Anangula Archeological District

The Anangula Site is an archaeological site in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. Located on a 1.5mi long island off the western coast of Umnak Island, it lies 3.1mi north-northwest of Nikolski Bay. The site documents one of the earliest known human settlements in the Aleutian Islands, dating to c. 6400 BCE. It was in the 1970s believed to be a remnant of people thought to have migrated here across the land bridge from Asia.The site is believed to have been along the southern fringe of the hypothesized Bering land bridge, by which the Americas were first settled. At the time of its settlement, sea level was believed to be lower, and the area consisted of a strandflat formation surrounded by nutrient-rich waters and abundant wildlife. The immediate area of the settlement is also surrounded by evidence of volcanic ashfalls, which are theorized to contribute to the eventual abandomnent of the site, leading to the settlement of other parts of Beringia.The Anangula site was first discovered by William S. Laughlin in 1938, when surface surveys identified the area as of potential interest. In the 1950s additional research was done in the area, but its great age was not understood until its major features were found, buried beneath 2m of volcanic deposits. Excavations in the late 1960s uncovered all or part of eight house remains, and recovered more than 30,000 artifacts, some of which bore little resemblance to other North American finds at the time. These structures were partially subterranean, measuring about 3m by 5.5m, and were apparently designed to house single families.