  handle.  The  total  length  of  this 
awl  is  five  and  three-quarters  inches  and  the  widest  part 
of  the  handle  is  two  and  one-quarter  inches. 


122  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST  Vol.    10,   No.    4 

I  doubt  if  I  would  have  noticed  this  piece  had  it  not  been 
for  a  pair  of  deer  antlers  lying  on  the  sand  bank  which  was 
being  gradualy  worn  down  by  the  wind.  One  antler  was 
entirely  exposed,  the  other  sticking  half  way  out  of  the 
bank,  protruding  from  the  black  humus  line  which  marks 
one  of  the  later  camp  site  surfaces.  After  picking  these  up 
I  looked  around  more  carefully,  as  the  hollow  in  which  they 
were  found  had  never  before  appeared  to  be  an  especially 
good  location  for  implements.  I  then  noticed  a  small  bit  of 
bone  sticking  out  of  the  sand,  but  it  did  not  differ  in  ap- 
pearance from  the  many  scraps  of  bone  often  seen  there, 
accumulating  from  years  of  use  as  a  dumping  ground  and 
from  refuse  of  old  fishing  and  logging  camps.  However,  the 
deer  antlers  had  made  me  curious  and  I  pulled  the  bone  out 
and  was  very  much  surprised  and  pleased  when  I  saw  the 
fine  polished  point  come  out  of  the  sand. 

A  partial  examination  of  this  bank  later  disclosed  only 
a  few  flint  chips  and  a  few  fragments  of  bone  and  clam 
shell.  Two  rude  triangular  arrows  also  came  from  this  spot, 
and  there  are  a  number  of  the  rude  net-weights  or  fish-line 
sinkers,  common  to  this  locality,  lying  around  the  bottom 
of  the  small  wind-excavated  hollow.  This  site  is  situated 
nearer  to  the  lake  than  any  other  on  which  I  have  found 
implements;  about  fifteen  feet  away,  directly  through  the 
bank,  is  the  high-water  line  reached  by  the  waters  of  the 
lake  during  storms. 


A  Florida  Mound.  123 

A  FLORIDA  BURIAL  MOUND 

T.   M.   N.   Lewis 

They  say  it's  always  fair  weather  when  Floridians  get 
together.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  dispute  their  claims,  as  I 
have  found  the  summers  of  northern  Ontario  warmer  and 
more  enervating  than  those  of  the  Florida  coast. 

Of  course,  the  conventional  time  of  the  year  for  a  North- 
erner to  go  to  Florida  is  in  the  winter  and  that  seems  to 
apply  to  the  few  archeological  expeditions  as  well  which 
have  been  sent  there  by  the  Smithsonian  Institution.  But 
we  had  to  be  different — Kennith  Hawkins  and  I — not  be- 
cause we  believed  that  the  locality  would  be  overrun  with 
expeditions  during  the  winter,  but  because  we  believed  that 
the  dry  season  which  generally  prevails  in  June  would  lend 
itself  toward  the  comfort  of  our  little  expedition. 

Accordingly,  we  set  out  from  Watertown  during  the  early 
part  of  June  1930,  arriving  at  Pensacola,  Florida,  after  two 
and  one-half  days  of  driving.  We  skidded  around  the  curves 
of  the  Kentucky  highways  so  swiftly  that  it  must  have 
seemed  to  the  occasional  "hill-billy"  who  regarded  us  that 
we  wanted  to  have  our  accident  quickly  and  get  it  over  with. 

By  noon  of  the  day  following  our  arrival  we  had  char- 
tered a  motor  boat  and  loaded  all  of  our  supplies  aboard. 
Inasmuch  as  the  modern  conception  of  roughing  it  is  to 
have  no  radio  in  camp,  we  purposely  omitted  this  item  of 
equipment. 

Eighteen  miles  up  the  Sound  brought  us  to  our  final  desti- 
nation on  the  south  shore  of  Santa  Rosa  Peninsula.  We  un- 
loaded our  supplies  on  a  broad,  sandy  beach  at  the  point 
where  we  had  been  informed  a  burial  mound  had  been 
brought  to  light  by  the  terrific  waves  caused  by  the  hurri- 
cane of  1926. 

We  had  not  brought  sufficient  food  to  satisfy  our  needs 
for  the  proposed  ten-day  sojourn  and  so  we  were  greatly 
delighted  to  discover  that  the  shallow  waters  of  the  beach 
abounded  in  crabs.  Several  pounds  of  fresh  crab  meat  daily 
proved  to  be  a  great  boon  to  a  couple  of  empty  stomachs, 
occasionally  augmented  by  a  catch  of  salt  water  trout.  I 
had  never  seen  any  of  these  fish  before  and  concluded  that, 


124  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   4 

perhaps,  they  were  an  offshoot  of  the  original  fresh  water 
fish  which  had  gradually  accustomed  itself  to  the  mixed 
fresh  and  salt  waters  of  the  bay.  Generally,  fish  seem  to 
go  on  a  vacation  the  same  time  that  I  do,  but,  fortunately, 
on  this  occasion  it  required  but  a  short  time  before  break- 
fast to  secure  a  fair  catch. 

Having  despatched  our  pilot  back  to  Pensacola,  we  began 
a  search  for  the  burial  mound.  Had  it  not  been  quite  ap- 
parent that  the  spot  was  ideally  located  for  the  spending 
of  a  quiet  vacation,  mound  or  no  mound,  we  would  have 
asked  the  pilot  to  await  the  result  of  our  search  before  leav- 
ing us  stranded  in  such  an  inaccessible  place.  As  known  to 
most  of  us  who  have  engaged  in  field  work,  wild  goose 
chases  are  part  of  the  game.  A  short  walk  down  the  beach 
brought  us  to  a  large  quantity  of  potsherds  and,  upon 
glancing  shorewards,  we  noticed  what  was,  unquestionably, 
the  goal  of  our  1200-mile  journey. 

A  hasty  survey  indicated  that  about  one-quarter  of  the 
mound  had  been  undermined  and  carried  away  by  the  re- 
ceding waves.  The  top  of  the  mound,  likewise,  had  been 
swept  away,  leaving  the  roots  of  a  two-hundred  year  old 
live  oak  tree  exposed.  The  contour  of  the  mound  had,  in 
fact,  been  so  greatly  reduced  that  it  would  never  have  been 
detected  had  it  not  been  partially  excavated  by  the  lashing 
of  the  waves.  The  mound  was  round  in  shape  and,  as  nearly 
as  I  could  estimate,  as  the  result  of  the  devastation,  it  was 
originally  about  seventy  feet  in  diameter. 

Excavation  was  begun  on  the  side  where  the  waves  had 
already  indicated  their  curiosity  to  find  what  the  mound 
contained.  After  a  few  moments  inspection  I  found  that 
the  waves  had  not  reached  the  floor  of  the  mound,  so  we 
began  to  remove  about  two  feet  of  sand.  This  brought  us 
to  the  floor  and  the  first  burial.  This,  as  well  as  ten  more 
burials  encountered  later,  was  a  fully  extended,  natural 
flesh  burial.  This  position  offers  quite  a  contrast  to  the 
flexed  position  which  one  finds  here  in  Wisconsin  where  the 
legs  of  the  individual  all  but  appear  to  have  been  wrapped 
around  the  neck,  disputing  the  common  idea  that  the  rumble 
seat  is  of  modern  origin! 

Every  corpse  had  been  laid  upon  its  back,  face  up,  with 
arms  extended  along  the  sides.  The  skulls  of  the  males  were 


A  Florida  Burial  Mound.  125 

abnormally  large  and  heavy.  Those  of  the  females  were 
normal  in  size,  but  were  characterized  by  artificially  de- 
pressed frontal  bones,  as  practised  by  the  Choctaw.  This 
was  accomplished  by  binding  a  flat  piece  of  wood  against 
the  frontal  region  of  the  female  infant's  head,  which  not 
only  flattened  it  in  this  region  but  also  caused  the  skull  to 
bulge  out  laterally.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  this  same 
custom  was  practised  by  prehistoric  man  in  other  parts  of 
the  world. 

These  female  skulls  were  further  characterized  by  un- 
usually fine  teeth  in  every  instance,  although  this  may  be 
accounted  for  from  the  fact  that  none  of  them  lived  beyond 
twenty-five  or  thirty  years  of  age,  whereas  the  males  seem- 
ed to  have  attained  a  much  riper  age.  In  one  instance,  as 
determined  by  an  X-ray  photograph,  the  third  molar  in  both 
jaws  was  lacking. 

