NARRATOR: Lovelock, Nevada, 1911.
Inside a narrow cave, two miners are
searching for bat guano, a key ingredient
in making fertilizer.
But as they head deeper into the darkness,
they make an unexpected discovery.
They find more than 40 human skeletons, some of which
are abnormally large.
DAVIS WEATHERLY: In 1911, giant bones
were found in Lovelock cave.
Large human skulls and skeletons that measured between 7 and 8
feet in height, which, for ancient man, would
have been rather significant.
HUGH NEWMAN: This caused a sensation.
And one of the strange things about the discoveries
in Lovelock cave is that the skeletons
were often found with red hair.
And so it does seem like there were
a different kind of people than the Native Americans
from the area.
NARRATOR: Although many of the large bones found in Lovelock
cave were unfortunately lost to time, for decades,
the number of skulls were preserved at a local museum.
HUGH NEWMAN: Until about 10 years ago,
there were four very large skulls
on display inside the museum.
These were then removed and ceremonially buried.
What's also interesting is that over 100,000 artifacts were
excavated from Lovelock cave.
The strange thing is that many of the artifacts were huge.
Like, you have giant-sized sandals,
like a 15-inch long shoe, which is
size 29 US, which would fit someone
who's about 9 feet tall.
And even pieces of clothing, which was so big,
it looked as though they were worn by giants.
NARRATOR: The idea that giant bones were
actually found in a cave in Nevada
may sound far-fetched to some.
But the truth is that there were many such discoveries
reported during the Wild West.
In the southwestern United States,
there's several very strange stories
of these dead corpses or skeletons
being found, regularly.
In terms of the reports of giants,
this is a compelling motif.
People were fascinated by this idea of a giant race
that had lived here previously.
And this connects to a lot of biblical belief
that tended to be fairly literal back in the day.
And the Bible talks about back when there was a race of giants
that lived among the Earth.
And so for many people in the Wild West, when you see
some skeletons dug out of the Earth that
seemed to corroborate this.
This was an affirmation of literal biblical beliefs
as well.
NARRATOR: Is it really possible that a race of giants once
inhabited the Old West as the numerous discoveries reported
throughout the 1800s suggest?
And if so, was evidence of these giants
recovered in Lovelock cave?
Perhaps a clue can be found by examining the history
of the Indigenous Paiute people, who have inhabited the Nevada
desert for centuries.
DAVIS WEATHERLY: A woman named Sarah Winnemucca,
who was a descendant of Chief Winnemucca of the Paiutes,
wrote a book in the 1800s and recounted
her people's battle with this race of giants, the sai-duka'a.
Now, what's fascinating about this is that,
she says that it was an actual battle.
Not part of tribal lore or mythology, but something
that actually occurred.
The sai-duka'a were red-haired and lived
in the mountains near the Paiute nation,
and they were cannibals.
According to the Paiutes, they naturally
grew tired of being cannibalized,
and they confronted these giants.
CHAD LEWIS: A war was started between the giants
and the Paiute people.
For three years, they battled one another.
The last of the giants holed themselves up in the Lovelock
cave and the Paiute people stuffed the openings
with a bunch of brush and firewood,
and lit the place on fire.
And that was the end of the red-haired giant cannibals.
HUGH NEWMAN: What's also interesting is that when
the discovery was made in 1911 at Lovelock cave,
they also found evidence of extreme burning, which took
place near the entrance to the cave.
So this matches the story almost precisely.
And again, we have evidence of red hair
because Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins actually saved some of the hair
and sewed it into a morning dress, which she
used when she gave lectures.
And so the story of the Paiutes defeating the giants
then suddenly became a reality.
NARRATOR: For many, the evidence in support
of the Paiute story about the red-headed giants
is compelling.
Not only because of what was found in Lovelock cave,
but also because there have been reports of giant bones being
discovered in other places throughout the Western
Nevada desert.
If you go back and look through the records,
and you can find numerous accounts of bones,
skeletons, and giant-sized artifacts that
have been found in this area.
HUGH NEWMAN: In 1904, it was reported that an 11
foot tall skeleton was found.
And then we have accounts in 1931 of an 8 and 1/2 foot
skeleton that was reported.
And so the fact is, you have the stories,
you have the skeletal evidence, and you have the artifacts,
and even the legends that prove this was a real story
of giants in this area.
TOK THOMPSON: To be sure, the Paiutes believe
this to be a historical truth.
People might dismiss them as just folklore,
but, again, who's to say that it didn't happen?
Of course, there were ethnic conflicts.
Of course, there were wars.
And, of course, people tend to remember this.
So this has been a real important part
of many, many people's historical beliefs,
and how they think about their own history.