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FORTY-SECOND ANNUAL REPORT OF THE

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGYTO THE SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION

1924-1925

UNITED STATES

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFHCEWASHINGTON1928

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ADDITIONAL COPIESOF THIS PUBLICATION MAT BE PROCURED FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS V. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

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PER COPY

LETTER OF TRANSMITTALSmithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology,Sir:

secondnology,

Withcharge,

Washington, D. C, September 4, 1925. I have the honor to submit herewith the FortyAnnual Report of the Bureau of American Ethfor the fiscal year ended June 30, 1925. appreciation of your aid in the work under my

I am, Very respectfully yours,

J.

Walter Fewkes,Chief.

Dr. Charles D. Walcott,Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

CONTENTSREPORT OF THE CHIEFPage

Systematic researchesSpecial researches

415 16 17 18 18 19

Editorial

work and publications

Illustrations

LibraryCollections

Miscellaneous

ACCOMPANYING PAPERSSocial Organization

federacy, by John R.

Religious Beliefs

and Social Usages Swanton and Medical Practices

of the Indians of the

Creek Con23

of the

Creek Indians, by John R.473 673 727

SwantonAboriginal Culture of the Southeast, by John R. Swanton Indian Trails of the Southeast, by William Edward Myer

V

REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF BUREAU

:

FORTY-SECOND ANNUAL REPORTOF THE

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGYJ.

Walter Fewkes,

Chief

The operations of the Bureau of American Ethnology during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1925, were conducted in accordance with the act of Congress approved June 7, 1924, making appropriations for sundry civil expenses of the Government, which act contains the following itemAmerican ethnology For continuing ethnological researches among the American Indians and the natives of Hawaii, including the excavation and preservation of archseologic remains, under the direction:

of the Smithsonian Institution, including necessary employees

and

the purchase of necessary books and periodicals, $57,160.

The poUcywork

of the

Bureau

of

American Ethnology

in the

past has been that of a pioneer, but from necessity the fieldof the staff has been both intensive

and

extensive,

mainly reconnaissance.

As a

pioneer, the bureau has opened

up new lines of research in the study of the ethnology of the American Indians and has blazed a trail for others in several While contributing to science technical monographs fields. on certain Indian tribes, it has at the same time prepared andcirculated,

through publication,

articles of

a popular char-

acter covering the whole subject.of the

The

object has been to

furnish reliable data for students wishing accurate knowledge

American Indians.aboriginal culture of our Indiansis

The

rapidly disappearcivihzation.

ing and being replacedtain tribes

by the white man's

Cer-

have

already lost almost all their native customs,

and others

will follow rapidly until little of scientific

value

remains for ethnological field work. them, who in their prime knew the native cults and rituals, are passing away, and the younger generation of Indians who are taking their places are almost entirely ignorant of Current fables the significance of the rituals or ceremonials.older1

The

men among

2

BITREAU OF AMEEICAN ETHXOLOOYstories,

and metaphoricof animals, are

mainly explaining the characteristics

now

often claimed to be mythologic, although

many

them have value as tales, not as myths. The Inis passing away and soon will be lost. It is the intention of the Bureau of American Ethnology to record itof

dian culturebefore

its extinction.

The excavation and preservation of archeologic remains, from which much valuable scientific material may be obThe tained, constitute a task which is only just begun. bureau has for many years been a pioneer in this work, and The first in many areas it has been the only investigator. publication of the Smithsonian Institution was on an archeological subject, and with the passing years the bureau hasfollowed this line of work with vigor. It is a traditional, sound policy of the institution, as aresult of the relatively small allowance for the field

study of

the Indians, to cooperate, rather than to attempt to compete

with those who have a much larger income. This poHcy has been pursued by the bureau during the past year. The chronicles of De Soto's wonderful tri]:) through our Southeastern States introduced to the attention of historians a remarkable aboriginal American culture, one of the most advanced in North America outside of Mexico. It was, as has generally been the case, built on agriculture, and the dominant tribal religion of its civilization was a complex of Sun, Fire, and Great Serpent cults. From Tampa Bay to the Mississippi River, De Soto encountered numerous tribes, differing in language and in minor ethnological features, but all belonging to the same culture with a worship characteristic wherever agriculture served as a source of food. As time went by and renewed exploration brought Europeans into more intimate contact with the Indians of the Gulf States, historians and others published many articles on their ethnology, but as the tribes were moved west of the Mississippi and the opportunities for the field worker were diminished, the time came for the ethnologist to yield to the archeologist to make his contribution to the subject. Here Lies a great field for further studies, with ample work for both the historian and the archeologist.

ADJIINISTR.\TrVT:

REPORT

d

The two

areas in aboriginal America north of Mexico in

which agriculture reached

its highest development were the Southwest, or that part of our domain bordering on Old Mexico, and those States bordering on the Gulf of Mexico, including the mound builders from the Ohio River to the Gulf. The investigation of the southwestern or pueblo region is at present attracting many archeologists amply furnished with funds, but the Southeastern or Gulf States have been more or less overlooked. The bureau has begun

an archeological reconnaissance, as far as its resources will aUow, in Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee. Last year special attention was given to the Indian mounds The work in Tennessee, at Muscle Shoals in Alabama. southewi Florida, and Mississippi, so auspiciously begun by the late Mr. W. E. Myer, has been continued by Mr. Mr. H. B. CoUins, P. E. Cox, State archeologist of Tennessee. assistant curator, division of ethnology, United States National Museum, was allotted a small appropriation for preliminary investigations and reconnaissance along thePearl River in Mississippi,

the prehistoric

home

of

the

Choctawfactory.

tribe.

The

results of this

work were very

satis-

Work onways, and

thewill,

Muskhogeanit is

culture, or the antiquities of

the Gulf States, promises important results in comparative

hoped, shed Light on the religion of North America. We are able to reaboriginal tribes of construct, in a way, from historical sources, the main outlines of the Gulf culture, but the documentary references to thematerial culture of the

Muskhogean

tribes are incomplete.

More informationidols,

is

needed regarding the ritualistic sacra,

we is now

ceremonial objects, and symbolism on pottery, before can reconstruct the cultus. The material for this study buried in theit

soil,

but intensive archeological workthe culture of theis

wiU bringuniversal

to

light.

In essentials,

prehistoric people of the Gulf States

such as

we

find

among

agricultural people in

America emerging

from savagery into barbarism, and the

religion has

much

in

common

vath. that of the Pueblos.

4

BUREAU OF AMEHICAN ETHNOLOGY

SYSTEMATIC RESEARCHESThechief

spent several weeks in reconnaissance near

Florence, Ala.,

making excursions

to several

vicinity, especially those that will

mounds in that be submerged when the

Wilson Dam at Muscle Shoals is flooded. Mr. Gerard Fowke, who had immediate charge of the excavations in two of these mounds, obtained a considerable collection containing unique objects, among which are three rare copper ornaments, the largest ever found in the valley of the TenHis report will be published later. nessee. The chief at that time visited Montgomery, Ala., where he was most hospitably received. While there he made an examination of the Graves collection, one of the most remarkable in the State. The chief has given advice to the National Park Service of the Interior Department on the new National Monument near Flagstaff, Ariz., which is now called by the Hopi name This monument includes the well-preserved Wupatki. buildings near Black Falls on the Little Colorado, firstdescribed and figured

by the

writer a quarter of a century

ago, at which time he recommended that they be made a National Monument, and this has now been done by proc-

lamation of the President. The most important collection of archeological objects received during the past year was contributed by Mr. J. C. Clarke, of Flagstaff, Ariz., custodian of the Wupatki ruin. It consists of about a hundred specimens of pottery, shell and bone implements, and other artifacts from a burial mound at Youngs Canyon excavated by workmen in the course of construction of a road near the city. These objects were received at a time when material from that region of the Southwest was particularly desirable. The chief has prepared an illustrated report on this collection The collection in which he calls attention to its importance. specimens and is accompanied by a good contains uniquecatalogue by Mr. Clarke. One of the most interesting of these is a black and white pottery ladle, the handle of whichis

molded into a cradle containing a clay

figure.

There

is

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTalso a finely incised

5

head-ornament of bone, recalling those worn by the Bow priesthood at Zuni, and suggesting similar ornaments of the Hopi idol of the war god. The collection shows evidence of cremation and m-n burial. The pottery objects are archaic, and the interiors of certain black and wliite food bowls are decorated with artistic figures similar to those on polychrome ware from Tokonabi, near Marsh Pass, in northern Arizona. It is probable from the pottery that the people who buried their dead at Youngs Canyon were related to a population antedating Pueblos, which A\'as scattered over a great area in Arizona from the Little Colorado north to the San Juan, and from the western boundary of the State of New Mexico. This people had no circular kivas or ceremonial rooms hke those at the Mesa Verde, or the San Juan area, but they were fine potters who decorated their ware with artistic geometrical designs. The nimiber of written requests for information on ethnological subjects the last few years has more than doubled, and the time of the chief, as well as of the members of thestaff, is

correspondingly absorbed.

