October 22, 1961 was a fine autumn day in Licking County, Ohio. Doctor Sydney White's graduate class in glacial geomorphology from Ohio State University had spent the morning doing rock-count studies to determine the boundaries of Illinoian and Wisconsin glacial advances in eastern Ohio. When our bus stopped near an exposure of Blackhand Sandstone, below the Logan and Pottsville formations and above the Cuyahoga Shale, we rushed to the base of a massive sandstone cliff. Near an ancient overhang shelter my rock-counting pardner picked up an Archaic, single notch arrowhead. It was very thick and not particularly beautiful, but it was obviously made of Flint Ridge Flint. I searched diligently but failed to turn up anything. Good Buckeye and collector though he was; my friend insisted on giving his find of the day to me. This of course only whetted my desire for some of the large, beautifully knapped spear points sometimes found along Ohio and Mississippi river valleys.
Blankhand Gorge
of the Licking River
Single-notched Archaic Point
Made from Flint Ridge Flint
found near an Overhand Shelter
at the Blankhand Gorge
From the overhang we continued to explore the gorge. The first thing that struck me was, the water seemed to be flowing up hill. Professor White informed us that the optical illusion in this sector of the Licking River, like many tributaries of the ancient Teays River System in Ohio, once flowed to the northwest; but Pleistocene Glaciers, thousands of feet thick, had forced the Licking and parallel streams to reverse their flow toward the east.
The ancient Teays River once headed on the eastern flank of the Blue Ridge in what is today North Carolina. That was thought to be 350 million years ago when North America was part of the super continent, Pangaea. Some 60 million years ago while the Appalachians were in one of their periods of uplift, the antecedent Teays was able to cut down fast enough to maintain its existing course. During the Devonian it may have at times emptied into the shallow sea occupying the Mississippi Basin. In later periods it appeared to have flowed northwest across Ohio into north central Indiana before swinging southwest across Illinois to enter the Mississippi River opposite the site of present St. Louis. Then as now the upper Teays followed the existing valleys of the New and Kanawha Rivers out of North Carolina, across the neck of Virginia and the width of West Virginia. From that point on, its valleys through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois were blocked by Pleistocene Glaciation and subsequently filled with moraine and glacial out wash deposited as the continental ice retreated. The New River, which was actually the upper Teays, is often claimed to be the second oldest river in the world.
Teays and Ohio River Systems on a Regional Map
Where the Ancient Teays River Crossed Ohio
A lasting change came with the cutting of a new stream valley by the Ohio River which is a very young stream by geological standards. The Ohio River has been in place less than a million years, compared with the Teays which is almost certainly more than 60 million years old, but could be as much as 350 million. Pleistocene glaciation forced the development of the new erosional valley parallel to the front of continental ice advancing from the northwest across Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. It is uncertain which glacial advance first blocked the westward flow of the Teays and its tributaries in Ohio. Many geologists think it was the Kansan Advance or earlier. That would mean 600 to 700 thousand years ago.
The Licking River as a West Flowing Tributary
of the Pre-Pleistocene Teays River System
Terminal Positions of Illinoian and Wisconsin
Glacial Advances, Showing the Reversed Flow
of the Licking and Hocking Rivers Which are
Now Tributaries of the Newer Ohio River
The Teays originally flowed directly across the area that would later become the Ohio River Valley. The cross point is where the Kanawha now becomes tributary to the Ohio--Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The Scioto River, a south-flowing tributary of the younger Ohio System, flows above the ancient bed of the Teays, deeply buried under layers of glacial moraine and out wash near the city of Chillicothe. The present master stream generally follows a southwesterly course, diverging strongly from the northwesterly run of the Teays, before it discharged into the Mississippi nearly two hundred miles down stream from where the Teays once entered. The lower Ohio generally follows the southern edge of Pleistocene glaciation in North America. This new channel was maintained, even after the retreat of continental ice because of thick layers of glacial deposition left behind by the melting ice.
For the Licking River, the advance of continental ice, probably a mile thick, forced a complete reversal of stream flow which cut a gorge eastward through the interfluve of highly resistant sandstone. At its deepest point the Blackhand Gorge was cut down three hundred and twenty feet vertically.
The river itself was named for adjacent salt licks used by game animals, especially deer. These were also a source of salt for native tribes as well as European settlers, long after Licking River was forced to reverse its course toward the east,
There is evidence that Archaic precursors of the Mound Builders may have occupied the Licking Valley as early as 10,000 years ago, but the Adena Phase (Pioneer Mound Builders) was taking form only 3,000 years ago. The Adena were overlapped by the later Hopewell People who would come to dominate the Midwest until 1400 A D. The 1,254 foot long Great Serpent Mound, near Cincinnati, was built by the Adena. The Newark Mounds near the Licking River were somewhat later and built by the Hopewell. The later Hopewell had driven a wedge into Adena territory and were gradually forcing them outward.
