Fig. 1

Fig. 2

On August 11, 1952 an arrowhead (Fig. 2) was brought to the Information Building by a visitor who had found it that morning at the viewpoint near Discovery Point, not far from the plaque which calls attention to glacial scratches on rock at the Rim. It is quite possible that this arrowhead was exposed by the heavy thundershowers which occurred during a four-day period shortly before the day on which it was found. This becomes the seventh Indian point in the park collection, earlier finds having been made in Godfrey Glen (Fig. 1, Nos. 1,2,3) along the first turn in the highway leaving the Rim Village (Fig. 1, No. 4) and on the upper part of the Garfield Peak Trail (Fig. 1, Nos. 5,6). The unique feature of this arrowhead is that it has been made from opaque whitish-colored rock, whereas all of the others are of are of translucent obsidian.

The Indians which once lived in this region are known to have been superstitious of Crater Lake and Mt. Mazama, considering the area to be the home and battleground of the gods. For this reason they established their camps a considerable distance away from the mountain and seldom ventured near this sacred abode. One of their legends, however, provides some clear evidence they occasionally hunted in the forests on the slopes of Mt. Mazama itself (Homuth, 1929). Our growing collection of Indian points contributes significantly to the belief that this and other Indian legends concerning Mt. Mazama may contain considerable basis in fact.

Reference

Homuth, Earl U. 1929. An Indian Legend. Nature Notes from Crater Lake, 2(3):2-3.