During the past year Mr. Earl H. Morris, under the direcwork on the famous tower of the Mummy Cave House in the Canyon del Muerto, Arizona, which once contained three rooms. All woodwork on the first ceihng has been torn out; only the haggled ends of a few supports remain embedded in the walls. The cleanly peeled poles which supported the second ceihng are in place, and the third ceihng, or original roof, is still intact. It is probably the most beautiful ceihng remaining in any ruin in the Southwest, its only rivals being the coverings of one or two rooms in the north side of Pueblo Bonito, and in Spruce Tree House, Mesa Verde.tion of the chief of the bureau, did necessary repair

This tower has been in a dangerous condition for a long time. There was originally a retaining wall below it, rising from the very brink of the ledge, which held in place the fiU of loose rock and refuse upon which the House of the

but the eastern end of tliis wall coUapsed, probably because of the insecure foundation afforded by the abruptly sloping rock,stands.

Tower

Eventually, through erosion,

all

6

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGYof the material

behind it washed over the cUff. Later, the not infrequent winds which sweep over the cave with unbehevable force blew out the dust and rock pebbles until the southwest corner of the tower was undermined more than 3 feet and the wall eastward weakened almostto the opposite corner.

and much

The cracks in the west wall were wider in November, 1924, than they were a year previous. The removal of half a dozen shovelfuls from the unconsohdated mass of earth beneath the front would have loosened the large block just beyond its western end, which prevented the entire coUapse of the masonry. In addition to the periodic action of the wind, each visitor who passed from the eastern to the western part of the cave trod this portion of the loose mass below the waU

down the slope, and sent clods and pebbles ratthng over the chff. Before many years this block would have been loosened and the tower would have fallen. During the repair work buttresses were built beneath andfartherinclosing the large blocks under the west end of the tower,

and under the undermined portion of the latter, continuing back to the limit of undermining, and extending well forward of the masonry. At the junction of the two, wedges were driven to knit the new work firmly to the old. From the east end of the buttress a retaining wall was built to connect with the remnant of the old one on the brink of the ledge, and the space behind it was filled, thus providing a platform instead of the former steep slope at the southeast corner of the

This repair work will temporarilj^ preserve one of the finest gems of aboriginal architecture in the entire Southwest, but it should be supplemented by the addition of "turnbuckles" anchored to the cUff and by the rebuilding of the southeast corner, which should be bonded to the east and front wall to preserve it for centuries to come. During the fiscal year Dr. John R. Swanton, ethnologist, discovered further material bearing on the social and religious life of the Creek Indians, and this was extracted and incorporated into his papers on those subjects which are now being prepared for pubhcation by the editor. A study alsotower.

ADMINISTRATIVE KEPORT

was made

of the various smaller culture centers within the covered by our present Gulf States, and a paper on region the "Culture of the Southeast" was prepared as a result of A short paper on the "Ethnology of the Chickathis work. saw" was begun and carried nearly to completion, and the^\Olk of

carding references to

all

words from the publications

of early Florida missionaries in the

now

extinct

Timucua

language has been continued, and all of the words from three of the five texts and from more than half of the fourth had been extracted by the end of the year. An abbreviated handbook of the Indian tribes in the United States and Alaska was prepared to accompany a map of the same section. Dr. Truman Michelson, ethnologist, prepared for publication a manuscript entitled "A Sauk and Fox Sacred Pack." He also wrote the Indian text of one of the great sacred packs of the Thunder gens of the Fox Indians and worked out the English version thereof. Doctor Michelson also prepared an Indian text, with English version, of the Owl dance which belongs to the Bear gens. He began translating a Fox text on the sacred pack named " Sagimakwawa" which belongs to the Bear gens of the Fox Indians and which was taken care of by Pushetonequa, the last chief recognized by the Government. He corrected the galley proofs and the first page proofs of the Fortieth Annual Report of the bureau, which

made

some additional material appurtenant to the White Buffalo Dance and Fox mortuary customs and beliefs. Doctor Michelson employed Horace Poweshiek to translate 1,000 pages of Fox texts which contain additional information on the Fox society knowii as "Those Who Worship the Little Spotted Buffalo." In June Doctor Michelson went to Tama, Iowa, to renew hisit

possible to incorporate

among the Algonquian tribes of that State. He new data on the Fox society named above and some Fox texts on the Buffalo Head Dance of the Thunder gens, obtaining much additional information of this danceresearchesverified the

and other information on the Thunder gens. A translation of the Fox texts on the Sturgeon gens was obtained, as well as certain information on the Wolf gens.

8

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

During the fiscal year Mr. John P. Harrington, ethnologist, was engaged in the preparation for publication of his material on the excavation and early history of the Burton MoundIndian village situated at Santa Barbara, Calif., the prinThe Amcipal rancheria of the Santa Barbara Indians. bassador Hotel, which had stood on the mound for many years, and had completely barred it to scientific investigation,

was destroyed by fire in the spring of 1921. By joint arrangement with the IVIuseum of the American Indian, a thorough excavation of this mound was made, and a large and attractive collection of artifacts was obtained, as well as a mass of Mr. Harrington comarcheological and historical material. pleted the elaboration of this material and it was submitted for publication, including maps and numerous photographs. The old Indian name for the Burton Mound village was Syujtun. Mr. Harrington's work revealed the interestingfact,

not previously pointed out, that this rancheria is mentioned four times in the "Relacion" of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, who discovered Alta CaUfornia in 1542. Father Crespi, who kept the diary of the Portola expedition,writing in 1769, describes this village in some detail. Other early accounts tell that Yanonalit, its chief, had under him

12 other villages besides the Burton Mound. After the Indian population was removed to the near-by Santa Barbara Mission, which was accomplished gradually after the

establishment of the mission in 1782, the Franciscans erected a massive adobe warehouse on the mound, the old Indian

canoe landing place in front of the mound having become "el puerto de Santa Barbara" (the port of Santa Barbara). Ships visiting Santa Barbara used to get water from the Joseph large spring on the southern slope of the mound. Englishman who had been captured Chapman, a young when pirates made a raid on the California coast, purchasedthe Franciscans in the early twenties and In the forties the mound bestarted a flour mill there. George Nidiver, famous otter hunter came the property of

the

mound from

and friend of General Fremont. In the sixties the mound property was owned by Lewis T. Burton, whose name it still The hotel was erected on the site in 1901. The bears.

ADJIINISTRATIVE REPORT

9

shape and extent of the Indian village and graveyards was laboriously worked out by excavation and successive cidtures traced, for the site proved to be very ancient. In the cemetery plots most of the bodies were buried in hunched-up positions with the head to the north that is, in;

Many of the graves the direction of the mountain range. had been hned with whalebone slabs, some fine specimens ofwhich were obtained. A great variety of belongings, large and small, had been stored away with the bodies, and traces of matting, basketry, and wooden utensils indicated that the archeologist had been deprived of the richest treasures through decomposition in the ground. One complete wooden awl for basketry, such as is described by the early fathers,

was recovered. Several of the graves contained caches of large and beautifully finished steatite bowls; these were manufactured at the steatite quarries on South Catalina Island and were brought up the channel for barter in Indiancanoes.shell

Screening the earth brought a surprising variety ofglass beads.

and

The

shell

beads have been sorted and

classified,

and the kind

of native shell used for each variety

has been determined. In 1924 the Burton Mound property was sold and subdivided. Extensive grading of the property for new streets and trenching for pipe hues of various kinds was carefully watched and reported on by Prof. D. B. Rogers and Mr. G. W. Bayley, who have cooperated with Mr. Harrington in this work, and yielded new information about the stratificationa collection of artifacts. A new hotel with cellar excavations is about to be built on the crest ofof the

mound and

the

mound andstill

observation of these operations will doubtless

further data to that already presented in the report. completing the Burton Mound paper, Mr. Harrington prepared a report on the archeology of Santa Barbara County, dealing with the sites of the county along both historical and archeological Lines. This is a virgin field of research and has already yielded important contributions to our knowledge of the culture sequences of the ancient Cali-

add

On

fornia Indians of82517282

tliis

region,

which had the most special-

10izod

BUREAU OF AMEEICAN ETHNOLOGY

and

lughl.y

developed culture of the State.

This worktribal

illumines the fact that the early population of the channel

was dense and that there were numerous wars andshiftings.

The

section of the coast from which the islands

were populated and the comparative ages of rancheria sites are also apparent from this work. In October, 1924, Mr. R. O. Marsh brought to Washington a party of eight Tule Indians from Panama, who remained This afforded opportunity in the city until Januarj^, 1925. which is a peculiarly interesting for studying the language, Possessing only 18 letters and employing them both one. short and long, it sounds to the ear more like Finnish than Uke the average American Indian language. The language may be described as melodious, simple and flexible in strucIt is spoken, ture, yet very rich and extensive in vocabulary. with slight dialectic differences only, by a very large body of Indians, who formerly held a strip of Caribbean coast more than 240 miles long between the Canal Zone and the south of the Rio Atrato, together with the numerous fertile keys Lists were obtained of sociological terms, off the coast.

names

of places, plants

material culture objects.

and animals, and designations of Songs and speech were recorded

on the dictaphone. The Indians have been called Tules, Cunas, Comogres, and San Blasehos. Of these names the first is preferable because it is the native name of the tribe. The word Tule means merely "Indian," it being understood that it refers to Indians of that peculiar kind and language. It is related to the word tula, meaning 20, that is, all fingers and toes, anentire Indian.

The collection of Tule ethnological objects donated by Mr. Marsh to the National Museum was examined with the Indian informants, and the native names of the objects wererecorded, together with information about their use.

who is "capitan" over some 10 keys, and is one of the leading men in the councils of the tribe. He has traveled much about theThebest informant in the party was Chief Igwa,

Tule country and knows hundreds of places by name, being a good ethnogeographical informant. The chief prepared a large map showing these places.

