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Holbrook in Navajo County, Arizona — The American Mountains (Southwest)
 

Pioneers of Paleontology

 
 
Pioneers of Paleontology Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
1. Pioneers of Paleontology Marker
Inscription. Petrified Forest is a laboratory where scientists study not only the fossil record, but the records of earlier discoveries by naturalists and paleontologists.

Interest in the area’s fossils goes back to 1853, when a U.S. Army expedition discovered the Black Forest in what would become the park’s northern section. Later, at the request of General William Tecumseh Sherman, two petrified logs from that area were acquired for the Smithsonian Institution.

Conservationist John Muir collected fossils and named some of the park’s “forests” in the early 1900s, when he was living in nearby Adamana.

Annie Alexander and a companion discovered some of the first fossil reptiles and amphibians in 1921. They brought their findings to the attention of Charles L. Camp, who went on to spend nearly a decade studying the fossil vertebrates of the area.

These scientists are just some of the paleontological pioneers who laid the foundation of current studies into the park’s treasure trove of fossils.
 
Erected by Petrified National Forest Services.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: EnvironmentParks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1853.
 
Location. 34° 56.687′ N, 109° 
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46.582′ W. Marker is in Holbrook, Arizona, in Navajo County. Marker can be reached from Petrified Forest Road, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Holbrook AZ 86025, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Newspaper Rock Petroglyphs Archeological District (approx. 1.7 miles away); Newspaper Rock (approx. 1.7 miles away); Summer Solstice Marker (approx. 2.3 miles away); A Canvas for Ideas (approx. 2.3 miles away); Whispers from the Past (approx. 2.3 miles away); Meaning of Place (approx. 2.3 miles away); Life in the Village (approx. 2.3 miles away); Village on the Rio Puerco (approx. 2.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Holbrook.
 
Pioneers of Paleontology Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
2. Pioneers of Paleontology Marker
Pioneers of Paleontology Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
3. Pioneers of Paleontology Marker
Photo Displayed on Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
4. Photo Displayed on Marker
Dr. Charles L. Camp published a definitive study of phytosaurs based largely on fossils he collected in the area.
Pioneers of Paleontology Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
5. Pioneers of Paleontology Marker
Phystosaurs were predatory reptiles that were 20 to 3 feet (9 m) in length and lived in and along the waterways in the Late Triassic period. Phytosaurs are one of the most common vertebrate fossils found in the park.
Photo Displayed on Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
6. Photo Displayed on Marker
John Muir was one of the first to study the fossils in the area. Muir was a good friend of President Theodore Roosevelt, who set aside Petrified Forest as a national monument in 1906.
Photo Displayed on Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
7. Photo Displayed on Marker
Dr. Charles L. Camp’s field research station was located in 1921 near his phytosaur quarries.
The Tepees image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
8. The Tepees
The Tepees image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
9. The Tepees
Part of the Blue Mesa Member,one of the park's older layers of the Chinle Formation.
Phystosaurs image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Denise Boose, September 2, 2013
10. Phystosaurs
This is located in the Rainbow Forest Museum, south entrance.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on November 2, 2019. It was originally submitted on September 29, 2013, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. This page has been viewed 522 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. submitted on September 29, 2013, by Denise Boose of Tehachapi, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024