Archeological Niche

What hobby can you turn into a plus for your community? I’m sure that Milo McCowan didn’t start out thinking that when he bought 270 acres of land adjacent to Kanab, UT (population 3,564), located on the Arizona border in southern Utah.

He discovered 5 acres of ruins that belonged to the prehistoric Virgin Anasazi Indians with a time period from 100 B.C. to 1200 A.D. He is setting up a 20 acre buffer around the site, hoping to attract in amateur archaeologists into his development.

A similar project is located on the 1,200 acre Indian Camp Ranch near Cortez, CO. That project allows property owners to excavate sites on their own land but only under the guidance of an approved archaeologist and with an agreement that they will preserve the dig and submit archaeological reports on their findings. All artifacts found must be donated to an on-site museum upon their death.

I was in Great Falls, MT earlier this year, learning of some communities hoping to capitalize upon numerous dinosaur locations near their towns. Is there a niche here that some towns with these very unique assets could use for economic development purposes?