The Borax Lake Site, also known as the Borax Lake—Hodges Archaeological Site and designated by the

Smithsonian trinomial A Smithsonian trinomial (formally the Smithsonian Institution Trinomial System, abbreviated SITS) is a unique identifier assigned to archaeological sites in many states in the United States. They are composed of one or two digits coding for the sta ...

CA-LAK-36, is a prehistoric

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 ...

near

Clearlake, California Clearlake is a city in Lake County, California. Clearlake is north-northwest of Lower Lake, at an elevation of . As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 16,685, up from 15,250 in 2010. It takes its name from Clear Lake. ...

. The site, a deeply stratified former lakeshore, contains evidence of the earliest known period of human habitation in what is now

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, dating back 12,000 years. A portion of the site, designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 2006, is owned and preserved 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 ...

Description

The Borax Lake site is located near the community of Clearlake, in the

North Coast Ranges The Coast Ranges of California span from Del Norte or Humboldt County, California, south to Santa Barbara County. The other three coastal California mountain ranges are the Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges and the Klamath Mountains. Phy ...

of northern California near

Mount Konocti Mount Konocti is a volcano in Lake County, California on the south shore of Clear Lake. At , it is the second highest peak in the Clear Lake Volcanic Field, which consists of numerous volcanic domes and cones ranging from 10,000 to 2.1 million ...

. The site is deflated surface site and quarry, with cultural deposits reaching a depth of more than . The stratigraphy of the site suggests repeated occupation of the area across a long time period, from about 12,000 to present day. Important finds include Clovis-style projectile points fashioned out of obsidian, which was probably obtained from Borax Lake. The site was discovered in the 1930s by Chester Post, an amateur collector. He brought the site to the attention of Mark Harrington of the

Southwest Museum The Southwest Museum of the American Indian is a museum, library, and archive located in the Mt. Washington neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, above the north-western bank of the Arroyo Seco (Los Angeles County) canyon and stream. The muse ...

, who performed the first formal archaeological investigation. Questions were raised then about the early dates he estimated for the site, which were previously unknown in the region. In the 1960s a technical analysis of his finds yielded confirmation of dates to 12,000 years ago. Subsequent investigations have uncovered more details of the site stratigraphy, which is described as that of a lakeshore that is gradually receding. It was one of the first human habitation sites in northern California to be found with this type of setting. A portion of Borax Lake, including the site, was acquired 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 nation ...

in 1989; it was that organization's first California site. The site was listed 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 ...

in 1991, and was designated a

in 2006.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in California Pre-Columbian cultural areas Archaeological sites in California National Historic Landmarks in California Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in California History of Lake County, California Protected areas of Lake County, California Former Native American populated places in California National Register of Historic Places in Lake County, California

Description

See also

References