Skull fragment is several hundred years old

Located on farm in Adams County

ADAMS COUNTY - A skull fragment discovered on a farm in Adams County in August 2006 initially believed to belong to a modern-day child was determined last week to be hundreds of years old.

The fragment was located on a farm east of State Route 395 by a farmer who was cleaning the area after a fire, Adams County Sheriff Doug Barger said. A Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) crime scene team searched the farm for additional bones. No other fragments were found.

In May a DNA test was conducted attempting to determine the identity of the skull with no successful results.

The skull fragment was sent to the FBI for a Carbon 14 analysis. The analysis determined the bone is between 600 years old and 770 years old, Barger said.

"There is no determination of the race or ethnicity of the structure," he added.

It is unclear if the fragment is believed to belong to a child, Barger said. It is highly likely the fragment may belong to a person from a Native American tribe due to the age of the bone.

The next step is to determine what tribe the fragment may belong to and begin the process of giving it to the proper tribe, he said.

The sheriff's office is notifying the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation and area tribes.