Lamb Spring is a pre-Clovis prehistoric Paleo-Indian

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology a ...

located in

Douglas County, Colorado Douglas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 357,978. The county seat is Castle Rock. Douglas County is part of the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colorado, metropolitan statistica ...

with the largest collection of

Columbian mammoth The Columbian mammoth (''Mammuthus columbi'') is an extinct species of mammoth that inhabited the Americas as far north as the Northern United States and as far south as Costa Rica during the Pleistocene epoch. It was one of the last in a line ...

bones in the state. Lamb Spring also provides evidence of Paleo-Indian hunting in a later period by the Cody culture complex group. Lamb Spring was listed in 1997 on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

History

Paleo-Indians

Paleo-Indian were primarily hunters of large mammals called megafauna, such as the

Bison antiquus ''Bison antiquus'', the antique bison or ancient bison, is an extinct species of bison that lived in Late Pleistocene North America until around 10,000 years ago. It was one of the most common large herbivores on the North American continent dur ...

,Griffin-Pierce, Trudy. (2010).
The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Southwest
'. New York:Columbia University Press, 130. . during a transitional period from

Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

to Ice Age summer. As the climate warmed, glacial run-off created lakes and savannas. At the end of the summer period the land became drier, food was not as abundant for large animals, and they became extinct. People adapted by hunting smaller mammals and gathering wild plants to supplement their diet. Lamb Spring was an early to late Paleo-Indian site in Colorado, with Megafauna

bison antiquus ''Bison antiquus'', the antique bison or ancient bison, is an extinct species of bison that lived in Late Pleistocene North America until around 10,000 years ago. It was one of the most common large herbivores on the North American continent dur ...

camelops ''Camelops''Being occasionally called ''Western Camel'' or ''Yesterday's Camel''. is an extinct genus of camels that lived in North and Central America, ranging from Alaska to Guatemala, from the middle Pliocene to the end of the Pleistocene. It ...

mammoth A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks an ...

and horse remains.Kipfer, Barbara Ann. (2000).
Encyclopedic Dictionary of Archaeology
'. New York:Plenum Publisher, 296. . Mammoth bones at the Lamb Spring site may pre-date the earliest known human culture, the

Clovis culture The Clovis culture is a prehistoric Paleoamerican culture, named for distinct stone and bone tools found in close association with Pleistocene fauna, particularly two mammoths, at Blackwater Locality No. 1 near Clovis, New Mexico, in 1936 a ...

, which flourished 11,000-13,000 years ago. Mammoth bones at the site are dated at 11,735 +/- 95 years ago and 13,140 +/- 1,000 years ago. Many large bones appear to have been broken at the site, which may indicate butchery by early man. There were also some broken rocks with the bones, but it has not been determined that they were used as tools. It has not yet been conclusively determined to be a pre-Clovis site, but continued excavation may find pre-Clovis tools and evidence that more conclusively finds that the mammoth died as a result of hunting. The camelop bones and artifacts date back to about 11,000 BC. The site has Colorado's largest collection of

bones.

Pronghorn The pronghorn (, ) (''Antilocapra americana'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal indigenous to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is known colloquially in North America as the American a ...

and

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...

remains were also found. After 11,000 BC the climate changed and all of the megafauna except the bison antiquus were extinct. About 7000 or 6500 BC, Paleo-Indians hunted bison and smaller mammals at the spring.

Discovery

In the summer of 1960, while constructing a pond at a spring on his property, Charles Lamb found mammoth tusks and bones from about 13,000 years ago. Also found were bison, camel, and horse bones. His find quickly initiated a series of archaeological investigations and excavations.''History of Lamb Spring.''
Douglas County Government. 2011. Retrieved 9-28-2011.
Douglas County Government. 2011. Retrieved 10-23-2011.

Archaeological findings

A summary of archaeological efforts are: Artifacts from the archaeological excavations are located at the

Denver Museum of Nature and Science The Denver Museum of Nature & Science is a municipal natural history and science museum in Denver, Colorado. It is a resource for informal science education in the Rocky Mountain region. A variety of exhibitions, programs, and activities help mus ...

and the

National Museum of Natural History The National Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. In 2021, with 7 ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Lamb Spring Archaeological Preserve

The 32 acres around the Lamb Spring site was purchased by

The Archaeological Conservancy The Archaeological Conservancy is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that acquires and preserves archaeological sites in the United States. Whereas nearly every other nation protects all archaeological sites within its borders as part of its natio ...

in 1995. Assisting them in the acquisition were the

and the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. Free tours are available, May through October, on the 1st Saturday of the month. The tours are sponsored by the Conservancy and the Douglas County Community Planning and Sustainable Development department.

References

External links

Lamb Spring Archaeological Preserve
{{Colorado, show Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado Paleo-Indian archaeological sites in Colorado Protected areas of Douglas County, Colorado Pre-Clovis archaeological sites in the Americas National Register of Historic Places in Douglas County, Colorado