191-2: Accounts of Giants in US Newspapers (Part 2)

This is in four weekly parts.

1. Pre- 1870

2. 1870 - 1890

3. 1891 - 1910

4. 1911- 1922

Those that come from primary sources are marked with a star (*)

1870

OHIO DEMOCRAT, JANUARY 14, 1870 CARDIFF GIANT UNDONE WITH AN ENORMOUS IRON HELMET On Tuesday morning last, while Mr. William Thompson, assisted by Mr. Robert R. Smith, was engaged in making an excavation near the house of the former, about half a mile north of West Hickory, preparatory to erecting a derrick, they exhumed an enormous helmet of iron, which was corroded with rust. Further digging brought to light a sword, which measured nine feet in length. Curiosity incited them to enlarge the hole, and after some little time they discovered the bones of two enormous feet. Following up the “lead” they had so unexpectedly struck, in a few hours’ time they had unearthed the well-preserved remains of an enormous giant, belonging to a species of the human family, which probably inhabited this and other parts of the world, at the time of which the Bible speaks when it says: “And there were giants in those days.” The helmet is said to be of the shape of those among the ruins of Nineveh. The bones of the skeleton are a remarkable white. The teeth are all in their places and all of extraordinary size. These relics have been taken to Tionesta where they are visited by large numbers of people daily. When his “giantship” was in the flesh he must have stood eighteen feet tall in his stockings. These remarkable relics will be shipped to New York early next week. The joints of the skeleton are now being glued together. These remains were found about twelve feet under the surface of a mound, which had been thrown up probably centuries ago, and which was not more than three feet above the level of the ground around it.

* BROADSIDE ADVERTISEMENT PUBLISHED AT SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY, AUGUST 10, 1870

$5000 REWARD! ___________________

$5,000 Reward for a piece of the same material as the Cardiff Giant. We make the above offer to any man, as we know there is nothing of any kind in the country. Again, we will give every Visitor ONE DOLLAR when, after a careful examination believes the Cardiff Giant to be a Humbug. C. O. GOTT. Business Manager.

____________________ Phila. Street, near Post Office. ____________________

Below will be found an interesting letter from Prof. Wilson, of Saratoga Springs: SARATOGA SPRINGS, AUG. 6, 1870 DEAR SIR:—I have visited the “Cardiff Giant” several times, and examined it carefully, both by daylight and by gaslight, and am free to confess, that to me the monster stone man is a mystery. If it is a veritable work of art, I cannot understand why any sculptor, possessing the skill to produce so perfect a specimen of statuary, could have consented to place his subject in such an unartistical grotesque position. Again, I cannot understand how, by any known art, the whole surface of the body could possibly be made to exhibit so perfectly the perspiratory and oil tubes, visible in all parts, not only to the naked eye, but specially so under a microscope. Again, if it is a veritable work of art, and as some claim, a very recent one, I defy any man to show how the abrasion of the limbs, on one side, manifestly produced by the action of the elements, could possibly be imitated by artificial means. That it is a humbug, an imposition, I cannot stultify myself sufficiently to believe. If it is a petrifaction, as some honestly think, to what race did the monster belong? I leave the old fellow, as thousands have, with the question of an inquirer, “What is it?” H. A. WILSON. Saratoga Springs, Aug. 10th, 1870. [Note: Hiram A. Wilson (1812-1893) was an educator, Christian missionary, and secretary of the Saratoga County Bible Society known for his Christian piety.--J.C.]

* MEMPHIS DAILY APPEAL, AUGUST 28, 1870 CHICKASAWBA REMAINS OF GIANTS FOUND IN ARKANSAS HUMAN SKELETONS UNEARTHED EIGHT AND TEN FEET IN HEIGHT RELICS OF A FORMER RACE. The statements which we make below, and the facts detailed, are so strange and almost incredible, and so like the many roorbacks and canards that have from time to time appeared in the press of Europe and America, that we premise them with the declaration that they are strictly true, and that we have not exaggerated what we have seen, one iota. With this much as preface, we will proceed to our story. CHICASAWBA Two miles west of Barfield Point, in Arkansas County, Ark., on the east bank of the lovely stream called Pemiscot river, stands an Indian mound, some twenty-five feet high and about an acre in area at the top. This mound is called Chichasawba, and from it the high and beautiful country surrounding it, some 12 square miles in area, derives its name—Chchasawba. The mound derives its name from Chickasawba, a chief of the Shawnee tribe, who lived, died, and was buried there. This chief was one of the last race of hunters who lived in that beautiful region and who once peopled it quite thickly—for Indians, we mean. [...] Aunt Kitty Williams, who now resides there, relates that Chickasawba would frequently bring in for sale as much as twenty gallons of pure honey in deerskins bags slung to his back. He was always a friend to the whites, a man of gigantic stature and herculean strength. [...] A number of years ago, making an excavation into or near the foot of Chickasawba’s mound, a portion of a GIGANTIC HUMAN SKELETON was found. The men who were digging, becoming interested, unearthed the entire skeleton and from measurements given us by reliable parties the frame of the man to whom it belonged could not have been less than eight or nine feet in height. Under the skull, which slipped easily over the head of our informant (who, we will here state, is one of our best citizens), was found a peculiarly shaped earthen jar, resembling nothing in the way of Indian pottery, which has before been seen by them. It was exactly the shape of the round-bodied, long necked carafes or water-decanters, a specimen of which may be seen on Gaston’s dining table. The material of which the vase was made was a peculiar kind of clay and the workmanship was very fine. The belly or body of it was ornamented with figures or hieroglyphs consisting of a correct delineation of human hands, parallel to each other, open, palms outward, and running up and down the vase, the wrists to the base and the fingers toward the neck. On either side of these hands were tibae or thigh bones, also correctly delineated, running around the vases. There were other things found with the skeleton, but this is all that our informant remembers. Since that time, wherever an excavation has been made in the Chickasawba county in the neighborhood of the mound SIMILAR SKELETONS have been found and under the skull of every one were found similar funeral vases, almost exactly like the one described. There are now in this city several of the vases and portions of the huge skeletons. One of the editors of the Appeal yesterday measured a thigh bone, which is fully three feet long. The thigh and shin bones, together with the bones of the foot, stood up in a proper position in a physician’s office in this city, measured five feet in height and show the body to which the leg belonged to have been from nine to ten feet in height. At Beaufort’s Landing, near Barfield, in digging a deep ditch, a skeleton was dug up: the leg of which measured between five and six feet in length, and other bones in proportion. In a very few days we hope to be able to lay before our readers accurate measurement and descriptions of the portions of skeletons now in the city and of the artifacts found in the graves. It is not a matter of doubt that these are HUMAN REMAINS, but of a long extinct race—a race which flourished, lived, and died many centuries ago, in those days told of in Scripture. (“And there were Giants in those days.”) It was Sir Hans Sloan, we believe, who first put forth the theory that the gigantic bones found in various parts of the old worlds were not human remains, this so ill according with the popular ideas and superstitions about giants, was considered the rankest sort of heresy at the time; but Cuvier, the great anatomist, proved them, in almost every instance, to be portions of the fossils of mammoths, megatheriums, mastodons, etc. The bones that he examined, however, were those of such apocryphal skeletons as that found in Sicily in the early part of the eighteenth century, three hundred feet long, of “Bucart,” found at Valence in 1705, thirty feet high, of the “chevalier Rinson,” found at Rouen in 1509. Within the past century there have been numerous well-attested instances of giants over eight feet in height. […] With these individual instances before us, and knowing the enormous size of almost the entire population of portions of Kentucky, we do not need to be disciples of Henrion, the French academician (who believed Adam was one hundred and twenty-live feet high, Noah twenty-seven feet, Moses twenty feet, and so on down to the era of Christ when the decrease stopped) to be convinced that the race of aboriginal men who built the large mounds in various parts of the country were of gigantic frame and enormous stature.

