Lubbock Lake Landmark facts for kids
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Lubbock Lake Site
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Visitor center and museum
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 Lubbock Lake Site
Location in Texas
Lubbock Lake Site
Location in the United States
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| Nearest city | Lubbock, Texas |
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| Area | 300 acres (120 ha) |
| NRHP reference No. | 71000948 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | June 21, 1971 |
| Designated NHL | December 22, 1977 |
The Lubbock Lake Landmark, also called the Lubbock Lake Site, is a super important place in Lubbock, Texas. It's a special spot for both archeology and nature. This huge area, about 336 acres, is protected by the state and federal governments.
At Lubbock Lake, scientists have found amazing clues about ancient people and animals that are now extinct. They've discovered signs that people lived here for nearly 12,000 years! It's like a giant history book buried in the ground. The Landmark is part of the Museum of Texas Tech University.
You can actually watch archeologists working here. People from all over the world, and even local volunteers, help dig and uncover history each summer. This means anyone can get involved, not just scientists! The Landmark offers both guided and self-guided tours all year. It's open Tuesday to Saturday from 9 AM to 5 PM, and Sunday from 1 PM to 5 PM.
This site is so important that it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It's also a special National Historic and State Archeological Landmark.
Contents
What is the History of Lubbock Lake?
Lubbock Lake is located in a bend of the Yellow House Draw. This is a small river that used to have natural springs nearby. People living on the Llano Estacado (a large plateau) used these water sources for thousands of years. But in the early 1930s, the springs dried up.
In 1936, the city of Lubbock tried to dig out the bend to create a water supply. This didn't work for water, but it uncovered amazing archeological finds! Today, there isn't much water, and no actual lake, at the site.
The first official digs started in 1939 by the West Texas Museum (now the Museum of Texas Tech University). In 1936, two people named Clark and Turner Kimmel found ancient spear points. In the late 1940s, scientists found several places where ancient bison were killed. These bison were hunted by people from the Folsom Period, about 10,800 to 10,300 years ago.
At one bison kill site, charred (burned) bison bones were found. These bones were used to get the first ever radiocarbon date for ancient materials. This dating method is still the most accurate way to tell the age of Paleo-Indian artifacts. Those bison bones were about 9,800 years old!
What is the Geology of Lubbock Lake?
The deepest rock layer at Lubbock Lake is called the Blanco Formation. It's made of lake sediments that are about two million years old. Above this is the Blackwater Draw Formation. This is a layer of wind-blown dirt that covers most of the area. It slowly built up between 1 million and 50,000 years ago.
There's a sand dune at Lubbock Lake that holds sediments and old soil layers from at least 36,000 years ago. The Yellow House Draw formed about 20,000 years ago. It cut through the Blackwater Draw Formation and into the Blanco Formation. By about 12,000 years ago, the draw had cut a deep bend, about 49 feet (15 meters) deep, in the area of the Landmark.
Evidence shows that Lubbock Lake has become drier over the last 11,000 years. The oldest layers show stream deposits, then lake sediments. The newest layers, from 6,500 to 4,500 years ago, show wind-blown sediments from a very dry period. After 4,500 years ago, the climate became much like it is today.
What Archeological Discoveries Have Been Made?
The site clearly shows many layers of cultural deposits. These layers can be dated very accurately because of the clear geological stratigraphy. Stratigraphy means layers of different sediments that represent different time periods. From these layers, scientists have gotten almost 175 radiocarbon dates.
The Lubbock Lake Landmark shows a nearly complete history of cultures. It goes all the way from the Clovis Period to modern times. These different periods are easy to see because the layers with artifacts are separated by "sterile" layers. Sterile layers are those that don't have any artifacts.
Each layer tells a story about a different time period. It shows what the water was like, what plants and animals lived there, what groups of people were present, and what the climate and environment were like over the past 12,000 years. The history of people in North America is usually divided into five main cultural periods. All of these periods are found at Lubbock Lake Landmark.
Paleolithic Cultural Periods
These are the oldest periods:
- Paleo-Indian Period: This includes the very first people.
Later Cultural Periods: From Neolithic to Modern Times
- Archaic (8,500–2000 years ago): People started using more varied tools and hunting smaller animals.
- Ceramic (2,000–500 years ago): People started making pottery.
- Protohistoric (500–300 years ago): This is the time just before Europeans arrived.
- Historic (300 years ago to modern times): This is when Europeans were present.
Cultural Periods and What Was Found
Paleo-Indian Period Discoveries
In the Clovis Period layers, scientists found remains of several extinct animals. These include mammoths, two types of ancient horses, camels, ancient bison, giant short-faced bears, and giant armadillo-like animals called Pampatheriidae. These finds were in an area where people cut up animal parts and broke mammoth bones to make tools.
Later Paleo-Indian groups, like the Folsom people, hunted ancient bison around the ponds and marshes. Places where bison were killed and butchered are called kill/butchering sites. Hunters sometimes disguised themselves as wolves to get close to the bison before attacking.
Archaic Period Discoveries
The Archaic Period on the Llano Estacado is still being studied. Several layers with bison and pronghorn bones have been found. A bison kill site from the Early Archaic period was discovered. Also, a baking "oven" from the Middle Archaic period was found. This oven was a large pit with burned rocks and ash. Since there were no bones, researchers think it was used to cook plants. Radiocarbon dating shows this oven is about 5,000 years old.
Several Late Archaic camps have also been uncovered. A camp usually has hearths (campfires), scattered rocks from fires, broken tools, and small animal bones from meals.
Ceramic Period Discoveries
In the Ceramic levels, broken pieces of Puebloan and Mogollon pottery have been found. Archeological features include camp sites with scattered stone tools, flakes (small pieces of stone from making tools), broken bones, and hearths. Digs from this period have also found remains of modern bison, coyote, wolf, and pronghorn.
Protohistoric Period Discoveries
The Protohistoric Period is a time of change. It covers the time just before and during the first contact with Europeans. Spanish explorers were in the area during the later Protohistoric Period. However, their presence didn't seem to change the native cultures or the archeological finds much at first. The Apaches are known to have lived in this area from at least 1450 until the mid-1700s.
Historic Period Discoveries
The Historic Period begins when Europeans made regular contact with the native peoples. Digs from this period show the presence of modern horses, as well as metal and glass items. The Apache were later moved out of the area by the Comanches. The Comanches roamed the Llano Estacado from the mid-1700s to the 1870s. By studying these sites and comparing them to old records, we can learn more about how these native peoples lived and moved around.
Evidence of Anglo-American (early American settlers) life has also been found in the most recent layers. Some of these artifacts show that buffalo hunters used this area in the 1870s. Things like rifle cartridges, metal parts, square nails, buttons, and a ginger beer bottle were found. These items represent George Singer's store and home from the early 1880s.
The Singer Store was the first business in the area. It was built near the springs, at the edge of what was then called Long Lake. It was also at the crossing of two military trails. The store was a trading post for early settlers and cattle ranchers. It operated from 1881 to 1886, when it burned down. The store was rebuilt further downstream. The Singer Store was actually the beginning of the modern city of Lubbock!
Images for kids
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Visitor center and museum
