Island 35 Mastodon
The Island 35 Mastodon was discovered on Island No. 35 of the Mississippi River in Tipton County, Tennessee, United States.
In 1900, a Pleistocene mastodon skeleton was excavated approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Reverie, Tennessee and 4 miles (6.4 km) southeast of Wilson, Arkansas. In 1957 the site was reported as destroyed.[1]
Mastodons are members of the prehistoric,
Discovery
In 1900,
During heavy rain in June 1900, sand at the point bar of Island No. 35 had been washed away, exposing the mastodon skeleton in the
John Pendleton, a resident of Island No. 35, notified his neighbor James K. Hampson about unusual bones he had found exposed by the retreating water at the head of the river island. Reportedly, Hampson visited the site of the find "2 or 3 weeks" after the prehistoric bones had been discovered.
By the time of Hampson's arrival, many of the bones had been stolen and the skeleton had been considerably damaged by "curiosity seekers" and "ivory hunters". The remainder of the skeleton ("mainly parts of the hind leg and pelvis") were excavated by Hampson with the help of a pick to separate the mastodon bones from the gravel and pebbles in which they had been resting "cemented together by a clay".[1]
Although this find was initially believed to be the remains of a single animal, Morse and Morse
Today
In 1957 the site was reported as destroyed.[1]
The remaining mastodon bones are on display in the
See also
References
- ^ JSTOR 276134.
- ^ "Greek mastodon find 'spectacular'". BBC News. 24 July 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
- ^ a b Morse, Dan F.; Morse, Phyllis A. (1983), "Paleo-indian Beginnings (9500-8500)", in Morse, Dan F.; Morse, Phyllis A. (eds.), Archaeology of the Central Mississippi Valley, New York: Academic Press, pp. 50–69
- ^ Corgan, James X. and Emanuel Breitburg (1996): "Tennessee’s Prehistoric Vertebrates." State of Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Division of Geology Bulletin 84, Nashville.