Stuck in the Midden with You
Recently, during the course of excavating for utility relocation for the Moscone Station, workers came across deposits of shells in the trenches located on Fourth Street between Howard and Folsom streets. Upon discovering these deposits, Mike Stoyka, an archaeologist assigned to watch over the trenching, declared that these could be possible middens and needed to be investigated further. A midden, by definition is a refuse heap and is an indicator to archaeologists that there were inhabitants that had lived in an area.
With this type of discovery, there are certain protocols that must be followed in the investigation of a midden. The project contacted the State Historic Preservation Officer on how to proceed. A plan and schedule were developed that involved archaeologists from Sonoma State University and Native American representatives visiting the sites to gather samples to investigate the origin of the middens.
The process that the archaeology team followed involved excavating the midden, the excavated material is bagged and tagged then transported to the research facility. When the samples arrived at the facility, they are prepared for screening by the archaeologists for finds. Screening requires that the midden samples be put on shaker screens, rinsed with water to remove excess dirt and then combed through to see if there are any artifacts in the excavated material.
Midden Photo Gallery
This process is still currently underway but there have been some interesting finds, such as, various types of clam and cockle shells, bones from native wildlife and some manmade items. One item in particular that was found was a bone awl. An awl is tool that is used for piercing holes through leather or other soft materials. This item is interesting because it could have been a tool used by an Ohlone native that had lived in this area long before it was known as San Francisco.