ADiriNISTRATIVE REPORT

11in

Mr.

J.

N. B. Hewitt, ethnologist,

left

Washington

1925, for Brantford, Canada, to resume his researches

May, among

the Six (originally Five) Nations, or Tribes, of the Iroquois, the

Mohawk,

the Seneca, the Onondaga, the Oneida, the

Cayuga, and the Tuscarora, and also among the Munsee of who dwell on the Haldimand grant on the Grand River in Ontario, Canada. Here Mr. Hewitt took up the literary interpretation, revision, and textual criticism of previously recorded voluminous Iroquoian texts relating to the constitution of the League or Confederation of the Iroquois Tribes, embodying its laws and ordinances and the rituals of the council ofthe Delaware Algonquian group of languages

condolence for the deceased, and the installation of members of the Federal and the tribal councils.

new

With the

aid of the

two bestdefinite

Mohawk

informants availableof portions of the

who

still

retain

some

knowledge

ancient institutions of the League of the Iroquois, Mr. Hewitt

made arituals,

free English translation of

an iinportant one of these

in addition to the free rendering of the chant of

"The Seven Songs of Farewell," and thereby recovered the symbolic reason for the very peculiar name of the former.This ritual is called Ka'rhawe'''hra'to"' in Mohawk, and Ga'hawe'ha'di' in Onondaga, meaning, "Cast or Thrown over the Grand Forest." When used ceremonially both these chants are separated into two portions, and the four portions alternate in their rendition in such manner that part one of the one chant is followed by part one of the other; and jDart two of the first is followed by part two of the second chant. But when chanted "a veil of skins" (shawls or blankets serve in modern times) must be hung across the place of assemblyin such wise as to divide the of the league.

mourning from the other

side

Ceremonial or legislative action by the tribe or by the league is taken only through the orderly cooperation of the

two sisterhoods

of clans for the former, or of

two sisterhoods

This dualism in the highest organic originally based on definite mythic concepts. In either organization one sisterhood represented the female principle or the motherhood in nature, and theof tribes for the latter.

units of organization

was

12

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

other sisterhood the male principle, or the fatherhood in This dualism is thought to be so important that the nature.

language of the rituals and of official courtesy employs terms embodying the ethnic and mythic significance of it. By a searching study of all symbohc terms and phrases occurring in the chants of these rituals, which impliedly might refer to the highest dramatized situation revealed by these two divided chants, the parts of which are recombined as described above, Mr. Hewitt was able to identify beyond all reasonable question the phrase " the veil of skins " with the other phrase "the grand forest." The "grand forest"represents ritualistically the totality of the forests which

intervene between the lands of the mourning side of the league

and thosein

of the other side, represented as sjanbolically intactIt

must not be overlooked that either the mother may be the "mourning side"; the designation, of course, alternates between the two sides, depending on the fact of the loss of one or more of the members of the Federal council belonging to it at any given time. The sisterhood of tribes functioned by the independentmind.side or the father side

action oftribe.

its

constituent institutional units

every

several

In turn every tribe functioned through the organic each several clan, to units of its own internal organization its prescribed part in the larger Federal action, which execute

otherwise would not be authentic or authoritative; so that a clan or an individual in a clan, in special cases involvingpersonal rights, might prevent vital Federal action.personal rights

So were abundantly safeguarded. Mr. Hewitt purchased a very fine specimen husk mask of the Corn Mother, with a short explanatory text. Mr. Hewitt also made a reconnaissance trip to the Chippewa of Garden River, Canada, for the purpose of expanding and deepening his knowledge of certain Chippewa texts, recorded in 1921 by him from the dictation of Mr. George Gabaoosa, of Garden River, and also to obtain data in regard to the derivation of two very imj^ortant proper names, ChijDpewa and Nanabozho (appearing in literature also as Nenabojo, Menaboju, and Wenaboju), and also to inform himself as to the ethnologic value to be placed on the fast-fading

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

13

remains of the ethnic culture of this and cognate tribes in Ukesituations

and antecedents.(on(i.

First-Born

The myth Earth)," commonlyIndbi'oji'o'),

of Mudjikevvis,

"Theof

called

the

story

Nanabozho

remarkable for beauty and comprehensiveness, details the circumstances which gave rise In that recital the name appears to the name "Nanabozho." as Indbi'oji'o' and means, "Created, or Formed, by the Look (of the Great Father Spirit)." The name Chippewa appears in literature in no less than 97 variant spellings, with a half dozen or more unsatisfactory definitions. But to those who first gave the name Chippewa (in its native, not Europeanized, form) to these peoplee.,

picture-writing

was ethnically

distinctive

and

characteristic

of them, as the well-known birchbark records of these people

amply testify. So the name Chippewa signifies hterally, "Those who make pictographs," and thus emphasizes one ofthe distinctive arts of these peoples.

The Seneca

in Missouri

the express purpose ofavailable information

and Oklahoma were visited for identifying them tribally, if thethis possible.

made

Since the middle

affiliated

have not been closely with the Seneca tribe of New York State and Canada. There has been expressed doubt that these western Seneca had the right to this name. But after visiting and interviewing many families of these western Seneca dwelling about Seneca, Mo., and Miami and Picher, Okla., Mr. Hewitt was convinced that they are mainly emigrants from the parent Seneca tribe of New York and Canada and from the Cayuga of these last-named places; naturally, there are also some famihes of other Iroquoian tribes, such as the Wyandot and possibly the Conestoga. A porcupine clan and a fox clan were reported. The last was a Conestoga clan. Mr. Francis La Flesche, ethnologist, completed his paper on two versions of the child-naming rite of the Osage tribe. The first version belongs to the In-gthon-ga or Puma gens, and the second to the Tsi-zhu Wa-shta-ge or Tsi-zhu Peacemaker gens. Each gens has its own version of the rite and no other gens can use it without permission. This paperof the eighteenth century these Seneca

14

BUREAU OF

AjrETtlCAX

ETHNOLOGY

contains 201 typewritten pages and 20 illustrations.

Mr.all of

La Flesche spent a June, 1925, amongvisit

part of the

month

of

May

and

the Osages.

In the early part of this

he and his assistant, Ku-zhi-si-e, a full-blood Osage, undertook the laborious task of properly recording the gentile personal names used by the full-blood members of Superintendent the tribe and by some of the mixed bloods. George Wright, of the Osage Agency, kindly iDermitted J. them to use as a guide in doing this work an annuity pay roll of the third and fourth quarters of the year 1877, which was found in the files of his office. This roll contains about Besides cor1,900 Indian names, most of them misspelled. recting the spelling of the names, Mr. La Flesche and his assistant added to the name of each annuitant the name of

was much amused to learn was carried on the that his boy pay roll as "E-stah-o-gra-she," and that the boy name of his friend Wa-non-she-zhin-ga was put on the roUs as Mepah-scah, instead of "In-bae-sca," the correct name. Wlien the work of revising the names on the annuity roll was concluded, Ku-zhi-si-e drove over the hiUs on his farm with Mr. La Flesche and showed him many wild plants which were useful to the Indians as medicine or food. Some of these plants were woven into large mats for house covering, and into rugs to spread on the floor of the house to sit upon.his or her gens.

Ku-zhi-si-e

name, "I-tse-tha-gthin-zhi,"

Wa-non-she-zthin-ga (the chief of the tribe) also took

tramps among the trees on his farm with Mr. La Flesche, and showed him a number of trees and explained to him their uses, and gave to him their native names, which he recorded. This man pointed out a tree which he called "Zhon-sa-gi," hard wood. The saplings of this tree he said were used for the frames of the houses. When green the wood was easily cut -with a knife or ax, but when seasoned it was very hard to cut. The chief cut a branch from a small tree and carried it with him when he and Mr. La Flesche returned to the house. The chief whittled off some of the bark from the branch and dipped the shavings in a glass of water and the water quickly became blue like indigo. Mr. Paul C. Standley identified this tree as the blue ash, or Fraxinus quadrangulata.

AmiIXISTRATIVE REPORT

15

SPECLiL RESEARCHESThefollowing manuscripts of Indian music have been purfiscal year from Miss Frances Densmore: "War, wedding and social songs of the Makah Indians," "Songs connected with JVIakah feasts and dances," "Music and customs of the Tule Indians of Panama," "Songs and instrumental music of the Tule Indians of Panama," "Songs for children and material culture of the Makah Indians," and 17 mathematical group analyses of 167 Papago songs, according to the method of such analyses in previous work.

chased during the

This material (apart from the group analyses) comprises 150 pages of text, numerous photographic illustrations, and the transcriptions of 69 songs, together with the original phonograph records and descriptive and tabulated analyses of inThe last named are the analyses from which di\'idual songs. the mathematical analyses are made, these showing the peculiarities of the songs of an entire tribe with results expressed These in turn form the basis for comparative in percentages. which show the characteristics of the music of different tables, tribes. Such tables of comparison in "Mandan and Hidatsa Music" comprise 820 songs collected among sLx tribes, and material awaiting publication will add more than 500 songs to this number, including songs of widely separated tribes. It seems possible that these tables may show a connection between the physical enviromnent of the Indians and the form assumed by their songs, as interesting contrasts appear in the songs of different tribes. The final paper on the Makah Indians included a description of the uses of 26 plants in food, medicine, and dye. Specimens of the plants had been obtained on the reservation,

and

their botanical identification

was made by Mr.

