Thursday, December 31, 2009
Fossil Hunter Part 5
From Alpha-Omega #96 January/February 2001 This continues some of my adventures at the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum.
Giants in Texas
Several months ago were had an interview with a rancher
south of Crosbyton who claimed in about 1958 as a young man
that he was a team member of a human burial site in the
nearby foothills. He said that a giant human skeleton was
excavated from the site and the dig was supervised by a
then Texas Tech University professor. The rancher did not
recall the professor's name, but that the giant human remains
were taken to Texas Tech.
After the interview the rancher led us to the burial site.
We succeeded in getting one of our vehicles stuck in the
Brazos River before (we were able to extract it with the
help of a tractor) we arrived at the dig site. We didn't
find anything as this happened over forty years ago. At
this point we are going to be following up on it and see
if the Texas Tech archives have anything that they would
release on this possible interesting find.
My Own Triceratops
In late August a private fossil hunter named Scott Taylor
(no relation to Joe) brought a number of hadrosaur
(duck-billed dinosaur) and Triceratops bones from Montana
into the museum. In October we began opening the field
jackets containing the bones. There were the better part
of a Triceratops skull which took priority in our preparation
efforts. The first thing we did was to remove the field
jackets which was a fairly arduous task as the field jackets
were not properly done. The field jackets usual cover the
clay or rock matrix that surround the bones. In this case
the bones were in a very hard clay which yielded to the
efforts of a wood cutting x-acto knife and the handle of
a normal sized screwdriver. We kept the clay scrappings
and placed them in a water bath to sift out any small bone
fragments. Also we kept the clay for a local pottery maker.
This is interesting in itself. If these bones were really
65 million years old you would think they would have fossilized
into hardened stone such as we found in Colorado. After
the clay was removed we took the bones to the water bath
and let them soak over night. Then we came back the next
day and scrubbed any excess clay/mud off of them. After
the bones dried over night we immersed the bones in a
bath of PVA, a chemical hardener. This toughened up the
bones so they could be handled safely. After that came
the part of trying to fit the bones together. It is a
giant 3-D jigsaw puzzle. At this point Joe is the expert
and fellow worker Andy Hedges and myself are rank neophytes.
However, just to work on this material is a dream come true.
The triceratops was my favorite childhood dinosaur and being
able to work on the fossil remains of one was a great privilege.
Giants in Texas
Several months ago were had an interview with a rancher
south of Crosbyton who claimed in about 1958 as a young man
that he was a team member of a human burial site in the
nearby foothills. He said that a giant human skeleton was
excavated from the site and the dig was supervised by a
then Texas Tech University professor. The rancher did not
recall the professor's name, but that the giant human remains
were taken to Texas Tech.
After the interview the rancher led us to the burial site.
We succeeded in getting one of our vehicles stuck in the
Brazos River before (we were able to extract it with the
help of a tractor) we arrived at the dig site. We didn't
find anything as this happened over forty years ago. At
this point we are going to be following up on it and see
if the Texas Tech archives have anything that they would
release on this possible interesting find.
My Own Triceratops
In late August a private fossil hunter named Scott Taylor
(no relation to Joe) brought a number of hadrosaur
(duck-billed dinosaur) and Triceratops bones from Montana
into the museum. In October we began opening the field
jackets containing the bones. There were the better part
of a Triceratops skull which took priority in our preparation
efforts. The first thing we did was to remove the field
jackets which was a fairly arduous task as the field jackets
were not properly done. The field jackets usual cover the
clay or rock matrix that surround the bones. In this case
the bones were in a very hard clay which yielded to the
efforts of a wood cutting x-acto knife and the handle of
a normal sized screwdriver. We kept the clay scrappings
and placed them in a water bath to sift out any small bone
fragments. Also we kept the clay for a local pottery maker.
This is interesting in itself. If these bones were really
65 million years old you would think they would have fossilized
into hardened stone such as we found in Colorado. After
the clay was removed we took the bones to the water bath
and let them soak over night. Then we came back the next
day and scrubbed any excess clay/mud off of them. After
the bones dried over night we immersed the bones in a
bath of PVA, a chemical hardener. This toughened up the
bones so they could be handled safely. After that came
the part of trying to fit the bones together. It is a
giant 3-D jigsaw puzzle. At this point Joe is the expert
and fellow worker Andy Hedges and myself are rank neophytes.
However, just to work on this material is a dream come true.
The triceratops was my favorite childhood dinosaur and being
able to work on the fossil remains of one was a great privilege.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Fossil Hunter Part 4
From Alpha-Omega #96 January February 2001 This continues
some of my adventures at the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum.
