Chapter III: Part 3

Recently some interesting burial mounds near Madisonville have been carefully explored by Dr. C. L. Metz in the interest of the Peabody Museum. Only partial notices of these explorations, which are not yet completed, have been published, but we deem these of sufficient importance in this connection to quote freely from them,[32] so far as they serve to illustrate the modes of burial and construction of burial mounds of this region.

Speaking of one of the mounds of a group situated in Anderson Township, Professor Putnam remarks:

Mound 21 of Group C was about 4 feet high and 50 in diameter.
It proved to be made entirely of the sandy loam of the
immediate vicinity. The remains of five skeletons were
discovered at different points in the lower portion of the
mound. The bones were nearly all reduced to dust, and only a
fragment here and there could be saved. There was not a single
relic found with the skeletons, and a few flint chips and a
broken arrow-head were the only artificial objects found in the
earth composing the mound. The condition of the bones showed
considerable antiquity, but their advanced decay and friability
were probably largely due to the character of the soil in which
they were enclosed. The position of the skeletons rather goes
to show that the several bodies were buried at different times,
and that the mound was gradually constructed as the burials
took place. For the present we are inclined to consider this
mound, with some others in the valley, as a place of sepulcher
by tribes of a more recent time than the builders of the
earthworks of the Turner group.

Mound No. 22 proved to be of a more interesting character than
the last. This mound was 14 feet high and about 100 in
diameter. It was composed of pure clay, except in the central
portion. Five feet from the top there was found a hard mass of
burnt earth and ashes, 7 feet deep and a little over 9 feet in
width and length. Resting on top of this, about in the center,
and covered in part by the overlying clay, lay a large stone
celt. A foot below this, in the burnt material, was a stone
implement perforated at its upper end. Below this, at points
several feet apart, in the burnt mass, were three holes or
pockets, each of which contained the remains of portions of
human skeletons, surrounded by a thin layer of clay. Near the
bones in the lowest pocket were three spear-heads or chipped
points. A few potsherds and several flint chips were found
throughout the burnt mass. Under it was a circular bed of black
soil and ashes, 13 inches thick in the center and 14 feet in
diameter, beneath which was a layer of fine sand and gravel, 3
inches thick, which covered another circular bed of black soil
and ashes, 14 inches thick in the center and 15 feet in
diameter. Directly under the center of this lower layer was a
pit 4 feet deep and 10 feet 4 inches long, 4 feet wide at the
ends and 3 feet 5 inches wide at the center. This pit probably
had contained a wooden structure, as its sides showed rough
striations, as if large logs had once rested against them. The
pit had been dug in the drift gravel upon which the mound was
built, and was nearly filled with soft, spongy ashes mixed with
a reddish substance. Extended at full length at the bottom of
the pit was a human skeleton, with the head to the west. Among
the bones of the neck a single shell bead was found; at the
feet were ten stones or small bowlders, such as are common in
the drift gravel. It is evident that this interesting tumulus
was erected over the grave which was dug in the underlying
gravel, and that the human bones placed in the burnt mass above
the grave, with the few stone implements found in or on the
mass, had some connection with the funeral ceremonies which
took place in connection with the burial of the body in the pit
below. The regularity of the deposits over the pit, which was
under the center of the mound, seems to be sufficient proof of
this.

Another mound, nearer the river, situated on an elevated portion of bottom land, was found to differ in construction from any of the others explored in this vicinity. This is described as follows:[33]

According to Mr. William Edwards, sixty years ago it was about 9
feet high, and covered by a heavy forest growth, which also
extended over the region about. Over fifty years ago the land was
cleared and the mound scraped down by Mr. Edwards, who, after
removing about 4 feet of earth from its summit, came to a large
quantity of stones, with which were many human bones. Since that
time the mound has been plowed over and stones have been taken from
it until it has been so nearly leveled as hardly to be noticed.
Thus only the base of the mound could be explored; but that has
proved of great interest in connection with the other works of the
valley. On removing the earth around the base it was found that
stones, many of considerable size, had been so arranged as to form
a mound about 5 feet high in the center and 90 feet in diameter,
over which the earth had been placed to the height of about 4 feet,
as stated by Mr. Edwards. In height about one-half of the stone
portion of the mound was undisturbed. On removing the outer
covering of stones it was found that many burials, probably at
least one hundred, had been made in the mound. The remains of
seventy-one skeletons were obtained. These skeletons were all more
or less crushed by the stones which surrounded them, as, in
addition to the outer stones of the mound, each body had been
surrounded with stones at the time of its burial. In many instances
large slabs of limestone had been used, and in a few cases they
were set on edge around the body. In other cases small stones had
been piled around and over the bodies, which had been placed in
various positions, some extended and others flexed in various ways.
With many of the skeletons were stone implements and ornaments,
among which were several of the flat stones with two or more
perforations, generally known as gorgets. There were also many bone
implements, shell and bone ornaments, and cut teeth of bears.
Several small copper awls in bone handles, and the shells of
box-turtles, were also found with the skeletons. Many fragments of
pottery and broken bones of animals were scattered through the mass
of stones and human bones. At the feet of the skeleton, in the
center of the mound, there was an upright slab of limestone 2 feet
long by 20 inches wide, and with this skeleton were the following
objects: Resting on the chest was a large ornament made from the
apex of a conch shell, with a hole at one edge for suspension;
below this, on the ribs, was a spear-shaped gorget, with one hole,
and by its side were several shell ornaments, also perforated.
Lying near the right femur and parallel with it was a carved bone,
grooved on the under side and having two holes; between this and
the leg bone were four small pieces of carved bone about an inch in
length. In the bones of the right hand was a small awl made of
native copper and inserted in a little round handle made of bone,
similar to others found with other skeletons in the mound. At the
south side of the mound, on the original surface, was a burnt
space, on which was a large quantity, several bushels, of broken
bones of animals, clam shells, and fragments of pottery mixed with
ashes. This mass seems to have existed before the mound was made,
or at all events completed, as five of the burials had taken place
above it. On the plain about the mound are evidences of the site of
a former village, and the annual plowing brings to light many
animal remains, fragments of pottery, and stone implements of the
same character as those from, the mound. From this fact, and from
the character of the burials in the mound, as well as that of the
objects found with the skeletons, and from the absence of the
characteristic ornaments found with so many of the human remains in
the Turner group and other ancient mounds of the Ohio Valley, we
are led to look upon this stone mound as the burial place of a
tribe of Indians living in the region subsequent to the builders of
the Turner mounds. The remains found in this stone mound, as a
whole, indicate that the people here buried were closely connected
with those who made the singular ash-pits in the ancient cemetery
near Madisonville.[34]