The  artificial  stratification  of  the  mound  as  we  found  it 
consisted,  first,  of  about  eighteen  inches  of  sand  through 
which  a  network  of  tough  oak  roots  had  penetrated  in  all 
directions,  making  excavation  very  difficult.  At  the  bottom 
of  this  superficial  layer  of  sand  many  clay  vessels  had  been 
placed.  These  seemed  to  rest  upon  a  layer  of  rather  large 
sea  shells  and  black  earth  about  ten  inches  in  depth;  below 
this  were  about  two  feet  of  sand  similar  to  the  superficial 
layer,  although  somewhat  darker. 

It  was  plainly  evident  that  hundreds  of  clay  vessels  had 
been  placed  on  that  layer  of  shells  at  the  time  the  burials 
were  made.  In  the  hundred  square  feet  which  we  exca- 
vated, sherds  from  over  sixty  pots  were  found.  In  spite  of 
the  fact  that  all  sherds  were  carefully  gathered  up,  it  has 
been  possible  to  restore  only  twenty-five  of  the  vessels,  as 
in  many  cases  insufficient  sherds  were  found  to  effect  a  true 
restoration  through  the  use  of  plaster.  The  destructive  ac- 
tion of  the  spreading  roots,  of  course,  explains  the  missing 
pieces,  as  it  was  quite  a  simple  matter  for  the  growing  roots 
to  carry  parts  of  a  vessel  through  the  loose  sand.  Had  we 
had  time  to  excavate  the  entire  mound,  we  might,  perhaps, 
have  had  sufficient  material  to  restore  completely  a  record- 
breaking  quantity  of  pots. 

Because  of  the  fact  that  the  roots  had  shattered  the  pots 
and  carried  the  sherds  along  through  the  sand  many  feet 


126  WISCONSIN   ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.    10,   No.    4 

from  the  original  position  of  the  pots,  it  was  rather  diffi- 
cult to  determine  just  what  the  location  had  been  with  re- 
spect to  the  burials  underneath.  Nevertheless,  we  assumed 
that  they  had  been  originally  placed  directly  over  the  buri- 
als, as  nine  unbroken  pots  were  encountered  in  this  position, 
three  or  four  with  every  burial.  This  assumption  was  fur- 
ther established  by  the  fact  that  the  larger  sherds  were 
always  found  in  this  position  and  these  would  not  have  re- 
mained large  had  they  been  forced  out  of  position  by  the 
roots. 

Through  the  generous  and  patient  instructions  afforded 
by  Mr.  Eldon  Wolff,  of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum,  I 
have  been  able  to  restore  about  twenty,  in  addition  to  the 
nine  which  were  found  intact.  An  interesting  feature  in 
the  structure  of  the  pots  is  the  small  ragged  hole  present  in 
the  bottom  of  each  one.  This  was  done  for  the  purpose  of 
"killing"  these  vessels  before  they  were  placed  with  the 
dead,  a  condition  encountered  nowhere  else  except  in  the 
Pueblo  area.  Because  of  their  daily  use,  these  vessels  be- 
came closely  associated  with  their  owners  and  must,  there- 
fore, suffer  the  same  fate  so  that  the  spirit  of  the  pot  might 
accompany  its  owner  into  the  world  beyond.  No  reference 
to  this  practice  is  found  in  the  early  literature  of  the  South- 
east, but  the  inference  ensues  from  the  same  custom  having 
been  practised  in  the  Pueblo  area. 

A  somewhat  similar  analogy  is  the  act  of  destroying  the 
home  in  which  an  individual  has  died,  as  practised  by  the 
Apache;  although  in  this  instance  the  motive  behind  it  is, 
probably,  to  destroy  the  evil  spirits  which  have  caused  the 
death.  Then  again,  we  have  another  analogy  in  the  design 
of  the  Navajo  blanket,  where  the  symmetry  of  design  is 
always  purposely  interrupted  in  one  portion  in  order  that 
the  evil  spirit  may  be  released. 

Another  explanation  which  has  been  advanced  in  con- 
nection with  the  "killing"  of  vessels  is  that  they  were  thus 
spoiled  for  use  in  order  that  they  might  be  of  no  benefit  to 
grave  robbers.  This  explanation  is  hardly  feasible,  however, 
since  one  of  the  vessels  contained  a  neatly  formed  hole, 
apparently  made  by  the  mold  at  the  time  the  vessel  was 
fashioned,  the  maker  having  deliberately  intended  it  for 
a  mortuary  vessel.  Then,  too,  this  sort  of  sacrilege  would 


A  Florida  BuriaJ   Mound.  127 

have  been  farthest  from  the  thoughts  of  the  aborigines,  due 
to  the  complexity  of  their  religious  beliefs  concerning  the 
dead. 

All  the  pots,  which  range  from  three  inches  to  fourteen 
inches  in  diameter,  bear  the  characteristic  designs  of  south- 
ern pottery.  Several  of  the  inscribed  designs — one  of  a  hu- 
man hand  and  another  of  a  skull,  are  probably  local.  Some 
of  the  pots  are  tempered  with  finely  ground  quartz  and  the 
color  of  the  clay  varies  from  black  and  red  to  a  near  white. 
There  are  indications  that  some  were  slipped  with  a  red  dye 
and  others  with  green. 

A  necklace  of  large  beads  made  from  the  conch  shell  was 
associated  with  two  of  the  females  and,  in  one  instance, 
two  mushroom-shaped  ear  pendants,  also  made  from  the 
conch  shell,  were  encountered.  No  other  artifacts  of  any 
description  were  found. 

Further  investigations  of  the  surrounding  territory  re- 
vealed a  great  abundance  of  pot  sherds,  but  no  killing 
weapons  of  any  kind.  The  natural  conclusion  is  that  these 
aborigines  found  the  crabs  and  trout  just  as  sustaining  as 
we  did. 

Early  Spanish  maps  of  the  territory  indicate  many  native 
settlements,  but  none  on  Santa  Rosa  peninsula.  We  might 
assume  from  this  that  the  construction  of  the  mound  ante- 
dated the  arrival  of  the  Spanish  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 
The  excellent  drainage,  the  nature  of  the  soil  and  the  shel- 
ter provided  by  the  layer  of  sea  shells  left  the  skeletal  ma- 
terial in  an  excellent  state  of  preservation,  making  it  im- 
possible to  estimate  the  age  of  the  burials. 

When  more  work  has  been  performed  in  that  section,  as 
well  as  elsewhere  throughout  the  country,  perhaps  the  large 
quantities  of  pottery  brought  to  light  will,  through  the  in- 
scriptions, enable  archeologists  to  throw  some  light  upon 
the  mystery  of  the  American  Indian. 

What  was  last  year  one  of  Florida's  most  desolate  spots 
is  about  to  be  transformed  into  one  of  the  South's  gayest 
resorts.  A  two-million-dollar  project  will  soon  be  nearing 
completion.  A  two-mile  bridge  has  been  built  across  Pensa- 
cola  Bay  to  Santa  Rosa  Peninsula  and  a  tremendous  pavilion 
is  now  under  construction  within  view  of  the  mound  site. 


128  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  .         Vol.   10,  No.   4 

We  thought  that  there  was  but  one  way  to  turn  Florida 
real  estate,  especially  in  that  section,  and  that  we  did  with  a 
shovel,  but,  had  we  purchased  some  of  that  real  estate, 
which  had  reverted  to  the  state  of  Florida  because  of  tax 
delinquencies,  at  last  year's  market  of  $10.00  to  $15.00  per 
acre,  the  proceeds  of  a  sale  at  this  time  might  easily  have 
financed  another  and  longer  trip  to  Florida. 


Keokuk  Type  Axes.  129 

GROOVED  AXES  OF  THE  KEOKUK  TYPE 

Charles   R.    Keyes 

Most  grooved  axes,  wherever  found,  are  either  grooved 
"all-round",  the  groove  entirely  encircling  the  implement, 
or  "three-fourths",  that  is,  across  both  faces  and  across  the 
front.  The  Keokuk-type  axes  are  grooved  across  the  two 
broad  faces  only,  the  front  being  flattened  quite  like  the 
back  and  having  no  trace  of  a  groove.  A  few  specimens, 
however,  show  a  highly  polished  band  where  the  front 
groove  of  a  three-fourths  grooved  ax  would  be. 

