Page 1 Volume 3, Issue 2

Volume 3, Issue 2 June 2007

T H E R E G IO N ’ S A R C H A E O L OG I C A L , C U L T U R A L A N D H I S TO R I C A L R E S O U R C E
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Before Sullivan Marched 1

A Portrait in Stone?
My Interest In Spanish Hill
4th Annual Drumbeats
Another Fabulous Donation
SRAC Around the Community
Letters From Our Members
Volunteer Digging Activities
Mystery of the Amulet
SRAC Crossword Puzzle
TriCities Chapter Meets
Sweet Deal Online Auction
Membership Form
lans
a k e y o u r p u r-
M t
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to spe tober 13,
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day, O t the 4th
07 a
20 l Drum
-
Annua hrough
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beats ee page
Tim e ! S
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ore in
9f m
o r
• Our Vision
The Susquehanna River Ar-
chaeological Center of Native
Indian Studies (S.R.A.C.) is
dedicated to education, re-
search and preservation of the
Native American archaeologi-
cal, cultural and historical as-
sets of the Twin Tier Region
of Northeastern PA and
Southern NY.
WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE SULLIVAN MARCHED
BY DICK COWLES
1
6 William Penn at the making of
Shakamaxon was the most remem-
8 bered of several treaties negotiated by
William Penn with the Leni-Lanape and
8
the Conestoga Indians. Taken together,
9 the entrances of the Rotunda
these treaties succeeded in cementing
10 a remarkable period of good relations
11 and high hopes with the Indians. The
Great Treaty at Shakamaxon, although
11
frequently criticized for being inaccurate
12 and too idealistic represents an illustra-
tion of the hope and mutual trust which
13
William Penn believed could prevail if
13
given a chance. To fully grasp the bold-
14 ness of the hopes of these Quakers and
their Indian treaty partners, one needs
to remember the terrible slaughter of
King Phillip's War in Massachusetts,
only six short years earlier. That war
took a gruesome toll on both Indians
and colonists.
The notable success of these treaties
encouragement to all of the participants,
A PORTRAIT IN STONE?
Two holed gorget located at the Indian
Steps Museum in Airville, PA
the treaty with the Delawares
as one in a series of sculp-
tural tableau that sit above
in the US Capitol Building.
Indians and colonists
alike, and ushered in
the next period in Penn-
sylvania's history; a pe-
riod that many histori-
ans have labeled, "the
fifty years of peace." It
was, by all reasonable
standards, a remarkably peaceable
domain, and those high hopes for
happiness and prosperity looked as
though they would prevail.
But it was not to prevail indefinitely.
One of the saddest ironies of Ameri-
(Continued on page 2)
BY EDWARD J. LENIK, R.P.A.
Who does this image represent? Is it an
Indian or a European-American? Is it a
portrait of someone the artist knew or is
it simply an effigy face or head? Does it
have some religious or social signifi-
cance? As archaeologists, we must con-
sider and analyze several factors when
seeking answers to these questions such
as:
1. Geography or location. Where was
the artifact found?
2. Geology. What is the stone on
which the petroglyph was made?
3. Artifact class. What does the item
represent? What is its function?
(Continued on page 2)

