Discover mammoths and mastodons in Hemet!

Thanks to a major excavation we are now able to learn more about the creatures that roamed our area during the Ice Age. About 230,000 years ago the inland valley area was covered with lush vegetation. It is hard to imagine now when sagebrush seems to be the prominent décor of the landscape.

In 1995 the Metropolitan Water District had just begun construction on the 4,500-surface-acre Diamond Valley Lake in Hemet when the remains of the animals were discovered. Four and a half miles long and two miles wide, it is the largest human-formed freshwater lake in Southern California. Because the excavation was so extensive, many fossils as well as Native American Indian artifacts were found.

Paleontologists and archeologists followed the earthmovers and excavated the fossils. During the excavation the largest mastodon ever found in the United States was discovered. The scientists began to call the area Valley of the Mastodons due to the extensive find.

Scientists also found more than 300 Native American sites that date back to the Ice Age. A piece of pottery dated by the Smithsonian Institute proved to be about 9,000 years old. Nearly one million artifacts and fossils were uncovered.

A modern structure houses these treasures, bringing a burst of life and color to the dry, arid landscape. This building in Hemet is called the Western Center for Archeology and Paleontology – and the edifice is just the beginning.

A fascinating “Life on Earth” timeline greets visitors upon arrival; inside, guests will find a recreated world beginning at the Ice Age. The center offers a museum, theater, learning center and research facility. The state-of-the-art research facility is equipped with cabinets that are fire-safe and able to withstand a significant earthquake.

The museum has the most impressively displayed exhibits I have ever seen. No dry, fusty museum here. Everything is sparkling, well-lit and designed for both the preservation of the bones and the education of the visitor.

The main gallery is called “Snapshots in Time.” This is where the actual bones are housed in climate-controlled glass cases for preservation, and exact replicas are placed on artistic metal silhouettes of the animals. This technique is an effective method of presentation and an excellent way to show visitors the bone and flesh of the animal while illustrating what part of the animal was actually uncovered.

A full skeleton with different-colored fabricated bones filling in the spaces is impressive, but the metal silhouettes give a sense of what the animal actually looked like. Light is projected in a creative manner, which draws the visitor in.

The facility has one fully created skeleton of a ground sloth with the fabricated bones. The museum was able to purchase the fabricated bones from other museums in order to complete the skeleton. Although the skeleton seems imposing, these bear-like creatures were herbivores.

Guests are able to walk on a pane of glass over a pit. This pit contains the bones of a mastodon, which are placed in the very same position as they were when it was excavated. It is an ingenious method of presentation. Walking over the fossil pit and looking down to the ancient bones placed just as they were found is an incredible experience.

The museum boasts a fascinating “immersion theater.” Visitors sit on rock-shaped benches while they watch the 270-degree movie screen. You can even feel the vibration when the mammoths lumber across the screen.

A “Discovery Lab” where visitors can learn about scientific processes is staffed by a docent. The docents are knowledgeable, and if they don’t know the answer to a question, they will find out for you.

There are also several classrooms where ongoing education programs for school groups are held.

The museum boasts a gift shop where water is sold, but no food or drink (with the exception of chips) is available. There is one shaded bench but otherwise no shaded area to eat a picnic lunch. Because the museum was placed near the excavation site it is in a location with no adjacent food facilities.

Western Center for

Archeology and Paleontology

2345 Searl Parkway

Hemet

(951) 791-0033

http://www.westerncentermuseum.org