The  type  was  first  described  by  Fowke  in  1896  on  the 
basis  of  five  specimens  from  near  Keokuk,  Iowa,  in  the  col- 
lections of  the  Smithsonian  Institution.  The  original  refer- 
ence is  brief  and  is  here  quoted  in  full  from  an  article  en- 
titled Stone  Art,  by  Gerard  Fowke,  Thirteenth  Annual 
Report  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology  for  1891-92 
(published  in  1896),  page  68,  under  a  classification  of 
grooved  stone  axes  in  the  Smithsonian  collection:  "[Type] 
G.  grooved  on  faces  only,  with  both  sides  flat  (figure  38, 
of  granite,  from  Keokuk,  Iowa).  There  are  from  the  same 
place  one  of  porphyry,  one  of  argillite,  and  three  of  syenite. 
This  and  the  preceding  form  [F]  seem  peculiar  to  that  lo- 
cality". 

Apparently  these  Keokuk-type  axes  have  remained  rare 
in  collections  and  Mr.  Fowkes'  name  for  the  type,  though  a 
good  one,  has  received  no  general  recognition.  Indeed,  I 
am  not  aware  that  the  type  has  figured  in  any  way  in  ar- 
cheological  literature  since  Fowkes'  paper,  except  for  a 
short  article  in  Annals  of  Iowa,  July,  1921,  in  which,  at  the 
Suggestion  of  the  curator  of  the  Historical,  Memorial  and 
Art  Department  of  Iowa,  I  described  an  unusually  fine  spe- 
cimen of  the  type  which  had  recently  been  presented  to  the 
Department.  Nevertheless,  an  ax  grooved  on  the  faces  only 
is  a  very  distinct  type,  possibly  even  farther  removed  from 
the  two  common  types,  the  all-round  and  three  fourths 
grooved,  then  these  two  are  from  each  other.  The  Keokuk 
ax  even  suggests  a  different  method  of  hafting  from  that 
supposed  to  have  been  ordinarily  employed  with  the  com- 
moner types,  a  tough  withe  doubled  around  the  groove  and 


130  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   4 

secured  with  rawhide  wrappings.  An  ax  grooved  on  the 
faces  only,  and  with  a  flat  or  even  slightly  hollowed  front, 
presents  two  sharp  angles  at  the  junction  of  grooves  with 
front  over  which  a  withe  thus  bent  would  tend  constantly 
to  cut  and  break.  The  Keokuk  ax  suggests  a  hafting  by 
means  of  two  straight  withes  of  equal  length  fitted  into  the 
grooves  so  as  to  project  a  little  beyond  the  front,  and  fast- 
ened together  at  front  and  back.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  an 
ax  of  this  type  may  be  discovered  sometime  in  the  original 
handle,  that  the  method  of  hafting  may  be  definitely  set- 
tled. Meanwhile  it  remains  a  distinct  type,  and  its  neglect 
in  the  literature  is  probably  due  to  its  comparative  scarcity 
and  to  its  restriction  geographically  to  a  rather  limited 
area. 

The  Keokuk  ax,  like  the  other  types,  is  a  utility  tool.  It 
is  found  in  about  the  same  average  state  of  preservation 
and  of  about  the  same  quality  of  workmanship  as  other 
types.  This  is  equivalent  to  saying  that  these  axes  run  all 
the  way  from  crude  and  battered  specimens  to  perfect  and 
finely-finished  masterpieces.  The  materials  used  in  the  mak- 
ing of  Keokuk  axes  do  not  differ,  either,  from  the  usual  di- 
orites  and  the  occasional  porphyrys.  I  have  never  seen  a 
specimen  made  of  granite  or  of  argillite,  such  as  Fowke 
mentions  in  his  Stone  Art. 

At  present  there  are  known  to  me  a  total  of  one  hundred 
and  seven  examples  of  the  Keokuk-type  ax,  most  of  these 
from  Southeastern  Iowa,  the  region  of  greatest  concentra- 
tion being  in  the  five  counties  farthest  southeast,  namely, 
Jefferson,  Van  Buren,  Henry,  Des  Moines,  and  Lee.  One 
collector  in  Van  Buren  county  with  a  total  of  thirty  local 
axes  has  thirteen  of  the  Keokuk  type.  They  thin  out  to- 
ward the  northwest,  a  single  specimen  from  southern  Web- 
ster county,  some  fifty  miles  above  Des  Moines,  being  thus 
far  the  limit  of  distribution  in  this  direction.  They  prob- 
ably occur  rather  frequently  in  Illinois  to  the  east  of  Keo- 
kuk, and  perhaps  more  widely.  A  collector  in  Macomb  once 
wrote  in  that  he  had  examples  of  the  type.  Data  are  lack- 
ing for  Missouri.  I  do  not  remember  having  seen  specimens 
during  a  hurried  inspection  of  the  collections  of  the  Mis- 
souri Historical  Society  at  St.  Louis.  Scattered  records, 


Keokuk  Type  Axes.  131 

however,  show  that  the  type  found  its  way  for  considerable 
distances  east  of  the  Mississippi  river.  The  Logan  Museum 
at  Beloit  has  two  specimens,  one  (P  203)  from  Two  Rivers, 
Manitowoc  county,  Wisconsin,  and  another  (R  613  on  speci- 
men, though  the  entry  seems  to  be  under  612  in  the  origin- 
al catalog)  from  Fulton  county,  Illinois.  A  specimen  in  a 
McGregor,  Iowa,  collection  was  found  in  the  vicinity  on  a 
bank  of  the  Mississippi,  but  it  does  not  appear  whether  it 
was  on  the  Iowa  or  the  Wisconsin  side.  Finally,  five  ex- 
amples were  noted  some  years  ago  in  the  collections  of  the 
Ohio  State  Museum,  Columbus,  but  time  was  lacking  for 
the  securing  of  data. 

The  largest  number  of  specimens,  twenty-three,  to  be 
seen  in  any  one  place  are  owned  by  the  Historical,  Memorial 
and  Art  Department  of  Iowa  in  Des  Moines.  These  are  from 
Van  Buren  county.  Inasmuch  as  thirty-one  other  examples, 
or  fifty-four  in  all,  are  from  this  same  county,  it  becomes 
clear  that,  on  present  data,  Van  Buren  county,  in  the  region 
of  the  lower  Des  Moines  river,  must  be  regarded  as  the 
center  of  distribution  for  the  type.  The  collection  of  The 
State  Historical  Society  of  Iowa,  Iowa  City,  in  charge  of  the 
writer,  has  five  specimens. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  total  amount  of  information  con- 
cerning this  unusual  type  of  grooved  stone  ax  is  meager 
and  that  further  data  is  therefore,  very  desirable.  It  is 
the  writer's  hope  that  all  who  possess  either  specimens  or 
information  may  be  kind  enough  to  furnish  the  data,  on 
the  basis  of  which  a  definitive  account  of  the  Keokuk-type 
ax  may  sometime  be  written. 


132  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   4 

ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES  ON  THE  BRUSH 
CREEK  REGION,  NORTHEASTERN  UTAH 

Albert   B.    Reagan  l 

While  the  writer  was  doing  archeological  work  in  north- 
eastern Utah  for  the  Laboratory  of  Anthropology  at  Santa 
Fe  this  last  summer,  he  made  an  examination  of  the  Brush 
Creek  region  at  the  very  eastern  tip  of  the  Uintah  Moun- 
tains, to  the  westward  of  Green  River,  with  findings  as  fol- 
lows : 

Brush  Creek  valley,  in  its  lower  and  middle  courses  is  a 
wide-floored,  partly  brush-covered  region  inclosed  between 
hills  and  ridges.  In  its  center  there  is  a  perennial  stream 
which  is  usually  much  increased  in  volume  by  the  inrush- 
ing  of  water  from  the  side  valleys  in  the  rainy  periods  each 
year.  On  the  other  hand,  its  head  tributaries  are  cut 
through  a  rugged  though  very  beautiful  region  and  at  times 
they  themselves  have  their  channels  through  boxed  can- 
yons. So  picturesque  is  this  region  that  it  furnishes  most 
excellent  views  for  many  artists  each  year. 

The  middle  and  lower  areas  of  this  valley  have  been  the 
home  of  many  peoples  in  the  years  that  have  come  and 
gone,  and  now  have  1,200  acres  under  cultivation. 