Utopia— Texas That is
Several months ago we received a call from Becky Gring
from Utopia, Texas who reported that she had discovered
some very strange rock impressions (looked like human
footprints) in a river bed near where she lives. Utopia
is in south Texas a hundred or so miles west of San Antonio.
Becky wanted to know how to make a mold of the tracks.
I relayed some advice to her from Joe Taylor on how to
do it. Several days later she called back and said she
had used a different method. She used modeling clay
rather than the suggested plaster. The clay worked very
well and she was able to get a very good mold of the
submerged track. She made some casts of it and sent
us one of them. I was the one who opened the package
when it arrived and my first impression was that it
could very well be a small human track. There was a
definite heel and ball impression though the
toes were not readily apparent. It is possible
that the individual (if indeed it was human) was
running with the ball of the foot making the initial
impressions.
This was interesting enough to have two members of
our Mt. Blanco Fossil Excavation team, Aaron Judkins
(from Glen Rose) and Phillip Hall (from near Fort Worth)
travel to Utopia to check it out. They were able to
make very similar molds of the first rack and several
others. Their molds were essentially the same as the
one made by Becky Gring. They also observed some other
track impressions but they weren't as good as the one
Becky had sent to us. These "tracks" if they were that
were found in Cretaceous limestone to that found in the
Paluxy River. Becky has been directed to us by Dr. Carl Baugh.
Perhaps just as interesting was a trilobite found in the
same strata. This was definitely a misplaced fossil as
Trilobites were supposed to have died out by the Permian
period perhaps 100 million years earlier.
There is a certain amount of networking among Creationist
organizations. For example, Dr. Baugh of the Creation
Evidence Museum in Glen Rose, Texas has used Joe Taylor
to supervise his Colorado Dinosaur dig and Joe is often
a technical consultant/expert with the dinosaur and human
tracks at the Paluxy River. We have had a number of
field jacked dinosaur bones from the Colorado dig here in
the museum that are waiting for the finances to prepare
and restore them.
Triassic Tracks
Another story is of a Mr. Walton Koemel who lives near
Lemesa, Texas. He bought several molds (one very large
and two very small) in of animal tracks made from
Triassic strata near a river bed in Knox County, Texas.
Joe gave them a possible ID as dinosaur tracks. The small
track Joe thought might be a baby sauropod dinosaur track.
Mr. Koemel was very appreciative of Joe's opinion and
later took the tracks to nearby Texas Tech University
(in Lubbock) where he showed them to Dr. Sankar Chatterjee.
Dr. Chatterjee is a well known evolutionary paleontologist
famous for finding fossil birds in the Triassic strata.
The large impressions he dismissed as natural occurring
erosional features. The small impressions however he was
very excited about and said they were made by an
unidentified mammal. In terms of evolution it would be
very early for mammals in the fossil record. From a
creationist perspective this would simply show that
these animals were living then and appear fully formed
with no intermediate forms. Most of the supposed early
mammals were similar to shrews. Mr. Koemel did not reveal
the location of the tracks to Dr. Chatterjee, but returned
to our museum on several occasions and once took Joe to
the Discovery site so Joe could get a first hand look.
Joe's evaluation of the large impressions was similar to
Chatterjee's that they were natural occurring rock features
that were not made by animals or man.
some of my adventures at the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum.
Utopia— Texas That is
Several months ago we received a call from Becky Gring
from Utopia, Texas who reported that she had discovered
some very strange rock impressions (looked like human
footprints) in a river bed near where she lives. Utopia
is in south Texas a hundred or so miles west of San Antonio.
Becky wanted to know how to make a mold of the tracks.
I relayed some advice to her from Joe Taylor on how to
do it. Several days later she called back and said she
had used a different method. She used modeling clay
rather than the suggested plaster. The clay worked very
well and she was able to get a very good mold of the
submerged track. She made some casts of it and sent
us one of them. I was the one who opened the package
when it arrived and my first impression was that it
could very well be a small human track. There was a
definite heel and ball impression though the
toes were not readily apparent. It is possible
that the individual (if indeed it was human) was
running with the ball of the foot making the initial
impressions.
This was interesting enough to have two members of
our Mt. Blanco Fossil Excavation team, Aaron Judkins
(from Glen Rose) and Phillip Hall (from near Fort Worth)
travel to Utopia to check it out. They were able to
make very similar molds of the first rack and several
others. Their molds were essentially the same as the
one made by Becky Gring. They also observed some other
track impressions but they weren't as good as the one
Becky had sent to us. These "tracks" if they were that
were found in Cretaceous limestone to that found in the
Paluxy River. Becky has been directed to us by Dr. Carl Baugh.
