Evidence of ancient asteroid impact can be found in Wilcox County, Ala.

Impact spherules from the Chicxulub Impact Event.

One of my favorite podcasts is called History Seekers, and it’s hosted by Alabama metal detector enthusiasts Heath Jones and Scott Duncan. In each episode, they discuss all things related to metal detecting, artifact hunting, relic finding, bottle digging and old coins. In a recent episode, they discussed a new theory that’s being tossed around regarding the location of large, ancient Indian village sites.

According to this new theory, some researchers believe that a number of large, ancient village sites were purposely located at or near known meteorite impact craters. In Alabama, the best known example of this is the Wetumka Impact Crater, which was formed about 85 million years ago when a meteorite 1,100 feet in diameter slammed into what is now downtown Wetumka, creating a crater nearly 4.7 miles in diameter. Millions of years later, the Muscogee Indians settled near this large crater, calling their village “Wetumpka,” which is thought to mean “rumbling waters.”

All of this got me to thinking about historic impact craters and Indian villages in Wilcox County. I knew that Wilcox County was once home to numerous ancient Indian villages, some of which were visited by famous Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. But what about documented meteorite impact craters within the county’s borders? A little research revealed some surprising results.

While I didn’t find any information about documented meteorite impact craters in Wilcox County, I did discover that Wilcox County is one of the few places in Alabama where evidence of the famous Chicxulub Impact Event can be found. The enormous crater left behind by the Chicxulub Impact Event is about 93 miles in diameter and was created by a giant asteroid or comet that struck Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula about 66 million years ago. The Chicxulub Impact Event is famous around the world because it’s believed to have been the event that wiped out the dinosaurs.

The asteroid or comet that struck the earth during the Chicxulub Impact Event was about 50 miles in diameter and struck the earth with such force that it created what is known as impact spherules. According to scientists who study these types of events, spherules are created when an asteroid strikes the earth and vaporizes rock that erupts into a giant plume of vapor. Small droplets of this molten rock falls back to the earth in a thin layer.

Researchers at Auburn University’s Department of Geosciences have determined that Wilcox County is one of four places in Alabama were spherules from the Chicxulub Impact Event can be found. According to their findings, these spherules can be found in layers of soil along Shell Creek, which originates east of Catherine and runs past the Prairie community into the Alabama River. In fact, in March 2007 a group of several dozen scientists from around the world visited Wilcox County’s spherule site to see it for themselves.

In the end, I am certain that Wilcox County likely has more than a few small meteorite impact sites, but as far as I can tell, none of them have been documented. With that said, local residents and landowners may know of such sites, but have never thought much about them. I’d be interested in hearing about any such sites in Wilcox County, especially if they are located in and around any old Indian villages.