Danny Roush was born and raised in the Ohio Valley Region. As a boy, he roamed the same hills and valleys as did the people native to this area so many years before him. His interest in the Native American way of life was sparked at a young age by walking in newly plowed fields and along the banks of the Ohio River in search of arrowheads and other artifacts. It always fascinated him that he was touching the same objects that the Ancients had fashioned with their own hands. This interest carried over into adulthood, especially after learning of his own Shawnee ancestry. He had never questioned how arrowheads were made until he saw a skilled flintknapper transform a shapeless hunk of flint into a beautiful flint point by using primitive tools. From that moment on, he was hooked. His first attempts at flintknapping were very frustrating. He spent the next few months trying to work stone with little instruction. He finally went to the local library in search of books and videos that were available on flintknapping. What information he found was a great help, but he realized he needed one-on-one instruction. So, he traveled far and wide over the next few years in search of the masters who could enlighten him as to the secrets of working stone. Dave Waldorf, Jim Spears, and Woody Blackwell were the most influential in his quest. He also attended many flintknapper rendezvous' exchanging tools, knowledge, and materials with others. He compares flintknapping to chess. You have to continuously think several steps ahead to know what your next move will be. The object is to sacrifice as little as possible of the stone while producing the piece you want. Now, Danny spends his time trying to perfect his own craft by giving demonstrations, teaching, conducting workshops for museums, churches, schools, universities, The Scouts, Historical Societies, Archaeological Society Chapters, State Parks, and individuals. He orders the flint he uses from all over the continent and also digs his own from various locations. Burlington flint from Missouri and multi-colored flint from Flint Ridge are two of his favorites. Danny believes that flintknapping may be the oldest profession known. He feels it is a privilege to work stone using the same primitive technology and types of tools as our ancestors used so long ago. Flintknapping is his connection the Ancient World, a link to another time, people, and way of life. |