Tag: history
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Mazon Monday #297: Pit 11 Coal Mining Artifact
This is Mazon Monday post #297. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. We often focus on the beautiful fossils found in the Mazon Creek deposit, but sometimes overlook the rich history that surrounds them. Coal mining played a central role in shaping the Wilmington, Braidwood, and Coal City area, from the deep…
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Throwback Thursday #292: Isabel Bassett Wasson… revisited
This is Throwback Thursday #292. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. You may remember Throwback Thursday #284, where we discussed Isabel Bassett Wasson. Wasson (1897-1994) was one of the…
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Mazon Monday #296: Jim Turnbull in Pit 11
Jim Turnbull, namesake for Anthracomedusa turnbulli (see Mazon Monday #278), worked for Abbott Labs for many years. Abbott has/had an internal newsletter called “AbbotTopics”. In the October 8th, 1965 edition, Jim is the subject of an article titled “Prehistoric Insect Discovery May Bear Abbott Man’s Name”.
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Throwback Thursday #291: 60 Years of ESCONI by Kathy Dedina
This is Throwback Thursday #291. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. Happy 76th Birthday, ESCONI! Our 76th Birthday was on November 11th, 2025. The dedication for the 60th Anniversary was…
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Indigenous Americans dragged, carried or floated 5-ton tree more than 100 miles to North America’s largest city north of Mexico 900 years ago
Live Science has a fascinating story about an ancient tree, which was part of Cahokia. Cahokia was the large city north of Mexico 900 years ago, with a population of around 20,000 people. It was built on earthen mounds in the southwestern Illinois, next to the Mississippi River, between East St. Louis and Collinsville. Scientists…
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Throwback Thursday #290: Looking Back At ESCONI For November 2025
A look back at November 1955, 1975, and 2000
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Mazon Monday #294: Montceau-les-Mines
This is Mazon Monday post #294. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. Montceau-les-Mines is a commune located in the Saône-et-Loire department of the Bourgogne–Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It lies southwest of the city of Dijon and today has a population of just under 20,000 people. The town was officially established on…
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Throwback Thursday #289: Happy 200th Birthday, Erie Canal!
The Chicago Sun Times ran an interesting piece about the Erie Canal about the 200th birthday of the Erie Canal on October 26th, 2025. The article was written by by Neil Steinberg, a Sun Times Columnist. Steinberg states the Erie Canal was the most significant event in the history of Chicago.
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Mazon Monday #293: Mazon Creek Project Slides
This is Mazon Monday post #293. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. The Mazon Creek Project was a program sponsored by Northeastern Illinois University. Founded in the 1960s, by the late Eugene Richardson Curator of Fossil Invertebrates at the Field Museum in Chicago Illinois. It was originally an attempt to encourage more…
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Throwback Thursday #288: For the fun of it!
This is Throwback Thursday #288. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. Here are a few limericks from the December 1999 edition of the newsletter. The attibution “Complements of ‘The…
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Video for ESCONI October 2025 General Meeting – “Great Zimbabwe among its peers: Exploring the height of ancient civilizations in southern Africa”
The October 2025 General Meeting was held on Friday, October 10th, 2025 at 8:00 via Zoom. Foreman Bandama with the Field Museum presented on African archaeology and anthropology. His presentation is titled “Great Zimbabwe among its peers: Exploring the height of ancient civilizations in southern Africa” There are over twenty-five great African civilizations, besides Egypt.…
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Video for ESCONI September 2025 General Meeting – “Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site”
ESCONI General Meeting – Dr. Angela Cooper presented “Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site.” Dr. Angela Cooper is originally from Mascoutah, IL and grew up learning about the great site of Cahokia Mounds. Her educational and professional career has centered around Illinois archaeology. Dr. Cooper received her MA from University of Tulsa studying the relationships of…
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Throwback Thursday #287: Cafe ESCONI Menu
Unfortunately, we don’t have a year for this story. It was probably in the early 1990s. If anyone remembers when the display first appeared, please send it to esconi.info@gmail.com. Sylvia Josefek and her husband Paul were very active in ESCONI during 1980s and 1990s. Paul was Treasurer from 1985 until 1990, while Sylvia was interested…
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BeHistoric: The Great Chicago Portage
Brian and Joyce of the Youtube channel BeHistoric have a fascinating episode about the “Great Chicago Portage”. They layout the history from the Ice Age to the Native American peoples through to modern times. In this video documentary (#89), we explore the great Chicago Portage, used for hundreds or even thousands of years by indigenous…
