Cherokee Sewer Site facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Cherokee Sewer Site
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| Nearest city | Cherokee, Iowa |
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| NRHP reference No. | 74000777 |
| Added to NRHP | December 24, 1974 |
The Cherokee Sewer Site is an important archaeological spot in Cherokee, Iowa, United States. It's where scientists found clues about ancient Native American people. These people hunted bison thousands of years ago. The site was dug up in 1973 and 1976. (Just so you know, this site has nothing to do with the Cherokee tribe you might have heard of.)
Contents
Discovering an Ancient Hunting Ground
What Was Found at the Site?
At the Cherokee Sewer Site, archaeologists found evidence of how people lived long ago. This site shows how ancient people hunted and processed bison. It's called a "multi-component" site because it has layers from different time periods. This means people used the area for a very long time.
The site is especially important for understanding the Archaic period in the Americas. This period was a long time ago, roughly from 8,000 to 1,000 BCE. During this time, people started to adapt to different environments.
Clues About Climate Change
The discoveries at the Cherokee Sewer Site helped scientists learn about climate change. The data from the digs gave us some of the first ideas about how the climate changed in the Midwest. This was thousands of years ago.
Scientists studied the teeth and bones of bison found at the site. They looked at these clues again in the 1990s. This new study showed that ancient people hunted bison in the late fall or early winter. Earlier studies had suggested a different hunting season.
How Hunting Changed Over Time
The evidence also showed a change in the age of the bison that were hunted. Over time, hunters started to kill older bison instead of younger ones. This shift happened around 6,000 years ago, during a time called the "mid-Holocene."
These findings suggest that bison hunters in the eastern Plains adapted to climate changes. They used different hunting methods than those on the western Plains. This shows how clever and flexible ancient people were. They found ways to survive as their environment changed.
A Protected Historical Site
The Cherokee Sewer Site is very important for understanding history. Because of its value, it is listed as an archaeological site on the National Register of Historic Places. This helps protect the site for future study and learning.