The  oldest  people  were  undoubtedly  Basket-makers,  as 
the  pictographs  they  left  are  mostly  of  the  crude,  square- 
shouldered  type,  though  none  so  far  seen  show  the  char- 
acteristic Basket-maker  style  of  wearing  the  hair  in  side 
locks  or  side  bobs,  as  so  many  glyphs  in  other  places  in 
Northeastern  Utah  depict  these  people.  They  both  lived  in 
the  open  and  utilized  the  caves  of  the  district,  especially 
the  caves  on  Mr.  Henry  Boan's  ranch  at  the  foot  of  the 
lower,  middle-Brush-Creek  region  where  they  left  many 
pictographs  to  attest  their  presence. 

The  next  people  to  occupy  this  region  built  earth  lodges, 
much  like  a  Navajo  hogan  in  shape  and  size,  but  in  struc- 


1  The  illustrations  herewith  are  used  by  permission  of  the  Labor- 
atory of  Anthropology,  Santa  Fe,  New  Mexico,  which  furnished  the 
funds  for  the  field  work. 

In  doing  this  work  the  writer  was  assisted  by  Mr.  Henry  M.  Kurtz 
of  Brush  Creek,  Dr.  J.  Marion  Francke  and  his  companions,  and 
Mr.  L.  C.  Thorne  of  Vernal,  Utah,  who  also  acted  as  camera  man. 


The  Brush  Creek  Region,  Northeastern  Utah. 


133 


ture  they  were  made  of  a  lattice,  wattled-work  frame,  with 
flattened  roof,  and  over  this  frame  mud  was  daubed  to  a 
thickness  of  about  four  or  five  inches.  These  dwellings  were 


Fig-ure  1.  Basket  Maker  pictographs  from  Brush  Creek,  Utah.  The 
lefthand  glyphs  are  from  Cave  1,  on  Mr.  Boan's  farm. 

gathered  in  villages  of  from  ten  to  twenty  lodges  each.  Be- 
ginning in  the  middle  course  of  this  valley,  these  villages 
extend  down  the  creek  to  its  mouth,  starting  at  the  north, 
as  follows:  one  on  Mr.  Henry  M.  Kurtz's  farm  (in  the  S.  E. 
%  and  the  S.  i/2  of  the  N.  E.  %  of  Sec.  25,  T.  3  S.,  R.  22  E. 
of  the  Salt  Lake  Meridian) ;  three  about  six  miles  below  Mr. 
Kurtz's  place ;  one  on  Mr.  Curley  Evans'  farm,  about  a  mile 
and  a  half  below  the  last  groups ;  and  quite  a  large  village 
on  Mr.  W.  R.  "Riley"  C.  Murray's  farm  near  the  junction 
of  Brush  Creek  and  Green  River,  near  Jensen,  Utah. 

In  and  about  these  ancient  lodges  are  scattered  hammers, 
milling  and  rubbing  stones,  arrow  heads,  arrow-shaft 
smoothers,  beads,  and  considerable  undecorated,  gray  pot- 
tery fragments. 

Each  and  every  one  of  the  villages  had  been  destroyed  by 
fire,  presumably  by  being  overwhelmned  by  an  enemy,  as 
the  lodge  walls  have  all  been  burned  to  the  consistency  of 
brick,  leaving  imprints  of  twigs,  brush,  and  poles  on  the 
brick-like  clay.  The  mound  that  now  marks  the  site  of  each 
lodge  is  due  to  the  fallen,  burned  earthen  walls. 

The  next  people  who  occupied  the  region  were  house 
builders.  The  houses  were  all  built  of  river  cobbles  which 
were  undressed  and  crudely  laid  up  in  thick  walls,  with  a 


134 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.   10,   No.   4 


chinking  of  mud  mortar.  All  the  houses  examined  were 
practically  square  and  were  laid  out  somewhat  according 
to  the  cardinal  directions,  some  of  them  having  "vestibules" 
on  the  east  side.  In  all,  four  house  groups  were  examined 
by  the  writer,  as  follows: 

1.  This  house  is  on  the  bench  northwest  of  the  Diamond 
Mountain  Road,  placed  at  a  point  immediately  preceding 
the  descent  of  the  road  into  Brush  Creek  valley  from  the 
west.  It  is  now  shown  in  foundation  to  have  been  twenty- 


Figure  2.  Map  of  the  Brush  Creek  region.  The  squares  on  the  map 
represent  sections  of  land.  1,  2,  3  and  4  are  house  groups;  5x,  site  of 
an  earth-lo.dge  village;  6x,  pictographic  ridge  where  the  large  picto- 
graphs  were  obtained;  7x,  Cave  1  on  Mr.  Boan's  farm;  8,  Diamond 
Mountain  Auto  Road;  9,  to  Greendale  24  miles  northwest;  10,  to  Vernal, 
Utah,  distance  8  miles. 


The  Brush  Creek  Region,   Northeastern  Utah.  135 

seven  feet  long  on  its  east  and  west  sides  and  twenty-one 
feet  on  each  end.  The  rock  mound  of  wall  materials  is 
still  high,  though  many  wagon  loads  of  rock  have  been 
hauled  from  this  site  for  the  making  of  roads  and  irrigating 
ditches.  Considerable  charcoal  was  found  in  the  debris,  and 
about  it  were  milling  stones,  beads,  arrowheads,  and  frag- 
ments of  coarse,  undecorated,  plain,  smoothed,  gray  pottery. 
Across  the  road,  directly  south  of  this  house,  are  the  re- 
mains of  another  house  of  about  the  same  size,  about  which 
are  circular  depressions  and  circular  stone  piles  of  from 
seven  to  ten  feet  in  diameter,  near  which  are  several  other 
stone  mounds  of  a  lesser  size.  Several  milling  stones,  hand 
hammers,  and  quantities  of  chipped  stuff  were  found 
strewn  about  this  site. 

2.  About  a  mile  and  a  quarter  south  of  the  house-group 
above,  there  is  a  mound  of  another  house,  now  three  feet 
in  height.    The  building  was  laid  out  to  correspond  to  the 
trend  of  the  valley,  not  according  to  the  cardinal  points. 
However,  it  is  almost  square,  twenty-seven  feet  to  a  side. 

Here,  as  about  House  No.  1,  there  are  several  large,  cir- 
cular spaces  inclosed  with  rocks,  and  also  several  small 
areas  of  various  shapes  similarly  fenced  by  rocks  set  on 
end.  Each  inclosed  area  had  burned  clay  in  its  bottom.  At 
least  some  were  shrines,  while  others,  at  least  the  smaller 
ones,  might  have  been  fire  boxes  in  the  center  of  out-earth- 
lodges  of  perishable  material.  The  artifacts  found  here  and 
at  the  houses  yet  to  be  described  are  similar  to  those  des- 
cribed above. 

3.  Southeast  of  an  abandoned  log  schoolhouse,  about  two 
miles  below  House  No.  2,  there  is  a  square  house,  twenty- 
four  feet  to  a  side,  with  a  "vestibule"  on  its  east  side.  Close 
to  this  building  there  are  three  circular  structures.    One 
hundred  and  twenty  yards  north  of  it  there  is  another  edi- 
fice of  the  circular  type,  nine  feet  in  diameter,  which  had 
also  been  built  of  cobbles.    About  this  building  there  are 
several  circles  of  rocks,  each  about  eighteen  inches  in  dia- 
meter.   Fifty  feet  to  the  southeast  there  is  a  rock-bound 
"cist",  about  one  foot  in  diameter. 

4.  This  is  a  square  building,  fifteen  feet  to  a  side.    It  is 
situated    about    seventy-eight    yards    southeast    of   House 


136 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST. 


Vol.   10,  No.   4 


Group  3.  Its  outside  is  defined  by  the  remains  of  a  wall  of 
cobble  stones.  About  this  building  are  several  rock  mounds 
and  several  small  areas  inclosed  in  rock  circles. 

A  similar  set  of  house  ruins  was  found  at  Greendale, 
forty-five  miles  over  the  Uintah  Mountains  northwest  of 
middle  Brush  Creek.  Here  four  anciently  built,  square 
stone  houses  were  seen,  each  from  fifteen  to  twenty  feet 


0 

27ft 

o 

O 

24ft 

0° 

^PorcK 

o   I5ft  O 

o 

2. 

