REMARKS: Oldest archaeological site in the western hemisphere; the location of the earliest know Indian habitat in the United States. Though primarily of archaeological interest, the site does have geologic significance; over 30 radiocarbon dating tests have been performed by the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D. C. Some of the most sophisticated techniques used at any site in the world, including computer analyses, have been employed. The rock shelter was formed by the differential weathering of massive beds of sandstone, siltstone, and shale (Casselman Formation, Conemaugh Group, Middle to Late Pennsylvanian age).
REFERENCE: Adovasio, J. M., Gunn, J. D., Donahue, J., Stuckenrath, R., and others (1977), Meadowcroft Rockshelter: Retrospect 1976, Pennsylvania Archaeologist, v. 47, nos. 2 and 3, p. 1 - 93.
Bolles, W. H. (1977), The Meadowcroft Rockshelter - The earliest evidence of Stoneage man in North America, Pennsylvania Geology, v. 8, no. 6, p. 2 - 5.
Smith, Ned (1976), Meadowcroft - Hunting camp of the ancients, Pennsylvania Game News, v. 47, no. 4, p. 2 - 8.
REMARKS: Massive sandstone outcrops of the Greene Formation (Permian age); 20 feet to 30 feet high; excellent examples of crossbedding. The name of C. C. Rea and the date 1854 are carved into one of the blocks. This is the only known location where this sandstone crops out in Washington County.