Indians and Dunbar Cave
A life-size statue of 
John Montgomery stands in Public Square, overlooking a vast area he once explored. Montgomery, who came here 231 years ago is the namesake of the county and is often credited with founding Clarksville. But of course, white settlers are the newcomers. In what we now call Montgomery County, signs have been found of Ice Age hunters passing through, and bands of nomads wandered our area about 5200 B.C., according to evidence from the banks of the Cumberland and Red rivers.
As long ago as 1500 B.C., American Indians roamed the surrounding forests in search of game.
In around 500 A.D., a people now known only as the “mound builders” inhabited this area. But the big news for Clarksville historians is the recent discovery that some American Indians left their mark in Dunbar Cave as early as 1,000 years ago. In January 2005, a group studying cave graffiti from the 1800s happened across markings much older than they expected, dating to between 1100 and 1360. The pre-Columbian pictographs found closest to the cave mouth show religious symbols depicting a connection between the upper world and lower world, including concentric circles, stars , the sun, the moon, the cross and the swastika, which is one of the world’s most ancient symbols.
One drawing depicts an anthropomorph, a Mississippian supernatural rising from his head and claws. The images can be seen today in public tours of Dunbar Cave.