Fort Simpson (Aug 15/03) - The shovels broke ground at Heritage Park on Friday for the second consecutive summer.

Jean-Luc Pilon, an archaeologist with the Museum of Civilization, and a team of four university students are searching for artifacts from the 1800s. Last year's dig ended with three layers of wood being discovered, leading Pilon to speculate that something of historical value may have existed on the site.

"We want to learn more about the age of it, and what it is of course," he said Friday.

There is a remote possibility that the site holds the remnants of Fort of the Forks -- the Northwest Company's first post established 1803-1811 in what is now Fort Simpson.

However, Pilon said he does not want to raise expectations.

"Give us a week and hopefully we'll find some material that will be a little more diagnostic," he said.

A dated coin would be ideal, but it's unlikely any would be found from that era because fur was the local currency at the time, noted NWT archaeologist Tom Andrews.

The Hudson's Bay Company took over the site in 1822 and had a compound in the vicinity until the late 1940s, so numerous objects such as square nails and ammunition are being unearthed.

This year's dig is getting some guidance from ground-penetrating radar. A piece of equipment resembling a lawn mower examined three plots and identified four targets. The radar can penetrate the ground to 80 cms.

While it indicates that objects of interest lie below, only digging and examination will define specifically what the objects are, Andrews explained.

Pilon said the radar is a blessing.

"It helps us out immeasurably," he said. "(Otherwise) it's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

The radar equipment, along with Dr. Brian Moorman of the University of Calgary, went on to Fort Providence, where an effort is being made to locate some old grave sites.