Passing into West Virginia we notice first the celebrated Grave Greek mound. This has been described and figured so often that it is unnecessary for me to do more than call attention to certain particulars in regard to it to which I may desire hereafter to refer by way of comparison. It is in the form of a regular cone, about 70 feet high and nearly 300 feet in diameter at the base. A shaft sunk from the apex to the base disclosed two wooden vaults, the first about half way down and the other at the bottom. In the first or upper one was a single skeleton, decorated with a profusion of shell beads, copper bracelets, and plates of mica. The lower vault, which was partly in an excavation made in the natural ground, was found to be rectangular, 12 by 8 feet and 7 feet high. Along each side and across the ends upright timbers had been placed, which supported other timbers thrown across the vault as a covering. These were covered with a layer of rough stones. In this vault were two human skeletons, one of which had no ornaments, while the other was surrounded with hundreds of shell beads. In attempting to enlarge this vault the workmen discovered around it ten other skeletons. While carrying the horizontal tunnel, several masses of charcoal and burnt bones were encountered after a distance of 12 or 15 feet had been reached.

Before making any comments on the construction of this noted work and the mode of burial in it, I will present some facts recently brought to light in regard to the burial mounds of the Kanawha Valley by the assistants of the Bureau.

A large mound situated on the farm of Col. B. H. Smith, near Charleston, is conical in form, about 175 feet in diameter at the base and 35 feet high. It appears to be double; that is to say, it consists of two mounds, one built on the other, the lower or original one 20 feet and the upper 15 feet high.

The exploration was made by sinking a shaft, 12 feet square at the top and narrowing gradually to 6 feet square at the bottom, down through the center of the structure to the original surface of the ground and a short distance below it. After removing a slight covering of earth, an irregular mass of large, rough, flat sandstones, evidently brought from the bluffs half a mile distant, was encountered. Some of these sandstones were a good load for two ordinary men.

The removal of a wagon load or so of these stones brought to light a stone vault 7 feet long and 4 feet deep, in the bottom of which was found a large and much decayed human skeleton, but wanting the head, which the most careful examination failed to discover. A single rough spearhead was the only accompanying article found in this vault. At the depth of 6 feet, in earth similar to that around the base of the mound, was found a second skeleton, also much decayed, of an adult of ordinary size. At 9 feet a third skeleton was encountered, in a mass of loose, dry earth, surrounded by the remains of a bark coffin. This was in a much, better state of preservation than the other two. The skull, which was preserved, is of the compressed or "flat-head" type.

For some 3 or 4 feet below this the earth was found to be mixed with ashes. At this depth in his downward progress Colonel Norris began to encounter the remains of what further excavation showed to have been a timber vault, about 12 feet square and 7 or 8 feet high. From the condition in which the remains of the cover were found, he concludes that this must have been roof-shaped, and, having become decayed, was crushed in by the weight of the addition made to the mound. Some of the walnut timbers of this vault were as much as 12 inches in diameter.

In this vault were found five skeletons, one lying prostrate on the floor at the depth of 19 feet from the top of the mound, and four others, which, from the positions in which they were found, were supposed to have been placed standing in the four corners. The first of these was discovered at the depth of 14 feet, amid a commingled mass of earth and decaying bark and timbers, nearly erect, leaning against the wall, and surrounded by the remains of a bark coffin. All the bones except those of the left forearm were too far decayed to be saved; these were preserved by two heavy copper bracelets which yet surrounded them.

