Abstract

With over 80 identified precontact and historic archaeological sites, Fish Creek Provincial Park, one of Canada's largest urban parks, provides rich evidence of more than 8,500 years of human use. The University of Calgary Archaeology Interpretive Centre at Fish Creek Provincial Park is an educational facility operated by the University of Calgary in cooperation with Alberta Community Development. The centre addresses First Nations and early European use and settlement of the Fish Creek area. From this facility, the University of Calgary conducts interactive, hands-on public archaeology programs. Cooperative research and learning projects, involving members of the University and local and regional communities, help define Alberta's archaeological past, with the goal of protecting archaeological resources for the future. Included are a public excavation program, a year-round school archaeology outreach program, and a growing volunteer program. This paper examines the history of the project at Fish Creek, its objectives, development, and goals for program expansion.