BEND, OR -- Portland State University’s Archaeology Roadshow returns this weekend for the first time since 2019. The outdoor event is a partnership between the Deschutes Historical Museum and the Archaeology Society of Central Oregon, and will focus on research happening in our area.
"You’re able to meet Archaeologists who are doing cutting edge work in the field, and what their work is showing us about this region prehistorically, as well as historically," says Museum Executive Director Kelly Cannon-Miller. University of Oregon Archaeologists are working at Connley Caves, near Fort Rock, and the University of Nevada-Reno is studying western tools and manufacturing in the Great Basin. Cannon-Miller says they will be on hand to talk about their local work. "We really tried to focus on who’s doing archaeology in our backyard, and what are they uncovering? So we purposefully reached out to and invited U of O and UNR to come and present that as their booth, and show people what is being discovered right near where they live."
The overall theme of this year's event is "Transportation," and Cannon-Miller tells KBND News she's excited about the diversity of voices available to the public, "The Klamath tribes will be with us, helping us host the Deschutes Historical Museum’s booth. We’re going to be looking at the Huntington Wagon Road."
There are also hands-on activities for the whole family, "We’re going to have a scavenger hunt for kids that is totally designed to make them think about archaeology as a career." And a panel of experts will help identify artifacts brought by visitors.
Cannon-Miller says archaeology is about more than Indiana Jones and Dinosaur bones, "That’s actually the really great thing about Archaeology Roadshow - those are pop culture concepts of what Archaeologists do and reality is so very different. This is the chance for folks to engage in real archaeology." Also, she says, Paleontologists dig for dinosaur bones, not Archaeologists - so don’t expect to see Jurassic Park at Saturday's event.
Archaeology Roadshow is outside the Deschutes Historical Museum in downtown Bend Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Click HERE for more information. It then heads to Burns in late June and The Dalles in mid September.
