“Amazin’ Mazon Creek: Digging the Past in Illinois”
Presented by Ellen F. Steinberg, Ph.D.
Free PowerPoint lecture for the general public
Sponsored by the Geographical Society of Chicago, in partnership with the National
Geographic Society
Chicago Cultural Center Renaissance Court
February 18, 2020
2:00-3:30 p.m.
SYNOPSIS
Steinberg’s presentation will concern the Mazon Creek sedimentary fossil beds found in LaSalle, Livingston, Will, Grundy, Fulton & Kankakee counties of Illinois. These fossils date to the mid-Pennsylvanian epoch of the Carboniferous period, around 307 million years ago. The quality, quantity & diversity of fossils in the area, known since the mid-19th century, make the Mazon Creek beds important to paleontologists attempting to reconstruct the paleoecology of the area. The locality was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1997, while the fossil beds were designated a National Historic Landmark in 2002.
Ellen will show examples of some of the plants and animals preserved in the siderite concretions found in the Mazonia-Braidwood State Park and surrounding areas. She will also chronicle digging in a coal mine spoil pile for fossil-bearing concretions during 2 ESCONI (Earth Sciences Club of Northern Illinois) field trips to Braceville, IL. Afterward, she will display some Mazon Creek fossils.
