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Rothaus said he first did work in Elk River in 2003 <br />when the city hired him to do an archaeological and <br />historic survey. <br />A sign for the dig at Bailey Point. <br />After the survey was finished, Rothaus said as an <br />afterthought they offered a tour to the public and <br />were surprised when about 150 people showed up. <br />"So the suggestion was, let's do public digs in Elk <br />River," Rothaus said. "My first answer was, 'No. <br />Absolutely not. You can't turn the public loose with <br />trowels, and they'll mess up the sites."' <br />13 <br />But he said they went ahead and it worked out very <br />well. "People were very careful," Rothaus said. <br />Public archaeology digs were held in 2005, 2006 <br />and 2007 at the Hoebelheinrich farm, and then this <br />year at Bailey Point. <br />Rothaus said the public digs are a chance to do <br />something a little different. <br />"It's revitalizing to have a whole bunch of people <br />out who are interested and excited about history," <br />he said. <br />Rothaus is president of Trefoil and a research <br />associate at the Center for Heritage Renewal at <br />North Dakota State University. <br />