54 XE\V YORK STATE MUSEUM 



16 J. W. Nelson of Cold Spring located many sites from Den- 

 ning's Point, Dutchess county to Croton point, Westchester county. 

 He did some collecting at Denning' s Point, at the mouth of Mat- 

 teawan creek. There he found early fireplaces and graves. A 

 large grooved stone and also a broken one were obtained here. 



17 Village at Staatsburg. 



18 Village at Milton Ferry. 



19 Village site at Tivoli. 



20 Village site at Barrytown. 



21 Village site at New Hamburg. 



22 Village site on the Van Wyck farm, Manchester Bridge. 



23 Village site on John Ham farm, Washington Hollow. 



24 Quarry site, containing chert nodules in limestone worked by 

 Indians, nearly above the New York Central railroad tunnel at 

 New Hamburg. 



25 Quarry site on the Boardman farm, 4 miles northeast of Xt'\v 

 Hamburg on same limestone ridge as preceding. 



County 



General occupation. The geographical location of Erie county 

 must have made it especially inviting as a center of aboriginal 

 occupation, and both archeology and history adduce facts to prove 

 this true. Both Tonawanda creek on the north and Cattaraugus 

 creek on the south were important water routes, while the fertile 

 valleys and the secluded hills afford both agricultural lands and 

 secure retreats. At the opening of the historic period we find the 

 names of three Iroquoian nations associated with this region, the 

 Neuter, Erie and Wenroe. Before these peoples entered this 

 locality others had been equally attracted by it and we find many 

 traces of a mound-building people distributed all along the southern 

 shore of Lake Erie and in the valleys of the Cattaraugus and Tona- 

 wanda. Traces of these people, however, are not so definite or so 

 deeply stamped in the earth as are those of the Iroquoian nations 

 who left deep layers of refuse and filled the soil w r ith charcoal, and 

 the by-products of their industries. A journey through the valleys 

 of any of the streams flowing westward into Lake Erie will reveal 

 numerous village and camp sites. In certain places, as along the 

 Tonawanda or the Cattaraugus, there are fe\v places on the creek 

 flats that do not show evidences of aboriginal occupation. Impor- 

 tant hills back of the flood plains are covered with earthworks, 