The skeleton found lying in the middle of the floor of the vault was of unusually large size, "measuring 7 feet 6 inches in length and 19 inches between the shoulder sockets." It had also been inclosed in a wrapping or coffin of bark, remains of which were still distinctly visible. It lay upon the back, head east, legs together, and arms by the sides. There were six heavy bracelets on each wrist; four others were found under the head, which, together with a spear-point of black flint, were incased in a mass of mortar-like substance, which had evidently been wrapped in some textile fabric. On the breast was a copper gorget (Fig. 21). In each hand were three spear-heads of black flint, and others were about the head, knees, and feet. Near the right hand were two hematite celts, and on the shoulder were three large and thick plates of mica. About the shoulders, waist, and thighs were numerous minute perforated shells and shell beads.

While filling in the excavation, the pipe represented in Fig. 22 was found in the dirt which had been removed from it. This pipe has been carved out of gray steatite and highly polished. It is worthy of note that it is precisely of the form described by Adair as made by the Cherokees, and also that it approaches very near to an Ohio type (Fig. 23).

Another mound of rather large size, in the same locality, was opened by the Bureau assistant.

In order that all the facts bearing on its uses may be understood it is necessary to notice its immediate surroundings.

Plate V is a map showing the ancient works in the valley of the Kanawha, from 3 to 5 miles below Charleston, and Plate VI is an enlarged plat of the area embracing those numbered I, II and 1, 3, and 4 on the map. As will be seen by an inspection of the latter plate, the works included are two circular enclosures, 1 and 2; one excavation; one included mound, 2; three mounds, 3, 1, and 4, outside of the enclosures; and a graded way. As our attention at present is directed only to the large mound, 1, it is unnecessary to notice the other works further than to add that each enclosure is about 220 feet in diameter, and consists of a circular wall and an inside ditch. The excavation is nearly circular and about 140 feet in diameter. The large mound is conical in form, 173 feet in diameter, and 33 feet high. It is slightly truncated, the top having been leveled off some forty years ago for the purpose of building a judge's stand in connection with a race-course that was laid out around the mound.

A shaft 12 feet square at the top and narrowing downward was sunk to the base. At the depth of 4 feet, in a very hard bed of earth and ashes mixed, were found two much decayed human skeletons, both stretched horizontally on their backs, heads south, and near their heads several stone implements. From this point until a depth of 24 feet was reached the shaft passed through very hard earth of a light-gray color, apparently clay and ashes mixed, in which nothing of consequence was found. When a depth of 24 feet was reached the material suddenly changed to a much softer and darker earth, disclosing the casts and some decayed fragments of timbers from 6 to 12 inches in diameter. Here were found fragments of bark, ashes, and also numerous fragments of animal bones, some of which had been split lengthwise. At the depth of 31 feet was a human skeleton, lying prostrate, head north, which had evidently been enclosed in a coffin or wrapping of elm bark. In contact with the head was a thin sheet of hammered native copper. By enlarging the base of the shaft until a space some 16 feet in diameter was opened, the character and the contents of the base of the mound were more fully ascertained. This brought to light the fact that the builders, after having first smoothed, leveled, and packed the natural surface, carefully spread upon the floor a layer of bark (chiefly elm), the inner side up, and upon this a layer of fine white ashes, clear of charcoal, to the depth, probably, of 5 or 6 inches, though pressed now to little more than 1 inch. On this the bodies were laid and presumably covered with bark.

The enlargement of the shaft also brought to view ten other skeletons, all apparently adults, five on one side and five on the other side of the central skeleton, and, like it, extended horizontally, with their feet pointing toward the central one but not quite touching it. Like the first, they had all been buried in bark coffins or wrappings. With each skeleton on the east side was a fine, apparently unused lance-head about 3 inches long, and by the right side of the northern one a fish-dart, three arrow-heads, and some fragments of _Unio_ shells and pottery. No implements or ornaments were found with either of the five skeletons on the west side, although careful search was made therefor. In addition to the copper plate, a few shell beads and a large lance-head were found with the central skeleton. As there were a number of holes resembling post-holes, about the base, which were filled with rotten bark and decayed vegetable matter, I am inclined to believe there was a vault here similar to the lower vault in the Grave Creek mound, in which the walls were of timbers set up endwise in the ground. But it is proper to state that the assistant who opened the mound is rather disposed to doubt the correctness of this explanation.

In order to show the character of the smaller burial mounds of this region, I give descriptions of a few opened by Colonel Norris.

One 20 feet in diameter and 7 feet high, with a beech tree 30 inches in diameter growing on it, was opened by running a broad trench through it. The material of which it was composed was yellow clay, evidently from an excavation in the hillside near it. Stretched horizontally on the natural surface of the ground, faces up and heads south, were seven skeletons, six adults and one child, all charred. They were covered several inches thick with ashes, charcoal, and fire-brands, evidently the remains of a very heavy fire which must have been smothered before it was fully burned out. Three coarse lance-heads were found among the bones of the adults, and around the neck of the child three copper beads, apparently of hammered native copper.

