VALLEY OF FIRE STATE PARK

On our way to Disneyland we went through Valley of Fire State Park which is west of Mesquite. In my wanderings off the beaten path, I discovered some petroglyphs that were not even marked. Park personnel probably already know about them, but I was so excited I could hardly stand it. This zealousness comes from brushing shoulders, in Dick and my early married days when he was getting his degree, with archaeologists from Idaho State University and working with Dr. Earl Swanson as a research secretary. A year later I was hired as the Museum secretary of the Department of Anthropology, Archaeology, and Paleontology. Our department obtained many grants from the National Science Foundation for summer digs involving students. We published a series of reports and journals (Tebiwa and The Occasional Papers of the Museum). Because Dr. Swanson was nearly blind because of his diabetes, I had the opportunity to read numerous current journals and archaeological reports to him. I learned a lot myself in the process. Working with him and witnessing his thirst for knowledge despite the obstacles that were in his path and watching his careful research gave me a deep respect for the artifacts of ancient American people and their history and for him. If you can, double click on this photo to make it larger so you can see the petroglyphs better.