Post by Sharon Faulkner on Sept 13, 2006 8:00:12 GMT -5
Discovery into the lives of Native American Indians - A historic find in Southeastern Connecticut.
Story by Tina Detelj
Sept. 12, 2006
A window into the lives of Native American Indians is opened as archaeologists find a centuries old system of caves. Zack Decker says, "What we have here is we have these black areas in here." Black areas which indicate something Zack Decker never expected. Decker says, "One of the first things you learn is you don't look for things on slopes."
Decker was doing an archaeological survey of this hill for Foxwoods expansion when he uncovered pit houses. What are they? Decker says,"If you're looking at a hill taking a shovel and just digging a big hole a cave almost into the side of the hill."
Structures reinforced with wood. "This timber right here cut in between cut right through this second pit house." Decker says the darker dirt shows where the floor of the pit house or where the fire pit within it would have been. He says this shows the natives were not only nomadic. They would hunker down for the winter. "It shows they are a lot more seasoned and know their environment better than we originally thought."
Decker was also part of a crew which found thousands of Indian artifacts at the old Norwich Hospital site which sits along the Thames River. "It was a great spot with great resources that people kept coming back to."
And now it is a spot where a New York developer hopes to build the Utopia Movie Studio theme park. The state archaeologist says the find should not hold up the project. They will either preserve or excavate the area. "It would be nice to go in there and at least get some of the artifacts out and maybe do a little bit more intensive survey."
Which is what they have done back at the Foxwoods dig. At this point this dig is done. The archaeologists were able to document the site and now the construction crews take over. These water pipes will soon be installed as part of the casino's 7-million dollar addition. "We weren't assuming to find anything like this. This was totally unexpected." Zack Decker says these pit houses date as far back as nine thousand years ago.
www.wtnh.com/Global/story.asp?S=5399553
Story by Tina Detelj
Sept. 12, 2006
A window into the lives of Native American Indians is opened as archaeologists find a centuries old system of caves. Zack Decker says, "What we have here is we have these black areas in here." Black areas which indicate something Zack Decker never expected. Decker says, "One of the first things you learn is you don't look for things on slopes."
Decker was doing an archaeological survey of this hill for Foxwoods expansion when he uncovered pit houses. What are they? Decker says,"If you're looking at a hill taking a shovel and just digging a big hole a cave almost into the side of the hill."
Structures reinforced with wood. "This timber right here cut in between cut right through this second pit house." Decker says the darker dirt shows where the floor of the pit house or where the fire pit within it would have been. He says this shows the natives were not only nomadic. They would hunker down for the winter. "It shows they are a lot more seasoned and know their environment better than we originally thought."
Decker was also part of a crew which found thousands of Indian artifacts at the old Norwich Hospital site which sits along the Thames River. "It was a great spot with great resources that people kept coming back to."
And now it is a spot where a New York developer hopes to build the Utopia Movie Studio theme park. The state archaeologist says the find should not hold up the project. They will either preserve or excavate the area. "It would be nice to go in there and at least get some of the artifacts out and maybe do a little bit more intensive survey."
Which is what they have done back at the Foxwoods dig. At this point this dig is done. The archaeologists were able to document the site and now the construction crews take over. These water pipes will soon be installed as part of the casino's 7-million dollar addition. "We weren't assuming to find anything like this. This was totally unexpected." Zack Decker says these pit houses date as far back as nine thousand years ago.
www.wtnh.com/Global/story.asp?S=5399553