Early North Americans

The shore of Calvert Island, British Columbia
photo: A. Davey

Archaeologists digging on the shore of Calvert Lake in British Columbia, Canada, might have found sets of the oldest human footprints to be found in North America. The footprints could date to thirteen thousand years, but there is a slight snag: the land had risen at that location so the footprints are nowhere near as deep as might be imagined. Because of the unclear stratigraphy, it is also possible that the footprints are only two thousand years old. I hope for the former, of course, but suspect the latter.

Canada Geese on the Columbia at Kennewick, Washington
photo: Bobjgalindo

Just south of British Columbia is the state of Washington and in 1996, on the banks of the Columbia River at Kennewick, skeletal remains were found of a man that was carbon dated to about nine thousand years. Because of the unusual structure of the bones which appeared different from the local native populations, some archaeologists speculated that "Kennewick Man" might have been European. The local natives, said that he was one of their own and fought to be able to conduct a funeral for him. Well, the score is now official: Native population: 1 Archaeologists 0.