ABORIGINAL SITES ON TENNESSEE RIVER. 250 
however, as the ground surrounding it was level, alluvial land, the mound was 
a mass of shell down to the surface of the field and not a shell-heap on an emi- 
nence. 
A thorough examination of this shell-heap would require far more time than 
its character and the probable absence of artifacts with the burials would justify. 
In the digging were found several rude knives of flint, an axe 4 inches in length, 
having a double groove, the poll, unfortunately, somewhat broken. 
On the surface were several knives or arrowheads, of flint, and an agricultural 
tool of limestone, about 8.5 inches in length. 
About one-quarter mile distant from this shell mound, on high ground farther 
in from the river, is what is believed to be a mound by those residing nearby, 
but which our agent reported to be in reality a natural ridge. 
MOUND on Brown’s! ISLAND, LAWRENCE COUNTY, ALABAMA. 
At the upper end of Brown’s Island (and we several times have occasion to 
note that a number of islands in Tennessee river have mounds so situated), 
which also is called Knight’s Island, its owner being Mr. John W. Knight, of 
Decatur, Ala., is a mound quadrilateral with flat top, somewhat rounded in 
outline. Its height is 9.5 feet; it is about 90 feet square. 
An excavation 10 feet square reached scattering shell at a depth of 9 feet 
and came to undisturbed, yellow sand six inches deeper. Probably the mound 
had been built on a dwelling-site. At one place, the dark, loamy sand of which 
the mound was composed continued down mingled with shell to a depth of 12 
feet from the summit, or about 2.5 feet into the undisturbed sand. There was 
not the appearance of a pit at this place, it seeming rather as if the mound had 
been built on a rolling surface, such as the ground is today through wash of 
water when the river is high, and that the lower level had been raised with midden 
soil to the general level and then the mound carried upward from that. Nothing 
in the way of bones or of artifacts was found or expected in this domiciliary 
mound. 
DWELLING-SITE AT Brown’s FERRY, LIMESTONE County, ALABAMA. 
At Brown’s Ferry is a large property which belonged to the late Henry 
Warten, of Athens, Ala., who most kindly had placed his twelve thousand 
acres of land along Tennessee river at our disposal. 
On high ground just back of the bottom land at this place was a large, abor- 
iginal dwelling-site, on the surface of which were shells and fragments of stone. 
Most of this site, unfortunately, at the time of our visit was covered with growing 
oats. In certain parts of the site not under cultivation, digging at random (there 
were no rises to indicate where investigation might be rewarded) was attempted 
1 This name has been selected because it is employed in the “Index Map of the Tennessee River, 
Survey of the Middle Section, House Document No. 360.” The island, however, is also well known 
as Birkett’s Island and Robinson Island, names of former owners. 
