524 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



Street of the village, that runs north and south, and north of another 

 principal street that runs east and west, is the garden owned by Dr 

 Thomas Phillips, in which was a large artificial mound. In 1870 

 when examined by the writer, although frequent plowings had 

 reduced its height, it was 4 or 5 feet high and 3 or 4 rods in diameter. 

 It is said to have been 12 feet high when first seen. Then forest 

 trees of centuries' growth stood upon it. This mound was excavated 

 about 1822 and a large number of human skeletons exhumed; one of 

 unusual size. Extending in a northwesterly direction from an exten- 

 sive fire bed in the neighborhood of this mound, a distance of 60 rods 

 or more on the east side of the lake, was an elevated strip of land as 

 V, ide as the track of an ordinary turnpike. Traces of this ancient 

 road are still visible. At various other places around Cassadaga and 

 along the lake were caches and extensive fire beds or hearths, where 

 charcoal and ashes are buried deep in the ground. Skeletons have 

 been exhumed in many places and arrows, pottery and stone imple- 

 ments found in great profusion. It is said axes of iron have been 

 found also. 



According to T. Apoleon Cheney, the mound above mentioned in 

 1859 ^^'^s 7 ^^^t ^^i§^^ ^"d 30 feet in diameter. Forest trees 2 

 or 3 feet in diameter originally grew upon its summit. The map 

 made by Cheney incorrectly locates the mound on the southeastern 

 side of the two principal streets of the village. 



Charlotte. The first settlers of Sinclairville found there numerous 

 evidences that it was once the site of an old Indian town. The 

 writer having always been a resident of this village is able to give, 

 partly from his ow^n observations and partly from various authentic 

 statements made by the early settlers of the place, particularly by the 

 writer's father who came to the place the first year of its settlement 

 in 1 810, when the earthworks were visible and relics abundant, an 

 account of the remains of this ancient settlement when the first 

 pioneers of the place came there. An earthwork extended westerly 

 from where the Baptist church of Sinclairville now stands, a dis- 

 tance of about 45 rods parallel with the steep bank that forms the 

 northern border of the plateau upon which the central portion of the 

 village is situated and about 2^/^ rods distant from the bank. This 

 earthwork was plainly visible the whole of the distance at the first 

 settlement of the village. The first highway in the town ran between 

 this earthwork and the bank. At some points the intrenchment was 

 so near to it and so prominent as to force the traveled track into too 

 narrow limits. Near the middle point in the line of this breastwork, 

 and a little south of it, were large quantities of stone that had been 

 charred and crumbled bv fire. Thev were covered bv the soil. (In 