1871-1880

TORONTO, ONTARIO, DAILY TELEGRAPH, AUGUST 23, 1871 GIANT SKULLS WITH PERFECT TEETH Dunnville, Ontario: There is not the slightest doubt that the remains of a lost city are on this farm. At various times within the past years, the remains of mud houses with their chimneys had been found and there are dozens of pits of a similar kind to that just unearthed, though much smaller, in the place which has been discovered before, though the fact has not been made public hitherto. The remains of a blacksmith’s shop, containing two tons of charcoal and various implements, were turned up a few months ago. The farm, which consists of 150 acres, has been cultivated for nearly a century and was covered with a thick growth of pine, so that it must have been ages ago since the remains were deposited there. The skulls of the skeletons are of an enormous size and all manner of shapes, about half as large again as are now to be seen. The teeth in most of them are still in an almost perfect state of preservation, though they soon fall out when exposed to the air. It is supposed that there is gold or silver in large quantities to be found in the premises, as mineral rods have invariably, when tested, pointed to a certain spot and a few yards from where the last batch of skeletons was found directly under the apple tree. Some large shells, supposed to have been used for holding water, which were also found in the pit, were almost petrified. There is no doubt that if there is a scheme of exploration carried on thoroughly, the result would be highly interesting. A good deal of excitement exists in the neighborhood, and many visitors call at the farm daily. The skulls and bones of the giants are fast disappearing, being taken away by curiosity hunters. It is the intention of Mr. Fredinburg to cover the pit up very soon. The pit is ghastly in the extreme. The farm is skirted on the north by the Grand River. The pit is close to the banks, but marks are there to show where the gold or silver treasure is supposed to be under. From the appearance of the skulls, it would seem that their possessors died a violent death, as many of them were broken and dented. The axes are shaped like tomahawks, small, but keen, instruments. The beads are all of stone and of all sizes and shapes. The pipes are not unlike in shape the cutty pipe, and several of them are engraved with dogs’ heads. They have not lost their virtue for smoking. Some people profess to believe that the locality of the Fredinburg farm was formerly an Indian burial place, but the enormous stature of the skeletons and the fact that pine trees of centuries growth covered the spot go far to disprove this idea.

TORONTO, ONTARIO, DAILY TELEGRAPH, AUGUST 23, 1871 NIAGARA’S ANCIENT CEMETERY OF GIANTS A REMARKABLE SIGHT: TWO HUNDRED SKELETONS IN CAYUGA TOWNSHIP A SINGULAR DISCOVERY BY A TORONTONIAN AND OTHERS—A VAST GOLGOTHA OPENED TO VIEW—SOME REMAINS OF THE "GIANTS THAT WERE IN THOSE DAYS” FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS. On Wednesday last, Rev. Nathaniel Wardell, Messers Orin Wardell (of Toronto), and Daniel Fredenburg were digging on the farm of the latter gentleman, which is on the banks of the Grand River, in the township of Cayuga. When they got to five or six feet below the surface, a strange sight met them. Piled in layers, one upon top of the other, were some two hundred skeletons of human beings nearly perfect: around the neck of each one being a string of beads. There were also deposited in this pit a number of axes and skimmers made of stone. In the jaws of several of the skeletons were large stone pipes, one of which Mr. O. Wardell took with him to Toronto a day or two after this Golgotha was unearthed. These skeletons are those of men of gigantic stature, some of them measuring nine feet, very few of them being less than seven feet. Some of the thigh bones were found to be at least a foot longer than those at present known, and one of the skulls being examined completely covered the head of an ordinary person. These skeletons are supposed to belong to those of a race of people anterior to the Indians. Some three years ago, the bones of a mastodon were found embedded in the earth about six miles from this spot. The pit and its ghastly occupants are now open to the view of any who may wish to make a visit there.

* RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, DAILY STATE JOURNAL, SEPTEMBER 6, 1871 WONDERFUL DISCOVERIES A Cave of Dead Indians MAMMOTH REMAINS We copy the following wonderful story from the Petersburg Index of this morning, and but for the reliable source from which it eminates, and the character of its informers, we would be disposed to doubt its truthfulness:

The following information is given us by gentlemen of the highest character and credit, who have seen with their own eyes, touched and tested with their own hands, the wonderful objects of which they make report: The workmen engaged in opening a way for the projected railroad between Weldon and Garysburg, struck Monday, about one mile from the former place, in a bank beside the river, a catacomb of skeletons, supposed to be those of Indians of a remote age and a lost and forgotten race. The bodies exhumed were of a strange and remarkable formation. The skulls were nearly an inch in thickness: the teeth were filed sharp, as are those of cannibals, the enamel perfectly preserved; the bones were of wonderful length and strength—the femur being as long as the leg of an ordinary man, the stature of the body being probably as great as eight or nine feet. Near their heads were sharp stone arrows, stone mortars, in which their corn was brayed, and the bowls of pipes, apparently of soft, friable soapstone. The teeth of the skeletons are said to be as large as those of horses. One of them has been brought to the city, and presented to the officers of the Petersburg Railroad. The bodies were found closely packed together, laid tier on tier, as it seemed. There was no discernible ingress or egress to the mound. The mystery is, who these giants were; to what race they belonged, to what era, and how they came to be buried there. To these inquiries no answer has yet been made; and meantime the ruthless spade continues to cleave body and skull asunder, throwing up in mingled masses the boner of the heroic tribe. We hope some effort will be made to preserve authentic and accurate accounts of these discoveries; and to throw some light, if possible, on the lost tribe, whose bones arc thus rudely disturbed from their sleep in earth's bosom. [Note: This story was widely reprinted as a “new” story through the 1870s, but some details changed over time. The Petersburg Railroad appears as the Pittsburgh Railroad in 1874 reprints, for example.--J.C.]

HARTFORD, TENNESSEE WEEKLY TIMES, MARCH 30, 1872 RACE OF GIANTS FOUND IN UNDERGROUND TOMB UNDER “OLD STONE FORT” IN TENNESSEE Near this city is a cave commonly known as “Bone Cave,” from which have been brought, at various times, by boys and other persons who have tried to explore its hidden recesses, human bones of unusual size. The popular legends of the people are to the effect that it is somewhat connected with the people or race which created the “Old Stone Fort,” which stands a short distance to the west of the town. A few days since some boys discovered an almost entire skeleton of mammoth size. The bones of the forearm were nearly twenty inches long, while the bone of the lower part of the leg was longer than an ordinary man's limb, foot and all. The jawbone of this giant would slip over the face of an ordinary man. Stimulated by these discoveries and a laudable desire to learn the secrets of this mysterious cavern, on last Thursday six gentlemen, including the editors of this paper, made this necessary preparation and started out to explore the “bone cave.” After an exhilarating walk of two miles through a clear bracing air, we reached the entrance of the cave, where divesting ourselves of our overcoats and lighting our torches, we entered one of the many passages, but after a short scramble we found further advance stopped by large pieces of rock that had fallen and blocked up the passage. Soon other members of the party came down and explorations commenced. We found ourselves in a vaulted chamber about twenty-five feet wide by sixty long, with passages leading in every direction. Following one, we rambled on for forty or fifty feet and then there appeared one of the most beautiful lakes we have ever seen. The water was clear and sweet and the ceiling over the water, studded with stalactites, reflected back the light from our torches like gems. We had no means of ascertaining the size of the lake, for the banks were perpendicular and it seemed like a pearl set in a bed of rocks. Another passage which was explored by B. F. Fleming was found to extend in a direct line toward the “Old Stone Fort.” This passage followed for a distance of nearly two hundred feet, when further progress was stopped by the passage being filled up with debris. This passage looks as if it had been cut from the solid rock by the hand of man and gives rise to the hypothesis that at some time, far back in the dark ages, this cave a used by a race of men—giants if you like—that built this stone fort and the mounds and that this underground passage led from the fort to the cave, a mile distant. After a good look at this part of the cave, we returned to daylight, having been underground three hours and traversing over a mile inside the cave. After partaking of a lunch sent us by a very hospitable lady whose name we have mislaid—but not her kindness—we had a short search in the tunnel known as the “Dead House.” Here we found many bones but all in a state of decomposition and decay. This tunnel or chamber is coated with a soft, loose soil to a depth of a foot or more, into which one can plunge a stick with perfect ease, while all the rest of the cave is solid rock.

EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN, DAILY FREE PRESS, OCTOBER 7, 1873 RAILROAD WORKERS UNEARTH GIANT AN INDIAN MOUND OPENED A few days ago the men engaged in building the road bed of the Green Bay and Winona railroad, struck an Indian mound near Arcadia. It had been in view for some days, and no little speculation was indulged in as to what the excavation would develop from this cemetery of the red man. The discovery exceeded all anticipations. The skeleton of an Indian was found of such dimensions as to indicate that the frame must have been that of a giant. The jaw bone easily enclosed the face of the largest laborer to be found on the work. The thigh bones were more like those of a horse than a man, hair heavy and remarkably well-preserved. Pieces of blanket in which the body had been wrapped were taken out in a tolerable state of preservation. A number of Mexican coins were also found. The unusual size of the skeleton has excited considerable interest, and the curiosities will be carefully preserved for exhibition.

* MIDDLESEX, UK, CENTRAL PRESS, NOVEMBER 26, 1873 MONSTROUS! Some interesting discoveries have just been made in a cave called, “King Solomon’s Cave”, Montana, United States, and an account of them is given by a correspondent of the Deer Lodge Independent who formed one of a party of explorers of the cave in question. After crawling through several narrow passages into a “most magnificent chamber”, the attention of the explorers was attracted by a massive shield made of copper 57 inches in length and 36 inches in width leaning against the wall; about 10 feet beyond the shield, and eight feet from the floor, was a cavity in the wall. One of the party by the aid of some stones, climbed up to the aperture with a light but quickly descended in such a state of alarm that he was for some moments unable to explain that in the niche lay a petrified giant. The other explorers immediately climbed up to the aperture and gazed in. There, sure enough, was the monster man, whose dimensions on measurement were 9 feet 7 and a half inches, 38 inches across the breast and two feet deep. A helmet of brass or copper of gigantic proportions was on his head which, “the corrosive elements of time had sealed to his brow”. He seems to have been a “disagreeable customer”, and it is perhaps as well that he is dead and petrified, for near him were two mammoth spearheads, one of them with a socket of silver, into which to insert a large pole or handle. There was also a large hook made of bone, apparently manufactured from the tusk of a “leviathan of the land”. On the wall were some strange looking letters and pictures of three ships, each having three masts, the middle mast being only two thirds the height of the outward ones. There was also on a flat stone in the wall the picture of a large man with a spear in his hand, and of another ship. On removing this stone, another chamber was discovered, in which were the bones of several more giants, a primitive quartz crusher, and a number of tools made of copper. It is supposed that these poor giants were at work a thousand years ago in the cave when a slide from the mountain above immured them in a living tomb. The search is to be further prosecuted; and in the meantime the explorers are described as “almost wild with the strange and curious things” they have discovered. This beats the “sea serpent” to fits.--Pall Mall Gazette.

NEW YORK TIMES, FEBRUARY 8, 1876 THE EARLY AMERICAN GIANT The public will be unpleasantly reminded of the callous indifference to the future on the part of the prehistoric Americans by the recent discovery of three unusually fine skeletons in Kentucky. A Louisville paper asserts that two men lately undertook to explore a cave which they accidentally discovered not far from that city. The entrance to the cave was small, but the explorers soon found themselves in a magnificent apartment, richly furnished with the most expensive and fashionable stalactites. In a corner of this hall stood a large stone family vault, which the men promptly pried open. In it were found three skeletons, each nearly nine feet in height. The skeletons appear to have somewhat frightened the young men, for, on seeing so extensive collection of bones, they immediately dropped their torch, and subsequently wandered in darkness for thirty-six hours before they found their way back to daylight and soda-water. Now, it is evident that these gigantic skeletons belonged to men very different from the men of present day. A skeleton eight feet and ten inches in height would measure fully nine feet when dressed in even a thin suit of flesh. The tallest nine-foot giant of a traveling circus is rarely more than six feet four inches high in private life and without his boots, and even giants of this quality are scarce and dear. The three genuine nine-foot men of Kentucky must have belonged to a race that is now entirely extinct, and hence it would be a matter of great interest if we could learn who and what they were.

MARION DAILY STAR, JULY 14, 1880 REMAINS OF NINE-FOOT GIANTS IN OHIO A correspondent of the Cincinnati Enquirer, writing about the remains of a giant race found in Muskingum County, Ohio, says: The mound in which these remarkable discoveries were made was about sixty-four feet long and thirty-five feet wide top measurement and gently sloped down to the hill where it was situated. A number of stumps of trees were found on the slope standing in two rows, and on the top of the mound were an oak and a hickory stump, all of which bore marks of great age. All of the skeletons were found on a level with the hill, and about eight feet from the top of the mound. In one grave there were two skeletons, one male and one female. The female face was looking downward, the male being immediately on top, with the face looking upward. The male skeleton measured nine feet in length, and the female was eight. The male frame in this case was nine feet, four inches in length and the female was eight feet. In another grave was found a female skeleton, which was encased in a clay coffin, holding in her arms the skeleton of a child three and a half feet long, by the side of which was an image, which being exposed to the atmosphere, crumbled rapidly. The remaining seven, were found in single graves and were lying on their sides. The smallest of the seven was nine feet in length and the largest ten. One single circumstance connected with this discovery was the fact that not a single tooth was found in either mouth except in the one encased in the clay coffin. On the south end of the mound was erected a stone altar, four and a half feet wide and twelve feet long, built on an earthen foundation nearly four feet wide, having in the middle two large flagstones, from which sacrifices were undoubtedly made, for upon them were found charred bones, cinders, and ashes. This was covered by about three feet of earth. AN ANCIENT TABLET WITH POSSIBLE HIEROGLYPHS

What is now a profound mystery may in time became the key to unlock still further mysteries that were centuries ago commonplace affairs. I refer to a stone that was found resting against the head of the clay coffin above described. It is irregularly shaped red sandstone, weighing about 18 pounds, being strongly impregnated with oxide of iron, and bearing upon one side TWO LINES OF HIEROGLYPHS.

