La Brea Tar Pits

La Brea Tar Pits. . , , Lake Pit - Buried Oil Makes Great Goo , This lake is actually a pit left over from asphalt mining operations in the late 1800s. At that time, La Brea tar was mined to seal roofs and roads. The pit has since collected rain and groundwater, creating this small lake. The lake's bubbles, sheen, and stink come from a deep underground oil field. This buried layer of oil also produces gooey patches of tar on the ground. , This area was mined for asphalt in the 1870s. By the early 1900s, fossil digs began here. , The Lake Pit is where La Brea’s first confirmed fossil was found. It belongs to a saber-toothed cat. , Tar pit treasures become public park , George Allan Hancock donated 23 acres of his family's ranch to the County of Los Angeles in 1924 for a public park. His goal: Protect these tar pits and their fossil treasure for future generations. From the 1870s to the early 1900s, two generations of the Hancock family operated asphalt mines and a ranch, drilled oil wells - and safeguarded La Brea's fossils. , 55,000-10,000 Years Ago - Tar Traps Animals , Shallow pools of tar trap animals of the last Ice Age, including dire wolves, saber-toothed cats, sloths, camels, Columbian mammoths, and American mastodons. , 1870s - Asphalt Mine Operations , Major Henry Hancock operates an asphalt mine at the Lake Pit. He had acquired part of Rancho La Brea from Jose Jorge Rocha, whose family owned it as a Mexican land grant. , 1875 - First Fossil Confirmed , Geologist William Denton is the first to unlock La Brea's secret. At Major Hancock's request, he examines a fossil found at this Lake Pit. He determines that it belonged to an ancient animal: a saber-toothed cat. , 1901 - Oil Wells Pay Out , George Allan Hancock, Henry Hancock's son, drills for oil on family land. Over 70 oil wells prove successful. Hundreds of fossils found in the process validate earlier claims of their antiquity. , 1913 - L.A. County Museum Digs , In 1913 the Hancock family grants a two-year exclusive right to the Los Angeles County Museum (now known as the Natural History Museum) to dig La Brea fossils. , 1924 - Hancock Donates Park , George Allan Hancock donates this land to the County of Los Angeles to preserve the tar pits and their fossil treasure. , 1977 - Fossil Museum Opens , The Page Museum (Tar Pits Museum) opens to the public, welcoming visitors and researchers. , Today - Past Informs Future , Research at La Brea Tar Pits and Museum advances our understanding of long-term climate change in our local environment.