Another mound, 50 feet in diameter and 5 feet high, standing guard, as it were, at the entrance of an inclosure, was opened, revealing the following particulars: The top was strewn with fragments of flat rocks, most of which were marked with one or more small, artificial, cup-shaped depressions. Below these, to the depth, of 2 or 3 feet, the hard yellow clay was mixed throughout with similar stones, charcoal, ashes, stone chips, and fragments of rude pottery. Near the center and 3 feet from the top of the mound were the much decayed remains of a human skeleton, lying on its back, in a very rude stone-slab coffin. Beneath this were other flat stones, and under them charcoal, ashes, and baked earth, covering the decayed bones of some three or four skeletons which lay upon the original surface of the ground. So far as could be ascertained, the skeletons in this mound lay with their heads toward the east. No relics of any kind worthy of notice were found with them.

Another mound of similar size, upon a dry terrace, was found to consist chiefly of very hard clay, scattered through which were stone chips and fragments of rude pottery. Near the natural surface of the ground a layer of ashes and charcoal was encountered, in which were found the remains of at least two skeletons.

A mound some 200 yards south of the inclosure, situated on a slope and measuring 50 feet in diameter and 6 feet in height, gave a somewhat different result. It consisted wholly of very hard clay down to the natural surface of the hill-slope. But further excavation revealed a vault or pit in the original earth 8 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet deep at the upper end. In this was found a decayed skeleton, with the head up hill or toward the north. Upon the breast was a sandstone gorget, and upon it a leaf-shaped knife of black flint and a neatly polished hematite celt. The bones of the right arm were found stretched out at right angles to the body, along a line of ashes. Upon the bones of the open hand were three piles (five in each) of small leaf-shaped flint knives.

As the four small mounds just mentioned pertain to the Clifton groups, in the Elk River Valley, we will call attention to one or two of the Charleston group, for the purpose of affording the reader the means of comparison.

Below the center of No. 7 (see Plate), sunk into the original earth, was a vault about 8 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet deep. Lying extended on the back in the bottom of this, amid the rotten fragments of a bark coffin, was a decayed human skeleton, fully 7 feet long, with head west. No evidence of fire was to be seen, nor were any stone implements discovered, but lying in a circle just above the hips were fifty circular pieces of white perforated shell, each about 1 inch in diameter and an eighth of an inch thick. The bones of the left arm lay by the side of the body, but those of the right arm, as in one of the mounds heretofore mentioned, were stretched at right angles to the body, reaching out to a small oven-shaped vault, the mortar or cement roof of which was still unbroken. The capacity of this small circular vault was probably two bushels, and the peculiar appearance of the dark-colored deposit therein, and other indications, led to the belief that it had been filled with corn (maize) in the ear. The absence of weapons would indicate that the individual buried here was not a warrior, though a person of some importance.

Mound No. 23 of this group presents some peculiarities worthy of notice. It is 312 feet in circumference at the base and 25 feet high, covered with a second growth of timber, some of the stumps of the former growth yet remaining. It is unusually sharp and symmetrical. From the top down the material was found to be a light-gray and apparently mixed earth, so hard as to require the vigorous use of the pick to penetrate it. At the depth of 15 feet the explorers began to find the casts and fragments of poles or round timbers less than a foot in diameter. These casts and rotten remains of wood and bark increased in abundance from this point until the original surface of the ground was reached. By enlarging the lower end of the shaft to 14 feet in diameter it was ascertained that this rotten wood and bark were the remains of what had once been a circular or polygonal, timber-sided, and conical-roofed vault. Many of the timbers of the sides and roof, being considerably longer than necessary, had been allowed to extend beyond the points of support often 8 or 10 feet, those on the sides beyond the crossing and those of the roof downward beyond the wall. Upon the floor and amid the remains of the timber were numerous human bones and also two whole skeletons, the latter but slightly decayed, though badly crushed by the weight pressing on them, but unaccompanied by an ornament or an implement of any kind. A further excavation of about 4 feet below the floor, or what was supposed to be the floor, of this vault, and below the original surface of the ground, brought to light six circular, oven-shaped vaults, each about 3 feet in diameter and the same in depth. As these six were so placed as to form a semicircle, it is presumed there are others under that portion of the mound not reached by the excavation. All were filled with dry, dark dust or decayed substances, supposed to be the remains of Indian corn in the ear, as it was similar to that heretofore mentioned. In the center of the circle indicated by the positions of these minor vaults, and the supposed center of the base of the mound (the shaft not being exactly central), and but 2 feet below the floor of the main vault, and in a fine mortar or cement, were found two cavities resembling in form the bottle or gourd shaped vessel so frequently met with in the mounds of southeastern Missouri and northeastern Arkansas. Unfortunately the further investigation of this work was stopped at this stage of progress by cold weather.

In another mound of this group the burial was in a box-shaped stone vault, not of slabs in the usual method, but built up of rough, angular stones.

