the life and legend of george mcjunkin franklin folsom

Eventually George was given credit for his find. In 1926, archaeologists studied the site, and the first scientific article was published in 1927 in the Natural History Magazine. Previously it had been thought that no humans inhabited North America much before the birth of Christ, and this discovery made scientific history, establishing a human presence some 7,000 years earlier.

Eventually scientists did study the Folsom Site, and it rocked the scientific world. George realized that the find was significant and tried to get an expert to look at his discovery, but it did not happen until after his death in 1922. He recognized them as bison bones, but they were much larger than modern bison, and were partially mineralized. After the flood, George was out riding, assessing the damage and saw something eroding out some 13 feet below the ground surface. At least 15 people were killed in the flood, including the telephone operator, who died at her switchboard trying to warn people of the flood. George McJunkin was the foreman of the Crowfoot Ranch when the great flood of 1908 hit Folsom. He had always been curious about the natural world around him, and was particularly interested in science. He traded lessons in breaking horses for lessons in reading, and soon began reading anything he could get his hands on. His skills increased with each new job he took on, and eventually word got around that he was one of the best horse breakers and cowboys in New Mexico. He used it to buy the first footwear he had ever worn– a used pair of cowboy boots. He earned a handful of quarters, the first money he had ever been paid for his work. Along the way he stopped to help a man dig a well. He left home to join a cattle drive, ended up in northeastern New Mexico, and never returned to Texas. Although he was fluent in Spanish, experienced with horses, and used to helping his father in his blacksmith shop, he never had the opportunity to learn to read. George was freed at the age of 14 after the Civil War ended.

George McJunkin was born a slave near Midway, Texas in 1851. His intellectual curiosity and determination continue to inspire a new generation of archaeologists. George McJunkin was a remarkable man whose discovery re-wrote the books on early man in North America.

The life and legend of george mcjunkin franklin folsom