On Saturday, July 13, 2024, the children visited the local Stanley Farm to see the Indian Rock Carvings…..which are also known as Petroglyphs.
These carvings have been on the National Historic Registry since 1984. They date back to the 1500’s and have been estimated to be at least 400 years old. While damaged in the 1930’s they remain an important archaeological site.
They are believed to have been carved by the Monongahela Indians that inhabited south-western Pennsylvania. These Indians were named after the Monongahela River, whose name means “falling banks”.
These carvings have been authenticated by professors from Carnegie Melon and Penn West (Cal U) Universities and theirs and other archeology teams.
Many believe these Indians disappeared in the 1620’s and 1630’s due to infectious diseases brought into the area by European settlers.
The children made tracings of the carvings with paper and crayon and outlined the carvings with chalk. They also got to see and hold arrowheads found on the property.
The book The First Drawing by Mordicai Gerstein was read and children enjoyed a brown bag lunch!
Children and parents enjoyed this little field trip…..while the temps were in the 90’s…..it was comfortably cooler in the wooded glen where the carvings were located!
Many thanks to Barb and Bob Stanley for inviting us to visit their farm to get a glimpse of the interesting and historic past of our area!
Frazier Community Library 