A short documentary of the excavation is available on YouTube.[2] When a sewage plant was being built in the area, artifacts were found. The total of artifacts at Palace Site reached over 6,000 by 2011.[3]
The site was discovered during construction of a new wastewater treatment facility.[3] Anytime federally permitted or funded construction is occurring, archaeologists are called to perform an evaluation of potential archaeological sites in the area.
According to Bill Whittaker, a co-director of the dig “It became clear very quickly that the site was something spectacular — something none of us had seen before or probably will ever again, as well-preserved house deposits of this age are extremely rare west of the Mississippi River Valley,” [3]