Edwin Davis was born in 1811 in Hillsboro, Ohio, just a few miles from Chillicothe. As he grew up, he became familiar with the many mounds and earthworks of the Scioto River valley. Seeing these features as a young man inspired his deep curiosity about them. At the time, archaeology had not yet developed as an academic discipline. Davis explored the mounds while a student at Kenyon College and wrote a paper on the subject which he read at his commencement. Daniel Webster, an early member of the American Antiquarian Society, heard the paper and encouraged Davis to continue his research.