{"id":2400236,"date":"2025-02-07T10:31:58","date_gmt":"2025-02-07T15:31:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/1000-year-old-secret-cache-uncovered-in-alaska\/"},"modified":"2025-02-07T10:33:34","modified_gmt":"2025-02-07T15:33:34","slug":"1000-year-old-secret-cache-uncovered-in-alaska","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/1000-year-old-secret-cache-uncovered-in-alaska\/","title":{"rendered":"1,000-Year-Old Secret Cache Uncovered in Alaska"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2F1000-year-old-secret-cache-uncovered-in-alaska%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2400236&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Researchers at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska \u2064recently uncovered a 1,000-year-old cache pit used by the \u2062Dene people for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/food-stamps-texas-snap-payments-for-november-worth-up-to-1751-to-begin-in-eight-days\/\" title=\"Texas SNAP payments for November, worth up to ,751, start in 8 days.\">food preservation<\/a>. This important find, wich consists of evidence of how indigenous \u200cpeoples stored fish,\u2062 meat, and berries, reinforces the\u200c oral history of the Dena&#8217;ina\u200c and Ahtna regarding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/spacex-provides-details-on-its-massive-rockets-explosion\/\" title=\"SpaceX Offers Information Regarding Its Massive Rocket&#039;s&#039;s Blast\">long-term habitation<\/a> in the\u2064 area. \u200cThe cache pit, approximately 3.5 feet deep and lined with birch bark and grass to \u200baid\u2062 preservation, highlights the elegant understanding these native groups had of\u2062 their environment and their cyclic lifestyle \u2064that enabled\u200c them\u2063 to sustain \u200cthemselves year-round. Archaeologist Margan Grover\u2063 emphasized\u200d the importance of recognizing the longstanding presence and\u2063 stewardship\u2064 of the land \u2062by Indigenous peoples in a region frequently enough characterized by modern development. \u2064The pit further \u200cillustrates how\u2062 these communities thrived in a challenging environment,\u2062 surviving through periods of\u2062 scarcity and\u2064 adapting their practices over generations.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Long before there was a refrigerator in Alaska, its indigenous people knew how to preserve food using what nature provided.<\/p>\n<p>Last June, a team led by an archaeologist at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson found a cache pit where the Dene people stored food to be consumed later, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithsonianmag.com\/smart-news\/archaeologists-unearth-rare-1000-year-old-food-storage-pit-in-alaska-180985935\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Smithsonian<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Although evidence elsewhere in the state of humans <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/55-year-old-school-worker-goes-hunting-fired-superintendent-shooting-deer-field\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">hunting<\/a> goes back further, the discovery north of Anchorage &ldquo;further substantiates Dena&rsquo;ina and Ahtna oral traditions that JBER and the surrounding area have been used for a very long time,&rdquo; archaeologist Margan Grover said, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jber.jb.mil\/News\/Articles\/Display\/Article\/3988102\/jber-yields-rare-dene-cache\/#:~:text=rare%20Dene%20cache-,Archaeologists%20from%20Joint%20Base%20Elmendorf%2DRichardson%2C%20Northern%20Land%20Use%20Research,Inlet%20in%20June%20of%202024\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news release<\/a> from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.<\/p>\n<p>Elizabeth Ortiz, an archaeologist and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">cultural resource manager<\/a>, said cache pits preserved fish, meat, and berries, much like a root cellar.<\/p>\n<p>The pits were dug in well-drained dirt and lined with birch bark and layers of grass to preserve what was stored, she said. The one <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/400-years-later-i-made-new-discoveries-about-the-first-thanksgiving\/\" title=\"400 Years Later, I Made New Discoveries About The First Thanksgiving\">recently found<\/a> was about 3.5 feet deep, according to the Smithsonian.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Grover said finds in the greater Anchorage area are unusual because of its extensive development.<\/p>\n<p>Ortiz said the native people would come to the area in the summer to fish for salmon and preserve some of what was caught.<\/p>\n<p>Grover said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ap-dive-team-erupts-pure-joy-finding-historic-vessel-hiding-plain-sight\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">native people<\/a> had &ldquo;a sophisticated understanding of their environment that allowed them to thrive for generations,&rdquo; per the release.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t all about salmon &mdash; they established a cyclical system of movement that allowed them to be in the right place at the right time for hunting, fishing, gathering, weather, and socializing,&rdquo; Grover said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They occupied a large area that included all the resources needed to succeed year-round. They actively managed the resources in their territory, doing small things to enhance what nature already provides.