The Mammoth Site - Lewis and Clark Trail Experience

Information

Open Daily May 20, 2022 – August 15, 2022 8:00am – 8:00pm August 16 – August 31 8:00 am – 6:00 pm September 1 – October 31 9:00am – 5:00pm November 1 – February 28 Monday-Saturday 9:00am – 3:30pm Sunday Only 11:00am – 3:30pm

605-745-6017

General Admission Children 3 & Under – Free Ages 4-12 – $11.00 Active & Retired Military – $11.00 Ages 13-59 – $14.00 Ages 60 & Over – $12.00

lat: 43.4246196 long: -103.4835511

Over one million years ago the Columbian mammoth first crossed over the Bering Strait, a temporary land bridge connecting Asia to North America. 26,000 years ago, a sink hole had filled with water from a hot spring which had attracted many Ice age animals to unfortunately fall in. Sediment that had also fallen in over time had buried and preserved the animals remains. Fast forward to modern day and The Mammoth site now boasts the discovery of 58 Columbian and 3 Woolly mammoths and plenty of other fascinating Ice Age creatures.

The Mammoth site is an ongoing excavation site with new discoveries continuing to be made! With the museum being built to surround the dig site visitors are free to view the ancient sinkhole while exploring it’s findings. In addition to educating visitors about the Ice Age, the Mammoth site offers engaging classes and events. Kids are encouraged to participate in the site’s learning opportunities with programs and interactive museum exhibits. Classes as well as professional research opportunities allow students and adults to bud into paleontologists.

The Mammoth Site researcher in the dig-site.

The Mammoth Site researcher in the dig-site.

The Mammoth Site bones and excavation tools.

The Mammoth Site bones and excavation tools.

The Mammoth Site bones in the dig-site.

The Mammoth Site bones in the dig-site.

The Mammoth Site store is filled of stuffed mammoth plushies.

The Mammoth Site store is filled of stuffed mammoth plushies.

The Mammoth Site, museum rim of dig-site.

The Mammoth Site, museum rim of dig-site.

The Mammoth Site researchers in dig-site.

The Mammoth Site researchers in dig-site.

The Mammoth Site family dig classes advertisement.

The Mammoth Site family dig classes advertisement.

The Mammoth Site interactive STREAM table.

The Mammoth Site interactive STREAM table.

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Holidays on the Trail “In the first few decades

Holidays on the Trail

“In the first few decades of the 1800s, throughout the North, Christmas was just another ordinary day; it didn’t become an official holiday in the US until 1870. Meanwhile, most southerners observed it with fireworks, hunting, dancing, food, and drink. However, on the western frontier—in Kentucky, for instance—Christmas was an occasion to indulge in a few extra rations and to recall the pleasures of lives and times left behind, beyond the Appalachians. Easter was even less significant in the puritanical early American church. Not until after the Civil War, during which violent death had touched nearly every family, did Easter become as significant as Christmas.

In a compromise with its multicultural makeup, the Corps of Discovery celebrated just three special days—Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, and Independence Day—and each must have been observed with a jovial mixture of traditions.”

Click the link below to learn more about the Corps and the 3 Christmases they spent while on the expedition - Camp Dubois in 1803, Fort Mandan in 1804, and Fort Clatsop in 1805.

https://lewis-clark.org/other/holidays-on-the-trail/

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, all!

Site of the Week: Falls of the Ohio State Park St

Site of the Week: Falls of the Ohio State Park

St. Louis is often recognized as the starting place of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. However, others would argue that the Expedition began further east where Lewis and Clark met to begin traveling together. Today, this site is the Falls of the Ohio State Park.

In 1803, Meriwether Lewis brought the keelboat down the Ohio River to meet Clark in Louisville. While Lewis had been overseeing the building of said keelboat, Clarj had been busily recruiting local men by way of a strict interview process. Once Lewis arrived with his two men and joined them with Clark’s seven men in Louisville, these first men of the Expedition became known as “the Nine Young Men from Kentucky.” These were William Bratton, John Colter, Joseph and Reuben Field, George Shannon, John Shields, Nathaniel Pryor, George Gibson, and Charles Floyd.

While the Falls of the Ohio are no longer visible, the fossil beds are still very prominent. These Devonian fossil beds are famously recognized as being one of the largest exposed fossil beds in the world. There is a museum on site which tells the history of these fossils, as well as the evolution of the area’s wildlife. The museum also provides information about Lewis and Clark’s time at the Falls and the complicated relationships between the incoming settlers and the local native tribes. The museum was recently renovated and has significantly expanded its exhibits.

Photos credited to Mitchell Pence and the Department of Natural Resources

#lewisandclark #history #adventure #travel #fallsoftheohiostatepark #ohioriver

Check out our YouTube Channel! We have some great

Check out our YouTube Channel!

We have some great content being posted there every Saturday - you’ll see videos related to personal stories and adventures on the trail, special reports on various trail locations, and much more!

Be sure to subscribe and share with friends as well!

https://www.youtube.com/@lewisandclarktrailalliance

Our new APP is now available! Check it out if you

Our new APP is now available! Check it out if you haven’t yet to bring the adventure and magic of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail on your mobile device. Scan the QR code here or find it on your app store.

Site of the Week: Pompey’s Pillar National Monum

Site of the Week: Pompey’s Pillar National Monument

William Clark christened the rock formation “Pompey’s Tower” on July 25, 1806, as he and his party descended the Yellowstone River. Clark gave the huge monolith the nickname that he himself had fondly bestowed upon Sacagawea’s young son, Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. Nicholas Biddle, as he edited the journals upon Lewis and Clark’s return, changed the name to “Pompey’s Pillar.”

Pompey’s Pillar is known for being the only site with visible physical evidence of Lewis and Clark’s journey: Clark carved his name and the date onto the rock’s face. Now covered by a clear panel, the signature is protected from the elements while still being visible to visitors willing to climb up the steps to see it. Visitors can continue up the steps to the top of the rock where they can enjoy a 360-degree view of the landscape surrounding the site. There is also a highly informative and very well-designed visitor’s center at the base of Pompey’s Pillar, along with several outdoor educational structures and hiking trails.

Photos credited to Cait Clark.

#lewisandclark #history #adventure #travel #pompeyspillar #Montana #pompeyspillarnationalmonument