Mound 31 of this group seems to furnish a connecting link between the West Virginia and the Ohio mounds. It is sharp in outline, has a steep slope, and is flattened on the top; is 318 feet in circumference at the base and about 25 feet high. It was opened by digging a shaft 10 feet in diameter from the center of the top to the base. After passing through the top layer of surface soil, some 2 feet thick, a layer of clay and ashes 1 foot thick was encountered. Here, near the center of the shaft, were two skeletons, lying horizontally, one immediately over the other, the upper and larger one with the face down and the lower with the face up. There were no indications of fire about them. Immediately over the heads were one celt and three lance-heads. At the depth of 13 feet and a little north of the center of the mound were two very large skeletons, in a sitting posture, with their extended legs interlocked to the knees. Their arms were extended and their hands slightly elevated, as if together holding up a sandstone mortar which was between their faces. This stone is somewhat hemispherical, about 2 feet in diameter across the top, which is hollowed in the shape of a shallow basin or mortar. It had been subjected to the action of fire until burned to a bright red. The cavity was filled with white ashes, containing small fragments of bones burned to cinders. Immediately over this, and of sufficient size to cover it, was a slab of bluish-gray limestone about 3 inches thick, which had small cup-shaped excavations on the under side. This bore no marks of fire. Near the hands of the eastern skeleton were a small hematite celt and a lance-head, and upon the left wrist of the other two copper bracelets. At the depth of 25 feet, and on the natural surface, was found what in an Ohio mound would have been designated an "altar." This was not thoroughly traced throughout, but was about 12 feet long and over 8 feet wide, of the form shown in Fig. 24.

It consisted of a layer of well-prepared mortar, apparently clay, slightly mixed with ashes. This was not more than 6 or 8 inches thick in the center of the basin-shaped depression, where it was about 1 foot lower than at the other margin. It was burned to a brick-red and covered with a compact layer of very fine white ashes, scattered thickly, through which were small water-worn bowlders, bearing evidences of having undergone an intense heat. Mingled with this mass were a few thoroughly charred human bones. The material of the shaft, after the first 3 feet at the top, consisted almost wholly of finely packed ashes, which appeared to have been deposited at intervals of considerable length and not at one time.

It is evident from this description, which is abridged from the report of the assistant, that we have here a true representation of the so-called "altars" of the Ohio mounds. But, contrary to the usual custom, as shown by an examination of the Ohio works, this mound appears to have been used by the people who erected it as a burial place, for the mode of construction and the material used for the body of it forbid the supposition that the lower burial was by a different people from those who formed the clay structure at the base.

It is proper to state that around and near the inclosure (No. 7 of Plate V) were a number of stone graves of the ordinary box shape, constructed in the usual way, of stone slabs.

At this place was also discovered a pit or cache resembling those found at Madisonville, Ohio. A more thorough examination will probably bring to light others.

The descriptions of other burial mounds of this region, differing slightly in minor details from those mentioned, might be presented, but the foregoing will suffice to give the types and show the character of the structures of this kind in this section. The details given will, I think, satisfy any one that the authors of these structures were also the authors of the Ohio works, or that they belonged to tribes so closely related that we may justly consider them as one people.

I have been and am still disposed to connect the mound-builders of the Kanawha valley with those of western North Carolina, but our explorations in the two sections have convinced me of their close relation to the people whose mysterious monuments dot the hills and valleys of Ohio. That they were related in some way to the mound-builders of North Carolina and East Tennessee is more than probable, but the key to unlock this mystery, if it exists anywhere, is most likely to be found in the history, traditions, and works of the Cherokees, and the traditions relating to the Tallegwi.

As a result of my examination and discussion of the burial mounds of Wisconsin, I reached the conclusion that they were built by the Indian tribes found inhabiting that section at the advent of the whites, or by their ancestors. The data, of which but a comparatively small portion is given, seem to justify this conclusion. But the case is somewhat different in reference to the works of the Ohio district. Although the data obtained here point with satisfactory certainty to the conclusion that Indians were the authors of these works, it cannot be claimed that all or even the larger portion of them were built by Indians inhabiting the district when first visited by the whites, or by their ancestors.

Hence the mystery which enshrouds them is deeper and much more difficult to penetrate than that which hangs about the antiquities of some of the other districts; in fact, they present probably the most difficult problem for solution in this respect of any ancient works of our country. That some of the burial mounds, graves, and other works are to be attributed to Indians who entered this district after the Europeans had planted colonies in Canada and along the Atlantic coast is probably true, but that much the greater portion of the typical works belong to a more distant period must be conceded. It is a singular fact that in the latter half of the seventeenth century, when European explorers began to penetrate into this region, what is now the State of Ohio was uninhabited.

