Hidden Cave facts for kids

Hidden Cave is an amazing archaeological cave site. It's found in the Great Basin area, close to Fallon, Nevada, in the United States. The cave got its name from Mark Harrington, who first explored it. He had a really tough time finding the entrance and said, "This is one hidden cave!"

Archaeologists have dug at Hidden Cave several times. Mark Harrington first explored it in the 1930s. Later, in 1978, David Hurst Thomas led a more detailed excavation. This site is very old, dating back to the early Desert Archaic Culture. People used it about 4,000 to 2,000 years ago. Thousands of ancient tools and items have been found here. Hidden Cave was not a place where people lived. Instead, it was used as a storage spot for tools and other important goods for about 2,000 years.

What is Hidden Cave?

Hidden Cave is located on a hilltop about 12 miles from Fallon. It's east of the Lahontan Valley. This area was once part of the Toedokado Territory. People who used the cave lived near marshy areas. These areas were good for harvesting pine nuts.

The cave itself was formed around 21,000 years ago. It was carved out by waves from a huge ancient lake called Lake Lahontan. The cave was underwater until about 4,000 years ago. That's when the Desert Archaic people started using it. They used it all year round for storage. Some people think its secret location made it a great place to hide valuable items. The area had more rainfall during the Neoglacial period. This helped plants like the pine nut, which was a main food source for ancient people.

How Hidden Cave Was Found

Over the last 10,000 years, dirt and debris built up inside Hidden Cave. This happened because of water and wind. The most recent layers of dirt completely blocked the entrance. This made the cave very hard to find. Many archaeologists have worked at Hidden Cave. Their work shows that the cave was used to store food and tools. A few burials were also found there.

In the late 1800s, there was a story about a robber. People said he hid treasure in one of the caves in the Grimes Point Area. In 1927, four boys heard this story. They went looking for the treasure cave. One boy, Dick Wisenhut, felt a breeze coming from some rocks. These rocks were right outside Hidden Cave. They squeezed their way in after moving some rocks. But they were too scared to explore much until six months later.

The boys kept the cave a secret for a while. Then, a local miner named Mr. McRiley found it. He started mining the cave for bat guano. This was a very good fertilizer. Mr. McRiley complained about finding "Indian junk" in the cave. This news eventually reached archaeologists.

Mr. McRiley's story reached Margaret Wheat. She was an archaeologist who lived in Fallon her whole life. Wheat understood how important the cave might be. She invited Mark Raymond Harrington to investigate. Harrington had explored other famous sites like Pueblo Grande de Nevada and Gypsum Cave.

Early Explorations

Mark Harrington was the first archaeologist to dig at Hidden Cave. He worked with S.M. Wheeler in 1935. They had trouble finding the cave's entrance. That's why Harrington called it "Hidden Cave." They found many interesting things. These included baskets, carved wood, and leather items. However, the cave was very dusty. This made it hard to see and breathe, so they couldn't dig too much.

Five years later, S.M. Wheeler returned with his wife, Georgette Wheeler. They wanted to do a more detailed study of Hidden Cave. They were known for their excellent photography and note-taking skills. That summer, they collected over 1,500 different items. These items were linked to the Basket Makers II and III cultures. They even found a horse bone. This suggested the cave might have been open during the Pleistocene era. The Wheelers still struggled with the dust. At the end of the summer, they put up an iron gate. This was to protect the site and allow future archaeologists to explore it.

Modern Excavations

The most recent major excavations happened in 1979. These were led by David Hurst Thomas. He first visited in 1967, but the dust stopped him from digging much. In 1978, Thomas had wooden walkways and ramps built. This allowed people to walk around without stirring up dust.

During the summer of 1979, Thomas re-examined items found by S.M. Wheeler. Many of these had never been fully studied. Thomas concluded that Hidden Cave was used only for storage all year round. He also found almost two dozen ancient storage pits. The cave also had layers of soil that showed what the climate was like over the past 10,000 years. There was proof of high and low levels of Lake Lahontan. It showed wet and dry climates, volcanic activity, and how humans used the cave.

Amazing Discoveries

Archaeologists found five burials in the cave. These burials seemed to have been placed there on purpose. Many of the items found were food remains. These included pine nuts mixed with cattail pollen. Pine nuts are gathered in the fall. Cattail pollen is only available in mid-summer. Bulrush seeds were also found. These are harvested about six weeks after cattail pollen, around the same time as pine nuts. Pine nuts and bulrush are not found in the same areas. Finding all three together shows they must have been stored in the cave. This is because they come from different seasons and places.

Besides plant remains, bone, shell, and wooden items were found. Many were still completely intact. This suggests they were left there for a reason, perhaps to be used later. There were many bone items. These included flakes, pierced bones, and pendants. Also, 49 sharpened spear points made from antler and animal bones were found. The pendants were shaped bones. There were 143 shell items, mostly clam and olivella shells. These shells were mainly used as beads. Wooden tools were very common. About 63 wooden weapon parts were found, like spear throwers (atlatls) and other weapon pieces. Some wooden tools were found near hearths. Eight hearths were discovered during the digging.

Ancient Human Latrine

In 1951, an ancient human latrine was found in the cave. It contained coprolites, which are fossilized poop. The contents of these coprolites helped prove something amazing. People during this time ate both pine nuts and bulrush fruits at the same time. This was true even though these foods were not found near each other. Scientists think people might have used a "second harvest" strategy. This means they would get undigested seeds from feces. This was a survival trick used when there wasn't much food available.

Hidden Cave Today

Today, the Grimes Point area is a popular spot. Hikers and nature lovers enjoy visiting. It's also known for its easy-to-see petroglyphs, which are ancient rock carvings. Hidden Cave itself is about 150 feet deep and 200 feet wide.

You can take guided tours to Hidden Cave. These tours are organized by The Churchill County Museum and the Bureau of Land Management. Engineers from the Bureau of Land Management made the entrance larger. Now, visitors don't have to crawl to get inside the cave.