Description: This illustration of the Brush Creek tablet comes from "History of Muskingum County, Ohio, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Prominent Men and Pioneers" by J. F. Everhart, 1882. The Brush Creek Tablet is a flat, sandstone slab measuring 14 inches long by 12 inches wide and four inches thick. It was discovered during the excavation of the Brush Creek Mound (south of Zanesville) between 1879 and 1880 by John F. Everhart and the Brush Creek Historical Association. When first discovered, it appeared to be a stone with several circular depressions. Such artifacts are called cupstones, or pitted stones, and the depressions appear to have been used for cracking nuts or grinding paint pigments. Two months after the artifact was discovered, Everhart announced that the stone was inscribed with “hieroglyphics” - “chiefly Greek, commingled with Phoenician and Etruscan.” He reported that the tablet was buried alongside an eight-foot-tall female skeleton and claimed that this proved “there were giants in those days.” The Brush Creek Tablet was shown to be a fraud when J. P. Egan brought a lawsuit against Everhart for failing to pay him the money he was promised for helping to excavate the mound and for making a map for the "History of Muskingum County." During the court proceedings, Marshall Cooper, another member of the excavation team, testified that he had been promised $15.00 to carve the inscription on the tablet and to give it “the appearance of ancient work.” The Brush Creek Tablet is an example of the many such frauds created during the 1800s, such as the Newark Holy Stones, when the question of who built the ancient mounds of the Ohio Valley had not yet been answered. Many people at that time believed that the American Indians were not capable of building the mounds and therefore they must have been built by a lost race. By the end of the 1800s, however, archaeologists had proven that the ancestors of American Indians had, indeed, built the mounds. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 977_191Ev27_BrushCreek
Subjects: Excavations (Archaeology)--Ohio; Archaeological fraud; Forgeries; Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio;
Places: Muskingum County (Ohio)
 

Description: The last Wyandots leave Ohio on the Miami and Erie Canal. From "Pathways of Progress, A Short History of Ohio" by David Bowman, 1943. The Wyandot Indians originally lived in southern Ontario. They were also called Hurons. But they called themselves "wendat" which in time became "Wyandot" or "Wyandotte." They were related to the Iroquois Indians, but in the years before European settlement, the Iroquois Confederacy attacked them and drove them from their homeland. Some came to live in northern Ohio. They built their main villages in Wyandot, Marion, and Crawford Counties, but they lived across northern Ohio and as far south as Ross County. During the American Revolution, the Wyandots fought for the British against the Americans, who they saw as encroaching on their land. When the British surrendered, the Indians were left to fight the Americans on their own. General Anthony Wayne finally defeated the Wyandots and other Ohio Indians at the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. They surrendered most of their lands in Ohio with the signing of the Treaty of Greeneville. In 1842, the Wyandots gave up their claim to their reservation at Upper Sandusky. In 1843 the United States government sent the Indians off to a reservation in Kansas. They were the last Indian tribe to leave Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04018
Subjects: American Indians in Ohio; Wyandot Indians--History; American Indian history and society
Places: Upper Sandusky (Ohio); Wyandot County (Ohio)
 

Description: Oliver Hazard Perry portrait, from Ben Lossings' "Fieldbook of the War of 1812." The Battle of Lake Erie, the decisive American victory over the British fleet in the War of 1812, took place on September 10, 1813. Admiral Oliver Hazard Perry led the American fleet and wrote in a report to General William Henry Harrison the famous phrase, "We have met the enemy and they are ours: two ships, two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop." A month later, the British and American Indian forces were defeated at the Battle of the Thames near London, Ontario (Canada), ending the war. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04027
Subjects: Ohio -- History -- War of 1812; Ohio History--Military Ohio
Places: Lake Erie
 

