Old bones at Old Woman Creek

A Huron couple made the surprising find at about 2:30 p.m. and called Erie County deputies.  

"The bone was in close proximity to the water and may have been either washed ashore or unearthed by waves," a deputy's report said. "The piece of bone was approximately 6 to 8 inches long and appears as though it may be petrified." 

The bone appeared as if it had been in the elements for quite some time. Deputies bagged it and they plan to ship it to the Erie County coroner, who's sending it to the Lucas County coroner's office for a resident anthropologist to inspect. If it turns out to be a human bone, it may not be so surprising it washed up on a local river bank.   

"Based on the large population of Native Americans living here in past years, it's not unheard of to have bones wash up," Erie County Sheriff Paul Sigsworth said.

The last time such a bone appeared was about five years ago, at the Willow Point Wildlife Area near Castalia.