The Barton County Historical Society and the Quivira Chapter Santa Fe Trail Association will host Kansas Archaeologist Dr. Nikki Klarmann for a program at 7 p.m., Monday, July 22 in the Ray Schulz Research Library at the historical society, 85 South U.S. 281, Great Bend. The program is free for members of the society and those under 16, and $5 for all other attendees.  Memberships will be available for purchase at the door that night.

For decades, the Kansas Historical Society’s (KSHS) Contract Archeology Program (CAP) has assisted the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) in reviewing proposed projects for impacts to historic and cultural resources. In 2021, KDOT requested a review of a redesign of U.S. 56 to a four-lane expressway near Great Bend in Barton County. Upon review, the recorded location of the Second Fort Zarah, built in 1867, was identified as potentially being disturbed by the project. After an initial archeological survey, additional testing was requested by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) to identify whether any part of the fort remained, which would potentially be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). This work is ongoing and collaboration with the community and landowners is important to both KSHS and KDOT.

Dr. Nikki Klarmann, State Archeologist, will speak on the history of the Fort and provide an update on the status of the archeological testing and whether evidence of the Second Fort Zarah remains buried along U.S. 56.