MONUMENTAL REMAINS
OF
GEORGIA:
BY
CHARLES C. JONES, Jr.
PART FIRST.
SAVANNAH:
JOHN M. COOPER AND COMPANY.
1861.
Lokd Bacon, iu his ''Advancement of Learning,''
compares antiquities and historical fragments, which
have accidentally escaped the ravages of decay, to the
scattered, but still floating planks of a ship-wrecked
vessel ; and commends to the industrious student of his-
tory, a careful observation of all monuments, relics, and
ancient traditions, in order that somewhat may be saved
and recovered from the deluge of time.
The antiquities of our State, have always appeared to
me, deserving of more attention, and worth)' a higher
consideration than that, with which they are usually re-
garded. Although, like Fame, they may stand with
muffled heads, and tell but uncertain tales; although
the waves of time, in their ceaseless flow, may have ob-
literated much that is certain ; and the fiat of remorse-
less decay, doomed to silence and forgetfulness, many of
the most engaging and valuable memories of the Past,
yet, we must all recognize the fact, that the same in-
evitable law, which robs the ancient column of its beau-
tiful mouldings, and delicate flutings, also plants the
encircling ivy at its base, and places a seal of consecra-
tion upon its time*stained capital.
b M'MKNTAL REMAINS OF OIORGLL
The study of antiquity, necessarily involves an inves-
tigation of many of the most important problems of
human history. Especially interesting becomes the in-
quiry, when it Leads us to the consideration of remains
and monuments the only organic memorials ol a pi o-
pie, who preceded us in the occupancy of that land, for
which we all entertain those abiding attachments, which
are the of&pring of birth, education, and association.
The Indian no longer walks the soil he once cherished
with such ardent devotion. He has locked for the last
time, upon the flowing rivers, noble mountains, and
beautiful valleys of Georgia once all his own.
In obedience to the law of progress, the weaker and
the more ignorant race disappears before the conquering
march of the stronger, and the more enlightened.
Their names perished, when the forest tree, expanding
in the soft air and warm sunlight of spring, threw oil"
the rind upon which they were rudely graven. The
fragile hut, which sheltered them from the summer
storm, fell with the withered leaf of Autumn. Upon
the surface of our streams and harbors, are seen no fur-
rows traced by their graceful canoes. Their traditional
songs, and historical legends, have vanished with the last
memory which retained with the last voice which re-
peated them.
Well may the sorrowing Indian, as he turns with a
last lingering look from the pleasant abodes of his
Fathers, exclaim :
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 9
"They waste us ay, like April snow
la the warm noon, we shrink away;
And fast they follow, as we go
Towards the setting day
Till they shall fill the land, and wo
Are driven into the western sea."
Here and there, however, still exist scattered monu-
ments, fast yielding to the daspoiling hand of man, and
the remorseless attacks of time truth-speaking relics,
which tell of their arts of war, of the chase, of their
domestic manners and above all, consecrated mounds
and burial places, suggesting a belief in a future exis-
tence, organic remains in the history of the Indians,
evidencing the feet, that the savage breast was not insen-
sible to those traits of humanity respect for the dead,
and veneration for the memory of the illustrious de-
parted which have been, in all ages, held in esteem
and honor.
It is due to the Kace that is gone, that the poetic and
suggestive names, with which they have invested the
prominent natural objects within the limits of our State,
should remain unchanged still cherishing the memo-
ries of those, who first looked upon, and admired their
I teauties. It is demanded by the inquiries of the present,
that every scattered fragment, every grass-grown monu-
ment, left by the Indian, should be carefully noted, in-
telligently examined, and so far as may be, industriously
preserved.
Acting under this belief, and for the accomplishment
In MONUMENTAL BEMAINS OF GEORGIA,
of this end, it shall be our purpose, from time to time,
as opportunity occurs, to visit and describe the most
remarkable remains still extant in Georgia; thereby
attempting, by analogy, and in fact, to compass the
determination <>f. a1 least a portion, of whal is at present
almost unwritten history, thereby hoping to stimulate
inquiry and investigation, in behalf of this interesting
subject
Four miles distant from the city of Augusta, at a
point known as "The Wash above Warren's Spring,"
the Augusta canal pusses through a small hill, gently
sloping toward the right hank of the Savannah River.
To the casual observer, there is little of interest con-
nected with the locality, other than the beautiful river,
seen through the luxuriant vegetation adorning its
banks as it leaps in joyous confusion among the many
rocks, that here crop out in every direction from its
time-worn channel; and the gentle undulations, on
either hand. lending a quiet and pleasing attraction to
the Scene.
A closer examination however, discloses the fact, that
this must have been a constant, and favorite resort of the
Indians. The surface of the ground, for an area of seve-
ral acres, is literally covered with arrow and spear heads
fragments of pottery stone axes occasional rude
mortars, hollowed in flat rocks brought from the bed of
the river pestles soap stone ornaments and here
and there a pipe. Again and again, have numbers of
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 11
these remains been collected, and carried away by the
curious, as mementoes of the place, and of the Race by
whom they were fashioned; and still, the returning
ploughshare of Spring, each season, reveals new speci-
mens of the handiwork of the Ancients. Abounding
everywhere, are quantities of muscle, dam, and snail
shells, there deposited by the Aborigines.
Thai tin' spear and arrow heads wen 1 frequently here
manufactured, is clearly proven by the fact, that num-
bers oi" them may be found in an unfinished condition :
while chips, struck from the silex of which they were
forming these implements of war and of the chase, lie
scattered in every direction.
The soap stone ornaments, and mortars, also indicate
a local origin. It is to be observed however, that the
axes and hatchets, are formed generally of cyanite, a
mineral not found in this vicinity. The pipes are made
of steatite. Occasional!}* are seen intermixed with the
soil the bones of large fishes and animals. There ap-
pears to be in the neighborhood, an absence of mounds
and burial places. This fact we shall subsecpuentlv
show, is susceptible of a very natural and positive ex-
planation. Even* indication points to the conclusion,
that this was a favorite seat of the Indians; and the rea-
son why it was selected as a place of resort, becomes evi-
dent upon a moment's reflection. The adjacent swamps
and alluvial bottoms, with their original tangled under-
growth, must have constituted an attractive cover for
12 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OP GEORGIA.
game. The river, flowing near, furnished not only a
r foiling supply of water, but also afforded an
abundance of fish a1 all seasons of the year. Just here,
occur the rapids in the Savannah. From the projecting
rocks, and numerous boulders which lie exposed in the
current, admirable opportunities were presented fox
spearing the fish, as they glided through the shallow
sluices, or rested sluggishly in the circling eddies.
We are informed that at the present day, in the
Spring of the year, a shad fishery is here conducted
with marked success.
It is well ascertained, that the Indians located their
permanent settlements, with direct reference to the natu-
ral advantages, and physical resources of the place
selected. The presence of fish, game and water, was
indispensably necessary, both to the convenience and,
support of tribes, who had not advanced in civilization
beyond the hunter state who relied upon the spear,
the bow, and the arrow, as the principal means of obtain-
ing their subsistence who cultivated the soil only to
a very limited extent, and then simply by partially
loosening the earth with, the scapula of a deer or a bison
who erected, as a shelter from the inclemenl elements,
buildings of the slightest and most perishable materials,
and who could, at a moment's warning, change their
abodes without loss or inconvenience, locating anew,
where ever fancy, pleasure, or necessity might suggest.
This spot may have been used by them simply as a
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 13
rendezvous, for the purposes of fishing and hunting dur-
ing the Spring or Summer months of each year ; but
we incline to the opinion, that it was a fixed settlement,
and that the peculiar attractions of the spot, received at
their bands, a general and permanent recognition.
There may, and probably do exist at particular points
along the hanks of the Savannah, and other Rivers of
our State, localities possessing like indications; but we
doubt if many can be found, abounding to such a
narked degree, in varied remains and relies all attrib-
utable to a purely Indian origin.
Here they lie, speaking memorials of an almost for-
gotton race, like sea-shells found where the ocean has
been, to tell that the great tide of life was once there.
A mile and a half above the place, where the Augusta
canal takes its inception near the middle of the
Savannah River is Stalling's Island, forming one
of that numerous and beautiful group of islets, known
m the neighborhood, as "the thousand Isles." On the
right bank of the river, rise the attractive hills of Geor-
gia their flanks covered with luxuriant vegetation
their crests yielding a generous annual harvest, to re-
ward the toil of the husbandman- while on the other
band, the sister slopes of Carolina, rejoice in the same
warm sunlight. The river, here buoyant with life and
animation, leaps joyfully from rock to rock, now rush-
ing gayly through the sluices of the descending rapids,
now pausing ever and anon, with eddying tide to daily
11 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA
with the green slopes, and kiss the pendanl branches of
the forest trees, as they Btoop to the refreshing inllu-
- of the spray. The axe of the woodsman has
1- it unharmed the vegetation oi many of these little
islands; some of them rej still, in the possession
of their primeval foliage.
Stalling's Island, is perhaps souk- six acres in extent,
its Bhorcs hidden by dense masses of native cane, and
indigenous vims, while far above the undergrowth,
tower iii conscious pride, and unchecked vigor, the
;h, the Cottoo Tree, the Catalpa, the Maple, the
Birch, and the Sycamore, intermingling their graceful
branches of varied hue, in pleasing harmony. Spring-
in-- as f\>" s its foliage from the water's edge, this Island
appears a thing of life and beauty, resting quietly upon
the bosom of the ever-changing tide.
Near the center of the Island, stands a most remarka-
ble and interesting Indian" MONUMENT. It consists of
a mound, whose area is somewhat less than an acre
in form elliptical with a diameter in the direction of
the major axis, of about three hundred feet, and a diam-
eter in the direction of the minor axis, of one hundred
and twenty feet. The average elevation of this tumu-
lus, appeared to be souk; twenty feet, or more. It looks
to the north-east and south-west.
The approaches seemed to have been made from either
end of the mound, but especially from the south-eastern
extremity; the ascent there, being far more gradual
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 15
than at the other sides. The surface is generally quite
level, with however, an observable depression toward
the central portion, thereby causing an apparent eleva-
tion at either end. The symmetry of the south-eastern
side, has been somewhat impaired, in all probability by
the action of the river current during a severe freshet in
years long since past. There, the wall of the mound is
perpendicular, and its contents may be easily ascertained
upon a casual examination.
A distinguishing peculiarity, which at once engages
the attention, and excites the astonishment of the obser-
ver, is, that this tumulus is composed in chief, of the
muscle, clam, and snail shells of the river. Probably
three-fourths of its bulk consist of this material. The
imagination almost fails intelligently to estimate the
labor, the persevering, the continuous, the enormous
labor, which collected this immense mass. These shells
were doubtless, all obtained from the circumfluent river,
and its tributaries; but who will calculate the countless,
weary miles traversed in the industrious search for
them ; who reckon aright the days, weeks, months,
years yes, centuries, that must have elapsed, as the
toil of one generation was added to that of another, in
order that this tumulus might swell into its present stu-
pendous proportions?
Those mighty piles, the Pyramids,
'Time's gnomons, rising on the bank of Nile, - '
are unparalleled examples of the results, which may be
16 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA
achieved by combined physical industry, and consecu-
labor. It will be remembered however, that Egypt
icrted into a land q . to raise a monument
to Cheops, which should out live the feeble generations
of mankind. Here however, we have a mound, the
resull of the united effort of many generations the off-
spring of inclination, and not of constraint a tumulus,
gned to perpetuate, nol the empty name of a tyrant
king, bu1 the devotion which the Indians of this region
cherished for the peace, the security, the memory of
their dead.
No epitaph gratifies the idle curiosity of the spectator,
the traditions of the place arc gone the dead, who
here lie entombed, arc nameless now; yet, this tumulus
has stood for centuries, and will remain forages yet to
come, a speaking commentary upon the virtues, the in-
dustry, and the humanity of the Children of the Forest.
To such a marked degree do these shells enter into
the composition of this mound, that upon its summit,
no tree or shrub flourishes nothing save coarse grass,
and occasional cedars, struggling into a stunted exist-
ence.
The use of the shell, as a covering for their tumuli,
was not un frequent among the Indians who inhabited
the coast regions of our State; their object apparently
being, with the aid of this material almost indestructi-
ble as it is by the natural elements, to impart a per-
manency to the graves of their dead, which could not
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 17
otherwise be readily attained. From the extended oys-
ter beds in the vicinity, exhaustless supplies of shells
could be, and readily were obtained. The present
mound however, occupying the position that it does, is
most unique.
Several pits have been opened in the north-eastern
end. At the depth of twelve feet, the amount of shells
was undiminished. They appear to have been distri-
buted in layers of eight or ten inches in thickness, with
intervening strata of sand. An examination into the
contents of the mound, proves conclusively, that it must
have been used only for burial purposes that it is in
fact, a huge necropolis.
It could not have been the work of a year, or of a
generation. Strata upon strata have been heaped, each
covering the dead of its age, until by degrees, and with
the lapse of time, (how long, who can tell?) it grew into
its present surprising dimensions.
Skeletons abound. One of them in particular in a
reclining posture lay with the head to the north, the
palms of the hands resting against either cheek. From
the wrists and neck, were taken numerous shell beads ;
which, when strung, filled a thread nine feet in length.
Interesting pipes of steatite, and axes of cyanite, were
also exhumed. Interspersed in every direction, appeared
fragments of pottery. No traces of incineration could
be perceived, nor were any specimens of metalic con-
struction ascertained to exist.
18 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF OEOBOl I
We are dearly of opinion, that this mound is of
purely Indian origin. There arc no circumstances or
gating the slightest probability <>f its
connection, with either the Toltec or Aztec Race. It has
nothing in common with the monuments of the Missis*
sippi Valley, or with those anomalous ruins extant
within the limits of our own State, which indicate in
far distant periods, the past existence of a people, prior
in point of time, and Bnperior in point of civilization, to
the Indians who here inhabited, when Georgia was first
settled by the White.-.
The lower portion- of Stalling'a Island, subject as
they must be to at Least an occasional over-flow, could
never liare been inhabited by the Indians. In order to
ensure an exemption from this casualty, selecting the
most elevated part of the island, they there erected this
immense tumulus, reaching far above the swollen tide,
wherein the dead of the children of the forest might
repose in undisturbed silence and security.
There is something solemnly affecting, and deeply in-
teresting in the thought, that by common consent, this
quiet, retired, beautiful place, should have been conse-
crated exclusively to the purposes of burial. The ab-
sence of mounds in the vicinity the unusual dimen-
of this tumulus the numerous skeletons en-
tombed within its bosom all attest the iact, that this
must hare been used as the general cemetery of the
Tribes, who occupied the adjacent hills and fruitful val-
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 19
lej^s. No more attractive spot, no more suitable loca-
tion in this entire region, could have been selected.
Removed from the noise and confusion of the villages,
and yet so near, that the bright rays of the fires, nightly
kindled upon either bank, shooting athwart the darkling
tide, revealed the outlines of this island of the dead,
away from the forest path, trod by the hunter away
from the conflicting voices of the council-lodge, and the
wild delights of the place of feasting and dancing,
and yet, just where the eye of affection could ever turn
and rest upon its hallowed form.
It is at all times a fearful thing to contemplate the
approach of death ; to look forward to an occupancy of
that lonely dwelling, prepared for all the living; and yet,
in view of the poetic temperament of the Indian in
view of the peculiar religious belief cherished by him,
with reference to a future state, we may well imagine
how pleasing must Jiave been his anticipations, as he
regarded this mound-tomb, rich in the associations,
the consecrated recollections of the past hallowed by
tin- beloved and honored dust of centuries as his own
final resting place; as the starting point, whence he
himself, when the light of his wigwam grew dim, might
enter upon tin- happy journey to the spirit land, and
live anew amid the hunting grounds of the blest,
whither his fathers had gone before.
Here it stands, a speaking commentary upon that re-
spect for the dead, that veneration for departed worth
. : VESTAL kemaINs Of 1 GEORGIA.
and affection, that sin and esteem for the
g of their ancestors, winch in a marked degree,
must have characterized these untutored Bona of nature.