Perhaps just as interesting was a trilobite found in the
same strata. This was definitely a misplaced fossil as
Trilobites were supposed to have died out by the Permian
period perhaps 100 million years earlier.
There is a certain amount of networking among Creationist
organizations. For example, Dr. Baugh of the Creation
Evidence Museum in Glen Rose, Texas has used Joe Taylor
to supervise his Colorado Dinosaur dig and Joe is often
a technical consultant/expert with the dinosaur and human
tracks at the Paluxy River. We have had a number of
field jacked dinosaur bones from the Colorado dig here in
the museum that are waiting for the finances to prepare
and restore them.
Triassic Tracks
Another story is of a Mr. Walton Koemel who lives near
Lemesa, Texas. He bought several molds (one very large
and two very small) in of animal tracks made from
Triassic strata near a river bed in Knox County, Texas.
Joe gave them a possible ID as dinosaur tracks. The small
track Joe thought might be a baby sauropod dinosaur track.
Mr. Koemel was very appreciative of Joe's opinion and
later took the tracks to nearby Texas Tech University
(in Lubbock) where he showed them to Dr. Sankar Chatterjee.
Dr. Chatterjee is a well known evolutionary paleontologist
famous for finding fossil birds in the Triassic strata.
The large impressions he dismissed as natural occurring
erosional features. The small impressions however he was
very excited about and said they were made by an
unidentified mammal. In terms of evolution it would be
very early for mammals in the fossil record. From a
creationist perspective this would simply show that
these animals were living then and appear fully formed
with no intermediate forms. Most of the supposed early
mammals were similar to shrews. Mr. Koemel did not reveal
the location of the tracks to Dr. Chatterjee, but returned
to our museum on several occasions and once took Joe to
the Discovery site so Joe could get a first hand look.
Joe's evaluation of the large impressions was similar to
Chatterjee's that they were natural occurring rock features
that were not made by animals or man.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Fossil Hunter Part 3
From Alpha-Omega #96 (January-February 2001)
Work at the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum continues to
be varied and exciting. One of the fascinating things
about the museum is the calls we receive from outside
people who want to tell us about some interesting
fossil find that they have happened upon.
Colorado Dino Dig
In mid September out team of six diggers went for a
week to a excavation site in north western Colorado.
This is a site located on a private ranch just south
of Dinosaur National Monument Park. This is the famous
Morrison formation that has yields tons of Jurassic group
dinosaur bones. Dr. Carl Baugh is the primary excavator
(though he was not present this time) who made the initial
contact with the ranch owners. The bones we took from the
site are his and we brought them back to our museum in
"plaster field jackets" eventually to be prepared for display.
The field jackets allow us to safely transport the bones
from the excavation site. Often the bones are very fragile
and break and fragment easily. The outcropping where we
were working on is part of a dinosaur graveyard with the
remains of sauropods (the really big dinosaurs like
Camarasourus), stegosaurs and allosaurs being present.
Fossilized bones were literally laying on top of each
other in a jumbled mass. Most of them were "disarticulated"
meaning they were dis connected from other bones—no
complete or near complete skeletons. This was three days
of hot, sweaty and hard work. Here are some thoughts as
I came home from the dig:
Bang, bang, bang!! Hammer like pasche hitting the handle
end of a screwdriver against hard stone. Sometimes the
screwdriver would find soft yielding clay, or easily
fragmenting rock. After a time of pounding one look for
an easier way to accomplish the task. You look for cracks
in the rocks knowing that these are fracture points where
the adjoining rock can be more easily removed. However
often the rock presents rather unyielding face that
resists numerous hammer/screw driver assaults. One is
tempted to think of Pope Julian II's immortal query to
the famous artist, Michelangelo, How long, Michelangelo, how long?"
After the three day of such pounding one's upper hand
and wrist develops minor but definite aches and pains.
The sun is hot with gusts of wind blowing about swirls of dust."
We also had a air-powered jack hammer that helped remove
large pieces of rock. We were able to extricate many bones
from the ground, but not as many as we'd hoped. There was just
so much more there. We arrived this time with the idea that
this might be the last time to use this site. The Clinton
administration has been showing signs that they might nationalize
the ranch land and incorporate it into the already large
Dinosaur National Monument, This would prevent further
future excavation.