The Miami confederacy, inhabiting the southern shore of Lake
Michigan, extended southeasterly to the Wabash. The Illinois
confederacy extended down the eastern shore of the Mississippi
to about where Memphis now stands. The Cherokees occupied the
slopes and valleys of the mountains about the borders of what
is now East Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia. The great
basin bounded north by Lake Erie, the Miamis, and the Illinois,
west by the Mississippi, east by the Alleghanies, and south by
the headwaters of the streams that flow into the Gulf of
Mexico, seems to have been uninhabited except by bands of
Shawnees, and scarcely visited except by war parties of the
Five Nations.[35]

With the exception of some slight notices of the Erie or Cat Nation dwelling south of Lake Erie, the mere mention of the Tongarias (possibly but another name for the Eries, with whom Colden identifies them), located somewhere on the Ohio, and the tradition regarding the Tallegwi, the only history which remains to us regarding this region previous to the close of the seventeenth century, is to be gathered from the ancient monuments which dot its surface. Even conjecture can find but few pointers on this desert field to give direction to its flight. But it does not necessarily follow, because we are unable to determine the direction in which the goal we are seeking lies, that we cannot tell some of the directions in which it does not lie, and thus narrow the field of our investigation. I will therefore venture to offer the following suggestions:

As the evidence in regard to the antiquities of the northwestern, the southern, and the Appalachian districts points so decidedly to the Indians as the authors, I think we may assume that the works of Ohio are attributable to the same race. As they bear a strong resemblance in several respects to the West Virginia and North Carolina works, and as the geographical positions of the defensive works indicate pressure from the north and north-west, we are perhaps justified in excluding from consideration all tribes known to have had their principal seats north of the Ohio in historic times, except the Eries, which form an uncertain and so far indeterminable factor in the problem.

The data so far obtained seem to me to indicate the following as the most promising lines of research: The possible identity or relation of the Tallegwi and the Cherokees; the possibility of this region having been the ancient home of the Shawnees or their ancestors (though I believe the testimony of the mounds is most decidedly against this and the following supposition); and the theory that the builders of these works were driven southward and were merged into the Chahta-Muscogee family.

Be our conclusion on this question what it may, one important result of the explorations in this northern section of the United States is the conviction that there was during the mound-building age a powerful tribe or association of closely allied tribes occupying the valley of the Ohio, whose chief seats were in the Kanawha, Scioto, and Little Miami Valleys. We might suppose that one strong tribe had occupied successively these various points, yet the slight though persistent differences in methods and customs indicated by the works seem to favor the other view. Moreover, the data furnished by the burial mounds lead to the conclusion that all the works of these localities are relatively contemporaneous. Not that those of either section are all of the same age, perhaps by some two or three or possibly more centuries, but that those of one section, as a whole, are relatively of the same age as those of the other sections. Nevertheless a somewhat careful study of all the data bearing on this subject leads me to the conclusion that the Cherokees are the modern representatives of the Tallegwi, and that most of the typical works of Ohio and West Virginia owe their origin to this people.

In each section there are some indications that the authors of these works followed the custom of erecting burial mounds down to the time the Europeans appeared on the continent. These evidences have not been given here, as it is not my intention to discuss them in this paper.

In Ohio there are undoubted evidences of one, if not two, waves of population subsequent to the occupancy of that region by the builders of the chief works. But these were of comparatively short duration, and were evidently Indian hordes pressed westward and southward by the Iroquois tribes and the advance of the whites.

THE APPALACHIAN DISTRICT.

This district, as already defined, includes East Tennessee, western North Carolina, southwestern Virginia, and the southeastern part of Kentucky. It is probable that northeastern Georgia and the northwestern part of South Carolina should be included, but the investigations in most of the sections named have not been sufficiently thorough to enable us to fix with any degree of certainty the boundaries of the district.

Although there is uncertainty in reference to the area occupied by the people who left behind them the antiquities found in this region, there can be no doubt that here we find a class of burial mounds differing in several important respects from any we have so far noticed.

Some of the most important mounds of this class found in this district were discovered in Caldwell County, North Carolina, and opened in 1882 by Mr. J. P. Rogan, one of the Bureau assistants, aided by Dr. J. M. Spainhour, a resident of the county.

As Mr. Rogan's descriptions are somewhat full, I give them substantially as found in his report:

_The T. F. Nelson mound._--This mound, so insignificant in appearance as scarcely to attract any notice, was located on the farm of Rev. T. F. Nelson, in Caldwell County, North Carolina, on the bottom land of the Yadkin, about 100 yards from the river-bank. It was almost a true circle in outline, 38 feet in diameter, but not exceeding at any point 18 inches in height. The thorough excavation made revealed the fact that the builders of the mound had first dug a circular pit, with perpendicular margin, to the depth of 3 feet, and 38 feet in diameter, then deposited their dead in the manner hereafter shown, and afterwards covered them over, raising a slight mound above the pit.

A plan of the pit, drawn at the time (after the removal of the dirt), showing the stone graves and skeletons, is given in Fig. 25.

The walled graves or vaults and altar-shaped mass were built of water worn bowlders and clay or earth merely sufficient to hold them in place.

No. 1, a stone grave or vault standing exactly in the center of the pit. In this case a small circular hole, a little over 3 feet in diameter and extending down 3 feet below the bottom of the large pit, had been dug, the body or skeleton placed perpendicularly upon its feet, and the wall built up around it from the bottom of the hole, converging, after a height of 4 feet was reached, so as to be covered at the top by a single soapstone rock of moderate size. On the top of the head of the skeleton and immediately under the capstone of the vault were found several plates of silver mica, which had evidently been cut with some rude implement. Although the bones were much decayed, yet they were retained in position by the dirt which filled the vault, an indication that the flesh had been removed before burial and the vault filled with dirt as it was built up.