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Page 2
WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE
(Continued from page 1)
can history is the story of the collapse
of William Penn's dream, starting with
so much hope, and showing so much
early promise, it was destined not to
survive more than two generations.
The flood of new colonists with their
large families guaranteed a constantly
increasing demand for more and more
land by a people growing steadily fur-
Paxton Boys massacring the Contestogas in
1763, by John Wimer, 1841
ther away from the ideals that had
been the very foundation blocks of
Penn's unique plan. Occasional minor
land disputes and petty thievery esca-
lated to drunken brawls, horse thiev-
ery, major land frauds, murders and
revenge murders. The good will, mu-
tual trust and high hopes of the 1680's
and 90's plummeted to mutual distrust,
fear and hatred by 1740.
Of all the land frauds during that period
the most infamous is the one known to
history as the Walking Purchase. Wil-
liam Penn himself had agreed to the
original terms of the purchase in 1686.
In effect, it extends an earlier purchase
of 1682 northwesterly along the west-
ern shore of the Delaware River as far
as Tohiccan Creek. Its western bound-
ary was to be determined by having a
walker start at the point where the
boundary line of the prior purchase met
the river and walk along the shore of
the Delaware River as far as Tohican
Creek. From there he would continue
westerly along the southern shore of
Tohiccan creek until a total of a day
and a half of walking time had elapsed
since leaving the starting point. From
this point the western boundary was to
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S U L L I VA N MARCHED
leave Tohiccan Creek and turn
south easterly along a line basi-
cally parallel to the Delaware River
until it arrived back at the same
boundary of the earlier purchase
from which it had originally started.
The new purchase would thus ad-
join the original purchase along
several miles of common border.
The Lenape Indians presumed that
the walker would walk at a normal
border. The Lenape Indians pre-
sumed that the walker would walk
at a normal pace across typical
unprepared terrain. Surprisingly,
the walk was not carried out for
almost two generations and, al-
though the Indians were paid and
many colonists moved onto the
purchased land, the western
boundary was left undefined until
1737 when the Proprietors decided
to officially survey and claim their
purchase. By then, however, the
ideals of mutual trust had given
way to land grabbing greed. A
walker was carefully selected who
was a speed walker and a path
was cleared so that no obstacle
would slow him down. Then, to the
amazement and dismay of the
Delaware Indians, the route of the
walk was drastically changed. In-
stead of turning up Tohican Creek
the path continued on up the Dela-
A PORTRAIT IN STONE? CONT.
(Continued from page 1)
4. History or context. What
group(s) of people lived or set-
tled in the area in which the arti-
fact was found.
5. How was the petroglyph made?
What type of tool was used in its
execution?
6. Style. Is the image similar to or
different from other effigy faces
or heads found in the region?
The two-hole gorget illustrated here
is embedded in a masonry wall
above a fireplace within the Indian
The gorget is made from a gray color
Steps Museum in Airville, Pennslyva-
piece of shale. It is nearly rectangu-
nia. This museum was founded and
built in 1912 by John E. Vandersloot
Volume 3, Issue 2
CONT.
ware River for over fifty miles, past
the Lehigh River, through the Dela-
ware Water Gap and beyond the
Kittatinny Mountain Range. Horse-
men accompanied the walker and
carried his food, water and sup-
plies. No one has ever claimed the
walker actually ran, but white ob-
servers reported that his walk was
fast enough to, "keep a horse at a
middling Journey's pace." As in-
credible as it seems, history re-
cords that the walker did indeed
walk all the way through and be-
yond the Delaware Water Gap.
When the day and a half was up
he was twenty miles on the far side
of Kittatinny Mountain. The proprie-
tors then claimed all of the land
south of Kittatinny Mountain be-
tween the Lehigh and the Dela-
ware Rivers, plus all of the land
between the Lehigh River and To-
hiccan Creek. This was obvious
cheating on a scale so blatant as
to constitute major fraud and the
Lenni-Lenape objected strenu-
ously. Several villages including
their principle town plus their
choice hunting grounds were within
this new boundary. They could not,
in their wildest imagination, con-
ceive of any prior chief ever having
agreed to give up these villages,
(Continued on page 4)
of York, PA. The museum’s name
was derived from the “steps” carved
by Indians into the rocks in the
nearby Susquehanna River. These
“Indian Steps” were actually foot-
holds used to reach the river to fish
for shad. While building his mu-
seum, Vandersloot found more than
10,000 artifacts on his property in-
cluding projectile points, pottery,
stone tools and other Indian artifacts,
which are now on display in the mu-
seum. I infer that the petroglyph gor-
get was found here on the west bank
of the Susquehanna River.
(Continued on page 3)
Page 3
A PORTRAIT IN STONE? CONT.
(Continued from page 2)
lar in shape and has two conical
holes for suspension as an item of
personal adornment to be worn at
the breast. It measures 8.5 centi-
meters (3 3/8ths inches) in length.
Each corner of the gorget has three
incised diagonal lines and very short
incised lines extending perpendicu-
lar to each corner. A human figure
is incised and situated between the
two suspension holes. The fine
lines of the image could have been
produced by a sharp stone engrav-
ing tool or, perhaps, a metal tool.
Because the artifact was embedded
in the wall it could not be studied
closely and in detail to determine
what type of tool was used in its
manufacture. The clear and precise
outline of the figure indicates to me
that the artist-carver had good con-
trol of the tool.
The head is carved in profile. The
figure has a prominent nose, chin
and jaw, an eye with a pupil, an ear
and a long neck. At the top of the
head, the figure’s hair is fastened in
two locations forming a bundle that
extends upward. Presumably, the
gorget was worn with the figure on
the outside but we cannot tell
whether the head was facing down
or looking up at the wearer.
American Indians lived in the Sus-
quehanna River Valley for at least
10,000 years. However, the Indians
who are most closely identified with
the history of the river were the Sus-
quehannocks who lived along its
banks and tributary streams from
about 1400 A.D. to the arrival of
Europeans. In 1608, Captain John
Smith, an Englishman, was the first
European to encounter the Susque-
hannocks. During the seventeenth
century these Indians dominated the
central and lower Susquehanna
River Valley particularly in the area
of Washington Boro in Lancaster
County where they had a number of
villages.
There are two major concentrations
of petroglyphs in the lower Susque-
The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Volume 3, Issue 2
hanna River Valley, below the Safe Museum Commission.
Harbor Dam and at Bald Friar, Mary-
land a site that is now submerged by Lenik, Edward J. 2002 PICTURE
the water impounded by the Conow- ROCKS. AMERICAN INDIAN ROCK
ingo Dam (see Lenik 2004: 290-307; ART IN THE NORTHEAST WOOD-
Nevin 2004: 239-257). At Safe Har- LANDS. Hanover, NH: The Univer-
bor twenty-two pecked human or sity Press of New England.
anthropomorphic figures and four
pecked anthropomorphic faces have Lenik, Edward J. 2004 “The Bald
been found and documented (Nevin Friar Petroglyphs of Maryland.
2004: 250). At Bald Friar, a pecked Threatened, Rescued, Lost, and
anthropomorphic figure and a Found”. In the ROCK-ART OF
pecked possible face have also EASTERN NORTH AMERICA, edited
been found and recorded. These by Carol Diaz-Granados and James
images are totally different from the R. Duncan, pp 290-307. Tuscaloosa:
one depicted on the Indian Steps The University of Alabama Press.
Museum gorget in terms of style and
Nevin, Paul. 2004 “Rock Art Sites on
method of execution.
the Susquehanna River.” In THE
Numerous portable petroglyphs (e.g. ROCK-ART OF EASTERN NORTH
pendants, gorgets etc.) have been AMERICA edited by Carol Diaz-
recovered from sites along the entire Granados and James R. Duncan, pp
length of the river valley. For exam- 239-257. Tuscaloosa: The University
ple, pebbles containing effigy faces of Alabama Press.
consisting of two eyes and a mouth,
faced maskettes, and sculpted stone
heads have been found in this re-
gion. These specimens date to the
Middle to Late Woodland periods
and are likely of Iroquois origin
(Lenik 2002: 198-100). Also, effigy
faces are present on the rims of
Washington Boro Incised pottery
vessels from the village site of the
same name, which was occupied
from around 1600 A.D. to 1625 A.D.
(Kent 1984: 135-136). Again, all of
these effigy faces and sculpted
heads are unlike the one present on
the Indian Steps Museum gorget.
In conclusion, I suggest that the gor-
get with its incised human head was Edward J. Lenik’s is a member of
most likely made during the terminal the American Rock Art Research
Late Woodland period circa 1400 Association and the Eastern States
A.D. to 1600 A.D. The image most Rock Art Research Association and
likely represents a symbol of male past president of the Archaeological
authority of a Susquehannock Indian Society of New Jersey and the
and is not simply ornamentation on Eastern States Archaeological
the gorget. This interpretation must Federation. His published works
be deemed as tentative since any include Picture Rocks (2002),
supporting data is lacking. Indians in the Ramapo (2000), and
Iron Mine Trails (1996).
References Cited
Kent, Barry C. 1984 SUSQUE-
HANNA’S INDIANS. Harrisburg:
The Pennsylvania Historical and
Page 4 Volume 3, Issue 2

WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE S U L L I VA N MARCHED CONT.

Early Delaware Indian Migration Points

and the scalping
knives were kept
sharp and busy,
and the few sur-

Achsinasink
vivors were often

Chemung
only the lucky
ones who had
Patchagatchgunk
time to flee in
panic when they
saw the night
Tioga sky glow red
from the flames
Wysox
Wyalusing of their
neighbor’s cabin.

Wyoming Sidelined so far

is the companion
story of the
Shamokin Conestoga peo-
ple, the few sur-
viving remnants
of the once proud
and haughty
Susquehan-
(Continued from page 2) Many of them settled, as directed, nocks. They had numbered 7,000
at Shamokin (Sunbury) or Wyoming or 8,000 people and been feared by
let alone about six times the original (Wilkesbarre) while many others all of their neighbors, even the
territory, in the very heart of their moved on west and joined their al- mighty Iroquois. They had reigned
ancestral homeland. So complain lies the Shawnees along the Ohio. as the uncontested rulers of the
they did, loudly and fiercely, but to Within a short time, however, many Susquehanna River valley from
deaf ears. The proprietors knew of them were again resettling, this Chesapeake Bay to Tioga Point,
that the Lenni-Lenape were subser- time farther north on the upper until suffering a series of humiliating
vient to the Iroquois Five Nations branches of the Susquehanna at defeats and near annihilation by the
and the Iroquois were in turn in- places like Wyalusing, Wysox, Ti- Iroquois five nations in the mid
creasingly dependent for their very oga, Chemung and on up to Achsi- 1670's. Their surviving remnants, a
survival upon a strong trading part- nasink (Corning), Patchagatchgunk mere 300 to 400, now driven to the
nership at Albany. So the Iroquois (Canastio) and many more. southernmost part of the Susque-
chiefs from the central council fire hanna, were considered too weak
at Onondaga were used to enforce Mutual mistrust and hatred contin- to ever again threaten the five na-
the fraudulent terms of the Walking ued to define more and more of the tions; and so were granted a sort of
Purchase, now called the, "Running contacts between whites and Indi- conditional parole, dependent upon
Walk," by the Lenni-Lenape. A ans until, during the early stages of their continued submission. Most of
council was called in Pennsylvania the French and Indian war, the the survivors were of the southern-
at which the Iroquois chiefs ha- Delaware and their allies began to most Conestoga tribal group and
rangued and humiliated the Dela- look to the French as the best an- they gave refuge to the few rem-
ware chiefs calling them squaws, swer to their "homeland security" nants of their northern cousins, the
unfit to be leaders. "You should be problems. The French agents Andastes and the Gauchos. All of
shaken by the hair of your head promised them protection against them settled in the town of Cones-
until you come to your senses. further land seizures, plus the pos- toga about ten miles from present
Take your people and leave this sibility of some restoration of lands day Lancaster. It was only five
land immediately. Go at once to already lost. This tinderbox was so years later that William Penn first
either Shamokin or Wyoming." volatile that the news of the disas- treatied with them as he had with
trous defeat of the English General the Leni-Lanape, and with similar
Deeply disillusioned and embit- Braddock to the French and Indians results. Mutual trust and respect led
tered, the Lenni-Lenape abandoned was all it took to trigger an explo- to hope and peace lasting for thirty
their ancestral homeland along the sion of bloody warfare throughout years or more. Then land quarrels,
Delaware River and moved west. the entire frontier. The war hatchets cultural misunderstandings and
(Continued on page 5)

