File:Indians of Manhattan Island and vicinity - (1921) (14761757936).jpg

Identifier: indiansofmanhatt00skin_0 (find matches)
Title: Indians of Manhattan Island and vicinity /
Year: 1921 (1920s)
Authors: Skinner, Alanson, 1886-1925.
Subjects: Manhattan Indians Indians of North America
Publisher: (New York) : American Museum of Natural History
Contributing Library: Columbia University Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: The Durst Organization

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
s four feel deep bythree feet wide. It is supposed that they were used as ovens or steam-ing holes and afterwards filled up with refuse. Some contain humanskeletons, which may have been interred in them dining the winter seasonwhen grave digging was impossible. These pits generally contain more ofinterest than the ordinary shell-heap. The closely packed regular masses 16 AMERICAN MUSEUM GUIDE LEAFLETS of shells form a covering which tends to preserve bone implements,charred corn, and such perishable articles from decay in a way that thelooser shells of the general layers fail to do. Shell-heaps, while abundant along the seacoast, are seldom foundinland, except on salt creeks or other streams having access to salt water.They may be seen all along the east shore of the Hudson River at moreor less frequent intervals as far up as Peekskill; on Croton Point andbetween Nyack and Hook Mountain on the west shore they attain con-siderable size. There are a few small deposits, however, composed
Text Appearing After Image:
MAP GIVING THE LOCATIONS OF SHELL DEPOSITS Those marked + have been explored by the Museum mainly of fresh water clams (Unio) situated on fresh water lakes in theinterior of Westchester County. There are many shell-heaps on StatenIsland. Shell-heaps occur or did occur on Constable Hook, New Jersey,and at intervals between there and Jersey City along the western shoreof New York Bay. The accompanying map gives the location of theimportant known shell deposits in the vicinity of New York City. INDIANS OF MANHATTAN ISLAND 17 Besides the shell-heaps, the ancient cemeteries of the Indian- holdmuch of interest to the archaeologist. Although most of the natives in the vicinity of Greater New Yorkdid not place objects in t he graves with t heir dead, some graves at BurialRidge, Tottenville, Staten Island, when opened for the Museum in189.), were found to contain a great many interesting and valuable re-mains. With the skeleton of a child t here was a great deposit of utensils,both finished an

Note About Images