The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-01-31
HISTORY OF
OUR INDIANS,
Bureau Of American Ethn0ICgl
Is Preparing Il,
PLANS ARE COMPREHENSIVE.

country Being Secured For All Avail
able Dats-Extreme Care With Maps.
Places Of Aboriginal Interest viii Gs
Shown In Detail.
The bureau Of American ethnology i,
repairing u new work which will form
handbook OF aboriginal remains IN
he United States and will have e.
o with the ancient abOdes, camps
bounds, workshops, quarries, burial
laces, etc, OF the Indian tribes.
In connection with this work f. W
Hodge. ethnologist in charge Of the bu-
eau of American ethnology, is sendinG
htters Of inquiry TO all persons thought
have any knowledge of the subject
( this undertaking as well as to all in
itutions and societies interested in
merican archaeology and ethno,ogy.
he letter requests all information rJ
peCting the location. character and
istory Of the remains left by the In
ans or other indications OF their foi
ler occupancy.
Many replies have been received. and
huch new information has been gail
red; but, owing to the extent Of th'
hquiry, some time will eapse before
complete list Of references can be o.,
lined.
This is not the first time that the bu
Pau has attempted a work of this
ind In 1891 Il catalogue OF prehiS-
bric works east Of the Rocky noun
ins was published, but that work j.,
pth out Of date and out of print; hence
be present effort to gather these sta
sites concerning the former occupan-
Of the country by the Indians j.
eing made.
The original publication on the sui
ct of aboriginal remains was com.
led by DR.. Cyrus Thomas and several
pllaboratOrs, with a view to aiding in
e construction OF archaeological map;
r general report on the mound eX-
orations of the bureau of American
hnOlogy. But on account of its ap-
brent usefulness as a means of refer
pee it was published separately.
Many difficulties presented them
Ives during the preparation of the
Pok, the main one being the lack OF
d maps on which the places referred
in published accounts of antiquities
ud be located. Nearly all modern
laps were useless on account of the
ANY changes in the names of coun-
rs and boundaries. The list finally
epared included all existing works
well as the previous locations OF
bny obliteratcd ones. arranged by
ates and subdivided into counties
A vast territory was covered in the
st book, and, judging from the large
PIP Of the eastern United States, tn"
rts Of this country most denSely
pulated by the aborigines must have
en- the basins Of the Mississippi and
lio rivers and the southern shores
the great lakes, although there are
dications Of many settlements on the
lantic coast, especially in Florida
large map showed all the locations.
d smaller maps, Of which there was
g for each state. indicated the ma
re Of each site by a special symbol.
the photographic list one found the
hanings Of the symbols readily. \
hgle house drawn in outline repre-
hted wooden lodge, while two
uses represented a village. A grave
ls indicated 10y a special figure
pund by the same figure reversed.
d so on, enabling one with a little
Idy to see at glance what was 10
ed Mt certain point
The history of the American lu
rs forms a broad and attractive
bieot Of inquiry, but unfortunntelv
data available for such study rrr
idly decreasing The fact that IT,,
EtOmS, folklore and traditions a.
nSe people are being lost through
vancing civilization and that the
Ter Indian authorities and charac-
: are rapidly passing away makes
more and more difficult to preserve
history Of the Indians for future
nerationS. Through the thorough
thods Of the bureau Of American
lnology, devoted to the recording OF
habits, customs ana history Of the
lerican Indians, however, many val
he data are constantly being com
ed.
is not expected that the prospec
g work on Indian antiquities will be
ued for many months Following
precedent of the old report, the
~ one in completion will show to
I'm a greater and more extensive
i all available information 1t is
bposed to classify the former Indian
|nains by states and counties and to
lstrate the publication with maps
Otographs and drawings.