The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
HANDS-ON HISTORY
Archaeology Day celebrates Fort’s long life
ROME, N.Y. >> At Fort Stanwix, children got a chance to see history up close and personal on Archaeology Day.
The public was invited Saturday to Fort Stanwix for their junior archaeology program, an artifact scavenger hunt and a tour of the park.
Museum Specialist Amy Roache-Fedchenko, a doctor of anthropology, specializing in archaeology, said archaeology is important for children to learn because it’s hands-on his- tory.
“History books and accounts can only tell you so much. Archaeologists look at the material culture that people left behind to figure how they lived day to day. And this happens right in everyone’s backyard,” Roache-Fedchenko said. “Archaeologists ask questions, pose hypotheses and make observations. That’s an important aspect that children can learn from.”
Fort Stanwix is a prime spot for archaeologists, especially during the Fort’s initial reconstruction.
“There was a large excavation in the 1970s with a
purpose to uncover the location and remains of the fort, so it could be rebuilt in time for the 1976 bicentennial celebration. But there’s still quite a bit buried below the surface,” Roache- Fedchenko said.
Abbigai l Britton, a fourth- grader of Rome, was one of several children running around the Fort with her family, looking through the exhibits of the Fort and just how people lived in the 1700s.
“I’ve been here five times,” Abbigail said. “I think it’s very interesting, because I love history.”
Brody Boris, Noah Myers and Hannah Myers all came from Verona and have been to the Fort before for different events, but it was their first time for the Archaeology Day event. The last time they were at the Fort, they got a chance to dress up in period clothes and march around with fake muskets.
“It’s really different seeing what things were like back then. It’s different now, compared to what things were like in 1775,” Noah said.
“Their houses were all made of wood, not bricks and stuff,” Brody said.
Brody, Noah and Han- nah moved through Fort Stanwix and the many rooms and bunks across the compound, completing their scavenger hunt and learning more about the Fort in the process.
“It’s shocking the Fort was built on the same spot when the revolution started,” Noah said.
When asked the impor- tance of history and what they’d be missing, Noah said they wouldn’t know what life was like in the past.
“How many people lived in this Fort is a surprising number. You wouldn’t know if you didn’t come here,” Noah said. “Five hundred people lived here.”
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