68O NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



were then buried in a hole and covered with sand. A burial of the 

 more regular form was thus described by the writer in the Proceed- 

 ings of the Staten Island Association of Arts and Sciences, for 

 May 1906: 



" On May 12, 1906, while carrying on my investigations on the 

 prehistoric Indian village site exposed by the building of Milliken 

 Brothers' (steel) foundry at Mariners' Harbor, a grave was found 

 exposed by the recent enlarging of the railroad cut which runs 

 through the plant (bisecting the Bowman's brook site). The grave 

 was found about 10 feet south of the first one which I had opened 

 in that vicinity. It was about 7 feet broad by 5^ feet deep and of 

 peculiar structure. A streak of black earth ran through the yellow 

 sand and formed a bowl-shaped pit. This streak was about 6 inches 

 thick, broadening into pockets at both ends, and contained relics. 

 At the bottom of the pit were some very large sherds, which were 

 later restored and found to be the rim and most of the sides of a pot 

 of typical Algonkin style. The bottom only is missing. On the 

 sherds lay several stones, which indicates that the pot was whole or 

 nearly so when placed in the grave, and that the stones had been 

 cast upon it with the purpose of breaking it. About i foot higher 

 than the sherds and 3 feet to the west was found the skeleton of a 

 person above average age, flexed as usual, heading north, with the 

 face to the east. The skull was crushed, probably by the weight of 

 the earth. No relics were found with it, but an oyster shell lay upon 

 the bones of the hands, which were folded before the face. Fire- 

 cracked stones also lay upon and near the skeleton. A small pocket 

 of blackened earth immediately surrounded the skeleton, but the 

 other soil within the black boundary was hard, compact, yellow earth. 

 About 8 inches above these was" a deposit of oyster shells about 2^2 

 to 3 feet thick above the bones. With this exception, no relics were 

 found with any skeletons taken out personally or removed by laborers. 

 During the summer a perfect pottery vessel is said to have been 

 found by the workmen, but whether with a burial or not the writer 

 was unable to ascertain. It was described as being of typical 

 Algonkin style without any attempt at ornamentation. The vessel 

 has disappeared and it is alleged to have been sold to a collector in 

 New Jersey. While still with this subject, it may be interesting to 

 mention that a skull found by the writer, from this site, has more 

 than twenty Wormian bones." 



This site is now practically obliterated, as the " Indian fields " 

 northward to Bowman's point. 