On our way back from the dig we received news that a freak
lawn mower accident had killed the owner of the ranch. Joe
and several of the dig team went to the man's funeral held
several days later in Louisiana. The man's family said that
this will not present future excavations by out team. Now
with George W. Bush's election hopefully this will not be
the case. For those of you who get the TBN channel I'd
recommend trying to catch Creation in the 21st Century.
Dr Carl Baugh is the host of this program and he provides
a good introduction to the creationist approach to origins.
While there is a variety of opinions about the models of
earth history among creationists—Dr Baugh's program is on
6:30 AM on Fridays. You may find it on at other times
in your area.
Work at the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum continues to
be varied and exciting. One of the fascinating things
about the museum is the calls we receive from outside
people who want to tell us about some interesting
fossil find that they have happened upon.
Colorado Dino Dig
In mid September out team of six diggers went for a
week to a excavation site in north western Colorado.
This is a site located on a private ranch just south
of Dinosaur National Monument Park. This is the famous
Morrison formation that has yields tons of Jurassic group
dinosaur bones. Dr. Carl Baugh is the primary excavator
(though he was not present this time) who made the initial
contact with the ranch owners. The bones we took from the
site are his and we brought them back to our museum in
"plaster field jackets" eventually to be prepared for display.
The field jackets allow us to safely transport the bones
from the excavation site. Often the bones are very fragile
and break and fragment easily. The outcropping where we
were working on is part of a dinosaur graveyard with the
remains of sauropods (the really big dinosaurs like
Camarasourus), stegosaurs and allosaurs being present.
Fossilized bones were literally laying on top of each
other in a jumbled mass. Most of them were "disarticulated"
meaning they were dis connected from other bones—no
complete or near complete skeletons. This was three days
of hot, sweaty and hard work. Here are some thoughts as
I came home from the dig:
Bang, bang, bang!! Hammer like pasche hitting the handle
end of a screwdriver against hard stone. Sometimes the
screwdriver would find soft yielding clay, or easily
fragmenting rock. After a time of pounding one look for
an easier way to accomplish the task. You look for cracks
in the rocks knowing that these are fracture points where
the adjoining rock can be more easily removed. However
often the rock presents rather unyielding face that
resists numerous hammer/screw driver assaults. One is
tempted to think of Pope Julian II's immortal query to
the famous artist, Michelangelo, How long, Michelangelo, how long?"
After the three day of such pounding one's upper hand
and wrist develops minor but definite aches and pains.
The sun is hot with gusts of wind blowing about swirls of dust."
We also had a air-powered jack hammer that helped remove
large pieces of rock. We were able to extricate many bones
from the ground, but not as many as we'd hoped. There was just
so much more there. We arrived this time with the idea that
this might be the last time to use this site. The Clinton
administration has been showing signs that they might nationalize
the ranch land and incorporate it into the already large
Dinosaur National Monument, This would prevent further
future excavation.
On our way back from the dig we received news that a freak
lawn mower accident had killed the owner of the ranch. Joe
and several of the dig team went to the man's funeral held
several days later in Louisiana. The man's family said that
this will not present future excavations by out team. Now
with George W. Bush's election hopefully this will not be
the case. For those of you who get the TBN channel I'd
recommend trying to catch Creation in the 21st Century.
Dr Carl Baugh is the host of this program and he provides
a good introduction to the creationist approach to origins.
While there is a variety of opinions about the models of
earth history among creationists—Dr Baugh's program is on
6:30 AM on Fridays. You may find it on at other times
in your area.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Fossil Hunter Part 2
This was published in Alpha-Omega #92 (May-June 2000)
as a part of my Ensign Report #90.
In December [1999] Terry Beh visited the Mt Blanco Fossil
Museum and interviewed Joe Taylor for an article that will
probably be published in New Man magazine [The article
was published in New Man]. Terry was quite impressed with
Joe and the museum. This peaked my curiosity even more
than before. I arrived in Crosbyton late February 12 and
I saw Joe Taylor on February 14 (Monday). Joe is a soft
spoken Christian gentleman who with a full beard appears
to be part fossil hunter, mountain man and cowboy. Joe and
I had a good visit. Joe needed to leave after lunch to take
care of some personal matters. He allowed me to stay and
look through the museum at a leisurely pace. Joe basically
runs the museum by himself (Recently he has had some
part-time workers).
The museum has a number of surprisingly professional displays
including a full sized Triceratops and mastodon skeletons, a
simulated excavation pit, a gift shop and many other fine exhibits.
I was very impressed with the potential of the museum and the
vision Joe has for it.
During this time I sat down in the lecture area and thought
and prayed how I might help Joe realize his dream.Not only of
making the museum a successful business, but also a ministry
that would strengthen the Christian's confidence in God's Word
by showing how fossils give strong evidence of God's creative
and righteous actions.
