Family Activities
Family-friendly events for families with children of all ages.
Behind the Scenes: Projectile Points with Dr. Andy Speer
September 15, 2022
6 to 8 p.m.
Cost: $3
Join us for a behind the scenes look into our Don Crabtree stone tool collection with Dr. Andy Speer, Anthropology Curator. Don Crabtree (1912-1980), a renowned flint knapper, that paved the way for scientific analyses of archaeological stone tools around the world. Born in Heyburn, Idaho in 1912, he moved to California in 1931 and soon became the supervisor of the vertebrate and invertebrate laboratory at the Museum of Paleontology, University of California, Berkeley. In 1939 he was diagnosed with cancer and returned to Idaho, where he focused on the craft of flint knapping, the reduction of stone to form tools. Crabtree practiced making arrowheads, spear points, and eccentrics by the hour.
Andy was born and raised in South Texas and received my PhD from the University of Texas at San Antonio in Ecological Anthropology in 2013. Following graduation, he served as a post-doctoral researcher at Texas State University in the Department of Anthropology and worked primarily with Clovis Period materials from the Gault Site. Andy’s research focuses on geochemical analysis of knappable stone to determine mobility patterns of prehistoric hunter-gatherers. His current work focuses on sourcing Paleoindian and Protohistoric artifacts from the American Southwest. For this research, it is integral to engage Native American perspectives as they relate to indigenous knowledge of ecological resources and archaeological findings.
Fall Fossil Fest 2022
October 22, 2022
Time: TBD
Join the IMNH for a fun, hands-on day of fossils! Learn how dinosaurs roamed Idaho, see the Buzzsaw Shark in action, and make your own footprints. Plus, get to see how Idaho State University professors, graduate students, and IMNH staff are on the cutting edge of fossil research and learn about their latest discoveries!