Paul C. Standley, of the United States National Museum. The Makah were head hunters and a detailed account of their war customs was presented. The caste system prevailed in former days and famihes of the upper class had wealth and leisure. The wedding customs \\-ere marked by festivity and by physical contests, the songs of which weresubmitted. The presence in Washington of a group of Tule Indians from the Province of Colon, Panama, made possible a study

16

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGYit

have not The Tule Indians are unique in that they do not pound on a drum, a pole, or any other object. Their favorite instrument is the "pan pipe" of reeds. Two men usually play these pipes, sounding alternate tones. The music of these pan pipes was phonographically recorded andis

of forms of primitive music which,

believed,

hitherto been described.

transcribed as nearly as

is

possible in musical notation.

An

instrument which, as far as known, has not been previously observed, is a reed flute having two finger holes but no "whistle opening." The upper end of the reed is held inside the mouth, possibly touching the roof of the mouth, and for this reason the instrument is designated as a "mouth flute." A gourd rattle, conch shell horn, and bone whistle complete the musical instruments of these Indians. The words of the songs narrate a series of events, such as the preparation for a wedding and a description of the festivity, or the illness and death of a man, followed by "talking to his spirit." Chief Igwa Nigidibippi, who recorded the songs, was a trained singer.

EDITORIAL

WORK AND PUBLICATIONS

The editing of the publications of the bureau was continued through the year by Mr. Stanley Searles, editor, assisted by Mrs. Frances S. Nichols, editorial assistant. The status of the publications is presented in the following siunmary:PUBLICATIONS ISSUEDThirty-eighth Annual Report. Accompanying paper: An Introductory Study of the Arts, Crafts, and Customs of the Guiana Indians, by Walter E. Roth. 745 pp., 183 pis., 341 figs. Accompanying paper: The Osage Thirty-ninth Annual Report. Tribe: The Rite of Vigil, by Francis La Flesche. 636 pp., 17 pis.,

4X,

figs.

Bulletin 78.

Hanaoook of the Indians ofpis.,

California,

by A.

L. Kroeber.

995 pp., 83

78

figs.

PUBLICATIONS IN PRESS OR IN PREPARATION

Accompanying Fortieth Annual Report. Origin of the White Bufi'alo Dance of the

papers: The Mythical Fox Indians; The Autobiography of a Fox Indian Woman; Notes on Fox Mortuary Customs and Beliefs; Notes on the Fox Society Known as " Those Who Worship the Little Spotted Buffalo''; The Traditional Origin of the Fox Society Known as "The Singing Around Rite" (Michelson).

ADMINISTEATIVE EEPORTForty-first

17

Annual Report. Accompanying papers: Coiled Basketry Columbia and Surrounding Region (Boas, assisted by Two prehistoric Villages in Middle Haeberlin, Teit, and Roberts)in British;:

Tennessee (Myer). Forty-second Annual Report. Accompanying papers Social Organization and Social Usages of the Indians of the Creek Confederacy; Religious Beliefs and Medical Practices of the Creek Indians; Aboriginal Culture of the Southeast (Swanton) Indian Trails of the Southeast (Myer).;

DISTRIBUTION OF PUBLICATIONS

The

distribution of the publications of the bureau has been

continued under the immediate charge of Miss Helen Munroe, Publications were disassisted by Miss Emma Powers.tributed as follows:

Report volumes and separates Bulletins and separates Contributions to North American ethnologyIntroductions

3,3,

426 458 385

Miscellaneous publications

4277,354

As compared with the fiscal year ended June 30, 1924, This there was a decrease of 6,609 publications distributed. was undoubtedly due not to a decrease in applications, but to the fact that only one publication was distributed duringthe year just ended, whereas four publications were issued in the preceding fiscal year and distributed to the mailinglist.

ILLUSTRATIONSMr. DeLanceyGill, illustrator,

with the assistance of Mr.

Albert Sweeney, continued the preparation of the illustrations of the bureau. A summary of the work foUows:Illustrations

mounted, retouched, and made ready for engravetc.,

ing

Drawings of objects, maps,

prepared

Portraits of visiting Indians (2 Kiowa, 8 Tule)

Negative films from field exposures Photostat prints from books and manuscripts Negatives of ethnologic and archeologic subjects Photographic prints for distribution and office use

1,

927 38 27 54 178 273 649

18

BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

account of the large amount of illustrative work, reclassification of the large collection of negatives has notprogressed as rapidly as last year.

On

About 7,000 negatives

have so

far

been catalogued.

LIBRARYThereference library has continued under the immediate

by Mr. Thomas During the year 480 books were accessioned. Of these 100 were acquired by purchase, 280 by gift and exchange, and 100 by binchng of periodicals. The periodicals currently received number about 975, of which 40 are by subscription, the remainder through exchange. The hbrarycare of Miss Ella Leary, Ubrarian, assisted

Blackwell.

has also received 187 pamphlets. The aggregate number of volumes in the library at the close of the year was 26,101;of pamphlets, 15,512; also severalodicals.

thousand unbound

peri-

The Library

of Congress, officers of the executive

departments, and out-of-town students have

made

use of

the library through frequent loans during the year.

COLLECTIONSTheits

following collections, purchased or acquired

by mem-

bers of the bureau orresearches,

by those

detailed in connection with

have been transferred to the United States National Musemii:83522. Small collection of ethnologia purchased

by

the bureau from

Miss Emily

S.

Cook.

84260. Collection of archeological material secured by Mr. D. L. Reichard for the bureau, from BerryviUe, Va.

84444. Small stone celt, and a lot of pottery bowl ornaments from Porto Rico, presented to the bureau by Mrs. Ahce de Santiago, Barceloneta, Porto Rico. 85018. Collection of ai-cheological material collected for the bureau by Gerard Fowke from moimds near Town Creek, Ala. 85019. Archeological material collected for the bureau by Dr. J.

Walter Fewkes, from mounds near

St. Petersbm-g, Fla.

S5319. Ai-cHeological material collected for the bureau by Gerard Fowke, from momids near Town Creek, Ala., on the siteof the Wilson Dam, Muscle Shoals. 85343. Stone bird pipe found near Hydes Ferry, on the Ciunberland River, about 7 miles below Nashville, Temi.

ADMINISTRATIVE KEPORT

19

85344. Five complete skulls and fragmentary remains of about 12 crania collected by Gerard Fowke from Hog Island Mound,

85780.

85781.

85824.

85856.

87297.

83949.

near Tow^l Ci-eek, Ala. Five skulls collected by Earle O. Roberts, Harrah, Wash. Collection of skeletal material secured by Gerard Fowke at the Alexander Mound near Courtland, Ala. Collection of skeletal material wliich was unearthed !} miles north of Boynton, Fla., and sent to the bureau by Mr. E. S. Jackson, of Palm Beach, Fla. Collection of archeological objects secm-ed b}^ Mr. J. O. Sanderson, of Courtland, Ala., and purchased by the bureau. Two pipes, one of steatite and the other of marble, collected for the bureau by Gerard Fowke from the Alexander Moimd in LawTence County, Ala. Collection of archeological material secured for the bxireau at Youngs Canyon, about 183^ miles east of Flagstaff, Ariz., by Mr. J. c' Clarke, of Flagstaff. Human remains from Weeden Island, St. Petersburg, Fla., secured by the chief of the bureau dm-ing the winter of 1923-24.

MISCELLANEOUSThe correspondence and other clerical work of the office has been conducted by Miss May S. Clark, clerk to the chief. Mr. Anthony W. Wilding, typist, has beenClerical:

engaged in copying manuscripts and in various duties connected ^;vith the office of the chief. Miss Julia Atkins, stenographer and typist, resigned October 15, 1924. Mrs. A. H. Kitchen was appointed temporarily December 13, 1924, for three months, the appointment terminating March 13, 1925. ]\Iiss Mae W. Tucker was appointed temporarily ]\Iay 1. 1925, as stenographer and typist.Respectfully submitted.J.

Walter Fewkes,Chief.

Dr. Charles D. Walcott,Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.

ACCOMPANYING PAPERS

21

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND SOCIAL USAGES OF THE INDIANS OF THE

CREEK CONFEDERACYBy JOHNR.

SWANTON1/

23

1

CONTENTSPage

Introduction Native legends dealing with Creek history Origin legends The first meeting between the Creeks and the white people Prophecies regarding the fate of the Indians Social organization

31

The household The familyGeneral remarks

Terms

of relationshiptitles

Names and

Clans, phratries, and moieties Native explanations of their origin

33 33 75 77 79 79 79 79 SO 97 107 107114 120 156 166 170 174

Description:

ClansPhratries

Moieties

General remarks Distribution with reference to the land and the town Seating in the ceremonial grounds

The townNatural classification of Creek towns Evolution of the Creek Confederacy

GovernmentProperty

242 248 259 276 334338 358 358 358 363 368 384

Crime and punishment_

General customs

The

vital cycle

Puberty and childbirth Education Marriage Division of labor between the sexesBurial

The diurnal cycle The annual cycle

WarAgriculture

Hunting

Means

of

communication

Travel and greetings

Trade Counting

GamesBibliography Index

388 398 400 405 443 444 446 447 452 453 45647

8593

82517 28

25

ILLUSTRATIONSPLATESPage1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Creek churches and burials Creek Ceremonial or Busk Grounds, a. General view of the Busk Ground of Chiaha Seminole, Seminole County, Okla., in 1912. 6. The Square Ground of Pakan tallahassee near Hanna, Okla., in 1912. c. The North or Chiefs' Bed of Pakan tallahassee Creek Ceremonial Grounds, a. The Square Ground of Eufaula (1912). 6. The South (or Southeast) Bed of Tukabahchee. c. Tukabahchee Square Ground from the west entrance Creek Ceremonial Grounds, a. Camp at ceremonial ground, h. The Chiefs' Bed at Hilibi, winter of 1911-12. c. Cabin for the ceremonial utensils, back of the Chiefs' Bed at Eufaula Creek Ceremonial Grounds, a. Mound for the War and Buffalo dances in the old Tukabahchee Busk Ground near Melette, Okla. 6. The Alabama Square Ground in the summer of 1912, looking northwest, c. The Square Ground of Liwahali Seminole in 1912,looking northeast

190

212

212

224

224

6.

