Russell Cave National Monument in northeastern Alabama preserves a cave and surrounding landscape with one of the Southeast’s deepest archaeological records of prehistoric life. Formed in ancient limestone and later opened to the surface, the cave offered a large, sheltered entrance, water, and access to forest and river resources that supported repeated human use from about 6500 BCE to about 1650 CE. Archaeological evidence shows prehistoric Native Americans used it mainly as a seasonal camp, and the artifacts trace major cultural changes in tools, pottery, plant cultivation, and settlement patterns. Excavations in the 1950s made Russell Cave one of the region’s most informative prehistoric sites.

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain

Photo: Wikipedia · Public domain