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Page 5
WHAT
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Mail:
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PO Box 12
Sayre, PA 18840
Phone:
607-727-3111
Email:
info@SRACenter.org
We’re on the Web!
SRACenter.org
SRAC sponsors the
Valley Map! Look for
your chance to win fun
prizes by uncovering
miscellaneous items!
SRAC at Sayre
Farmer’s Market on
Fridays throughout
the summer!
Come see artifacts and pur-
chase various gift shoppe
items! You can even get
your very own geode cut, or
take it home to crack open
yourself!
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HAPPENED BEFORE
(Continued from page 4)
drunken fights led to increasing friction,
mistrust and hatred.
Many colonists stayed on good terms
with them and as a group they stayed
neutral during the French and Indian
War, but a growing number of colonists,
especially the newer arrivals, became
intensely hostile. Eventually fear and
hatred was rampant among both groups
and an attitude aptly described by the old
adage, "The only good Indian is a dead
Indian," was not uncommon among the
whites. Bar room brawls resulted in the
deaths of some of the Conestogas and
virtual lynchings carried out by a gang
known as, "The Paxton Boys," reduced
their numbers to a fraction of their earlier
size. Finally in December 1763 a gang of
about a hundred Paxton horsemen rode
into Conestoga and killed and scalped all
of the inhabitants they could find, and
burned all of the houses to the ground.
The remaining Conestogas, about 14,
upon returning home and discovering the
carnage, fled in panic to the authorities in
Lancaster and were offered protection
and care in the workhouse, the jail, until
they could be moved to safety in Phila-
delphia. The Paxton gang decided not to
let that to happen. They boldly rode into
town about 2 o'clock in the afternoon and
stormed the workhouse. Then, in a
bloody killing orgy, they murdered all of
the remaining Conestogas, men women
and children, and rode back out of town
before any resistance could be gathered.
The barbarous horror plus the audacity
and outright rebelliousness of this blatant
crime outraged Governor Jon Penn plus
all members of Pennsylvania’s govern-
ment and people throughout Pennsyl-
vania and neighboring colonies. A re-
ward was offered for the apprehension
and arrest of the perpetrators. Letters of
outrage came from Governors and other
leading citizens throughout the colonies
including Benjamin Franklin and Sir Wil-
liam Johnson. But a large segment of the
population, especially the frontier people
sided with the murderers. The French
and Indian war with its sense-numbing
atrocities, although officially over for
more than a year, had kept the frontier in
flame and fear for six years, and the dev-
ilish need for revenge had finally ex-
Volume 3, Issue 2
S U L L I VA N MARCHED CONT.
ploded out of control. The authorities in
Philadelphia received long threatening
letters picturing rebellion on a formidable
scale and, in the end, no punitive action
was ever taken against the Paxton
Gang.
William Penn's, great dream, born on
men's highest hopes at Shakamaxon,
was buried amid the most terrible of
fears by Paxton.
Wow, all this to set the stage for the
Wyoming Valley massacre. Well, in a
way, its more of the same. Remember
how the Lenni-Lenape had been forced
to leave their ancestral homelands along
the Delaware River and ordered, against
their will, to relocate in Wyoming. Very
soon after that the first settlers also dis-
covered how good the soil was and be-
gan arriving in Wyoming. Just a sprin-
kling at first, but faster as each year went
by. In fact, Connecticut claimed that their
grant from the king clearly gave them all
of the land between the northern and
southern boundaries of Connecticut ex-
tending all of the way to the Pacific
Ocean, except where it crossed New
York. In fact, they were exactly right. But
that meant the northern third of Pennsyl-
vania, including Wyoming, was in Con-
necticut. I guess you could say that the
people of Connecticut discovered they
had their own "Walking Purchase"
against those Pennsylvania proprietors
and they intended to claim their land.
That's why, when the Revolutionary war
broke out, twelve or thirteen years after
the French and Indian War had ended,
Wyoming was almost exclusively a Con-
necticut settlement.
As the Revolutionary war was breaking
out, the Tories, who remained loyal to
the king, were forced to flee their homes
and farms to escape the wrath of the
rebels. Many of them fled to Canada, but
others fled only far enough to find safety
among the Iroquois now occupying the
old Delaware towns along the Chemung.
(After all, they were sure England would
soon win the war and it would be a much
shorter return trip home.) These Tory
men were fierce highly motivated guerilla
fighters led primarily be John Butler or
his son Walter. They soon became
(Continued on page 6)
Page 6 Volume 3, Issue 2

WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE S U L L I VA N MARCHED CONT.

