Every American school child is taught that Christopher Columbus discovered America in October of 1492. However, there is evidence that the Vikings discovered the new world some 500 years earlier. The great Norse seafarer, Leif Eriksson, was thought to have found North America around 1000 AD. He was one of a large group of explorers from Scandinavia that set out in search of a mysterious island known to them as "Greenland". However, what he found was the northern parts of Canada. Archaeological digs have found that these people not only found this area, but lived there for quite some time, as they have found a Viking long house, as well as several bits of pottery of Norse design. They have also found cloak pins and even an oven for the creation of iron objects.

About 18 million years ago, the plains of North America were filled with a wide range of large mammals, including one now called Daeodon. The term means "terrible pig", and from the fossils found, they probably lived up to their name. Experts have found that from their teeth, these animals were probably omnivores, though they more than likely lived on scavenged meat. They were about the size of modern day bison, and were heavily muscled. From evidence left on fossilized bones, these creatures may have fought over mating rights, territory, or even meals, as many of the skulls found from these beasts show puncture wounds and serious scrapes. Several Daeodon skeletons have been found around a dried up river bed at Agate Springs, Sioux County, Nebraska.

  Nearly all Native American tribes tell recount stories of the Thunderbirds. These were thought to be enormous birds, similar to vultures or eagles, and were said to cause the thunder during storms and could carry full grown men away to their roosts. It was believed that these stories were merely part of the culture, but fossilized evidence has been found in parts of Argentina, of a large bird similar to a modern sea gull. Ironically, throughout the years, stories have continued to surface of extremely large birds flying through the skies of North America. Scientists believe that these sightings are nothing more than large eagles or even California Condors. Eye witnesses say that what they saw was bigger than any condor on record.

  When the Romans invaded the British Isles in 43 AD, they found the natives to be a land of various tribes of warriors. After two previous attempts during the reign of Julius Caesar, they were finally successful during the reign of Claudius. However, the Roman legions found that the natives to the North weren’t as willing to be invaded as those in the South. The Northern tribes known as the Picts and the Scots, fought hard to maintain their way of life. After more than 30 years of trying to conquer these people, the new emperor, Hadrian, decided to build a massive enclosure to keep these people out of their newly acquired lands. This barrier was known as Hadrian’s wall, and is nearly 75 miles long.

  In the four corners region of the United States, one of the prevalent features are the ancient pueblos that line the walls of the canyons. Archaeologists have found tons of pottery from the people that lived in these dwellings, and have come to call the people the Anasazi. Nobody is sure who these people were, as the name Anasazi is Navajo for "enemy ancestors". During a 1997 excavation, skeletons of at least 24 people were found that showed clear signs of a violent death and possibly even cannibalism, though this is deeply debated among scholars. Other excavations have uncovered dismembered bodies, and even some unburied bodies. Experts are still trying to figure out who these people were, how they lived, and what ultimately happened to their civilizations.