A team of archaeologists dug for 10 years around a Texas Creek. They were looking for any signs of the first Americans. They recently found what they were looking for. They found stone spears that they believe are 13,500 to 15,500 years old. The team believes that these are the oldest artifacts in America.
The archaeologists found the stone spears underneath the tools that were used by the Clovis Culture. In the past, archaeologists believed that the Clovis people were the first group to come to America. However, this new finding proves that they were not the first people in America.
Todd Braje is an archaeologist who works for the California Academy of Sciences, which is located in San Francisco. He stated that this finding is going to fuel more research. He also believes that archaeologists will be able to use this finding to trace the movement of the first Americans.
The archaeologists found the stone spears about 20 miles northwest of Austin, Texas. Michael Waters is an archaeologist who works for Texas A & M University. He dug in the area from 2006 to 2016. He stated that this area is ideal for people to settle because it has fresh water all year long.
The prehistoric communities obviously agreed that this was the best place to settle. The tools suggest that people stayed in that area for over 10,000 years. The spears also indicate that people used to hunt mammoths and megafauna over 13,000 years ago.
Michael stated that these weapons were once used to hunt animals. He also said that the findings expand on what archaeologists know about the first people who lived in America. It also allows them to see how people settled in America after the last Ice Age. The Efrieda Frank Foundation and the North Star Archaeological Research Program funded this project.
