I always loved the Episcopalian church in Eden, Wyoming but I always thought it was called Garden Church of Eden. Guess not. I did a Google search and quickly found it’s really called Oregon Trail Memorial Church. I wonder if the name might have changed.
My grandparents Harry Swanstrom and Vivian (Luce) Swanstrom didn’t belong to any of the local churches, although they contributed to all of them and sent their kids to Bible School.
Oregon Trail Memorial Church, Eden, Wyoming (Source: Facebook)
I can’t remember if I’ve ever been inside. I’d like to think so, but I think I’d remember if I had. I always meant to stop and take a look but never did.
I don’t think I knew the Eden Point was named after Eden, Wyoming. I wondered, of course. My mom knew, though. Of course she did. She grew up at Farson.
Here’s a video clip from a 1940/41 archaeological dig at Farson. The Pennsylvania Museum (University of Pennsylvania) conducted the dig at a site they named the Finley Site.
The Finley Site is an old paleo-Indian bison kill site, where arrowheads had been found on the surface. The site dates from ~9 thousand years ago. It’s now associated with the Cody Cultural Complex, Archaeologists found a type of point that had been found elsewhere, but never before in situ. They named that style “Eden Point“. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2010, long after we all moved away.
There’s also a “related” site, the Farson-Eden Site. It was an American Indian camp site with 12 lodges and large collection of antelope bones. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.
Most of the video from the Finley Site is field footage, no sound on any of it. I’m focused on the two little local history pieces. The video shows a road sign at 03:33 and a brief shot of Farson Mercantile at 11:53. That sign was just across Highway 191 from the store.
The shot list for the video shows:
Fieldwork, dusting of samples. Linton Satterthwaite and Edgar B. Howard.
The arrow points from a buffalo kill site, known as Eden Points.
Mrs Charles Bache also assisting
Sifting artifacts from dirt
Surveying landscape
Directional Sign with arrows: Eden Rock Springs, Pinedale, Jackson, Yellowstone. Mrs. Bache pointing to Rock Springs.
Seated near the buffalo bones
Hammering in a post for a shelter
Sun/shade shelter next to buffalo bones find.
Survey of the land
Sifting materials Gathering materials in a tarp
Breaking clods. General field activities.
Picking up one of the points, extreme close up
A visit to town, likely Farson.
I think I would change that last line to “A visit to the Farson Mercantile.” I wrote to them about. We’ll see what they say.
Penn Museum, Digging at Farson, Wyoming, YouTube.com, Dec. 5, 2012, retrieved Aug. 16, 2020. “Partially edited footage of the Finley Expedition; Farson Wyoming, Film made possibly by Charles Bache.” Another copy of the video is hosted at Pennsylvania Museum.
