218 



CATLINITE 



[b. a. e. 



that with the aid of the whites blasting 

 has been occasionally resorted to. Some 

 of the present excavations are as much as 

 10 ft. in depth, and have advanced 20 

 ft. or more along the dip of the strata 

 to the E. The usual section now ex- 

 posed in the deeper excavations, begin- 

 ning above, shows from 2 to 4 ft. of 

 soil and from 5 to 8 ft. of quartzite rest- 

 ing on the thin stratum of pipestone, 

 beneath which, again forming the bed of 

 the quarry, are compact quartzites. Nu- 

 merous hammers of hard stone, some 

 roughly grooved to facilitate hafting, 

 have been found about the older pits, and 

 the prairie in the vicinity is dotted with 

 camp sites and tent rings about which are 

 strewn bits of pipestone and other refuse 

 of manufacture (see Mines and Quarries). 

 There is a general impression among 

 those who have 

 written on the 

 subject that the 

 discovery and 

 use of the red 

 pipestone by the 

 tribes is of com- 

 parativel y recen t 

 date, and this is 

 no doubt correct; 

 but it is equally 

 certain that it 

 was in use before 

 the arrival of the 

 whites in the N. 

 W. This is made 

 clear not only by 

 history and tra- 

 dition but by 

 the aijpearance 

 of the ancient 

 quarry excava- 

 tions, and espe- 

 cially by the oc 

 currence of pipes 

 and other objects 

 made of it by 

 aboriginal methods in mounds in various 

 sections of the country. (See Pipes.) 

 This quarry is usually referred to as the 

 *acred pipestone quarry. According to 

 statements by Catlin and others, the site 

 was held in much superstitious regard by 

 the aborigines. Traditions of very gen- 

 eral distribution lead to the belief that it 

 was, in the words of Catlin, "held and 

 owned in common, and as neutral ground 

 amongst the different tribes who met here 

 to renew their pipes, under some super- 

 stition which stayed the tomahawk of 

 natural foes always raised in deadly hate 

 and vengeance in other places" (N. Am. 

 Indians, ii, 201, 1844). Nicollet states 

 (1838) that Indians of the surrounding 

 nations made an annual pilgrimage to the 

 quarry unless prevented by wars or dis- 

 sensions. Since the earliest visits of the 



white man to the Coteau des Prairies, 

 however, the site has been occupied ex- 

 clusively by the Sioux, and Catlin met 

 with strong opposition from them when 

 he attempted to visit the quarrv about 

 1837. 



The following facts regarding the his- 

 toric occupancy and ownership of the 

 Pipestone ciuarry are extracted from a 

 statement furnished bv Mr Charles H. 

 Bennett, of Pipestone: " On Apr. 30, 1803, 

 the region was acquired by the United 

 States through the Louisiana purchase. 

 On July 23, 1851, the lands, including 

 the quarry, were relinquished to the 

 United States by the Sisseton and Wah- 

 peton Sioux, and on August 5 they were 

 relinquished by the Mdewakanton and 

 Wahpekute Sioux, and 64 chiefs and 

 head warriors who had also a claim. A 

 treaty with the 

 Yankton Sioux, 

 ratified Apr. 19, 

 1858, specifies 

 that ' ' the said 

 Yancton Indians 

 shall be secured 

 in the free and 

 unrestricted use 

 of the red pipe- 

 stone quarry, or 

 so much thereof 

 as they have 

 been accustomed 

 to frequent and 

 use for the pur- 

 pose of procuring 

 stone for pipes; 

 and the United 

 States hereby 

 stipulate and 

 agree to be 

 caused to be 

 surveyed and 

 marked so much 



PIPESTONE LEDGE APPEARS AT THE thcreof aS shall 



(BENNETT, COLL. ) ]jg nccessary and 



proper for that purpose, and retain the 

 same and keep it open and free to the In- 

 dians to visit and procure stone for pipes, 

 so long as they shall desire." In 1859, 1 

 sq. m., including the quarry, was surveyed 

 as a reservation, and in 1892 Congress ap- 

 propriated $25,000 for the establishment 

 of an industrial school, which is now 

 (1905) being successfully conducted, with 

 several stone buildings and some 200 

 pupils. It is situated on the highland 

 overlooking the pipestone quarries on the 

 E. The Sioux have no other legal claim 

 upon the quarry site than that of quarry- 

 ing the pipestone, a privilege of which 

 they j'early take advantage to a limited 

 extent. The Yankton Sioux, sometimes 

 accompanied by their friends, the Flan- 

 dreau Sioux, continue to visit the quarry 

 and dig pipestone, coming usually in 



