The McMinnville Mammoth Site
is a site that contains the remains of a Columbian Mammoth. During the summers of 2007 and 2009, volunteers from the local community and from scholastic institutions join together to excavate a portion of the animal. In 2007, the site of an extinct giant bison was also tested. These projects are only possible because of a partnership between the City of McMinnville, the Thomas Condon Sate Museum of Fossils, the Yamhill River Pleistocene Project, and the Institute for Archaeological Studies. Images from two summers of testing the site will be posted shortly. In the interim, please check the Yamhill River Pleistocene Project's website, and this website under the College Field Work p
ages.Below is the stratigraphy of the Mammoth Site. Below is the stratigraphy of the Bison Site. 
Despite being only 33 meters apart, the Mammoth and Bison Sites reflect some surprising variations in depositional history.A non-credit class about paleoarchaeology will be offered through Portland Community College in August of 2010.
This mini-course will provide an opportunity for members of the public,
including Seniors, to excavate at the McMinnville Mammoth Site.
Participants will learn proper methods while excavating a real
paleontological site. Members of the Yamhill River Pleistocene Project
will be on site throughout the project to help enrich everyone's
experience. Those wishing course credit should contact their professors
or advisors at least 30 days prior to the beginning of the project.
In the above image, a student from the 2009 class uncovers the tusk socket and partial tusk of a mammoth. After getting over his shock of the discovery, he did a brilliant job of excavating the specimen.
A special thanks to Barrier Corporation, for providing the special foam that allowed us to safely transport the tusk, when excavated, to the laboratory. Without the help of the Barrier Corporation, in Tigard, it would have been far more difficult and risky to move the tusk from its excavation area to the lab.
If you would like to participate at this site, please contact Gary Palmer, at Portland Community College, or the Yamhill River Pleistocene Project.