2021 Santa Fe Trail Bicentennial Commemoration Youth Symposium September 22, 2021
The Santa Fe Trail Association-Bents Fort Chapter would like to invite students grades 6-8 and their teacher to join us for a special Youth Symposium associated with the 2021 commemoration of the Bicentennial of the opening of the Santa Fe Trail – the United States’ first international transportation and trade route. The one-day Symposium is closely aligned with the Colorado Social Studies standards.
The Symposium is limited to 35 students plus their teachers. A maximum of five students and one teacher may apply from any school. If all spots are not filled, opportunities will go to the next schools on the waiting list.
There is no cost for the Symposium, which is being funded by sponsors. Boxed lunches, water, and hand-outs will be provided. Schools located over 50 miles from Bent’s Old Fort National Historical Landmark may apply for a stipend to assist with the cost of travel.
9:00 am – 12:00 pm Sessions at Boggsville, Las Animas, Colorado
• Session 1 – Led by Dr. Kathy Corbett and Dr Bonnie Clark o The SFT was an international/transcultural corridor, a history that is reflected in the material culture of Boggsville o Architecture and Archaeology are primary sources for understanding life in the past, especially at Boggsville
• Session 2 – Led by Mike Romero Taylor and Dr. Astrid Liverman o What are historic trails, why are some trail important enough to preserve? o How are historic trails documented? o What is the evidence of a historic trail, what type of artifacts are found along trails? o Why should we preserve historic trails, and what types of preservation techniques are used?
12:00pm-12:45pm – Lunch and wrap-up of morning sessions
12:45pm-1:15pm - Travel to Bents Old Fort National Historic Landmark
1:30pm-3:30pm – Dr. Alexa Roberts and Cynthia Wiley • Students and teachers will explore the historic context for Bent’s Fort on the Santa Fe Trail and the role of the Fort. • This session will provide students with the opportunity to explore how primary source documents and archaeological artifacts can combine to provide a multifaceted look at the economics of Bent’s Old Fort on the Santa Fe Trail.
Special Session for Educators – Immersive Social Studies Experiences Delivered Through Technology and Creative Design
While students are attending the sessions, educators will have the opportunity to learn about new technology and approaches for teaching social studies and experiencing historic resources through a workshop conducted by professionals in the fields of archaeology/cultural resource management. Nathan Boyless, President of Metcalf Archaeology, and his team will use their expertise in archaeology/cultural resource management, combined with emerging technology (including virtual and augmented reality) to explain how technology can be used for mapping and recording cultural heritage sites; and how immersive and interactive experiences can be created to allow students to experience historic sites. Using their cell phones or iPads, teacher will work with the team to develop experiences at Boggsville National Historic District and Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Landmark. These experiences will be available on the Santa Fe Trail website, Metcalf Archaeology website, and to schools.
Attached is additional information on the presenters.
For additional information or to register your school for the Youth Symposium, contact Rebecca Goodwin, at [email protected]. To register, please email Rebecca with your school name and district, name of the teacher, their contact information and number of students you want to bring (maximum 5).
For questions on how this Symposium fits into the Colorado Educational Standards, contact Tammy Ridennoure at the Rocky Ford R-2 School District. [email protected]
Deadline for registration is May 10, 2021, slots will be filled on a first-come basis.
The Symposium is working closely with the Health Department to ensure that the Youth Symposium meets all local requirements and will provide a safe opportunity for students and teachers.
2021 Santa Fe Trail Bicentennial Commemoration
Youth Symposium
Boggsville/Bent's Fort - Sept. 22, 2021 — Grades 6-8
The day before the start of the 2021 Santa Fe Trail Symposium commemorating the Trail’s Bicentennial, a special hands-on Youth Symposium is being offered to introduce youth grades 6-8 and their teachers to the Santa Fe Trail's rich history and associated sites, and to provide a strong introduction to the concepts and efforts to preserve these resources. Students and their teachers will spend the day with experts on the SFT, archaeology and historic preservation to learn about the Trail's history, its impact on the evolution and historic themes of southeast Colorado and the American West; and will learn about specific historic preservation efforts and techniques.
Bonnie Clark, PhD and Kathy Corbett, PhD will share the role of the Santa Fe Trail as an International/transcultural corridor as reflected through the material culture of Boggsville. Boggsville’s past life as a stagecoach station, county seat and home for Thomas O. and Rumalda Luna (Bent) Boggs, and John Wesley Prowers, will be explored through architecture and archaeology as primary sources, Students will learn about documentation and preservation efforts at the site, one of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's most endangered National Treasures, including rehabilitation of the structures and archaeological efforts.