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, AUGUST 14, 1880 ANCIENT AMERICAN GIANTS The Rev. Stephen Bowers notes in the Kansas City Review of Science the opening of an interesting mound in Bush Creek Township, Ohio. The mound was opened by the Historical Society of the township, under the immediate supervision of Dr. J. E. Everhart of Zanesville. It measured 65 by 34 feet at the summit, gradually sloping in every direction and was 8 feet in height. There was found in it a sort of clay coffin including the skeleton of a woman measuring 8 feet in length. Within this coffin was found also a child about 3 and a half feet in length and an image that crumbled when exposed to the atmosphere. In another grave was found the skeleton of a man and a woman, the former measuring nine and the latter 8 feet in length. In a third cave occurred two other skeletons, male and female, measuring respectively nine feet four inches and eight feet. Seven other skeletons were found in the mound, the smallest of which measured eight feet, while others reached the enormous length of ten feet. They were buried singly or each in separate graves. Resting against one of the coffins was an engraved stone tablet (now in Cincinnati) from the characters on which Dr. Everhart and Mr. Bowers are led to conclude that this giant race were sun worshipers.

1881-1890

* PROVIDENCE EVENING PRESS, SEPTEMBER 3, 1883 A GIANT'S SKELETON MUST HAVE BEEN GOLIATH. Hon J. H. Hainly, a well known and reliable citizen of Barnard, Mo., writes to the Gazette the particulars of the discovery of a giant skeleton four miles southwest of that place. A farmer named John W. Haunon found the bones protruding from the bank of a ravine that had been cut by the action of the rains during the past years. Mr. Hannon worked several days in unearthing the skeletons, which proved to be that of a human being whose height was twelve feet. The head through the temples was twelve inches; from the lower part of the skull at the back to the top was fifteen inches, and the circumference forty inches. The ribs were nearly four feet long and one and three-quarter inches wide. The thigh bones were thirty inches long and large in proportion. When the earth was removed the ribs stood up high enough to enable a man to crawl in and explore the interior of the skeleton, turn around and come out with ease. The first joint of the great toe, above the nail, was three inches long, and the entire foot eighteen inches in length. The skeleton lay on its face, twenty feet feet below the surface of the ground, and the toes embedded in the earth, indicating that the body either fell or was placed there when the ground was soft. The left arm was passed around backward, the head resting on the spinal column, while the right was stretched out to the front and right. Some of the bones crumbled upon exposure to the air, but many good specimens were preserved and are now on exhibition at Barnard. Medical men are much interested. The skeleton is generally pronounced a valuable relic of the prehistoric race. [NOTE: This article previously appeared in the Galveston Gazette on August 15.--J.C.]

HELENA INDEPENDENT, OCTOBER 10, 1883 PREHISTORIC GIANT SKELETON FOUND J. H. Hamley, a well known and reliable citizen of Barnard, Mo., writes to the Gazette, the particulars of the discovery of a GIANT skeleton, four miles southwest of that place. A farmer named John W. Hannon, found the bones protruding from the bank of a ravine that has been cut by the action of the rains during the past years. Mr. Hannon worked several days in unearthing "the skeleton," which proved to be that of a human being whose height was twelve feet. The head through the temples was eleven inches; from the lower part of the skull at the back to the top was fifteen inches, and the circumference forty inches. The ribs were nearly four feet long, one and three-fourths inches wide. The thigh bones we're thirty-six inches long and large in proportion. When the earth was removed the ribs stood high enough to enable a man to crawl in and explore the interior of the skeleton, turn around and come out with ease. The first joint of the greater toe above the nail, was three inchen long, and the entire foot, eighteen inches in length. The skeleton lay on its face twenty feet below the surface of the ground and the toes were imbedded in the earth, indicating that the body either fell or was placed there when the ground was soft.

The left arm was passed around backward, the hand resting on the spinal column, while the right arm was stretched out to the front, and right. Some of the bones crumbled on exposure to the air, but many good specimens were preserved, and are now exhibited at, Bernard Medical school. The skeleton is generally pronounced a relic of the prehistoric race.

ATHENS, GEORGIA, BANNER, MAY 6, 1884 GIANT CROWNED ROYALTY IS FOUND Athens, Georgia: Mr. J. B. Toomer yesterday received a letter from Mr. Hazelton, who is on a visit to Cartersville. The letter contained several beads made of stone, and gave an interesting account of the opening of a large Indian mound near that town by a committee of scientists sent out from the Smithsonian Institution. After removing the dirt for some distance, a layer of large flagstones was found, which had evidently been dressed by hand, and showed that the men who quarried this rock understood their business. The stones were removed, when in a kind of vault beneath them, the skeleton of a giant, who measured seven feet two inches, was found. His hair was coarse and jet black and hung to his waist, the brow being ornamented with a copper crown. The skeleton was remarkably well-preserved and taken from the vault intact. Near this skeleton were found the bodies of several small children of various sizes. The remains of the latter were covered with beads, made of bone of some kind. Upon removing these, the bodies were found to be encased in a network made of straw or reed, and beneath this was the covering of an animal of some kind. In fact, the bodies had been prepared somewhat after the manner of mummies, and will doubtless throw new light on the history of the people who raised the mounds. Upon the stones that covered the vault were carved inscriptions, which, if deciphered, will probably lift the veil that has enshrouded the history of the race of giants that undoubtedly at one time inhabited the continent. All the relics were carefully packed and sent to the Smithsonian Institution, and are said to be the most interesting collection ever found in America. The explorers are now at work on a mound in Barlow County, and before their return home will visit various sections of Georgia where antiquities are found. On the Oconee River, in Greene County, just above Powell’s Mills, are several mounds, one of them very tall and precipitous. [NOTE: This article previously appeared in the Washington Post on March 16.--J.C.]

