School kids do some digging into area’s past

Diana Sahagun

Tuesday, Sept. 14, 1999 | 9:45 a.m.

Five students from Lois Craig Elementary School had a chance to dig in the dirt Monday, searching for remnants of cowboys' past.

The students from third through fifth grade were made archaeologists for the day with the help of professional archaeologists John Hohmann and Peg Davis at the historic Kiel Ranch and through the North Las Vegas Parks and Recreation Department.

What the students found were warped nails, sharp bones and pieces of old bottles, to the surprise of many of the young students from teacher June Maier's GATE program for the gifted and talented. The students not only learned the history of the ranch, but the skills of archaeology.

Kiel Ranch is 7 acres of an original 240-acre ranch first homesteaded by Conrad Kiel in the mid-1800s. The city of North Las Vegas owns the ranch, on the north side of Carey Avenue just west of Losee Road, and is developing it as a resource for both residents and tourists. The Parks and Recreation Department as well as nonprofit group Friends of Kiel Ranch are working to restore the area.

The students practiced their techniques with brushes and trowels at the adobe building, which was once a general store for cowboys in the 1880s, Hohmann said. The cowboys would throw their trash by the building, where it accumulated.

"The students are shown how we learn about people from the past by the things they've thrown away and used," he said. "They are learning about an important piece of Las Vegas history and some of our founding fathers."

Two sites were set up for the students to do their excavating.

One process involved screening, where dirt and rocks were shaken and sifted through mesh, leaving tiny fragments behind to be examined. Beverly Mendez, a fourth grader, found glass, nails and bottles by sifting.

The second process involved examining fill-dirt, or dirt that had accumulated around the adobe building. Even though they were digging on their hands and knees, the children didn't seem to mind that they were covered with dust and dirt.

"They had a good time with the adults telling them it was OK to get dirty," parks planner Marshal "Tony" Taylor said.

Maier said that after the excavation the students would return to the classroom and discuss what they had found and learned.

"The children will learn that there are jobs and careers that involve history," she said. "This is an experience that very few get to have."

Coated with dust, Mendez said she learned that "this house is really old," and wondered aloud, "is there any money buried here?"