Local site rewrites history of early humans in America 6/12/2009 12:30 AM By DR. TOM MACK Columnist
Since 1998, archaeologists at a site in Allendale County have been making discoveries that have the potential to rewrite the history - or more precisely, the prehistory - of our state.
The Topper site, named for a local resident who first found ancient artifacts at this location that borders the eastern shore of the Savannah River, has been the subject of major media attention because of the unearthing of evidence that human habitation in North America predates traditional estimates.
One of the staple beliefs of paleoamerican research - the term "paleo" is derived from the Greek word for "ancient" - holds that the first Americans appeared no earlier than 13,000 years ago; these early humans, it is thought, originated in Northeast Asia and crossed over to our continent after the last Ice Age.
Labeled the Clovis culture by scientists because the first evidence of these ancestors of the indigenous people of North America was found in the 1930s near present-day Clovis, N.M., these prehistoric humans were noted for their creation of distinctly shaped stone spear points used in the hunting of bison and mastodon and other early mammals.
The Topper site offers rich evidence of Clovis occupation in the Central Savannah River Area; in fact, the team responsible for excavating the site, members of the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, think that they have discovered at Topper an early quarry used by the Clovis people to gather the materials - in this case, a type of rock known as chert - for fashioning their stone tools.
Just its identification as a Clovis site would have been enough to make Topper an archaeological location of intense scientific interest, but a decision made by Dr. Albert Goodyear, the founder and director of the Allendale Paleoindian Expedition, to dig deeper than is generally the case at most such sites led to hypotheses that have made headlines.
In 2004, Goodyear and his team dug four meters below the surface and found artifacts in a layer of burnt plant remains that were subsequently tested via radiocarbon dating. The finding that this charcoal deposit is as old as 50,000 years may lend credence to the theory that human habitation on this continent dates much, much earlier than anyone supposed. Goodyear himself asserts that "Topper is the oldest radiocarbon-dated site in North America."
The verdict is still out, however, as to whether this evidence alone contradicts the long-held belief that early humans first arrived in America from Asia 13,000 years ago.
Many scientists argue that there is still not sufficient proof - incontrovertible material evidence - to support that contention.
Still, this pre-Clovis claim is tantalizing - and the search for further proof is under way, thanks to the ongoing work of the S.C. Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology at USC. Excavation continues unabated, with the active encouragement of the Clariant Corporation, which owns 2,000 acres in Allendale County, including the Topper site.
This Swiss-based company not only decided to provide camping facilities for the staff of the Southeastern Paleoamerican Survey but also made a significant financial contribution to the construction of a pavilion that shelters some of the most critical area of excavation - a viewing deck was added at this spot for the convenience of visitors in 2007.
Anyone can take part in this history-making effort to rewrite our state's prehistorical past.
Each summer, members of the public can join the "expedition" and participate in the dig by paying a largely tax-deductible fee; in return, they get to "work" the site and learn more about excavation techniques and artifact identification. For more information, visit www.allendale-expedition.net.
Dr. Mack is a Carolina Trustee Professor at USC Aiken.
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Comment Title: Topper site
Though it may not be impossible, it seems to me unlikely that humans were able to make it to the Americas prior to the invention of the Upper Paleolithic technology. This would put an upper limit of 35-40 thousand years on New World sites. The 35-40,000 year horizon is likely enough.(See Roots of Cataclysm, Algora Publ.NY 2009.) Beyond that, I remain skeptical. Keep digging though; I can recall a couple occasions when I was wrong.
Posted by: Sylvester Katt On: 6/26/2009
Comment Title: Prehistory? It ain't what we've been told it is!
To see the truth of this title type in, bring up, & click on www.edconrad.com. Also, type the word Yonaguni into your browsers and then be amazed at what arises.
Posted by: Tomcat On: 6/17/2009
Comment Title: Just keeps going...
Goodyear submitted the pre-Clovis Topper "artifacts" to Texas A&M a few years back. They said the "artifacts" were hokem. (The ones with "wear marks" had wear marks on top of the patina!) The findings were fully described in the Mammoth Trumpet and took Topper out of national publications, but the findings have always been ignored in SC and by USC.
Posted by: Sofie On: 6/17/2009
Comment Title: Pre-clovis coastal route into America
Hi, here in the UK, we've just had an excellent TV documentary series on The Great Human Migration about our spread across the world. The last episode presented convincing evidence that there were people in America before the Clovis people 13,000 years ago. Contrary to the established view that the earliest people arrived via the ice-free corridor from Alaska/Canada, there is now evidence people arrived earlier via a coastal route about 14,000 years ago (or earlier). There are some archeological remains in South America dated to about 14,000 years ago, but the strongest evidence is genetic. A rare set of genes have been traced to 14,000 years ago and these are found only in certain native Americans tribes which live along the west coast of North and South America. Interesting!
Posted by: BrokenTree On: 6/15/2009
Comment Title: The Hoax Continues
How can these people continue to perpetuate this hoax on the American people? Evidence of an ancient forest fire is not evidence of human habitation. Meadowcroft Rockshelter is another prime example. The point that Adavasio found was a Fox Creek which is Archaic. I and several other archaeologists saw it and knew what it was. Only Adavasio insisted that it was Paleo. It is sad to say that when he was asked to show it again several years later it turned up missing. Nothing ever dug in that rockshelter, not one tool and certainly no points were ever paleo. This is a money game to those who produce such hoaxes. They are like moccasin molds. To the untrained they are absolutely genuine artifacts. I feel embarassment for my profession.
Posted by: On: 6/14/2009
Comment Title: Topper site
How can these people call themselves scientists? Our current theories state there cannot possibly be anything beyond this point, so we will not dig any deeper? I thought science is about going where the evidence leads, not the current B.S. theories? Talk about a flat Earth society!
Posted by: Greg San Diego CA On: 6/13/2009
Comment Title: language studies
For those interested in amerincian language studies: "Language in the Americas by Joseph Greenberg" Winner of the Leonard Bloomfield Book Award by the Linguistic Society of America
Posted by: Bill Poser On: 6/12/2009
Comment Title: language studies
Contrary to a previous comment, linguistic studies do NOT provide any support for a single origin for all native American groups. At present, historical linguists recognize approximately 200 distinct language families in the Americas.
Posted by: Topcat On: 6/12/2009
Comment Title: Topper site
It is so refreshing to see that modern archaeology has broken out of the strangle hold that Ales Hrdlicka and Emil Haury imposed for so long. It used to be that when a dig reached the 10,000 to 13,000 year horizon work was discontinued as being no longer productive. Now it continues to bedrock or until it's proven there is nothing more to find. Some sites have been revisited with very good results deeper than originally thought there would be. Jeff Goodman may have been right after all.
Posted by: Greg San Diego CA On: 6/12/2009
Comment Title: Well written article
Thanks for including the controversy over carbon dates much older the 13000 years. Too many science writers simply publish press releases without any back ground on the scientific disputes that may surround a subject. I am a Clovis First subscriber and I think that position is still the most likely. Recent language and DNA studies continue to point to a single origin for all Native Americans and that buttresses the Clovis First theory. Contamination of sites for carbon dating is still the most likely cause of these “older finds”. Of course that is the beauty of science. New data may someday change my mind.
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