The vulgar tongue that talks lightly of the dead, ami
the vandal hand that would invade tin' sanctity of the
tomb, may well learn here, a lesson of tender and abi-
ding interest
No wonder the Indians loved their hunting grounds
their pleasant springs ami shove all. no marvel
that thej clung with a tenacity, ;t devotion which death
alone could teach them to forget, to the burial grounds,
consecrated for centuries, by the dust of their lathers.
Who will recall the historic associations which cluster
about this silent, ami vet not voiceless tomb? "Who
enumerate the vicissitudes which have occurred, since
the lirst canoe, with measured dip. and accompanying
train of mourners, landed here its precious burden?
Whose memory will recount the nanus, numbers, and
lives of those who have been here interred? Who tell
the day, when the lirst tear W8S shed above the lirst
sleeper, when they laid him to rest beneath the sombre
shadows ol these over-arching trees? What changes 1
what wars and commotions] what revolutions of States!
since the first shell, pure and bright from the bosom of
the Limpid river, was laid apon the new-made grave!
The hand of the conqueror has been heavily, ruth-
v laid upon those, who here garnered ap their
choicest and most sacred affections. Even their mem-
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 21
ory is fading from the recollection of those, who have
supplanted them in the dominion over forest, hill,
and river; and yet decay more kind than they
leaves untouched this sad memorial of their sorrows,
this striking monument of their affection, and venera-
tion for the dead. The forest trees, with their sturdy
roots, protect the s} r mmet]y of the mound their over-
arching branches shielding its outlines from the ruthless
influences of the storm. The murmuring voices of the
¦tream, which so often charmed the living ear, still bring
joy and gladness as in days of yore; and the song-bird
yet warbles sweetly his morning and evening lays, above
the sleeping dead.
All else is hushed ; save the whispers of the passing
air amid the forest branches, the startled note of the
solitary water-fowl, frightened from its retreat among
the reeds by the passing boat, and the soothing ripple
of the river. The living Indians, where are they?
"A noble race ! but they are gone,
With their old forests wide and deep,
And we have built our homes upon
Fields, where their generations sleep.
Their fountains slake our thirst at noon.
Upon their fields our harvest waves,
Our lovers woo beneath their moon,
Then let us spare at least their graves."
The warrior his proud heart pulseless, his spear-
heads scattered, his tomahawk rusting near his nerveless
arm the BBge chieftain, his council fires dead, his
heroic deeds unsung, his memory forgotton the medi-
28 MOW! MKM'AI. KKMAINS OF BIOBQIA.
cine man, his healing arts entombed, Ins charms
tarned to dust, his potent herbs angathered in tin- tan-
. brake the soft-eyed maiden, upon whoso broken
vows tin' evening star never Bhoirn£ the Bober matron,
her labors done tin- tender infant, here they all
: i\ in one common grave, ami here they will remain,
until the last trump -hall summon both conqueror and
conquered, before the judgment scat of Him who is
mightier than them all.
In strains of touching pathos, has an American poet
portrayed the feelings of the returning Italian at the
burial place of his fathers :
'¦ It is the spol I came to seek
My father's ancient burial |
Ere from these rales, ashamed ami uvak,
Withdrew our wasted race,
It is the spot I know it will
i if which our old traditions tell.
" For here, the upland bank sends out
A ridge toward tin- river side:
I know the shaggy hills about,
The meadows Bmooth and wide,
'I'll.- plains, that toward the southern sky,
Fenced east and west by mountains, lie.
" A whin- man gating OU the seen.'.
Would say a lovely Spol was here,
And praise the lawns, so fresh and preen,
Between the hill- so sheer.
1 like it nut I would the plain
Lay in it< tall old groves again.
" The sheep are on the slopes around,
The cattle in the meadows feed,
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 23
And laborers turn the crumbling ground,
Or drop the yellow seed ;
And prancing steeds, in trappings gay,
Wlrirl the bright chariot o'er the way.
" Mcthiuks it were a nobler sight
To see these vales in woods arrayed,
Their summits in the golden light,
Their trunks in grateful shade
And herds of deer, that bounding go
O'er hills and prostrate trees below.
" And then to mark the lord of all,
The forest hero, trained to wars,
Quivered and plumed, and lithe and tall,
And seamed with glorious scars,
Walk forth, amid his reign to dare
The wolf, and grapple with the bear.
" This bank in which the dead were laid,
Was sacred, when the soil was ours ;
Hither the silent Indian maid
Brought wreaths of beads and flowers ;
And the gay chief, and gifted seer,
Worshipped the God of thunders here.
" But now the wheat is green and high,
On clods that hid the warrior's breast,
And scattered in the furrows lie,
The weapons of his rest.
And there, in the loose sand, is thrown
Of his large arm, the mouldering bone.
" Ah ! little thought the strong and brave
Who bore their lifeless chieftain forth
Or the young wife, that weeping gave
Her first-born to the earth,
That the pale race, who waste us now,
Among their bones should guide the plough.
" They waste us ay, like April snow
In the warm noon, we shrink away ;
24 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
And fast they follow, as we go
Towards the setting day,
Till they shall fill the land and wo
Are driven into the western sea.
"But I behold a fearful sign,
To which the white man's eyes are blind ;
Their race may vanish hence, like mine,
And leave no trace behind,
Save ruins oV r the region spread,
And the white stones above the dead.
" Before these fields were shorn and tilled,
Full to the brim our rivers flowed ;
The melody of waters filled
The fresh and boundless wood ;
And torrents dashed and rivulets played,
And fountains spouted in the shade.
" Those grateful sounds are heard no more,
The springs are silent in the sun ;
The rivers, by the blackened shore,
With lessening current run ;
The realm our tribes are crushed to got,
May be a barren desert yet. "
'¦
H
II
Etowoh Rivor
G.G.G
Muni or Ditch
A
l.iiriic Central Mou
li
Oiroulor Mound
c
r.tnu.r,il do
REEF
Mounds will Ke
It
Mound out6ide ii>>
IT
Mounds iln tlu
E
do enclosed In
1UI
Bxoavations
T.T.
Crossings
K
At nolosod soi
A l
|0»itwje«tal WLtmMiw
f tU*
tcanA f|f0»0§»flflL
The most remarkable of the Monumental Remains of
the Etowah and Oostanaula Valleys, are located upon
the plantation of Colonel Lewis Tumlin, some two
miles distant from the town of Cartersville, in the
county of Cass. There are few monuments, amid the
vast numbers which have been observed and described
in the valleys of the Ohio, the Scioto, the Mississippi,
and elsewhere within the limits of the United States,
which can compare with the present, in extent and in-
terest. Situated upon the right bank of the Etowah
River, in the midst of a perfectly level alluvial bottom,
they tower above all surrounding objects, changeless
amid the revolutions of centuries.
They consist of a series of mounds (the character and
position of which will be hereafter more particularly
idcred,) surrounded by a large and deep moat
the traces of which are not only now perceptible, but
quite distinct, which, when filled with tide of the
river, would have effectually isolated all the space in-
cluded within its enclosure. T^he Etowah River here
turns toward the south: after :i gentle sweep, again re-
covering its wonted course, thus forming a graceful
bend.
28 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA
This moat originally communicated at cither end with
the river. This fact is still apparent, although the cur-
rent of the stream, in its flow of years, has filled bo a
very great extent the mouths of the ditch, thus prevent-
ing the influx and reflux of the tide. Formerly the
water must have coursed freely through it, thus isola-
ting the enclosed space, and constituting quite a formi-
dable obstacle in the path of an attacking foe. This
ditch varies in depth snd width: in seine places pa
sing still a depth of twenty feet in others, of not
more than eight or ten; and differing in width from
fifteen to forty 1. et
North and west of the mounds situated within this
enclosure, and along the line of the moat, are two 6X08*
vations, designated in the accompanying diagram, by
the letters D D, of nearly equal extent each having
at present a conjectured area of about an acre, and a
depth of some twenty-five or thirty feet. With these
vations, the moat communicates directly, so that
the same rising tide in the river, which flowed into the
ditch, would also convert them into deep ponds, or huge
i< -ervoirs.
The reason why these excavations were made is evi-
dent. The earth removed in constructing the moat, did
not suffice to build even a moiety of the immense
tumuli within the enclosure, llenee, in order to swell
them into their present stupendous proportions, the
mound builders were compelled to resort to these enor-
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 29
mous excavations, which still exist, and will remain for
ages yet to come, wonderful proofs of their labor and
protracted industry. The space included within the
limits of the moat the river forming the boundary to
the south and south-east, is between forty and fifty
acres. This moat is distinguished on the accompanying-
plan by the letters GrGG; at the points T T, commu-
nication can be had from the enclosed area to the sur-
rounding valley. Whether these embankments are por-
tions of the original work, thereby at ordinary times
affording the means of ready ingress and egress ; or
whether they have subsequently been there placed for
the purposes of convenience, cannot now be positively
ascertained. The first hypothesis however, under the
circumstances, commends itself to our approval ; in as
much as there are no appearances of any recent removal
of earth, with which these crossings could have been
made ; and it would have been a very easy matter, in a
short time to have removed them, in case it were deemed
necessary to fill the entire moat.
From the general appearance and nature of the works,
we are induced to believe, that these excavations were
drsigned to answer another purpose. They might have
been, and probably were intended as huge reservoirs,
wherein a supply of water, sufficient to flow the entire
moat, might have been detained, and preserved ready
for an emergency. The streams of this region, spring-
ing as they do from hilly sources, and passing through
M.iMMKNTAI. RSMAIN8 OF GEOHCIA.
valleys, are rapid in their currents, and subject to great
increase and diminution in volume. In the Spring of
the year, full to the brim, and not anfireqnently over-
flowing their banks; the summer bud finds them with
ned current When therefore, the water was low-
in the Etowah, it might have been a difficult, if not an
impossible matter, to have filled the moat. By permit-
ting these reservoirs, however, to be completely filled
by the freshet tides of the Spring, an amount of water,
sufficient at any tune to Sow the moat, could, with bul
little trouble, have been readily obtained and preserved.
The compact earth, at the depth of twenty-five or thirty
feet, would Buffer but little percolation; while with the
ever changing current of the river, opportunities would
be constantly presented, for supplying any deficiency
that might have been caused by evaporation.
Within the enclosure, formed by the moat and the
river, there are seven mounds. Three of them are how-
ever, preeminent in size; one in particular designated
in the accompanying diagram by the letter A, far sur-
passing all the others in its stupendous proportions, and
in the degree of interest which attaches to it.
This large central mound A, stands almost midway
between the moat and the river a little nearer the lat-
ter. Its position is commanding, and to the eye of the
observer, as it rests upon its august proportions for the
first time, it seems a monument .of the pasl ages, ven-
erable in its antiquity solemn in its silent, and yet
monumental remains of Georgia. 31
not voiceless memories, a remarkable monument of
the power and industry of some unknown race. It
belongs not to this generation. The hunter-tribes had
naught to do with its erection. The offspring of an
ancient people, who have passed forever beyond the
confines of this beautiful valley, it stands a solemn mon-
ument, ever repeating the story of their greatness, while
all else connected with them, and they themselves, are
sleeping beneath the shadows of a forgotten past.
Composed of native earth, simple yet impressive in
form, it seems calculated for an almost endless duration.
Although no historian has chronicled the names and
deeds of those, who aided in its construction although
no poet's song commemorates the virtues, the manners,
the loves, the wars, the brave deeds of those, who here
inhabited still, this monument exists, speaking a lan-
guage, perchance more impressive, than the most
studied epitaph upon Parian marble.
In building this mound, the fact, as disclosed upon
an examination of its constitution, as it has been parti-
ally made manifest by the action of countless showers
upon its slopes, seems evident, that the earth removed
from the moat, and the excavations D D, was first used.
The surface of the ground for a considerable distance
around the mound, was then evenly removed, and this
rich loam placed upon the summit of the tumulus. Lo-
cated in the midst of an alluvial bottom, as level as a
table this circumstance is easily ascertained at a mo-
KONI MKMAl. REMAINS OF (UOB0I1
(Dent's view, foi the surface of the ground dips on all
Bides towards the mound to such BD extent, that it tp
to rise out of B natural basin.
This central tumulus is some eighty feet, or more,
above the level of the valley. There is no geological
formation entering in the smallest degree into its compo-
sition. To all appearances, it consists entirely of the
earth taken fifom the moat and the excavations, in con-
nection with the soil removed from around its base;
having received no assistanee whatever from any natu-
ral hill or elevation. In fact, its location situated as
it is in the midst of a rich alluvial bottom, at a remove
from rocks, hills or elevations of any character pre-
cludes the idea of its having received any additions
from such sources. In view of this circumstance, its
stupendous proportions become the more surprising.
In form, it may be regarded as quadrangular, if we
disregard a small angle to the south. That taken into
account, gives us a pentagonal form, as follows: length
of northern side, one hundred and fifty feet length of
eastern side, <>ne hundred and sixty feet length of
south-eastern side, one hundred feet length of south-
ern side, ninety feet, and length of western side, one
hundred feet
Measured in the direction of cast and west, its apes
diameter is two hundred and twenty-five feet while
the diameter, as measured north and south, falls a little
short, being about two hundred and twenty-two feet.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 33
The apex surface of this tumulus is nearly level. Orig-
inally it was crowned with the most luxuriant vegeta-
tion, but the utilitarian arm of the husbandman, has
shorn it of this attraction. A solitary tree stands near
the northern extremity. The native weeds, and annual
grasses flourish however, in such rich profusion, that
the steps of the observer are seriously impeded. The
view of the surrounding country from the summit of
this tumulus, is highly attractive. Almost at its base,
flows the ever-changing tide of the Etowah River, seen
through the dark green foliage adorning its banks
coursing onward and onward through the fertile valley
the hill-sides on every band bending to cateh its re-
freshing influences. Alternate fields and forests charm
the eye. The rich alluvial bottoms, teeming with the
products of intelligent industry the crests of the
neighboring hills, adorned with pleasant cottages, their
sides covered with well cultivated orchards the conse-
crated spire, rising from the oak-grove which marks the
suburbs of :i neighboring village all proclaim in glad
accord, the happy reign of peace and plenty. Ten-
der must have been the attachment, with which the
Mound-Builders regarded this beautiful valley.
The approach to this mound, is from the cast bj
south. The other sides are too precipitous to permit
;i:iv other, than perhaps an Alpine guide, to accomplish
the ascent The angles of the mound, are still sharply
defined. That approach was effected^by the aid of fcer-
M«»M MKNTAI, i:i:\l.\: . ;¦:< >u«;i.v.
. rifling one above the other, inclined pi
ag from the one 1" the other. These terracee
sixty-five feet in width mrtending iYom the mound,
rd the south-
\- : . 9tern angle of this tumulus, there is a path-
way, which leads to tin- summit affording a ted
i the observer on foot This pathway lollows
the eastern angle of the mound, and does n<>t appear to
have been intended for general use. May it not have
been the fact, that this approach was designed for the
priesthood alone, while upon the broad terraces, th<
sembled worshippers i mn heed to the religious
ceremonies, performed upon the eastern Bummitofthe
tumulus '.'
To the east of this large central mound, and so near,
that the Hanks of both meet and mingle, stands a
smaller mound, about forty feet high, circular in form,
with an apex diameter of one hundred feet The sym-
metrica] construction of this tumulus is remarkable.
From its western alope, there IS an easy, and immediate
communication with the terraces of the central mound.
This mound is di signaled in the accompanying plan, by
the letter B.
Two hundred and fifty feet, in a westerly direction
from this mound, and distant in a southerly direction
lVi >i 11 the central mound, some sixty feet, is the third and
last <>r this immediate group.
