Pioneer Mothers Memorial: a Day-Hike into the Indiana's Past

The Hoosier National Forest in southern Indiana is made up of many parcels of land. The boundaries of the Hoosier National Forest total 430,000 acres, with part of that privately owned. There are many small towns within the forest. White settlers found southern Indiana to be heavily forested with hardwood trees, much different from the flat terrain of the northern part of the state.

Along State Highway 37, only a few miles south of the town of Paoli, is a parcel of forest with an interesting history. Known as The Pioneer Mothers Memorial, it is open to hiking only; no horses or bikes are allowed on the trail. There is a parking area along Highway 37. The trail is only one mile long, beginning at Highway 37. At the other end of the trail is an old access road from Highway 150 that used to lead to a picnic area. A bridge along the access road is unsafe, and the road was closed and the picnic area was removed several years ago. There is no marker for the access road, but if you find it on a Hoosier National Forest map, there is room to park along the access road from Highway 150 as far as the bridge. Along this one mile trail you will see a memorial wall, which has the name "Pioneer Mothers" embedded in it. If you hike the trail from the Highway 150 access road, you will have to cross Lick Creek before you encounter the features along the trail.

This parcel of woods is an 88 acre tract of virgin timber stands, originally purchased in 1816 by Joseph Cox as part of a farm. The forest contained huge black walnut trees and other native varieties. He loved the huge trees, and did not harvest them. As the land passed to his family through the years, the trees were reportedly never cut. However, the USDA has a photo from a sawmill of huge walnut logs that were cut in 1936, with identifying information stating that they were from Cox's Woods near Paoli, Indiana. The size of the logs was remarkable, as was the price paid of $1,200. Those are the only known trees to be harvested from this land.

Some of the famous black walnuts grow from a ravine and are estimated at 130 feet tall. Many of these huge trees have trunks with no limbs for the first 60 feet.

The area has become a research area. Different biological studies have been made, and the area remains actively monitored by the US Forest Service. Since it was never cleared and plowed, archaeologists have been able to identify a pre-historic settlement from the Oliver Phase people, an early group of Native Americans who did some farming. Oliver Phase villages have mostly been identified along the White River basin, but Lick Creek in Cox's Woods has been identified as a village site. Indiana University archaeological researchers have been able to locate a double-walled post stockade which surrounded the village. The enclosed area is about an acre, and posts of houses and buildings within the stockade as well as a central common plaza were also identified. This is on the National Register of Historic Places, and although illegal digging was a problem at one time, the control of vandalism has been improved.

No matter which end of the Pioneer Mothers trail you begin at, it is a short and easy hike through beautiful shaded woods. There is an abundance of small wildlife, especially squirrels. This is also a great hike for bird watching.

Source: Personal Experience, Local Lore