Nos. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, although walled around in a similar manner, were in a sitting posture on the bottom of the pit. In the grave of No. 2 was found a polished celt, in that of No. 3 a single discoidal stone, in that of No. 6 two polished celts, and immediately over No. 9 a pitted stone.

Nos. 11, 12, and 13 are three skeletons in a squatting posture, with no wall around them and unaccompanied by relics of any kind.

Nos. 14 and 15 are two uninclosed skeletons, lying horizontally at full length. With the former some pieces of broken soapstone pipes were found, and with the latter one polished celt.

No. 16, an uninclosed "squatter," of unusually large size, not less than 7 feet high when living. Near the mouth was an uninjured soapstone pipe. The legs were extended in a southwest direction, upon a bed of burnt earth.

The faces of all the squatting skeletons were turned away from the standing central one.

At A was found a considerable quantity of black paint in little lumps, which appear to have been molded in the hull of some nut. At B was a cubical mass of water-worn bowlders, built up solidly and symmetrically, 24 inches long, 18 inches wide, and 18 inches high, but with no bones, specimens of art, coal, ashes, or indications of fire on or around it. Many of the stones of the vaults and the earth immediately around them, on the contrary, bore unmistakable evidences of fire; in fact, the heat in some cases left its mark on the bones of the inclosed skeletons, another indication that the flesh had been removed before burial here, either by previous burial or otherwise.

Scattered through the dirt which filled the pit were small pieces of pottery and charcoal. The bottom, and sides of the pit were so distinctly marked that they could be traced without difficulty.

This mound stood about 75 yards south of the triangular burial pit described below.

_The T. F. Nelson triangle._--This is the name applied by Mr. Rogan to an ancient triangular burying ground found on the same farm as the mound just described and about 75 yards north of it.

It is not a mound, but simply a burial pit in the form of a triangle, the two longest sides each 48 feet and the (southern) base 32 feet, in which the bodies and accompanying articles were deposited and then covered over, but not heaped up into a mound; or, if so, it had subsequently settled until on a level with the natural surface of the ground. The apex, which points directly north, was found to extend within 3 feet of the break of the bank of the Yadkin River, the height above the usual water-level being about 12 feet. The depth of the original excavation, the lines of which could be distinctly traced, varied from 2-1/2 to 3 feet. A rude sketch of this triangle, showing the relative positions of the skeletons, is given in Fig. 26.

Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 indicate the positions of single skeletons found lying horizontally, on their backs, heads east and northeast. With No. 2 was found a broken soapstone pipe, and with Nos. 5 and 9 one small polished celt each.

Nos. 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 indicate the positions of skeletons inclosed in rude stone vaults built of cobblestones and similar to those in the preceding mound. (See Fig. 25.) Nos. 10, 12, 13, and 15 were in a sitting posture, without any accompanying articles.

Graves 11 and 14 contained each two bodies, extended horizontally, the lower ones, which were of smaller stature than the upper ones, face up and with heavy flat stones on the extended arms and legs. The upper ones, with face down, were resting on those below. No implements or ornaments were found with them.

Near No. 12 about a peck of singular, pinkish-colored earth was found.

In the northwest part of the triangle (at A in Fig. 26) ten or more skeletons were found in one grave or group, which from the arrangement the explorers concluded must have been buried at one time; the "old chief" (?), or principal personage of the group, resting horizontally on his face, with his head northeast and feet southwest. Under his head was a large engraved shell gorget (Fig. 27); around his neck were a number of large-sized shell beads, evidently the remains of a necklace; at the sides of the head, near the ears, were five elongate copper beads, or rather small cylinders, varying in length from one and a quarter to four and a half inches, part of the leather thong on which the smaller were strung yet remaining in them. These are made of thin pieces of copper cut into strips and then rolled together so that the edges meet in a straight joint on one side. (See Fig. 28.) The plate out of which they were made was as smooth and even in thickness as though it had been rolled.

A piece of copper was also under his breast. His arms were partially extended, his hands resting about a foot from his head. Around each wrist were the remains of a bracelet composed of copper and shell beads, alternating, thus (Fig. 29):

At his right hand were four iron specimens, much corroded but still showing the form. Two of them were of uniform thickness, one not sharpened at the ends or edges, the other slightly sharpened at one end, 3 to 3-1/2 inches long, 1 to 1-1/2 inches broad, and about a quarter of an inch thick. The form is shown in Fig. 30. Another is 5 inches long, slightly tapering in width from one and an eighth to seven-eighths of an inch, both edges sharp; it is apparently part of the blade of a long, slender, cutting or thrusting weapon of some kind, as a sword, dagger, or knife. (Shown in Fig. 31.) The other specimen is part of a round, awl-shaped implement, a small part of the bone handle in which it was fixed yet remaining attached to it.

Under his left hand was another engraved shell, the concave surface upward and filled with shell beads of all sizes.

