﻿AN 
  ERIE 
  INDIAN 
  VILLAGE 
  AND 
  BURIAL 
  SITE 
  475 
  

  

  culture 
  region 
  of 
  that 
  mysterious 
  people 
  for 
  the 
  sake 
  of 
  convenience 
  

   termed 
  " 
  mound 
  builders." 
  

  

  RIPLEY 
  SITE 
  

  

  For 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  years 
  the 
  writer 
  had 
  known 
  of 
  a 
  site 
  in 
  this 
  

   locality, 
  one 
  on 
  the 
  lake 
  shore 
  2 
  miles 
  northwest 
  of 
  Ripley, 
  but 
  

   until 
  this 
  season 
  had 
  not 
  had 
  occasion 
  to 
  visit 
  it. 
  In 
  1900 
  it 
  was 
  

   reported 
  to 
  Mr. 
  M. 
  R. 
  Harrington 
  and 
  the 
  writer 
  by 
  Prof. 
  John 
  Fen- 
  

   ton, 
  when 
  we 
  were 
  assistants 
  on 
  the 
  archeological 
  staff 
  of 
  the 
  Amer- 
  

   ican 
  Museum 
  of 
  Natural 
  History. 
  Mr 
  Harrington 
  did 
  some 
  work 
  

   on 
  the 
  site 
  in 
  1904 
  for 
  the 
  Peabody 
  Museum 
  of 
  American 
  Arche- 
  

   ology 
  and 
  Ethnology, 
  but, 
  because 
  of 
  various 
  obstacles, 
  left 
  the 
  major 
  

   portion 
  untouched. 
  The 
  excavations 
  which 
  he 
  made 
  during 
  his 
  short 
  

   stay 
  revealed 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  site 
  was 
  a 
  most 
  prolific 
  one. 
  In 
  view 
  

   of 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  State 
  Museum 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  had 
  few 
  or 
  no 
  

   specimens 
  of 
  the 
  Erie 
  culture, 
  and, 
  indeed, 
  as 
  very 
  little 
  was 
  known 
  

   of 
  this 
  culture, 
  the 
  site 
  was 
  chosen 
  as 
  the 
  field 
  for 
  the 
  season's 
  opera- 
  

   tions 
  and 
  a 
  leasehold 
  obtained. 
  The 
  Ripley 
  site 
  is 
  situated 
  011 
  the 
  

   William 
  and 
  Mary 
  Young 
  farm 
  in 
  lot 
  27, 
  Ripley, 
  Chautauqua 
  

   county. 
  It 
  covers 
  an 
  elevation 
  locally 
  known 
  as 
  " 
  Dewey 
  knoll 
  " 
  

   situated 
  on 
  the 
  cliffs 
  of 
  Lake 
  Erie. 
  On 
  the 
  east 
  a 
  stream 
  has 
  

   cut 
  through 
  the 
  shale 
  and 
  eaten 
  down 
  the 
  bluffs 
  to 
  the 
  lake 
  level 
  

   so 
  that 
  a 
  landing 
  is 
  easily 
  effected 
  from 
  the 
  water. 
  This 
  landing 
  

   is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  few 
  between 
  Barcelona 
  harbor 
  and 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  

   Twentymile 
  creek 
  in 
  Pennsylvania 
  where 
  there 
  is 
  easy 
  access 
  to 
  the 
  

   land 
  on 
  the 
  bluffs 
  above. 
  The 
  stream 
  has 
  cut 
  the 
  east 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  

   knoll 
  so 
  that 
  for 
  several 
  hundred 
  feet 
  south 
  from 
  the 
  lake 
  the 
  

   bank 
  rises 
  steep 
  and 
  in 
  places 
  almost 
  sheer 
  from 
  the 
  creek 
  bed. 
  

   The 
  place 
  is 
  one, 
  therefore, 
  naturally 
  adapted 
  for 
  a 
  fortified 
  refuge 
  

   and 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  an 
  attractive 
  spot 
  indeed 
  for 
  the 
  aborigines 
  

   who 
  built 
  upon 
  it 
  a 
  village, 
  a 
  circular 
  earthwork 
  and 
  who 
  found 
  in 
  

   the 
  soft 
  sand 
  a 
  most 
  suitable 
  place 
  for 
  the 
  burial 
  of 
  their 
  dead. 
  

  

  Surface 
  features 
  of 
  the 
  site 
  

  

  The 
  site 
  was 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  mainly 
  on 
  the 
  level 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  knoll 
  

   although 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  graves 
  were 
  found 
  on 
  the 
  south 
  and 
  west 
  

   slopes. 
  The 
  " 
  unoccupied 
  soil 
  " 
  began 
  at 
  the 
  lake 
  bank 
  and 
  ran 
  back 
  

   inland 
  to 
  the 
  southern 
  slope. 
  The 
  soil 
  bordering 
  the 
  bank 
  line 
  was 
  

   a 
  light 
  sandy 
  loam 
  heavily 
  intermixed 
  with 
  carbonaceous 
  substances, 
  

   animal 
  phosphates, 
  vegetable 
  mold 
  and 
  particles 
  of 
  animal 
  bone. 
  

   Back 
  to 
  the 
  south 
  it 
  was 
  generally 
  a 
  light 
  shifting 
  sand 
  which 
  rested 
  

  

  upon 
  a 
  more 
  compact 
  .stratum, 
  At 
  places, 
  especially 
  a 
  few 
  feet 
  

  

  