On my way back to Arizona and then to California my head was
spinning and bursting with ideas partly stimulated by our
conversation. On returning to Temple City I sat down for several
days and organized my thoughts in written form. I came up with
about four pages of ideas on how to promote the ministry and
business of the museum. This was e-mailed to Joe. Then for
several weeks we conducted an extensive e-mail correspondence.
My thinking for the potential of the museum matched Joe's very well.
I basically wrote a job description on how I could help Joe achieve
his vision for ministry through the museum.
The result: My 28 plus-year California sojourn is ending and
I'll be moving the west Texas. For a boy raised north of Seattle
that is quite a change, but I am excited about it. I believe the
Lord has prepared me for a life time (I've had a love affair
with dinosaurs since second grade) for involvement in a ministry
helping Christians be more confidence in the Bible and giving solid
reasons to non-believers why they should receive Christ as Savior
and Lord.
I will be wearing a lot of hats. I hope to function in administrative
roles in managing and promoting the museum. My desire is to relieve
Joe of a lot of administrative functions that are bogging him down.
Also I will be bringing my many years of publication experience to
work with Joe on his future books and other publications. I will be
living in an apartment attache d to the museum. I appreciate your
prayers as I step out in faith into a new chapter of my life. Praise God!
as a part of my Ensign Report #90.
In December [1999] Terry Beh visited the Mt Blanco Fossil
Museum and interviewed Joe Taylor for an article that will
probably be published in New Man magazine [The article
was published in New Man]. Terry was quite impressed with
Joe and the museum. This peaked my curiosity even more
than before. I arrived in Crosbyton late February 12 and
I saw Joe Taylor on February 14 (Monday). Joe is a soft
spoken Christian gentleman who with a full beard appears
to be part fossil hunter, mountain man and cowboy. Joe and
I had a good visit. Joe needed to leave after lunch to take
care of some personal matters. He allowed me to stay and
look through the museum at a leisurely pace. Joe basically
runs the museum by himself (Recently he has had some
part-time workers).
The museum has a number of surprisingly professional displays
including a full sized Triceratops and mastodon skeletons, a
simulated excavation pit, a gift shop and many other fine exhibits.
I was very impressed with the potential of the museum and the
vision Joe has for it.
During this time I sat down in the lecture area and thought
and prayed how I might help Joe realize his dream.Not only of
making the museum a successful business, but also a ministry
that would strengthen the Christian's confidence in God's Word
by showing how fossils give strong evidence of God's creative
and righteous actions.
On my way back to Arizona and then to California my head was
spinning and bursting with ideas partly stimulated by our
conversation. On returning to Temple City I sat down for several
days and organized my thoughts in written form. I came up with
about four pages of ideas on how to promote the ministry and
business of the museum. This was e-mailed to Joe. Then for
several weeks we conducted an extensive e-mail correspondence.
My thinking for the potential of the museum matched Joe's very well.
I basically wrote a job description on how I could help Joe achieve
his vision for ministry through the museum.
The result: My 28 plus-year California sojourn is ending and
I'll be moving the west Texas. For a boy raised north of Seattle
that is quite a change, but I am excited about it. I believe the
Lord has prepared me for a life time (I've had a love affair
with dinosaurs since second grade) for involvement in a ministry
helping Christians be more confidence in the Bible and giving solid
reasons to non-believers why they should receive Christ as Savior
and Lord.
I will be wearing a lot of hats. I hope to function in administrative
roles in managing and promoting the museum. My desire is to relieve
Joe of a lot of administrative functions that are bogging him down.
Also I will be bringing my many years of publication experience to
work with Joe on his future books and other publications. I will be
living in an apartment attache d to the museum. I appreciate your
prayers as I step out in faith into a new chapter of my life. Praise God!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Fossil Hunter Part 1
[The following was written in 2000 and first published in Alpha-Omega #92
(May-June 2000) as a part of my Ensign Report #90. It discusses my
interest in fossils and Creation Science.]
Back in the mid to late 1960s I came across a book called The Genesis Flood
written by theologian John C. Whitcomb and scientist Henry M. Morris. The
premise of this book was that many (if not most) of the geological features
on the surface of the earth were a result of the worldwide flood described
in the book of Genesis. This book is credited with sparking the revival of
Creationist thought in the late 20th Century. On of the fascinating sections
of this book had to do with “misplaced fossils.” That is fossils that are out
of their supposed normal sequence in the rock strata. One of these misplaced
fossils were what looks like human footprints in the same rock strata as
dinosaur footprints in the riverbed of the Paluxy River near Glen Rose,
Texas (southwest of Fort Worth).
