Indian Sands is an archaeological site in Samuel H. Boardman State Park, about 9 miles (14.5 km) northwest of Brookings and 4.5 miles (7.3 km) southwest of Carpenterville, Oregon. The artifacts found at the Indian Sands site are older than known sites on the Washington coast and approximately the same age as a small number of sites in coastal Alaska, British Columbia, and California.

There is little evidence of human migration along the coast because of the effects of geomorphic processes on the dynamic landscape. The Oregon coast is buffeted by wind, rain, earthquakes, and tides that often obscure, alter or destroy archaeological sites. Finding coastal sites that would have been attractive to ancient dwellers is difficult. Most of what was the Oregon coast thousands of years ago is now underwater. As the glaciers of the last ice age melted, sea level rose, and what was once the coast is now, depending on the topography, anywhere from hundreds of feet to more than a mile offshore.

In 2002, a team of researchers from Oregon State University found evidence of human presence at Indian Sands dating more than 10,000 years ago, which is more than 2,000 years older than previously known archaeological sites on Oregon’s coast. Carbon dating of artifacts, similar to ones found on the Alaskan and British Columbia coasts, suggested an origin approximately 12,000 years ago. Read more here and here. Explore more of Indian Sands here: