Archaeologists discovered several ancient artifacts dating to 6,000-4,000 BCE from an old farm that now is a construction site for the new Clifton Park-Halfmoon library (New York, USA). Five arrowheads and lots of rock shavings dating to the Middle Archaic Period were found on three acres of the library's 11-acre site off Moe Road during a mandatory environmental review.
     Pre-Native American hunters and gatherers used the items for survival some 8,000 years ago, said Susan Gade, president of Landmark Archaeology, who surveyed and excavated the site with the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Though area residents have unearthed some Native American artifacts from undeveloped town land in recent years, the age and amount of prehistoric findings at the new library site has surprised locals and thrilled archaeologists.
     The library spent $100,000 for the archaeological review of the site, which served as a family farm for much of the last century. The library's board of trustees will likely donate the arrowheads to the state, and they could eventually be displayed in facilities like the State Museumd. No historical objects were found within the library's footprint, and sample digging on the three active acres just to the south, which started last fall.
     The period from which the arrowheads originate is not well documented, and the new findings could shed some light on the era. Landmark Archaeology of Altamont will analyze the artifacts and interpret the findings in a final report. Landmark field director Jessica Schreyer classified the tips as Neville Points. The handmade stones are among the only things to survive thousands of years, and usually are found in New England, not in New York.

Source: Timesunion.com (8 September 2005)