Around and over the skeleton of this chief personage, with their heads near his, were nine other skeletons. Under the heads of two of these were two engraved shells. Scattered over and between the ten skeletons of the group were numerous polished celts, discoidal stones, copper arrow-points, plates of mica, lumps of paint, black lead, etc.

_The W. D. Jones mound._--Two miles east of Patterson, same county, and near the north bank of the Yadkin River, running out from a low ridge to the river bank, is a natural terrace about 12 feet high, with a level area on top of about an acre, the sides steep and abrupt. According to tradition this terrace was formerly occupied by an Indian village.

About 200 yards east of this, on the second river bottom or terrace, was located a low, circular mound 33 feet in diameter and not more than 1 foot high, on the land of Mr. W. D. Jones.

This mound was found on investigation to cover a circular pit 32 feet in diameter and 3 feet deep, the margin and bottom being so well defined as to leave no doubt as to the limits of the pit; in fact, the bottom, which was of clay, had been baked hard by fire to the depth of 2 or 3 inches. The mound and the filling of the pit consisted of earth and loose yellow clay, similar to that around it. In this mound were found twenty-five skeletons and one stone heap, the relative positions of which are shown in Fig. 32.

1. A "squatter," walled in with water-worn stones, the face turned toward the west; no relics.

2. Sitting with the face toward the center; two polished celts at the feet, and immediately in front of the face a cylinder of hard gray mortar (not burned) about 5 inches long and 2 inches in diameter, with a hole through one end.

3. Sitting with the face toward the center; several polished celts at the feet.

4. Horizontal, head southeast; several celts at the feet.

5. Horizontal, head toward the center; several celts at the feet.

6. Facing the center, sitting; shell beads around the neck, a _Unio_ shell on top of the head, with the concave surface down, a conch shell (_Busycon perversum_) in front of the face, and celts at the feet.

7. Sitting, facing the center; celts at the feet.

8. Very large, lying on the left side, legs partially drawn up, walled in with bowlders; no implements.

9. Horizontal, face down, head toward the center; celts and discoidal stones at the feet, and a pot resting, mouth down, upon the head.

10. Horizontal, face up, feet toward the center; pot resting on the face, stone implements at the feet.

11. Horizontal, head southeast, arms extended, and a bracelet of copper and shell beads around each wrist; shell beads around the neck; face up and food-cup (without handle) at the right side of the head.

12. Horizontal, face up, head southeast; shell beads around the neck, a hook or crescent shaped piece of copper on the breast, and a soapstone pipe near the face; one hand near each side of the head, each grasping small, conical copper ornaments (ear-drops) and a bunch of hair. Was this individual, apparently a female, buried alive?

13. Horizontal, lying on the back, head southeast; copper and shell beads around the neck and wrists, a hook or crescent shaped piece of copper on the breast, a food-cup (with handle) lying on its side with mouth close to the face, a pipe near the mouth, and two celts over the head.

14. Horizontal, lying on the back, head northeast, arms extended; each hand resting on a shell which had evidently been engraved, though the figures are almost totally obliterated.

15. Horizontal, on the back, head west, knees drawn up; stone implements at the feet.

16. Too much decayed to determine the position.

17. Four skeletons in one grave, horizontal, heads toward the east, and large rocks lying on the legs below the knees; no implements.

18. Two skeletons in one grave, heads west, faces down, knees drawn up; no implements.

19. On the back, horizontal, head east; no implements.

20. Sitting, with face toward the east, walled in, a large rock lying on the feet (though this may have fallen from the wall); no implements.

21. Sitting, walled in; over the head, but under the capstone of the vault, a handful of flint arrow-heads.

22. Doubled up, with the head between the feet.

A. A solid oval-shaped mass of bowlders, 33 inches long, 22 inches wide, and 24 inches high, resting on the bottom of the pit. No ashes or other indications of fire about it.

Fragments of pottery, mica, galena, charcoal, red and black paint, and stone chips were found scattered in small quantities through the earth which filled the pit. All the celts were more or less polished.

_R. T. Lenoir burial pit._--This is a circular burial pit, similar to those already described, but without any rounding up of the surface. It is located on the farm of Mr. Rufus T. Lenoir, about 9 miles northeast of Lenoir and nearly a mile west of Fort Defiance.

A diagram showing the relative positions of the graves or burials is given in Fig. 33.

It is on the first river terrace or bottom of Buffalo Creek and some 200 yards from the stream, which empties into the Yadkin about half a mile southwest of this point. This bottom is subject to overflow in time of high water.

The pit, which is 27 feet in diameter and about 3-1/2 feet deep, is almost a perfect circle, and well marked, the margin, which is nearly perpendicular, and the bottom being easily traced. The dirt in this case, as in the others, was all thrown out.

No. 1. A bed of charred or rather burnt bones, occupying a space 3 feet long, 2 feet wide, and about 1 foot deep. The bones were so thoroughly burned that it was impossible to determine whether they were human or animal. Beneath this bed the yellow sand was baked to the depth of 2 or 3 inches. Under the bones was an uncharred shell gorget.