2001 TORREZ TRADING POST EXCAVATION RESULTS

On August 24 and 25 San Luis Valley Archaeological Network volunteers continued the subsurface investigation of the Torrez Trading Post near the town of La Garita in the northwest part of the San Luis Valley. Historic sources indicate that the trading post may have origins as early as 1858.

Prior to this year's excavation Al Atencio, a resident of the immediate vicinity of the Torrez Trading Post as a child, visited the site and offered valuable information about the it's history. Mr. Atencio, a very witty and pleasant man of 76, moved from the SLV some 50 years ago. Now living in Colorado Springs he used to live in a log house on the Torrez site and remembers playing in the old adobe building, now in complete ruin.

Memories of the La Garita area in the 1930s were discussed as we walked across the site; the Fullenwider Store, located few miles to the east now visible at a grove of cottonwood trees, where children were allowed to take small amounts of candy and a log schoolhouse, which he attended, located on the top of the knoll now occupied by a house just to the west. of the road (the school had a total of about 10 students and 2 teachers taught all grades). Mr. Atencio also revealed important information about the trading post itself including the location of the doors and the fact that the building was about 10' high with parapets.

Possible associations with the house he lived in included the identification of a buggy seat, a piece of a dish that he said was an "oatmeal plate" obtained in Quaker Oatmeal boxes, a child's shoe, and the location of a three seat privy. Locations of the family garden, the irrigation system, a large sheep shed, and the hog pen were also identified. This first-hand information will help in trying to reconstruct past life in this part of the San Luis Valley during the Great Depression. Mr. Atencio has agreed to return to the Cite to conduct an oral interview about the site and the surrounding La Garita area.

This year's investigation at the site mostly yielded artifacts from the 1920s and 1930s, as was the case in 2000. The two excavation units left unfinished from last year were completed to a depth of 70 cm without finding much evidence of the earliest occupation of the building. An additional unit, excavated on Sunday, immediately adjacent to the interior wall yielded much evidence of life in the 1920s and 1930s including toys such as doll fragments, toy porcelain dishes, fabric, a child's shoe, and a collection of three beautiful blue cut glass gems. Also found was an ornate dresser decoration, a metal lipstick case, a decorated clay game chip, and a clay marble. The collection from 2000 and 2001 will now be analyzed and a report written about material culture at the site through all the time periods represented.

Thanks go to excavators Jan Bennet, Dolly McClellan, Janie Metz, Ron Kessler, and Ken Frye. Special thanks also go to Mike and Karen Spearman for allowing us to excavate on their land.

2001 Artifacts

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ARCHAEOLOGICAL DATING METHODS CLASS OFFERED

The San Luis Valley Archaeological Network in conjunction with the Colorado Historical Society is sponsoring a class entitled "Archaeological Dating Methods" as a part of its ongoing Program for Avocational Archaeological Certification (PAAC). Taught by Kevin Black, Assistant State Archaeologist, the class will be offered in Alamosa from November 10 to 12. This class covers a wide variety of dating techniques such as: stratigraphy, cultural trait correlation, chemical analysis tests, and chronometric dating tests. Cost of the class is $12 per student. Pursuit of PAAC certification is not necessary to enroll; anyone interested in archaeology and who is at least 15 years old, is welcome to participate. For more information or to register please call Loretta Mitson at 843-0190 or 843-5328. You may also e-mail Loretta at lmmitson@bewellnet.com.

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UPCOMING SLV ARCHAEOLOGICAL NETWORK PLANNING MEETING

Our annual planning meeting will be held in February 2002 in order to schedule field trips, workshops, cultural inventories, and excavation opportunities for next year. We need ideas from a wide variety of people in order to make the group responsive to the wishes of our members. Please take some time to think about places you have wanted to see, specific types of sites you would want to help investigate, and ways that you could help make the network a more valuable organization. Opportunities in research, education, report writing, artifact analysis, and historic preservation are all possibilities. We have been active for six years now and ideas are needed especially in determining local field trips as we have already visited many of the more obvious. Please write comments to: Vince Spero, 28 Wendar Drive, South Fork CO 81154 or e-mail them to vspero@peoplepc.com.

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