Lamoka Site facts for kids

The Lamoka Site, also called Lamoka, is a very important archaeological site near Tyrone, New York in Schuyler County, New York. An archaeological site is a place where scientists study how people lived a long time ago by digging up old things they left behind. This site was named a National Historic Landmark in 1961 because it's so special.

It's also known as the Lamoka Lake Site because it's close to a lake with the same name. About 4,500 years ago, people who hunted and gathered food lived here. The Lamoka Lake site is one of the most important places from the Archaic Period in North America. It helped experts understand and name a whole culture that came after the very first people (Paleo-Indians) and before people started making pottery (Woodland cultures). Because of this, the Lamoka Lake site is often called the "type site" for the Archaic Period in North American history.

Digging Up the Past

The first professional digs at the Lamoka Lake site happened between 1925 and 1928. These were done by the Rochester Museum of Arts and Sciences, which is now called the Rochester Museum and Science Center.

More excavations took place later. The New York State Museum dug there in 1958 and 1962. The Buffalo Museum of Science worked there in the 1980s. Utica College did digs in the 1990s, and Rutgers University explored the site in 2000.

Part of this important archaeological site is now protected inside the Waneta-Lamoka Wildlife Management Area. In 2006, a group called The Archaeological Conservancy bought the rest of the site to make sure it stays safe and preserved.

Amazing Finds

Archaeologists digging at the Lamoka Lake site have found many interesting things. They've uncovered lots of projectile points, which are like arrowheads or spear points. They also found stone netsinkers, which were heavy stones used to weigh down fishing nets.

Other tools found include smooth, polished stone tools like beveled adzes (for chopping wood), hammerstones (for pounding), and tools for grinding food like pestles, mullers, mortars, and metates. They also discovered tools made from animal bones, such as awls (for piercing), knives, and fish hooks.

Besides tools, scientists found small stone flakes called lithic debitage. These are tiny pieces of rock left over when people made stone tools. They also found many animal bones, mostly from white-tailed deer, tree squirrel, and even the now-extinct passenger pigeon. These bones tell us what animals the people hunted and ate.

Archaeologists also found different features in the ground. These include pits, postmolds (holes where wooden posts once stood), hearths (old fireplaces), firebeds, and layers of ash. Most of the artifacts and features found at the site are from the Late Archaic Period. However, some items from the later Woodland Period have also been discovered.

Images for kids

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  These artifacts were recovered from the Lamoka site, during digs conducted by the Buffalo Museum of Science. In this photograph are projectile points and a deer bone talisman.