Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1879-11-22
Aboriginal Shell-heaps at P0pe's
Creek, MarYland.

| Society at the Smithsonian Institution on Tues
day night, Dr. Elmer R. Reynolds, the secretary,
read an Interesting paper on the hitherto unde-
scribed shell-heapS situated at the confluence of
Popes Creek and the Potomac river, sixty miles
south of Washington.
| He stated that he discovered the existence of
| these interesting remains in 1873 while eyplor-
| ing the Summervfile mari bank for the bones of
maStodon, portion OF which had become ex-
posed in the everything Drift after heavy
landslide the spring previous The paper was
| Illustrated by large collection of stone imple-
| mentS and pottery found on the surface and at
various depths among the strata of shells and
| ashes. They consisted of grOoved axes, ce,tS,
chiSels, ScraperS drills, arrows, spears knives,
pendentS, gorgetS, petrtfied sharks teeth, ham
mer-stones, a broken pipe, an unfinished stone
| ornament, finely polished, a "grindStOne," and
several fragments of soap-sGone dish, with
| holes drilled in them, probably for the purpose
| OF mending the bowl after having been accident
ally broken. Many varieties OF Clay pottery were
| shown and described. Some were an inch thick,
and made of sand, clay and coarSely pounded
qualtzite to give solidity and adhesive qualities
| TO the vessel. Other fragments were light AMI
graceful, with traces OF the Old enamel or giaz-
| ing. produced by adding saline mixture while
| the mass was In a plastic condition. opacil ms
| or decorative pottery were also exhibited tnat
| would have dona no diScredit to the Hon eric
age. The ornaments were not produced in re-
lief, but were incised or ih,tnht0-wavy, ztg-zag
| and cnevrOnal lines, or broad, ribbon-liSe bands
| both vertical and horizontal other Sner Is n I'd
| In addition TO the horizontal bands, line of
deeply imprinted dots at regular intervals, and
| above these a series of narrow lines Spri lgrilg
Oblquely upward to the lip OF the vessel
After having IN ade four visits to lii, Sc ,rk-
| able structures, ana giving them careful cl in-
| fnation at all accessible points AMI daptl3 the
author said he believed that he had tccim la ed
all the information respecting their origin 81 q.
chronological value and special cha 'acteriStlcs,
that. in the absence Of any definite history it
was possible to procure Their construction can
be safely aScribed 10
THE YOACOlIoCG INDIANS,
inasmuch as they are located within the an
Gent territory of this tribe, whose headquarters
were situated a snort distance to the south of
the Wicomoco valley. They fortified their
towns with StOckadeS, and lived in wigWamS
and communal dwellings. Father White.
| learned Jesuit missionary, who came from Eng
land with Lord Baltimore In 1888, states in his
RiGtj0 IHp.'iS IN NtIa'dHIi1nl-a Latin Narra-
tive of much interest," now in the archives OF
the 80 iIil'tS Professor OF the Jesuit Society in
Rome-that the Indians in this vicinity had
made much progress in the higher branch OF
agriculture previous TO their contact with El-
ropeaus. WIG fruits OF several varieties were
cultivated in their gardens in addition to the
staple crops OF corn, tobacco, pumpkins, and
beans. In 1884 or 1855 they ceded their territory
to the colony at s. Mary'S, after which they
gradually disappeared as tribe, although many
OF their descendants still remain near ALIENS
fresh. Port Tobacco, and NanJemoy.
OF THE TWO SHELL-HEAPs
examined the larger one is situated north of the
creek. The shells are deposited on the summit
OF a hill about twenty-five or thirty feet above
| tiCe-water Where it fronts Pope's Creek on
the south, the bank is somewhat creScentic in
outline and about three -Iundred yards in width.
