Ohio Archaeologist
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Vol. 5 Number 1 Ohio Archaeologist ! JANUARY-1955 OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY COLUMBUS, OHIO (Formerly Ohio Indian Relic Collectors Society) THREE MORE HARDSTONES by H. C. Wachtel . In our last issue of Ohio Archaeologst, Vol, 4, No, 4, October, I pictured the first of a series of the Hardstones, gorgets and pendants, in my collection. I may be imposing on the readers as they may not have the same appeal to you as they do to me. It is strange how some certain types of artifacts appeal to certain in dividuals. It may be because after acquiring a sizeable number of a certain type they take on a pertain allurement, just as the birdstones seem to have affected soniefriends of mine It may be because numbers seem to enhanse the type to one and when they strive to acquire more to fit into the pattern they find how scarce they are. At this very moment I stepped over to the case and brought out the three pieces you are looking at on the opposite page. I laid them over the pictures and they are exact size. B430 is a beautiful thing here in my hand, a purplish b!.acJc background with yellowish-white inclusions. A very odd piece of material. Strange as it may seem, I saw one this summer of the same strange material, as if they both came from the same mother boulder. 1 would have liked to lay it beside this one, but its price (and quite an inferior piece) was three times more than 1 figured this one was worth, so 1 just couldn't afford it, As you can see, this one is from Ashtabula County, Ohio, and was formerly in the Frank Burdett collection in Springfield, Ohio. 185 is a one hole pendant variety of later acquisition. It is a finely speckled black and white granitic stone. Yes, my finger-nail tells me it has the faint tally notches on the upper end. This formerly belonged to Dr. Stuhl man of Darke County, Ohio. B431 is a two hole gorget type. An exceptional type of material. It looks similar to marble, a faint yellowish tinge with very fine stripes of darker brown. Numerous faint pits below the surface, evidently of softer inclusions. As I hold it up to the light now, it is quite translucent. I believe it is a type of quartz. Dif ferent ones have handled this and guessed at the material. This is from a mound in Brown County, Ohio and was originally in the Frank Burdett collection, I think it is a fallacy to display only one piece as some museums do. Somehow, one single piece in a display is not nearly so attractive as a group and where one single piece seems to attract a casual glance a group seems to hit you. For instance, you look at a beautiful Flint Ridge dovetail, resplendent with only the colors that Flint Ridge produces, you read a caption accompanying same as is usually the case in a museum display and then by chance you visit a collector friend who will lay out a large tray of them, They are all beautiful, and each different, and the assembled group is a thing of beauty. Each one makes another more attractive. So it is with these "Hardstones" with me and birdstones with others. Since stating my personal opinion of only displaying a single piece or just a very few, I feel that at a later date I will be obliged to picture quite a large group in one picture in a future issue for you to see, I, also, like all collectors enjoy showing my collection to members or interested persons and I extend an invitation to you to help me enjoy looking them over. If you have any similar artifacts I would also appreciate looking them over. -1- CONTENTS Page Three More Hardstones by H. C. Wachtel 1 Contents and Meeting Dates for 1955 2 Officers 3 President's page - Dr. L. E. Hicks 4 Editorial page 5 Adair Letter 6 Stone Head - M. W. Hill 7 Warner Artifacts 8-9 The Pretsch Site - George A. Yates 10-13 Polished Slate Ax - R.Smith 14 Roving Reporter - H. C. Wachtel 15 Two Peculiar Pendants - Arthur G. Smith 16-17 Pestles - H. C. Wachtel 18-19 A Letter - Wm. Garvey, S. J. 20 Fort Ancient — A Poem 21 Policy Committee Report 22-23 Serpent Mound Meeting — B. E. Kelley 24 Exhibits Committee - Dr. L. E. Hicks 25 Membership Ivoster 26- ******** MEETING DATES FOR 195_5_ March 13,- 1955 - Ohio State Museum May 15, 1955 — Ohio State Museum June 19, 1955 — To be announced September 11, 1955 — Portsmouth, Ohio. November 13, 1955 — Ohio State Museum OFFICERS President Dr. Lawrence E. Hicks, 8 Chatham Rd., Columbus 14, Ohio Vice-Pres Mr. Robert M. Goslin, 316 Wilson Ave., Columbus 5, Ohio. Sec'y-Treas - Mr. Arthur George Smith, 