A treasure trove of artifacts have been unearthed in Camden, some dating back to 2900 BC.
The way Jack O'Byrne has it figured, a treasure trove of artifacts unearthed in Camden, some dating back to 2900 BC, should find a home here on the shore of the Delaware River.
"I got a call two months ago saying the New Jersey State Museum was not accepting anymore artifacts and would I want to display the items found here," said O'Byrne, executive director of the Camden County Historical Society. "I said 'hell yeah.'"
The items were found during a pair of excavations in downtown Camden in 2015-2016 during a development project.
The artifacts include fragments of an early soapstone, lug-handled ceramic vessel, a side-notched projectile point, stone tool and heated rocks from hearths. Other items include over 100 ceramic fragments and and the discovery of a ditch structural of hearths, heated rock clusters and hearth remains.
The historical society has a lecture scheduled Sunday with the senior archeologist who found the artifacts, Ilene Grossman-Bailey. It will be held at 2 p.m. at the society, located at 1900 Park Boulevard, Camden. It is free and open to the public.
Indian artifacts, some up to 4900 years old, were found during two excavations near the Camden Delaware River Waterfront in 2015-16, including the current site of Holtec International, an industrial manufacturer.provided photo
Grossman-Bailey will describe the items that belonged to tribes of the native inhabitants of New Jersey dating back 10,000 years ago. The descendants of those native people are known as the Leni Lenape Indians.
The discovery of 7,400 artifacts, ranging from 2900 BC to 1650 begin to tell the story of how these people lived in agrarian societies with vibrant trade among neighboring tribes in the mid-Atlantic region.
But the discoveries don't end there.
The primary excavations were on the site of the former New York Shipbuilding Co. which has its own rich recent history from 1899 to 1967. More than 600 ships were built there, including the aircraft carrier Kittyhawk and the USS Indianapolis, a WWII ship sank by the Japanese in the South Pacific in which most of its crew were attacked and killed by sharks while waiting for capture.
There is a famous reference to it in the blockbuster movie Jaws.
Grossman-Bailey said she remains excited about finding artifacts in highly-developed cities like Camden, Trenton and Newark.
"Increasingly, we're finding urban settings little pockets not as disturbed as many think," Grossman-Bailey said. "It's not just the artifacts, the main thing is finding them all together gives detailed info about how native Americans were living, what they were eating, what they were wearing."
Teams of archeologist worked for months using hand tools at the excavation site north of Morgan Boulevard and east of Broadway. They dug to depths of 1 to 2 feet at one of the sites and dug down as far as 4 feet at the shipyard site, located north of the Newton Creek and west of Broadway.
Workers spent weeks on the Camden Waterfront in 2015-16 unearthing artifacts, including some that date to 2900 BC.provided photo
Archeologists identified starch grains on four artifacts including maize, legume, barley and wild rye, Grossman-Bailey said. Some of the plant resources may have been used for food, medicine, fuel, fibers, or other uses. Burned animal bones and protein residue on one tool indicated that the site occupants were engaged in hunting, as well as the processing and cooking of deer and other mammals, turtle, and wild fowl.
"The Camden County Historical Society has been telling the story of our area from 1600s forward," O'Byrne said. "Getting these artifacts that date almost 5000 years, we're able to tell a much more expansive story."
Bill Duhart may be reached at bduhart@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @bduhart. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips