USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > Madisonville > Indian Village Site and Cemetery Near Madisonville, Ohio > Part 5
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59
41
NEAR MADISONVILLE, OHIO
Hearth I, Trench B Total depth below surface, 2 ft. 7 in. Depth below surface of hard-pan, 5 in. Leaf mould, 3 in. Diameter, 23} in.
This was a saucer-like depression in the hard-pan. The sides were not burnt. Four inches above hard-pan was a layer of large unburnt rocks, below this a stratum of black earth mixed with ashes. In this were found the frag- ments of the skull of a bear and a few fragmentary animal bones. Two inches below surface of hard-pan was a layer of burnt clay 1 inch thick, and below it was black earth with a great amount of ashes. All of the following finds in this stratum were burnt: a large potsherd, 6 grains of corn, frag- mentary animal bones, and a burnt clay ball.
Mr. Swanton distinguishes between hearths and fire places. The latter he defines as " areas on the surface of the hard-pan where the soil had been reddened by fire."
There was a great variation in the size and shape of these areas. . . . Usu- ally such fire places seemed to bear no definite relation to ash-pits or burials, though there may be an exception in the case of skeleton IV, 27, which lay over a stratum of charcoal covering a layer of red earth, probably a fire place. Ash-pit IV, 10 was surrounded by fire place 23. To the uniformity and ap- Parent absence of importance of these fire places we must except fire places 29, 36, and 37, Trench IV. Fire place 29 from its singular shape and the peculiarity of its contents and surroundings I have ventured to call an altar. It bears some resemblance to the altars found at the Turner Group of mounds higher up the Little Miami River. This altar was a small saucer-like depres- sion in the surface of the hard-pan, baked red by fire and filled with very fine white ashes. Its depth below the surface was 2 ft. 10 in. and its diameter 1 ft. 9 in. The depth of the hollow forming this altar was 7 inches. The head of skeleton IV, 30, lay beside this altar, and ash-pit IV, 26, was a short distance off. Fire place 36 was similar to the others except that it was connected with the altar and unlike other fire places, pieces of a pot or of pots were found imbedded in the discolored soil. This discolored soil was about 2 inches in thickness. Fire place 37 also in all probability had something to do with the altar, but it was not directly connected with it.
The present writer feels that the evidence upon which Mr. Swanton based his opinion that fire place 36 was an " altar " is insufficient.
B. W. Merwin found two of these burnt places in Trench E. It seems probable that these fire places and hearths mark the site of habitations or camp-fires.
42
INDIAN VILLAGE SITE AND CEMETERY
Post-holes. Mr. Swanton writes in his report:
Under the general name of "post-holes " I have catalogued many lit . excavations too small for cache-pits, and of rather doubtful significane These were usually one to two feet in diameter, by from two to four feet i depth, running one or two feet into the hard-pan. Their contents were very insignificant - a bed of ashes, some charcoal, a few bones, a little charred wood, a few limestone pebbles, and a celt or two being about all that was dis- covered. The pits containing charred wood may really have been post-holes. No one can tell about the others.
Dr. Metz probably did not distinguish these " post-holes " from cache-pits. Mr. Swanton records about a dozen of them, R. E. Merwin 30, B. W. Merwin 25. They were evidently found for the most part in the northeastern portion of the cemetery, and especially in Trench F and Trench I. The majority of them contained nothing but mixed earth and charred wood. Those re- ported by R. E. Merwin varied from 6 inches to 11 inches in diam- eter, averaging about 8 inches, the depths being from 2} to 3 feet. They are therefore smaller than those reported by Mr. Swanton. Those excavated by B. W. Merwin were of similar dimensions but with a slightly larger range in diameter and depth. Some- times there were a few bones, potsherds, stones, and ashes in them.
It seems probable that many of these " post-holes " of small diameter, were, as Mr. Swanton suggests, actually what the name implies. Some of the larger ones may have been small cache-pits, but they were usually unstratified.
Kitchen-middens. Dr. Metz discovered two kitchen-middens in the course of his work in the cemetery. The first of these he describes in his notes as follows:
March 20 to April 1, 1880
Work in the kitchen-midden was continued until April 1, and having reached the head of the ravine, it was deemed advisable to abandon further excavations at this point for the present. This deposit of kitchen refuse extended 34} feet across the head of a ravine on the west side of the plateau, averaging in depth 6 to 7 feet, and was made up of irregular deposits of ashes, charcoal and sand, animal remains, unio shells, and sherds.
This midden also yielded a few burials and cache-pits, and many artifacts. On April 2, a second kitchen-midden was discovered on the eastern edge of the plateau. This is evidently the one subse- quently explored by R. E. Merwin in 1907.
43
NEAR MADISONVILLE, OHIO
Mr. Swanton excavated a kitchen-midden in his portion of the cemetery which occupied a depression running east and west.
The width of this midden was about thirty feet; its length, as far as traced about seventy, though it ran a considerable distance further east. In the deepest place this kitchen-midden measured about four feet, shallowing gradu- ally on each side. The average depth may have been about three feet. The soil composing this kitchen-midden was dark and rich and similar to the forest mould, except that layers of ashes were very common, often extending to the very bottom. A great deal of charcoal was scattered throughout but the proportion of animal bones was comparatively meager. Flints and flint points were common and so many small articles of interest were discovered that it was found advisable to pass all the earth through screens.
The kitchen-midden explored by R. E. Merwin near Trench C had been formed by filling up a small ravine with refuse. He states that it was about 40 feet long, 8 to 12 feet wide, and varied in depth from 3 feet 6 inches to 5 feet. The following is a list of the objects found in this refuse heap:
Human mandible, 1
Antler blades, 9
Human patella, 1
Fragments of bone fish-hooks, 2
Perforated shells, 30
Bone awls, 12
Stone celts, 3.
Bone awls (fragmentary), 12
Stone celts (fragmentary), 2
Notched bone awl, 1
Worked stones, 3
Fragmentary bone scrapers, 48
Sharpening stones, 21
Perforated bone (4 holes), 1
Flint points, 23
Notched bones, 2
Flint knives, 3
Notched antler, 1
Flint scrapers, 4
Grooved hammerstone, 1
Flint rejects, 21
Stone implements, 2
Bone cylinders, 12
Shell object, 1
Bone bead, 1
Piece cannel coal, 1
Worked antler tips, 23
Reject antler points, 2
Worked antlers, 29
Mr. B. W. Merwin also explored a kitchen-midden in the ravine, running north and south. This midden had the following section:
Leaf mould, 10 in.
Ashes, 4 ft. 3 in.
Black dirt, 1 ft. 10 in.
Black dirt and ashes, 5 ft. 1 in.
Ashes and black dirt, 2 ft. 4 in.
Black dirt and clay, 7 ft. 7 in.
Clay, 3 ft. 2 in.
Most of the specimens in this midden were found in the ashes at depths varying from 3 feet 2 inches to 4 feet 3 inches.
44
INDIAN VILLAGE SITE AND CEMETERY
House Circles. Before the existence of the cemetery on this site was known, Dr. Metz in his survey of the monuments of the region had recorded the existence of a number of circular depres- sions on the Stites property on the northeastern portion of the plateau. On June 24, 25, 26, four of these circles were investigated by him, by running trenches 3 to 5 feet wide through their centers.
In one of these was found a bed of ashes 20 inches below the surface, con- taining potsherds, animal remains, and charcoal. Near the edges of the de- pressions were found an occasional implement or arrowpoint.
When Professor Putnam visited the site in May, 1882, he ex- cavated four more of these circles (plate 30). The following are extracts from his note-book :
May 6, 1882. Circle No. 1
Trench started north and south. Outside to outside of circle 43 feet. At southern end of trench numerous animal bones, burnt limestones, unio shells, and potsherds in the leaf mould. Also a worked antler tip and several flint chips, a rude hoe (?), and on the clay or an inch or two below its surface was & rude grooved axe.
In the center of the circle lying on the clay we came to a layer of stones. Took the stones up and found ashes and charcoal and burnt clay under them. This was a fire place. Leaf mould 1} feet at north end, 2 feet in center and 2} feet at south end of trench. At the north end of the ditch were many small burnt stones, a very few animal bones, and a few unio shells. In the central portion were a number of potsherds, clam shells, two broken flints, a broken flat stone with hole (gorget). The central ditch was run to the east. Finished the trenches but found nothing else of importance.
The fire place in the center was on the clay and there is every reason to be- lieve that the floor of the house was hard clay. Now the question is how much of the leaf mould was in existence at the time the house was occupied ? The two feet in the center over the fire stones has certainly formed since the house went to decay. How much have the earth worms done here ? In digging the trenches very few worms were found, probably not over a dozen or twenty in the whole day's work of three men.
May 8. Circle No. 2 about 60 ft. northwest of No. 1.
Trench runs northeast to southwest. In the center under 6 inches of leaf mould was a bed of ashes 4 inches deep, about 5 feet in diameter. Ashes were fresh and comparatively recent. Under the ashes was 17 inches of leaf mould. To the south of the center were several bricks, a few inches in the leaf mould. It was evident that there had been some recent white man's work on the site of the circle, probably a sugar boiling camp. A few animal bones and a few potsherds, and several flint chips were found. On clearing out under the recent ash-bed we came to about 2 inches of very black old ashes on the
1
45
NEAR MADISONVILLE, OHIO
surface of the clay 17 inches from the surface of the leaf mould. In this bed of ashes were a few flint chips and fragments of pottery. The only thing found in the recent upper bed was a fragment of pressed brick showing its recent origin.
Circle 3 was about 40 feet south of 1. It consisted of an embank- ment 9 feet in width and had a diameter of 43 feet inside the em- bankment. Number 4 consisted of an embankment 12 feet wide which adjoined that of 3 on the southeastern side. The diameter from outside to outside was 58 feet. These circles yielded finds similar to those above described.
These circles certainly are the remains of houses or huts. As has been pointed out above it seems probable that these were the habitations of the later dwellers on the site, since the successive villages seem to have moved from the southwestern portion of the plateau in a northeasterly direction, probably owing to the accumulation of debris on the site and the large number of burials.
ARTIFACTS FROM THE SITE BY CHARLES C. WILLOUGHBY
General Distribution of Types. In studying the artifacts from this site, it should be remembered that most of them are of types used at the time of, or immediately preceding, the first intercourse of the northeastern Indians with Europeans. Perhaps the most distinctive stone implements are the mullers or pestles having a flat expanded base, the discoidal stones, and the chipped adze blades. Broadly speaking, these three types are characteristic of an area enclosed by a circle about five hundred miles in diameter, with its center near Louisville, Kentucky, and taking in the greater portion of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee. It is almost wholly within the Algonquian and Iroquoian areas.
The distribution of certain types of shell objects from the site is probably about the same. On the other hand, most of the ordi- nary forms of stone implements and shell ornaments have, of course, a much wider range.
So far as the distribution of the rarer types of antler and bone objects is concerned, but little data outside of Ohio are available for comparison. Probably the most distinctive and least widely ranging group of artifacts is the pottery. The group seems to be confined principally to southern Ohio and certain portions of Indiana and Kentucky.
Knives and the Larger Projectile Points. On plate 5 are illus- trated most of the forms of flint knives recovered from the cache- pits and general refuse. It is, of course, possible that some of these may be projectile points, but the greater number were probably knife blades which were hafted in short wooden handles and were employed in the manifold uses to which the implement is adapted. In looking over the large number of tools made of antler, and the chips and refuse pieces of this material found everywhere upon this site, abundant evidence is shown of the efficiency of the flint knife as a cutting implement.
47
48
INDIAN VILLAGE SITE AND CEMETERY
Perhaps the most interesting example in the collection is shown at k. This is made of white flint, and the broad blade, comprising the upper one-fourth of the implement, is thin and beautifully chipped to a sharp cutting edge. Its lower three-fourths forms the handle, which was undoubtedly wrapped with buckskin or similar material as a protection to the hand.
The knife or scraper figured in n, is of the uncommon beveled type. It is a little less than half an inch thick, with an abrupt chisel-like bevel at the left of the side shown in the drawing, and it also has the usual corresponding bevel upon the other side of the opposite face.
Nearly all knives of this type have the bevel upon the left side when held with the base toward the observer. The reason for this seems obvious, when we remember that most Indians are right- handed, and in using the modern steel curved knife draw the blade toward them in cutting. Experiments show that this form of flint blade with its wide-angled serrated edge is especially useful in working wood.
Very few of the larger blades, such as are illustrated in 1, m, o, were found.
It is possible that m may have been a spear point, as the shank, which is broken off, seems to have been somewhat narrow for the attachment of a suitable knife handle.
The more ordinary forms of knife blades, such as are illustrated in g, h, i, j, with their broad strong shanks for the attachment of hafts, were fairly common, as were also the thin finely chipped leaf-shaped blades (a) which were probably employed in more delicate work, such as flaying and cutting up animals, cutting out buckskin garments, etc., for which they are especially adapted.
