About: West Berkeley Shellmound

The West Berkeley Shellmound, located in West Berkeley, California, sits at the site of the earliest known habitation in the San Francisco Bay Area. The shellmound (also often referred to as a midden) was used for both burials and ceremonial purposes, and was a repository for shells, ritual objects, and ceremonial items. Recent proposals for development on the site were stalled for years by the City of Berkeley and local Indigenous activists and organizations, most notably Corrina Gould. The California Court of Appeal found on April 20, 2021 that these delays were legally unjustifiable and that there was no evidence of a historic structure that would be disturbed by the development and that the project could proceed.