Beer Bottles and Cartridges: Archaeology of Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City lecture given by Christopher Merritt

Park City Museum will host a lecture called Beer Bottles and Cartridges: Archaeology of Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City given by Christopher Merritt on Wednesday, April 2, 2025 from 5-6 p.m. held at the Education and Collections Center located at 2079 Sidewinder Drive. More information can be found at www.parkcityhistory.org.

After 162 years, Fort Douglas is a fixture of Utah’s communities, and while we know much about its operational history and the lives of famous people, there is much to still uncover. With such a deep history, many pieces of Fort Douglas’ history stay hidden under the ground, waiting for an archaeologist (or a backhoe!) to expose it to sunlight again. Over the past thirty years, archaeologists have explored many areas of the post’s history, whether for the 2002 Olympics or as part of research endeavors. With each new discovery we learn more about this unique piece of Utah history.

Christopher Merritt has been a professional archaeologist for over 20 years, working with the State of Utah for over 12 years, and is now the State Historic Preservation Office. He received a Ph.D. from the University of Montana, and he has worked in many western states focusing on the combination of history and archaeology, to share new stories of the past.