but 1t gradually becomes wider and the shells
decrease in depth as the hill slopes upward in a
northern direction and finally loses its charac-
ter as Il Sheli-hcap i'll the adjacent fields. rhe
shells are said to extend over an area OF thirty
acres, but it is probable that this statement is
greatly exaggerated. The highest part reaches
an elevation OF Il hundred feet above the PO5o-
mac; beyond this point the fields in every direc-
ton are whitened by the partially decompoSed
shells. which have been utilized as Il fertilizer by
the neglbOring farmers. The upper third of
the bed Is still cultivated, Notwithstanding its
arid appearance The southern portion was for
merly plOuSned. hut for many years past 1t has
lain fallow. and l. now covered with wild roses
random patches CT cactus and cedar. From con-
slant cultivation through a long series Of years
the soil has nearly disappeared although In
some places it is still from ten to fifteen inches
deep. The exposedportion of the Shell bed on the
south from three TO five feet in depth according
10 the situation. It breaks off abruptly with the
bank, which Is nearly perpendicular, and made
up of sand and gravel which readily yield in
rainy weather and cause a continual shifting OF
the outlying stratum of shells above. By
scrambling along the exposed face OF the cliff
an unusually favorable opportunity was afforded
for studying, at glance, the characteristic fea-
lures OF the entire mass, which was composed
almost exclusively of oyster shells tightly
Wedesed together by diSintegration and the enor-
nous and long-continued pressure from the sur
face. Hammer-StoneS were found in great pro-
fusion; the majority being composed OF medium
sized water-worn pebbles picked up by the hun
CRY SavageS On their return from the river laden
with oysters; many showed no trace OF having
been used, but the fact OF finding them with the
other remains was quite sufficient to indicate
the cause OF their presence. Three feet beiow
the surface several eXceilently preserved frag
ments OF clay dish were found They belong
to class known TO psychologists as
''BAsKET POTTERY:"
and show in an interesting degree the uneven
corrugated features OF the rush matrx in which
the vessel was formed. Another large sherd
claiming special attention, was found In an ash
heap about two feet from the top OF the de-
posit: its position argued the former presence
OF fireplace or Kitchen" and many Slyory
"reminiscences were brought to mind by its diS
coyery. 1t is of smooth and even make on both
sides, belonged to. small dish, judging from
the curvature. and plainly showed The long
continued and destructive action of fire. Other
fragments appeared In the upright face of the
Cliff. Those found In the lower strata being eX-
tremely coarse and inartlStic would have no
special claim upon our attention were it not for
the fact, that recognizing their antiquity, we
might reasonably suppose they represented
h he at dsant esTd when In pHt cry,
first suggested to the savage mind.
Specimens OF pottery found on or near the sur
face were widely different in their elementary
composition and superior finish from those just
mentioned This, then, would seem to Indicate
gradual progression or evolution in the art
since the formation OF these shell-heaps was
commenced nearly four centuries ago. The Sa.-
rotary admitted that this theory was defective
inaSmuch as he had found fragments OF pottery
III the open fields which We're quite as common
as any from the Sub-Strata. Most OF the imple-
mentS found were from the cultivated portion
OF the Shel-heap lying at the foot OF and under
the protection OF the hill All were OF the most
ordinary character, and in several instances
especially among the aXeS-Show repeated frac-
lures and RESERVATIONS by grinding. Several of
the axes We're formed by splitting rock of con-
venent size, after which a hastily formed blade
aud groove were clipped with q hammer-Stone.
Many OF these iapIOnlp.H axes have been found
among the shells, and in addition other imDle-
mentS exhibiting similar pleblan origin. 1t Is
presulnabie that these objects were made on the
spot and kept there for general use among the
Indians: not being considered of sufficient value
to remove to other localities and especially at a
time when the departing Indians were heavily
frcghted with the products Of the river.
The shell-heap south OF the creek, while In
finitely smaller than the one described. Is OF
much greater interest owing to its form and the
unusual depth OF shells, which near the centre
of the heap or mound, is eleven feet deep. It's
above the bridge and a little to the left OF the
road leading to Newburgh. It's exact length
cannot be stated With accuracy, owing to The
stratum OF earth that concealS it from view
However, il Will not probably exceed hundred
and fifty feet In length extending east and
weStl. by one hundredi In width. It's shape and To-
cality have prevented any change by cultivation
hence the soil remains undlSturbed in stratum
varying from two to tWenty-four inches The