The Ceremonial Ground

looking north, h. A Camp sites near the square a. A Seminole home in Oklahoma, h. Conjur7. Creek Ceremonials, c. Ball players taking the ing the medicine before a ball game.

Chiaha Seminole, a. The Chiefs' Bed, view through the square, looking north, c.of

234

medicine

234

TEXT FIGURES1.

A

typical Creek Ceremonial or

Busk Ground, showing

its

relation to

2.

3.

4. 5.

6. 7. 8. 9.

10. 11.

12.13. 14. 15.

16. 17.18. 19.

20.

(After Bartram) the town. Ancient pattern of Creek Ceremonial or Busk Ground. (After Bartram) Later pattern of Creek Ceremonial or Busk Ground. (After Bartram) Structure of the roof of a Creek tcokofa. (After Hitchcock) One of the beds in the Alabama Square Ground as it appeared in the early part of the eighteenth century Plan of the Talladega Square Ground Talladega Ceremonial Ground (including Square) in 1912 Plan of the Abihka Square Ground (near Eufaula, Okla.) Plan of the Square Ground of Abihka-in-the-West Plan of the Square Ground of Kan-tcati Conjectural arrangement of the Coosa Square Ground Plan of a Creek Ceremonial Ground as given by Swan Plan of the Otciapofa Square Ground Otciapofa Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Square Ground of Tulsa Little River Tulsa Little River Ceremonial Ground in 1911 Plan of the Square Ground of Tulsa Canadian Plan of the Lutcapoga Square Ground (I) Plan of the Lutcapoga Square Ground (II) Plan of the Nuyaka Square Ground:

172176177 180

187

205 206 207 208 209 210 211 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218

27

28

ILLUSTRATIONSPage

2L Nuyaka Ceremonial Ground22. Plan of the

in

1912

Okfuskee Square Ground 23. Plan of the Abihkutci Square Ground 24. Plan of the Talniutcasi Square Ground 25. Plan of the Tcatoksof ka Square Ground 26. Plan of the Pakan tallahassee Square Ground (I) 27. Plan of the Pakan tallahassee Square Ground (II) 28. Pakan tallahassee Ceremonial Ground in 1912 29. Plan of the Wiogufki Square Ground (I) 30. Plan of the Wiogufki Square Ground (II) 31. Wiogufki Ceremonial Ground in 1912 32. Plan of the Tukpafka Square Ground 33. The old Tukpafka Ceremonial Ground as it appeared in 1912 34. Plan of the Square Ground of Asilanabi 35. The Asilanabi Ceremonial Ground in 1912 36. Plan of the Okchai Square Ground 37. Okchai Ceremonial Ground in 1912 38. Plan of the Lalogalga Square Ground 39. Lalogalga Ceremonial Ground in 1912 40. Plan of the Wiwohka Square Ground (I) 41. Plan of the Wiwohka Square Ground (II) 42. Plan of the Tuskegee Square Ground (I) 43. Plan of the Tuskegee Square Ground (II) 44. Plan of the Square Ground of Koasati No. 2 45. Plan of the Tukabahchee Square Ground (I) 46. Plan of the Tukabahchee Square Ground (II) 47. Plan of the Tukabahchee Square Ground (III) 48. Tukabahchee Ceremonial Ground in 1912 49. The old Tukabahchee Ceremonial Ground near Melette, Okla., as it appeared in 1912-14 50. Plan of the Atasi Square Ground (I) 51. Plan of the Atasi Square Ground (II) 52. Plan of the Kealedji Square Ground (I) 53. Plan of the Kealedji Square Ground (II) 54. Site of the old Kealedji Ceremonial Ground in 1912 55. Plan of the Laplako Square Ground (I) 56. Plan of the Laplako Square Ground (II) 57. The Laphiko "rallying ground" used before ball games, as it appearedin 1912 Plan of the Liwahali Square Ground 59. Plan of the Hilibi Square Ground 60. Hilibi Ceremonial Ground in 1912 61. Plan of the Eufaula Square Ground (I) 62. Plan of the Eufaula Square Ground (II) 63. Eufaula Ceremonial Ground in 1912 64. Plan of the Alabama Square Ground (I) 65. Plan of the Alabama Square Ground (II)

219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247

248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 264 265 265 266 267 268 269

58.

66.67. 68. 69. 70. 71.72.

Plan of the Alabama Square Ground (III) The .\labama Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Kasihta Square Ground (from Hawkins) Plan of the Kasihta Square Ground (from Gatschet) Plan of the Kasihta Square Ground (III) Plan of the Kasihta Square Ground (IV) Plan of the Okmulgee Square Ground

ILLUSTRATIONSPlan of the Apalachicola Square Ground (Talwa Jako) (I) Plan of the Apalachicola Square Ground (Talwa lake) (II) Plan of the Hitchiti Square Ground (After Speck) Plan of the Yuchi Square Ground. Plan of the Coweta Square Ground (I) Plan of the Coweta Square Ground (II) Plan of the Square Ground of Likatcka or Broken Arrow Plan of the Square Ground of Eufaula Hobayi (I) Plan of the Square Ground of Eufaula Hobayi (II) Plan of the Chiaha Square Ground (I) Plan of the Chiaha Square Ground (II) Plan of the Osochi Square Ground (I) Plan of the Osochi Square Ground (II) Plan of the Square Ground of Ochesee Seminole Plan of the Square Ground of Okfuskee Seminole Okfuskee Seminole Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Square Ground of TaUahasutci Seminole TaUahasutci Seminole Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Square Ground of Hitchiti Seminole Plan of the Square Ground of Eufaula Seminole Eufaula Seminole Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Square Ground of Liwahali Seminole (I) Plan of the Square Ground of Liwahali Seminole (II) Liwahali Seminole Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Square Ground of Chiaha Seminole Chiaha Seminole Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Plan of the Square Ground of Mikasuki Seminole (I) Plan of the Square Ground of Mikasuki Seminole (II) Mikasuki Seminole Ceremonial Ground in 1912 Face painting used by the Tuskegee Indians. The spots in solid black represent red the cross-hatched spots green Head of a Creek warrior. (After Romans) Arrangement of players at the opening of the Creek ball game Alabama method of recording scores in the ball game Design marked upon a bear skin in preparation for an Alabama game resembling pachisi Preparation of ground for the Creek game of Tcato tcalitcka;

29Page

73. 74. 75.

70.77.

78.79.

80. 81. 82. 83. 84. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. 90. 91.

92.93. 94. 95. 96. 97. 98. 99.

100.101. 102.

270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 289 290 291 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 406 462 464 469 470

103.

104. 105.106.

107.

i

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND SOCIAL USAGES OF THE INDIANS OF THE CREEK CONFEDERACYBy JohnR.

Swanton

INTRODUCTIONIn Bulletin 73 I reviewed the history of the Indian tribes which constituted temporary or permanent parts of the Creek Confederacy,

and extended consideration to some of the peoples beyond with which they had intimate dealings, the tribes of Florida, and the Chickasaw, even including a brief mention of the Choctaw. This work was mainly an objective study, based upon Spanish, French, and English documents -the story of these tribes as related by the Europeans who came in contact with them. A similar history of the same peoples from internal sources is, of course, impossible, the nearest approach to it being in the so-called origin or migration legends which contain but few facts of real historical value and must be assimied to apply only to a relatively recent period. A substitute for them must be sought in the archeological record left by the tribes as interpreted through an intensivestudy of the ethnology of their living representatives. I have incorporated all of the Creek origin myths whichable to collect into the present paper.I

have been

devoted mainly to a discussion of tions of the Creeks and their general social customs and usages. The greater part of the present material was collected within the limits of the former Creek Nation, Okla., between September, 1911, and May, 1912, and on several shorter trips during the years immediately following. In this connection I wish to render a most grateful tribute to George Washington Grayson, the most prominent and intelligent of all Creek Indians of his time, their representative in every important conference and at every crisis in their affairs, and at the time of his death chief of the nation. He was deeply interested in the history and ethnology of his people and did everything in his power to facilitate the work of all students of them. He rendered most valuable service to the late Albert S. Gatschet, and afterwards did everything in his power to assist the investigations of the writer, as well as to render his visits personally comfortable and intellectually delightful. For much of the included material Mr. Grayson is responsible, directly or indirectly, and the author wishes that it be con31

The rest of the space is the social and political organiza-

32sidered in

CEEEK SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND USAGES

[eth. ann.

