Ten Days in Ohio. 23§ 



winds from W. and N. W. Circleville, situated on the east side of 

 the Scioto river, is a post town, and the seat of Justice, for Pickaway 

 County. It was laid out in the year 1810, and occupies the scite 

 of an ancient city, enclosed by a double circular wall of earth, with 

 a ditch between the walls. From this circular defence it takes its 

 name. The walls were ten feet high, and the ditch of the same 

 depth, making twenty feet from the bottom of the ditch to the top 

 of the walls. The walls and ditch occupy nearly seventy feet, which 

 gives thirty feet as the base of each wall, and ten feet for the width 

 of the ditch. The circular fort or town, was three hundred and fifty 

 yards across. A square fort stands adjoining the circular one, the 

 walls of which were twenty feet, without any ditch. This fort which 

 was three hundred yards across, is an exact square. The present 

 town is laid out on these ancient and venerable works. The court 

 house, built in the form of an octagon, stands in the center of the circu- 

 lar fort ; and occupies the spot once covered by a large and beautiful 

 mound, but which was leveled to make room for the building. This 

 forms the nucleus, around which runs a circular street, with a spa- 

 cious common between the court house and street. On this circular 

 street, the principal stores and taverns are erected, and most of the 

 business is done. Four other streets run out from this circle, like 

 radii from a center. The town contains one thousand five hundred 

 inhabitants, and is gradually increasing. On the S. W. side of the 

 circle stands a conical hill, crowned with an artificial mound. Indeed 

 so much does the whole elevation resemble the work of man, that ma- 

 ny have mistaken it for a large mound. A street has lately been open- 

 ed across the little mound which crowned the hill ; and in removing the 

 earth, many skeletons were found in good preservation. A cranium 

 of one of them, was in my possession, and is a noble specimen of 

 the race which once occupied these ancient walls. It has a high fore- 

 head, and large and bold features, with all the Phrenological marks of 

 daring and bravery. Poor fellow, he died overwhelmed by numbers ; 

 as the fracture of the right parietal bone, by the battle axe, and five 

 large stone arrows sticking in and about his bones, still bear silent, but 

 sure testimony. The elevated ground a little north of the town, 

 across Hargus Creek, which washes the base of the plain of Cir- 

 cleville, appears to have been the common burying ground. Hu- 

 man bones, in great quantities, are found in digging away the grav- 

 el for repairing the streets, and for constructing the banks of the 

 canal which runs near the base of the highlands. They were buri- 



