This is the story of the Gault site in Central Texas and of the archaeologists and others who have been studying it since its discovery in 1929. The site covers some sixty acres on spring-fed Buttermilk Creek, where two bioregions come together. To date some 2.4 million artifacts have been recovered, and they indicated an almost continuous occupation over the past 16,000 years, including a large Clovis component dating from 13,500 to 12,900 years ago.
Since 1998, the chief archaeologist at the Gault site has been Michael Collins, currently of Texas State University. Under Collins’ leadership, the age and importance of the Gault site has become clear. He also ensured its protection by donating it to the Conservancy in order to establish it as an archaeological research preserve. Hundreds of volunteers have aided the research projects.
Collins’ work at the Gault site has already greatly broadened our knowledge of the First Americans, and it will continue to do so for years to come. Secrets in the Dirt is an easy read and folksy account of the history, scholars, and research at this great American archaeological site.
