Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-07-07

Discovery of Indian Remains AT
IsInshamfon--Tw or Fifteen
Skeletons Dug Up-keIics and
Curiosifies.
The BmgAamton IN, " Repa6lican
of June Is says: 85 Tle
The workmen employed in digging
the trench for the water mains in North
Water street, in this city, have, within
the last day or so, exhumed portions of
at least dozen Indian skeletons-some
very much decomposed, and others re-
markably well preserved. One skeleton
was nearly perfect; the skull, with the
jaws and teeth being complete. as were
also the other bones, including those of
the hands and the feet. This skeleton
was of unusual size, and indicated. that
the person, when living, must have been
much larger than the average of man
kind. The other bones were in various
states of preservation, some being hard
and strong, Others rotten, after short
time crumbling by exposure to the at
mosphere. 5s,e,ss..f ;..11 = -. =, s-s,s. a.
Portions Of several skulls of large,
size, thick and very strong, were found,
with considerable quantity of ribs and
bones. The ribs comprised those, of
grown persons and children. as they va
ried in, size from that of an adault to
three or four inches in length. In one
instance the ribs were still adhering to
the yertebra. ~ F,es 4s5ss' ',s-5s.fs. u
In some of the graves relics of Curl
GUS shape were found, consisting of
wheels, stars and crescents cut ont of
very Hard stone These were well
formed, and were probably used as
charms. A flint arrowhead was found
in one grave, and in another sort of
knife or chisel, wedged shaped, made of
very hard stone of a greenish color
This knife was evidently used in skin
ming animals, as its peculiar construc-
tion would make it more convenient for
that purpose than any other. AETIJ {.
In another grave an earthern pot was
found, but twas impossible to get it out
whole, so that its exact shape could not
be ascertained. The material of which
this vessel is made evidently comprises
two kinds Of clay-one of a light drab
color, the other very dark, almost black
in appearance. 4, The vessel is three
eiehths of an inch in thickness, the light
colored clay forming an outside coating
about sixteenth of an inch thick. The
dark-co1ored clay seems to be sort of
concrete, containing minute particles of
a eravelly substance, and in general ap-
pearance resembles coal dust intermixed
with, pitch. The vessel is ornamented
both outside and inside-the ornamental
tation consisting of small indentures,
very distinct and, and regular in size
and position. Those on the inside run
round the vessel, those on the outside
up and down. On the top rim are in
dentations similar to those on the sides.
The vessel was round in shape, and must
have been quite large. It isvery proba-
BILE that it contained food. and was bur-
led with the Indian for the purpose of
sustaining him in his passage to the
"happy hunting grounds" s'1e
In another grave the bones OF an ami
NAL were found, but they were SO decom-
posed as not to be recognizable. The
lower jaws were quite perfect, and are
of peculiar shape and construction. At
the extreme point of the jaw is very
powerful tusk, extending about half an
inch out of the jaw. This tusk fills a
socket extending nearly the entire length
of the Jaw. Further back in the jaw
are four teeth, resembling very much the
double teeth in the human jaw. The
class to which this animal belonged is
not apparent, nor Of course how it came
to be in the grave, but as the Indians
often buried with their dead whatever
was much priced by the deceased, it is
natural to suppose that this animal was
a pet, and was inferred with the person
to whom itsbelonged. 'se .a.s
These skeletons were found about tour
feet beneath the surface, on the second
level,, above the Chenango river, and
every one of them in q sitting posture.
with their faces inclining eastward
That, they are the. remains of Indians Of
Onondaga or Oneida tribes, there is no