Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/50

 22 HISTORY OF GOODHUE COUNTY on the flats below are of the ordinary Sioux type. That the fort was built before the introduction of firearms seems very probable from the fact that rifle bullets can be dropped into it from surrounding hills, but in times when only bows, arrows and war clubs were in use the hill was almost impregnable. If the fort marks the site where the Iowas made a determined stand against the new invaders and later possessors of Goodhue county, then the spot is full of interest to the student of arch- a?ology, not only from the interesting fort "that is there, but also for the historical interest assoeiated with the fact that here the proud and dominant Sioux made a tight to gain possession of Minnesota territory. This, however, is conjecture, and the real history of the fortification may be far different. It is not always easy to read the story of silent stones and heaps of earth. The extreme northern part of Goodhue county, composed of Prairie Island in the town of Welch and Burnside. is also full of archaeological interest. The number of mounds and earth- works along Indian slough. Sturgeon lake. Buffalo slough and Cedar lake amounts to 260. One of the mounds near Indian slough is all of MOO feet long and has projections on it which look as though they were intended to represent the legs of some animal. The whole earthwork has a tadpole-like appearance. If this is an effigy mound, then Goodhue county possesses at least one of the remarkable class of mounds of which many beautiful illustrations can be seen in various parts of Wisconsin, for example. a1 Madison, where large bird, fox. bear and squirrel mounds can be seen along the lake shores. Across the river from Prairie Island are two more effigy mounds. They are two of a very remarkable group of 300 mounds, the Mero group. To see a more imposing group of mounds than is presented here in the short distance of a mile one would have to travel far. The land is fairly billowy with mounds and in many parts there would scarcely be room enough to build others of a size equal to the existing ones. Baby mounds and large mounds clot the surface everywhere. Those not familiar with the various kinds of mounds may gain an idea of their size from the following figures : An effigy mound lying in the open field was intended to picture some such animal as the wolf or lynx. The head is thirty-nine feet wide, the neck twenty-four feet, the body thirty- seven feet. The tail is forty-six feet long and twenty-two feet Avide at the base. The height of the body above the ground is four feet. The annual plowing and harrowing of the field undoubtedly decreased the height of this and other mounds. The beaver mound, which occurs on the northwest corner of the Mero group, lies close to the edge of the terrace facing the river. It is 190 feet long and is even more imposing than the