Like both the others, it has been made ».f the soil of
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 85
the valley, without any assistance from natural eleva-
tions. It possesses an altitude of thirty feet or more,
and is pentagonal in form. The two diameters, mea-
sured across its apex surface, were respectively ninety-
two, and sixty-eight feet. It is uniformly level at the
top. No definite traces could be perceived of an estab-
lished approach to the summit. An ascent can readily
be effected from any side. This tumulus we have des-
ignated by the letter C. These last two mounds, are
located between the central mound and the Etowah
River the former (B), lying to the east, the latter (C),
to the south.
To the cast and north-cast of this group, is a chain of
four smaller mounds, F F F F, running almost north and
south. There is but little interest attaching to them,
and nothing, other than their location in the vicinity of
these larger tumuli, and their situation within the enclo-
sure formed by the moat and the river, to distinguish
them from numerous other earth-mounds, scattered here
and there throughout the length and breadth of the
Etowah and Oostanaula valleys. The mound E, lying
to the north-west of the central group, although posses-
: a trilling elevation, is somewhat remarkable for its
extent ; and is completely surrounded by the moat,
which at that point divides, with a view to its enclo-
sure. When the ditch was tilled with water, this eleva-
tion, completely isolated by the tide, must have seemed
an island. Outside of the enclosure, and within the
LL kkmains OF c,K'u:<;ia.
confines of tin' valley to the north-cast, appears
sharply defined mound E. Lower down the valley,
and aear the river bank, are seen two other elevations
r P.
The Inquirer, upon the most casual, as well as after
the most careful examination, rests fully satisfied in the
belief) that all of th< - - are of artificial construc-
tion. There are no evidences whatever of geological
m. The tumuli within the enclosure, arc all oom-
! of the materials removed from the moal and ex-
ions, and of sand. Loam, and vegetable mould, sim-
ilar iii all respects to the superior surface of the valley,
upon which the mounds arc seated. The method
adopted iii the erection of them, appears to have been,
by carrying the earth (how we can only conjecture,
possibly in bags, skins, baskets, or vessels) and empty-
ing it upon the spot selected as the location for the
mound. The slope of the sides of these tumuli, is just
that, which would he made by general and gradual
accretions of earth, successively deposited in small quan-
tities from above.
The summits of these mounds, as well as the circum-
jacent valley for miles, have been completely denuded
of the original growth, which overspread them in rich
profusion. The attractive soil, with its annual generous
harvests, is too highly prized by the husbandman, to be
allowed to contribute only to the life ami beauty of the
forest trees. The consequence is, that every outline of
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 37
these remarkable remains can be readily and carefully
noted. Upon the summit of the large central mound,
still stands the stump of a walnut tree, not less than
three feet in diameter.
The first and most natural emotion, suggested upon
an examination of these monuments, is one of absolute
wonder and astonishment, at the immense amount of
industry and labor expended in their construction.
Another idea presented, is, that they must have been
the result of the combined efforts of many generations ;
or else, that the population, by whom they were built,
must have been very numerous. The veil of an un-
known and forgotten past is upon them. No historical
records have been left behind; and we are compelled to
resort to the internal evidence of these tumuli, to the
scattered fragments which are revealed by the spade and
plough-share, to form even plausible conjectures, as to
the character of the race by whom they were con-
structed. Unfortunately for the enquirer, the herculean
task of opening these mounds has never been attempted.
Their contents are secrets still; and we are only in pos-
ion of those facta relating to the manners and cus-
toms of their authors, which may be gathered from an-
v, and from the utensils, idols, and weapons, which
have been picked up at their base.
It will be at once remarked by those, who have even
to a limited degree bestowed any attention upon the an-
tiquities of our State and Country, that these remains
38 M'lNTMKNTAI. BEMATJ
.: all Indian in their origin. They have noth-
in common with I attained to have l>< en eon-
Btructed by the Indiana who here inhabited, when this
on was firel peopled by the white--.
We have also the positive testimony of the Chero
Indians to the effect, that they had not even a tradition
of the race by whom these works were made, 41
The authors of these tumuli, were probably idol wor-
shippers, Idols have been found at their base, indica-
ting in their formation, a degree of skill superior to
that d by the Cherokees. It is a well ascer-
tained fact, that the Indians of this region never, either
made or worshipped idols, f
A.mong the Cherokees, neither idols nor idol worship
were ever ascertained to exist Their religious belief,
the theory of a future state, as cherished by them, all
forbid the supposition thai these idols were ever fash-
ioned by the Cherokees Again no people, who had
not advanced in civilization beyond the nomadic state
changing their seats as often as fancy or a scarcity of
game mighl Buggest would have undertaken the erec-
tion of such vast earth works, involving immense labor,
and designed for almost endless duration. Men must
have emerged j'rom the hunter state; they must have
become more advanced in civilization; population must
* Sec Travels of Wm. Bartram, pp. 265, 266, Bee also, Harris 1 Jour-
. pp. l 17. l is. Also, History of Wisconsin, p. 246.
1 avels, pp. 495, 496. Adair's History American
[naians, pp. 19, 22,
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 39
have become dense, before the erection of such temples
such fortifications could be undertaken.
There was not in the sixteenth century, a single tribe
of Indians, between the Atlantic and Pacific, which had
means of subsistence, sufficient to enable them to apply
for such purposes, the unproductive labor necessary for
the erection of such a work. Nor was there an}'-, in
such a social state, as would enable a chief to compel
the labor of the nation to be thus applied. It is only
under despotic forms of government, that pyramids will
be erected in honor of :i prince or such huge earth
works for religious purposes.*
It is evident then, that these monuments never were
constructed by the Indians, who possessed this region
when Georgia was first peopled by the whites. Like
that system of ancient mounds and fortifications, scat-
tered over that well defined area, comprising the hydro-
graphical basin of the Mississippi, over which the forest
had resumed its sway, the present monuments, can
afford us no positive history, cither of the period when,
or of the people by whom they were built.
Nothing has been more frequent than the effort, by
men in all ages, to distinguish themselves and their race,
by the erection of monuments, temples, and high-places;
thereby attempting to impart permanency to the mem-
ory of the departed solemnity to their religious cere-
monies and dignity to their age.
* See^Trans. Amer. Ktli. Soc., Vol. I., p. 208.
ting waters of the deluge, had dis-
appeared from the surface of the earth, when mankind
undertook th< ? of a tower its summit reach-
ing to Heaven, that might Berv< real national
temple a proud monument of the power and industry
<>[' those by whom it rand bond of per-
petual union, ami a pledge, that amid the oha
oomii ' ries, the memory of their n should be
tually cherished.
The practice of mound-building, seems in times ;
to hi in almost every region of the world.
The mound of earth, in a period of Bemi-civilization,
appears to have suggested itself as the most natural,
convenient, and enduring form of perpetuating the
memory of the dead, and of constructing lasting tem-
ples, for the solemnization of religious rites and i
monies.
By a comparison of the descriptions of those ancient
works in Europe and Asia, with those now in existence
in many parts of our country, we find them both re-
markably similar in the method of their construction,
in the materials employed, and the articles found within
them. This group of mounds, closely resembles many
that have been examined in the valleys of the Scioto,
the Ohio, and the M ississippi. They are the fruits of
the industry and labor of the same race.
The researches of Dr. Atwater, as presented in his
article prepared for the American Antiquarian Society;
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 41
have led him to believe, that these people derived their
origin primarily from Ilindostan.
Without pausing to enumerate the proofs, varied, and
perhaps substantial, upon which the supposition rests, we
may here state in general terms, that all the probabili-
ties point to Asia, as the country, whence came the ear-
liest inhabitants of America. When, and at what plaee
they first located, cannot at this remove be definitely as-
certained. While there are, here ami there, indications
of what may be termed an intrusive t}^pe of civilization,
referred by some, to occasional adventures and migra-
tions, having their impulse from the east, towards the
Atlantic coast ; we incline to that opinion, which looks
to Mexico, as the parent of that immediate civilization
which originated in this valley, as well as in the valleys
of the Mississippi, the Ohio, the Scioto, and elsewhere,
these remarkable monuments of the industry, religious
zeal, and military skill of that people, who are, in
the absence of their ascertained name, denominated
Mound-Builders. The remains which they have left
behind them, arc many of them precisely similar to
those, which have been exhumed in the valleys, and at
the base of those ancient temples, seated upon the plains
of Mexico.
Another tact, worthy of notice, is this: these re-
mains are generally located upon, or near streams, hav-
ing communication directly or indirectly with the Gulf
of Mexico.
G
HON I MhNTAI. KKMAINS OF GEORGIA.
. with respect to the tumuli now un-
der consideration.
ip, is another proof in support of this
hypothesis.
These Mound-Builders seem to hare been an agricul-
tural people. This is a reasonable deduction from the
fact, thai their tumuli, temples, and fortifications, gene-
rally appear upon fertile ground only almost alwaye
upon the rich alluvial bottoms of the rivers, lands
which might be cultivated for years, without the neces-
sity of the application of fertilizers.
Another Inference d by the Location of all
their works, which appear to have been devoted to
sacred uses, is, that abhvtUm was a recognized religious
rite.
Again the Mound-Builders evidently wen 1 sur-
rounded by enemies, against whom they were forced to
protect themselves. Else, why these fortifications la-
borious in their construction, attendant upon so many
settlements formed by these people?
It will be observed, that their locations are definite,
indicating either ;i direct line of immigration pursued
by them: or if there !>< no permanent intermediate bo-
journ, then only here and there a fort hastily and tem-
porarily constructed, until some suitable location is
Selected, whel'e theV Col l g I'egate, riveting their tclllpleS,
building their fortifications, and cultivating their fruitful
vail'
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 43
We may well conceive, how a common clanger, and a
sense of impending destruction, might concentrate the
energies of a tribe in the hunter state, and accomplish
the occasional erection of fortifications, which even at
this day, would excite surprise, and attract the attention
of the antiquary. But in the case <5f the Mound-Build-
ers, we are led to the conclusion, that they were under
a government, widely differing from that which obtained
among the Indians a government, in which the will
of the ruler was the undisputed will of the people
where the energies of the entire community were di-
rected, and expended in conformity with the order and
edicts of the chief in command. Upon no other theorv,
can we account for these uniform and enormous exhi-
bitions of combined labor and industry. We infer far-
ther from the location of these monuments, that the
Mound-Builders occupied permanent seats, which they
probably changed not, until forced by the conquering
arm of the surrounding foe, to abandon the beautiful
locations where they had fixed their homes. Their set-
tlements, as has already been intimated, were almost
always chosen, where the attractions of the soil prom-
a ready and bountiful reward to agricultural indus-
try. Radiating in communities, from the perchance
over-crowded seats of Mexican civilization, they as-
cended tli<' principal streams, and their branches, having
communication either directly or indirectly with the
Mexican Gulf, or with the ocean; locating here and
44 KENTAL REMAINS OP GEORGIA.
their banks, in the richest alluvial bottoms
or in the valleys ol some sister Btream, where they
could with success pursue their agricultural arts, build
their temples, and worship their gods. Thai some of
Ueys musl have been densely populated, and
long period of time, is clearly proven, both by the
number and the character of the remains still in exist-
That the valley of the Etowah must have been
a chosen seat, is most evident It is only through the
lions of b dense population, that such monum
could be cr.ctcd: only amid a people, who looked not
to a precarious subsistence, to be gathered from the wild
animals of the forest, or the fish of the stream, hut who
had come to love the soil ujion which they had fixed
their homes, who had learned to appreciate the value of
the annual harvest, who had called in the assistance of
the domesticated animal, and who were accustomed to
the benefits which Bow from an orgai rernment,
and the social state.
That the population must have been both permanent
and numerous, is susceptible of easy proof. How great
that population was, cannot now he determined. No
historian has left the record of their manners, govern-
ment, and laws; no voice, save that silent speaking
testimony of these monuments, proclaims their past
greatness. No reply is heard in definite response, by
him, who knocks at their tombs.
Mr. Bracken ridge has conjectured, that there were
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 45
once five thousand villages of this people, in the valley
of the Mississippi and it is the belief of Dr. Atwater,
founded upon extensive observation, that the population
which once possessed the valleys of the Ohio, must
have exceeded seven hundred thousand. Many of the
mounds there examined, contained an immense number
of skeletons. Those of Big Grave Creek, are believed
to be completely tilled with human bones. Millions of
human beings have been interred in or near these tu-
muli. To have sustained such a population, extensive
resort must have been had to agricultural pursuits.
A small excavation, made in the western part of the
mound B, began to reveal human bones. The examin-
ation was not prosecuted to a satisfactory extent. An
ancient tumulus located immediately at the junction of
the Etowah and Oostanaula Valleys, in Floyd County,
was a few years since almost entirely removed, in level-
ing the streets of the village of Borne. It was com-
pletely filled with human bones, and various remains, of
which we shall subsequently furnish an extended notice.
Along the bank of the river just here, appeared numer-
ous skeletons in confusion, lying about four feet below
the surface.
The indications of this locality would seem to desig-
nate it as a general necropolis. The remains existing
every where in this valley, assure us of the fact, that
this remarkable people, in years long since past, must
in large numbers, have fixed here their favorite and
permanent abodes.
M.'MMKMAL KKMAi QBOBOIA.
The antiquity of these remains, may be inferred in
i is, from the following considerations:
First Of their origin, of the time when built, and
of the race by whom they were constructed, the Chero-
knowledge, traditional or otherwise. The
Cherokees claim for themselves a residence of many
ons in thi a. They declare further, that
when their forefathers first possessed themselves of this
land, they expelled from its beautiful valleys a tribe of
Indians, who, like themselves although for a long
period occupants of the soil, could give no informa*
lion respecting the origin of these tumult If then we
may believe the traditions of the Cherokees, the age of
works, may In- estimated by centuries.
Secondly The character of these structures, affords
an argumenl lor their antiquity. They are not the
hastily thrown up entrenchments of migrating bands;
but, on the contrary, are the ruins of temples, burial
places, fortifications of massive, carefully considered,
durable dimensions, all indicating the consecutive, com-
bined, extensive labor <>l a large population, perma-
nently established.
Eerodotus was informed by the priests of Memphis,
that one hundred thousand workmen were employed for
the period of twenty years, in the construction of the
pyramid of Cheops, We may well imagine, that many
years were consumed in the erection of these monu-
ments. II' thru, to tin- time requisite for the prepara-
tion of the surface of the ground, we add the length of
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 47
time consumed in the actual construction of these works;
add to this, the period intervening between their com-
pletion and their abandonment the length of which,
although entirely open to conjecture, could certainly
have been by no means inconsiderable; and then con-
sider the fact, that the Indians, who preceded us in the
occupancy of this region, could give no information
whatever in reference to them, the mind, in endeavoring
to locate their origin, is at once and irresistibly led back
to a remote date.
Thirdly The large trees, with which these long de-
serted monuments were once over-grown, intimate the
length of years that they have remained uncultivated
forgotten wastes and add testimony of remote antiqu-
ity,, We have already alluded to the circumstance, that
the summits of these tumuli, the banks of the moat,
and all the space included within the enclosure formed
by the moat and the river, were once covered with an
immense growth of forest trees, as large, and luxuriant,
and to all appearances quite as old as any vegetation of
this region.
The stump of a walnut tree whose diameter cannot
be less than three feet, still stands upon the apex of
the central mound. It is however, in such a decayed
condition, that the concentric circles could not be defi-
nitely ascertained. To appreciate aright the force of
this argument for the antiquity of these remains, we
must remember, that the process by which nature re-
48 MONUMENTAL REMAINS uF GEORGIA.
s the foresl to its original state, after it has been
once cleared, is extremely slow.
Says a prominent writer: In our rich lauds, it is in-
deed soon covered with timber; but the character of the
¦.ili is entirely different, and continues so, through
many generations of men. The sites of the ancient
works on the Ohio, present an appearance precisely sim-
ilar to thai of the circnmjacenl forest [Such was em-
phatically the case with regard to these tumuli upon the
banks of the Etowah, before the axe of the white man
robbed them, and the adjacent valley for miles, of the
magnificenl growth which completely over-shadowed
them.] You find on them, continues the writer, all that
beautiful variety of trees, which gives such unrivalled
richness to our forests.
