A New Hochelagan Burying-ground Discovered at Westmount on the Western Spur of Mount Royal, Montrea

A New Hochelagan
Burying-ground Discovered at

Westmount on the Western Spur of Mount Royal, Montreal,
July-September, 1898, by W. D. Lighthall
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Title: A New Hochelagan Burying-ground Discovered at Westmount
on the Western Spur of Mount Royal, Montreal, July-September, 1898
Author: W. D. Lighthall
Release Date: January 4, 2005 [eBook #14590]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A NEW
HOCHELAGAN BURYING-GROUND DISCOVERED AT
WESTMOUNT ON THE WESTERN SPUR OF MOUNT ROYAL,
MONTREAL, JULY-SEPTEMBER, 1898***
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A NEW HOCHELAGAN BURYING-GROUND DISCOVERED AT
WESTMOUNT ON THE WESTERN SPUR OF MOUNT ROYAL,
MONTREAL, JULY-SEPTEMBER 1898
Notes by

W. D. LIGHTHALL, M.A., F.R.S.L.
Privately printed for the writer by Alphonse Pelletier Printer to the
Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Montreal
1898

The above title is provisional as respects the term "Hochelagan." All
those who are interested in the Indians of old Hochelaga, or in the
Mohawks with whom they seem to have had a close and not yet fully
ascertained race relationship, will be pleased to learn of the discovery
of a prehistoric burying-ground which is probably one of their race, the
only one heretofore known having been on the borders of their town
itself, about upper Metcalfe street, Montreal. The new one is on the
upper level (not the top) of Westmount, which is the south-western
prolongation of Mount Royal, and the four or five graves thus far found
are scattered at considerable intervals over an an area of about 600 by
300 yards, nearly bounded by Argyle, Montrose and Aberdeen Avenues
and the Boulevard, three of the graves being a little outside of these
limits. A number of years ago a skeleton was discovered, near the
surface, on the cutting of Argyle Avenue on about a westerly line from
the residence of Mr. Earle. As the remains were rumored to be possibly
Indian, Mr. Earle secured the skull, which had been used as a football
by boys, some of the teeth, which had originally been complete in
number, being thus lost. This head is identical in form with those last
found. Roots of grass interlaced in it show the lightness of the covering.
On another occasion many years ago, a skeleton was found, also lightly
buried, and with the knees drawn up, just east of the residence of Mr.
John Macfarlane on Montrose Avenue, during the digging of a
flower-bed. It was over six feet long. After being exposed for a few
days it was re-interred in the same spot by order of Mr. Macfarlane, and
could doubtless be obtained for examination if desirable. At a later
period, the gardener, Mr. Latter, who had found the Macfarlane
skeleton, dug up and re-interred another just within the bounds of his
own property adjoining the head of Aberdeen Avenue opposite the St.
George's Snowshoe Club-house. On the 22nd of July last (1898) a
gardener excavating in the St. George's Club-house grounds found
three skeletons interred at a depth of from two to two and a half feet
and with knees drawn up. A report of the find was made to the Chief of

Police of Westmount and to Mr. J. Stevenson Brown, and Mr. A.S.
Wheeler, respectively President and Vice-President of the St. George's
Club, the former being also an ex Vice-President of the Natural History
Society. They examined the spot and remains, Mr. Brown concluding
them to be probably Indian from the prominent cheek bones and large
mouths. Having just been paying some attention to the archaeology of
the Iroquois, which had been taken me on a flying trip to their former
country in the State of New-York, I, on seeing in a newspaper at the
seaside, a short item concerning the skeletons, was immediately
interested, and especially in the possibility of their being Hochelagans,
and having particularly commenced some inquiries into the relations
between the latter Indians and the Mohawks, I wrote, as Chairman of
Health of Westmount, asking Chief Harrison to note the manner and
attitude of burial and any objects found, and to enquire concerning
previous excavations in the neighborhood and save the remains for
scientific purposes. (They had been sent by him to the City Morgue.)
The above information concerning the previous skeletons was then
collected and I found that the witnesses concurred in agreeing that the
attitude seems to