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STONEWATCH NEWSLETTER of the GUNGYWAMP SOCIETY
Written & Edited by the Board Members of the Gungywamp Society Vol. 22 ISSN 0892-1741 2005
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The Indian Ledge
Shelter
by Paulette J. Buchanan
with contributions from articles written
by Sharon Mason and the late David P.
Barron

Indian Ledge
Shelter. Photo by Steve Hart
The Indian ledge shelter in the northeast Gungywamp (on private property owned
by the Vogt family) was first discovered by Dave Barron in 1979.
Excavations at the site began in 1980.
The Indian ledge shelter is located on a slight hill up from the major stream that runs through the Gungywamp area. The ledge shelter is a natural cave feature at the bottom of a towering rock ledge, overlooking a rather appealing "water front" area that was ideal for fishing. As with many other streams in the area, the Gungywamp stream would have been a broader stream in centuries past, with far more volume of water running through it. Development in the area over the past two centuries has significantly reduced ground water, which has in turn reduced the volume of water running through above ground streams.
Excavations begun in 1980 uncovered roughly 95 centimeters of compacted soil before bedrock was uncovered and demonstrated that there was serial occupancy by Native Americans that spanned thousands of years. Within the compacted soil were found Indian artifacts which range in date from 1600 AD near the surface to artifacts dated at being 4,000 +/- years old at the lowest level of excavation.
The artifacts found at the 1200-1600 AD level (25 cm) consisted of Late
Woodland Iroquois-styled pottery, and cedar stakes most likely used to prop up
animal skins in front of the cave to provide additional shelter and living
space. Early

On the left, hammer stone with
carved notches for finger grips. Points (arrow heads) upper right.
Pottery sherds under points and to right of hammer stone. Photo by
Paulette J. Buchanan
Who Were the Native Americans In the
Gungywamp Area?
The Paleo Period
Archaeological evidence indicates that the Paleo Indians settled in
The Archaic Period
Between 4600 to 2000 BC -- the Archaic period -- Native Americans in the
The Transitional Period
The Transitional period crosses over from the Archaic to the Woodland Periods,
emerging roughly around 1000 BC. Most Indians of this time period
remained nomadic hunter-gatherers. The less nomadic Indian groups settled
along river and coastal areas and ate primarily seafood. Pottery
techniques and styles were developed in this period of time. Burial sites
indicate that elaborate rituals developed during this time period and became
more important to settled Indian groups. Many artifacts have been found
placed within grave sites, suggesting that the Native Americans in the
The
The
Pequot, Mohegan and other Indian tribes of the
The
Pequot and Mohegan tribes were originally one tribe which had migrated from the
In the Algonquin Indian language, "Pequot" comes from pekawatawog or pequttoog, meaning "destroyer." Algonquin dialects
are shared by the Mohegans, the Niantics, the Narragansetts, and the Montauks
and Shinnecocks on eastern
In 1620 the combined Pequot/Mohegan population had numbered roughly
6,000. During the winter of 1633-1634, the Pequots were decimated by a
small pox epidemic, and by the end of the Pequot War in 1637 the Pequots
numbered less than 1,500. Most of the captured Pequot warriors were
executed, but a number of surviving male Pequots were sold as slaves to
regional Indian tribes and to European plantations in the
References:
http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/palecol.html
http://www.tauntonriver.org/paleo.htm
http://www.garviespointmuseum.com/IAOLI.php
http://www.colonialwarsct.org/1637_pequot_history.htm
Repair of the Large
Chamber
The 2003-04 winter was a tough one, and parts of the stonework around the large
chamber's entrance had collapsed as a result of the harsh winter. Scott
and Paulette Buchanan and husband and wife Steve Hart and Hope Ball repaired
the entrance of the large chamber, and then enjoyed a wonderful afternoon in
the Gungywamp hiking, meeting up with other hikers, and touring the various
archaeological sites. Many thanks go to Steve and Hope for the great
photographs and for their help with the repair work!

Photos by Steve Hart