Description: Canine bear teeth with pearl inlays from the Ohio Hopewell culture, 100 BC-500 AD. Excavated from Burial 35, Mound 25, Hopewell Group, Ross County, ca. 1922-1925. The object is held in the Ohio History Connection Archaeology Collection. The Hopewell Mound Group, the type site for the Hopewell Culture, is located along the North Fork of Paint Creek in Union Township, Ross County, Ohio. When first surveyed in the mid-1800s the mound and earthwork complex, once referred to as the Clark Works, contained at least 38 mounds of various sizes within a 111-acre, somewhat “D”-shaped walled enclosure. An attached segmented square enclosed an additional 18 acres. The most notable mound in the group is referred to as Mound 25, a three-part conjoined mound that once measured 35 feet high by 500 feet long and 180 feet wide at the base. It was this mound more than any other that was the source of many of the iconic artifacts that defined the Hopewell Culture (100 BC-AD 400). The Hopewell Mound Group was extensively investigated in the early 1890s by Warren Moorehead to collect material for the 1892 World’s Columbian Exposition. This material is now housed in the Chicago Field Museum. In the 1920s Henry Shetrone of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society (now the Ohio History Connection) also did extensive field work there, assembling an impressive collection of materials for the museum. Today the Hopewell Mound Group and several other related Ross County earthwork complexes are overseen by the National Park Service as the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park. The Hopewell Mound Group is one of seven Ohio Hopewell Ceremonial Earthwork sites presently under consideration by the United States Department of the Interior for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00260
Subjects: Ross County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Archaeology--United States--History; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400) (A.D. 1–400); Artifacts
Places: Ross County (Ohio)
 

Description: Eagle effigy boatstone, constructed of pipestone and river pearl, from the Ohio Hopewell culture, Middle Woodland period, 200 BC-400 AD. Excavated from the Hopewell Group, Ross County, ca. 1922-1925. The object is held in the Ohio History Connection Archaeology Collection. The Hopewell Mound Group, the type site for the Hopewell Culture, is located along the North Fork of Paint Creek in Union Township, Ross County, Ohio. When first surveyed in the mid-1800s the mound and earthwork complex, once referred to as the Clark Works, contained at least 38 mounds of various sizes within a 111-acre, somewhat “D”-shaped walled enclosure. An attached segmented square enclosed an additional 18 acres. The most notable mound in the group is referred to as Mound 25, a three-part conjoined mound that once measured 35 feet high by 500 feet long and 180 feet wide at the base. It was this mound more than any other that was the source of many of the iconic artifacts that defined the Hopewell Culture (100 BC-AD 400). The Hopewell Mound Group was extensively investigated in the early 1890s by Warren Moorehead to collect material for the 1892 World’s Columbian Exposition. This material is now housed in the Chicago Field Museum. In the 1920s Henry Shetrone of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society (now the Ohio History Connection) also did extensive field work there, assembling an impressive collection of materials for the museum. Today the Hopewell Mound Group and several other related Ross County earthwork complexes are overseen by the National Park Service as the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park. The Hopewell Mound Group is one of seven Ohio Hopewell Ceremonial Earthwork sites presently under consideration by the United States Department of the Interior for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00262
Subjects: Ross County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Archaeology--United States--History; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400) (A.D. 1–400); Artifacts
Places: Ross County (Ohio)
 

Description: Headless human figures made of mica by the Ohio Hopewell culture, 100 BC-500 AD. Excavated from Burial # 34 at Hopewell Mound # 25 in Ross County, Ohio, ca. 1922-1925. It is known that the Hopewell obtained mica from western North Carolina, but archeologists are not certain how they used mica cut outs. These objects are held in the Ohio History Connection Archaeology Collection. The Hopewell Mound Group, the type site for the Hopewell Culture, is located along the North Fork of Paint Creek in Union Township, Ross County, Ohio. When first surveyed in the mid-1800s the mound and earthwork complex, once referred to as the Clark Works, contained at least 38 mounds of various sizes within a 111-acre, somewhat “D”-shaped walled enclosure. An attached segmented square enclosed an additional 18 acres. The most notable mound in the group is referred to as Mound 25, a three-part conjoined mound that once measured 35 feet high by 500 feet long and 180 feet wide at the base. It was this mound more than any other that was the source of many of the iconic artifacts that defined the Hopewell Culture (100 BC-AD 400). The Hopewell Mound Group was extensively investigated in the early 1890s by Warren Moorehead to collect material for the 1892 World’s Columbian Exposition. This material is now housed in the Chicago Field Museum. In the 1920s Henry Shetrone of the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society (now the Ohio History Connection) also did extensive field work there, assembling an impressive collection of materials for the museum. Today the Hopewell Mound Group and several other related Ross County earthwork complexes are overseen by the National Park Service as the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park. The Hopewell Mound Group is one of seven Ohio Hopewell Ceremonial Earthwork sites presently under consideration by the United States Department of the Interior for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00278
Subjects: Ross County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; American Indians--Archaeology; Archaeology--United States--History; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400) (A.D. 1–400)
Places: Ross County (Ohio)
 

