Posted on 04/17/2010 7:02:34 PM PDT by rdl6989
Thousands of years before Euro-Americans “discovered” the bubbling mudpots and eruptive geysers of what is now Yellowstone National Park, early Americans were spending part of their summer camping in the Yellowstone Lake area.
“It’s always been a destination resort,” said Elaine Hale, park archaeologist. “For at least 10,000 years people have been using the lake area.”
Thanks to archaeological digs around Yellowstone Lake last summer by University of Montana assistant archaeology professor Douglas MacDonald and 13 graduate and undergrad students, park officials are now getting a broader picture of early human use of the lake area.
“The lake may have served as a crossroads of sorts for Native Americans from multiple regions,” MacDonald said.
*****
Why here?
The reasons are several.
Obsidian, a valued rock used to create razor-sharp points for weapons and tools, is located about 20 miles to the northwest at Obsidian Cliff. The lake area contains a variety of flora – everything from camas to wild onions – that would have created a great stew or to create medicines. And there was plenty of wildlife in the region. One archaeological site turned up blood residue from bear, wolf and deer as well as rabbit sinew.
“The lake area was clearly an important warm-weather hunting and gathering grounds for Native Americans from all over the northwestern Great Plains, northern Great Basin and northern Rocky Mountains,” MacDonald said.
(Excerpt) Read more at missoulian.com ...
Ping.
As opposed to the usual, invading foreign oases?
My question for these college kids is, what the hell is a “Euro-American” and did Amerigo Vespucci visit Yellowstone before the “Native Americans”? If not...
Ping!
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Thanks rdl6989! |
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An Euro-American is a person who mother is European and father is American and actually born in the United states of America, as opposed, for example, to a Pseudo-American born in Kenya, whose mother is American and whose father was Kenyan. Kenya picture it now?
Now, I thought a Euro-American was someone who, as an American, does not have foreign roots that are identifiable enough to have a Festival named after them! (As in Polish Fest, Festa Italiana, Mexican Fiesta, Irish Fest, German Fest, or Bastille Days.) The Euro-American tag identifies all the rest of us who are a mix of English, Scots, Irish, Swedish, Norwegian, Welsh, Hungarian, Serbian, etc. We’re all the ones who normally are left out of the hilarity. :-(
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