This is particularly the case on the fifteen acres inclu-
ded within the walls of the work at the mouth of the
Great Miami, and the relative proportions of the differ-
ent kinds of timber, arc the same. The first growth,
on the same kind of land once cleared, and then aban-
doned to nature, on the contrary, is more homogene-
ous, often stinted to one or two, or at most three
kinds of timber. If the ground has been cultivated,
yellow locust in many places will spring up as thick as
garden peas. If it has not been cultivated, the black
and while walnut will be the prevailing growth. The
rapidity with which these trees grow for a time, smoth-
ers the attempt of other hinds, to vegetate and grow in
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 49
their shade. The more thrifty individuals soon over-top
the weaker of their own kind, which sicken and die.
In this way, there are only as many left as the earth
will support to maturity.
This state of things will not however, always con-
tinue. The preference of the soil for its first growth,
ceases with its maturity. It admits of no succession
upon the principles of legitimacy. The long undis-
puted masters of the forest, may be thinned by the
lightning, the tempests, or by diseases peculiar to them-
selves; and whenever this is the case, one of the oft-re-
jected of another family, will find between its decaying
roots, shelter and appropriate food; and springing into
vigorous growth, will soon push its green foliage to the
skies, through the decayed and withering limbs of its
blasted and dying adversary ; the soil itself yielding it
a more liberal support, than any scion from the former
occupants. It will easily be conceived, what a length
of time it will require, for a denuded tract of land, by
a process so slow, again to clothe itself with the amaz-
ing variety of foliage, which is the characteristic of the
forests of this region.
Of what an immense age then, must be these works,
covered so recently with the second growth, after the
ancient forest state had been regained."
* Says Caleb Ahvater, in speaking of the antiquity of the monuments
of tlie Ohio Valley : "The botany of the country has been consulted
on this subject. It would have taken BOme time for the seeds of plants
and trees, to have been completely scattered over a whole country, B%
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEOKoI.y.
Thus do these considerations all attest the great an-
tiquity of tin's.- remains.
Fourthly It will be remembered that earthen struc-
tures, as a genera] rule, are nol greatly impaired by the
lapse of time. If favorably Located, but little percepti-
ble change is caused by the action of the natural ele-
ments. Mosl certain it is, thai monuments of a similar
character, are among the most ancient which have been
preserved, and are more enduring than the mosl solid
specimens of architecture. That mound at Aconithus,
which the Persians raised over Artachies, the superin-
tendent of the canal at Athos, still exists, in its general
features unchanged : while the most elaborate and beau-
tiful masterpieces of the Grecian artists, scattered and
broken, lie mingled with the common dust.
Six hundred years before Christ, near S.udis. in Asia
Minor, the Lydians erected a great mound-tomb over
Alyattes, the father of Crcesus. It still stands, while
the architectural monuments of the intermediate twenty-
five hundred years, have many of them, crumbled into
forgetfulncss and nothingness; and it may be, that these
very monuments may out-live many of the most strik-
ing achievements of our presenl civilization.
rely cultivated by a considerable population. Now the only differ-
ence between the botany of the country, where the works are found, and
those tracts, where there are none, is. that the trees arc the largest on
ami aboul the works. Trees of tin- Largest Bize, whose concentric annu-
lar fillers have been counted, have in many instances, as many as four
hundred, and they appear to be at least the third growth, since the works
Mic occupied." Bee A.rch. Amer., Vol. I., pp. 219, 306.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 51
Fifthly Another argument which might be adduced
in support of the antiquity of these works is, that they
were constructed in the mound-building age a period
distinctly marked in the history of the civilization of
the world.
Sixthly Another circumstance worthy of note is,
that the people who built these works, were idol wor-
shippers. Subseqently, will be presented a description
of an idol, found at the very base of the large central
tumulus. Sacred and profane history alike teach us,
that there was a time when all nations, except the Ee-
brew tribes, and those brought directly in contact with
them, were idolaters.
It is an interesting fact, and one which seems to be
well ascertained by the observations of the intelligent,
that the sun was worshipped by the Mound-Builders.*
These tumuli are usually so situated, as to afford a good
and early view of the rising sun. The approaches arc
from the cast,
If we examine these monuments of the Etowah Val-
ley, with reference to this fact, we will find in them a
confirmation of this theory. The principal angle of the
large central mound A, looks directly towards the east.
* The doctrine of the worship of the sun. was the structure, upon
which was based the foundation of their genera] system. We have QO
positive evidence, and can only conjecture by the apparent astronomical
ms, and the enigmatical forms of the mounda to be found in the
that the worship of the sun, at the time of the discovery, was still
maintained at Marietta, Kaskaskia Cahokia. and Grave Creek, where the
principal mound-structures and ruina now exist. See Schoolcraft's His-
tory, Ac. p
52 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
The approach, by means of the terraces, is eastward.
The mounds B and C, look directly to the east and
west. There is that about this group, which suggests
the impression, that the principal interest concentered
about the eastern portion of the central mound. It
was there that they probably offered their sacrifices.
Thither the eyes of the assembled worshippers were
turned at the sacred hour, and from thence, the expect-
ant eye of the officiating priest caught the earliest ray
of the rising sun, as lifting his gorgeous face from out
the shadows of the far off hills, he looked and smiled
upon this beautiful valley. Where are now those tem-
ples, Angel of Light, which once flamed at thy coming,
over all this region? Where the consecrated priest-
hood, that from thy rising beams kindled anew the hal-
lowed fires? "Where the assembled worshippers, who,
with reverential gaze, greeted thy dawning glories?
Still thou pursuest thy sublime march,
' tirst of .all the starry choir,"
but these, thy votaries, are gone their shades arc
mute, and thou sheddest thy benign influences upon an-
other race, rejoicing in the light and love of a new civi-
lization, a holier religion.
This idol worship this reverence paid to the sun
and moon the location of their temples the condi-
tion of the arts and sciences, as they are ascertained by
the remains still extant, to have existed among them ¦
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. OO
the political economy of this people, as far as we have
been able to arrive at it by analogy, all suggest the
idea, that the civilization of the Mound-Builders should
be referred secondarily to a Mexican origin. We are
the more readily inclined to this, when we remark the
direct similarity which exists in many important partic-
ulars. In the history of the Mound-Builders, we dis-
cover only such modifications, as are incident to thai
colonial state, which is not in the possession of all those
appliances, which appertain to the well established
homes of the parent civilization. We are well aware
that it is the conjecture of some, whose ethnological re-
searches entitle their opinions to no little weight and
consideration, that this ancient people the authors
alike of the monuments of the Mississippi, the Ohio,
and the Etowah valle}'S, emigrating from Asia, at
some remote period, made their first settlements around
the waters of the northern lakes, following in their pro-
gress south-west, the streams and rivers which empty
into the Gulf of Mexico, and leaving in every place of
their residence, traces of the degree of their civilization
and improvement*
There is probably no doubt of the fact, that we must
look to Asia as the source of American civilization ; f
but why locate the early settlements around the waters
* An-li. AiiM-r.. V"l. T., j). 1.
\ Sec Cabell's Unity of Mankind, p. 118, ot seq. Sec Pickering's
Races of Men, p. 294, et seq. Sec Schoolcraft's History, ic, Part 1. pp.
¦J J. 'J I.
¦ northern lakes, in prei and
By a reference rliesl ani
and remote bistoriea of Mexican civilization, we arc
informed, that the G driven from their native
country, after a long navigation along the coast of Cali-
fornia, arrived at Euehuetlapallan (old Tlapallan) in the
year :;^7 alter Christ. Thence, sailing along Xal
and traversing several provinces, they arrived at Tech*
on ili«- south sea. Subsequently th ized
Tollantzinco, and finally founded the city of Tollan,
where th 1 their first king, Chalchiuhtlanetzin,
in the year of our Lord 510. Then follows a list of
sovereigns, underwhose reign the Toltec monarchy
extended its dominion over one thousand Leagues. Dur-
ing that period, a number of large cities was founded
the ruins of some of which are BtiU extant. The las!
king, Topiltzin, ascended the throne A. D. 882. Dnder
his reign, the country was desolated by Bterility, plague
and famine. Mosl of the vassal princes rebelled, a
dreadful eivil war ensued, equally fetal to both parties,
which terminated in the overthrow of the monarchy,
and the almost total destruction of the nation itself.
Fernando D' Alva, in one of his relations states, that
during the last war. which continued for a period of three
-, one month and eighteen days, there perished, on
both sides together, live millions six hundred thousand
souls. Some of the Toltees lied into distant provinces.
Others quitted the country precipitately, ami forever.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. OO
Very few remained in the vicinity of the Lake of Mex-
ico. This occurred about the middle of the tenth cen-
tury. The Toltecs were great idolaters. Their principal
Gods were the sun and moon, and one of their especial
missions, appeared to have been the erection of vast
temples.*
Is the supposition either unreasonable or improbable,
that these Toltec bands outcasts from their own land
warred against by the surrounding nations, and
rent by domestic feuds, should have betaken themselves
to the quest of new seats new homes, new fields,
which they could again cultivate: where they could
anew erect their fallen altars, and build their massive
temples? Recollecting their fondness for agricultural
pursuits the necessity for the presence of water, for
the proper solemnization of their religious ceremonies
the fear of persecution, and utter destruction, which
would impel them far away from their former regions,
it not appear probable, that after coasting along
the shore, they ascended the mouths of the Mississippi,
higher and higher, occupying its rich alluvial bottoms,
settling upon the banks of its tributaries, and where
ever the attractions of neighboring localities received
at their hands a ready recognition; until, with the lapse
of years, not only the Mississippi, but also the Ohio,
and other valleys, became filled with their increasing
* Sec Trans. Ainr-r. Kth Sue. Vol. I., p. 151,
Mmmmkmai. REMAINS OP GhEOBOIA.
population, and the ever multiplying monuments
their skill, industry, and religions zeal
Prom other wandering bands, the physical excellen-
cies of the bay of Mobile claimed attention. Ascending
the waters of tin- Alabama, then those of the Coosa
fixing one especial seat, where the Laughing waters
the Etowah, meet and mingle with the more sedate cur-
rent of the Oostanaula, they anally reached these
beautiful valleys, and here erected these remarkable
tumuli, which will keep alive lor centuries yet to come,
the memory of these Toltcc refug.
Other colonies settled in the peninsula of Florida,
and through themselves and their descendants, peopled
the lakes, river-banks, and coast regions, U this hy-
pothesis be correct, we must assign, as the period of the
settlement of certain portions of our country by the
Toltccan Race, the third quarter of the tenth century.
Besides the idols, and the other remains already
considered, which, in connection with information deri-
ved from a critical examination of their temples, tumuli,
and fortifications, tend materially to strengthen the con-
jecture, thai these MLound-Bailders came from Mexico
to these regions, we have the shell ornaments (made
from the species margineUa flairda, occurring on the
coast of Florida, along the shores of the Gulf of Mexico,
and in the W"es1 Indies), These -hells are found even
in the valley of the Ohio, and tell the story of their
origin, as clcarl v, and as conclusive! v. as if it had been
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. ;><
i
traced in living letters upon enduring marble. Specimens
abound in almost all of the large tumuli which have
been opened. They exist in the tumuli of the Etowah
valley.
Again, are seen antique tubes of telescopic device.
By placing the eye at the diminished point, the extrane-
ous light is shut from the pupil, and distant objects are
more distinctly discovered.* The effect, remarks Mr.
Schoolcraft, is telescopic, and is the same, which is
known to be produced, by directing the sight to the
heavens from the bottom of a well; an object which we
now understand to have been secured by the Aztec and
Mia races, in their astronomical calculations, by con-
structing tubular chambers.
We have before us a beautiful and valuable remain of
this character, accurately constructed, and polished to a
remarkable degree, the description of which must be
postponed for a later page.
If this Mound-Building race came, as is supposed by
some, directly from Asia or Europe, to the shores of the
United States, why is it that we perceive no monu-
mental traces of them, in the regions where they must
first have landed ? Why is it, that they are almost ex-
clusively confined to the valleys of those rivers, and
their tributaries, which communicate with the Gulf of
Mexico?
It seems evident, again, that we must seek a Mexican
origin for this civilization, when we remember that this
was a race of agriculturists.
8
58 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEOKGIA.
In the Tennessee valley, ears of maize wore exhumed
from the graves of this very people. Mr. Harriss, in his
Journal, mentions, that in a mound, near the large tu-
mulus on Grave Creek, was found a stone signet, of an
oval shape, two inches in length, with a figure in re-
lievo, resembling a note of admiration, surrounded by
two raised rims. It was exactly the figure of the brand,
with which the Mexican horses were marked.* The
head of the Sus-tajassu, or Mexican hog, cut off square,
was found in a saltpetre cave in Kentucky, by Dr.
Brown. The nitre had preserved it. It had been de-
posited by the ancient inhabitants, and must have lain
there for many centuries. This animal is not found
north of Mexico.^
Without pausing to enumerate the further arguments
and circumstances which might be adduced in support
of this hypothesis, and commending to the considera-
tion of those, who are interested in the subject of the
origin of the civilization of those portions of North
America, which we have been specifically considering,
we pass to the inquiry
How long did the Mound-Builders occupy these regions?
They have passed away. Their temples and monu-
ments are tenantless now. The silent past gives back
no decisive answer to the voice of inquiry ; and from
the great unknown void of our aboriginal history, we
receive no alphabetic message, save the small circular
* See Harriss' Journal of a Tour, &c. p. 62.
f See Arch. Amer., Vol. I., p. 244,
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OP GEORGIA. 59
stone, wrested from its sleep of ages in the voiceless
womb of Grave Creek mound, with its hieroglyphical
representations, the proper interpretation of which, has
as yet puzzled the profoundest antiquarian scholars of
the world.
The period of their settlement here, if our conjecture
be correct, was during the third or last quarter of the
tenth century. Upon the. fiat surface of the highest
part of Grave Creek mound, grew a large white oak.
In 1828, it decayed, apparently dying exclusively from
old age. When it fell, its trunk was carefully and
evenly cut off, in order that the cortical layers might be
accurately counted. These numbered about five hun-
dred. Allowing a year for the growth of each layer,
{the usual period fixed by botanists), this would desig-
nate the year 1328, for the commencement of the
growth of this tree.*
This mound was abandoned then, one hundred and
sixty four years previous to the discovery of this conti-
nent by Columbus. The Mexican Empire was then in
the full tide of prosperity. Assuming our idea, as to
the time when the Mound-Builders first occupied these
valleys, to be correct, and presuming the white oak tree
whose age was so definitely ascertained, to have
been in its inception coeval, or very nearly so, with the
abandonment by that race of their monuments, we have
an intermediate period of some three hundred and sixty
* See Trans. Amer. Etli. Soc. Vol. T p. 380.
60 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GKOBGIA.
years, as the time, during which these remains were con-
Btructed, and these valleys occupied by the Mound-
Builders. In the absence of positive history, we are
thus compelled to invoke the aid of any and every
circumstance, tending to throw light upon this hidden
subject.
As has been already intimated, the growth upon the
summit of these monuments in the Etowah Valley, was
in every respect as huge, as varied, and as luxuriant, as
that of the forests by which they were surrounded. If
any difference could be perceived, it would indicate a
superior vigor and size, in favor of those trees which
surmounted the tumuli, and flourished within the en-
closure formed by the moat and the river. The writer
did not enjoy the opportunity of examining the number
of cortical layers possessed by the largest trees, as, at the
time of his visit, not only the adjacent portions of the
valley, but the tumuli, moat, and elevations, had been
completely denuded of all vegetation, and were entirely
changed from their original condition into luxuriant
fields.
Within this period of three hundred and sixty years
allowing only a moderate ratio of increase, we may
well understand how numerous must have become the
population of at first a small colony. Increasing and
multiplying, every year extending their possessions, and
erecting new monuments, they spread from valley to
vallev converting the alluvial bottoms, rank with the
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 61
luxuriant growth of centuries, into flourishing fields,
yielding their annual harvests; perpetuating in almost
imperishable memorials, their devotion to the worship
of the sun and moon, and raising immense tumuli,
beneath which their generations sleep.
