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Statewide - Kansas Archeology Training Program registration opens

The Kansas Historical Society (KSHS) and the Kansas Anthropological Association (KAA) will hold the annual Kansas Archeology Training Program (KATP) field school June 2-18, 2023, at Historic Lake Scott State Park in Scott County, near Scott City.

The field school will be working with Doctors Matthew Hill (University of Iowa) and Sarah Trabert (University of Oklahoma) at Dismal River aspect sites in the park that date between AD 1650 to 1750. Their research has shown that Dismal River aspect people are predecessors of the Apache people, now known as the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma, part of the Athapaskan language group. The main site of focus, 14SC409, was partially excavated during the 2009 KATP field school, with later work done by Doctors Hill and Trabert and Doctor Margaret Beck. The 2023 KATP field school will be an opportunity to further explore the two sites and contribute to the ongoing research at the park.

The KATP field school, which is a joint effort by KSHS and KAA that has been held annually since 1975, is an opportunity for the public to work alongside professional and experienced avocational archeologists in finding and excavating archeological sites and processing the resulting artifacts in the lab. No experience is necessary—just a desire to learn. Participants can attend for a few days or the entire field school. Participants must be at least 12 years old, and children aged 12-17 must be accompanied by a parent or sponsoring adult. Classroom courses on archeology are also offered.

The registration fee for the field school for members of the KAA or the Kansas Historical Society is $35 for standard participants, $25 for participants 65 or older, and $15 for students currently enrolled at a middle school, high school, or college. Nonmembers of the KAA or the Kansas Historical Society will pay $90. Registration will be available online March 1 through May 22, 2023.

Registration for field school activities is limited per day and will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis. The field school is closed on Mondays, June 5 and June 12, optional field trips and programs will be planned for these days.

 

Register Here

 

For more information contact Shelby Beltz, Kansas Historical Society Public Outreach Archeologist, 785-272-8681, ext. 267.