Bear Valley Artifacts Provide Clues To Past

Indian artifacts recently unearthed in southwestern Idaho’s Bear Valley are filling out the historic picture of tribal activity in the South Fork of the Salmon River drainage a century ago.

“We’re learning that tribes like the Shoshone-Bannock and Nez Perce lived in this area in late summer, likely for the salmon,” Forest Service historian Susie Osgood said. “Some of the points, or arrowheads, tell us they hunted small game.”

Points, tools, obsidian chips and a fire hearth show the tribes camped in the area “doing things we do today like hunting, cooking and eating,” Osgood said.

The artifacts will be analyzed to determine the source of obsidian used for tools since none exists in Bear Valley. Blood residue will be analyzed to determine what animals were used as food sources.

Twenty-one volunteers from across the country, including 12-year-old Simon Tucker, have been helping in the archaeological dig north of Lowman that wraps up this weekend.