MCIVOR, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA, TIMES, SEPTEMBER 5, 1884 GIGANTIC SKELETONS A Michigan paper reports the discovery of a gigantic human in a rock near the Sauk Rapids. It says: - "The head is massive 31 1/2 in. in circumference, is low in the front and very flat on the top. The femur measures 26 1/4 in., and the fibula 26 1/2 in., while the body is equally long in proportion. From the crown of the head to the sole of the foot, the length is 10 feet 9 1/2 inches. The measure around the chest is 59 1/2 in. This giant must have weighed at least 900 lbs, when covered with a reasonable amount of flesh. The petrified remains, and there is nothing left but the naked bones, now weigh 304 lbs. The thumb and fingers of the left hand and the left foot from the ankle to the toes are gone, but all of the other parts are perfect. Verily, there were giants in those days!

NEW YORK TIMES, MAY 5, 1885 SKELETONS SEVEN FEET LONG Centerburg, Ohio: Licking County has been for years a favorite field for students of Indian history. Last week a small mound near Homer was opened by some school boys. Today further search was made and several feet below the surface of the earth, in a large vault with stone floor and bark covering, were found four huge skeletons, three being over seven feet in length, and the other a full eight feet. The skeletons lay with their feet to the east on a bed of charcoal in which were numerous burned bones. About the neck of the largest skeleton were a lot of stone beads. The grave contained about 30 stone vessels and implements, the most striking being a curiously-wrought pipe. It is said to be the only engraved stone pipe ever found. A stone kettle, holding about a gallon in which was a residue of saline matter, bears evidence of much skill. Their bows, a number of arrows, stone hatchets, and a stone knife are among the implements that were found at the site.

PHILADELPHIA TIMES, JUNE 27, 1885 GIANTS FOUND ON THE NEW YORK-PENNSYLVANIA STATE LINE ”Why this man was ten or twelve feet high.” “Thunder and lightning!” exclaimed Mr. Porter in astonishment. The first speaker, who has won local distinction as a scientist, reiterated his assertion. J. H. Porter has a farm near Northeast, not many miles from where the Lake Shore Railroad crosses the New York state boundary line. Early this week some workmen in Mr. Porter’s employ came upon the entrance to a cave and on entering it found heaps of human bones within. Many skeletons were complete and specimens of the find were brought out and exhibited to the naturalists and archaeologists of the neighborhood. They informed the wondering bystanders that the remains were unmistakably those of giants. The entire village of Northeast was aroused by the discovery and today hundreds of people from this city took advantage of their holiday to visit the scene. It was first conjectured that the remains were those of soldiers killed in battle with the Indians that abounded in the vicinity during the last century, but the size of the skulls and the length of the leg bones dispelled that theory. So far about 150 giant skeletons of powerful proportions have been exhumed and indications point to a second cave eastward, which may probably contain as many more. Scientists who have exhumed skeletons and made careful measurements of the bones say that they are the remains of a race of gigantic creatures, compared with which our tallest men would appear pygmies. There are no arrow-heads, stone hatchets, or other implements of war with the bodies. Some of the bones are on exhibition at the various stores. One is as thick as a good sized bucket.

* THE NEW YORK TIMES, APRIL 5, 1886 MONSTER SKULLS AND BONES CARTERSVILLE, Ga., April 4.—The water has receded from the Tumlin Mound Field, and has left uncovered acres of skulls and bones. Some of these are gigantic. If the whole frame is in proportion to two thigh bones that were found, the owners must have stood 14 feet high. Many curious ornaments of shell, brass, and stone have been found. Some of the bodies were buried in small vaults built of stones. The whole makes a mine of archæological wealth. A representative of the Smithsonian Institution is here investigating the curious relics.

STEVENS POINT DAILY JOURNAL, MAY 1, 1886 OHIO ACCOUNT OF NINE-FOOT GIANTS It is very evident that at an early day in the history of this country, this section of Ohio was an important camping ground for the American Indian. And, indeed, discoveries are frequently made, which lead people interested in the matter of prehistoric America to believe that a race of mankind, superior in size, strength, and intelligence to the common red man of the forest, flourished not only along the coasts East and South, but right here in southern Ohio. There are in this county several burying grounds, and two of them are located five miles west of this city, near Jasper, one on the farm of Mr. William Bush and one on Mr. Matthew Mark’s farm. In a conversation with a gentleman who has seen [skeletons] unearthed at the Mark bank, we were told that many dozens of human skeletons have been exhumed since the bank was first opened. Some of these skeletons have been measured, and the largest have been found to be nine feet long and over. At one time ten skeletons were exhumed. They had been buried in a circle, standing in an erect position, and were in a comparatively well-preserved condition. One remarkable fact about all the skeletons unearthed at these places is the perfect state of preservation in which their teeth are found to be. Not a decayed tooth has been discovered, and this would seem to indicate that these people naturally had excellent teeth or some extraordinary manner of preserving them.

OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN, DAILY NORTHWESTERN, JULY 8, 1886 GIANT SKELETON FOUND IN PETERSBURG, KENTUCKY At Petersburg, Kentucky, twenty-five miles below here, an excavation for a new building has brought to light a peculiar find; it being a strange-looking Indian grave, the receptacle of which has been made of stone and clay, formed into a kind of cement, about three feet in height, and fully nine feet in length. Within the rude vault lay a giant human skeleton that measured seven feet, two inches, in length. The bones were all of large proportions, and the monstrous skull, with teeth perfect and intact, was more than half an inch thick at the base. A number of copper pieces, evidently worn for ornaments, a stone pipe, and a quantity of arrowheads were found with the decaying bones.

