SMITHSONIAN EXPLORATIONS, I93O 



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crossed the mountains from the westward. Log cabins soon occupied 

 the sites where mat-covered lodges had stood a generation before, and 

 roads soon followed the courses of the Indian trails through the dense 

 forests. Now, after the lapse of many years, traces of the early days 

 may often be found in secluded spots. Deserted cabins are frequently 

 encountered near old clearings, in some instances believed to be 

 " Indian fields," and sunken graves may usually be discovered near-by. 

 It is a region of much natural beauty, and beyond the valley of 

 the Rockfish the Blue Ridge attains an elevation of more than 3,500 

 feet above sea level. 



Fig. 186. — A road in the Blue Ridge. 



The most extensive site examined stands on the banks of the 

 Rivanna, believed to have been the village of Monasukapanough of 

 the Saponi and deserted by that tribe some time after 1608 and before 

 1670. It is a beautiful situation for a native village, divided by the 

 Rivanna and protected by encircling hills at the foot of which are 

 many large flowing springs. Corn was probably raised on part of the 

 low grounds where it is now grown by the present occupants of the 

 land. Numerous stone implements have been discovered on the sur- 

 face and quantities of pottery, broken into small bits by the plow dur- 

 ing the past years, have been recovered. No objects of European origin 



