Date: September
2007
The stone – granite I think – measures 50” long, 38”
wide, and 31” high. It sits on Brock
Street, P’boro, between the sidewalk and the edge of an asphalt parking lot
across the street from Price Choppers.
The words on the plaque attached to the face of the
stone are:
THE BROCK STREET BURIAL
Here on December 6, 1960, the skeletal remains of a
man who lived in this area about 2,000 years ago were discovered by Douglas
Yaxley of Peterborough. Buried with the
man were 29 artifacts attributed to the Point Peninsula culture which occupied
the Trent River system before the Christian era.
See P’boro Examiner, December 7, 1960:
“Expert Says
Indian Bones ‘Important Find’”, and “Indian Grave Uncovered” – “Royal Ontario
Museum archaeologist Walter Kenyon examines an excavation where bones believed
to be 2,000 years old were found under the Brock Street parking lot
Monday. Mr. Kenyon describes the find as
“a most exciting discovery”. Another
picture and story on front page, second section.” [Cutline with photo of Kenyon]
Recorded by Jean Koning, Peterborough, ON, in my
computer files, September 2007
Further comment, January 6, 2014:
While this refers to the presence of First Peoples in
the territory we call Peterborough some 2,000 years ago, it may not cause
Canadians to realize that the ancestors of those same First Peoples are still
living among us today. Neither does it
help us to recognize the fact that the First Peoples were never “conquered” and
that they are, in fact, a nation of sovereign peoples within whose homeland we
now reside.
This is why it is important - nay, imperative - to observe the protocols concerning the relationship
between two sovereign nations: The First Peoples by whatever name they
call themselves in their own language
(in Peterborough territory it is probably the Mississauga Nation of the Anishinabek
- or Ojibwe) and Canada, as we settler/immigrants call our nation.
To learn about the protocols in your territory, please consult the nearest Indian Friendship Centre or First Nation. There are people who would be most willing to help you learn about these protocols, such as presenting tobacco to an Elder, or how to listen effectively within the Talking Circle.
I always ask, in the same way that I now share this blog, by saying that I am speaking and writing in the spirit of peace, respect and friendship.
Thanks for listening.
Jean Koning.