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Fossil Friday #286: Rhabdoderma exiguum
This is the “Fossil Friday” post #286. Expect this to be a regular feature of the website. We will post fossil pictures you send in to esconi.info@gmail.com. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Bluesky/Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world! For this week’s Fossil Friday, we have a Rhabdoderma exiguum.…
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Throwback Thursday #286: A Rock Is a Rock…
This is Throwback Thursday #286. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. The following piece appeared in the September 1966 edition of the ESCONI newsletter. The attribution is from “Rock…
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ESCONI October 2025 General Meeting – October 10th, 2025 at 8:00 PM via Zoom – “Great Zimbabwe among its peers: Exploring the height of ancient civilizations in southern Africa”
The October 2025 General Meeting will be held on Friday, October 10th, 2025 at 8:00 via Zoom. Foreman Bandama with the Field Museum will be presenting on African archaeology and anthropology. His presentation is titled “Great Zimbabwe among its peers: Exploring the height of ancient civilizations in southern Africa” There are over twenty-five great African…
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Throwback Thursday #285: Looking Back at ESCONI For October 2025
A look back at October 1955, 1975, and 2000
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Fossil Friday #284: Alethopteris lonchitica
This is the “Fossil Friday” post #285. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to esconi.info@gmail.com. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Bluesky/Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world! We have a very special seed fern…
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Throwback Thursday #284: Isabel Bassett Wasson… Trailblazer in Geology, Education, and Preservation
If you follow our Throwback Thursday “Looking Back At ESCONI” posts, you may have noticed the entry mentioning Isabel Bassett Wasson in the September 2025 post. … It left me wondering who was Isabel Bassett Wasson, what is the Trailside Museum in River Forest, IL., and Lake Chicago? We’ll tackle Lake Chicago in a later…
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Throwback Thursday #283: The Strip Mines
This poem first appeared in the September 1964 edition of the ESCONI newsletter. Written by Gene Falada, it was inspired by a field trip to the spoil piles near South Wilmington, Illinois, on August 8, 1964. His words capture an experience that still feels familiar today. ESCONI field trips continue to bring people together—you meet…
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ESCONI September 2025 General Meeting via Zoom – “Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site”
ESCONI General Meeting – 8:00 PM via Zoom – Dr. Angela Cooper will be presenting “Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site.” Zoom link Dr. Angela Cooper is originally from Mascoutah, IL and grew up learning about the great site of Cahokia Mounds. Her educational and professional career has centered around Illinois archaeology. Dr. Cooper received her…
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Throwback Thursday #282: Field Museum Postcard
I found this old Field Museum postcard at the recent ESCONI Rock Swap. It’s a photo of the coal forest in the Evolving Planet exhibit. This exhibit was originally in the Ernest R. Graham Hall in the Field Museum. The postcard is from the middle 20th century.
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Throwback Thursday #280: Braceville Trip 05/16/2009
Here’s a great report from Andrew Young of the Braceville Field Trip on May 16th, 2009. Notice that the spoil pile is much bigger!
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Throwback Thursday #279: Vacation Conversation from 1951
Back in the 1950s and 1960s, the fall “Brag-Night” turned into the fall auction. The auction was used by folks to sell off extra material collected during summer vacations. Here is a “Brag-Night” drawing from September 1967. The “Brag-Night” for 2025 (renamed to “Show and Tell” is at 7:30 PM on September 20th, 2025 at…
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Throwback Thursday #275: Field Museum Shark Week!
This is Throwback Thursday #275. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. —————————————————– The Discovery Channel does “Shark Week” every year during the last week of July… that’s this…
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Throwback Thursday #274: Member Demographics in 1959 – Part 2
This is Throwback Thursday #274. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. —————————————————– Back in Throwback Thursday #254, we looked at a member survey conducted in May 1959. In…
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Throwback Thursday #273: Remembering Floyd Rogers
This is Throwback Thursday #273. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. —————————————————– Will a heavy heart, we bring news of the passing of Floyd Rogers in South Africa. …
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Throwback Thursday #272: Looking Back At ESCONI For July 2025
This is Throwback Thursday #272. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. July and August are generally light months for ESCONI news. Get out there and collect for Brag…
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Throwback Thursday #271: Rare fossil find for Joliet man
This is Throwback Thursday #271. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. I came across this story a few days ago in a Facebook post by Gus Kramer. Back in…