When, therefore, we consider the length of their so-
journ in these regions when we estimate the increase
of numbers, which must have occurred in obedience to
physical laws when we remember the dense popula-
tion which could have been readily supported by the
agricultural products of these fertile regions the pecu-
liar form of government under which they lived, and the
religious belief cherished by them, we are prepared
to understand, how they were able to accomplish the
erection of monuments so vast ; monuments proclaiming
themselves in tones that cannot be misinterpreted, the
combined results of the enormous labor, and united reli-
gious zeal of the many.
And now the sad inquiry comes home to every one :
What has become of this teeming population? Their
pleasant fields have either been overgrown by massive
forest trees, or give generous token, that they are rejoic-
ing in the teeming products of a superior agricultural
civilization. Their solemn temples tenantless now of
worshippers deserted of their Gods, lie uncared for,
and exposed to the harsh influences of the changing sea-
sons. No lettered shaft tells the story of their coming,
or of their going. No written history exists to remind
62 HON! MENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
OB aught of them. There is that however, about their
remains, which most distinetly informs us, that I
Mound-Builders had enemies, against whom they con-
tended, and against whom they were ever constructing
fortifications and defences, of an extrusive and efficient
character. In the monuments which we have been par-
ticularly considering, whal means this immense moat,
excavated at the expense of so much labor, with its
accompanying basins and breast-works, if its object
was not, to render secure the enclosed area, within
which were located the solemn temples of the Mound-
Builders, and the sacred tumuli, wherein were de-
posited the mortal remains of their beloved dead?
Lines of rampart, composed of earth, and sometimes of
stone, enclosing areas, varying in extent from twenty to
two hundred acres; subterranean passages, leading
from within the Avails to the banks of a neighboring
river, as if to provide for a supply of water in the event
of a siege; forts and watch-towers, varying in their
form and dimensions, all indicate most unmistakably
the fact, that the occupancy of this land was not at all
times peaceable and without dispute ; but that on the
contrary, the Mound-Builders were surrounded by those,
who not only warred against them, but also threatened
their very existence.
One of two suppositions then appears correct : either,
that overwhelmed by the repeated and successful as-
saults of their enemies, they were at length overcome,
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 63
and suffered at their bands total annihilation; or, that
retreating before the advance of more powerful and war-
like tribes of the north, they descended the streams
which first conveyed their ancestors to these hospitable
retreats, and again sought a home within the confines of
more southern, and perhaps Mexican limits. If the lat-
ter opinion be the correct one, the probability is, thai
war, famine, and perhaps pestilence, must most sadly
have thinned their retreating bands.
In the pursuit of his inquiry into the origin and his-
tory of the Red Race, Mr. Bradford writes: It may be
useful to inquire, whether any of the Indian traditions
tend to elucidate the question of the origin of the
mounds and mural remains. The southern Indians
state, that when their ancestors migrated from the west,
they found these ruins deserted, and that the tribes
which they dispossessed, had also observed them, upon
their first occupation of the country. The Creeks, Cher-
okees, and Seminoles, are all united in attributing their
erection to ancient and unknown inhabitants, without
any definite tradition upon the subject.*
Indeed, their origin is an entire mystery to most of
the present Indian tribes, a circumstance by no means
surprising, when we reflect that they were not ac-
quainted with any accurate and permanent method of
recording events. There is an old Delaware tradition,
which, whatever may be its other claims to considers
* See Bartrain's Travels, pp. 365, 366.
64 M-MKNTAi. remac uscteaiA.
tion, merits attention, as being the onl y detailed narrative
connected with the history of the Mound-Builders; and
for its congruity with the traditions of the Iroij'
They related that the great race of the Lenni Lenape,
many centuries ago, inhabited a country far to the west
Upou migrating eastwardly, they found the territory,
of the Mississippi, occupied by a numerous and
civilized people, whom they denominated the Alligewi,
and who lived in fortified towns. The Indians made an
application to pass over the river, and through the
country to the eastward; which request, though at first
refused, was subsequently acceded to, under directions
to make no settlements until they had passed the Alli-
gewi boundaries. In accordance with this permission,
that tribe made the tempt; but during the passage of
the river was attacked and driven back. Upon this, a
league was struck with the Iroquois, who had also emi-
grated from, the west, and reached the river at a higher
point; and the combined forces of the allied tribes as-
sailed the Alligewi so fiercely, thai alter suffering severe
losses and numerous defeats, to escape extermination,,
they finally fled down the shores of the Mississippi.
The vast and beautiful territory thus abandoned to the
conquerors, was divided between them; the Iroquois
selecting the district upon the borders of the great lakes,
and the Lenni Lenape, an extensive tract of land lying
further to the south, and towards the Atlantic. By one
of the [roquois tribes (the Senecas), it is related, that
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 65
at a very distant era, the country about the lakes was
occupied by a powerful and populous nation, subs< -
quently destroyed by their ancestors.
Several of the most beautiful, and the richest locations
of the Six Nations, are stated by them to have been in-
habited and cultivated before their arrival, by another
people, whose burial places they distinguished from
their own. The tradition they have received of ih
ancient inhabitants from their fathers states, that they
formerly occupied a wide extent of territory, and were
eventually extirpated by the Iroquois, after long and
bloody wars. It is added in detail, that the last fortiti
cation was attacked by four of the tribes, who were
repulsed; but the Mohawks having been called in,
their combined power was irresistible; the town was
taken, and all the besieged destroyed.'-
The conformity of these traditions to the vestiges of
civilization at the west, and to the Mexican narratives
as contained in their paintings, entitles them to more
weight than they would otherwise deserve. They pro-
ceed also from nations, which, from their numbers, their
extensive diffusion over a wide region, and some features
in their customs and character, appear to be among the
* Traditions of tlie Kaskaskia and Tuscarora Indians, make direct
reference to ancient Indian wars and contentions. Tin' ruins of Clieche-
ticali, (if Peos, of the platform mounds of Florida, and of the Mississippi
Valley, as well as minor monumental reliqusa bearing evidences of a su-
cnltivation, and of arts, beyond those possessed by the North
American Indian-, assure us i f the met, that a foreign people trod at.
a portion of this continent before the era of Columbus, or the plant-
ing of Virginia. See Schoolcraft's History, &c., preface,
!l
66 MMKNTAL REMAINS OF &EO»
first, and most ancient occupants, after the country
abandoned by its former Inhabitants.
The Algonquin, Lenape, and Iroquois, Beem to have
been borne upon the firsl wave of that tide of migra-
tion from the west, which probably Bwepl before it the
.sand Tolteca and the former, were in i
that position, where we Bhonld expect to find the fore-
most of the invading hordes, at the east, and al
the shores of the Atlantic It is unnecessary to exam-
ine minutely the native traditions, to prove the direction
of these migratory movements; for do fact is more
clearly established, than their universal agreement, in
tracing their origin to the west or south-west
These facts, in connection with those which have been
exhibited, as proving the common origin oi all the Abo-
rigines, favor the conclusion, that the original soun
population is to be placed in Mexico and Central Amer-
ica; and the vestiges of civilization observed as
the Natchez and other nations; the traditions oi a pi
when many tribes were more cultivated and numerous
than at pnsent ; the evidences which exist of important
alterations in dress, customs and religion, and a declen-
sion in the arts, since the discovery, all tend to confirm
this idea. The exceptions. If any, which exist, are chiefly
confined to some western and northern tribes, to which
an Asiatic origin by Behring's Straits, and the Aleutian
Islands, may with some plausibility be ascribed.*
* Soo Bradford's American Antiquities, p. SOS, el tt q
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 67
After a notice of the tribes, once resident in Mexico,
and in the valley of the Mississippi, Mr. Schoolcraft
observes. We learn that there were two great ethno-
logical families of red men in America. Occupying
different latitudes, separated by climatic barriers, and
holding diverse positions in the scale of civilization,
they inhabited coterminous countries, and were in char*
acter sui generis. They coincided in general features,
character, habits, and modes of thought and action. The
vocabularies of their languages differed; but the gram-
matical structure of them, and the philosophical princi-
ples upon which they were based, were remarkably
coincident. Their arts and occupations were also dis-
similar one being an agricultural people, and the
other, still retaining their normal type of hunters and
foresters. The picture writing of the Aztecs, was an
improvement on pictography.
There was nothing however, in which the broad line
of separation was more clearly defined, than in their
modes of government. The American class adhered to
a primitive patriarchal or representative form, under
the control of chiefs and councils ; the other groaned
under a fearfully despotic rule. While the one class of
tribes had not emerged from the simple hunter state,
and still roamed through the vast forests of America,
filled with animals and birds of every plumage, the
other class had made important progress in arts, agri-
culture, and architecture.
antique remains of labor and
art, b Indian Country west of the Alle-
ghanies, which was instituted with a view of procuring
Borne clue bo the early history of the people formerly
resident on the soil, developes a general correspond
1., iw . and those common among the Mexican
tribes at the era of the occupation of the Mexican val-
ley by the Ohichimacos and Acolhuans, or Tescorans;
which event Olarigero places in L170. These barbarous
tribes were not conquered, cor was Tauochtdtlau, or
Mexico found 'L until 1324.
Could the veil of oblivion be lifted from thi
which transpired in the Mississippi valley at that date,
>'. <. one hundred and ninety-five, or two hundred ;¦
before the advent oi the Spaniards in Mexico, H would
in all probability, be found to have been thiokly inhab-
ited by fierce, athletic and barbarous tribi
all the elements of progress known to the CMchimacoans
and their associates. These tribes were worshippi
of the sun, whom they propitiated by lives kindled on
the apex of high hills; they erected Bepulchral mounds,
in which they interred the remains of their kings and
rulers; and they incessantly maintained the same fierce
Btrife with all their neighbors, which has marked the
entile Indian race during three and a half eentnries.
If the Mississippi tribes defended a town, as the existing
remains indicate, by ditches and pickets, in which then
onforming to the Tlascalan fashion;
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 6i>
precisely the same mode was prevalent among the bar-
barous tribes of Mexico, at the period when our south-
ern stocks segregated from them.
So few traces of art, were observable among th<
Vespeiio tribes along the shores of the Atlantic, from
the capes of Florida to the St. Lawrence, that when the
population of the colonies began to cross the Alleghanies,
and descend into the rich agricultural valleys of the
Ohio, and the Mississippi, surprise was expressed, to
find concealed beneath a forest growth, the ruins of
labor and arts, which appeared superior to any, known
to have been practised by the ancestors of the existing
tribes.
The accounts of the fertile soil, genial climate, and
natural beauty of the Ohio valley, given about the year
1770, by hunters and adventurers, appeared, when
recounted east of the mountains, like tales of some
newly-found erysium, or land of promise. The desire
for the acquisition of landed property was universal ;
America rang with the tale; and a collision of races
was the consequent result. The earliest explorations of
a reliable character, were those which date from the
generic era of Washington's youthful visit in 1754.
The first grant of land from the Indians, was that mad*
to William Treat and his associates in 1768, and con-
veyed the t^-act situate between the Monongahela and
Ohio rivers. Detached tracts were located, and settle-
ments began to be made in 1770; which is the date of
70 HOKUM mains i
the founding of Red Stone, or Brownsville, I the
mountain slope at the foot of Laurel Hill. Some other
locations were made in these valleys, between the years
I 77" and 1772. At the latter period, explorers reached
the noted flats, covered with Indian tumuli, the stream
through which, hence received the name of Grave-Creek.
Fort Harmer was erected in 1786, at the junction of the
Muskingum River with the Ohio. Within a couple of
years thereafter, Congress extended its jurisdiction north-
west of Ohio, appointed a Governor, and provided a
Judiciary ; thus establishing a reliable protection for the
settlements. On the 7th of May, 1788, Putnam, and
his New England associates, landed at, and laid the
foundation of Marietta. This may be assumed as the
earliest period, at which attention was attracted to a spe-
cies of Indian antiquarian remains, bearing evidence of
art, superior to anything known among the existing
Indian tribes.
Marietta was, in fact, one of the locations, where the
antiquarian remains of prior occupancy existed, and still
exist, in one of their most striking and enigmatical
forms. They embraced the acute form of the ordinary
Indian sepulchral mound, but were composed of a raised
platform of earth, of the general form of a parallelopi-
peclon, pierced with gates or spaces, clearly used as pub-
lic entrances ; and, if the outer lines of the raised work
be supposed to have been surmounted with wooden pick-
cts, and turrets for marksmen, the whole must have
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 71
presented a palatial display. The height of the level
floor of this fortified establishment, could not possibly
have exceeded seven or eight feet, and though its solid
cubical contents were considerable, it was not probably
beyond the ability of the inhabitants of a populous
Indian town to construct. Such a structure, raised by
the Toltecs or Aztecs, or their predecessors, would not
have excited remark, either on account of the amount
of labor expended on it, or of the skill evinced in its
construction: but being a deserted ruin, in the territo-
ries of tribes who possessed neither much art, nor indus-
try, beyond the merest requirements of pure hunter
tribes, they became a theme of conjecture, and excited
wonder: the more so, as the discoverers had never seen
the evidences of semi-civilization evinced by the Indian
tribes of Mexico. As the country filled up with popu-
lation, other remains of analogous kind were brought to
light, most of which were in the form of small sepul-
chral mounds or barrows, ditches, or entrenchments
once surmounted by pickets ; but they excited little re-
mark, except as bearing evidence of the ordinary appear-
ance of an Indian town. The great tumulus at Grave
Creek, had early attracted notice on account of its size.
There was scarcely a tributary stream, from Pittsburg to
the mouth of the Ohio, which did not yield some vestige
of this kind : but there was no locality, in which the
earth-works were so abundant and complicated, as in the
Scioto valley. Those at Chillicothe, Circleville, and
,_' MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
Paint Greek, evinced the existence oi a once numerous
Qt population. The entire area oi' the S
Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, as well as the surrounding
borders of Virginia and Kentucky, appeared to have
been the theatre of dense Indian occupancy, partial cul-
tivation, and of a peculiar character of internal com'
There, the antiquarian found specimens of
hammered native copper, Bteal amulets and j
the delicate marginella shell mica obsidian, and
horn-stone suitable for arrow-heads.
The art of making cooking-pots and vases from tem-
1 clay, was understood and practised by all the
tribes, from the mouth of the Mississippi, to the farthest
extent north and east. The conch, and other heavy
hells were ingeniously carved into medals, heads, and
wampum. An extensive trade was carried on in native
copper, mined from the basin of Lake Superior. The
line red pipe-stone, from the dividing grounds between
Missouri and Mississippi, has been found in the antique
Indian graves around Oswego and Onondaga. Wrist-
bands and chisels, of hammered Dative copper, were also
found. The tips of the horns of quadrupeds, were used
as awls; and a thin, tuhular piece of siliceous clay slate,
worked into the shape of a parrallelogram, and pierced
with two orifices, was employed to separate the strands,
in making cords or ropes. Thin pieces of bone, with
an eye delicately drilled in them, served the purpose of
bodkins. Mortars for crushing corn, were scooped out
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 73
of solid pieces of rock. Fire was produced by the rapid
rotation of a stick, with a string and bow. Discoidal
stones, fabricated with great labor from pieces of hard
granite, and porphyry, were used in games. Chisels,
made of hard stone, were employed for removing the
incinerated part of trunks of trees, in the process of fel-
ling them, and also, in converting them into canoes ;
tomahawks, in the shape of lunettes, having sharp points,
and an orifice in which to insert a handle, supplied
the place of iron blades. Smoking-pipes were formed
of clay : but this cherished article was generally carved
out of stone, with much skill and ingenuity. Long
ir-points were made from chert and horn-stone.
Fleshing instruments, used in the primary process of
preparing skins, were made from porphyry and other
hard stones. :: " * * '""
The mounds erected by them, varied much in si/.e.