In the early 1970s while I was working in audiovisual department of
Campus Crusade in San Bernardino we obtained a copy of a motion picture
called “Footprints in Stone” produced by Films for Christ. This film documented
the excavations that had been conducted in the late 1960s at Glen Rose.
The film was quite convincing in showing what really looked like human
footprints with dinosaur footprints. How could this be! According to the
orthodox scientific view man came on the scene maybe a million years ago
and the dinosaurs supposed died out 65 million years ago.
By 1980 John Morris (who is now the president of the Institute for Creation Research)
wrote a book called “Tracing Those Incredible Dinosaurs and the People Who Knew Them.”
John had conducted a long term study of the Paluxy site and fossils and believed the
evidence was compelling to put his findings in book form.
In 1982, Dr. Carl Baugh began his own excavations at the Paluxy site which continue
today. He has built a Creation Evidences Museum nearby which houses exhibits of the
tracks and related items.
In the mid-1986s one researcher found several of the tracks that had reptile-like
toe stains that seemed to indicate that they were actually dinosaur tracks that
just looked human. These were found only in a few of the many dozens that
have been excavated over the years. This caused the greater creationist community
to back off on using the Paluxy tracts as positive evidence for their position.
Dr. John Morris’ book was pulled from circulation as was the film Footprints in Stone.
However Dr. Baugh has continued to excavate at the site and is turning up more
evidence that the footprints as genuinely human. There are several newer books
that present this evidence.
This past year my paleo-friend, Terry Beh and I were looking to
be involved in another dinosaur dig for the summer. I came across Dr. Baugh’s
website and noticed the Creation Evidences Museum was sponsoring a dig at
the Paluxy River. Having never been to Glen Rose I was rather excited about the
possibility of being on a Creationist dig. Terry was somewhat skeptical because
he was of the opinion that the evidence had been discredited. I felt that the
evidence was still sound but i wanted to see for myself.
Terry and I eventually went to the dig for three days around the Fourth of July
weekend. Terry’s initial skepticism melted away by what he saw the evidence
and as we participated in the hard, back breaking work of the dig.
While at the dig Terry and I met Mr. Joe Taylor who is a fossil reconstructionist
and museum owner and director. Joe Taylor was there as an expert helping
to supervise the dig. He is as the man behind the Mt. Blanco Independent
Fossil Excavation Team. He had a team there that was working on a book
in a nearby motel (had several computers set up). The book has now been
published and is called Fossil Facts and Fantasies. The book is a potpourri
of interested stories and photos about Joe’s adventures in Creationary paleontology.
(May-June 2000) as a part of my Ensign Report #90. It discusses my
interest in fossils and Creation Science.]
Back in the mid to late 1960s I came across a book called The Genesis Flood
written by theologian John C. Whitcomb and scientist Henry M. Morris. The
premise of this book was that many (if not most) of the geological features
on the surface of the earth were a result of the worldwide flood described
in the book of Genesis. This book is credited with sparking the revival of
Creationist thought in the late 20th Century. On of the fascinating sections
of this book had to do with “misplaced fossils.” That is fossils that are out
of their supposed normal sequence in the rock strata. One of these misplaced
fossils were what looks like human footprints in the same rock strata as
dinosaur footprints in the riverbed of the Paluxy River near Glen Rose,
Texas (southwest of Fort Worth).
In the early 1970s while I was working in audiovisual department of
Campus Crusade in San Bernardino we obtained a copy of a motion picture
called “Footprints in Stone” produced by Films for Christ. This film documented
the excavations that had been conducted in the late 1960s at Glen Rose.
The film was quite convincing in showing what really looked like human
footprints with dinosaur footprints. How could this be! According to the
orthodox scientific view man came on the scene maybe a million years ago
and the dinosaurs supposed died out 65 million years ago.
By 1980 John Morris (who is now the president of the Institute for Creation Research)
wrote a book called “Tracing Those Incredible Dinosaurs and the People Who Knew Them.”
John had conducted a long term study of the Paluxy site and fossils and believed the
evidence was compelling to put his findings in book form.
In 1982, Dr. Carl Baugh began his own excavations at the Paluxy site which continue
today. He has built a Creation Evidences Museum nearby which houses exhibits of the
tracks and related items.
In the mid-1986s one researcher found several of the tracks that had reptile-like
toe stains that seemed to indicate that they were actually dinosaur tracks that
just looked human. These were found only in a few of the many dozens that
have been excavated over the years. This caused the greater creationist community
to back off on using the Paluxy tracts as positive evidence for their position.
