Tongue River II - Passport in Time

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Excavation and Interpretation on the Tongue River II

Buffalo Field Office (BLM), Wyoming, 2016
By Ardeth Hahn, BLM BFO Archaeologist
Between June 26th and July 1st, 2016, the Buffalo Field Office hosted its 8th Passport in Time (PIT) project at Welch Recreation Area in Sheridan County, Wyoming. Five volunteers spent the week camped out at Welch and worked each day to identify and record archaeological sites. Volunteers came from the local area (Buffalo, Wyoming) and as far away as North Carolina to work and experience Wyoming’s great outdoors. Working in tandem with professional archaeologists, volunteers learned how to identify and describe prehistoric and historic tools and artifacts, photograph tools, make maps using a Trimble Geo7x, and hand draw feature maps. During the week the PIT crew completely rerecorded 14 previously identified archaeological sites and also found and recorded two new prehistoric archaeological sites. The Welch Recreation Area is used by hunters, fishers, and hikers, and is part of a grazing allotment managed for winter cattle grazing. The area is rich in prehistoric and historic cultural sites and the information gathered during the PIT project will make it easier for BLM to protect these sites while facilitating recreational and range activities.
 
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