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When we got the results back that said it was 960 years, plus or minus 30, we were shocked,&rdquo; Ortiz said, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.knba.org\/news\/2025-01-22\/an-ancient-dene-cache-discovered-at-jber-highlights-anchorages-indigenous-history\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">KNBA<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In the scale of Alaska archeology and history, it&rsquo;s not very old, right?&rdquo; Grover said, noting that no sites near the cache pit have been found.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Anchorage is a new town. You know, 1914 is when it&rsquo;s first established,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;But there are people who were here much longer than that, and they were amazing stewards of this land, and so we have to make sure we acknowledge that.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Discover the remarkable history of Alaska with a 1,000-year-old cache pit, revealing ancient Dene food storage techniques! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/CFxyNvQDWM\">https:\/\/t.co\/CFxyNvQDWM<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/s3VhzqneSN\">pic.twitter.com\/s3VhzqneSN<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NFTExplorer (@NFTexpl0rer_) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NFTexpl0rer_\/status\/1887439402596495650?\">February 6, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Angela Wade, a Chickaloon village tribal citizen and its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-admin-spending-up-to-53000-per-household-to-address-a-problem-elon-musk-has-already-solved\/\" title=\"Biden Admin spends k per household on a solved issue by Elon Musk.\">historic preservation officer<\/a>, said oral tradition and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ashes-8000-murdered-robbed-people-discovered-2-mass-graves-europe\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">archeology<\/a> often reinforce one another.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There are things that we know inherently from what was passed down about living in a place, but there are other things that these archeological sites tell us about the past &hellip; and about hardship,&rdquo; Wade said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;And how our people really persevered through things like volcanic winter or time when the fish didn&rsquo;t show up.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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In June, an archaeological team at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson discovered a cache pit used by the Dene people for food storage, as reported by the Smithsonian. While there are older hunting evidence found elsewhere in Alaska, this discovery near Anchorage supports Dena\u2019ina and Ahtna oral histories about long-term use of the area, according to archaeologist Margan Grover. Elizabeth Ortiz, an archaeologist and cultural resource manager, explained that these cache pits functioned like root cellars to preserve fish, meat, and berries; they were dug into well-drained soil and lined with birch bark and grass layers. The recently uncovered pit was approximately 3.5 feet deep.<\/p>\n<p>Grover noted that finds in Anchorage are rare due to extensive development in the region. Ortiz mentioned that native peoples would visit during summer months to catch salmon and store some of their catch. Grover emphasized that these communities had a deep understanding of their environment which enabled them to thrive over generations: \u201cIt wasn\u2019t just about salmon\u2014they developed a cyclical movement system ensuring they were present for hunting, fishing, gathering resources while socializing.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey occupied vast areas rich in necessary resources year-round,\u201d she added. \u201cThey actively managed their territory\u2019s resources through small enhancements.\u201d Ortiz expressed surprise when dating revealed the cache pit was around 960 years old: \u201cIn terms of Alaskan archaeology and history, it\u2019s not very old.\u201d Grover pointed out that no other sites have been located near this pit: \u201cAnchorage is relatively new\u2014established in 1914\u2014but people lived here long before then as excellent stewards of this land.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Angela Wade from Chickaloon village highlighted how oral traditions complement archaeological findings: &#8220;We have inherited knowledge about living here but archaeology reveals more about our past struggles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2400237,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Alaska-Wild.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[8320,50006,20865,6970],"class_list":["post-2400236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-alaska","tag-ancient-secrets","tag-archaeology","tag-discovery"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Alaska-Wild.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2400236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2400236"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2400236\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2400240,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2400236\/revisions\/2400240"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2400237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2400236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2400236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2400236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}