Paleo Indians
First People of Wisconsin
Paleo Indian Big Game Hunters 12,000 to 8,000 Years Ago
Paleo-Indians were nomadic big game hunters. They probably arrived in North America from Asia during the Ice Age more than 12,000 years ago as they pursued game through a land bridge that connected the two continents.
- Stone spear points found in the Little Eau Pleine valley confirm hunting here about 10,000 years ago.
- Paleo-Indians lived in small mobile bands and hunted mastodon, mammoth, bison, elk, caribou and other game.
A spear point hafted to its shaft.
This “Plainview” spear point was found by Walter Krause on his farm about one mile from here. Archeologists have associated this type of point with extinct bison from 10,000 to 9,000 years ago.
A reproduction of a complete Plainview point.
This “Dalton” spear point was found by Walter Krause on his farm. It has been dated to about 10,000 years ago.
A reproduction of a complete Dalton point.
This “Eden” point tip, found in the Mead Wildlife Area, dates to the late Paleo period about 10,000 years ago.
A reproduction of a complete Eden point.
These spear points were made of solidified sandstone, also called “sugar quartz”, found only in Silver Mound, an ancient quarry near Hixton in Jackson County. Stone from this site was mined and traded for ten thousand years.
These Hixton “sugar quartz” scrapers were found in the 1991 UWSP excavation. They were used in the late paleo period, 10,000 to 9,000 years ago.
This scraper of Cochrane, Wisconsin chert was found in a 1991 University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point archeological excavation. It was used about 10,000 to 9,000 years ago.
Animal hides were scraped in the preparation of clothing.