Oo  ° 

3 

Figure  3.  Drawings  of  house  plans,  showing  the  immediate  out-fire 
places  and  shrines. 

square,  one  with  an  alcove  or  a  vestibule  on  its  east  side. 
A  circular  house  about  sixteen  feet  in  diameter  was  also 
seen  here.  Two  earthen  jars  and  two  large,  chipped  agri- 
cultural implements  were  obtained  from  this  section. 

The  people  who  built  these  houses  seem  to  have  also  used 
the  caves,  as  did  the  Basket  Makers  before  them.  This  is 
especially  true  of  the  large  cave  on  Mr.  Boan's  place,  where 
about  half  of  the  skeleton  of  a  child,  several  bone  awls, 
some  arrowheads,  and  some  beads  were  recently  dug  up 
just  below  the  cave  entrance.  This  cave,  in  the  vicinity  of 
which  there  are  several  smaller  ones,  goes  back  fifteen  feet 
into  the  cliff.  It  is  unique  in  that  it  has  a  loop  hole  which 
was  laboriously  cut  through  its  outer  side-wall,  serving  as 
an  opening  through  which  and  also  in  that  it  has  pecked 
holes  in  the  floor  and  corresponding  ones  in  the  roof  for 
the  purpose  of  constructing  a  protection-front  barricade, 
both  against  the  weather  and  against  enemies.  Additional 
pecked  holes  served  as  hand  and  foot  holds  to  be  used  in 
climbing  to  this  cave,  and  in  reaching  another,  smaller  cave 
to  the  south  and  a  little  higher  up  on  the  cliff's  face. 

These  house  builders  were  also  agriculturists,  and  their 
irrigating  ditches  of  those  far  off  days  can  still  be  traced. 


The  Brush  Creek  Region,  Northeastern  Utah.  137 

The  Utes  of  our  day  in  this  region  designate  these  ancient 
peoples  as  Mukwi  or  Mokwites;  that  is,  "corn-eaters."  On 
the  west  side  of  Brush  Creek,  in  the  vicinity  of  houses  Nos. 
1  to  3,  an  ancient  ditch  can  still  be  traced  for  a  distance  of 
nearly  three  miles,  to  where  it  finally  ascends  onto  the  mesa 
bench.  Here  it  is  four  steps  wide  and  still  shows  a  de- 
pression a  foot  or  so  in  depth.  It  then  crosses  the  flats  till 


Figure  4.  Plan  of  Cave  1,  on  Mr.  Henry  Boan's  farm,  showing-  the 
chiseled  holes  for  the  placing  of  poles.  The  cave  is  fifteen  feet  in  length 
in  floor  plan. 

it  is  lost,  due  to  the  wear  of  time.  However,  farther  down 
the  valley  are  the  remains  of  a  reservoir  where  the  founda- 
for  the  owner  to  contribute  such  articles  to  a  public  institu- 
tion of  the  double  rock  wall  of  a  dam,  fifty  feet  in  length, 
with  walls  four  feet  apart,  still  shows.  The  water  of  the 
reservoir  finally  cut  an  outlet  farther  down  the  valley.  A 
similar  irrigation  system  can  be  traced  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  valley,  and  another  in  the  vicinity  of  the  mouth  of 
the  creek,  near  Jensen.  Remains  of  ancient  irrigation 
ditches  can  also  still  be  traced  in  the  vicinity  of  Ferndale. 
Three  of  these,  as  with  the  ditch  near  Jensen,  have  been 
cleared  out  by  the  white  settlers  and  are  being  used  at  the 
present  time. 

The  earth  lodges  of  this  region  are  similar  to  those  ex- 
amined by  Dr.  Neil  M.  Judd  2  in  the  vicinity  of  Willard, 
Beaver  and  Paragonah,  farther  to  the  west  in  Utah.  They 
also  somewhat  correspond  to  the  jacal  walled  houses  of  the 
Class  A  type  of  dwellings  of  Pueblo  1  horizon  of  the  Piedra 


2  Judd,  Neil  M.  Archeological  Observations  North  of  the  Rio  Col- 
orado.   Bull.  82,  Bur.  Amer.  Ethn.,  Washington,  1926,  p.  8. 


138  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   4 

District  in  southwestern  Colorado,  as  described  by  Roberts 
and  the  writer.3 

The  houses,  which  are  often  almost  square  and  which 
occasionally  have  an  addition  on  the  east  side,  are  a  puzzle. 
The  fact,  too,  that  the  people  who  occupied  the  structures 
had  an  extensive  irrigation  system  shows  further  that  they 
were  fairly  well  advanced  in  agricultural  pursuits.  That 
they  were  a  small  house  people,  though  they  used  caves 
when  available,  is  very  evident.  The  small,  circular  struc- 
tures and  stone-edged  circles,  squares  and  rectangles,  and 
the  rock-pile  mounds  would,  however,  seem  to  correspond 
to  the  shrines  of  the  Small  House  People  of  Northern  Ari- 
zona, described  by  William  Boone  Douglas.4  This  would 
seem  to  indicate  that  the  people  of  this  region  were  a  some- 
what similar  people,  except  that  they  were  possibly  a  little 
further  advanced  in  civilization,  though  less  advanced  in 
the  art  of  pottery  making.  On  the  other  hand,  the  rock 
houses  apparently  are  structures  that  were  erected  in  the 
latter  part  of  Pueblo  1  or  at  about  the  beginning  of  Pueblo 
II  horizon  in  this  section,  though  the  crude  pottery  and  its 
scantiness  might  place  them  still  earlier  in  the  time  scale. 

According  to  the  latest  estimate  of  the  age  of  Pueblo  and 
Basket-maker  cultures,  the  beginning  of  Pueblo  II  horizon 
was  about  500  years  A.  D. ;  of  Pueblo  I  horizon,  about  the 
beginning  of  the  Christian  era;  and  of  the  Basket-maker 
culture,  about  1,500  years  earlier.  In  other  words,  the  Bas- 
ket-makers were  in  their  heyday  when  Pharaoh's  army  was 
drowned  in  the  Red  Sea. 


3  Roberts,  Frank  H.  H.,  Jr.  Early  Pueblo  Ruins  in  the  Piedra  Dis- 
trict, Southwestern  Colorado.    Bull.  96,  Bur.  Amer.  Ethn.,  Washing- 
ton, 1930,  pp.  66-73. 

Reagan,  Albert  B.  The  Ancient  Ruins  in  Lower  and  Middle  Pine 
River  Valley,  Colorado.  El  Palacio,  vol.  vii,  nos.  9-12,  Santa  Fe, 
1919,  pp.  171-176. 

4  Douglas,  William  Boone.    Shrines  of  the  Small  House  People  of 
Northern  Arizona.    El  Palacio,  July  issue,  1917,  pp  19—29. 


The  Non-professional  Archeologist.  139 

THE  NON-PROFESSIONAL  ARCHEOLOGIST 

A.  H.  Sanford 

It  is  a  mistaken  idea,  if  any  reader  of  the  Wisconsin 
Archeologist  holds  it,  that  only  the  archeological  specialist 
or  expert  can  assist  in  the  work  of  preserving  and  study- 
ing the  remains  that  fall  within  the  scope  of  this  subject. 
Any  citizen  can  collect,  or  assist  in  collecting,  a  body  of 
materials  that  may  contain  rich  deposits  for  the  study  of 
the  expert.  The  teacher,  especially,  is  in  a  strategic  posi- 
tion to  do  his  bit  in  this  work.  However,  we  should  not  call 
it  "work"  for  it  may  become  either  the  interesting  by-play 
of  an  active  teacher's  life  or  his  permanent  hobby.  As  such 
it  furnishes  relief  from  the  routine  of  his  daily  work  and  if 
studied  with  any  care  it  enriches  his  life  and  brings  its 
substantial  rewards  in  enjoyment  for  the  individual  and 
value  for  his  community. 

My  experience  in  the  collection  of  materials  for  a  small 
historical  museum  in  each  of  two  teachers  colleges  with 
which  I  have  been  connected  may  serve  to  illustrate  what 
has  been  said  above  about  the  teacher's  "strategic  position". 
But  before  speaking  of  this  let  me  illustrate  what  was  said 
about  "any  citizen"  by  referring  to  the  very  interesting 
and  in  some  respects  remarkable  collections  that  have  been 
made  by  two  of  my  fellow  citizens,  one  a  butcher,  Mr.  D.  C. 
Streeter,  and  the  other  a  priest,  Rev.  F.  Cech.  One  of  the 
largest  collections  that  I  ever  saw  in  private  hands  was 
made  by  a  country  town  hotel  keeper. 

The  peculiar  position  of  the  teacher  is  found  in  two  facts : 
first,  that  possible  contributions  of  both  information  and 
relics  come  unsolicited  to  him  in  an  endless  succession — viz., 
his  students ;  second,  that  his  collection  becomes  part  of  his 
stock  in  trade  as  he  makes  use  of  it  in  his  classes.  He  has 
therefore  not  only  an  exceptional  opportunity  to  acquire 
specimens,  but  he  has  also  the  opportunity  that  few  others 
have,  to  realize  one  of  the  greatest  pleasures  connected  with 
this  activity,  that  of  constantly  sharing  with  others  the 
view  and  study  of  his  collection. 


140  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,   No.   4 

Archeological  specimens  are  a  comparatively  small  part 
of  the  historical  museum  in  the  State  Teachers  College  at 
La  Crosse,  but  what  is  now  said  about  it  refers  to  them 
as  well.  The  gathering  of  the  collection  has  been  a  gradual 
process,  but  it  has  involved  relatively  little  search  or  labor. 
Very  few  of  the  relics  were  solicited  and  very  few  purchas- 
ed. Whenever  a  gift  or  a  loan  was  made,  a  careful  record 
was  made  and  an  item  was  inserted  in  the  local  paper,  and 
in  the  college  paper,  acknowledging  the  favor  and  expres- 
sing thanks  to  the  individual  from  whom  it  came.  Some- 
times a  general  statement  was  added  intended  to  stimulate 
other  similar  favors.  The  number  of  instances  in  which  the 
publication  of  such  an  item  was  followed  immediately  by 
the  offer  of  another  gift  was  remarkable. 

Our  experience  furnishes  clear  evidence  that  historical 
and  archeological  relics  of  value  are  to  be  found  in  all  com- 
munities; that  sometimes  they  are  a  burden  to  the  house- 
keeper; and  that  it  is  frequently  a  source  of  genuine  pride 
for  the  owner  to  contribute  such  articles  to  a  public  institu- 
tion. If  any  persuasion  is  needed  to  bring  the  relic  to  the 
museum,  arguments  showing  the  greater  safety  from  care- 
less handling  and  from  fire  and  other  means  of  destruction 
that  the  building  and  the  museum  cases  furnish  are  usually 
sufficient. 

Our  Indian  materials  are  used  regularly  when  classes  are 
studying  Indian  life.  They  are  not  kept  permanently  on 
exhibit,  because  display  space  is  insufficient.  It  will  be  a 
pleasure  for  the  writer  to  show  this  collection  to  members 
of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  who  may  be  passing 
through  or  visiting  in  La  Crosse  at  any  time. 


Archeological  Notes.  141 


ARCHEOLOGICAL  NOTES 

Meetings 

President  Charles  G.  Schoewe  conducted  the  January  19  meeting. 
There  were  seventy  members  and  visitors  present.  The  program  of 
the  meeting  was  devoted  to  talks  and  discussions  of  the  life  of  Solo- 
mon Juneau,  the  noted  fur  trader  and  founder  of  Milwaukee.  Secre- 
tary Charles  E.  Brown  read  several  biographical  sketches  of  Juneau 
which  were  published  in  early  issues  of  the  Wisconsin  Historical 
Collections,  and  contributed  other  information  concerning  his  trad- 
ing relations  with  the  Indians  of  eastern  Wisconsin.  He  exhibited 
a  tortoise-shell  watch  case  and  a  pair  of  silver-bowed  spectacles 
formerly  belonging  to  him.  Mr.  John  G.  Gregory  also  gave  a  talk 
on  Juneau.  He  exhibited  a  number  of  pictures  of  him.  Mr.  Huron 
H.  Smith  read  two  Juneau  letters  from  a  collection  of  letters  be- 
longing to  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum.  Mr.  Paul  Joers  told  of 
his  fathers  employment  by  Juneau.  He  exhibited  a  firesteel,  a  letter, 
silk  vest  and  a  diary  kept  by  his  father.  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz  told  of 
the  gift  of  Juneau  letters  and  receipts  to  the  Wisconsin  Historical 
Society.  Miss  Olive  McGee,  Mrs.  Mary  C.  Hosp,  Mrs.  Curtis  Juneau, 
Mrs.  Edna  J.  Eviston,  and  other  descendants  of  Milwaukee's  first 
mayor,  who  were  present,  participated  in  the  discussion  which  fol- 
lowed. 

Miss  Rachel  Mary  Campbell  of  the  Milwaukee  Women's  Club,  and 
Miss  Winslow  of  Theresa,  discussed  the  present  state  of  Wisconsin 
Indian  affairs  and  the  several  Indian  bills  at  present  before  Con- 
gress. On  the  motion  of  Mr.  Joers  these  bills  were  approved  by  the 
Society. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  recent  deaths  of  three  members 
of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society,  these  being  the  Messrs. 
Henry  R.  King  and  Mr.  Geo.  W.  Ogden,  Milwaukee,  and  Mr.  Mark 
G.  Troxell,  Madison.  The  following  new  annual  members  had  been 
elected  by  the  Executive  Board: — David  A.  Blencoe,  Alma  Center; 
Erwin  C.  Weichert  and  William  E.  Erdman,  Milwaukee;  Dr.  Lindley 
V.  Sprague,  Madison;  Walter  Holsten,  Lake  Mills,  and  Miss  Anna 
Wentz,  La  Crosse.  E.  A.  Gilman,  Portage,  was  elected  an  honorary 
member. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  Mr.  E.  F.  Richter  exhibited  an  Indian 
ceremonial  stone. 

The  meeting  of  February  16  was  attended  by  one  hundred  mem- 
bers and  visitors,  President  Schoewe  presiding.  Mr.  Paul  R.  Franke, 
curator  of  the  Mesa  Verde  Park  Museum,  gave  a  very  interesting 
lecture  on  "The  Castles  of  the  Dawn".  This  he  illustrated  with 
numerous  stereopticon  slides  and  a  movie  film  of  the  ancient  ruins 
and  scenery  of  Mesa  Verde  National  Park,  situated  near  the  corners 
of  the  four  states  of  Arizona,  New  Mexico,  Colorado  and  Utah.  This 
fine  park  has  only  recently  been  made  available  to  tourists  through 
splendid  automobile  roads.  The  ancient  cliff-dwellings  within  this 
gigantic  "green  table  land"  have  been  perfectly  preserved  in  that 
dry  climate.  Mr.  Geo.  A.  West,  who  introduced  the  speaker,  and 
other  members  discussed  the  region  described. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  election  as  annual  members  of  Mr. 
Robert  R.  Jones,  Wild  Rose,  and  Mr.  John  J.  Knudsen,  Madison. 
He  announced  the  annual  Joint  Meeting  of  the  Society,  the  Wis- 
consin Academy  of  Sciences,  Arts  and  Letters,  and  the  Midwest 
Museums  Conference,  to  be  held  at  Ripon  College,  Ripon,  on  April 


142  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   4 

10  and  11.  Members  were  requested  to  offer  papers  for  the  pro- 
gram. He  reported  that  he  and  Director  Alonzo  W.  Pond  had  ap- 
peared before  the  Joint  Finance  Committee  of  the  State  Legislature 
in  behalf  of  the  Society's  state  appropriation. 

Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.  exhibited  an  exceptionally  fine  native 
copper  harpoon. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was 
held  in  the  auditorium  of  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum  on  Monday 
evening,  March  16.  President  Schoewe  occupied  the  chair.  There 
were  about  one  hundred  members  and  visitors  present.  Secretary 
Brown  presented  his  annual  report  of  the  1930  activities  of  the  So- 
ciety. He  announced'  the  election  as  annual  members  of  Geo.  C. 
Morris,  Madison,  W.  J.  Rahn,  Milwaukee,  and  V.  D.  Nevins,  Oshkosh. 
Treasurer  *G.  M.  Thome  presented  his  annual  report  of  the  condi- 
tion of  the  treasury  of  the  Society. 

