Miscellaneous Papers Relating to Anthropology/Ancient Remains Near Cobden, Illinois
ANCIENT REMAINS NEAR COBDEN, ILLINOIS.
By F. M. Farrell, of Cobden, Ill.
Along the range of sandstone bluffs that traverse Southern Illinois running eastward and forming the 'water-shed between the tributaries of Big Muddy River on the north and Cache River on the south, and from 16 to 20 miles east of the Mississippi River, I have been making a few discoveries which prove that the sheltered nooks formed by the projecting cliffs were the favorite abodes of an ancient race that once peopled the Mississippi Valley.
The first place investigated is 2 miles east of Cobden, Ill., under a projecting cliff of sandstone (millstone grit) about 60 feet high and facing the east.
Around an ancient fire-bed, not more than 1 foot below the surface, in a loose, porous clay, were found charred bones, flint chippings, fragments of arrow-heads of very rough workmanship, fragments of rude pottery made of red clay, and fine gravel. The pieces were half an inch thick, or nearly so, and, judging from the curve, they may have been of considerable size.
One morning in March, 1880, a party of us went to the bluffs known locally as Buffalo Gap, a deep triangular hollow, inclosed on two sides by immense ledges of stone, towering high above the tree-tops, and projecting far over the base, and forming sheltered nooks which bid defiance to the storms of winter and the heat of summer.
All along the base of these rocks the ground is strewn with flint chippings, bones, bits of pottery, arrow-heads, rocks, and rubbish. We made excavations in several places, and to various depths, varying from 1 to 3 feet.
The earth is dry and loose, and composed of considerable vegetable matter, and has the appearance of having been forming slowly for ages. All through this dust we found bits of pottery, arrow-heads, charred bones, charcoal, bones split lengthwise to extract the marrow, mussel-shells, turtle-shells, deers' horns, bones and jaws of various kinds of mammals, a bunch of charred hay, a large limestone mortar, having a bowl nicely cut in the center, which was circular in form and 1 foot in diameter, and deep enough to hold about a gallon. On a fire-bed 2 feet from the surface were the fragments of an earthen pot, probably a cooking vessel, as it contained bones and a fragment of a deer's upper jaw; also other material, which we were unable to determine. Near this pot were numerous spherical bodies, resembling spice in form, white, hollow, and too fragile to be preserved.
The pottery. has markings on the surface like the impression of grass, twine, and sometimes small sticks, showing that the vessels were molded in some kind of woven sack or basket made of willows and twisted grass. Some of the fragments were smooth and thin, the coarser ones one-half inch thick, and made of pounded mussel-shells, small gravel, and red clay. The shells which were found were probably brought up for that purpose, the animal having been used for food. The arrow heads are rude and very poor compared with the field specimens of which I will speak later.
An old foil is near by, on top of a cliff, and cut off from the main land by a wall of stone, which is now nearly flat, covering a base 20 feet wide and about 150 feet long. t The fort is triangular, the wall making one side and the perpendicular rocks below forming the other two sides. It had but one point of access from below, which is a path up a crevice in the rock, and could have been easily defended from above. This has the appearance of being very ancient.
Near the Illinois Central Railroad track, 5 miles north of Cobden, are other large bluffs, and underneath are numerous beds, which have afforded a great many relics. Several human skeletons have been unearthed, more or less preserved, though usually badly decayed, but one skull (female adult) was nearly perfect; forehead small, domestic faculties largely developed. The body of an infant was found near this one.
Besides human skeletons, bones of a good many kinds, though mostly deers' horns and bones, bones split lengthwise, large numbers of mussel-shells, turtle-shells, broken pottery (some of which must have been large), a considerable amount of parched corn, and the impression in the earth of woven fabric, which is rare here. The arrow-heads are numerous but of a rude character. Several fine bone awls were found. This seems to be the richest locality yet discovered here.
Near Makanda, 3 miles north of this place, is an old fortification, called Stone Fort, as it has once been defended by a stone wall, which is now nearly demolished.
Field relics.—Near all large springs implements of stone are found more numerous than at other places. They are of fine workmanship usually, and of various forms. The arrow-heads are of flint, of all colors. Shovels from 4 to 15 inches long have been found. Celts are of greenstone, handsomely polished, from 3 inches to nearly a loot long. Greenstone hatchets, having a groove for a handle, are found of various sizes, and well made. I have two in my possession, weighing 1½ and 2½ pounds, respectively, though some found here will weigh probably 5 pounds.
Workshops.—Three miles west of Cobden, near Kaolin Station, on the Saint Louis and Cairo Railroad, is the most extensive workshop I have found. It covers several acres of ground, and car-loads of flint chips and bowlders are strewn everywhere. Four miles south of Cobden is another of less dimensions. Others of greater or less size are met with in various parts of the country, but no relics of much value are found with them.
Aboriginal burial.—Seven miles west of Cobden, in Union County, Illinois, near Clear Creek, on the farm of Adam Smith, is an aboriginal cemetery. It is situated on a hillside facing the south. The graves are in a group, and were probably arranged according to some plan, but the spot has been in cultivation fifty years, and the graves are sadly mutilated. Each grave contains a single individual. The bodies were stretched out at full length. Of the two that were examined one was lying with the cranium to the west; the other toward the north; the face of the one toward the rising sun; the other facing the noon-day sun. The remains were inclosed in sarcophagi made of thin slabs of white sandstone, which were probably quarried from a ledge about three-fourths of a mile distant, in the bank of Clear Creek. The bones were (except the teeth) nearly decomposed. The graves were scarcely a foot beneath the surface, and mostly disturbed by the plow.
The mounds 7 miles below Jonesborough, Ill., have afforded many valuable relics, including numerous perfect water-vessels and other pottery, arrow and spear heads, celts, hoes, hatchets, pipes, skeletons, and one stone idol made of stalactite. These mounds have been investigated by F. M. Perrine, of Anna, Ill., who has a fine collection of mound and field relics.