The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1869-02-12
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In the spring Of 1851, Prof Brainard,
Of Cleveland, DR.. 3. W. Hubbard, Of
Elyria, and myself, visited one Of the
Shelter CaYerns in Che gorge Of Black
/ River below the falls at ElyTia. There
| are several rock shelters IN this romantic
dell into which the two branches Of the
river plunge, oyer a shelf Of sand rock
known as "Grindstone Grit" We pro
cesded, with picks and shovels, along
the west bluff, past The old furnace, and
following narrow path, ovsrhung By
rocks and trees; selected for operations
an open grotto facing to the north.
These sheltered places are formed BY
the decomposition Of the soft red and
blue shale below the grit This process
being much more rapid in the sbales
than in the grit the heavy layers Of the
latter project beyond the base until
their weight causes them TO fall, in huge
masses, toward the bottom Of Che gorge.
Originally the fall in the river was
not far from mile below, at the north
end Of the present gulf where the uni
ted waters Of both branches, vent over
the edge Of the formation from height
Of so 70 80 feet When the wearing
action Of the waters aud the elements
had excayated a deep channel southwark
to Che forks, each branch took up the
work for ITSELF causing two falls, each
Of them less in height than the old.
Since that period the east branch has
receded much more rapidly than the
western. The base of the sandstone is,
at the forks, about 100 feet above Lake
Erie. We commenced digging in the
floor Of shelter opposite the whirlpool,
where the projecting sand rock has pro-
tected from the weather a space of about
fifteen feet wide and forty feet long.
This space had been long used, among
other similar retreats alongside Of the
stream. by the citizens of the place for
pic-nics. Below were large blocks Of
stone, which had fallen from above, pill
ed on each other about thirty feet down
to the water level, protecting the shale
from the wash Of. the current in time Of
foods At few inches depth the rich
soil on the floor of the cave changed to
mass Of decayed bones, representing
the animals, reptiles, and fisher Of the
region, with charcoal and ashes.
We continued to dig through this
material four feet when some loose
stone were found, evidently once a part
Of the roof Among the bones of the
bear, deer, raccoon, elk, squirrel, beaver,
woodchuek and vol, we're those Of the
rattlesnske, several varieties of fishes
and birds, and also flint arrow heads.
Beneath the fallen stones were found
parts of three human skeletons, two Of
the skulls nearly entire. These were
pronounced by craniologists to belong
to the race Of red men, one of them be-
ing the skull of an elderly woman and
the other Of a young man. The most
perfect one, that of the young man, was
preserved BY Prof Brainard, and afssr-
wards destroyed by mob in Cleveland,
which attacked and scattered the mu-
scum Of the Homeopathic College. The
skeletons were lying at full length, side
by side, the feet pointing outward, as
though the overhanging rocks had fallen
upon them while they were asleep.
Al the relics appeared to be those Of
the aboigines, which the whites found
residing in this country. In travelling
in their canoes along the shores Of the
lake and up the rivers, in search of food,
which constitutes the principal occupa-
ton of the race, they were obliged to
make portage around the Falls. At
the foot of the fall in certain seasons fish,
are plenty. Sturgeon, pickersl and
suckers are arrested in their spring mi
grations at the first perpendicular fan Of
the streams. After suffering the gnaW-
ings Of hunger during the winter, the
Indian revels few weeks on fish and a
full stomach, By sheltering himself
under the projections of the rocks, he
had his fishing ground under bis eye
directly below. His habitatioD, which
was kitchen, bedroom, and parlorin one,
vas the shelter cave adjacent. We es-
.imated the of the accommodations to be
rom 1900 to 1000 years The same
relics would no doubt be found in the
'ther grOttoes Of this romantic gorge.
Prior to this people there had existed
n this country the trace of the mounds"
# when the Indians have no certain
and who must have left the
.egiOn before the Aborigines arrived.
The mound builders must have occupied
Ohio 1900 or 1000 years, carrying their
IRA back to the time of Moses and the
Judges. There is also some evidence
# people iDhabiting Ohio before the
mound builders.