Site of Shell Mound

Alameda County · Shell Mound Street, Emeryville · location approximate

It is said that the Indians who came to this site camped just above the shoreline. As shellfish were obtained, the shells were thrown aside. This shell area increased until it is said to have covered some hundreds of thousands of square feet marked by several cones. When the University of California excavated this site in the 1920's, they found that the mound consisted mostly of clams, mussels and oysters, with a plentiful mixture of cockleshells.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

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