Mr. Grayson had begun to him. which woukl have been of the greatest interest to both the ethnologist and the historian, but unfortunately death intei-vened before it was well under way. By the courtesy of his family I have been able to incorporate a few items from that manuscript in the present work. I also wish to mention my indebtedto compile a history of his hfe

some degree a monument

ness to Zachariah Cook, ofas

Wetumka,

Okla., also deceased,

my

interpreter during the greater part of

my

travels

who acted away from

Eufaula, Mr. Grayson's home. Being interested in all of the matters under investigation, himself a former chief of Tukabahchee and hence presiding officer at the annual ceremonies, he proved of the greatest utility in many ways and was able to contribute largely from liis o\vn experience. Another leading informant was Jackson Lewis, a Hitchiti doctor who stood high in the estimation of both Indians and whites. Valuable material was obtained from Rev. William McCombs, a native Baptist missionary, who has ministered

Creek congregations for a great many years from Legus Ferryman Okmulgee town, at one time head chief of the nation; from Judge James R. Gregory, also of Okmulgee; and from Ellis Childers, chief of Chiaha and formerly prominent in Creek national affairs. Many other Creeks and Seminoles contributed to the work directly or indirectly, among whom may be mentioned the following: Jun Star, Siah Gray, Jackson Knight, Alex Tecumseh, Barney McGillivray, John Goat, George Hill, Fulotkee, Billy Yahola, Koakotci, Yatihka Hadjo, George Hicks, Hannah Jones, Sanger Beaver, Wotkotci, Caley Proctor, Sawanok Hadjo, NokosiU, Pahoshobaiotci, Tal-mutcas Hadjo, Sam Laslie, Pin Hadjo, Sarty Deacon, Tob Hill, Dave Hany, Silas Jefferson, Dave Cummings, Tom Culler, George Holaby, William Sulhvan, Washington Riley, Sarty Cowee, Kasihta Yahola, Gohah Jones, Big Jack, Woksi Hadjo, John Baker, William Fish, Caesar Buckle, Jun Sapulpa, Will Sapulpa, Joe Wotko, Winey Tiger, Sam Haynes, John Spott, John Buck, Billy Tiger, Wilham Berryhill, John Davis, Philip Marshall, Tob Tiger, Yonasi, Katca Holahta, Tciban Hadjo, Billy Koker, George Colbert, Imala, Okuskj' Miller, Caesar Jones, and Naktcagotci. My data from the Alabama Indians hving in Texas was obtained chiefly from two old people, George Henry and his wife Celissy Henry, and from my interpreter, Charlie Thompson. Some information on the Koasati Indians was secured from Jackson Langley, chief of the Koasati band in Louisiana, and from his mother, Salin Langley. The spelling of many of these names, particularly the native ones, is probably different from that which they themselves employed. This material has been supplemented liberally by means of the older authorities on the tribes under discussion, particularly Adair, Bartram, Swan, Hawkins, Hitchcock, and certain anonymous Frenchto;

of the old

SWANTON]

INTRODUCTION

33

writers, and this is particularly true of that part of the work dealing with customs like war which are now obsolete or obsolescent but could be made subjects of direct observation at the time in which they wrote. I have also made liberal use of the material published in recent yeai's by Prof. Frank G. Speck, of the University of Pennsylvania, particularly liis paper on "The Creek Indians of Taskigi Town" (Memoirs of the American Anthropological Association, vol. n, pt. 2). His more extensive work on the Yuchi has been mentioned only incidentally, as the Yuchi are an alien tribe incorporated into the Creek Confederacy in comparatively modern times. Their culture, however, presents numerous features resembling that found among the Creeks, and Professor Speck's paper (Ethnology of the Yuclii Indians, Anthropological Publications of the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, vol. i, no. 1) should be read in conjunction with the material here presented. The valuable and hitherto unpublished Hitchcock material was placed at the disposal of the Bui'eau of Ethnology through the kindness of Mrs. W. A. CrofFut, General Hitchcock's niece. The following peculiar phonetic signs are used: }, im voiced 1; a, obscure a; tc, EngUsh ch; c, English sh; ", nasahzation of the preceding vowel; X and x (in Natchez), palatal and velar spirants; vowels generally have continental values.

NATIVE LEGENDS DEALING WITH CREEK HISTORYOrigin Legends

myths of the Hitcliiti and Alabama, minor components Creek Nation, have been given in Bulletin 73.' Here it is proposed to include the origin myths of the dominant tribe, that which constituted by far the largest portion numerically and from wliich came the crystallizing force which united them all into one political body. Who the Muskogee were and what towns they occupied has been explained in the bulletin above mentioned. The origin

The

origin

of the

legend, or the origin legends, of these people differed toin the several

Muskogee towns, but

there

some extent was a harmony between the

various versions, perhaps brought on pari passu with the progressive unification of the confederacy. There are many references to tliis legend in very general terms, but several stories have suivived, which, though usually fragmentary, shed most valuable light upon the nature of the original. The earliest of these legends is that given to Governor Oglethorpe by one Chekilli,- who is styled "emperor of the Upper and Lower Creeks," and was probably a Kasihta. At any rate the legend seems to be from Kasihta sources. According to the American Gazetteer, as quoted by Gatschet, " This speech was cui"iously written in red and black characters, on the skin of a'

'

Swanton, Early Hist. Creek Inds., Bull. 73, Bur. Amer. Ethn., pp. 172-174, 191-192. Perhaps from Tcalaki Uitci, "Cherokee killer."

34young.. .

CREEK SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND USAGES

[eth. ann. 42

buffalo, arul translated into English, as soon as delivered.

said skin was set in a frame, and hung up in the Georgia Westminster." ^ Of course this means that pictures had been made on the blanket similar to those in the Delaware Walam Olum, to mark the various important events narrated by the speaker. It has unfortunately been lost, along with the accompanying English text, but a German translation of the English was preserved, and from this Doctor Gatschet had the legend rendered again into English and also into Creek for liis " Migration Legend of the Creek Indians." This version, including one or two corrections made by Doctor Gatschet in one of liis personal copies of the work, is as follows: " What Chekilli, the Head-chief of the Upper and Lower Creeks said, in a talk held at Savannah, Anno 1735, and which WAS handed over by the Interpreter, Written upon a Buffaloskin was, word for word, as follows: "[Speech, which, in the year 1735, was delivered at Savannah,Office, in

The

Chekilli, Emperor of the Upper and Lower Creeks; Antiche, highest Chief of the town of the Cowetas, Eliche, King;

in Georgia, by]

*

Ousta, Head-chief of the Cussitaws, Tomechaw, War King; Wali, War-captain of the Palachucolas, Poepiche, King; Tomehuichi,

Dog-king of the Euchitaws; Mittakawye, Head War-chief of the Okonees, Tuwechiche, King; Wlioyauni, Head War-chief of the Chehaws and of the Hokmulge Nation; Stimelacoweche, King of the Osoches; Opithli, King of the Jawocolos [Sawokli]; Ewenauki, King; Tahmokmi, Wai-captain of the Eufantees [misprint for Eufauleesl];

and thirty other Warriors.^

"At a certain time the Earth opened in the West, where its mouth is. The Earth opened and the Cussitaws came out of its mouth, and settled near by. But the Earth became angry and ate up their children; therefore, they moved further West. A part of them, however, turned back, and came again to the same place where they had been, and settled there. The greater number remainedbehind, because they thought it best to do so. Their children, nevertheless, were eaten by the Earth, so that, full of dissatisfaction,

they journeyed toward the sunrise."

They came

to a thick,

muddy, slimy

river

came there, camped

and stayed over night there. The next day, they continued their journey and came, in one day, to a red, bloody river. They lived by this river, and ate of its fishes for two years;there, rested there,> *

Gatschet, Creek Mig. Leg., vol. I, p. 236. This bracketing is copied from Gatschet.

'

The

W. Grayson and(?);

following transliterations and translations of a part of these names were furnished by the late G. A. S. Gatschet: .\natitci, to wound; Ilitci, to kill, or putting something down; Osta, four(a

of creatures) flying; Wali, from wahali, south (though Gatschet suggests the province of Georgia, Ouale, see Bull. 73, Bur. .\mer. Ethn., p. 80 et seq.); Poepitce, to cause to win; Uoyahani, to pass by; Stimalakoetci, somebody having caused something to come; Hopili,

Tometca,

number

namelog.

of the coast

;

SWANTONJ

NATIVE CREEK HISTORY LEGENDS

35

but there were low springs there; and it did not please them to remain. They went toward the end of this bloody river, and heard a noise as They approached to see whence the noise came. At of thunder. first they perceived a red smoke, and then a mountain which thunThey sent dered; and on the mountain was a sound as of singing. to see what this was; and it was a great fire which blazed upward, and made this singing noise. This mountain they named the King It thunders to this day; and men are very much of Mountains.afraid of'

it.

They here met a people of three different Nations. They had taken and saved some of the fire from the mountain; and, at thisand of other things. which, however, they "From the East, a white fu-e came to them; would not use. From Wahalle [the South] came a fire which was blue From the West, came a fire which was neither did they use it. black; nor would they use it. At last, came a fire from the North, which was red and yellow. This they mingled with the fire they had taken from the mountain; and this is the fire they use to-day;place, they also obtained a

knowledge

of herbs

and this, too, sometimes sings. On the mountain was a pole which was very restless and made a noise, nor could any one say how it could be quieted. At length they took a motherless cliild, and They then struck it against the pole; and thus killed the child. when they go to war. It was took the pole, and carry it with them like a wooden tomahawk, such as they now use, and of the same wood. "Here they also found fom- herbs or roots, which sang and disclosedtheir

virtues: First,

Pasaw

[pasa],

the

rattlesnake

root;

second, Mwoweanochaw [miko hoyanidja], red-root; third, Sowaichl~o[sowatcko], which grows like wild fennel;laputcki],little

and

fourth, EscJialapootchlce

These herbs, especially the first [hitci they use as the best medicine to purify themselves at and third, At this Busk, which is held yearly, they fast, and make their Busk. Since they have learned the virtues of offerings of the first fruits. these herbs, their women, at certain times, have a separate fire, and remain apart from the men five, six, and seven days, for the sake of If they neglected this, the power of the herbs would purification. depart; and the women would not be healthy. "About this time a dispute arose, as to which was the oldest, and which should rule; and they agreed, as they were four Nations, they would set up four poles, and make them red with clay which They would then is yellow at first, but becomes red by burning. go to war; and whichever Nation should first cover its pole, from top to bottom, with the scalps of their enemies, should be the oldest. " They all tried, but the Cussitaws covered their pole first, and so Therefore, they were looked thickly that it was hidden from sight. upon, by the whole Nation, as the oldest. The Chickasaws coveredtobacco.

36

CREEK

SOCIAL,

ORGANIZATION AND USAGES

[eth,

ann. 42

their pole next; then the

Atilamas [Alabamas]; but the Obikaws

[Abilakas] did not cover their pole higher than to the knee.

was a bird of large size, blue in color, with a and swifter than an eagle, which came every day and killed and ate their people. They made an image in the shape of a woman, and placed it in the way of this bird. The bird carried it off, and kept it a long time, and then brought it back. They left it alone, hoping it would bring something forth. After a long time, a red rat came forth from it, and they believed the bird was the father ofthat time there

"At

long

tail,

They took council with the rat how to destroy its father. the bird had a bow and arrows; and the rat gnawed the bowstring, so that the bird could not defend itself, and the people killedthe rat.

Now

it.

They

called this bird the

King

of Birds.its

is

also a great

King; and they carry

feathers

make Peace; the red mean War; the white. approaches with white feathers and a white mouth, and cries Hke an eagle, they dare not kill him. "After this they left that place, and came to a white footpath. The grass and everything around were white; and they plainly perceived that people had been there. They crossed the path, and slept near there. After-ward they turned back to see what sort of path that was, and who the people were who had been there, in the belief that it might be better for them to follow that path. They went along it to a creek called Coloose-hutche, that is, Coloose-creek, because it was rocky there and smoked. " They crossed it, going toward the sunrise, and came to a people and a town named Coosaw. Here they remained four years. The Coosaws complained that they were preyed upon by a wild beast, wliich they called man-eater or lion, which lived in a rock. " The Cussitaws said they would try to kill the beast. They digged a pit and stretched over it a net made of hickory-bark. They then laid a number of branches, crosswise, so that the lion could not follow them, and, going to the place where he lay, they tlu'ew a rattle into his den. The lion rushed forth in great anger, and pursued them through the branches. Then they thought it better that one should die rather than all so they took a motherless child, and threw it before the lion as he came near the pit. The lion rushed at it, and fell in the pit, over which they threw the net, and His bones, however, they keep killed him with blazing pine-wood. on one side, they are red, on the other, blue. to this day; "The lion used to come every seventh day to kill the people; therefore, they remained there seven days after they had killed him. In reiT?embrance of him, when they prepare for War, they fast six days and start on the seventh. If they take his bones with them, they have good fortune."or;

They think the eagle when they go to War Peace. If an enemy

This war medicine

is

also

mentioned by Hawkins.

See p. 429.

SWANTON]

NATIVE CREEK HISTORY LEGENDS

37

''After four years they left the Coosaws, and came to a river which they called NowphawpeJ now Callasi-hutche.^ There they tarried two j-ears; and, as they had no corn, they lived on roots and fishes, and made bows, pointing the arrows with beaver teeth and flint-stones, and for knives they used split canes. " They left this place, and came to a creek, called Wattoola-hawkahutche,^ Whooping-creek, so called from the whooping of cranes, a great many being there; they slept there one night. They next came to a river, in which there was a waterfall; this they named the OwatunJca-river} The next day they reached another river, which they called the Aphoosa pJieesl'aw.^'" The following day they crossed it, and came to a high mountain, where were people who, they believed, were the same who made the white path. They, therefore, made wliite arrows and shot at them, to see if they were good people. But the people took their wliite arrows, painted them red, and shot them back. When they showed these to their chief, he said that it was not a good sign; if the arrows returned had been white, they could have gone there and brought food for their children, but as they were red they must not go. Nevertheless, some of them went to see what sort of people they were; and found their houses deserted. They also saw a trail which led into the river; and, as they could not see the trail on the opposite bank, they believed that the people had gone into the river, and would not again come forth. "At that place is a mountain, called Moterell, which makes a noise like beating on a drum; and they think this people live there. They hear this noise on all sides when they go to war. "They went along the river, till they came to a waterfall, where they saw great rocks, and on the rocks were bows lying; and they believed the people who made the white path had been there. " They always have, on their journeys, two scouts who go before the main body. These scouts ascended a high mountain and saw a town. They shot white arrows into the town; but the people of the town shot back red arrows. Then the Cussitaws became angry, and determined to attack the town, and each one have a house when it was captured. "They threw stones into the river until they could cross it, and took the town (the people had flattened heads), and killed all but two persons. In pursuing these they found a white dog, which they slew. They foUowed the two who escaped, until they came again to the white path, and saw the smoke of a town, and thought that tliis' *

See Bull.

A

10

73, Bur. Amer. Ethn., p. 245. misprint for Tallasi-hutche. Watula. sandhill crane; haki, sound, noise; haichee^ creek, river, Owatamka River.

" CI. afuawa, thread; feskeii, to sprinkle, scatter out.

38

CREEK SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND USAGESseeking.

[eth. ann. 42

must bo the people they had so long beenwhore now theis

This

is

the place

tribe of Palachucolas live,

from

whom

Tomochichi

doscended.'^

''The Cussitaws continued bloody-minded; but the Palachucolas gave them black drink, as a sign of friendship, and said to them: 'Our hearts are white, and yours must be white, and you must lay down the bloody tomahawk, and show your bodies as a proof that they shall be white.' Nevertheless, they were for the tomahawk; but the Palachucolas got it by persuasion, and buried it under their beds. The Palachucolas likewise" gave them white feathers, and asked to have a chief in common. Since then they have always livedtogether.

some on the other. Those on the other, Cowetas; yet they are one people, and the principal towns of the Upper and Lower Creeks. Nevertheless, as the Cussetaws first saw the red smoke and the red fire, and make bloody towns, they cannot yet leave their red hearts, which are, however, white on one side and red on the other. They now know that the white path was the best for them: for, although Tomochichi was a stranger, they see he has done them good because he went to see the great King with Esquire Oglethorpe, and hear his talk, and had related it to them, and they had Ustened to it, and believed it."'^ Doctor Gatschet has aheady discussed the Kasihta line of migration as unfolded by Chekilli in the above narrative." I will merely review it briefly. The muddy river spoken of early in the narrative might well have been the Mississippi, for "Muddy River" was a name given to it by the Ci-eeks. If this is so, however, the red river which they afterwards reached could not have been the Red River of Louisiana. In later versions of the legend the origin of the Creeks is traced to the historical Red River, and perhaps this may be the result of an attempt to locahze the red river of the Chekilli legend. The fu-st place to which a name is given is " Coloose-hutche, " but the interpretation contained in the text, "because it was rocky there and smoked," is not traceable to any known Muskhogean tongue. "Hutche" is of course the Ci'eek hatci, "river," but the balance of the word has a striking resemblance to a common abbreviation of the Choctaw Oka lusa, "Black Water." For this reason Brinton has suggested that the name referred to the Black Warrior River of western Alabama, though the Black Creek of Walker and Winston Counties, a ti'ibutary of the Black Warrior, would correspond moresettled

"Some

on one side of the

river,

on one

side are called Cussetaws, those

;

" Tomochichi was chief

of the

Yamacraw

tribe, settled

where Savannah now stands when Oglethorpe

established his colony. See Bull. 73. Bur. .\mer. Ethn., pp. 108-109. " Oatschet in Trans. St. Louis Acad. Sci.. vol. v, pp. 41-51. An earlier translation had appeared in

Brinton's Lib. Aborig. Lit., vol. iv, pp. 244-251. " Trans. St. Louis Acad. Sci., vol. v, pp. 93-103.

swANTONl

NATIVE CEEEK HISTORY LEGENDS

39

closelythis

provided the former name has an Indian origin. With name should probably be correlated that of the "Calu^a" Biedma and Elvas speak of a Calu >I-

< X

CO

UJ I-

o o _I oz I

I H

-

MTEE]

INDIAN TRAILS OF THE SOUTHEAST

751

points in Georgia and

Alabama and

othei-s

which went into MitUUe

Tennessee and the country beyond. We reproduce in Plate 16 Timberlake's map of the Over-hill Cherokee to^vns in 1762," which shows the Great Warpath ("Path from Virginia") entering ancient Echota (" Chote, the Metropolis").

