Pleitosine Era in the Mojave

LUCERNE VALLEY TRIBES -  today known as Piute, Chemehuevi and Serrano. 

Are they ancestors of ancient people that lived here tens of thousands of years ago, or did they migrate here from somewhere else?  Our theory is that the Piute, Chemehuevi and Serrano are the ancestors of a much more ancient people from the Pleistocene era and possibly even earlier.  Current theories on the populating of North America hold that it was migratory from Asia, Africa or Europe.  Our theory is that early humans evolved in South America much like the evidence we now have of early humans evolving in Africa.  At some point Africa and South America were connected so it is not a far leap to believe that early hominid species began in the south of a huge continent that ultimately broke apart becoming Africa and South America.  In the same way we see human evolution coming up out of Africa to the mid-east then to Europe and Asia, we believe human evolution grew out of South America and spread to North America. 

Dr. Louis Leakey came to the same conclusion but he did not have the technology available to us today, such as Google earth or hand held GPS units.  When I first heard about Leakey’s find near Barstow, dubbed Calico Man, I believed he had found a man.  It was not until much later that I discovered that he did not find actual direct evidence of a human or human like person; there was no Calico man like the Lucy he found in Africa.  What he did find at Calico was crystal clear evidence that early humans were here at a time, approximately 20,000 years ago when it was thought there were no humans on this continent.  What he found were stone tools.  But not just ordinary stone tools, these are identical to the stone tools discovered in Europe and Asia from the Pleistocene era, otherwise known as the stone-age, when “cave-men” roamed Europe and Asia.   Unfortunately for Mr. Leakey the academic world was not ready to accept this theory, which turned their theories on their heads.  Many in the academic community have tried to debunk Leakey’s Calico finds but, at the end of the day they simply have not been able to do so.  There should now be no question that stone-age people populated this continent.  Sadly that is not how it turned out. 

This discovery happened late in Dr. Leakey’s life.  Work continues, sort of, around Dr. Leakey’s Calico Man site.  The problem, as we see it, is that no one has taken what Dr. Leakey found and ran very far with it.

Here at the Rocking JTC, we intend to run with it.  We think we can find solid evidence of early human occupation of this same area.  Dr. Leakey figured out where stone would have washed down and then he dug straight down in that pile and ultimately came across stone-age tools.  We are looking to find the actual camp sites or meeting sites of the ancient ones and corroborate Dr. Leakey’s theory that early humans, at least from the stone ago, lived on the North American continent.

Where the Piute, Chemehuevi and Serrano camped and traveled would likely be the same as where the ancients camped and traveled.  There is no question that recent native groups as well as ancient natives would have lived near springs or fresh water.  It also seems obvious that they would have sought out caves to be used for various means, such as living in or as meeting places for local clans and tribes.