The State Park Service employs five full time staff devoted to the archeological study of the fort. During our visit this year, a family walked up the dig site and was invited to take a shovel full of soil from the edge of the dig and deposit on a wire mesh screen. Here the archeologist sifted through the dirt with the family and pulled out small pieces of pottery, metal, and bone - to everyone's amazement. Then each piece was placed in a small bottle labeled with the date and location. Later on, each piece would cleaned and cataloged.