Description: Human head sculpture made of clay by the Ohio Hopewell culture, 100 BC-500 AD. This small clay effigy of a human head (89.8 mm x 75.6 mm) is mottled dark reddish-gray, light reddish-brown, black and dark reddish-brown. The eyes are oval and eye sockets are formed by deeply incised lines. Distinct eyebrow ridges with some incised lines indicate eyebrows above the right eye. Nose has two indentations denoting nostrils. The mouth is slightly open and a ridge denotes the lower lip. There are projections on either side for ears, well-shaped with ear and ear lobes. Behind the left ear, running from the base to the forehead, is a gash that measures 76.6 mm in length. Behind the right ear, there is a gash running from the top of skull to the base that measures 74 mm in length. Base is flat where the neck would begin. There is a 19.7 mm hole in the base, roughly circular in shape, that extends into the head. There is also a hole that is 3 mm in diameter. The back of the head is somewhat flattened. On the top are two holes, roughly 6.3 mm in diameter, that extend into the head. Gash across the forehead measures 41.7 mm in length. This item has been extensively restored, and is held in the Ohio History Connection Archaeology Collection. It was recovered during the excavation of Seip Mound No. 1 in 1927. Seip Mound, sometimes referred to as the Seip-Pricer Mound, is located in Paxton Township, Ross County, Ohio. It was constructed between 100 BC and AD 400 by people of the Hopewell Culture and situated at the center of Seip Earthworks, an extensive earthwork complex occupying more than 150 acres along Paint Creek in southwest Ross County. There was also a large three-part burial mound associated with the earthworks later referred to as the Seip Conjoined Mound to avoid confusion. When first surveyed, Seip Mound measured 240’ x 130’ x 30’ and counted as one of the four or five largest Hopewell burial mounds ever built. Between 1925 and 1928 Henry Shetrone of the Ohio History Connection conducted excavations at Seip Mound, recovering over 100 burials and numerous funerary and other objects made of exotic materials. Shetrone also recovered series of “Great Pipes” that were uncharacteristic of Hopewell themes and designs and likely of southern origin. This strongly suggests at least cultural ties to contemporary groups below the Ohio River. During the 1970s investigations within the earthworks uncovered possible workshop and domestic locations indicating that overall the site was much more complex than first imagined. Originally a property of the Ohio History Connection, both Seip Mound and the associated earthworks are presently overseen by the National Park Service as part of the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park. It is also one of seven Ohio Hopewell Ceremonial Earthwork sites presently under consideration for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site by the United States Department of the Interior. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00279
Subjects: Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400) (A.D. 1–400); American Indians--Archaeology; Archaeology--United States--History; Seip Mound (Ross County, Ohio); Artifacts
Places: Ross County (Ohio)
 

Description: This is a lithograph of an oil painting of Shawnee leader Ca-Ta-He-Cas-Sa, or Black Hoof, published in "History of the Indian Tribes of North America" by Thomas Loraine McKenney and James Hall. Little is known about Black Hoof's early years. Allied with the French, he was present at the defeat of Edward Braddock during the French and Indian War. He did fight at the Battle of Fallen Timbers and represented the Shawnee at the signing of the Treaty of Greenville. After this, Black Hoof became convinced that the Indians had no hope against the whites except to adopt their customs. Using his influence with the Shawnee, Black Hoof encouraged the Shawnee to adopt the whites' way of living. By 1808, his followers established farms at Wapakoneta. Conflicts between the Shawnee and settlers continued. In 1826, Black Hoof led several hundred Shawnee people to the Kansas territory. After leading his followers to Kansas, Black Hoof returned to Wapakoneta and died there in 1831. Thomas Loraine McKenney (1785–1859) served as the U.S. Superintendent of Indian trade from 1816–1822 and superintendent of Indian affairs from 1824-1830. James Hall (1793–1868) was a lawyer, writer, and editor who lived in Cincinnati, Ohio from 1833 until his death in 1868. Their book was illustrated with portraits from the Indian gallery in the Department of War in Washington, D.C. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02908
Subjects: American Indian history; American Indians--Portraits; American Indian tribal leaders; Iroquois Confederacy; American Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
Places: Washington D.C.
 