Dr. John Morris’ book was pulled from circulation as was the film Footprints in Stone.
However Dr. Baugh has continued to excavate at the site and is turning up more
evidence that the footprints as genuinely human. There are several newer books
that present this evidence.
This past year my paleo-friend, Terry Beh and I were looking to
be involved in another dinosaur dig for the summer. I came across Dr. Baugh’s
website and noticed the Creation Evidences Museum was sponsoring a dig at
the Paluxy River. Having never been to Glen Rose I was rather excited about the
possibility of being on a Creationist dig. Terry was somewhat skeptical because
he was of the opinion that the evidence had been discredited. I felt that the
evidence was still sound but i wanted to see for myself.
Terry and I eventually went to the dig for three days around the Fourth of July
weekend. Terry’s initial skepticism melted away by what he saw the evidence
and as we participated in the hard, back breaking work of the dig.
While at the dig Terry and I met Mr. Joe Taylor who is a fossil reconstructionist
and museum owner and director. Joe Taylor was there as an expert helping
to supervise the dig. He is as the man behind the Mt. Blanco Independent
Fossil Excavation Team. He had a team there that was working on a book
in a nearby motel (had several computers set up). The book has now been
published and is called Fossil Facts and Fantasies. The book is a potpourri
of interested stories and photos about Joe’s adventures in Creationary paleontology.
Labels: Carl Baugh, Creation Evidences Museum, Footprints in Stone, Glen Rose, Joe Taylor, John Morris, Paluxy River, Texas
Friday, December 18, 2009
Thespian Don
I got recruited to be in a Christmas Drama at my Church (Evangelical Church of Green Valley)
in early December. It was the Christmas story with Mary and Joseph coming to Bethlehem.
I got the part of Joseph. Can an artist and writer be an actor? I had a few speaking lines.
Yes there is some overlap (Just ask Stan Lee!). The occasion was the annual Women’s
Christmas Tea and there were three performances with a total attendence of around 500.
Mary is Mrs. Gayle Coover who was also very involved in planning and administrating the event.
Monday, December 07, 2009
Narramore Years Part 24
The Narramore ministry began a slow and gradual decline
before I came to work there. There was a period of expansion
in the mid and late 1960s and during the 1970s. The Rosemead
facility was build in the 1960s and the graduate school
began as well as the counseling facility and conference
center. When I arrived in 1982 the last the major building
was constructed--a dinner/living facility that was on the
hill above the main office building (The Top-of-the-Ten).
This supplemented the already existing on campus apartment
building. A swallow swimming pool (perfect for water volleyball)
and hot spa was also put in at the same time. Before this time
many of the conference attendees needed to find off campus
housing accommodations. Dr. Narramore believed that this would
attract more attendees to the various seminars put on by NCR.
Dr. Narramore had developed a large following during the 1950s,
1960s and 1970s via his radio program and his extensive
traveling lecture schedule. He saw the Rosemead campus as a
place where he could have people come for a more extended
time of training, counseling and education than was possible
in a single evening lecture or even a week end seminar.
However by the end of the 1980s and early 1990s it was getting
increasingly difficult to fill the seminars that were given
on campus. Dr. Narramore later admitted that the Rosemead
ministry may have been a victim of the success of another
one of his earlier ministries. By the late 1970s the Rosemead
School of Psychology had merged with Biola University and
had moved to Biola's LaMirada campus. Dr. Narramore felt
that with the Rosemead School of Psychology graduating
students (as well as other similar Christian-based schools)
who were establishing practices around the country the
need for traveling the Rosemead campus had diminished
considerably. Also Dr. Narramore's following was getting
older and his outreach activities such as radio and travel
speaking were likewise downsizing.
Newer champions of Christian counseling like Dr. James Dobson
and others were reaching new generations of Christians
and addressing psychological issues. The ministry was
largely built around Dr. Narramore's dynamic personality
(as is true with many para-church groups) and when he became
more advanced in age his own aging constituent base declined
and the organization was not able to attract sufficient
interest from younger people. Of course there were exceptions
to this like the Missionary Kid's Re-Entry seminar which continued
to be popular and is still being carried on by another ministry.
However by the early 1990s consideration was being given to
selling the Rosemead campus and moving to a smaller facility.
Finally in June 1996 NCF closed a deal with a East Asia
educational company who purchased the Rosemead facilities.
I was involved in the move which proved to be a bitter-sweet
experience. It was a move that needed to be done because of
the overall lessening of ministry and subsequent need
for the campus.
