Omaha daily bee., 1897-12-25
LAST GREAT WAR IN IOWA
Fierce Battles in Which the Mound Builders
Were Exterminatsd.
on ia BATTLE GROUND
Forts that Were Almost ImpreEnabIc
Weapons of War buried with the
Dead Wnrriors-Pottcry and
the Arts-Mnny Fine Relics.

The mounds OF northeastern Iowa have
never been fully explored by the archaeolo-
gists, but Investigations have been carried
on by number OF local scientists sufficient
to show that the mound builders lived In
Iowa aud made hard fight against the In
vading Indians at one time in the distant
past Sewyn Coffran of Waukon has made
a study of these things and recently con-
tributed to the Kansas City Star a valuable |
article on the subject. 1 have received q
copy of the Sunday edition of the Star, he |
wrote, in which l find the description of
excavations made on the Arkansas river,
with srppositions as to the habits, dress and
ways OF prehistoric race of people. There
is striking similarity between the descr'p-
ton of that race and the remains of a race
which has been dug up in this (Allamakee)
county. | have specimens OF all the war
implements and pottery described in the
Star and several which were not mentioned.
There is q etrcog probability that long and
bitterly fought war was carried on In the
northern part OF this country. as there is q
line of fortifcations extending all along the
Oneota Upper Iowa river nearly to its
source. Around these some of the battles
must have been fought, for there are
numerous graves scattered in and around
them, aud the bodies in some places seem
to have been buried in trenches The bodies
are buried in every position, some doubled up,
others lying crossways and seem to have been
thrown into the trench and covered To.
Some Of the forts are remarkable pieces
Of civil engineering, one in particular being
almost impregnable, except to the use OF
modern firearms. 1t is situated on the apeN
of the watershed between the Iowa river and
Bear creek. On one side the embankment
is a precipice down to Bear creek. 400 feet
below, and on the other it is almost a sheer
| fall to the Iowa river A handful of men
could hold 1t against an army Another fort,
| about a mile from this, seems to have been
! hastily constructed, for 1t is made of bould-
| ers, which seem to have been put up in o
| hurry and without any care used in it's
| construction. 1t was probably only a tenn
| porary defense, as If party had been cut
| off from the main body of troops and fought
| The fighting, however, seems to have been
desperate. for numerous arrows, knives and
spear points have been found there. There
are also a number of skeletons at this place
| and further down the river are numerous
mounds, some of them very large. The
| largest, it is estimated, would take hundred
wheeled 9crapers three years to construct
| These mounds are almost invariably filed
with skeletons, and some of them seem to
have been regular burial places, as the
skeletons are in rows and well covered up,
| while others are a heap of human remains
| with the dirt thrown over them. Some of
| the skeletons are only about ok inches below
the surface The bones are so mixed that
it is almost impossible to tell anything about
! them except that many of the skulls are
crushed and numerous arrow and spear
points are mixed up with the bones.
ABORfGINES OF IOWA,
The race which inhabited this section of
the country were of short stature compactly
! built, OF an average height of about five feet
four inches. Their skulls are low and re-
treating in 'front.' full in the back and broad
and fiat on top.
In the excavations made here is unmis-
taxable evidence that some of the ancient
warriors met death by violence. In some OF
the graves opened arrows were imbedded in
the bones, and some of the skeletons were
minus the skull. One singular case was where
4 an arrow had been shot directly through the
head from front to back, being imbedded in
the back part OF the skull, about half of 1t
sticking through the bone. Another skeleton
was dug up with a knife sticking through a
rib; it had evidently been driven into the
body by a terrible blow, splitting one of the
ribs as it passed through.
Every indication points to war of ex-
termnation the last stand of nation made
in the canyons Of the upper Iowa. One race
or the other was destroyed, and 1t must have
been the Mound Builders, for the heaps OF
skeletons dug up are all of this race OF
people Another proof is that the regular
mounds are much more ancient than the
hastily created heaps of earth dotting the
river bottoms. The only proof we have OF
|, lhio 10 ludl tue DOutS lOunu seem 10 nave
been buried regularly, and are in a far more
advanced state OF decomposition than in the
oaher mounds. In most OF these mounds all
, there is left of the skeleton is the skull and
some parts of the larger bones. In digging
into one of the bone heaps left by the war
riors, skeletons in fair state Of preservation
, may be obtained, the finger and toe bones
,, being all that are missing.
UNKNOWN RACE OF PEOPLE.
On the bluffs on both sides of the river
I are single graves of both mound builderi
and race of people similar to the Indian
The shapes Of the skulls OF the latter, how
ever, differ in many respects from those o
| the Indians. The mound builders cch bt
distinguished by the pottery in the grave!
/ and also by the material from which thei
1 war imple ments were made. Their war tool!
: / were of a more regular shape than those o.
the unknown race of people, and thei
spears arrows, war clubs and war axes arr
made mostly from obsidian. Obsidian Is vol
| canic glass commonly called sugar flint
! Some of the war clubs and axes are made
of kind OF granite which is only found il
, the Allegheny mountains and In the noun
,, tains of New Mexico and Arizona.
Some of the mounds are made in the shap'
. of birds, beasts and snakes. One Is SHAPED
. like spread eagle; another Is snake will
an animal CT some kind in its open jaws
In a great many OF the graves are coppe
spears and arrows, and also strings OF hGrd
! ened copper heads. None but the moun'
builders have eyST been known 10 nave cop
per implements and ornaments In uhei
graves. % 1870 : ~
One remarkable skeleton was dug up b.
myself and another'sman. 1t was that of
A giant, being over seven feet six inches II
height. An idea ,pt the size OF this man ma,
= be gained by the length OF his shin bone.
stood it on the ground at my heel and
i reached about two inches above my kne
e Joint, being twenty-five inches in length
5 The only part ofSthe skeleton we were abl
to take away was. the jaw bone Everyon
r who has seen 1t says 1t is the most massiv
8 jaw ever seen by them. 1t measures from tn
: top OF the front teeth to the lower edg
of the Jaw bone one and three quartz
n inches Around THE lower edge 1t measure
a six and a half INCHES, across the jaw fror
: the two tips la five and half inches
has a remarkably perfect set of teeth. 1t
= first owner must have been some great chic
q for there was a beautifully shaped pot bur
: led over his mouth and with him wer
. found several strings OF beads and a numbe
OF war implements
. . ART WORK OF THE PEOPLE.
In my collection / have five different sizs
OF pots. The smallest is OF a reddish colo
. and hclds about half pint, while the larl
y est holds about three quarts. Some OF thei
y are as large good sized washtub.
= have pieces OF pos which by taking tn
circle from the piece they will measure tw