In the American Naturalist for January, 1902, the present writer figured and described ten prehistoric hafted flint knives from the cliff-houses and burial caves of the Southwest. The following forms shown on plate 5 were represented: triangular (d), leaf-shaped (a), stemmed (h, j), and notched (i). These were secured to the handles- in most cases with a cement made of gum. In one instance the cement was reinforced with twine wrapping, and in another ex- ample the notched blade was fastened with sinew. In two instances the blade was set at a considerable angle to the handle. One of the specimens resembled a pocket knife somewhat more than half
PEABODY MUSEUM PAPERS
VOL. VIII, PLATE 5
b
6
1.A
1
1
m
C
O
MADISONVILLE SITE Knives, projectile points and scrapers. (About }.)
49.
NEAR MADISONVILLE, OHIO
open. In the Mexican collection of the Museum are eight pre- historic hafted blades of the leaf-shaped and triangular types, about two and a half to seven inches long, with handles ranging about five to seven inches, which illustrate the manner of hafting the larger chipped implements of these forms. The blades were secured to the handles with gum only.
Very few of the sharp edged flaked knives, shown in b, were found during the explorations. The making of these required ex- ceptional skill, and they were used necessarily for the most delicate work, such as cutting hair and thin dressed skin and trimming feathers, for the edge is very easily dulled.
A considerable number of the ordinary flint rejects and chips were recovered such as are nearly always found upon Indian vil- lage sites, but there is no indication that chipped implements were manufactured here in unusual quantities.
Arrowmaker's Tools. On plate 6, a-g, are shown several flint- working punches of antler. A considerable number of these were obtained, the majority being about one and a half inches long and three-eighths of an inch in diameter. A few, however, were larger. These were used undoubtedly with a hammer of stone or hard wood, in flaking suitable pieces of flint from large masses, and for the roughing out of blades and projectile points. In a number of specimens, one end is battered or split from repeated blows of the hammer. Unlike the ordinary antler flakers used in finishing blades by pressure, the ends of these punches are nearly always symmetri - cally rounded.
A piece of antler from which punches have been cut is shown in h. The antler was worked into a rod several inches long, with an un- worked portion at one end for a handle. The rod was then cut into sections. Many of these refuse pieces were found in the debris.
In the accounts of the process of flint chipping by the Indians there are few references to the punch and hammer. It is apparent, however, that their use was wide-spread as a preliminary process to the final pressure flaking by the ordinary antler tools with special working ends. In the collections of the Museum there are examples of these punches from the village sites in other sections of Ohio, from the Iroquoian sites in New York, one good specimen from a Maine shell-heap, and a number from various places in the Mississippi Valley.
50
INDIAN VILLAGE SITE AND CEMETERY
Catlin. in describing the process of arrowmaking among the Apache. says that the flint to be worked was placed in the left hand where it was firmly held by two or more fingers. The punch was grasped between the thumb and two fingers of the right hand, and a cooperator sitting in front with a mallet of very hard wood struck the punch upon its upper end. Both the holder and striker sang. and the strokes of the mallet were given in time with the music .: This apparently refers to the blocking out of suitable pieces for finishing by presure flaking.
In his illuminating paper on Yahi archery ' Dr. Pope gives an interesting description of Ishi's method of making arrowpoints.
A boulder of obsidian was shattered by throwing a rock upon it. The chunks thus obtained were broken into smaler sine by holding a short segment of deer born or piece of bone against a projecting surface, and smartly striking it a glancing blow with a stone. The resulting flakes of obsidian best suited for arrow heads were roughly three inches long, an inch and a half wide, and half an inch thick.
These were chipped into arrowpoints with the aid of the ordinary pressure flaker of antler.
The longer pressure flakers were much less common on this site than the punches. Three of these. made of antler, are shown in plate 6. i, j, k. Their lower ends are specially formed for the kinc of work required. They were used in the more delicate flaking necessary in finishing the finer blades and points. These long flakers may have been used without a haft. but some of the shorter ones of the same type from existing tribes are fastened to handle: of varying lengths. some of which are long enough to allow the free end to be held between the arm and body of the worker.
The relatively large number of the short antler punches found ir comparison with the long pressure flakers (the ratio being roughly about one hundred to one) would seem to indicate that the smalle: punches may have been used in the final flaking of at least a con siderable portion of the coarser chipped implements.
Figures 1, m, plate 6, represent examples of a certain group o stones, showing abrasions and other marks of use, which probably served in preparing sinew and perhaps as hammers for antle
1 George Catlin, Last Rambles, pp. 184-185.
" Saxton T. Pope, Yoki Archery, Univ. of Calif. Publications, Amer. Arch, and Eth., vc xiii, pp. 116-117, and plate 27.
PEABODY MUSEUM PAPERS
VOL. VIII, PLATE 6
f
i
m
P
P
MADISONVILLE SITE Arrowmaker's tools; o-g, Flint-working punches of antler; h, worked antler from which a runch has been cut; i-k, Antler tools for pressure flaking; I, m, Arrowmaker's stones; n, o, Arrowshaft wrenches; p-r, Arrowshaft finishers. (About }.)
-
PEABODY MUSEUM PAPERS
VOL. VIII, PLATE 7
6
-11
XZ
XXI
wh 41
1
f
9
h
. MADISONVILLE SITE
a, Flint points for drills; b, c, Flint arrowpoints; e, Unfinished arrowpoints of deer antler; J, i, Finished arrowpoints of antler; d, Tips of antler from which arrowpoints are made; j. Spear point of antler with incised decoration; k, Design incised upon j; g, Flint arrow- point embedded in human vertebra; h, Antler arrowpoint embedded in human vertebra from a grave at Turpin's Farm, near Madisonville; I, Antler point on very old arrow from the southeastern Indians. (About }.)
51
NEAR MADISONVILLE, OHIO
punches in arrowmaking. Stones of like character were found with three arrowmaking outfits in Iroquoian graves during the Peabody Museum explorations in western New York.
On the same plate, n, o, are shown two arrowshaft straighteners of antler. These were used in preparing the twigs out of which the shafts were made. The twig was heated and passed through the hole in the implement which was used as a wrench or lever to straighten its bends and irregularities. Arrowshaft straighteners of wood, horn, and ivory, from the Eskimo, Athapascan, Shosho- nean and other tribes are in the collections of the Museum. In this connection it is interesting to note the resemblance of these Madisonville implements to the so-called " bâtons de commande- ment " of the French caves, some of which were probably used to straighten the shafts of arrows or darts. The end of the small tine Of the straightener, shown in n, is rounded and smooth and has evidently been used as a flaker.
Specimens of the typical sandstone arrowshaft smoothers or finishers are illustrated in p, q, r. Most of the examples found were fragments. In use, the shaft was drawn through the grooves of a pair of these stones held faces together in the hand.
Arrowpoints. Plate 7, f, shows four specimens illustrating the range in size and form of the antler arrowpoints, which are rela- tively abundant on this site. Those having a barb are compara- tively rare. A number of unfinished points were recovered which illustrate clearly the process of making. In d, are figured two antler tips which have been encircled by a groove and then broken off. These were evidently cast aside for the reason that it would involve more labor to cut away the broken portion below the groove, than to groove another tine and break it squarely off as in the third example. After detachment the tip was trimmed down and shaped as illustrated in e, probably with a beaver tooth chisel or flint knife, then drilled and finished by grinding or scraping.
These points have a wide distribution and were used over a con- siderable portion of the central and eastern United States. Beau- tiful examples are in the collections of the Museum from the Ohio burial mounds, and also on very old historic arrows from the southeastern Indians. One of the latter is figured in l.
An antler point of this type embedded in the vertebra of a human skeleton is shown in h. This was taken from a grave at
1
52
INDIAN VILLAGE SITE AND CEMETERY
Turpin's Farm not far from Madisonville. The Indian had been shot from behind.
The point figured in i, seems to be too large for an arrow and it may have been used on a small spear. Only a very few as large as this were found. The specimen illustrated in j, however, is un- doubtedly a spear point. The design shown in k, consisting of crosses, zigzag lines, and what seems to be an inverted spear with ornamented shaft and large head, is cut upon it in incised lines. This is from a cache-pit in Trench H.
So far as can be judged from the specimens collected, the triangu- lar flint points of the type illustrated in c, seem to have been the favorite among these Indians, although the antler points above described were nearly as common. They are made mostly from a yellowish gray flint of various shades and are quite delicately chipped. This form was also the favorite among the Iroquoian tribes. A vertebra of a skeleton from Trench D with one of these points embedded in the bone is shown in g.
Very few notched or stemmed arrowpoints were recovered. Some of these are illustrated in b. One cannot be certain, how- ever, that all were used as points for arrows, although most of them probably were, as they seem too small for knives, and the width of the bases between the notches is not sufficient for the attachment of a practical knife handle.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.