ASHBURTON GUARDIA, NOVEMBER 1887, ALLEGED DISCOVER OF THE BODY OF A GIANT The oil city (Penn) “Simety” is responsible for the following: While William Thompson, assisted by Robert R. Smith, was engaged in making an excavation near the house of the former, about a half mile north of West Hickory, preparatory to erecting a derrick, they exhumed an enormous helmet of iron which was corroded with rust. Further digging brought to a light sword, which measured 9 feet in length. Curiosity incited them to enlarge the hole, and after a little time they discovered the bones of two enormous feet. Following up the “lead” they had so unexpectedly struck, in few hours time they had unearthed a well-preserved skeleton of an enormous giant, belong to a species of the human family which probably inhabited this and other parts of the world at the time of which the Bible speaks, when it says, “and there were giants in those days”. The helmet is said to be in the shape of those found among the ruins of Nineveh. The bones of the skeleton are remarkably white. The teeth are all in their places and all of them are double and of extraordinary size. These relics have been taken to Tionesta, where they are visited by large numbers of people daily. When his giantship was in the flesh, he must have stood 18 feet in his stockings. These remarkable relics will be forwarded to New York early next week. The joints of the skeleton are now being glued together. These remains were found 12 feet below the surface of a mound which had been thrown up probably centuries ago and which was not more than 3 feet above the level of the ground around it. Here is another nut for antiquarians to crack.

CINCINNATI COMMERCIAL, OCTOBER 7, 1888 INDIANA GIANTS FOUND BONES OF AN INDIAN GIANT A member of the Logan Grays, the crack military organization of Logansport that held its encampment this year at Eagle Lake, near Warsaw stopped in this city on his way home from camp and told the following story of the discovery by the party of a cavern on an island in Eagle Lake; A.M. Jones rowed to a small island near the southwest corner of the lake and began digging for worms. He turned over a large, flat stone near a tree, and under it was a small hole, which was an entrance to a cave. Jones called the boys up, and we began an exploration of the cavern, which proved to be twenty-five feet long, fifteen feet wide, and eight feet deep. The walls are of a natural formation of stone, branching out at the middle so as to form two rooms. In the front room was the skeleton of a man six feet nine inches long. The bones were very large, indicating great strength. Along one side of the cave runs a small stream of water, as pure as crystal. In the front of it forms a small pool. In this were a number of bones. Old settlers in this vicinity of the lake claim that the skeleton is that of Eagleonkie, the giant Indian chief who lived alone on this island and mysteriously disappeared during a severe winter. The island was known after this chief and was once known as Giant Island.

* MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT DAILY REPUBLICAN, JULY 8, 1889 A PREHISTORIC BASEBALL BAT GIGANTIC SKELETONS AND OTHER WONDERS DISCOVERED BY AN EXCITED FANCY St. Paul, July 8.--Every resident of Montana and many visitors to the famous territory know that the Belt Mountains have always been the seat of mysterious stories, and that in their numerous gulches and canyons have been picked up wonderful relics. Among the most curious are agatized human maxillaries and teeth, all of gigantic size. Gold in quantities has been found in the Belt Mountains and rubies, sapphires, and even diamonds are shown as product of one or the other portions of the territory. The Helena correspondent of the Pioneer–Press sends a remarkable story, accompanied by numerous attestations to its truth. A gold hunter said that while prospecting in the Belt Mountains he found a peculiar depression in the ground. After excavating he discovered a mysterious cavern, reached by twenty-three steps. “At the foot of the stairs,” said he, “on one side of the passage lay the skeleton of a man of immense stature. The skeleton measured exactly nine feet six inches in height. The skull lay a few inches from the trunk, and between the two lay 27 nuggets. They were strung on a fine gold wire, and ranged from one ounce to ten in weight. Around the thigh, arm, and shin bones were other strings of nuggets, none of which weighed more than 4 ounces. There were about 15 pieces of gold in the pile. They were of many different shapes. None of them weighed over 3 ounces, and each piece had a hole through the center. On each side of the skull I found some sort of precious stones. They lay in a tiny golden basket, and were evidently worn in the ears. I do no know what name to give them, but I believe they are rubies.” “Beside the trunk of the skeleton, I found a copper axe, with an edge harder and keener than any steel instrument of the kind I have ever seen. On the opposite side was a club made of the same metal as the axe. It was shaped not unlike a baseball bat. Under the trunk was a gold plate ten inches long, six inches wide, and one-eighth of an inch thick. It was covered with strange devices. A little further on lay another skeleton, that of a woman. I picked up a string of nuggets near this skull also. They were perfectly round and exactly the same size. They weighed about 3 ounces apiece. Every now and then I came to other skeletons, and, although by nearly very one of them I found necklaces, yet strange to say they were of round copper balls.” “The catacombs as I have named this passage, are about 300 feet long, fourteen feet wide, and thirty high, and seem to have been cut out of the solid rock. At the end of the gallery is a room sixty feet square and forty high. In the center of this room stands a block of granite about twelve feet square and four feet high. It seems as though the rock had been hewn out around it. It is perfectly square, and it is exactly the same distance from the walls of the room on every side. There are steps cut in the rock leading to the top of the hall. On the top stands another block of granite, ten feet long, four wide, and three high. This is hollowed out in the shape of a human form. I lay down in this and, though I am not a small man by any means, yet the mold was much too large for me. Around the room were scattered vessels of clay, some of which will hold 25 gallons. They are light, yet tougher than wrought iron. I tried to break one of them by dashing it against the granite flooring of the room. I could not even scratch it. Altogether I gathered up 500 ounces of gold in the underground passage.”