65 N. Foster St., Norwalk, Ohio. Editor -Mr. H. C. Wachtel, 307 Elmhurst Rd., Dayton 7, Ohio. DIRECTORS Mr. Charles L. Kisling, 228 Oakland Ave., Washington C.H., Ohio. Mr. George C. Collins, 627 Snow Hill .ilvd., Springfield, Ohio. Mr. C. 3. Kruger, 1035.Superior Ave., Dayton 7, Ohio. Mrs. Vernon fiarrett, ;iox 304, Chillicothe, Ohio. Dr. Stanley G.Copeland, 1138 E. Whittier St., Columbus 6, Ohio. PUBLISHING COMMITTEE Dr. Gordon F. Meuser, 2248 Summit St{, Columbus, Ohio (Chairman) Mr. P. F. Mooney, Mount Sterling, Jhio. Mr. LaDow Johnston, 2001 Toledo Trust 31dg., Toledo 4, Ohio. Mr. B. E. Kelley, 138-140 S. Fayette St., Washington C.H., Ohio. Mr. H. C. Wachtel 307 Elmhurst ltd., Dayton 7, 9hio. Prof. William P. Holt, 319 S. Summit St., Bowling Green, Ohio. Mr. Donald McBeth, Route 1, Kingston, Ohio. Mr. Ernest L. Spoon, Route 2, Miamisburg, Ohio. vir. Robert E. Craver, 121 Mercer Ave., Wheatland, P.enn. PROGRAM COMMITTEE Mr. n. S. 3aby, Ohio State Museum (Advisory) Mr. Arthur G. Smith, 65 N. Foster St., Norwalk, Ohio (Chairman) Mr. LaDow Johnston, 2001 Toledo Trust Bldg., Toledo 4, Ohio. Mr. Lynn Munger, Route 3, Angola, Indiana Mr.Dwight Koon, Route 4, Elm Grove, W. Va. Mr. Frank C. Sharp, Kingston, Ohio. NEW NAME This is the first issue to appear under the name of the "OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOIETY", which was adopted at the last meeting of the "Ohio Indian Relic Collectors Society", November 14, 1954. The object and ideals of the Society will continue as in the past. There is no implication of an association with the Ohio Historical Society. J ***** Due credit should be given this publication and the author for any article or data copied and published by others. - 3 - THE PRESIDENTS PAGE by Lawrence E. Hicks Much water has gone over the dam since the last time. Our organization is growing up. It is a real challenge for each of us as individuals to grow along with it. We are now in corporated as a non-profit organization under the name,'/'OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIE TY", which is in keeping with the name "Ohio Archaeologist" which was long ago adopted for our official magazine. Most organizations tend to "go to seed" with the years as evidenced by the increase in the average age class of its members. To build a healthy permanent organization we need appropriate representation of all age classes in our membership. Particularly we need to build "from the bottom" by interesting boys in their teens in our hobby. That has recently been provided for. We now have a junior membership (with full privileges) but with dues at only half-price for students of 18 or less in age. Now it is up to us to devise programs which will attract and hold the younger age classes. The future value of our collections depends upon the appreciation which each succeeding generation develops of what they re present. J We have something to learn and something to give. Our program includes an intensive attempt to get more group participation in our meetings. While we're all ignorant about different things, we all have some tiny field of experience which should be shared with our fellow members. Our goal is to get at least 20 members to actively participate in some way in each meeting. We aim to make use of our own group talent in symposia or panel discuss ions, reports of finds made, techniques, meetings attended or current events from back home. We need many brief snappy reports from members. Let us know what you can contribute be fore we have to call upon you. Seeing is believing and to see is to learn. 2e'd like to have more to look at, examine and study at each meeting. This means just a bit of work for everyone. Don't come to a meeting without bringing something to show and share. We now have an Exhibits Committee responsible for setting the stage for the artifacts or other exhibit materials which we want you to bring to meetings. For the next meeting everyone has an assignment. If you are 18 ar-less we- want you ;tb.display your.entire collection. If you are over 18 we want you to bring in as many unfinished artifacts as you can locate which demonstrate the sequence or manner in which the pieces were made. MEMBERSHIP CAMPAIGN RESULTS During the first eleven months of 1954, thirty-nine members or our Society were responsible for obtaining 98 new members. We hope to reach our goal of a total membership of 500 early in 1955. From time to time we expect to give recognition to those obtaining new members by publishing the names of those responsible for them.