THE GAULT SITE: This archeological site near Florence, Texas, is a treasure trove of Clovis points. Researchers have also found evidence of pre-Clovis habitation.

The excavations at Gault from 1999-2002 were primarily to recover information about the Clovis culture. Scientists were dealing with a paradigm shift as the old hypothesis of the peopling of the Americas 13,500 years ago began crumbling. Sites like Monte Verde, Meadowcroft and Cactus Hill suggested that people had arrived earlier than previously thought but archaeology did not yet have a new generally accepted hypothesis describing the earlier culture. Our feeling was that if you want to understand the earlier culture (especially without a lot of technological data) you should start with the earliest you know and see that what can tell you. Recovery of over 600,000 lithic artifacts from Clovis context at Gault enabled us to do that. What we found was the signature of a highly sophisticated and knowledgeable generalized foraging culture. The people that utilized Clovis technology knew a great deal about their surroundings, were not nearly as mobile as previously thought and used nearly all of the available local resources to survive. This was not the signature of a pioneering culture but rather one of a group that was comfortable with and knowledgeable about their area.

The foundation supporting and conducting the research has a revamped website (gaultschool.org). It’s well worth perusing.