A  nominating  committee  appointed  by  the  president,  consisting 
of  the  Messrs.  G.  A.  West,  Huron  H.  Smith  and  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz, 
nominated  officers  for  the  ensuing  year.  President  Schoewe,  Trea- 
surer Thorne  and  Secretary  Brown  were  re-elected.  Vice-presidents 
elected  were  W.  C.  McKern,  Dr.  A.  L.  Kastner,  R.  J.  Kieckhefer,  Dr. 
H.  W.  Kuhm,  E.  F.  Richter  and  Paul  Joers.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr., 
Dr.  S.  A.  Barrett,  Geo.  A.  West,  Dr.  E.  J.  W.  Notz,  Huron  H.  Smith, 
Mrs.  Theodore  Koerner,  A.  P.  Kannenberg,  T.  L.  Miller,  L.  R.  Whit- 
ney and  A.  W.  Pond  were  elected  directors  of  the  Society. 

The  program  of  the  meeting  consisted  of  a  very  interesting  lec- 
ture by  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm  on  the  subject  of  "The  American  Indian 
in  Painting  and  Sculpture".  This  was  illustrated  by  a  fine  collection 
of  lantern  slides,  quite  a  number  of  which  were  reproductions  of 
paintings  by  the  noted  artists  Richard  Lorenz,  Deming,  George  Cat- 
lin,  Frederick  Remington  and  others.  An  abstract  of  this  lecture  has 
since  been  published  by  the  Society. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  exhibits  of  specimens  of  Indian  im- 
plements were  made  by  Mr.  E.  F.  Richter  and  other  members. 

Thirty-two  members  and  visitors  were  present  at  the  meeting  of 
the  Society  held  at  Milwaukee  on  the  evening  of  April  20.  President 
Schoewe  presided. 

Mr.  Joseph  Ringeisen,  Jr.  gave  a  talk  on  "Birdstones"  which 
proved  to  be  exceptionally  interesting.  This  he  illustrated  with  an 
exhibit  of  nearly  sixty  specimens  of  these  rare  problematical  animal 
and  saddle-shaped  objects  from  his  own  valuable  collection,  and  with 
a  map  showing  the  distribution  of  bird  stones  in  the  United  States 
and  Canada.  The  total  number  of  such  specimens  in  collections  he 
estimated  at  about  six  hundred.  This  talk  was  afterwards  discussed 
by  the  Messrs.  West,  Gregory,  Brown,  Barrett,  Kastner  and  others 
present.  Mr.  Ringeisen  also  replied  to  many  questions  asked  by 
other  members. 

Mr.  Robert  R.  Jones  gave  a  lecture  on  "The  Work  of  the  Illinois 
State  Archeological  Survey",  in  which  he  was  recently  engaged.  This 
he  illustrated  with  several  films  showing  the  camps  of  the  survey 
parties,  and  the  results  of  the  exploration  of  Indian  mounds,  burial 
places  and  village  sites  in  central  Illinois.  This  interesting  presenta- 
tion of  his  subject  was  discussed  by  several  members  of  the  Society 
more  or  less  well  acquainted  with  the  survey  and  exploration  work 
in  Illinois.  Both  Mr.  Ringeisen  and  Mr.  Jones  received  the  thanks 
of  the  President  for  their  lectures. 

Secretary  Brown  announced  the  election  of  Mr.  Daniel  C.  Mint- 
field,  Madison,  as  an  annual  member  of  the  Society.  He  read  a  reso- 
lution adopted  by  the  Executive  Board  strongly  approving  a  bill 
introduced  in  the  State  Legislature  by  Assemblyman  Evan  D.  Davies 
proposing  the  preservation  of  the  Dewey  Mound  Group  in  Waukesha 


Archeological  Notes.  143 

County  by  making  a  state  park  of  the  Bornfleth  farm  upon  which 
this  fine  group  of  prehistoric  Indian  earthworks  is  located.  Mr. 
Brown  announced  his  retirement  as  editor  of  the  Wisconsin  Arche- 
ologist,  a  work  which  he  had  conducted  for  the  Society  for  the  past 
thirty  years.  The  editing  of  this  quarterly  publication  would  be  con- 
ducted by  a  publication  committee  to  be  appointed  by  the  President. 
Attention  was  called  to  the  meeting  of  the  Central  Section,  A.  A.  A. 
which  was  to  be  held  at  the  Chamberlin  Memorial  Museum,  Three 
Oaks,  Michigan,  on  May  15  and  16.  Members  were  requested  to 
attend  the  meeting  and  to  prepare  papers  for  the  program.  A  report 
of  the  archeological  researches  conducted  by.  the  Society  with  the 
assistance  of  various  members  during  the  year  1930  was  read.  Secre- 
tary Brown  urged  all  members  to  assist  in  state  archeological  sur- 
vey work  as  much  as  possible  during  the  summer  months. 

The  May  18  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society  was 
held  at  the  Milwaukee  Public  Museum.  In  the  absence  of  Secretary 
Brown  in  Michigan,  Dr.  H.  W.  Kuhm  acted  as  secretary.  Fifty-three 
members  and  guests  were  present.  Mr.  George  A.  West  gave  an 
illustrated  lecture  on  "Gypsum  Cave  and  Lost  City,  Nevada"  which 
was  presented  in  his  usual  informative  manner  and  was  appreciated 
by  the  members  and  visitors  in  attendance.  Mr.  T.  M.  N.  Lewis  of 
Watertown  gave  a  talk  on  "The  Thrills  of  an  Amateur  Archeologist" 
telling  of  his  collecting  in  the  South.  This  he  illustrated  with  speci- 
mens collected  in  Florida,  Arkansas  and  Virginia.  Mr.  Kermit  Freck- 
man,  who  is  engaged  in  archeological  investigations  in  the  Pleasant 
Lake  region,  near  Coloma,  Wauhsara  County,  exhibited  bone  frag- 
ments of  four  burials  found  in  a  mound  located  there. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Directors,  held  earlier  in  the  evening,  Mr. 
M.  S.  Thomson  of  Sheboygan  was  elected  an  annual  member  of  the 
Society.  The  President  submitted  the  standing  and  special  commit- 
tee appointments  made  by  him  for  the  year  1931-32.  These  are 
printed  elsewhere  in  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist.  Mr.  McKern  re- 
ported on  the  Central  Section,  A. A. A.  meeting  held  at  Three  Oaks, 
Michigan,  the  members  C.  E.  Brown,  Dr.  Ralph  Linton,  H.  H.  Smith, 
C.  R.  Keyes  and  himself  had  presented  papers.  Mr.  T.  L.  Miller 
had  urged  members  of  the  Society  to  turn  in  lists  of  names  of 
archeologically  interested  persons  in  their  home  regions,  this  with 
a  view  to  increasing  its  present  membership  and  public  usefulness. 
It  was  decided  to  hold  an  outdoor  meeting  of  the  Society  at  the 
Robert  J.  Kieckhefer  farm  at  Brookfield,  in  June. 

The  Central  Section,  American  Anthropological  Association  held 
its  ninth  annual  meeting  at  the  Chamberlin  Memorial  Museum,  Three 
Oaks,  Michigan,  on  Friday  and  Saturday,  May  15-16,  1931. 

President  Henry  C.  Shetrone  conducted  the  meetings  which  were 
held  in  the  lecture  hall  of  the  Museum.  Mayor  Frank  Holdred  of 
Three  Oaks  delivered  an  address  welcoming  the  anthropoligsts  to 
Three  Oaks.  To  this  greeting  President  Shetrone  responded. 

At  the  morning  meeting  three  interesting  papers  were  presented 
by  Prof.  Warren  K.  Moorehead,  Dr.  Charles  R.  Keyes  and  Mr.  Peter 
A.  Brannon,  and  at  the  afternoon  meeting  by  Dr.  Paul  Martin,  Mr. 
W.  C.  McKern,  Dr.  E.  L.  Miloslavich  and  Mr.  Huron  H.  Smith.  In 
the  evening  Dr.  Ralph  Linton  gave  an  illustrated  lecture  on  "The 
Natives  of  Madagascar".  On  Saturday  morning  papers  were  pre- 
sented by  Mr.  H.  C.  Sheltrone,  Dr.  W.  B.  Hinsdale,  Dr.  W.  D.  Ham- 
bly,  Mr.  C.  E.  Brown  and  Dr.  Linton.  In  the  afternoon  a  pilgrimage 
was  made  to  the  Warren  Woods  and  the  Warren  Dunes.  At  the 
latter  place  an  old  Indian  camp  and  workshop  site  was  examined. 


146  WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGIST.  Vol.   10,  No.   4 


sand   persons   are   reported   to   have  viewed,   was  the   Door  County 
Historical  Society,  of  which  Mr.  H.  R.  Holand  is  the  president. 

