Community encouraged to help unearth history

Archaeology isn’t at all like it’s portrayed in Indiana Jones; it’s so much more exciting. You get to connect with real people, real history, and real heritage. – Professor Lara Lamb.

Minus the whip cracking and classic fedoras, archaeology enthusiasts from across the Darling Downs will soon be able to live out their excavation dreams thanks to an Archaeology Field School led by the University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ).

Open to the public for the first time, the Field School will be held at Eagles Nest Camp in Toowoomba’s Redwood Park – one of the only known examples of a camp for unemployed and itinerant men in Queensland during the 1930s.

UniSQ Professor of Anthropology and Archaeology Lara Lamb said the Field School offered the community a unique opportunity to play a part in excavating the remnants of the Depression-era camp.

“We’re absolutely thrilled to be opening our Field School to the community because the Toowoomba region has a real appetite for local heritage and rich history,” Professor Lamb said.

“With the support of the Toowoomba Regional Council, UniSQ has been archaeologically excavating Eagles Nest Camp since the 1990s.

“It was actually a member of the Toowoomba community who successfully submitted an application to heritage list the camp in 2021, so this is quite a full circle moment for us.

“We know that the wider community might have old photographs or ingrained memories of men who were in Eagles Nest Camp, so this is our way of connecting with them and welcoming them into this pocket of history preserved in the woods.”

As part of the Field School, participants will experience the best of both worlds – learning theoretical concepts from three of UniSQ’s esteemed archaeologists, before getting their hands dirty and putting their newfound knowledge into practice.

Learn more about UniSQ’s Archaeology Field School.