By: Brianna Bonham Staff Writer
The bones of a 10,000 year-old mammoth were unearthed early last week while doing renovations on Oregon State University’s (OSU) Reser Stadium. Crews found the remains of the mammoth and other mammals in the end zone of the stadium.
The crews found the bones of a bison and a camel, along with the femur of the mammoth. After finding the bones, OSU spokesman Steve Clark said, “Our archaeologist believes this could have been the location of a pond, a watering hole for these animals, or a place they came to die.”
According to Oregon History Project created by the Oregon Historical Society, the discovery of mammoth bones is not uncommon in Oregon where mammoths and mastodons roamed.
According to an old newspaper article that was posted by The Oregon Historical Society, Joel Palmer, who was an influential Oregon pioneer, found mastodon bones in Dayton. Dayton is a 50 mile drive from Corvallis and Western is directly between the two.
The article also states that one of the first recorded discoveries of proboscidean remains in Oregon was in 1858-1859, when a settler found a mastodon tusk in Polk County.
“I think finding mammoth bones, or any fossils on campus would be really awesome. Considering the fact that there were bones found so close to here, there could be a chance that there are bones at Western!” said Becca Tew, a first year elementary education major at Western.
Just after the bones were found, the crew called Loren Davis, an associate professor of anthropology at Oregon State University.
“It just goes to show there’s a whole world of the past that exists underground. It’s so neat we could find it here at Reser Stadium,” said Davis. “As you’re watching a football game, you can think, beneath your feet, lie the bodies of extinct animals that relate to the past.”
OSU has now created t-shirts featuring a mammoth on the football field with the phrase “#DAMBONEYARD” on the front.
