Delving deep to uncover local history in the Slocan Valley
By Nelson Daily Staff
Local history will literally be unearthed this summer in the Slocan Valley.
A hands-on Archeology Field School will take place at Slocan Narrows Pithouse Village near Lemon Creek in the Slocan Valley from June 18 to July 29.
Pairing Selkirk College’s School of University Arts and Sciences with the Anthropology Department at Hamilton College (Clinton, N.Y), 14 of the 30 pithouses located at the site have been dated through radiocarbon dating.
During 2011, the field school will focus on dating the remaining houses in the village.
Articles such as bone fragments, including beaver digits, have been found, with some dating back 3,000 years.
The site — 1.5 km north of Lemon Creek — will be open for an “Archeological Interpretation Event” on July 24, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Archeologists Nathan Goodale, Allissa Nauman and the Hamilton College/Selkirk College field school students will be on hand to provide an intimate and detailed tour of the site.
With support from the Slocan Valley Heritage Trail Society, Columbia Basin Trust and Sinixt First Nation, Hamilton College has been bringing field school students to the area since 2009.
This year, Selkirk will join forces with Hamilton College; enabling two local students to attend the field school and providing logistical benefits and access to various, relevant partnerships.
Nathan Goodale, who holds a PhD in Anthropology from Washington State University, emphasizes the purpose of the field school as a venue “to train students in excavation, survey, equipment used in mapping, as well as the archeology, ethnography and oral tradition of the interior Pacific Northwest.”
Upon the completion of this course, students will be eligible to be employed in the field as archeologists.
“Not only does it fit with my school and career plans, but it also will allow me to honour the history and people who lived in this area,” said Selkirk student Melissa Koftinoff.
Melissa is of Doukhobour heritage and plans to pursue studies in anthropology at University of Victoria in the fall. She recently graduated from Selkirk College with an Associate of Arts and General Studies degree and a Liberal Arts Diploma in Peace Studies.
A barbecue lunch will be provided and included as part of the tour. As the cost of the event is provided up front by the Slocan Valley Heritage Trail Society and Hamilton College, a suggested minimum donation is requested to help cover the costs of the event.
For more information on the event, visit www.slocanvalleyrailtrail.ca/news.php .
Melissa Koftinoff is one of two Selkirk College students that will be participating in the Archeology Field School at Slocan Narrows Pithouse Village (near Lemon Creek) from June 18 to July 29.
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