Ledger-Dispatch

By Kelly Scott (kenos@ledger-dispatch.com) =

An American Indian grinding rock, or = Chaw'se, was=20 discovered at the site of a road widening project in = Pioneer.

Photo by: Kelly = Scott

Caltrans and Teichert Construction = crews gather=20 soil samples on Highway 88 at Defender Grade Road in = Pioneer.

Photo by: Kelly=20 Scott
A highway widening project in Pioneer = that=20 resulted in a historic discovery raised a few curious eyebrows when = state=20 workers brought out their sifting tools.

Digging, collecting and = sifting=20 on Highway 88 just east of Defender Grade Road had a curious community = with=20 questions regarding Native American artifacts.

The widening of = Highway=20 88 just east of Defender Grade began months ago with the removal of = several=20 large cedar trees. But last week, crews contracted through the state = Department=20 of Transportation unearthed an American Indian grinding rock.

The = discovery wasn't completely unexpected.

Sam Baugh, cultural = resources=20 representative for the Jackson Miwuk Indians, explained that the Ione = Band of=20 Miwok Indians had sent a monitor to the site when word of construction = surfaced,=20 knowing that it was a potential artifact area.

"This has been = about a=20 year now," Baugh said. "Before they even lift the shovel, we are a part = of what=20 they are doing."

When the grinding rock was discovered, Caltrans = was=20 asked not to destroy the chaw'se, which is the Miwok term for grinding=20 rock.

"Caltrans is digging around the rock in an effort to not = destroy=20 it," Baugh said. "It may be built around the rock."

The chaw'se = is a slab=20 of stone on which the Miwok people ground acorns and other seed into = meal that,=20 over time, wore a cup-shaped depression into the stone. Along with the=20 depressions, the main chaw'se would also feature decorative carvings of = animal=20 and human tracks or circles and wavy lines. In a typical Miwok village, = the=20 roundhouse, or hun'ge, would be the setting of social gatherings and the = chaw'se=20 hun'ge would usually be the largest building in the = village.

According to=20 Alicia Santos, public information officer for Caltrans in Stockton, the = project=20 on Highway 88 and Defender Grade Road was awarded to Teichert = Construction and=20 has a completion date of summer 2009. Santos said that a grinding rock = was=20 located at the site but, at this point, Caltrans and Teichert have no = firm plans=20 for the future of the Chaw'se.

"Obviously, the rock will be = affected by=20 the project, but as far as moving it we are unsure - no plans have been = made,"=20 she said.

Amador Fire Safe Council Executive Director Cathy Koos = Breazeal=20 was one of the passers-by to notice the commotion. She said the crew = working the=20 site last week was just a few people, but had grown into a larger group = Monday,=20 sparking her interest in what was being screened.

"The large = meadow there=20 near the site used to be a village," she said. "That area hasn't been = disturbed=20 in decades."

Santos told the Ledger Dispatch that the field staff = in the=20 area was sampling and screening the soil to determine what used to = reside on=20 that corner of Highway 88, but that nothing of significance had been=20 found.

Baugh said that, if at all possible, the grinding rock = would be=20 relocated to a place as close to its origin as the tribe could find. = Although=20 the Ione Band of Miwoks would have claims to the rock, the closest = Native=20 American land would be at the Jackson Rancheria.

"They may not = have to=20 remove it," said Baugh. "But if they do, it will be moved to the Dalton = Road=20 area of the Rancheria."

Kelly = Scott