Visit to Big'bone Lick^ in 1821. 357 



of Gunpowder creek, which empties itself into the Ohio at the 

 landing ; but the main branch comes from the north. The ridge 

 separating the waters of Gunpowder and Big bone creeks, is not 

 very high, and forms a kind of gap where the road crosses it : the 

 lick may have once communicated with the Ohio by this gap.* 



I walked to the landing, where there was a very inconvenient 

 landing place ; near it was a farm house only, the cliffs being 

 there very near to the Ohio, quite steep, and subject to avalanches. 

 I was told by the farmer, that not long ago, in a storm at night, 

 he was frightened by a dreadful noise like an earthquake, which 

 lasted a long while ; and in the morning found a small ravine south 

 of his house almost filled up by an avalanche of huge stones from 

 the cliffs. I went to see the place, and found it so ; the stones 

 were of all sizes and shapes, but all angular ; some must have 

 weighed many thousand pounds, and yet had rolled 200 yards or 

 more. These cliffs, as usual, are of limestone, in horizontal strata, 

 and 200 feet at least above the river. 



The water at the Lick springs contains salt and sulphur ; it 

 has a bluish cast, like that of the Blue licks, on Licking river ; 

 both are limpid, but of an abominable taste, although readily 

 drank by the idlers who come there to loiter, drink, bathe, and 

 kill the game — very plenty yet on the hills. 



I should have wished to follow Big-bone creek to its mouth, but 

 had not time. I have since regretted it, when I heard some years 

 afterwards that a very singular ancient tomb had been found 

 there. It was formed by two large lilabs uniting into an angle 

 above, and covered by the soil ; some human bones were found 

 in it, the fate of which I could not learn. I am inclined to believe 

 it situated in the alluvion of the creek, which is ample in some 

 places, and even contains many fossil shells, or unios, the same 

 as those now inhabiting the creek and the Ohio. It would be in- 

 teresting to know what connection may exist between this tomb, 

 the mound on the hill, and the regular arrangement of the fossil 

 bones at the lick, although I should myself be inclined to believe 

 in the diluvial eddy which may have brought the bones there in 

 a regular heap, in the bend of the valley. 



At Blue licks, in a rocky valley, no bones and no monuments 

 are found, but Drennon's lick has bones and mounds. Out of the 



* Which is badly laid out in the map, as well as Gunpowder creek, erroneously 

 called River creek. 



