Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1888-09-27

which was six feet In diameter, and
the roots of which penetrated the
earth thirty five or forty feet from its
trunk. a rudely but ingeniousiy made
iron Ratchet was found imbedded in the
sand near where fire. had been built,
of well-shaped and evenly laid stones.
Only twenty-five Or more years ago,
in digging well near the Medical
College, on the. corner of Ninth and
Chestnut streets, a portion or section
of a log raft was discovered thirty feet
below the earth's surface, and it was
in an almost perfect state of preserva-
ton. In the spring of 1858 workmen
employed in making the first water
works reservoir, a few miles above the
city and at the base of one of the rocky
cliffs, in digging down twenty-eight
feet below the surface of the earth and
about level with the low-water mark
in the Ohio river, found an iron buckle
attached to about two feet of rawhide-
leather strap. also q hewn sycamore
log about two feet square.
Many other discoveries of like
nature have been made around the
falls during the past thirty-five years,
all going to prove that this section OF
the country was inhabited when the
Ohio river was probably nothing but
's.spring branch"
Now, at the time the owners of these
relics, who sat around the fires, upon
the hearthstones, made and. laid by
/ 81 \
| forests, where was the Ohio river? It's
| mighty current and broad bosom were
| not where they are to-day. Now it
appears that the city of Louisville is
| situated on huge sand bar, left here
| by the Ohio river when it changed its
course, and began to develope the falls
of the Ohio, long before this section of
| the country was settled by the white
people.
There were no doubt great foods
and freeze-ups, as there are in these
more modern times, and it may be
| supposed that during some flood or
freeze-up the current cut it's way
through the land, or that the heavy
| ice let go, and either the one, the
! other, or both, succeeded in connect
ing the Ohio with Silver creek, and
cut off what is known as Portland,
Shippingport and q big slice of Louis
vile, rejoining the main river again
at some point just below where New
Albany now stands. In the course Of
time, being upon a solid foundation Of
stone, all the soil upon the bed of the
falls, the current was not strong
enough to do any thing more than wash
it away, and finally desert it's old
course forever and run for years where
it is running to-day. The river, in
leaving its old channel, naturally left
an immense bar of sand and gravel,
composed of swamps, and ponds. and
basins, containing stagnant water and
decayed vegetable matter. For years
these ponds and swamps were nothing
more nor less than breeders Of sick
ness, disease and death, and there are
in existence to this day, within the
corporate limits of this great and
growing city, some of these cesspools OF
stagnant water and swamps of decayed
vegetable matter. To come here and
live when Louisville was in its infancy
was almost an impossibility, for be-
tween chills. ague and earthquakes, q
cast-iron man, with forty-horse-power
constitution, would have the life
shaken" out Of him il he stayed long
enough. Cou7ier-,Journal. H.,
| ts.-