The largest spherical circumference of any of the
mounds, is six hundred and sixty-six feet, and that of
the smallest, twenty feet. The greatest height attained,
is ninety feet: and the two principal mounds of Caho-
kia and Grrave Creek, could not contain much less
than three million square feet of earth. The most
copious evidences of the density of the former popu-
lation, and of their cultivation, were found in the Mis-
sissippi V alley, on the extensive and fertile alluvial
plains in Illinois, opposite to the presenl city of St.
Louis, thence extending to Kaskaskia, and the junction
in
71 M-'NTMKNTAL REMAINS OF GO " : .
of tlio Ohio, and up the valley of the latter, into the
'i - Y of the ancient Andastes, Eries and Iroquois.
The Scioto Valley must have contained a dense Hunter
and Bemi-agricnltural population, previous to its occu-
pancy by the Shawnees; and tl Creek thus
appear to have been the central Location of popu
tribes. The most Btriking evidences of agricultural in-
dustry, were disclosed in the forests and prairi<
[ndiana and southern Michigan, during the Bettlemenl
of tlic country, between the years 1827 and L887.
These points of the rich domains of the west, may be
ectured to have Bupplied the means of subsistence
for the aboriginal miners of Lake Superior. The small
growth of the forest trees in the ancient mining excava-
tions of that region, does not give evidence of an
antiquity more remote than the twelfth century if it
even extends to that time. Mauls of stone, and the ele-
ments of lire and water, were the principal agents em-
ployed. The natural lodes and veins of native copper,
for which that region is so remarkable, were followed
horizontally. There is reason to believe, that the pro© ss
of mining in the northern latitudes of the region of Lake
Superior, was carried on periodically, by persons who
derived their sustenance from, or who permanently re-
sided in the genial plains south of the great lake. The
exploration, for some cause, appeals to have been sud-
denly abandoned, as if the miners were driven off by
an inroad of barbarous hordes.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 75
From an examination of the ages of trees, as disclosed
by the annual deposit of vegetable fibre, the termination
of the ancient mound period, appears to have occurred
in the twelfth, or early in the thirteenth century. There
seems then, to have been a general disturbance among,
and breaking up of the aboriginal stocks.
The late Dr. Locke, after counting the cortical ringa
of trees growing on the ancient work, found by him in
Ohio in 1838, determined it to have existed six hundred
years : which would place its abandonment in 1238.
Mr. Tomlinson, the proprietor of the large tumulus at
Grave Creek, in Virginia, states, that a large tree, oi the
species yuercus dlhus, which stood on the flat surface of
the apex of that mound, blew down in 1828, and in
counting the cortical rings, they were ascertained to be
five hundred; which denotes that the tree commenced
its cortical deposits in 1328.
General George Eogers Clark, whose opportunities
for making a personal inspection of ^he western vestiges
of the mound period, were extensive, expresses the
opinion, that these remains do not exceed the age of live
hundred years; which would place the date of their
abandonment about the year 1380.
The tumuli or mounds, continues Mr. Schoolcraft,
constituted do pari <>f the military defence, though fre-
quently located at or near the entrenched towers; but
were devoted exclusively t<> ecclesiastical or sepulchral
purposes, and were under the care and control of the
,ii Mmm mkmal REMAINS OF GtEORGIA.
priesthood. Some of the Bmaller mounds had been
merely circular altars of earth, a few feet in height; but
ai't-T serving this purpose a long time, they were heaped
up with loose earth into the shape of cones, and left as
memorials of the I mlian.
The whole field of antiquarian research, as repre-
sented in the Mississippi Valley monuments, may be
regarded as the local nucleus, and highest point of devel-
opment of art and industry attained by the Red R
after their segregation from the nomadic Toltcc stocks.
These monuments were widely scattered, but they as-
sume the same mixed sepulchral, and civic character,
which is apparent in those found along the Alleghany
branch of the Ohio, in western New York, and in
other parts of the Union. The largest mounds in the
Union, and those which are truncated or terraced, bear
the closest resemblance to the Mexican teocalli. They
occupy the most southern portions of the Mississippi
Valley and Florida. Tiny become less in size as we
progress north, and cease entirely after reaching the lati-
tude of Lake Pepin, on the upper Mississippi, the head-
waters of the Wisconsin, and the mining excavations of
Lake Superior.*
We have 1 thus presented the reader With a general
view of the monuments of the Mississippi Valley, be-
cause they, and the principal remains of the Etowah
* See Schoolcraft's Eistory, &a, pari VI., p. 695, et seq.
MONUMENTAL REMAIN'S OF GEORGIA. 77
Valley which we have been considering, are both to be
referred to the same period, and are the results of the
industry of the same race. It is an interesting fact, thai
the large central tumulus, designated by the letter A,
upon the accompanying plan, will compare favorably in
extent and interest, with the most remarkable yet de-
scribed in the valleys of the Mississippi and the Ohio.
It has not been our pleasure, as yet, to have exam-
ined the monuments of the Chattahoochee Valley", and
those which lie scattered through the peninsula of
Florida. We trust however, at no distant day, to enjoy
an opportunity for so doing, and will hope in a future
paper, to furnish the results of those observations.
For an extended and speeilic description of the mon-
uments of the Mississippi, Ohio, Sicioto, and Paint
Creek Valleys, the reader is referred to the works of Mr.
Schoolcraft; to the primary volume of the American
Antiquarian Society, published in 1820, under the title
of Archoeohgia Americana, containing the observations
of Mr. Atwater, with reference to the earth-works at
Newark. Marietta, Circleville, Paint Creek, Portsmouth,
in the little Miami Valley, at Grave Creek, and at other
places in the Ohio Valley, and in the "Western Slates:
and also to the full and comprehensive memoir on this
subject, under the caption of " Monuments of the Mis-
sissippi Valley," published in the transactions of the
Smithsonian [nstitution; the information therein con-
tained, having been derived from personal sun
principally made by Mr. 1-;. (i. Squier, and Dr. Davis.
IfONl MI.MAI. &KMA1NS OF QBOBGIA.
A comparison of the civilization of the Mound-Build-
aed by the varied remains which they have
left behind them in the valleys of the Mississippi, and
its tributaries as well as in the regions to which our in-
quiries have been specifically directed witb the ancienl
civilization of many parts of Central America, Mexico
Peru, while it discloses not a few differences, will on
the whole, we are inclined to believe, evince a commu-
nity of purpo ct, and origin. At a later period,
we hope to institute this contri
The condition of the arts among this people, may be
briefly stated as follows:
I. To the cultivation of the soil, and to agricultural
pursuits, they devoted much attention in the selection
of sites for their temples and villages, always choosing
those rich alluvial bottoms, of almost exhaustless fertil-
ity, wha-h would lor centuries, generously reward the
labor of the husbandman.
II. They understood the uses of clay in the man-
ufacture of various articles foT service and ornament,
combining this substance with others, which imparted a
permanency and consistency, often remarkable. The
pottery of this people, is far superior to thai made by
the Indians: differing from the latter in many essentials
of form, color, and constituent elements. They appear
also to have manufactured a sun dried, and sometimes
fire-burnt brick, made of clay, which was employed in
connection with round and flat stones, in the construc-
tion of paved ways, leading from the settlements to the
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 79
neighboring stream or spring; and also in flooring cir-
cular depressed localities of varied dimensions, the spe-
cific uses of which at this remote period, can only be
conjectured.
IIT. With the mechanical advantages of the wedge,
and inclined plane, they were familiar.
IV. That the art of sculpture, and working in stone,
was understood, at least to a considerable extent, is
clearly proven by the numerous remains still extant.
Some of their idols, pipes, sacrificial plates, &c, were
fashioned with a degree of precision, polish, and beauty,
which renders them quite remarkable.
V. Silver ornaments have been found in the mounds
of the Etowah Valley. One of them, a silver buckle,
in the form of a heart is before us as we write. It
is fashioned of native silver, unalloyed; and although
rather rude in its construction, answered well the ] im-
pose for which ii was designed. A specific description
of this interesting remain, will be postponed for the
present.
"We arc credibly informed by eye witnesses, that gold-
beads, and copper utensils, have also been exhumed in
this valley.
VI. Isinglass (mica membranacea) appears to have
been selected by them, as the material best suited to
answer the purposes of ;i mirror. Although no perfeel
mirror has come under our observation, yet huge frag-
ments, carefully prepared, have been fonnd in and
around these tumuli.
BO MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA
VII. < >f ili«' probable theory of their government,
we have already Bpokeo ; and have before alluded to the
character of their religious belief and worship.
VIII. The nature and extent of their fortifications,
all indicate o degree of civilization much superior to
that, which belongs to the condition of such, as have
not advanced beyond the hunter state.
IX. The anguli truction of many of their tu-
muli, discloses a knowledge and recognition of the car-
dinal points; and as it sufficiently appears, that their
principal devotions were paid to the sun, and perhaps
to the moon, it may be, that their knowledge of astron-
omy extended also to the apparent motions of some of
the other heavenly bodies. The principal angle of the
tumulus is generally toward the east and the ap-
proach, almost without exception, on the eastern side.*
X. No traces of alphabetic, or hieroglyphic writing,
have as yet been discovered in this valley. Occasion-
ally, upon tin' surface of a pipe is seen the counte-
nanee of a human being a representation of a risen
sun a circle an eye the beak of an eagle OT
* It appears from certain traditions that tli" < Ittawwaua offered aacrifi-
i the bud and moon. The changes of the moon afforded to the
Indian Tribes a method of measuring time, Of the true cause ol the
increase and decrease of the moon, of eclipses, and of other phenomena
which depend upon the motions of the heavenly bodies, they bad no cor-
onceptions. The Aurora Borealis they call the dance of the dead,
inni r"s Narrative, p. 322, el Beq.
Although we have no positive proofs to justify the supposition, tlio
probability ia, thai the Mound-Builders possessed a knowl©
tronomy su] thai enjoyed by the Indians. Occupying a higher
position in the scale of civilization, we cannol doubt but thai they bad
acquainted themselves with many facts, in reference to tl>" revolutions of
ill" heavenly bodies, which are the results of continued observation.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 81
some other delineation descriptive of some physical ob-
ject. In tracing various devices upon their shell orna-
ments, they exhibited no little skill and ingenuity. All
of these representations however, we arc inclined to re-
gard, as evidencing the taste and ingenuity of the artist,
and not as indicating any positive attempt at picto-
graphic or historic narration. We find no written
records of the past. Upon the rock walls which fence
in this valley, we look in vain for any monumental
trace of their history. Among the stone fragments
which here and there intermingle with the soil upon
which they dwelt for centuries, we search in vain for a
single tablet, whereon were engraven their laws. A
people without letters, they lived and died ; and the
Muse of History scarce finds an epitaph for their tombs.
Sad, but striking commentary, upon the evanescent con-
dition of that society, whose members have never been
trained to brave deeds and ennobling thoughts whose
intellectual powers have slumbered the sleep of centu-
ries who trusted to the failing voice of the aged war-
rior, to recount their warlike prowess, and committed
to the dying memory of the chieftain, the historical
records of their past existence who gave to the passing
air, the spoken word but carved not a line, to trans-
mit to coming generations assurance of their existence.
It is a remarkable, as well as a Bad fact, that the Ameri-
can tribes came to this continent, without either alpha*
bet, phonetic sign, or digit.
11
IfONirMENTAL REMAINS Of MOBGIA.
Both above and below these remarkable remains upon
tin- plantation of Col. Tumlin, in the valley of the Eto-
wah, we find mounds, and other organic traces of the
Mound-Builders, proving that they fully occupied this
region.
Without pausing to describe them minutely, we may
in passing allude to the feet, thai in various localities in
the bends, and mar the banks of the river, still exist
mounds, isolated, and in groups generally circular,
sometimes ovoidal, and again quadrangular or pent
nal in form circular stone-paved ways avenues lead-
ing from the vicinity of the tumuli to the river eleva-
ted Bpaces, perfectly level at the top, which may have
been used as places of amusement, or as sites for the
erection of their abodes ; while fragments of their pot-
tery, and various utensils of their handiwork, are con-
stantly disclosed by the plough-share, in the cultivation
of this beautiful valley.
.lust where the Etowah and Oostanaula meet and
mingle their waters, forming the Coosa; upon the
point of land, whose base is washed by the wave- of
these three rivers, formerly stood an interesting mound,
circular in shape, some twelve or fifteen feel in height,
and with a diameter at the base, of not less than fifty
feet. The earth and day which composed this tumulus,
have almost all been removed; the same having been
employed in levelling the street- of the village of Rome,
and in the construction of a suitable landing place for a
ferry boat.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 83
From this mound, the silver ornament, and gold
beads, to which allusion has been already made, were
taken. It was found to contain numerous skeletons
pots vases stone axes arrow-heads spear-heads
shell ornaments pipes copper beads mortars
silver ornaments circular stones, carefully rounded
and polished besides other relies of a less interesting
character. Along the banks of the Etowah and the
Oostanaula on this side, are numerous traces of inhuma-
tion. This spot appears to have been consecrated to the
purposes of burial. The swollen tide of these rivers
never washes the shore, without bringing to light new
proofs of this fact. In the immediate neighborhood,
were several other mounds of smaller dimensions, all of
which seem to have been devoted to the purposes of
sepulture. They are now nearly level with the plain.
Upon the very spot, occupied by at least two of them,
have been reared the dwellings and work-shops of an-
other and a nobler race. The contents of these were all
similar, and like those of the larger tumulus at the
junction of the Etowah and Oostanaula Rivers. They
were composed of the blue clay, and alluvial soil of
tin' valley, interspersed with stones, and muscle shells
taken from the beds of the circumfluent streams.
Of the race by whom these mounds were erected, the
Cherokees could give no information. When questioned
as to their origin, by the whites who first located here,
their reply was, that they possessed not even a tradition
84 M-'M mkmai. REMAINS OF QBOBGttA.
of the people who constructed them referring them to
the labor of a race, of which they knew nothing, and
who had preceded them in the occupancy of this region.
Tradition designates this, as the spot rendered memo-
rable by a battle, which DeSoto and his adventurous
band are said here to have fought with the natives.
AVithout considering the probability or improbability of
this alleged historical fad, certain it is, that the remains
now under consideration, are not to be referred to that
period. They arc much older as is conclusively
shown by the vegetation which covered them and by
the internal evidence of the mounds.
A casual examination of the base of the principal tu-
mulus, and the removal of the earth along the face of
the bluff to the depth of some live feet, disclosed a
number of skeletons ranges of vases and pots, vary-
ing in size and shape soap-stone ornaments fleshing
knives arrow and spear-heads, &C Doubtless, the in-
dustrious antiquarian can here still find many remains,
possessing no little interest, and which will richly reward
the labor and care involved in the search for them.
Beautiful in all its features, is this necropolis of a de-
parted race. Standing upon the almost obliterated
truces of the larger mound, whose base is washed by the
confluent waves of the Etowah and the Oostanaula, the
eye, gladdened by the joyful meeting, watches the
stranger wavelets, now friends, as in joyous companion-
ship they leap along the current of the softly gliding
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 85
Coosa now sporting with the pendant branches of tin-
trees on either hand now rushing past the rapids, that
here and there seem anxious to interrupt the harmony
of the scene. The dark green foliage which crowns the
left bank, grows darker still, as the shadow of the oppo-
site hill almost a mountain, settles upon the river;
while the trees on the other side, are joyously waving
their beautiful branches in the soft sunlight, that rests
upon the valley beyond. On the right, hill succeeds
hill in gentle undulation. Behind, stretches the valley
of the Etowah, beautiful in its foliage, attractive in its
graceful windings, as it bends ever to guard within its
accustomed channel, the stream that imparts its life and
verdure. Upon the adjacent eminences, sits the village
of Rome, replete with life and activit} r . The stately trees
have fallen before the stroke of the woodsman. Broad
bridges span the streams. The steamboat, freighted
with the products of intelligent industry, stems their
currents. Through the echoing valley of the Etowah,
are heard the shrill whistle, and the rapid march of the
locomotive. On every side are seen the traces of a new,
a superior, and an advancing civilization.
