In recognition of the county’s bicentennial, Hamilton County Parks and Recreation will hold a number of entertaining and educational events celebrating the 200-year milestone.
The parks department’s inaugural event, First Farmers, will take place this Saturday, March 25 at the Taylor Center of Natural History, located in Strawtown Koteewi Park – a park which itself possesses a rich local history that stretches thousands of years into the past.
Christy Brocken is the Historical Resource Specialist for Hamilton County Parks & Recreation. (Photo provided by Hamilton County Parks & Recreation)
When asked about the historic significance of the county’s largest park, Christy Brocken, HCPR’s Historical Resource Specialist, commented, “Artifacts recovered from the park and dating to over 10,000 years ago show that the land that is now Strawtown Koteewi Park has been an important landscape for Native Americans for thousands of years. The abundant natural resources and the connection to the White River make this beautiful land an ideal spot for hunting, fishing, gathering plant resources and eventually farming.”
As part of the First Farmers program, invited members of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma will discuss crop planting, gardening and other Native American early farming practices. Additional activities at the event will include experts offering onsite demonstrations of the processing of Chenopodium, a little-explored grain possessing great nutritional value. Attendees can also expect to learn about relationships with other plants as food, medicine, and lifeways. The event agenda will also provide a program covering clay pot cooking and the process of making clay cooking vessels.
The public is invited to attend this FREE event from 1 to 4 p.m. this Saturday, but you must pre-register online at MyHamiltonCountyParks.com.
Taylor Center is located at 12308 Strawtown Ave. in northern Noblesville. More details about this special program or Hamilton County Parks can be found by visiting MyHamiltonCountyParks.com or by calling (317) 774-2574.
A complete list of Hamilton County Bicentennial events and activities can be found at HamCoTurns200.com.