Schurr, Mark R. (Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Indiana University,
Bloomington)
FROM MASTODONS TO MONGOQUINONG: THE LAGRANGE COUNTY SURVEY
During the summer of 1990, a field crew from the Glenn A. Black Laboratory of
Archaeology, Indiana University conducted a reconnaissance survey of LaGrange
(County, Indiana. This project was supported by a grant from the Indiana Department
of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. Field
surveys, records reviews, and interviews with county residents were used to identify
the locations and characteristics of prehistoric and historic archaeological sites
in LaGrange County.
Very little was known about the archaeology of LaGrange County prior to this survey,
and only twelve site locations had been reported from the county. Historical accounts
indicated that many small mounds and mound groups once existed in the county and
that a circular enclosure once stood in Springfield Township. Local residents
have been an important source of knowledge about the cultural history of LaGrange
County. In the case of the present work, we are especially grateful to Scott McKibben,
Melvin Bricker, Robert Hall, and Dennis Ryan for their information and assistance.
LaGrange County lies within the Steuben Lake and Moraine Physiographic Zone and
the topography of the county was heavily influenced by glacial forces. Extinct
fauna, such as the mastodon, once occupied the region, as shown by the mastodon
skull found during ditching operations in the late 19th century. This skull is
now on display at the LaGrange County Historical Society Museum. The presence
of Clovis points and other Late Paleoindian artifacts in collections from the
county indicate the first human occupants of the county may have been contemporary
with the last of the mastodons in the area. From the Archaic period through the
Woodland, it appears the region was a "cultural interface" between two basically
distinct prehistoric traditions of the Midcontinent and of the Northeast, and
that there were alternating periods of dominance for these major regional traditions
in northeastern Indiana.
Late Archaic occupations show clear affiliations with the Archaic occupations
of the Northeast, and are represented by projectile point types such as Lamoka
and Brewerton Comer Notched. These northeastern affiliations continue into the
Terminal Archaic, and forms like the Susquehanna Broad points and Meadowood points
are very common.
The prehistory of the region becomes very interesting at the transition between
the Late Archaic and the Early Woodland. Prior to this time (before 1500 BC) the
materials from the area indicate general affiliations with the Northeast. The
Late Archaic to Early Woodland transition is marked by the appearance of Turkey-
tails and later by Adena points. Continuity of lithic resources are shown throughout
this time period by the use of Wyandotte Chen (from Harrison County, Indiana)
exclusively for the manufacture of the Turkey-tails, but often for Adena points
as well. This shift from a Northeastem orientation to more of a Midcontinental
one continues into the Middle Woodland period (after 200 BC) when Snyders points
were manufactured.
This trend is also reflected in prehistoric pottery from the region. The sherds
shown in Figure 5 are very similar to
the pottery type Neteler Stamped which was first described from sites in the Illinois
River Valley. This ceramic type is diagnostic of early Hopewellian occupations
in Illinois. Contemporary and affiliated Hopewellian occupations in northwestern
Indiana and southwestern lower Michigan have been assigned to the Goodall focus,
complex, or phase. Havana or Goodall type materials are widespread in southern
Michigan and have been reported as far east as Saginaw Bay, where they are represented
by Tittawabassee ware at the Schultz site. This is the first report of similar
materials from northeastern Indiana, and they provide the first evidence for the
cultural affiliation of the peoples who built the small mounds in the region.
In fact, we may be ready to define an entity called the "Mongo Complex," which
is characterized by Snyders points; relatively thick grit-tempered pottery with
crescent or dentate stamping, cordmarked surfaces, notched rims, or interior nodes;
ceramic varieties similar to materials described as Neteler Stamped or Titawabbassee
ware; typical Hopewellian artifacts such as lamellar blades and cut mica; the
construction of relatively small mounds or groups of burial mounds; and site locations
adjacent to swamps. The "Mongo Complex," as I have described it here, is an early
Hopewellian occupation that is closely related to the earlier end of the Goodall
focus occupations. It probably can be assigned dates between 150 BC and AD 1.
During the Late Woodland period (after AD 500), we see another shift in cultural
orientation; prehistoric occupations once again are most closely affiliated with
those of the Northeast. Point types include not only the widespread Jack's Reef
and Madison forms, but also Levanna type points as well. Pottery clearly is affiliated
with Late Woodland occupations of eastern Michigan and the Westem Basin of Lake
Erie. Late Woodland sherds from LaGrange County have attributes that are similar
to ceramics from Younge tradition sites in the Westem Basin region of Lake Erie
that date from about AD 500 to AD 1300.
The last American Indian occupants of LaGrange County were the Potawatomi. Their
largest village in the county was called Mongoquinong and was located near the
present town of Howe. The 1882 history of the county asserts that the village
once had several thousand inhabitants, and this figure, along with the translation
of Mongoquinong as "Old Squaw Prairie," are common elements in local folklore
and informal local histories. The 1882 county history also reports that the village
stood at the intersection of several trails and that an orchard and corn hills
were still visible there in 1882. Tipton depicted the village of Mongoquinong
in his 1824 map of the Ft. Wayne Indian agency and licensed the establishment
of a trading post there. The population in 1824 was given as 120.
The field survey data, which were drawn primarily from outwash landforms, were
used to estimate the density and distribution of archaeological sites. Twenty-nine
separate parcels, ranging in area from 2 to 42 acres, were examined. The overall
site density in this sample was 2 sites/10 acres, twice what was expected. Regions
of high site density invariably were located on sandy soils adjacent to river
channels with swamps or lakes close at hand. [return to 1990 abstracts menu][continue to next]