4.2 Late Archaic Burials

4.2 Late Archaic Burials

Some Late Archaic cemeteries contained many burials. For instance, 380 Glacial Kame burials were removed from the Ridgeway site in Hardin County, Ohio, as it was quarried in 1856. University of Toledo archaeologists found 18 burial pits at the Williams site in an eroded area along the Maumee River. These pits held the remains of at least 500 people. Many of the bodies had been cremated. Large cemeteries such as these suggest that Late Archaic Indians chose distinct sites for the burial of members of their families, clans, or other kin groups. When a group member died, the body was brought to the burial site, even if the person had died far away. The large number of burials at these sites also suggests that they were used for long periods of time. Indeed, dates from the Williams site extend from 850 to 380 B.C. nearly 500 years. Catalog number: A 0807/000008, Image number: AL07277

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