The National Buffalo Foundation is a supporter of the Vore Buffalo Jump, a site of great archaeological and historical importance in northeastern Wyoming. The “jump” is a natural sinkhole used by Native American hunters as an efficient way to take bison. The hunters stampeded bison into the pit, which was deep enough to kill or disable the animals.
The site is named for the Vore family land it lies on, along the interface of the Black Hills and Northern Great Plains. It was discovered during construction of U.S. Interstate 90, near Sundance, Wyoming.
Archeologists believe at least five Plains Indian tribes used the site as a kill and butcher location over a 300-year period ranging from the 1500s to 1800s. Ten tons of bones removed during excavation of the site represent only about five percent of its estimated contents, the remains of 20,000 bison.
In addition to Vore Buffalo Jump’s value to historians, archeologists and bison researchers, it enriches the educational experience of hundreds if not thousands of students from kindergarten through university who visit the site each summer. Vore Buffalo Jump is also one of the area’s popular tourist attractions.
This site ties in the history of the plains indians and their demise from pressures from the east both native and settler.
A wonderful place to visit if you are a historian.