By Robert King (Daily Staff Writer) STRASBURG - Remnants of an ancient civilization are on display in a new exhibit at the Strasburg Museum. The museum put together a display charting the tools used by American Indians who lived in the Northern Shenandoah Valley. The display contains about 1,000 artifacts that were donated posthumously by Jack Crawford. The museum contains artifacts and displays from the Colonial period up to other eras. The museum contains authentic exhibits focusing on these periods. There are exhibits on antique clothing and fashion, a blacksmith forgery bellows and other relics. The new display, which focuses on the tools and the evolution of Indians in the valley, is arranged to create a timeline of those civilizations. "What I wanted to do was to arrange it in a way that it told something of the history of the valley before white settlers came and to include it in the museum so that the museum started with the first residents of the valley and go through the history it already shows," said Monty Loving, who put together the display. The display is arranged by three main time periods: paleo, archaic and woodland. Large cases show projectiles and stone tools that were used by Indians during these time periods. "What I tried to do is, as people come to the display they would start on one side and would see the improvements in technology and stone use through about 10,000 years of history," said Monty Loving. The display focuses first on the paleo era (9500-8000 B.C.), in which Indians used the valley as a gathering place for mining and tool-making, said Loving's mother, Glenna Loving, who helped with the display and is a member of the museum's board. Although archaeologists never found where paleo-era Indians actually lived in the valley, Mrs. Loving said, they did discover tools they carried with them as they left the area. During the second period, archaic (8000-1200 B.C.), Indians used rock shelters and small caves throughout the valley for homes. They also used many stones as spear points. Indians used a tool called an atlatl that could double the force and distance of the spear throw. A replica atlatl is a part of the exhibit. The woodland period (1200 B.C.-1600 A.D.) is the last part of the display in which tools became more advanced. Indians started using bows and arrows and many of the stones were shaped into small points. Clay bowls and cooking pots also were developed during this period. A major part of the exhibit is the display of projectiles such as arrowheads and spear points. Since the bow was not invented until the woodland period, many of the stones from the paleo and archaic periods were larger so they could be fastened onto an atlatl. Indians in the paleo era modified stones through a method called fluting, which allowed them to mount stones onto spears and other tools. Flakes from the stone were removed to create serrated edges. The best part about the exhibit , organizers say, is that all the tools were found in the valley. Crawford participated in a series of archaeological digs in the Strasburg area in the 1960s, Loving said. His collection grew throughout the years, and when he died it was donated to the museum. Mrs. Loving's other son, Mark, also helped set up the display. He said that the artifacts were very special to Crawford. "Each piece told a story and I think that's what he liked about it, a way to use your imagination," he said. "It is a little bit like treasure hunting. You never know what you are going to find out there." The Strasburg Museum's exhibit "gave the museum the opportunity to take his collection and turn it into something that was educational," Monty Loving said. The exhibit was crafted to be as authentic as possible in order to accurately depict Indian civilizations. A replica of a fireplace that was used during that period was constructed as a part of the exhibit. The fireplace, which is not to scale, includes charred wood remains and animal bones. The Indians in the valley constructed large fireplaces as part of their camps. They were a resourceful people, surviving on the plentiful resources of the valley. "These people were simple and trying to survive and raise families," said Monty Loving. Plants were used as food, medicine, containers and fuel for fires. Indians also hunted animals, not just as a food source but for tools. Deer antlers were converted into implements and turtle shells were made into sturdy bowls. Many Indian civilizations did not appear to stay in the valley during the woodland period, Glenna Loving said. Although there were some Indians when white settlers arrived, most already had migrated West. Monty Loving said one theory for the departure was an outbreak of tribal warfare. The Shawnee tribe was forced from the valley by the Susquehannocks, who were subsequently forced out by the Iroquois. Monty and Glenna Loving hope the exhibit will give visitors a glimpse of the history of the valley's first inhabitants. "What I wanted to do was make it as authentic as I could," Monty Loving said. The Strasburg Museum at 440 E. King St. in Strasburg is open Monday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., May through October. Admission is $3 for adults and 50 cents for children. * Contact Robert King at rking@nvdaily.com http://www.nvdaily.com/News/286995161432232.bsp http://www.geocities.com/pifox1/index.html D.L.M.F