Paleo-Indian Period - 10,000 to 14,500 Years Ago

Various style of Paleo-Indian stone points recovered from the excavation of Russell Cave. The bottom fragments were not identified due to its damaged nature.

NPS Photo

First Inhabitants

Although very little is known about the Paleo-Indian period, the evidence for man’s presence in North America around this time is overwhelming. Traces of the Old World Upper Paleolithic culture from many archeological sites in the New World indicate that this region was populated during this time by the people whom we call Paleo-Indians. However, despite careful excavation of numerous sites, archeologists are still uncertain about the Paleo-Indian tradition and everyday life. This is mainly due to the lack of organic artifacts which could not withstand the passage of time. In the case of Russell Cave, a handful of stone artifacts as well as teeth fragments from Mylohyus, a genus of peccary believed to be from this time period were recovered by archeologists.

Clovis points from the Rummells-Maske Site, Cedar County, Iowa.

Bill Whittaker

Flintknapping, a stone tool shaping technique invented by those who roamed the Earth long ago, plays a major role in the lives of the Paleo-Indian people. Flintknappers, or knappers, crafted spear points, knives, scrappers, axes, and other sharp-edged tools by striking a piece of chert or flint methodically with billets made from stones, antlers, and bones. Spear heads were by far the most intricate and complicated to make, each point would take a considerable amount of time and effort to complete. These were usually elongated, razor sharp on the upper ¾ portion and purposefully dulled near the base to prevent the bindings from being cut when the point is hafted (or attached) to the foreshaft of the spear. The Clovis point (11,500 – 10,500 BCE), perhaps the most well-known example of such tool and once believed to be the earliest in North America, is now trumped by a collection of points discovered from the Cooper’s Ferry site in southwestern Idaho by a team of archeologists from Oregon State University. The 13 stone points are believed to be nearly 16,000 years old (14,000 BCE). Although believed to be one of the oldest prehistoric sites east of the Mississippi River, Russell Cave’s collection of artifacts only reach approximately 11,000 BCE as its oldest. However, there were a couple of broken stone points that were not identified due to uncertainties, but it is possible that they are the priced Clovis point or a similar point in the same era. As shown in the above pictures, the older spear heads tend to be more lance-shaped, while the ones in the later part of the Paleo-Indian period became increasingly concave that often results in flaring “ears”.

Tooth (top) of the peccary (illustration shown), now extinct in the Southeast, were found at Russell Cave. Stone knives and scrappers (bottom) that would've been used for butchering meat were also found.

NPS Photo

Upon arriving in the New World, the Paleo-Indian people entered a hunter's paradise. The land was filled with large game such as mammoth, giant ground sloth, and peccary, as well as prehistoric camel, horse, and bison species, all of which are now extinct in the Southeast region. These megafaunas had no prior experience with people and therefore, lacked the behavioral adaptations against the hunters which in turns made them easy targets for the Paleo-Indian people. A favorite hunting strategy is thought to have been creeping up on a large mammal and wounding it with their spears. Once the wounded prey has ran off, the hunters would closely follow behind and harass it until the animal tired to the point that they could safely make the kill. Another popular hunting technique utilized by the inhabitants was stampeding a herd of animals over a cliff or into a gully to their death. This method was especially effective in feeding the group for a long period of time. However, it is suspected that hunting methods such as this contributed to the extinction of these large mammals. There is no doubt that the Paleo-Indian people were superb big game hunters, but they may have also relied on smaller game and wild vegetables for food. This is harder to determine since the remains of smaller animals and vegetation do not endure the passage of time as well as the remains of larger animals.

Due to the lack of variety in artifacts, we know relatively little about the Paleo-Indian culture. However, it is believed that these hunters and gatherers had some notion of an afterlife when archeologists unearthed two remains buried with various artifacts. This includes full stone points and intentionally broken bone foreshafts. The bodies and the artifacts also had red ochre (made of silica and clay) sprinkled on top of them. From this discovery, archeologists can infer that the Paleo-Indians participated in rituals as a mean of coping with death.