Excavation Site: Old Kitchen and Bakery Ovens

Excavation Site: Old Kitchen and Bakery Ovens. . The original kitchen was constructed in 1873. The bakery ovens sat directly behind it. The extension to the left of the kitchen was added by 1894 and used for a variety of things: store room, icehouse, guards' dining hall, carpentry shop, and bakery. , In 2006, the Wyoming Territorial Prison received a grant from the History Channel and partnered with the University of Wyoming Lab School to excavate the kitchen extension. This project determined the building's use and gave middle school students hands-on archeology training. , When asked, "What do you like best about the prison project?", students answered: , "I like the excavation part. In my opinion, the best way to learn and teach history is to feel it. Hands-on activities like excavation let students understand and comprehend history better than other projects. When reading a textbook you can't hold a fragment of a late 1800s bullet shell in you hand." - Sean Peel. , My favorite part was digging at the site because the class got to learn outside and experience at least a piece of what real archaeology is like. We followed the current digging, sifting, and bagging procedures." Meghan Kent , "I loved screening because even the smallest objects were interesting. Learning about my ancestors and people that came before me was the best thing I could have gotten out of this." - Kathryn Jones , "I really enjoyed the fact that this was official. I got a sense that I was helping to do something that made a difference." - Phillip Pelkey , "I learned how dirt contains very important history." Mike Henry