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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (April 12, 2018)
8 // COASTWEEKEND.COM Who were the first Americans? CANNON BEACH — Ar- chaeological work in the Americas has caused a lot of controversy. It seems that the Americas may have been settled a lot earlier than hypothesized — a lot earlier! At 4 p.m. Thursday, April 19, the Cannon Beach History Center & Museum welcomes Dr. Cameron M. Smith to discuss this very topic. Smith is an anthropology professor at Portland State University and a highly recognized scholar on human history, archaeology and evolution. His talk focusing on the new evidence and theories about the earliest human dispersals into the Ameri- cas will be free and open to the public. Recently, a site in California appears to push human activity back in the Americas to between 120,000 and 140,00 years ago. This is more than 100,000 years before humans were thought by COURTESY THE NATURE CONSERVANCY Tidal channel creation at the Kilchis Preserve Cameron M. Smith PHOTOS COURTESY CANNON BEACH HISTORY CENTER & MUSEUM Cameron M. Smith, Ph.D., in the field archaeologists to be here. This site is among a few other recent discoveries, in- cluding Paisley Caves, that are rewriting the human history of the Americas. These new archaeological sites raise new questions. Smith has published scientific works in the American Journal of Phys- ical Anthropology, as well as Scientific American, Scientific American Mind, Discover Magazine and Skeptical Inquirer. The Cannon Beach History Center & Muse- um (1387 South Spruce St.) is a private nonprofit featuring seasonal historic, textile and artistic exhibits. Discover how Lewis and Clark got their rivers crossed FORT CLATSOP — Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, Fort Clatsop, announc- es the next In Their Footsteps free speaker series event: “Lewis and Clark’s Discov- ery of the Willamette River: Recent Findings of Their Secondary Mission,” a talk by Dr. Steven McClure, takes place 1 p.m. Sunday, April 15, in the Netul River Room of Fort Clatsop’s visitor center. It’s usually taught that the Lewis and Clark Expe- dition missed the mouth of the Willamette River twice when they paddled by on the Columbia River to and from the Pacific Ocean. McClure will present his findings that the expedition actually mistook the Wil- lamette for the Multnomah Channel. They also traveled right past the Willamette on their trip upstream on the Columbia because they mistakenly presumed that the Sandy River, which they had previously found when originally coming downriver, was the large southern river they had heard about from Chinookan Indian informants at Fort Clatsop. Combining a close anal- ysis of period maps and the Lewis and Clark Expedition’s journals, McClure will take us up the Willamette River to learn where Captain William Clark’s canoe party camped April 2, 1806. As a board member of Friends of Baltimore Woods, a St. Johns neighborhood group restoring a wildlife corridor along the Willa- mette, McClure has led tours to where he has determined Clark turned back to the Corps of Discovery’s base camp on the Columbia. McClure also will share why Clark turned back, indica- tions that he was attempting to reach the Willamette Falls, and the Corps’ belief that the Willamette reached to the Spanish silver mines on the Rio Grande. For more information, call the park at 503-861- 2471, or check out nps.gov/ COURTESY LEWIS AND CLARK NA- TIONAL HISTORICAL PARK The Willamette River location where William Clark’s party turned back April 3, 1806. lewi, or Lewis and Clark National Historical Park on Facebook. Watershed Council talks restoring salmon habitat MANZANITA — How do you restore tidal channels and wetland habitat in floodplain areas that have historically been diked and disconnected? Join Lower Nehalem Watershed Council on Thursday, April 12, as we welcome Dick Vander Schaaf, associate director of the Coast and Marine Conservation Program for The Nature Conservancy, for a presentation on the Kilchis Estuary Resto- ration Project. His talk will explore the process of restoring critical habitat for native salmon in Tillamook Bay. The event, part of the Watershed Council’s Speakers Series, will take place at the Pine Grove Community House (225 Laneda Ave.) in Manzani- ta. It is free and open to the public. The presentation will start at 7:20 p.m. following an update from Watershed Council at 7 p.m. Feel free to attend a regular meeting 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Pine Grove to learn more about the Council’s ongoing work. Refreshments and snacks will be served. The Nature Conser- vancy purchased a former dairy farm in 2010 on the lower Kilchis River intending to restore the tidal wetland habitats that once dominated the site. The Conservancy utilized hydrologic modeling to develop restoration sce- narios for the project and to foresee impacts from climate change. This pre- sentation will step through the planning and resto- ration process and discuss future work at the site. The project also has broader implications for wetland restoration on agricultural lands in Tillamook County. New to our Speaker Series, we’re raffling off a gift certificate or special item from a local business supporter during each event. This month we have a $25 gift certificate from Manzanita News & Espres- so. Raffle tickets will be available for a $5 donation at the door, and the winner will be drawn at the end of the presentation. Find more information on our Facebook page (facebook.com/lnwc1).