(Continued from page 5) time become aware of an army mov-

feared throughout the frontier as
Butlers Rangers. With them fought
sizable units of Iroquois usually un-
der the command of either the Mo-
hawk chief, Joseph Brant, or the
Seneca chief Kayingwaurto.
By the spring of 1778 all of the
known Tories had left the Wyoming
valley, but their raiding along the
entire Pennsylvania frontier, al-
though continuous, had not been
effective in driving back the remain-
ing settlers, or even slowing their
steady migration. Frustrated by the
virtual stalemate, the British com-
manders at Ft. Niagara made plans
for a decisive campaign down the
Susquehanna to clear out the entire
Wyoming area. Colonel John Butler
was placed in command of 450 Tory
Ranger and 800 Seneca Warriors
under chief Kayingwaurto. This size-
able expedition rendezvoused at the
head of the Canisteo River where
they made dozens of dug out ca-
noes and proceeded down to Tioga
and Queen Esthers Town. Here they
picked up many Seneca warriors
including Gencho, the only child of
Queen Esther by her Seneca hus-
band Egohund. Gencho had re-
cently arrived at manhood and was
being groomed to be a chief. This
would be his first battle, his initiation
as a warrior and his mother decided
to join the expedition more as a
spectator than a participant or a
leader.
The Wyoming settlers had by this
ing towards them, but did not know
how large. So, they dispatched a
runner to Stroudsburg, the nearest
source of help, and started working
frantically day and night strengthen-
ing their defenses. There were sev-
eral, so called forts in the area but
only two of them were strong
enough to be of any use holding off
a large attacking force. One of these
had the strange name Forty Fort. It
was on the west side of the river
across from present day Wilkes-
Barre and here they decided to
make their stand. So it was here
they feverishly strengthened their
stockade and collected all of their
guns, ammunition and supplies. Marker for "Queen Esther's Town"
located on Rte 220, Green's Landing,
The first shots were fired at a skir- across the Chemung River from Tioga
mish a few miles up stream where a Point
small group of farmers had insisted,
against wiser advice, on doing some cherished hopes lay dead, before
last minute crop tending. A party of her unbelieving eyes, his mutilated
Butler's Indian scouts stalked and body dishonored.
killed several of them, and when a
mounted party later went out to re- What happened next is part of what
cover the bodies they, in turn, found is one of the more intense of many
and killed two young Indians. One of ongoing debates to come out of the
them was shot in the river, the other revolutionary war.
was killed on land, and it was on him
they took out all of their vengeance,
scalping him and mutilating his
body. Stay tuned for the next issue
of SRAC's newsletter to
He was Gencho, Queen Esther’s learn the events that shaped
only son. our local history and opened
A short time afterward Queen Esther
the door for General Sulli-
discovered her son's mutilated body. van to march through our
The young man in whom she and region the following year.
Echohund had invested their most

M Y I N T E R E S T I N S PA N I S H H I L L BY INGA WELLS

grounds and on the long way home. Our teacher was a

My interest in Spanish Hill goes back to my childhood
wise man and our punishment for getting into fights was
to a one-room schoolhouse in rural Germany. In fifth
always essays or research reports. He kept us in the
grade, our only teacher, a retired Jesuit priest taught
building during recess and for a bit after school. We
world history and the colonial expansion of the Euro-
could bring in our own books or use his extensive li-
pean countries. Our teacher had the awesome task of
brary. So it happened one week that we had the as-
teaching 8 grades of about 50 farm kids and 5 misfits
signment to arrive at a conclusion why “Spanish Hill” on
from displaced families. I was one of those kids without
the NY/PA border, at 42degrees latitude, near Waverly,
a home country, always dreaming of joining my friends
NY was called that.
who had moved to Ontario Province, Canada. My
friends and I were constantly “bullied” on school (Continued on page 7)

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Page 7 Volume 3, Issue 2

MY INTEREST IN S PA N I S H H I L L CONT.

(Continued from page 6) We decided it would have been very difficult for Span-
iards to make their way this far north up the Susque-
hanna and inland. Their bad reputation preceded them
This was way before TV and the internet and my knowl-
and soon they made enemies of the natives wherever
edge of the world came from the books I read, stories
they went. Perhaps some Spanish speaking people
the older generation told, and tagging along with arche-
were adopted by the Susquehannocks and advised
ologists, geologists, and naturalists to the nearby wood
them on war strategy and gave them guns. In the early
as their guide and errand runner. These university peo-
day of contact with Europeans, Spain laid claim to this
ple gave very nice monetary awards as well as provided
land from Florida to the frozen North. We thought it very
me with the books I craved. I was especially fond of
possible that when they heard of places of strategic im-
journals of the early explorers and writers, such as
portance they claimed it for Spain - often sight unseen.
Jacques Cartier, Samuel De Champlain, Antoine Le
They just drew maps and sent them back to Spain, hop-
Moyne, and others. Men like Etienne Brule were my he-
ing to be awarded that part of the land. It might be inter-
roes.
esting to learn what today’s kids would conclude.
In class, we had learned briefly that Etienne Brule in
Little did I know in 1958 that in 1967 I would marry a
1615 set out from Lake Simcoe in Huron Territory to the
young man from Sayre and move to Waverly, NY. I
Land of the Andastes to gather warriors for De Cham-
could barely wait to see Spanish Hill and the Forbidden
plain. He arrived at Carantouan, the present Spanish
Trail. Grandpa, who was a Seneca, would take me to
Hill, and after much feasting was late to arrive with the
the Forbidden trail near Chemung Street and tell me
warriors at the battle site. De Champlain had left the
about the graveyard and ceremonies held on top of the
area and therefore Etienne stayed with the Andastes.
hill. To him, this place was sacred. I know he would ap-
Our books told us that he might not have been the first
preciate what our organization is doing to preserve this
“paleface” to travel the Susquehanna; however, he was
place.
thought to be the first white man to travel the Chemung
River and win the trust of the Andastes. Our hearts told
us that since he practically grew up with the natives,
adopted their ways and after living with them, it did not
matter to him what the white kings in a far off land
wanted. He wanted what was best for the Andastes and
Hurons.

We gathered maps, books, journals, and letters of mis-

sionaries, traders and early settlers of the area for our
research. I was fortunate that my mother was fluent in
Latin, Italian and French. I could read Dutch and my dad
loved studying the American Revolution and had vol-
umes of early American history in Polish. Everyone was
willing to help by translating items we could not under-
stand.