The Great Serpent Mound Built by the Adena Near the Site of Cincinnati
The Newark Mound Group Shown on a 1946 Topographic Sheet
Without getting into the argument about the difference between flint and chert; let me just say that hard Flint Ridge material is among the best knapping stones in the world. It had the additional benefit of unusual color combinations. It is sometimes called "Rainbow Flint." The intensity and contrast of colors are usually enhanced by heat treatment, so in the modern context, Rainbow Flint usually means heat treated.
Roy Miller, Dean of American Flint Knappers, Holds a Frame of Dovetail Points
He Created from Flint Ridge, Rainbow Flint. Thanks Roy.
On that October day long ago, we continued on into the gorge. My rock counting friend was well versed in the history and traditions of the Blackhand. The name of the gorge and the geologic formation were both derived from ancient Indian rock art. Oral tradition tells us that a large black hand was once painted on a cliff of sandstone. The hand pointed out the trail to Flint Ridge. It was also said to warn all comers that this was neutral ground and like the pipe stone quarries in Minnesota no fighting would be allowed. My friend then showed us a spot on the cliff face that was obviously disturbed more recently than the Pleistocene down cut of the gorge itself. This is where the Blackhand Petroglyph was probably found prior to blasting during construction of the Ohio-Erie Canal Towpath in 1828. We could still see remnants of the tow path as well as ruins of a few lock structures that once lifted boat commerce around the schoals and rapids of the actively down cutting stream, but the "Blackhand" is gone forever.
Tow Path for the Ohio-Erie Canal
Gorge and Flint Ridge may have been prolific traders, but they were not adverse to war and developed some of the best lithic weapons known to prehistoric North America. Unlike pipe stone which had an intrinsic value based almost entirely upon aesthetic appeal; Blackhand Flint had a pragmatic internal worth--it made excellent weapons and tools. Picture a Hopewell Corner Notched Spear Point hafted on a short stock of hickory, you have fine cutting tool or a formidable defence weapon. Haft one on a long shaft and voila it is an excellent hunting or offensive weapon, being either a slicing or a stabbing blade. By contrast the Hopewell Lost Lake Point is more of a stabbing weapon, but still highly suitable for hunting as well as offensive combat.
Indian Mounds at Newark, Ohio. The Group at Left Became a Golf Course
in 1907. Great Circle Mound (E) was Part of the County Fairgrounds. Such
Usage Helped the Ohio Historical Society in Preserving the Area.
Sacred Pipestone Fetish
of a Shaman in Bear Skin
from Newark Mounds
A Stubby, Platform Pipe of
Sacred Pipe Stone
Large Hopewell Speat Points
I was a collector of arrowheads and spear points long before hearing of Mound Builders, Blackhand Gorge or Flint Ridge. Hopefully you will forgive me when I stretch a point to say that my interest in exotic weapons was triggered by my love for ancient lithic arrowheads. I was probably not more than five years old when I picked up my first arrowhead fragment. But it was my grandmothers display cabinet that held the real fascination, a small lead tray containing arrowheads and other artifacts. I bugged her so long that in desperation she gave me the whole bunch. That was the root of my problem, I had become an inveterate collector.
My collection area was at that time limited to the southern part of the Cibola Branch of the Anasazi. The Cibola Culture was so dependent upon maize horticulture that hunting was of minor importance. Flint knapping had largely regressed to small, thin points which required less skill than large Hopewell types. Even so, many of these were aesthetically pleasing and a large portion seemed to have been devoted to fetish ceremonialism.
Cibola Branch of the Anasazi ca 1100 to 1300 A D
Paleo Spear Points Dating Between 7000 and 9000 B C
More recent points were commonly found on or near ancient pueblo sites and were assumed to date from a comparable time frame. Other were found in more general provenience's and were assumed to be hunting points. Such was the case with the points shown below. They came from a wooded area of our ranch that provided suitable habitat for game, but was not near any cultural site.
A Cibola Hunting Arrowhead ca 1100 to 1300 A D
A One Inch Cibola Hunting Point
Made from White Quartz
Frame of Obsidian Points
Most Were Used in a Fetish Context Except
for the Broad Hunting Points at the Center
Time 900 to 1400 A D
So Called "Bird Points"
ca 1100 to 1300 A D
Grandma's Arrowhead
Within the group of artifacts from my grandmother's display cabinet, was a sturdy, corner-notched job. For several reasons it is my favorite from all I have collected, but only one reason will be considered here--it is atypical of Cibola points. It looks as though it might have been created by a Hopewell Knapper, yet Grandma found it on the banks of Coyote Wash some 1,650 miles from the Blackhand Gorge or Flint Ridge. Unfortunately arrowhead taxonomy is highly fallible and its taxons, unlike those of ceramic technology, are of limited use in archaeology reconstructs. At some future date I may create a blog dealing with taxonomy and scientific knowledge. (next post 2-1-2011)
