Desert military bases hold wealth of archaeological finds

[Adsos Letter]

Source: PE.com

So, for archaeologist Marie Cottrell it's no big deal to find evidence of man in the sandy soil above a now-dry creek bed.

"Did you find some pottery? Here's some," Cottrell says, picking up a smooth, small brick-red shard from the ground near a stand of tamarisk trees. "Here's a grind stone," she adds, bending to retrieve a rounded piece of granite from the soil. Then she changes her mind.

No, it's not," she says. "It's part of a fireplace, because it's got cement."

The two items, their usage possibly hundreds of years apart, point to the history of the place. In prehistoric times, American Indians, including Serrano, Chemehuevi, Cahuilla and Mojaves, spent winter months here, making tools from a nearby stone quarry. In the early part of the 20th century, homesteaders built cabins here; one stone cabin still stands.

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