I'd be interested in hearing if anyone learns anything further about the
following report from the Wednesday, December 29, 1999 AP Wire:
Skeletal remains found at home site could be those of American Indians
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KENDALLVILLE, Ind. (AP) -- An excavator digging a basement here Wednesday
uncovered a skull that led authorities to unearth two human skeletons
believed to be those of long-dead American Indians.
The remains, which may include a third skeleton, could be more than 100
years old, said County Coroner Terry Brazzell.
He said contractors found bones Tuesday at the home site between
Kendallville and Tamarack Lake, but dismissed them as animal remains.
When a skull was found Wednesday morning, contractors called the Noble
County Sheriff's Department and the skeletons were found.
Deputies and Indiana State Police are handling the investigation
procedurally as a homicide, but Brazzell said he has found nothing
indicating recent suspicious deaths.
The location of the discovery points to American Indians, he said, because
neighbors have found arrowheads in the area.
Allen County Coroner Dr. Phillip O'Shaughnessy, along with an anthropology
professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, are expected
to examine dental remains Thursday to help determine how long the skeletons
have been buried.
If the remains are determined to have been buried 75 or more years ago, the
Department of Natural Resources will excavate the site for anthropological
purposes, Brazzell said.