After a month of research, we concluded that Spanish

Hill must have gotten the name from the implements
found there and in the surrounding area. We felt, the
items discovered were gifts from visiting tribes and trade
goods. Hohlen-Eingang: Cave Inga frequented as a child.
One of the pictures of the stuff found showed coins and
one of the coins looked very much like an old Phoeni-
cian coin. This really made us think. One kid in our "At the end of the Ice Age (Pleistocene period) in Europe, around
group leaned more toward pirates from Portugal making 12,000 years ago, the climate was much like here in New York. The
their way up the Susquehanna and being held prisoner vegetation at that time was tundra like with spruce, birches, grasses
and tortured and killed on top of Spanish Hill. Some of and herbaceous plants. Ancient people lived in this cave and they
the items in the pictures also look to us like items carried hunted mammoth and other large animals roaming the area. A mam-
by Basques fishermen who long before the Spaniards moth tusk and other bones were found along with stone tools." - Inga
came to these lands. To our knowledge, Basque people Welles
were not interested in conquering lands; they wanted to
fish the waters and trade with the locals. Perhaps some
items arrived at Spanish Hill via those people.

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 8 Volume 3, Issue 2

S R AC ' S 4 T H A N N UA L D RU M B E AT S T H RO U G H T I M E
We are still working on a few of the details, but here are just some of the exciting plans for our next event!
SRAC Members Will Have Special Showing at Drumbeats Event!
SRAC's 4th annual "Drumbeats Through Time" has many surprises in store for our members this year. All is
not finalize, but we will be giving SRAC members an exclusive personal tour of the collections at our event,
and a first look at some of the latest donated items. There will also be a meeting for members to talk with
the board, ask questions, offer ideas, give feedback, and for us to tell them some of the things we are work-
ing on. Stay tuned for more information in our September newsletter for more information!
Award Winning Film Producer Ted Timreck
Ted Timreck has been a producer and director for television and other media for 30 years, specializing in
portraits of artists and scientists. Beginning in 1980, he worked extensively with Smithsonian scientists docu-
menting field research for The National Museum of Natural History, creating programming for public and ca-
ble television. He is the producer of the Smithsonian's Arctic Studies Web site and is also the producer for
the National Museum's Paleo Program Web Site. His previous works include "The Lost Red Paint People"
and "Vikings in America" for the PBS Nova series as well as "Franz Boas" for the PBS Odyssey series. His
current project is “Hidden Landscapes - The Stone Ruins of the Northeast” Mr. Timreck has agreed to do a
special screening of the section of this project surrounding the Susquehanna River at the Drumbeats event.
Sullivan's March and Tour!
We are working on the final details to close our program this year with a presentation explaining the points of
interest concerning the events that led up to and included Sullivan's March through our region in 1779. Dr.
Earl Robinson will give the presentation and then a bus tour will be available in which he will take us to each
of these points of interest to see exactly where these events occurred.
Largest Local Collection Found Anywhere in Our Region!
As usual, we will include new and different local collections that are always the most popular draw for our
event! Do you have a collection that is from our region you would like to show at our event? Contact Ted
Keir at 570-888-2718!
Stay tuned for more updates about our event!
Not a member? Join now! Go to http://www.sracenter.org/Join/

ANOTHER FABULOUS DONATION

SRAC is proud to announce that we have had another collection donated to us
by Les Rolfe of Waverly, NY. Some of this collection will be displayed at the next
Drumbeats in October; to include an authentically made Algonquin-style birch
bark canoe. These canoes and their amazing light yet durable structure were
written about by the first explorers in this region. Thanks to Les for his fabulous
donation to SRAC!
Tax Deductions: A charitable contribution is a donation or gift to, or for the use of,
a qualified organization. It is voluntary and is made without getting, or expecting
to get, anything of equal value.
SRAC - A Qualified Organization. Qualified organizations include nonprofit
groups that are religious, charitable, educational, scientific, or literary in purpose,
or that work to prevent cruelty to children or animals. They must ensure that
these assets stay in non-profit hands if anything happens to their organization.
SRAC is committed to ensuring its collections will remain safe, be used to edu-
cate our communities, and most importantly, stay local.
About Tax Deductions: To deduct a charitable contribution, you must file Form 1040 and itemize deductions on Sched-
ule A. (The amount of your deduction is directly related to the fair market value it is assessed at and may be limited if
certain rules and limits apply to you.)
If you are considering donating an item to SRAC, please contact us at info@sracenter.org, or call 607-727-3111 to learn
more.

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 9 Volume 3, Issue 2

SRAC ARO UND THE COMMUNITY

We are proud to be able to share the many artifacts and the collective knowledge and talents of our board and our
many members on a regular basis. Here is just a sampling of the many special moments we’ve been privileged to
participate in, and a much appreciated note of thanks!

Ted, Evelyn, and Gloria Dick at

Rock and Mineral Show Robin Munn shares an artifact with her 4th
Dick Cowles at the Severn Elementary Heritage Day
grade students

Ted and a couple of friends at the Ted with scouts in Wyalusing Inga Wells at the Chehanna Rock and
Chehanna Rock and Mineral Show Mineral Show

Deb and Ted at Chehanna Show

Dick shows 4th graders at Snyder

Elementary hunting tools

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 10 Volume 3, Issue 2

LETTERS FROM OUR MEMBERS

SRAC is very proud to be able to evoke memories like SRAC also received a lovely note from Doris Cham-
those in the letters excerpted here. These letters were berlain telling of her memories of working at the Iron
received in response to a Carantouan Spring article in a Kettle Inn, just a stone’s throw above Carantouan
previous newsletter by the late Ellsworth Cowles. Spring.

