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AVELLA -- Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Historic Village has opened for the season, and several events are planned for the summer months, including the annual "insider's tours" of the Rockshelter and the return of 19th-century "base ball."
Upcoming events include:
¯ June 10 and Oct. 14, "Walk Through Prehistory With Venture Outdoors." Travel through time on a two-mile hike through the woods and fields surrounding Meadowcroft Rockshelter. Along the way, visitors will learn about the flora and fauna of the area as it relates to the survival techniques of prehistoric people struggling to survive in the tri-state area hundreds and thousands of years ago. To register for this event, visit www.ventureoutdoors.org.
¯ June 17, 21st-annual Atlatl competition. Visitors can try their hand using the atlatl, a spear-thrower used by prehistoric hunters. This contest, which is sanctioned by the World Atlatl Association, is open to all ages and is free to enter with Meadowcroft admission.
¯ July 2, Independence Day Celebration. Meadowcroft will celebrate the spirit of 19th-century rural America with old-fashioned summer games, open-hearth cooking demonstrations, and a pie-eating contest to commemorate the Fourth of July holiday.
¯ Aug. 19, Vintage Base Ball Day. Come watch a 19th-century "base ball" game between the Somerset Frosty Sons of Thunder and the Addison Mountain Stars, who will wear vintage-style uniforms and follow rules used during the 1860s. Bring lawn chairs and enjoy traditional food and fun.
¯ 10 a.m. June 24, Sept. 9 and Nov. 4; and 1 p.m. Oct. 15, "Insider Tours of Meadowcroft Rockshelter with James M. Adovasio." Adovasio achieved international acclaim with his archeological excavation of the Rockshelter in 1973. Adovasio will present a lecture and lead a special tour of the site. For reservations, contact Frances Skariot at (724) 587-3412 or frskariot@heinzhistorycenter.org.
Visitors to Meadowcroft, the oldest site of human habitation in North America, can see the rockshelter, a rock overhang used by the region's earliest inhabitants for shelter more than 16,000 years ago. Traveling forward through time, Meadowcroft offers visitors the chance to experience what everyday life was like for Upper Ohio Valley inhabitants over the past 400 years.
A 16th century Eastern Woodland Indian Village allows guests to step inside a wigwam and try their hand at the atlatl, a spear thrower used by prehistoric hunters.
Visitors to the Historic Village will come face-to-face with elements of everyday family life in the mid-19th century, such as watching a blacksmith forge red-hot iron or enjoying a lesson in a one-room schoolhouse.