path leading from Echota to the sea Timberlake's map (Trail No. 35). illustrates the large number of paths which were foimd in all tliickly settled Indian regions, and among other things shows that just before this warpath crossed the river to enter Chote it came to "A Fort built by the Virginians [in] 1756 and soon after destroyed by the Indians." It also shows Fort Loudon at the mouth of " Tellequo River" where the massacre occurred in 1760 which has taken such deep hold on the imagination of our people.It

also gives the well-knowTi

at

Charleston and Savannah

The Ohio BranchThe mainor Ohio prong of the Great Indiantrail at

Warpath

led from

the forks of the

Long

Island, Sullivan Coimty, Tenn.,

up

the valley of the north fork of Holston River, and past the recently discovered site of an ancient Indian town on the east side of the Holston Valley, about 6 miles northeast of the present village of

Abram's Falls, in Washington County, Va. This town was evidently deserted long before historic times, for no hint of its former existence reached the early white visitors. Tliat it was a place of some importance and inhabited for manyyearsis

shown by the great numberat

of skeletons of its one-timeBridgeport Island) on Tennessee River near

" The Indian crossing placeBridgetwrt, Ala.,

Long Island

(also called

Middle Tennessee as the "Old Creek Crossing," was a natural gateway for aboriginal travel. The Cisca and St. Augustine trail, the Nickajack trail, the Chickamauga path, all crossed the Teimessee River at this point. Several other great paths leading through Georgia to Middle Tennessee and the North used it, as does the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Rail

known

to the early whites in

wayIts

to-day.

importance as a trading point was quickly grasped by all early white visitors to this region. On the French map of Ouillaume De I'lsle, published in 1722, an island is shown at about the location of Long Island or the Old Creek Crossing, on one end of which a village ot " Casquinampo " Indians is located, on the other a village of "Caskighi" (Tuskegee). This information De I'lsle probably obtained fromthose French traders

who began passing up the Tennessee River as early as 1701. an old manuscript map of this region in the British Archives, a copy of which was given to the It is undated but experts think it belongs to about the year 1715. Hi.storical Society of South Carolina. An island on this also corresponds in location to the Long Island at Old Creek Crossing. In its center a French fort is located, with the words: " Since ye Warre a French Fort." It shows a village of " Cusatees" (probably Koasati) at either end. The author finds on another old map in the Library of Congress, " Carte de la Louisiane par N. BeUin," pubhshed in Paris in 17-14, a "Fort et Poste Anglois" at what appears to be the same location, showing that about that time the English had a fort and trading post here. On account of its importance as a trading point and the command it assured of the river, it is evident that its possession was eagerly sought by both the French and the English. The Cherokee came to Long Island after its successive occupations by the Casquinampo, " Caskighi,"Thereis

and Cusatoes, probably after 1740. Explorations by Mr. Clarence B. Moore in 1914 (.\borignal Sites on the Tennessee River, p. 3^1) show that there was a village site on the lower end of the island. He found three mounds there, one on the Tennessee side of the Tennessee-Alabama State line and two in Alabama. The owner was unwilling to permit digging on the island, and consequently we do not know whether vestiges of a village on the upper endcould be unearthed, 19 Timberlake, Memoirs.

752

INDIAN TRAILS OF THE SOUTHEAST

(r.Tn.

ann. 42

were found in two burial caves or cavern shelters mountain side. These burial caves were discovered in January, 1922, and announcement was immediat(>ly ma(h> by telegrapli to the writer and Dr. A. llrdlicka by Col. Samuel L. King, of Colonel King states: "The caves were discovered Bristol, Tenn. by an enterprising moonshiner looking for a suitable location for a In his search, a round, well-like opening was found in still [fact]." the bottom of a small depression, and, descending by means of a rope, the searcher found at the bottom of the "well" a cave, where, immeinJiabitauts wliicliin the adjoining

diately underneath the "well" opening, to liis utter astonishment, he came upon an irregular mound of earth and stones with which some human bones were indiscriminately mingled. Doctor Hrdlicka visited tliis site in Februarj^ and reported that tliis mound-like pile was an irregular oval, approximately 8 feet high, about 80 feet long, and 30 feet in width. The bodies appeared to have been brought down the well-like crevice and placed near tlie walls of the cave. The mound of earth had gradually accumulated by washings from the surface above and the stones had fallen from the roof of the The Iiuman bones had in some way become moved cavern-shelter. from their original positions near the side of the cave, probably by animals, and were mingled with tliis gradually accumulating mound, which appeared to contain the badly scattered fragments of several hundred human skeletons. Most of the bones were more or less

broken.

Another near-by burial cave was

also reported to

numberlater of

of

fragments of

human

bones, and Colonel

contam a large King was told

still other burial caves in the neigliborhood. This skeletal materisil seems to suggest the Cherokee type. From this ancient village site the trail continued on up the valley of the Holston about 25 miles until it reached the great sidt lick at what was known to the early whites as King's Salt Works, from a settler who began the manufacture of salt at this point about 1810. As the place grew in importance it became known as SaltviUe, and, although the deposit has been worked for over 100 years, it continues

to furnish great quantities of salt and is the site of a large manufacturing establishment in the products of which salt plays an

important part. The first white

men who came to this

salt lick

found a small shallow

lake covering a portion of the little valley, a great resort for waterfowl, and on or near its marshy edge in the trail-cut valley they discovered several bones which proved to belong to the mastodon,

Some

Megalonyx, and other large extinct animals of the Pleistocene period. of the bones of these animals the reader may see, if he so desire, at the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh. The old Cherokee path to Vir/jinia (No. 37). At Saltville the Ohio

prong was joined by the old Cherokee path to Virginia,

in existence

MTEB]

INDIAN TRAILS OF THE SOXtTHEAST

753

before 1775, which passed through the CaroUnus and the extremenortlieastern corner of Tennessee before reaching this point.

Rmite of

the

continued). Although we have made diligent inquiry, we have been unable to locate the course of the Ohio prong between SaltviUe and the falls of the Kanawha with any degree of certainty. The existence of such a trail is well known, but it ran tlu-ough a wild country" witli a poor soil and one that did not attract the aborigines; nor did it lie in such a position as to be used and thu,s emphasized by the oncoming wave of early white immigration. Probably this portion of the trail led from SaltviUe via the North Holston ^'alley along the west side of Lick Creek, up the Hunting Camp Ci'eek Fork of Clear Fork, through Rocky Gap, and thence along the ridges between the Bluestone and New Rivers to the mouth of tlie former

Ohio prong from. SaltviUe

to

Kanawha

Falls (No. 31

stream.stoneis

strengtliened

The evidence for that portion of the route near the Blueby the fact that there axe some ancient Indian

remains in Mercer County, where the trail crosses the eighty-first meridian, about 5 miles in a straight line southwest of Elgood. There it crossed New River, and probably went 1 or 2 miles to the east of Hinton, passing along the ridge about 3 miles east of Ramp, 2 miles west of Grassy Meadows and 3 miles west of RaineUe. About 4 miles west of RaineUe it was joined by a trail (No. 48) which led up from central Virginia, tlirough Wliite Sulphur Springs, Lewisburg, and RaineUe. From tills point the Ohio prong foUowed the course of the old turnpike from Virginia which led along the Flat Top Mountain to the falls of the Kanawha. Local tratlition affirms that tills portion of tlie old road to Virginia foUowed an Indian trail. Tlie fact that it left the valley for the ridge is confirmed by the following quotation from George Washmgton's "Tour to the Ohio."-* Speaking of the Kanawha River he says: "The river is easily passed with canoes to the falls, which can not be less than one hundred miles, but further it is not possible to go witli them that there is but one ridge from thence to the settlements upon the river above, on which it is possible for a man to travel, the country between being so much broken with steep hills and precipices." From SaltviUe another fork of the Ohio prong led up the narrowing valley of the north fork of the Holston to its head northeast of Ceres in Bland County, Va. Thence it passed to the head of Walker Creek, a distance of less than 2 mUes, and on down Walker Creek to its junction with New River." It is probable that many travelers bound north from SaltviUe took this Walker CVeek route, made canoes at the junction of Walker Creek and New River and floated down the swift New River to Kanawha Falls. Southbound travelers,;

'< '

The Writings of George Washington, The author questions this sentence, evidentlySparks,

vol. n, p. 529.

*

feeling doubtful of its

complete accuracy.

754

INDIAN TRAILS OF THE SOUTHEAST

[eth. ann. 42

to force canoes up New River, probably used the land route via Rainellc. Route down the Kanawha. From Kanawlia Falls the Ohio prong proceeded down Kanawha Valley. Some travelers probably went in canoes while others took the land trail as far as some Indian settlements along the Ohio River, near the niouth of the Kanawha. George Washington visited this region in 1770, and he relates ^ that at that time the Ohio prong crossed the Ohio at the mouth of what is now MiU Creek, in the Great Bend. "At tliis place begins what they call the Great Bend. Two miles below, on the east side, comes in another creek, just below an island, on the upper point of which are some dead standing trees, and a parcel of white-bodied sycamores in the mouth of this creek lies a sycamore blown down by the wind. From hence an east Ime may be run three or four miles thence a north line till it strikes the river, which I apprehend would include about three or four thousand acres of valuable land. At the mouth of this creek is the warriors' path to the Cherokee country. For two miles and a half below this the Ohio runs a north-east course, and finishes what they call the Great Bend."

who would have been compelled

;

;

Washington makes no mention of the crossing at the site of the old abandoned Shawnee town on the Oliio 3 miles upstream from the mouth of the Kanawha. Tlie local branch of the Ohio prong, winch formerly reached tliis Shawnee town, was probably so httle used at that time as not to be