How changed ! since that time, when . the Mound-
Builder iixed here his home, and above the remains of
his family and friends, heaped these memorials of his
sorrows these tributes to the memory of the daparted.
The same heavens over-arch now, as they did centuries
long ago. The voices of the streams, in subdued mur-
86 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA
mars, still greet the ear. Here and there a forest tree,
rejoicing in its primeval proportions, still bespeaks the
stately growth of the original groves, which crowned
these hills and over-shadowed these fertile valleys. All
. how changed !
Ascending the valley of the Oostanaula, we are met
by tumuli and remains, similar in all respects to those
which we have noticed in the valley of the Etowah.
We have not learned however, of the existence of any,
so remarkable as those located upon the plantation of
Col. Tumlin.
Some eight miles above Rome, in a bend of the Oos-
tanaula River, known as Pope's Bend, is a mound, at
present some five or six feet in height, and eighty feet
in diameter at the base. It stands in the middle of a
field, which is said to have been cleared and cultivated
by the Indians. Circular in form, its central portion is
considerably depressed. In consequence of the expos-
ure of this tumulus to the immediate action of the wind
and tempest, and the further fact of its having been for
years cultivated, its present proportions do not realize
its original size.
The walls of this mound, must at first, have been
raised several feet above its central portion. In this re-
spect, it seems quite unique. Now however, the outer
rim has an elevation of not more than a foot and a half,
or two feet. It is composed entirely of the sand and
soil of the valley. Upon it's surface, lay broken frag-
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 87
ments of pottery a stone axe a pipe a soap-stone
ornament broken clay utensils, and numerous frag-
ments of human bones. This was, without doubt, a
burial mound. Just across the river, and upon a neck
of land formed by the confluence of Armurchee Creek
and the Oostanaula, is another of these burial mounds.
The surface of the ground for several acres here, is cov-
ered with pieces of pottery, and a great variety of spear
and arrow-heads. From this mound were taken, a mor-
tar of beautiful proportions pestles stone axes, &c.
We are inclined to refer these last tumuli, to an Indian
origin. Certain it is, that many of the remains found
in and about them, are purely Indian in their character.
It will be observed however, that the same locality
sometimes, and in fact not unfrequently, indicates the
existence of remains peculiar both to the Mound-Build-
ing, and to a later period. '
The aboriginal remains of these valleys, may be divi-
ded into three classes.
I. Those which are to be referred to the Mound-
Builders an ancient race who possessed this region,
and who have left behind them, remarkable monuments
of their labor, and combined industry.
II. Such as are purely Indian in their character, and
lastly,
III. Those, which although the work of the Indians,
were suggested by, and are the result of their inter-
course and contact with the Whites, or Europeans.
/
88 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OP GEORGIA.
Those which may be embraced under the first head,
have been already sufficiently considered.
It (a a well ascertained historic feet, that the Chero-
kees entertained for these valleys of tin- Etowah and
Oostanaula, an especial love and attachment Nor n< ed
we wonder for a moment at this. Upon the slopes of
the swelling hills in the dense forests which over-shad-
Owed the luxuriant alluvial bottoms, upon the banks
of the swil'Uy moving streams and by the generous
fountains, sported the fairest and fattest game. Tin 1
rivers, and their limpid tributaries, teemed with fish.
The cultivated field of maze brought forth an hundred
fold. The pure mountain air, the pathless forest, the
broad valleys, the towering hills, all were invested with
a degree of attraction, known only to the breast of the
free, untamed Indian.
Their national name was derived from cheera "fire"
which was their reputed lower heaven. Hence the
spelling Cheerake, which is adopted by Adair, and other
writers of his day.
The first quarter of the eighteenth century, they are
reputed to have had sixty-lour villages filled with
women and children, and to have possessed not less
than six thousand warriors. Their towns, says Adair,
were always close to some river or creek, as there the
land is commonly very level and fertile, on account of
the frequent washes from the mountains, and the mois-
ture it receives from the waters which run through their
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OP GEORGIA. 89
fields. Such a situation also euables them to perform
the ablutions, connected with their religious worship.
Now however, these villages and settlements are
scarcely remembered. The Cherokees themselves have
passed far beyond the blue mountains, and but few and
frail arc the memories, which perpetuate the recollection
of this interesting but unfortunate race. In vain do wc
seek amid tribes, who have not advanced in civilization
beyond the hunter state, for those monuments of ;ir1.
skill, and industry, which shall resist the disintegrating
influences of Time, and tell to succeeding generations
the history of the past. Occasional and unimportant
are. the remains, which combine within themselves, all
that is left of the power, the intelligence, the labor, and
the life-history of those who immediately preceded us
in the occupancy of this soil. Not unfrequently, within
the rude grave, is' contained the only record that time
has left to us of this people.
From the best authority it appears, that the Cherokees
of this region did not, as a general rule, erect mounds
over their dead. The usual custom was, to hide the
body in some rocky fissure, covering it with bark, de-
positing with it the bow and arrow, pots, stone axe, and
other articles, the property of the deceased, and then
close securely the entrance.
Often the hut of the deceased was burnt, and with it
many articles used by the late owner. Sometimes they
interred beneath the floor of the cabin, subsequently
12
MONUMENTAL REMAINS I ,l.\.
the walls and roof, thus obliterating all
- of the inhumation.*
\_.-mi, they buried by placing the bodj underneath a
ledge of rocks, or upon the slope of a hill in some unfre-
quented Bpot, heaping above it a pile ot Subse-
quently, they adopted the plan of digging 8 aome
three feel or more in depth, into which th< was
lowered. A.boveitwas heaped a small tumulus, some
six or eight feel in length, and two or three feet in
height. CJpon the range of hills running t<> the south
of Rome, are Beveral of this latter description.
They lie north and south, and are generally located in
the vicinity oi' a large tree.
On the right bank of the Etowah River, aear Rome,
at a point known as the "Old Bridge," a heavy ledge of
rocks, projecting from the side of the hill, over-hung
the river. It was n. to remove this, in order
to construct the track of the Rome rail-way. When
sed from its position by the Mast, the fissures in the
ledge, were found tilled with the skeletons <>f Indian.-.
By many, they were supposed to have been the dead,
killed in a hattl.' fought but a slmrt distance from this
Spot, and here secreted by those who survived.
Upon tli' 1 hill opposite Rome, known as the '-(Vine-
tery Hill,"' many bodies have been discovered Becurely
lodged m the inequalities of the hill-sides carefully
* See -a\>" iii-i' tv of North Amerioa, p, lioo.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORCxTA. 91
covered, and with their utensils of the chase, of war,
and of domestic use, interred with them.
Scattered throughout these valleys, there are however,
mounds of moderate dimensions, circular or ovoidal in
form, which are doubtless, to be referred to an Indian
origin. Judging from their internal evidence, we arc
inclined to regard them as the oldest organic remains of
the Cherokces. Within them are found the skeletons of
the dead, and various ornaments, cooking utensils, pipes,
implements of war, and of the chase.
Elevated spaces, perfectly level at the top, are still to
be seen. These were formerly used lyy the Chcrok ees
for the purposes of sport, dancing, ball playing, and
quoit rolling. In one locality, not far from the village
of Kome, was pointed out a track, some quarter of a
mile or more in extent, from which the loose stones and
inequalities in the surface had been removed, which tra-
dition designates as an Indian race-course.
The cultivation of the soil, and the springing foliage,
are however, fast obliterating all traces of their play
grounds.
Ball playing is said by Adair to have been their chief
and most favorite grime. To him we arc indebted for
the following description of this amusement. The ball
was made of a piece of scraped deer skin, moistened,
and stuffed hard with deer's hair, ami strongly sewed
with deer's sinews. The ball sticks were about two feet
long, the lower end somewhat resembling the palm of a
92 LL KKMAINS OP QEOBGLL
band. They are worked with deer skin thongs, ft -
they canght the ball, and were enable
throw it a great distance, when not prevented by the.
opposite party, whose effort i r Lntercepl its pas-
The goal is some live hundred yards in extent
At each cii'l of it, they ii.\ two Long bending poles into
the ground, three yards apart below, bn1 Btanding a con-
siderable way outward above. The party that suco
in throwing the hall oyer these, counts one; but if it
lie thrown underneath, it is cast back, and played for as
usual. The gamesters are equal in number on both
.-id'--: and at th«' beginning of every course of tin- ball,
they throw it np high in the centre of the ground, and
in a direct line between the two goals When the crowd
of players prevents the one who catches the ball from
throwing it oft' with a long direction, he commonly Bends
it the right course, by an artful, sharp twirl. They are
so exceedingly expert in this manly exercise, that be-
tween the goals, the ball is mostly flying the different
ways, by the force of the playing sticks, without falling
to the ground; for they are not allowed to catch it with
their hands. In the heat and intense excitement of the
game, the arms and Legs of the players an' sometimes
broken. The celebration of this game, is preceded by
fastings and night watches, by those who are abou
engage in it.
They turn out to the ball-ground, continues Mr.
Adair, in a long row, painted white, and whooping as
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 93
if Plato's prisoners were all broke loose. The leader
then begins a religious invocation, which is joined in by
his companions. Each party strives to gain the twentieth
ball, which they esteem a favorite divine gift.
These play grounds now lie deserted. The animated
voices of the gamesters are hushed. Ball, bat, and the
stalwart forms that contended for the victory, lie moul-
dering in silence and forgetfulness beneath a common
sod; and a modern civilization has devoted to the pur-
poses of agriculture, places once consecrated to sport.
Large clearings are still pointed out, which were culti-
vated by the Chcrokccs. Corn was the principal agri-
cultural product. To the women chiefly, was commit led
the care of the fields.
All traces of their dwellings have of course, disap-
peared, with the exception of some of the more modern
dwellings, such as the ruins of the house formerly
occupied by the Chief John Ross, beautifully situated
upon a gentle elevation, upon the edge of the Coosa
Valley, near the inception of that river, and the for-
mer residence of Major Ridge, which still remains in
good preservation upon the left bank of the Oostanaula
River, some two miles from Rome. These however, are
modern in their character, and belong not to the Indian,
as In- existed in his native, uncontaminated condition
but to the semi-civilized Indian, as modified in his
-, habits, and character, by association with the
White raee.
NTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
Of their pottery, very few specimens remain on-
broken, [f we mav judge however, from the various
Rents some of them quite large, -and from the
relics of this description, in an almost perfect con-
dition, which have come under our oba rvation, we can
readily award to the Cherokees, no little skill and :
unity in the manufacture of their pots pans 1
bowls platters and various vessels i>i' antiquated
form. Some of them are well glazed within. Others,
on the outside, bear the impression of marks or stamps,
made when the material was in a soft condition. Others
still, have ornamented rims, and are furnished with
handles.
led and blue clay appear to have been the principal
materials used. In many instances, everything like
gravel or sand has been carefully removed. In others,
e gravel appears to have been intentionally inter-
mixed with the clay. We have examined vases and
pans, which seem to be composed of an admixture of
blue clay, and crushed muscle shells.
The impressions upon the outside of the pottery, are
said usually to have been made by a wooden paddle,
upon which hail be.n traced certain figures, or patterns.
The newly formed, and still soft pot or vase, was gently
struck, time and again, with this paddle, until its sides
were completely covered with tin- desired impressions;
the line grooved into the paddle, leaving of course a
corresponding elevation upon the pottery, while the ele-
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 96
vated work upon the former, caused a corresponding
depression upon the latter. The vessel, thus impressed
with such devices as fancy or ingenuity might suggest,
in a still soft state, was then inverted over burning coals
of hickory or oak piled up so as very nearly to fill
the inner space of the article, and thus subjected to
as great a degree of heat as could thereby be obtained ;
the bed of coals being at intervals replenished, and so
arranged in a conical form, as to distribute the heat as
equally as possible. So intense at times was this heat,
that the entire vessel glowed; and almost a fusion of
the particles on the inner side of the vessel occurred.
"When sufficiently burnt, it was allowed to cool gradu-
ally retaining in its hardened condition, the impres-
sions which had been made 1 with tin- paddle upon its
formerly soft and plastic surface. The countless frag-
ments of this pottery, mingled with the leaves of tin-
forest, and lying exposed in every field, assure us of the
fact, that these regions were long and thickly peopled.
It is also evident, that vast quantities of pottery, of
varied form, musl have been here manufactured. When
we reflect upon the frail, perishable character of these
utensils, we may very readily appreciate how often in
daily use they must have been broken.
Hough beads, and rude ornaments, were also fashioned
of like material.
Stone axes are still found many of them remarka-
ble for their beauty and symmetry. Of these then
three varieties.
96 MONUMENTAL BBMAJ QBOBOIA.
I. The ungrooved axe cunicfonn.
I I. The axe with single or double groove
III. The double-edged axe, with a hole neatly drilled
through the centre.
The manufacture of these implements, accomplished
(in the absence of tools requisite for working in stone),
only by protracted labor, must have been abandoned by
the Indians at an early period of our acquaintance with
them. The probability is, that almost all <>f the speci-
mens which we n<>w obtain, were made before their con-
tact with the Whites: and consist principally, ol such as
had been accidentally lost in the forests by the Indians,
casually forgotten by them in their frequent chai
of abode, or of such, as exposed by the action of the
seasons, have been removed from the once hidden
places, where they had been interred with the bones ^\
their former owners.
Says Adair: "The Indians formerly had stone axes,
which in form commonly resembled a smith's chisel.
Each weighed from one to two or three pounds." [ We
have now in our collection, a double grooved stone axe,
of unusual proportions, weighing nearly ten pounds.]
"They were made of a flinty kind of stone. I have seen
several which chanced to escape being buried with their
owners, and were carefully preserved by the old people
a- respectable remains of antiquity. They twisted two
or three tough hickory slips, of about two feet long,
round the notched head of the axe; and by means of
this simple and obvious invention, they deadened the
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 97
trees, by cutting through the bark, and burned them,
when they either fell by decay, or became thoroughly
dry."
In this manner, in process of time, convenient fields
were cleared. Another use made of these stone axes
was, with their aid, in preparing their canoes (which
were hollowed out chiefly through the agency of fire), to
peck off the charred portions from time to time, as the
burning progressed, and thus afford new surface, and
fresh fuel for the flame. When engaged in this occupa-
tion, the}* are said to have stood with their backs to the
burning log, and looking over the shoulder the axe
being attached to the end of a pliant bough or vine,
to have swung it against the charred surface.
Still another use; the smaller axes, especially those
with holes drilled through them, were employed as
weapons of war. A most beautiful specimen of this
description came under our persoual observation. It
was made of silex, well polished, a hole neatly drilled
through the centre one end being fashioned into a
pipe the other into a sharp edged axe. There is also
the double-edged battle :txe, or tomahawk.
Others there are, without drill or groove, nearly re-
sembling pestles at the smaller end, which answered a
double purpose of axe and pestle. From the remarka-
ble degree of polish, and the peculiar shape of still
another variety, the idea is suggested, that these were
used in the preparation of their skins.
13
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF QEOR)
Ru . -. and polishing steins, arc also
here found.
\"i unfrequeritly are Been circular Btones, probably
employed in grinding clay, and other substances for
paint. What may be denominated hurling stones, al-
though rare, are picked up here and there, generally in
the neighborhood of one of the former settlements of
the Cherokees. The account which we have of the use
of this article of sport, is briefly as follows:
Near the principal house in the settlement, the Indi-
ans prepared a square piece of ground, well cleaned.
Fine sand is carefully scattered over the surface, so that
the motion of anything rolled along the ground, may
be impeded as little as possible. Only one or two on a
side play at this ancient game. The Btone used, is per-
fectly round about two lingers broad at the edge, and
two spans in circumference. The size of the stone
varies however in thickness, from a half inch, to an
inch or more, with diameters ranging from two to six
inches. Each party playing, has a pole about eight feet
long, smooth, and tapering at each end the points flat.