* CUBA, NEW YORK, CUBA PATRIOT, OCTOBER 10, 1889 OHIO MOUND RELICS GIGANTIC MAN BURIED ALONGSIDE A COLOSSAL PANTHER Soon after the 1st of March I left for Southern Ohio to collect relics to be placed on loan exhibition in the Smithsonian Institution at Washington. During the last two months eleven mounds have been opened and their contents taken to the museum and placed on exhibition. These mounds vary in height from eight to thirty feet, are generally conical in shape, and contain all the way from 300 to 10,000 square yards of dirt. They were built by the aborigines of this country hundreds of years ago to serve as burial places for the distinguished dead. They are generally placed near some stream in a valley and not infrequently on high points of land, which command a good view of the country, but the larger ones are in the valleys. These mounds are usually composed of clay, sometimes of sand, and often have layers of charcoal or burnt clay in them. These layers are often as brightly colored as if they had been painted. [...] About five feet above this layer, or nine feet from the summit of the mound, was a skeleton of a very large individual who had buried by the side of it the bones of a panther. Whether the person had killed the panther and it was buried with him as an honor, or whether the panther had killed the individual, I cannot say. This much, however, can be said, that in 43 mounds opened no find of this nature has been made. It is therefore quite interesting and important. The skull of this panther was very large, teeth very long and sharp. It would take a mound builder of a great deal of nerve to attack a beast of this size if he had nothing but a stone hatchet and bow and arrows to defend himself with. Just below this skeleton and lying on the layer of buried bones was a medium-sized personage who had buried around his neck in the manner of a necklace, between his upper and lower jaw, 147 bone and shell beads. The shell beads were made from the thick part of Conch and Pyrula shells. These shells must have been carried from the Atlantic Ocean, as they are ocean shells, and not found inland, or the tribe to which the man belonged may have traded with tribes near the ocean and thereby got the beads. [...]--Cincinnati Courier Gazette [September 26, 1889].

* THE NEW YORK TIMES, FEBRUARY 9, 1890 A RACE OF INDIAN GIANTS. MAY’S LANDING, N. J., Feb. 8.—For over a week past crowds have been flocking to the site of the unearthed Indian graveyard near Edgewater-avenue in Pleasantville. The first lot of skeletons unearthed was about one thousand yards from the city Post Office and embraced eight bodies, closely laid together in a deep chamber, snugly packed in with tortoise, oyster, and clam shells. One of this number had bead and shells decorations, which together, with its extreme height, points to the fact that it must have been the powerful old chief Kineawaugha, whose descendants still own farms along the shore. Prof. C. H. Farrel of Baltimore, Charles K. Simpson of New-York, John H. Cooley, Jr., of New-Haven, Conn., and several gentlemen from the University of Pennsylvania immediately went to the scene. Messrs. Risley and Farr, the owners of the land, gave to the Archaeological Association of the University of Pennsylvania the right to search for relics on their land. These researchers have been watched by thousands of people with great interest. Besides weapons of war savage ornamental war decorations and numerous valuable shells, stones &c., over fifty skeletons have been exhumed. Dr. Charles R. Abbot, curator of the association, is continuing the search, and the skeletons are to be shipped to the university at once. They run in size from a small child to several of seven feet in height, and one, supposed to be an old medicine man, Wauneck, must have been at least eight feet in height. About fifty students were on the ground this morning and continued their search until stopped by rain. The citizens gaze in silent wonder on these relics of a race that at one time ruled the land. For seven miles along the shore can be seen large mounds of clam and oyster shells left here by Indians who used to congregate by hundreds to open oysters for Winter food, and it is near these shell mounds that the great number of skeletons have been taken up. In some instances weapons of war made of stone and flint have been found lying close beside some exceedingly large skeletons. The relics will be put on exhibition at the museum of the university in Philadelphia.

* THE POPULAR SCIENCE NEWS, AUGUST 1890 A PRE-HISTORIC GIANT. The legends of all races tell of a time when mankind were of giant stature, doubtless arising, in many cases, from the discovery of the fossil bones of ancient animals of large size, such as the elephant, mammoth, etc. But, as far as we know, there is no proof whatever that the human race was ever possessed of a greater average stature than at present. In fact, the tendency seems to be in the opposite direction, the men of the present time slightly exceeding their ancestors in size—a result doubtless due to the improved conditions of existence in these latter days. Occasional instances of unusual stature are, however, not uncommon, and can be seen in almost any dime museum; and that there were giants even in the Stone Age seems to be proved by a discovery made near Montpellier, in France, by M. LAPOUGE, and communicated by him to La Nature. At Castelnau, near the above town, is a prehistoric cemetery, dating from the ages of polished stone and bronze. A large number of human bones were found, including about forty skulls, one of which formerly belonged to an individual about eighteen years old, who, judging from the size of his skull, must have been over six feet in height. But the most remarkable "finds" of M. Lapouge were three pieces of bone, illustrated in the engraving, which must formerly have belonged to some pre-historic giant of extraordinary size. The first piece, shown on the left of the engraving, is a part of a femur, or thigh-bone, and the one on the right a part of a tibia, or shin-bone. In the middle is represented a humerus, or bone of the upper arm, from the same ancient cemetery, but of normal size. At the bottom is represented a small fragment, which may be either a piece of a femur or a humerus; if the latter, then it must also have formerly made up part of the skeleton of the giant, as can be seen by comparison with the normal humerus above it.

If we judge of the height of this neolithic giant by the usual proportion of the parts of the skeleton to each other, he must have been between ten and eleven feet high. The question remains whether this excessive growth was a normal one, or due to a diseased condition resulting in a general hypertrophy of the osseous system. On this point the authorities differ, one professor of the University of Montpellier holding that the bones are normal in every respect, while another finds evidence of a diseased condition. In either case the giant of Castelnau must have been a source of wonder, if not of terror, to the savage men of those times, and was doubtless treated with all the honor which in these modern days is bestowed upon a successful prize-fighter. There has been an old tradition among the peasants of the vicinity that a cavern in the valley was, in olden times, occupied by a giant; and it would be curious if the discovery of M. Lapouge should show it to be founded on fact, and handed down from father to son during the centuries that have elapsed since the time when the ancient inhabitants of France knew of no other material for their implements and utensils than the stones which they so laboriously worked into the desired shapes.