Archeologic investigations in James and Potomac valleys / by Gerard Fowke.

  • Fowke, Gerard, 1855-1933.
Date:
1894
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Archeologic investigations in James and Potomac valleys / by Gerard Fowke. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    [.ETHNOLOGY in this pass there are several small stone piles, not more than a foot high, and placed on earth which is light and easily dug. Several of these cairns were removed and the earth beneath carefully examined to a depth of 3 or 4 feet Avithout result. They are probably trail-marks. NEAR IRON GATE. Three miles below Clifton Forge the Jackson and Cowpasture unite to form James river. A large fertile bottom lies between them, in which many relics of various kinds have been found, flint chips being very abundant. Close to the bank of Jackson river, a few hundred yards above the junction, the upper soil was Avaslied away in 1870, and many human bones Avere unearthed. On the opposite or right bank of the Jackson the land is much higher, being underlain with native rock which forms a bluff along the water. At one point on this bluff is the site of an arrowhead factory. This high level land extends for a mile along the stream; the alluvial soil is loose and fertile; good springs are numerous; and the mountains, full of game, come down to the rivers on every side. Similar conditions exist in all the valleys in this portion of Virginia and the adjoining parts of West Virginia. There are many Avell defined plateaus and terraces along the rivers and some of the creeks. Under such circumstances, evidences of aboriginal occupancy are to be expected, and the ordinary hunting or war implements, pipes, and ornaments are quite common. A number of cemeteries have been dis¬ closed by floods, and it is probable that many others remain to be dis¬ covered; for in some places where relics are plentiful, and where all the requirements of Indian life seem to be met, there are no indications of permanent settlements. There are very few mounds, and none of them are large. ALLEGHANY COUNTY. FALLING SPRING. In making a cut on the Covington and Warm Springs railway at this point, an aboriginal cemetery was discovered and 30 or 40 skele¬ tons, together with some beads, a pipe, and a few arrowheads, were exhumed by the workmen. The burial ground was not more than 30 feet Avide, and this width was reduced at least one-third in making the cut. In the remaining space ay ere 2 pits or holes, neither of them more than 8 feet across, into which many bodies or skeletons had been thrown promiscuously. The first pit had been dug partially away by the laborers; in the undisturbed portion 12 skulls were found, probably less than half the original number. It Avas evident that some of the bodies had been deposited soon after death, the displacement of the bones being no greater than would naturally result from the settling of the earth around them when the flesh had decayed. In other cases the bones alone were interred, being intermingled and packed in a way