Mike Taylor and Astrid Liverman, PhD will explain what historic trails are, how they were used, why they are important today, and will relate those experiences to travel and cultural experiences familiar to students. The importance and processes for documenting and preserving historic trails will be explored, and students will learn about trail and artifact evidence that is used to locate and analyze historic trails.
Following a box-lunch at Boggsville students and teachers will travel to Bent's Old Fort NHS where they will again divide into groups to learn about the use of primary source documents and material culture to analyze the history and economics of Bent's Fort on the SFT.
Cynthia Wiley and Alexa Roberts PhD will explain the historic context for Bent's Fort on the SFT and the role of the Fort. Using artifacts, along with excerpts from primary sources, students will explore the who, what, why, when and how of those items and make predictions about where and how evidence of those materials might be found in the Fort. A mobile Fort activity will allow students and their teachers to test their predictions.
At the end of each session students will review the activities and address associated questions developed by the team to incorporate social studies learning goals. Participant's answers will be compiled to analyze the success of the sessions and help guide future educational efforts related to the site's themes. Once compiled this information will be made available to educators and the Symposium sites.
Youth Symposium Presenters
Mike Romero Taylor - Using his decades of experience in historic preservation and the documentation of historic trails, Mike will share with participants efforts and technology to document and protect historic trails. Mr. Taylor was the Cultural Resource Specialist for the NPS National Trail office in Santa Fe serving nine congressionally designated historic trails Including the SFT. He Is a former New Mexico SHPO, Deputy Director of NM State Monuments, and received a Master Certificate in Historic Preservation and Regionalism from the University of New Mexico. He was a Visiting Scholar to the Getty Conservation Institute where he researched international awareness and preservation of cultural routes, and their interrelationship with cultural landscapes. Mike is the U.S. representative for the International Council on Monuments and Sites Specialized Committee on Cultural Routes. In 2017 Mike was part of the team recognized with the Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation for their work to preserve Bent’s New Fort.
Astrid Liverman PhD - Currently Ms. Liverman is the historian for the National Park Service Regions 6, 7 and 8 Heritage Partnerships Program. Prior to joining the NPS she was the National and State Register Coordinator/Preservation Planning Unit Director at History Colorado. Ms. Liverman led the joint State Historical Fund/National Trust for Historic Preservation project to update the historic context on the Santa Fe Trail, document trail segments in Colorado and prepare National Register nominations.
Bonnie Clark, PhD – Ms. Clark is a professor and Curator of Anthropology at the University of Denver with emphasis on historical archaeology, cultural landscapes of western North American, material culture and experiential pedagogy. She received a PhD in anthropology from the University of California, Berkley. She has presented numerous archaeology field schools and youth education sessions. She is the author of Finding Solace in the Soil, the story of the gardens at Amache, the War Relocation Authority incarceration camp near Granada, Colorado; and of On the Edge of Purgatory: An Archaeology of Place in Hispanic Colorado.
Kathy Corbett, PhD – Ms. Corbett will incorporate her expertise in documentation and evaluation of 19th and 20th century architecture in the American West. She received a PhD in architecture (history emphasis) from the University of California, Berkley and has worked extensively in southeast Colorado. Her thematic areas of specialty include landscapes of homesteading in the American West.
Alexa Roberts, PhD - Ms. Roberts will incorporate her experience with Bent's Fort and the Santa Fe Trail. Ms. Roberts earned her PhD in anthropology from the University of New Mexico and is the former NPS Superintendent of Bent's Old Fort NHS, Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site and Capulin Volcano, NM. Prior to joining the NPS in 2001, she served as an anthropologist, archaeologist and Deputy Director for the Navajo Nation Historic Preservation Department.
Cynthia Wiley - Ms. Wiley will focus on the use of primary source documents and material culture to understand the Santa Fe Trail and Bent's Fort. Ms. Wiley Is the Museum Curator/Integrated Resources Program Manager for the NPS High Plains Group Parks, Including Bent's Fort. Previously she was the Registrar for the NPS-Midwest Archeological Center in Lincoln, NE.
Nathan Boyless and Ashley Hargraves, Metcalf Archaeology. Mr. Boyless earned his B.A. in Anthropology from Northern Arizona University and an MBA from the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona. Nathan is the President of Metcalf Archaeology, and currently serves as the President of the American Cultural Resources Association and as Chair of the Colorado Scenic and Historic Byways Commission. Ashley Hargraves earned bachelor’s degrees in Anthropology and Technology Management, and a Master of Technology from Kansas State University. She is the Creative Manager for Metcalf Archaeology.