The downsized staff (Roy Mathison, John Davidson and others
retired or moved at that time) relocated at a office building
in Arcadia north of the Rosemead facility. The Arcadia period
was one of more transition as Dr. Narramore and the NCF Board
were actively engaged in search for a new NCF President. This
was a period of uncertainty for the remaining staff. Finally
in 1998 Dr. Bruce Narramore was contacted and accepted an
invitation to became NCF president. Dr. Bruce started bringing
in his own people including Dick Innes. Within 2-3 years of
Dr. Bruce Narramore becoming president the original staff
who had made the transition from Rosemead campus were replaced.
I left Narramore officially at the end November 1999. My view
of NCF at this time it is still a valid para-church ministry
but much smaller and less robust than it was in the 1970s and 1980s.
I used the time after leaving NCF in early 2000 to finish
my book on my great-great uncle Silas Ensign (Please see
Narramore Years Part 18 October 18, 2009 for more details).
The end of March 2000 I attended a banquet given in honor of
Dr. Clyde and Ruth Narramore. This proved to be a more fitting
conclusion to my work with NCF.
before I came to work there. There was a period of expansion
in the mid and late 1960s and during the 1970s. The Rosemead
facility was build in the 1960s and the graduate school
began as well as the counseling facility and conference
center. When I arrived in 1982 the last the major building
was constructed--a dinner/living facility that was on the
hill above the main office building (The Top-of-the-Ten).
This supplemented the already existing on campus apartment
building. A swallow swimming pool (perfect for water volleyball)
and hot spa was also put in at the same time. Before this time
many of the conference attendees needed to find off campus
housing accommodations. Dr. Narramore believed that this would
attract more attendees to the various seminars put on by NCR.
Dr. Narramore had developed a large following during the 1950s,
1960s and 1970s via his radio program and his extensive
traveling lecture schedule. He saw the Rosemead campus as a
place where he could have people come for a more extended
time of training, counseling and education than was possible
in a single evening lecture or even a week end seminar.
However by the end of the 1980s and early 1990s it was getting
increasingly difficult to fill the seminars that were given
on campus. Dr. Narramore later admitted that the Rosemead
ministry may have been a victim of the success of another
one of his earlier ministries. By the late 1970s the Rosemead
School of Psychology had merged with Biola University and
had moved to Biola's LaMirada campus. Dr. Narramore felt
that with the Rosemead School of Psychology graduating
students (as well as other similar Christian-based schools)
who were establishing practices around the country the
need for traveling the Rosemead campus had diminished
considerably. Also Dr. Narramore's following was getting
older and his outreach activities such as radio and travel
speaking were likewise downsizing.
Newer champions of Christian counseling like Dr. James Dobson
and others were reaching new generations of Christians
and addressing psychological issues. The ministry was
largely built around Dr. Narramore's dynamic personality
(as is true with many para-church groups) and when he became
more advanced in age his own aging constituent base declined
and the organization was not able to attract sufficient
interest from younger people. Of course there were exceptions
to this like the Missionary Kid's Re-Entry seminar which continued
to be popular and is still being carried on by another ministry.
However by the early 1990s consideration was being given to
selling the Rosemead campus and moving to a smaller facility.
Finally in June 1996 NCF closed a deal with a East Asia
educational company who purchased the Rosemead facilities.
I was involved in the move which proved to be a bitter-sweet
experience. It was a move that needed to be done because of
the overall lessening of ministry and subsequent need
for the campus.
The downsized staff (Roy Mathison, John Davidson and others
retired or moved at that time) relocated at a office building
in Arcadia north of the Rosemead facility. The Arcadia period
was one of more transition as Dr. Narramore and the NCF Board
were actively engaged in search for a new NCF President. This
was a period of uncertainty for the remaining staff. Finally
in 1998 Dr. Bruce Narramore was contacted and accepted an
invitation to became NCF president. Dr. Bruce started bringing
in his own people including Dick Innes. Within 2-3 years of
Dr. Bruce Narramore becoming president the original staff
who had made the transition from Rosemead campus were replaced.
I left Narramore officially at the end November 1999. My view
of NCF at this time it is still a valid para-church ministry
but much smaller and less robust than it was in the 1970s and 1980s.
I used the time after leaving NCF in early 2000 to finish
my book on my great-great uncle Silas Ensign (Please see
Narramore Years Part 18 October 18, 2009 for more details).
The end of March 2000 I attended a banquet given in honor of
Dr. Clyde and Ruth Narramore. This proved to be a more fitting
conclusion to my work with NCF.
