Ohio History Journal

  • 1
  •  
  • 2
  •  

530 Ohio Arch

530        Ohio Arch. and His. Society Publications.

 

ing the records with innumerable brief sketches of the leading settlers.

This material will be of great value to genealogists and biographers.

It is rich in concise descriptions of pioneer life, its perils and hardships

and detailed accounts of the settlement and growth of the older com-

munities and institutions of the county; and it is perhaps, not too much

to say that this book contains more information and data relative to the

history of the various families of the county in question that is usually

given in county histories. As a sample of the extent of the work, the

list of early marriages in the county numbers 7,500 and their early

burials 5,000. The book is produced in attractive binding and will fill

a valuable place in the historical biography of Ohio.

 

 

THE MOUND BUILDERS.

 

A late number of The Northwest Magazine has a review of a note-

worthy paper read recently before the Minnesota Historical Society by

J. V. Brower, of St. Paul. The reviewer of the paper states that Mr.

Brower presented evidence tending to show that the Mound Builders of

Minnesota were none other than the old, full blooded Sioux Indians.

He traced these aborigines back to their ancient habitations and villages.

and in the course of his researches arrived at some surprising conclusions.

After describing every tribe of Indians known to have been permanent

residents of the region explored, Mr. Brower gave his attention to the

geological age of the lakes, the surface of the ground, and to the rivers,

creeks and other streams.

It was shown distinctly, he says, that the mounds were built on the

top of the black soil and of that material, indicating that hundreds of

them are of more recent origin than many suppose. From the numerous

village sites there have been collected stone, copper, flint and earthen

objects and artifacts which are exactly similar to the same kind of material

taken from the mounds adjoining the village sites. That fact shows that

the people who built the mounds also occupied the ancient villages.

Each of the village sites discovered has been explored and charted.

By the side of the chart of 1900 the Fauquelin chart of 1688 was placed,

and it was distinctly demonstrated by the two charts that the Sioux vil-

lagers residing in Mille Lacs in 1688 were resident at identical places

where the village sites were observed in 1900.

The next proposition submitted was proof from the records left by

Radisson, Hennepin, Duluth, Le Sueur and Carver that the Sioux made

and used stone implements, clay pots, copper crescents, flint knives,

quartz arrow points, and various stone and copper objects, following

which it was demonstrated beyond dispute that the Sioux removed the

flesh from the remains of their dead and deposited the bones, in a bun-

dled condition, with the skull. Catlin's works were here produced to

show that as late as 1835 the Sioux were building mounds over their