The town of Escalante in southern Utah is no small potatoes when it comes to scientific discovery; a new archaeological finding within its borders may rewrite the story of tuber domestication.

Researchers from the Natural History Museum of Utah and Red Butte Garden at the University of Utah have discovered the earliest evidence of wild potato use in North America. This is the first archaeological study to identify a spud-bearing species native to the southwestern United States, the Four Corners potato, S. Jamesii, as an important part of ancient human diets. They pieced together evidence from stone tools, ethnographic literature and modern gardeners to show that Utahans have used the species intermittently for over 10,000 years.

Although the Escalante area was previously known as “Potato Valley” to early settlers, most residents have forgotten the tuber. The researchers have teamed up with local stewards of the potato to help rediscover this heritage.

Learn the whole story in the video below: