Before our excavations, a brief tour of the site was in order. Amanda, a crew chief and 2017 field school student, kicked off the tour by explaining what she discovered last year—a prehistoric stone-filled pit that could have been used as an oven and the remains of what may be a historic horse racetrack.

Following the tour, it was time to lay out test units. Maddie and Shonda, who were also crew members in 2017, are measuring out this unit to ensure that it is exactly 2 x 2 meters.

We began excavation on four units today. Three of these are located near a Mississippian midden affiliated with the site’s mineral springs. We are still in the plowzone, but we have already found several interesting artifacts including this 200 year old piece of transferware.

Away from the midden, Amanda, Constants, Fiona, and Hannah are working diligently to expose another 2 x 2 meter portion of the stone-filled oven. Despite their tipsy wheelbarrow, they are making great progress excavating the plow zone.

Ron Borders, the Wynnewood Site Director, was kind enough to pay us a visit. He even transported some of our field equipment on his gator.

At the end of the day, the crew packed up their equipment and placed tarps over their units in case of rain. They will be back at it again tomorrow, bright and early at 8 A.M.