Mr.  C.  E.  Broughton  of  Sheboygan,  representing  the  Wisconsin 
Conservation  Commission  and  Wisconsin  Historical  Society,  acted 
as  master  of  ceremonies.  Dr.  Joseph  Schafer,  superintendent  of  the 
Wisconsin  Historical  Society,  and  Mr.  Holand  delivered  the  principal 
addresses.  Chief  James  W.  Wampum  of  the  Forest  County  Potawa- 
tomi  unveiled  the  monument.  A  delegation  of  his  tribesmen  were 
present  in  Indian  costume. 

Chief  Kahquados  was  born  near  .Mishicott,  Manitowoc  County,  on 
May  18,  1851.  He  died  on  November  27,  1930,  near  Wabeno.  He 
was  the  last  lineal  descendant  of  a  long  line  of  hereditary  chiefs.  He 
was  an  Indian  of  unusual  intelligence  with  courteous  and  dignified 
manners.  He  was  an  able  and  interesting  speaker  and  was  fre- 
quently called  upon  to  speak  at  meetings  in  Wisconsin,  and,  on  sev- 
eral occasions,  in  Illinois  and  Iowa.  He  possessed  valuable  historical 
and  traditional  knowledge  of  his  tribe.  In  recognition  of  his  services 
to  Wisconsin  history  and  ethnology  he  was  some  years  ago  elected 
an  honorary  Indian  member  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological  Society. 
He  was  well  known  to  a  considerable  number  of  its  members. 

On  Wednesday,  April  15,  Secretary  Charles  E.  Brown,  delivered 
the  unveiling  address  at  Beloit,  of  a  boulder  monument  erected  by 
the  Beloit  Historical  Society  to  the  memory  of  Joseph  Thiebeau 
(Tebo),  early  French  fur  trader  and  first  permanent  settler  on  the 
site  of  Turtle  Village,  now  Beloit.  On  Saturday,  June  20,  Secretary 
Brown  was  the  speaker  at  a  picnic  held  by  the  Sheboygan  Historical 
Society  at  the  historic  David  Taylor  farm  mansion.  On  Saturday, 
June  27,  Mr.  Brown  delivered  the  dedicatory  address  at  the  un- 
veiling of  a  boulder  monument  at  the  "Seven  Sacred  Springs"  on 
the  Big  Foot  Country  Club  grounds  at  Fontana,  during  the  Lake 
Geneva  Centennial  celebration.  Two  of  the  features  of  the  Centen- 
nial were  the  attendance  of  a  group  of  Forest  County  Prairie  and 
Forest  Potawatomi  with  their  three  chiefs,  John  Shawano,  James  W. 
Wampum  and  Tecumseh,  and  the  installation  of  a  neighborhood 
pioneer  museum  in  the  public  library  building  at  Williams  Bay.  At 
a  meeting  held  at  the  museum  Dr.  Louise  P.  Kellogg  and  Mr.  Alonzo 
W.  Pond  were  the  speakers. 

Dr.  George  L.  Collie  has  retired  from  the  faculty  of  Beloit  Col- 
lege after  nearly  forty  years  of  educational  service  at  that  Wisconsin 
College.  During  that  period  he  has  been  its  professor  of  geology  and 
anthropology,  its  dean,  and  curator  of  the  Logan  Museum.  Mr.  Al- 
onzo W.  Pond,  noted  for  his  archeological  investigations  in  France 
and  Algiers,  and  with  Mr.  Andrews  in  central  Asia,  has  also  left  the 
service  of  Beloit  College.  Mr.  Paul  Nesbitt  has  been  appointed  cur- 
ator of  the  Logan  Museum. 

Mr.  George  R.  Fox,  for  years  the  director  of  the  Chamberlin  Me- 
morial Museum  at  Three  Oaks,  Michigan,  has  resigned  his  position 
to  take  charge  as  director  of  a  large  permanent  boys  camp  on  Mani- 
toulin  Island.  Mr.  Fox  will  be  long  remembered  for  his  great  work 
in  making  the  Three  Oaks  museum  one  of  the  two  or  three  leading 
collections  of  pioneer  historical  materials  in  the  United  States.  He 
was  at  that  time  also  the  director  of  the  Warren  Woods,  the  War- 
ren Dunes  and  the  Warren  Beach,  with  the  museum  incorporated  as 
the  Warren  Foundation.  Mr.  Harold  Barton,  his  former  assistant, 
is  the  acting  director  of  the  Foundation. 

At  Green  Bay  there  was  recently  unveiled  on  the  courthouse 
square  a  huge  marble  statuary  group,  "The  Spirit  of  the  Northwest". 
This  group  consists  of  three  figures  one  of  which  is  carved  to  repre- 
sent Father  Claude  Allouez,  early  Jesuit  missionary;  another  Nich- 


Archeological  Notes.  147 

olas  Perrot,  fur  trader  and  explorer,  and  the  third  an  Outagamie 
Indian.  The  group  was  carved  by  Sidney  Bedore,  a  former  Green 
Bay  boy  who  has  won  distinction  as  a  sculptor. 

A  visit  made  by  several  members  of  the  Wisconsin  Archeological 
Society  to  the  Carcajou  farm,  Lake  Koshkonong  retreat  of  the  vet- 
eran archeological  investigator,  found  Mr.  Halvor  L.  Skavlem  in  good 
health  though  well  advanced  in  years.  His  lakeland  home  continues 
to  be  a  Mecca  for  visiting  archeologists  from  Wisconsin  and  other 
states.  Of  interest  to  archeologists  will  be  the  information  that  his 
son,  Mr.  Louis  Skavlem,  although  deprived  of  the  use  of  one  arm 
since  childhood,  has  acquired  the  art  of  chipping  flint  implements 
with  the  same  facility  as  his  father.  Holding  the  flint  flake  on  the 
floor  with  the  sole  of  his  shoe,  Mr.  Louis  Skavlem  applies  the  bone 
or  antler  flaker  to  the  edge  of  the  flake  with  his  hand.  The  results 
in  arrow  and  spear-points,  knives,  etc.  are  remarkable.  Members  of 
the  Society  are  urged  to  visit  Mr.  Skavlem,  Sr.,  and  to  thus  pay 
tribute  to  a  Wisconsin  archeologist  who  in  the  past  thirty  years  has 
made  many  important  contributions  to  archeological  science. 

If  some  members  fail  to  receive  copies  of  the  present  and  of  fu- 
ture issues  of  The  Wisconsin  Archeologist  it  will  be  because  they 
have  failed  to  heed  the  repeated  requests  of  Treasurer  G.  M.  Thome 
for  the  payment  of  their  membership  dues.  Quite  a  number  of  mem- 
bers are  in  arrears. 

COMMENTS 

The  editorial  staff  is  still  praying  that  you  will  send  us  for  publi- 
cation letters  of  comment  on  any  subject  of  interest  to  fellow  mem- 
bers of  the  Society.  You  start  it. 


WISCONSIN  ARCHEOLOGICAL  SOCIETY 
PUBLICATIONS 

NEW  SERIES 


Lake  Monona 

Western  Sauk  County 

Gravel  Pit  Burials 

Stoneworks  and  Garden  Beds 

Vilas  and  Oneida  Counties 

Stone  Spades  and  Hoes 

Stone  Pestles  and  Mortars 

Copper  Harpoons 

Chippewa,  Menomini,  Potawatomi 

Waukesha  County,  Northern  Townships 

Waukesha  County,  Southern  Townships 

Lower  Rock  River  Winnebago  Villages 

Record  of  Wisconsin  Antiquities,  Fifth  Addition,  A  to  M 

Record  of  Wisconsin  Antiquities,  Fifth  Addition,  N  to  W 

Pierce  County 

The  Lake  Kegonsa  Region 

Indian  Caves  in  Wisconsin 

Additional  Stone  Spuds 

Rock  Lake 

Delavan  Lake 

Pike  Lake 

Buffalo  Lake 

Little  Green  Lake 

Wisconsin  Indian  Fishing 

Lake  Geneva  and  Lake  Como 

Sacred  Springs 

Wisconsin  Earthenware  Vessels 

Aztalan  Mound  Park 

Checklist  of  Wisconsin  Indian  Implements 

Barbed  Stone  Axes 

Pottery  Smoothers 

Price  60  cents 

Orders  for  any  of  the  above  publications  should  be  addressed  to 
Charles  E.  Brown,  Secretary,  Madison,  Wisconsin.