Mower County Historical Society receives large grant for archaeological site

For more than 8,000 years, Native Americans extracted a rare stone from the northeast part of  today’s Mower County to use for creating arrowheads and other tools. 

Now the Mower County Historical Society in Austin is launching a multi-year project to develop  the archaeological site known as the Grand Meadow Chert Quarry thanks to a $59,000 grant  from the Minnesota Historical Society. 

This is the largest grant ever awarded to the Mower County Historical Society, which is  collaborating on the project with The Archaeological Conservancy — a national group focused  on preserving important sites — and the Dakota Community at Prairie Island, Minn. 

With the grant, the Mower County Historical Society will make the ancient Native American  quarry available to the public and student visits in 2022, in the form of a self- guided, educational  tour along a walking path. 

The Grand Meadow Quarry is the only known source for a particular type of “chert,” the stone  used by Native Americans to make most of their everyday tools, including spear points,  arrowheads, knives and scrapers. 

Chert is a hard stone valued for its ability to make a sharp edge, and this particular gray chert is  now known by archaeologists as “Grand Meadow Chert.” It is one of only 20 kinds of chert from  Minnesota, and it’s the only one that was acquired by digging pits by hand to reach a layer of the  prized stone.  

Grand Meadow Chert was used throughout Minnesota and has been found at sites in 52 counties,  dating back to at least 6,000 B.C. when a spear point made of this chert is known to have killed a  buffalo near Granite Falls, Minn. 

This chert particularly became important after 1200 A.D. to the ancestors of today’s Dakota  people, who appear to have visited the Grand Meadow Quarry often to renew their chert  supplies. 

An exhibit on the Grand Meadow Quarry and the county’s ancient history is at the Mower County  Historical Society’s museum. It features photos and artifacts from the quarry, which was first  rediscovered by the late Grand Meadow native Maynard Green.  

Those interested in viewing the exhibit this winter will need to make an appointment by calling  the historical society at (507) 437-6082.