< home # store # services # articles # game # app #contact >

MCRS(or SSRE) could be one of the longest occupational sequences in North America, dating to around 15,000 bc. It is in Washington county, Pennsylviania. It was discovered in 1955 by landman/farmer Albert Miller. He immediately contacted the university (university of Pittsburgh), and in 1970 236 sites were excavated.

It is located “High and Dry,” 15m above stream from Cross Creek, a tributary of the Ohio river. *Geological terms are “Sandstone Re-entrant,” or rock shelter (common English). These are overhangs of erosion resistant rock, with further underlays of less resistant presently eroded rock.

Over 20,000 artifacts were uncovered (predominantly flaked stone). Including 2 million animals or plants from 140 identifiable species.

Bibliography: Adovasio, J. M., & Pedler, D. (2016b). Strangers in a New Land: What Archaeology Reveals about the First Americans. Firefly Books.

The Greatest Journey,” James Shreeve, National Geographic, March 2006, p. 64. Shows dates 19,000 to 12,000 years ago; as well as Clovis (13,500 years ago) and Monte Verde 14,800 years ago.

Adovasio, J.M.; Donahue, J.; Stuckenrath, R. (April 1990). “The Meadowcroft Rockshelter Radiocarbon Chronology”. American Antiquity. 55 (2): 348–354. doi:10.2307/281652. JSTOR281652. S2CID163541173.

Adovasio J.M. (2014) Meadowcroft: Geography and Culture. In: Smith C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0465-2_1656