Government Services, Local 002
Being an interpretive guide at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump museum and heritage site means being put on the spot from time to time, and that''s just how Stan Knowlton likes it.
"If you''re coming for a visit, don''t just read the text - talk to the guides, because they will gladly share their knowledge with you," Knowlton says.
"We''re here for the visitors, that''s what we do."
He''s been sharing the stories of the historic landmark for about 10 years, teaching the significance to visitors who come from near and far. Visiting school children have taken to calling him "Smashed-in Head of Buffalo Jump," he says with a chuckle.
Telling and retelling those stories to visitors helps to deepen both his knowledge and his connection to the site, Knowlton says.
"It''s more than just the displays in the museum - it''s the context and everything that informs what they''re reading, and that comes from the guides, the oral tradition. I think that''s a key component of the experience."
The world heritage site, located in Fort McLeod, dates back to a custom practiced by the indigenous peoples of the plains for more than 6,000 years.
Especially knowledgeable about the habits of the wild buffalo, hunters would lure the herds into paths called drive lanes and finally over the cliff at the site.
More hunters would be waiting at the bottom to complete the hunt after the buffalo had been incapacitated.
The museum on the site, built into the landscape in the naturalist style, takes visitors through the hunt and spotlights the rich culture of the indigenous people who inhabited the area and continue to live there today.
Over the years the site has become more and more popular, Knowlton notes. When the museum officially opened in 1987, its intended capacity was 20 visitors a day. Since then they''ve had about three million people walk through the doors.
"The buffalo is what we refer to as the staff of life, because it was such an integral part of the culture," he said. "When we repeat these stories, it''s like we''re keeping it alive and with that constant renewal comes a deeper understanding of what the visitors are looking at."