The Bodo Archaeological Site and Centre, and wider Bodo Archaeological Society, is focused on providing unique, adventurous, hands-on learning experiences for all ages. With community programs running seasonally since 2011, the Bodo Archaeology Site is a leader in community archaeology in Alberta, where members of the public can meaningfully engage and learn about archaeology and what it can tell us about the history of Alberta and the Great Plains. Located in an area of intense beauty and geological, environmental, and archaeological interest, the Bodo site was an important area of Indigenous Peoples of the Plains for over 5000 years.
The Bodo Archaeological Sites were discovered in 1995 during oil and gas pipeline construction when several bison skulls were discovered. Following this discovery, archaeologists from resource management companies researched the area and found it to be one of the largest and best preserved archaeological sites in Western Canada. These archaeologists understood that the Bodo Sites were significant in not only what they could help us learn about the life of pre-contact Indigenous Peoples on the Plains, but also as an area of unparalleled potential for the education, preservation, and training for Alberta’s archaeological history and future.
From 2000 to the present, considerable investigation and work has been done, and continues to be done at the Bodo Archaeological Site. Between 2002 and 2008 the University of Alberta conducted summer field schools to train future archaeologists. In 2009 the Bodo Archaeological Interpretive Centre opened to the public within the nearby hamlet of Bodo, setting up in the old school building which had closed in 1996.
The public summer programs were first offered in 2010 and they have successfully operated every summer since. Expansion of the programs have included updates to the school fieldtrips to follow changes to the Alberta curriculum, offering more opportunities for community archaeology with fieldwork and collections work in the laboratory, and continual work to keep the Interpretive centre an engaging archaeological museum.
Bodo Archaeological Site & Centre 