Area native's discovery of mastodon bones was historic find

There have been many articles touting the honors and accomplishments of Beaver County natives, especially in the areas of sports entertainment.

However, one native son became internationally recognized in an area that most of us know very little about — archaeology.

Emanuel Manis was the son of immigrant parents — his father, Nick, from Greece, and his mother, Carolyn Stephansky, from Poland — who settled in Ambridge in 1924. In addition to Emanuel, who died in 2000, they also had a son, Ted, who lives in Harmony Township.

Nick Manis was a barber, and the boys lived a typical American life, being educated in borough schools. Emanuel graduated from Ambridge High School in 1944 and entered the Navy in World War II.

After his discharge, Manis found employment in Ambridge at Bollingers, married in 1947, moved to Youngstown, Ohio, worked for Lockheed in California and then settled in Sequim,Wash., where his life changed.

On Aug. 8, 1977, he was excavating his farm property with a backhoe when he found bones and tusks that were nearly 8 feet long of an American mastodon. After making several calls, Manis soon had an archaeological dig under way on his property led by archaeological and palentology expert Carl Gustafson of Washington State University.

The discovery made worldwide headlines, becoming known as the Manis Mastodan Site. Gustafson found that the bones had what appeared to be a spear point embedded in them; he deemed the find the earliest know evidence of interaction between humans and mastodons.

However, there was no consensus in the archaeological field as to whether on not this was provable. This situation changed in 2011 when DNA sequencing and CT scans were done at the Center of the Study of the First American Anthropology Department at Texas A&M University, combined with research by the Centre for GeoGenetics in Copehagen, Denmark.

Their published findings confirmed Gustafson’s theory that the spear point had been sharpened by human hands and that humans hunted mastodons. The DNA test dated the Manis site at 13,800 years old. This single fact changed the long-held beliefs of archaeologists about the earliest human inhabitants of North America.

It was believed that the first humans were found in Clovis, N.M., but this test proved that the Manis Mastodon Site is the oldest archaeological site in Washington State and one of the oldest in North America.

Gustafson continued the excavation of the site for eight years and found partial remains of caribou and bison, which showed evidence of butchering by humans.

During the years of the excavation, the Manis family welcomed more than 50,000 visitors to the site, which in 1978 was added to the National Register of Historic places. In 2002, the 25th anniversary of the discovery, Manis’ widow donated the 2-acre site to the National Archaeological Conservancy.

The fossil remains of the mastodon, which are said to weigh more than 14,000 pounds, were donated to the Museum and Arts Center in Sequim and are now on display.

We’ve recognized many from this area who have achieved fame and prominence that reflect favorably on Beaver County. However, I’m in awe of the find by Manis; fame is fleeting, but his contribution to history will live forever.

I’ve only touched on the main points of this discovery, more of which can be found online and in books written by his widow, Clare Manis Hatler, Gustafson, and two by his daughter, Shirley Manis.