Visiting the Maidu Museum

Yesterday, the boys and I took a field trip to a local museum to learn about the local Native Americans that (have) lived in this area for hundreds and possible thousands of years.  In our history studies, we took a break from learning about the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations to learn about what was going on in North and South America at about the same time.  We studied several ancient Native groups. 

I decided to check out some local resources, not knowing that they would fall so closely into line with what we were learning.  The museum we visited teaches about the Maidu people.  It also has an interpretive trail that goes by several sights that have petroglyphs, which are pictures carved into rock, and mortar holes that were chiseled into the rock by these people.  They would have used the mortar holes to grind acorns into meal.  It was fascinating to learn more about these people, this area, and the land that would have sustained many families.  In the above pictures, you can see some of the mortar holes, as well as one of the main petroglyphs (pictured above in the last picture - it is towards the right on one of the front rocks).