Description: This is a lithograph of an oil painting of Shawnee leader Qua-Ta-Wa-Pea, commonly referred to as Colonel Lewis, published in "History of the Indian Tribes of North America" by Thomas Loraine McKenney and James Hall. Qua-Ta-Wa-Pea, whose name means "The man on the water who sinks and rises again," was born at Pickaway Plains, Ohio. He lived for many years near Wapakoneta, Ohio. McKenney and Hall say in their book that Colonel Lewis' rise to chief was entirely accidental. An American government official mistook Qua-Ta-Wa-Pea for the chief and his tribe followed suit, believing that was the wish of the government. Eventually, Colonel Lewis moved to land west of the Mississippi that was given to the Shawnee by the American government, and there he died in 1826. Thomas Loraine McKenney (1785–1859) served as the U.S. Superintendent of Indian trade from 1816–1822 and superintendent of Indian affairs from 1824-1830. James Hall (1793–1868) was a lawyer, writer, and editor who lived in Cincinnati, Ohio from 1833 until his death in 1868. Their book was illustrated with portraits from the Indian gallery in the Department of War in Washington, D.C. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02909
Subjects: Shawnee Tribe; American Indian history; American Indians--Portraits; American Indian tribal leaders; American Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
Places: Washington D.C.
 

Description: This illustration depicts John Morgan, Confederate general, on horseback, leading Confederate troops on Morgan's Raid. The men are all on horseback, wearing overcoats and hats. Guns can be seen strapped to many of the men's backs, and one man near the front has a guitar or banjo at his side. Another man near the front holds a fancy women's parasol over his head. The original illustration appeared in an 1888 book entitled "The Story of Ohio" by Alexander Black. Led by John Hunt Morgan, Morgan's Raiders raided from Tennessee through Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio. It was the furthest penetration into the North by the Confederates. For 46 days, they rode over 1,000 miles, terrifying the residents of the three states. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04270
Subjects: United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865; Confederate States of America; Generals--United States; Morgan's Ohio Raid, 1863
Places: Ohio
 

Description: Henry C. Shetrone, archaeologist for the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society (now the Ohio History Connection) uncovering effigy pipes during the excavation of Seip Mound in Ross County, Ohio, ca. 1925-1928. Seip Mound, sometimes referred to as the Seip-Pricer Mound, is located in Paxton Township, Ross County, Ohio. It was constructed between 100 BC and AD 400 by people of the Hopewell Culture and situated at the center of Seip Earthworks, an extensive earthwork complex occupying more than 150 acres along Paint Creek in southwest Ross County. There was also a large three-part burial mound associated with the earthworks later referred to as the Seip Conjoined Mound to avoid confusion. When first surveyed, Seip Mound measured 240’ x 130’ x 30’ and counted as one of the four or five largest Hopewell burial mounds ever built. Between 1925 and 1928 Henry Shetrone of the Ohio History Connection conducted excavations at Seip Mound, recovering over 100 burials and numerous funerary and other objects made of exotic materials. Shetrone also recovered series of “Great Pipes” that were uncharacteristic of Hopewell themes and designs and likely of southern origin. This strongly suggests at least cultural ties to contemporary groups below the Ohio River. During the 1970s investigations within the earthworks uncovered possible workshop and domestic locations indicating that overall the site was much more complex than first imagined. Originally a property of the Ohio History Connection, both Seip Mound and the associated earthworks are presently overseen by the National Park Service as part of the Hopewell Culture National Historic Park. It is also one of seven Ohio Hopewell Ceremonial Earthwork sites presently under consideration for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site by the United States Department of the Interior. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02740
Subjects: Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400) (A.D. 1–400); Archaeology--United States--History; Shetrone, H. C.; Seip Mound (Ross County, Ohio)
Places: Ross County (Ohio)
 

Description: This is a lithograph of an oil painting of Myaamia (Miami) leader Mi-A-Qu-A, published in "History of the Indian Tribes of North America" by Thomas Loraine McKenney and James Hall. Thomas Loraine McKenney (1785–1859) served as the U.S. Superintendent of Indian trade from 1816–1822 and superintendent of Indian affairs from 1824-1830. James Hall (1793–1868) was a lawyer, writer, and editor who lived in Cincinnati, Ohio from 1833 until his death in 1868. Their book was illustrated with portraits from the Indian gallery in the Department of War in Washington, D.C. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04513
Subjects: Myaamia Tribe (Miami); American Indian history; American Indians--Portraits; American Indian tribal leaders; American Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
Places: Washington D.C.