The players sit off abreasl of each other, at six yards
distance from the end of the play ground. One of them
hurls the Btone on its edge, in as direct a line as he can,
a considerable distance toward the middle of the other
end of the Bquare. Running after the stone a few yards,
each d;uts bis pole anointed with bear's greese,
with a proper force, as near as he can calculate, in pro-
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 99
portion to the motion of the stone, in order that the end
of the pole may lie near to the stone when it ceases its
motion. When the end of the pole lies close by the
stone, the thrower counts two of the game ; and in pro-
portion to the nearness of the pole to the mark, one is
counted. In this manner the players will run inces-
santly at half speed the greater part oi' the day, under
(lie violent heat of the sun, manifesting the most untir-
ing interest in tin 1 game, and staking their ornaments,
property of every description, ami even their Wearing
apparel, upon its event.
These hurling stones are prepared with great labor
and care, being rubbed smooth in every part. They
are preserved from one generation to another, and are
exempted from being buried with the dead. Considered
as public property, each town or village possesses its
own hurling stones.
Pipes, both of stone and of clay, are still found in
these valleys; those of the former material, not nn-
frequently in a perfect state of preservation, while those
of the latter, are usually somewhat impaired by the
action of the changing seasons. Mr. Adair says, that of
all the Indians, the Cherokees excelled in the manu-
facture of beautiful stone pipes; and assigns as one rea-
son for this, that their country, mountainous in its
character, afforded an unusual variety of materials
proper for such uses. Speaking of the manufacture of
these pipes, lie continues: "They easily form tbem with
100 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
their tomahawks, and afterwards finish them in any
desired form with their knives: the pipes (/. e., those
made of clay, anS some varieties of soap-stone,) being
of a very soft quality, till they are smoked with, and
used to the fire, when they become quite hard. They
are often a full span long, and the bowls are about half
as large again as those of our English pipes. The fore
part of each, commonly runs out with a sharp peak two
or three fingers broad, and a quarter of an inch thick.
On both sides of the bowl lengthwise, they cut several
pictures with a great deal of skill and labor; such as
a buffalo and a panther ; on the opposite sides of the
bowl, a rabbit and a fox, and very often a man and a
woman, puris naluralibus. Their sculpture cannot much
be commended for its modesty. They work so slowly,
that one of these artists is two months at a pipe with
his knife, before he finishes it : indeed, as before ob-
served, they are great enemies to profuse sweating, and
are never in a hurry about a good thing. The stems
are commonly made of soft wood, about two feet long,
and an inch thick, cut into four squares, each scooped
till they join very near the hollow of the stem; the
beans always hollow the squares, except a little at each
corner, to hold them together, to which they fasten a
parcel of bell buttons, different sorts of fine feathers, and
several small battered pieces of copper kettles, round
deer-skin thongs, and a red painted scalp; this is a boast-
ing, valuable, and superlative ornament. According to
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 101
their standard, such a pipe constitutes the possessor a
grand beau. They so accurately carve or paint hiero-
glyphic characters on the stem, that all the war-actions,
and the tribe of the owner, with a greal many circum-
stances of things are fully delineated."
When we remember in what esteem this article was
held by the Cherokee in ordinary times, his compan-
ion around the lodge-fire, and upon his march never
forgotten either at home, or abroad, when we recollect
the historic memories which cluster around the Pipe of
Peace and think of the solemnities attendant upon its
use, when war was to be declared, when compacts were
to be entered into, and, when the battle was over, as its
graceful curl, denoting that peace had again spread her
white wings over the land, ascended from the midst of
the assembled braves, a peculiar interest attaches to
these relics of a past race. The many fragments of the
ordinary red or blue clay pipe, and of the soap-stone
pipe, attest their general use.
Of all the remains still extant, by far the most nu-
merous are the spear and arrow heads. Of these there
are sundry varieties, all modifications however, of one
general idea. They lie scattered in every field are
disclosed by the careless foot of the pedestrian, as it
brushes aside the fallen leaves of the forest are
washed from the road-sides by every passing shower,
and are seen in nearly every grave. They vary in
length, from the half of an inch, to ten or twelve inches;
L02 ! REMAINS
and in breadth, from the I an inch to four
timet] is before as, measuring
: length, and lour inches in breadth. S
a favorite material used in the construction
imp!' of war and of the chase. They are in c
red, yellow, white, rufus, black, blue, and parti-colored,
often to have been laid upon the
: i< -ii of a unique Btone. In not a few lor;
black thirty predominate. That they were here manu-
factured, is clearly proven by the countless chips, lying
intermingled with broken Bpear ami arrow heads, re-
jected in the proc instruction.
It i< an interesting fact, that this manufacture <>i darts
and arrow points, union to all the tribes of the
American Indians, and that they all coincide in form
and size Intermingle, for example, a number oi Bpear
and arrow heads picked up in these valleys, with an
equal number collected at random from the mounds, or
in the fields of the coast regions of Georgia or South
Carolina, and you will be unable to distinguish between
them. It is probable that Large quantities manufactured
here, where materials for their construction abound,
were carried to the coast, ami there exchanged lor com-
modities, which could not in this region be readily ob-
tained. There is an interesting tradition still extant to
this effect.
It will 1»' remarked however, by any one at all con-
versaut with the antiquities of Southern Georgia, that
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 103
the Tribes who there inhabited, did, to a certain extent
at least, manufacture their own spear and arrow heads.
Of this, the physical proof is positive and abundant.
A description of the fleshing knives soap-stone or-
naments- beads pestles and other trivial remains
which lie scattered upon the surface, is deemed useless.
as they are really possessed <>f but little interest, and
have been noticed by others.
We shall conclude this enumeration of the Indian
remains, with the mere mention of a beautiful mortar,
which was exhumed from a small earth mound upon
the left bank of the Oostanaula River, some nine miles
above the village of Rome. It is composed of a very
compact, yellow stone, capable of receiving quite a de-
gree of polish, and hard to be worked possessing a
diameter of nearly six inches and a thickness at the
edges, of two inches and three quarters. It has two
cavities each four inches in diameter, and one inch
in depth ¦ the central portion of the mortar lying be-
tween the convex, and concave hollowed surfaces
being only three quarters of an inch in thickness. In
form, it is accurately circular, everything about it indi-
cating great neatness of construction, and remarkable
symmetry.
We have designated as a third class, those remains,
which, although fashioned by the Indians, are yet the
offsprings of wants, and the results of suggestions, evi-
dently derived from their association with the "White race.
104 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF OEOBGIA.
Aj an illustration of this, we may refer to a bullet*
mould made of soap-stone, capable of answering well
the purposes for which it was intended. It was found
among other articles, in the grave of an Indian. This
mould has thirteen chambers, varying in size, from that
of an ounce-ball, to that of swan-shot.
We will not pause to enumerate the various remains,
of clearly European origin, which are not unfrequently
disclosed upon an examination of the later graves.
These, if antiquities they may be called, belong to
a more recent period; a period about which, the clouds
of uncertainty and conjecture gather not.
So much for the remains of the valleys of the Eto-
wah and the Oostanaula, and a glance at the interesting
suggestions, which attend upon their examination. Few
and short were the days given to their consideration ;
but the recollection of the pleasure experienced upon
first sight of those august monuments, which tower
above the level of the Etowah Valley silent, yet not
voiceless representatives of a past age, of a lost race,
still lives, and is only equalled by the vivid remem-
brances of the beautiful hills which environ, and the
attractive streams which water this favored region.
t\ f
111
AND WITHIN THE ENCLOSURE,
|ornub tw % gloat ug, anb t^e itotoab giber.
I. Pipe fashioned of a species of green stone
almost equal to Egyptian granite, three and a half
inches in height; consisting of a human figure in a sit-
ting posture, holding in extended arms, quite a classic
urn, which constitutes the bowl. This urn-shaped bowl
is two inches in diameter, with ornamented rim, and
unique handles.
The countenance of the figure, is clearly not Indian
in a single feature. The head is thrown back, and the
uplifted eyes seem resting upon some superior, unseen,
yet adorable divinity. The chiselled hair upon the
front, is gathered upon the top in a fold ; and thence
flowing backwards, is confined behind in a knot. Ears
prominent.
The careful observer of this interesting specimen of
the handiwork of the Mound-Builders, cannot but ad-
mire the skill with which it has been fashioned. Unique
in all its parts, there is that about this idol-pipe, which
impresses you with the idea, that it was intended as a
direct representation of a custom of offering incense to
their Gods, which may, and probably did obtain with
that ancient race, which centuries ago possessed these
103 MOM" MENTAL REMAINS OF GEOKCIA.
beautiful valleys. The upturned face, tho expression
of reverential awe emphatically traced upon every linea-
ment of the countenance the extended arms, uplifting
the sacred symbol of worship, all indicate the attempt
to perpetuate, in the form of this article of daily use,
the recollection, of perchance, a well-established reli-
gious rite.
Not more surely does the water lily remind of fallen
Persepolis, or the crisp acanthus, bespeak its Attic origin,
than does this interesting specimen of the workmanship
of the ancients, tell as at once of their skill, and of the
religious rite of that people, by whom it was fashioned
and used.
II. Stone Pipe, four and one quarter inches in
height, similar in design to the first, but ruder in its
construction.
Human figure in sitting posture upturned face
extended arms in hands holding bowl of pipe, bleu
conveyed, precisely the same as that suggested by the
pipe first described.
III. CLAY PIPES, some perfectly plain, others with
rude impressions upon the outside, and scalloped rims.
Probably of Indian origin. Bowl at righl angles with
the stem some of baked, others of sun-dried clay.
IV. STONE Idol. This interesting relic, made of a
coarse, dark sand-stone, is twelve inches in height. It
consists of a human figure in a sitting posture, the knees
drawn up, almost upon a level with the chin, the hands
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 109
resting upon either knee. Retreating chin and forehead
full head of hair, gathered into a knot behind face
upturned eyes angular. Not a single feature, not a
single idea connected with this image, is Indian in its
character. Everything about it the place where it was
exhumed its internal evidence all suggest the belief,
that it must have been fashioned by the ancient Mound
Builders. That this idol is not Indian in its origin,
appears evident from the following, among other con-
siderations :
(a) The retreating forehead and chin.
(b) The full head of hair, gathered into a tuft or knot
behind.
(c) The Indians of this region never were Idol-wor-
shippers.
(d) The traditions of the Cherokees, while they do
not even name the race by whom these remains were
constructed, nevertheless distinctly disclaim the idea,
that they were ever made by the Indians; and refer
them t<> the possession of, and use by a people in ages
long since past, who inhabited these beautiful valleys,
and rich alluvial bottoms, building here their immense
tumuli for the purposes of worship and defense, and
who had deserted these regions, before ever the Chero-
kees chanced upon an occupancy of them.
It is an interesting fact, that the Cherokees never were
Idol-worshippers. The same remark is applicable to
nearly all the Tribes of North America. Recognizing
110 MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA.
the existence, and the omnipresence of an unseen yet
omnipotent Deity, they did not deem it consistent with
the magnitude and grandeur of that God, to attempt to
confine him within rude temples, the work of their own
hands ; nor did it comport with their exalted ideas of
his majestic being, and the proper homage to be ren-
dered, that they should liken his image to that of man,
beast, bird, or living creature, and bow before the sense-
less clay or stone. With them, the great, beneficent,
supreme, holy spirit of Fire, although residing above the
clouds, still communed with unpolluted men. They
heard his tones of anger, in the crashing notes of the
thunder-storm ; listened to his tender words of love and
mercy, as whispered by the soft airs of spring ; implored
his health-giving influences in behalf of the disease
stricken and the infirm ; from Him, directly invoked the
refreshing showers of summer upon the thirsty fields of
maize; by daily fastings, and night watches, endeav-
ored to secure His interposition in their behalf, in the
anticipated battle, and looked up to Him as the sole
author of warmth, light, and of all animal and vegeta-
ble life.
James Adair, whose opportunities for observation
were probably surpassed by none, writes as follows :*
"They (i. r the sepulchral mounds.
In some instances, as in the case of that large tumulus
upon Stalling'* Island, in the Savannah River, the bi-
valves and other shells of the stream. enteT as a very
important clement into the construction of the mound.
Among the articles of antiquity found in the ancient
works, which formerly existed where the city of Cincin-
nati now stands, Dr. Drake enumerates several large
marine shells, belonging perhaps to the genus buccinum,
cut in such a manner as to serve for domestic utensils.
Other shells have been exhumed, which are supposed
by some to be similar to the sacred chanka of the Hin-
dus. It is a well ascertained fact, that some tribes of
American 1 ndians, used sea shells as drinking cups.
These were not unfrequently buried with the dead, in
order that they might, in connection with their other
utensils, serve them in the land of spirits.
* Soc Bertram's Travels, pp, -ISO, 151.
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 117
William Bartram * minutely describes the ceremony
of imbibing the black-drink from conch shells a custom
which obtained among the Creeks.
James Adair* also alludes to a similar use of that
shell, when the Indians, with set formalities, and estab-
lished solemnities, drink an infusion of cussena.
Dr. Atwater mentions the fact, that nine mnrex shells,
similar to those described by Sir William Jones in his
"Asiatic Researches," and by Symmes in his "Embassy
to Ava," have been found within twenty miles of Lex-
ington, Kentucky, in an ancient work. Their compo-
nent parts remain unchanged, and they were in an excel-
lent state of preservation.
Of the thicker portions of the muscle shells, beads
were fashioned ; while from periwinkles and small conch
shells, were formed ornaments for the wrists and ankles.
These remains abound in the smaller tumuli, in the
graves and burial places which exist in many localities in
the valleys of the Etowah and the Oostanaula, and else-
where. The present specimen however, appears to have
been made from a shell much larger than any that now
exists in this region. It was formed simply of the cen-
tral portion, and is slightly convex.
We are enabled upon an examination of this relic,
readily to conjecture, not only the size of the shell in its
original condition, but also its origin; and the deduction
* See Adair's History, Ac, p. 46.
lis BTUXKNTAL BEMAD GEORGIA
oa both reasonable and necessary, to ascribe to it. a
marine character.
Specimens of a similar nature have been recently i \-
humed, in an ancient mound located at the head of the
Coosa River, and within the corporate limits of the vil-
lage of Rome, in Floyd County. We are inclined to
refer this relic to the handiwork, and to the era of the
Mound-Build
VII. Fragments of Isinglass (mica membranao
Of this material, the Mound-Builders constructed their
looking glasses. I>r. Atwater states, that within his own
knowledge, he has met with them in fifty places. Be-
sides the Large and yery elegant <>ne at Circleville, and
the fragments a1 Cincinnati, he found more or less of
mirrors in all the mounds which have been open< d
in the valleys of the Ohio, Mississippi, &c They were
common among that people, and answered very well
the purpose for which they were intended. These mir-
rors were very thick, as otherwise they would nut have
reflected the light.*
The Isinglass mirror the most remarkable as yet
discovered, found at Circleville, in the Scioto Valley,
twenty-six miles south of Columbus, is described as
being about three feet in length one fool and a half
in breadth and one inch and a half in thickness
and on it, a plate of iron which had become an oxyde.+
* See Arch:eologia Americana, Vol. I, p. 225.
+ Soo Archseologia Americana, Vol. I, p. 173
MONUMENTAL REMAINS OF GEORGIA. 119
The present specimens, although in the main devoid
of regularity of form, nevertheless indicate an inten-
tional and not an accidental origin. One in particular,
was found upon the very summit of the largest tumulus.
VIII. Stone Pestles.
IX. Numerous fragments of Pottery.
X. Head and Neck of Bird, two inches and a
half in length prominent eyes with a comb upon
the top of the head, not unlike that of a cock. This
specimen of clay is of very fine texture baked.
XL Various little Images of sun-dried and
baked cloy some representing the human figure, with
distorted expression, and extravagant features ; others
in imitation of the heads of birds and wild animals.
When it is remembered that these remains were found
simply upon the surface of the tumuli, and in the fields
around their base, wc may, with eager expectation, an-
ticipate the revelations which shall be brought to light,
when the Herculean task of exploring them even to
their very centres, shall have been undertaken and suc-
cessfully accomplished.