“...My memory is of a small, shallow, uncovered cistern

like structure of old stone and mortar. It doesn’t seem
like the masonry containment completely encircled the
pool and the depth of water was by no means deep, but
was flowing. A tree, possibly hemlock shaded the pool,
creating a cool, green, mossy effect.
Mr. Connelly’s contribution was that sometime around
the turn of the last century, an English aristocrat (did he
say Queen Elizabeth) was touring the continent. Appar-
ently she developed a fondness for Dolly Varden trout
which she had dined on in the Rocky Mountains. So
intense was her craving for this fish dinner that she “…In my summer vacations from high school & col-
brought a number of them with her on the journey back lege I worked for Mrs. Gertrude Tracy, owner of the
to New York City. Appropriate accommodations were Iron Kettle Inn.
planned in advance of her arrival to revive and maintain
her Dolly Vardens, so she could enjoy their delicious There were (maybe are still there) five guest cot-
taste as long as possible. That is how the spring on the tages. It was a great drive from N.Y.C. or for tourists
side-hill over-looking Spanish Hill and Chemung River to stay over night.
Valley contributed to the Queen’s enjoyment and pro-
vided a bit of Valley history (lore). She was a grand lady who cooked, baked &
served, and all! Of course, it was seasonal as the
I enjoyed so many conversations, mostly as a listener, “cottages” had no air conditioning: just fans.
with old Joe. He would spontaneously recite poetry,
Shakespeare, prose or break into an olde Irish folk The food was homemade right there on the prem-
song, the latter after a liberal application of the Old ises.
Grandad. Whether he was talking about local history or
what had happened during that day, he had a very What I want to tell you (I digress) is that each of
proper, literate, and colorful delivery. It is regretful that the “cottages” had its name over the entry door.
so many stories fade into memory and then lost. And Therefore, something like “Teoga,” “Carant” (can’t
the accuracy of memory, always questionable, dimin- remember the spelling) “Andastes” and that’s all I
ishes with time...” can remember. But it was a lot of work. My last two
summers I was the cashier which was a little bit bet-
ter. Anyway, I learned a bit and that is something
never wasted…”

Doris Chamberlain

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 11 Volume 3, Issue 2

VOLUNTEER DIGGING ACTIVITIES IN NEW YORK

The following listing does not constitute
an NYSAA endorsement. The field
schools listed accept volunteers.
Western
• Hull House, Lancaster, Historic.
Dates to be announced. Contact: Dr.
Doug Perrelli, SUNY/Buffalo Archaeo-
logical Survey, perrelli@buffalo.edu
• McKendry Site, Irving, Prehistoric.
Dates to be announced. Contact Kate
Whalen, SUNY/Buffalo Archaeological
Survey, kwhalen2@buffalo.edu
• Hiscock Site, Byron, Paleontological/
Paleo. July-August. Contact Dr. Richard
Laub, Buffalo Museum of Science,
rlaub@sciencebuff.org
• Bittner Farmstead, Rochester, His-
toric, July 9-24. Monroe Community Col-
lege, contact Ann Morton, amor-
ton@rochester.rr.com
Blacksmith Shop, Canandaigua, Historic,
Aug. 6-16. Finger Lakes Community
Mills Mansion, Mount Morris, Historic.
Six Saturdays and Sundays, July 7- Aug.
12.Contact Justin Tubiolo, St. John
Fisher College, jtubiolo@sjfc.edu
Central
• Wyns Farm, Prehistoric, SE Cortland
Co., May 23-June 27, Cortland Field
School, Contact Ellie McDowell Loudan,
LOUDANE@cortland.edu
SUNY/Binghamton’s Community Archae-
ology Program, week of July 16th. See
http://cap.binghamton.edu/
Eastern
• Guinea Community Archaeological
Project, Historic, July 9 – Aug. 3. Contact
Christopher Lindner, Bard College, lind-
ner@bard.edu
West Point Foundry, West Point, His-
toric, May 14-Aug. 3. Contact Patrick
Martin,Michigan Technological Univer-
sity, pemartin@mtu.edu
Northern
• Storrs Harbor Shipyard, War of
1812, July 9-13, Jefferson County His-
torical Society and Jefferson-Lewis Visit SRAC’s Online Gift
Counties BOCES with the Thousand Shoppe!
Islands Chapter. Other dateswith the
Thousand Islands Chapter to be an-
nounced. Contact Tim Abel, direc- From kids items to hard to
tor@jeffersoncountyhistory.org find historical books, we
Fort Edward, Historic, July 2-13, July 30- have restocked our online
Aug.10, Adirondack Community Col- store with not only SRAC
lege,contact David Starbuck, dstar- published works, but many
buck@frontiernet.net items for people of all ages.
Long Island
Visit www.sracenter.org/
• Joseph Lloyd Manor, Lloyd, Historic. store to learn more today!
July 2 – Aug. 3, Contact Christopher
Matthews, Hofstra Univ., Christo-
pher.N.Matthews@hofstra.edu
Blydenburgh Co. Park, Eastern Suffolk
BOCES field school, July 23-26, July 30-
Aug. 2. Contact Gaynell Stone, gay-
stone@optonline.net

M Y S T E RY OF THE AMULET PRESENTATION

The Bradford Andaste Chapter and Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC)
co-sponsored "The Mystery of the Blue Amulet" on Monday, June 18th at the Bradford
County Library in Burlington, PA.

Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC presented what represented years of research. In
1908 a blue slate amulet, which was covered with strange designs and carvings, was un-
covered below Spanish Hill in South Waverly, PA. Deb presented her research that took
the audience hundreds of miles and thousands of years away from Spanish Hill. Atten-
dees learned about the many cultures that existed and crossed paths hundreds of years
before the white man arrived in our area, and learned about how one artifact, a little blue
amulet, may just be the evidence to finally unlock the mystery of Spanish Hill.

The presentations sponsored by Bradford Andaste Chapter and Susquehanna River Ar-
chaeological Center (SRAC) are free to the public. For more information on future presen-
tations, contact Ted Keir at 570-888-2718.

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 12 Volume 3, Issue 2

SRAC CROS S WORD PUZZLE

Test your knowledge of our region’s local history and archaeology - SRAC’s way!

ACROSS DOWN

2 Used with a pestle 1 Unique features found on pottery on the Murray Farm
7 Our local battlefield 3 French name for Susquehannocks
9 Used before the bow and arrow 4 Located ancient site below Spanish Hill
11 Once was "Queen" of the Valley 5 Number of villages in nation of Carantouan
13 Owners of the "BIG HORNS" of Chemung? 6 Named the Susquehanna River
16 Person who sent Brule 8 Founder of Tioga Point Museum
18 Meeting of the Waters 10 Brule's destination
19 Our Early Local Indians 12 Defeated the Susquehannocks
20 Losers of the "Walking Treaty" 14 Valley Citadel on the Chemung
15 He preceeded Sullivan
17 SRAC's bird?

Answers to the crossword puzzle will be in the next quarterly newsletter! Have fun!

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 13 Volume 3, Issue 2

TRICITIES CHAPTER MEETS FOR PRESENTATION

The TriCities Chapter of NYS Archaeology met
on April 27th, for a presentation on the "Round
Top" site, by Dr. Michael Colella. Dr. Colella is
an Opthalmologist and a TriCities member
since its inception 40 years ago. He dis-
played artifacts found at the site, representing
decades of work. Dan Caister followed up with
an explanation of what William Ritchie and the
NYS Archaeology Department did there, as
well.

The TriCities Capter of NYS Archaeology

meets the last Thursday of every month in En-
dicott, NY. To learn more, email the TriCities SRAC members Dolores Elliot and Deb Twigg and Ted Keir and
club at nysaatcc@yahoo.com. Harry Koch attended the Tricites meeting

“SWEET DEAL” ONLINE AUCTION

SRAC held a "Sweet Deal" online auction which was much "sweeter" than
most. The prize was fine chocolate arrowheads molded by Hal and Janet
Lambert of Lambert Chocolatier, from actual Indian artifacts found in our re-
gion.

Hal and Janet have been making fine chocolates from their location in down-
town Sayre, PA since 1978. More recently, they have been involved with
SRAC and decided to try making some chocolate arrowheads as a novelty
item for their store. They ended up using the locally found arrowheads of Ted
Keir, Chairman of the Board, SRAC.

At the close of their seasonal business after Easter, the Lamberts had three
bags of arrowheads which they donated to SRAC to raise funds. SRAC
added a picture of Mr. Keir with the chocolate artifacts, as one of the real arti-
facts, and asked bidders to email bids for the three bags. The top bidder also received a full-year membership to
SRAC, and a personal tour of Keir's own artifact collection.

Bids were received throughout the week, the top three bids at the auction close being $65 from Bob Veleker
(Towanda, PA,) $50 from Judy Husick (ex-Valley resident now living in Tennessee,) and $30 from Barbara Cleveland
(Chemung, NY.)

Thanks to all that participated in the “Sweet Deal” online auction. The SRACenter website received 83 visits in that
time with a conversion into 244 pages viewed (an indication that people looked around the site after they got there.) It
is our hope that people will go to our website to learn more about us. To learn more about SRAC, go to
www.SRACenter.org.

T H E S R AC B OAR D
The Board of Directors The Advisory Board
Deb Twigg - Executive Director Dr. Marshall Joseph Becker, Ph D, Senior Fellow in Anthropology,
Susan Fogel - Chief Financial Officer University of Pennsylvania
Dick Cowles - CoDirector of Archaeology/Curation Dr. Nina Versaggi, Ph D, Director of Public Archaeology Facility,
Binghamton University
Ted Keir - CoDirector of Archaeology/Education Chairman of the
Board Dr. Kurt Jordan, Ph D, Archaeologist, Cornell University
Inga Wells - Secretary
Nancy Menio
Sharon Franklin
Jessica Quinn

SRAC WELCOMES INGA WELLS AS SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS! SEE INGA’S ARTICLE ON PAGE 6 OF THIS ISSUE.

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org
Page 14 Volume 3, Issue 2

SRAC
PO Box 12
Sayre, PA 18840

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over)

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Individual $20.00 Quarterly newsletter, special events, exclusive offers, and special discounts.

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The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center of Native Indian Studies ~ www.SRACenter.org ~ email Info@SRACenter.org