Last week I wrote a bit on the Indian Trails that used to pass through Clear Creek Metro Park. Today I’m reproducing a column from Charles Goslin that didn’t appear in Crossroads and Fence Posts.
In the column he describes walking from the intersection of the two Clear Creek Indian Trails to Lancaster.
The column appeared in the March 30, 1963 edition of The Lancaster Eagle-Gazette.
INDIAN TRAIL — From the Indian village Maguck on the Pickway Plains the Shawnee Indian war trail crossed what is now the southern part of Fairfield county. This war trail which William C. Mills called Number 13 in his “Archeological Atlas of Ohio” passed at Written Rock as it followed the gorge of Clear Creek.
Coming from Lower Shawnee Town (now Portsmouth) another trail designated at No. 15, came north through the salt licks near Jackson and joined this war trail at Written Rocks, so named because of the markings on this sandstone bluff.
There are a couple of pictures in the article, but I will intersperse a few of my own, instead.
Here is a picture of the markings that are presumed to have given written rock its name (the vertical slashings).
The Rock at Written Rock that was Written on.
They really don’t look like much, do they? There is speculation that the marks were made by attempts to sharpen axes, but . . .?
At this junction another Indian trail followed north along the high ridge through the grounds of what is now the Boys Industrial School, and terminated at the Indian village of French Margaret’s Town near the foot of Mount Pleasant — now Lancaster. This Indian trail has been called the Written Rock trail.
Starting at Written Rock in the gorge at Clearcreek, we followed the best we could this Indian trail to Lancaster. So as not to violate the “no trespassing” signs we deviated a little from the Indian trail as we began our walk from the bank of Clear Creek.
This is more-or-less what Written Rock would have looked like for those coming from Maguck (near modern-day Circleville) from the west.
Written Rock, Coming From the West
Skirting the slope of Rhododendron Hollow we gradually worked our way toward the highest ridge. This hollow is on of the few places rhododendron grows wild in Hocking County. It’s just a few rods beyond the border of Fairfield County.
Turkey vultures circled overhead as we crossed a hillside field where poverty grass grows abundantly. There were scattered clumps of pines — mostly Virginia pines. Greenbriers were thick. We had to pick our way was we followed the ridge above the hollow toward an abandoned road.
This abandoned road, know as the Ott Road, once connected the Ridge Road with Written Rock and the Clear Creek Road. This Ott road is the route of the Written Rock Indian trail as it climbs to the ridge. After a little search this old road was located. Now it’s almost completely obliterated in the vicinity of Written Rock. As we walked north the road becomes more evident. For a short distance it follows the border of Fairfield county before crossing a corner of Hocking county.
This shot gives one of the more “classical” views of Written Rock.
Written Rock
(Click for the larger version.)
Written Rock also has an extremely rich palette of colors. Iron embedded in the sandstone rusts to give the red, and manganese oxidizes to give the black. Here’s a bit of close-up of that.
The Colors of Written Rock
I’ll let Mr. Goslin finish his hike now.
Sassafras and chestnut oaks grow abundantly along this old road which is no longer in use. Although the afternoon was warm, the buds on the sassafras were still dormant. Only the red maples along this road showed signs of spring. Some of the buds were much swollen. A few of the red maple buds had burst into flowers. The flowers (seeds too) are red. From the color of the flowers, red maple receives its name.
Where the abandoned Ott road meets the Ridge Road there once stood a church. The only evidence that remains of this church is the small cemetery with a few marked graves. We are puzzled as to the name of the church that once stood there.
An older map of this area calls this the Goodhope Church, but the historic “Our Lady of Goodhope Church” was some distance east of this site. A Shrine now occupies the site of this early Catholic Church. There is no shrine at the Ott Road.
Our route also took us along a narrow ridge as we walked Township Road 311 toward the Boys Industrial School. There is no record as to when this road was laid out. It could be one of the oldest roads of Fairfield county. Indians probably traveled what is now this road as they journey to and from the salt pits in Jackson county.
A large black oak stands at the edge of the road. The trunk of this oak measured over 10 feet around. This oak stands near the boundary of Madison Township. It could have been used by the first surveyors as a marker tree.
The gravel road makes a gradual climb until it reaches the blacktop road to Revenge. The junction with the Revenge Road is one of the high points of Fairfield County. The elevation here is nearly 1200 feet above sea level. On a clear day one can see as far east as the Sponagle Church; to the southwest distant hills are in Ross County.
Like a large serpent, the road follows the crest of the ridge as it goes north to the Boys Industrial School. A road to the right goes into Blue Valley, then a road to the left enters Eaton Hollow. At any time of the year there is a magnificent view from this Ridge Road.
The Ridge Road enters the Boys Industrial School grounds, which, before 1856, was a large tobacco farm operated by Henry Miers of Virginia.
We follow the Ridge Road through this institution, pausing for a moment near the north gate to visit the small cemetery to the east of the highway.
This small cemetery, surrounded by a fence, is the burying grounds of a family by the name of Jones. It is believed that this was a Negro family brought from Virginia by Henry Miers to assist with the tobacco growing. It is through the efforts of Joseph Rockey this small cemetery has been restored.
The Ridge Road continues to follow the crest or near the crest of the ridge as it goes toward Lancaster. First an Indian trail, then a road to the tobacco farm, the Ridge Road to the Boys Industrial school is now a state highway. With a constant flow fo traffic to keep us alert, we walked toward Lancaster.
A red-tailed hawk soared overhead as we approached the Kettle Hills area. This hawk was having difficulty in avoiding a number of crows that were harassing it.
Not until it lost a few feathers, did the hawk succeed in getting away from the crows. The crows did not seem to be interested in the 2 turkey vultures which soared nearby. Crows make life miserable for hawks and owls, but not the vultures.
Just where the Written Rock Indian trail entered Lancaster is not known. It may have followed the approximate route of Broad St. to what is now the Fairgrounds. It may have followed Tarhe Run to the foot of High Street and then to the vicinity of Mr. Pleasant from whence the “Standing Stone” Indian trail continued north toward the Indian town of Gosh-gosh-ing, in Coshocton county.
And to finish up, a long-distance shot of the “Standing Stone” (from Rock On).
Standing Stone in Lancaster
Ahcuah 
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