When you’re driving down 9th Street in Corvallis, you might not be aware of what’s lying underneath. Just off of Linden Avenue–within a stone’s throw of a present-day Starbucks and Cold Stone Creamery–something historic was discovered in 2021. A utility crew that was supposed to be digging up a natural gas pipeline found a 12,700 year old Columbian Mammoth tusk instead.
Jeff McConnell remembers getting the call. He’s a Corvallis Public Works City Engineer, and said it’s common practice to take a closer look at any strange findings. While the NW Natural crew was digging with an excavator, the bucket started bringing up an unusual material.
“There’s teeth on the bucket that help to dig. One of the teeth scraped the side, and the other one broke through the tusk. It brought up this chalky material,” said McConnell. “They knew they hit something.”…