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Octagon Mounds Posted 20 Nov Friends of the Mounds list
Everyone,
The following is a copy of the letter that has been
sent out across
the country to tribal offices, community groups, and
national
organizations to alert them to the dire situation we
are currently
facing here in Ohio. Please feel free to forward this
to anyone and
everyone that may be willing to lend their voice to
our cause in
helping to protect and preserve this sacred and public
site.
Thanks,
Barry
Dear Friends,
We are trying to save the Circle and Octagon Mounds in
Newark, OH
from continued destruction and desecration. We need
your prayers
and letters.
The Circle and Octagon Mounds are some of the last
remnants of the
civilization known by mainstream anthropologists as
the Hopewell
culture. It is clear to many elders and spiritual
people that the
site of the Circle and Octagon are sacred, and they
are in close
proximity to other important sacred sites such as
Black Hand Gorge
and Flint Ridge.
The Ohio Historical Society (OHS) currently maintains
the Circle and
Octagon mounds. Although the administration of the
Ohio Historical
Society maintains that they are a "private,
not-for-profit"
organization, the majority of their funding comes from
the state
(and likely federal funds as well). The Circle and
Octagon Mounds
complex was purchased with public monies and
stipulations in all
available deeds and leases state that the property is
to be open to
the public and preserved as a public site. The
following is an
excerpt from the mission statement on their website:
"The Ohio Historical Society is a nonprofit
organization
incorporated in 1885 "...to promote a knowledge of
archaeology and
history, especially in Ohio." The society exists to
interpret,
preserve, collect, and make available evidence of the
past, and to
provide leadership on furthering knowledge,
understanding, and
appreciation of the prehistory and history of Ohio and
of the
broader cultural and natural environments of which
Ohio is a part."
Statements such as these are all worthwhile and
something we should
all strive for. However, the reality of the situation
is much
different than the lofty ideals espoused in their
mission
statement. Despite being acknowledged as a National
Historic
Landmark and an internationally significant site, the
Ohio
Historical Society leases the property to the
Moundbuilders Country
Club, which utilizes this sacred site as an 18-hole
golf course for
those privileged few who can afford the annual dues.
In the process of transforming the mounds into a golf
course, a
great deal of needless damage was done to the site
through the
digging of sand traps into the sides of some, laying
asphalt cart
paths throughout the complex, and even removing a
significant
section of the Circle Mound entirely so that the
golfers would have
ready access to the first tee.
In addition, the Moundbuilders Country Club, merely a
tenant on
public land, has been consistently limiting public and
Native
American access to the mounds. Native people visiting
the site are
routinely harassed—by club members and staff alike.
Only through
the pressure of a group comprised of educators,
scholars, Native
Americans, and other concerned citizens did we see
some small
improvement in the situation. The small progress was
that the Ohio
Historical Society required the country club to agree
to have four
golf-free days for public access. However, recent
events have shown
the insincerity of these superficial gestures.
On June 26, 2002, Barbara Crandell was arrested for
praying at the
Mounds. She was charged with criminal trespassing,
which is
interesting given the fact that it is a public site.
The judge in
the case refused to allow any evidence regarding this
fact to be
admitted and she was recently convicted of the charge.
While it is
only a fourth degree misdemeanor, a dangerous
precedent has been set
and other Native people wishing to go there to pray or
members of
the public wishing to visit the site.
If these mounds are important to you and if you
believe that it is
time for the country club to vacate this sacred and
public site, we
need your letters. If the mounds are important to
your tribe
(tribal heritage, history, etc.), please include this
in your
letter. We also ask for your permission to share your
letters with
the Ohio Historical Society and with the general
public through the
media and public presentations as we work to raise
awareness of this
issue.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely yours,
Mark Welsh
Native American Indian Center of Central Ohio
67 East Innis Avenue
Columbus, OH 43207
614-443-6120
614-443-2651 FAX
naicco@aol.com
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