After 20 years and 1.5-million artifacts recovered, the Thomsen Center Archeodome at Mitchell’s Prehistoric Indian Village is still delving into the history of Native Americans from a thousand years ago.
Volunteers, international students, teachers and friends celebrated the milestone Tuesday.
Executive Director Cindy Gregg says its mission is to learn about the day to day lives of the Arikara who populated the site on Lake Mitchell’s shores. “It was just by luck that we placed the Archeodome right over the site where they were processing bison on an industrial scale,” said Gregg. “That on little detail has put us on the map in the archeological world.”
Just as significant is the number and variety of trade items that have been uncovered from across North America. “We have found projectile points from Canada, seashells from the Florida coast, the North Carolina coast, the coast of Oregon and Washington state,” Gregg said. “We never know what we’re going to find from year to year.”
The late Mitchell businessman Gordon Thomsen was a major financial supporter and promoter of the project. His family is helping to continue the legacy of this unique archeological wonder.