Not
certain just what awaited us at the Big Bone Lick State Park, we were delighted
to find that it had been a place where prehistoric animals such as bison,
primitive horses, giant mammoths, mastodons, stag-moose, and ground sloth had
come to feed on the swampy land. As
these large animals fed, the swampy “jelly” land gave way under their weight
and they sank. Carnivores looking for a
quick meal would feast on the trapped animals, only to sink into the quagmire. The result was a bounty of large bones
scattered throughout the area.
Later, settlers began to collect the big fossils and
also make use of the salt deposits left by the two salt streams that fed into
the main river. Hearing of the fossil
finds at Big Bone Like, in 1807, President Thomas Jefferson sent General
William Clark with a party of ten men to collect fossils. After studying the fossils, Jefferson kept a
third, sent a third to the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia, and
the remaining third to the Museum d’Histoire Naturelle of France.
During the 19th century,
Big Bone Lick enjoyed the distinction of being a health resort. The mineral waters that had attracted the
prehistoric animals in the past now drew thousands of people to “take the
water” at the park. The Clay Hotel and
bathhouses lined the creek. The guest
continued to bath in the “healing waters” until 1847.
Walking around the park, it was impossible to escape
the sulfur smell that rose from the streams.
Of course, I was one of those individuals that met the soggy stream
first hand as I lost my footing and found myself looking skyward from the middle of a muddy
section of sulfur water. The back of my
jeans and top were soaked; and I smelled
awful. There were rest rooms in the
shop, so I tried to wipe the caked mud off to reduce the smell, but it was of
little use. One quick look through the
shop and I left, giving David my purchases. Luckily a change of clothes was
easy to do, but my skin and hair still had a slight smell of sulfur as we drove
out of the park.
One of the most beautiful sights we
encountered was our entrance to Cincinnati from the bridge over the Ohio
River. It is beautiful city! We had driven through the city years ago
returning from Chicago to Georgia, but had never seen it coming from the south. I think there was an “Oh my God!” said as we
crossed into the city. The Cincinnati Art Museum was easily found. It was free and beautiful. We had a great time just going through the
collections and enjoying the atmosphere.
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