Yore call

11,000 B.C.
Four years ago, a worker restoring Pratt’s Wayne Woods’ habitat in the Northwest ’burbs stumbled upon what looked like a giant molar. “It was definitely a big honkin’ tooth, about the size of a banana bread loaf,” says Bonnie Olszewski, spokeswoman for Forest Preserve District of DuPage County. Sure ’nuf, it turned out to be a mastodon tooth that had worked its way up, within a meter of the earth’s surface. Archeological remains uncovered since then include tusk fragments and a 13,000-year-old black spruce tree. This weekend, the forest preserves’ education manager Tom Prey, with the help of the Field Museum, surveys the area in a Public Mastodon Excavation. This time, they’re looking for marl—a layer of super-duper old grayish dirt—but you never know what could turn up. According to Prey: “We’ve found bits and pieces of the mastodon, but not the main mother lode.” Reservations required; event is for ages 10 and up. Meet at James “Pate” Philip State Park, 2054 W Stearns Rd, Bartlett (630-933-7208). CANCELLED

1400
Bring out your dead! Bring out your dead! In August, the Bristol Renaissance Faire hosts Plague Day, an event specially created for the Chicago area’s zombie community (i.e., a loose group of locals who enjoy dressing up and partying like the undead. We’re not making this up). Put on your best bubonic plague makeup (think blueish, hemorrhaging lymph nodes) and head to the fair’s Cotswold Commons area to join other flea-bitten zombies for contests and infectious activities. Just be sure to follow the instructions of event organizer Kitty Zombie: “We want to see period costume zombies—no Armani zombies!” I-94 and State Line Rd, Kenosha, WI (847-395-7773, renfair.com). $18.95, advance $15.95, kids ages 5–12 $9.50, advance kids $8; zombie area is an additional $10. Aug 15, 10am–7pm.

1812
The site of Fort Dearborn, built in 1803 on what’s now the corner of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive, has a stormy past. In 1812, Potawatomi Indians and U.S. citizens clashed there, leaving several dead and the fort destroyed by fire. Accounts of the conflict differ, but 200 years later, we can finally let the healing begin: Native Americans, battle descendants, War of 1812 reenactors, historians, National Guardsmen and others assemble at the corner of 18th Street and Calumet Avenue—the southern tip of the battleground—to rename the site Battle of Fort Dearborn Park. The naming ceremony is capped off by Native American drumming, dance and prayer; an honor guard; and presentations by historians. 18th and Calumet Sts (312-401-2688). Aug 15, 10–11am; free.

1900–TODAY
Roscoe Village turns back the clock at Retro on Roscoe. Check out colorful model cars at an antique car show or pick up someone else’s old stuff at an antique market. Local restaurateurs and a chili cook-off (we’re struggling to find the retro angle to this one) will keep you well fed. Roscoe St at Damen Ave (773-329-5036, starevents.com). Sat 1, Sun 2, noon–10pm; $5.

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