Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society

Time 2020-09-28 17:03:40

Web Name: Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society

WebSite: http://www.memphisgeology.org

ID:63021

Keywords:

Archaeological,Memphis,and,

Description:

6:45 PM MAGS Membership Meeting: Shady Grove Presbyterian Church Yard: See article below for details. Details revised on 09.10.20. We have monthly programs for both adults and youth. Check the calendar above for dates and program information. IMPORTANT NOTE: Non-members are not permited to participate in any MAGS field trips. This includes all areas: public, private collecting, and pay sites. No exceptions. FROM MAGS PRESIDENT, W.C. McDANIEL September MAGS Board and Membership Meetings 09.11.20: WC McDANIEL: update on the current plans for the September MAGS membership meeting. The next scheduled membership meeting is Friday, September 11, Our plans are somewhat complicated as the church s air conditioner system is not working and we have no AC update. Since the AC is not working we will have an outdoor meeting within the limits of Pandemic Guidelines. Final decision was made on Thursday, September 10 to have an outdoor meeting. Members check your email on Thursday for any last minute details. Here are the plans for the Friday meetings. Board Meeting at 6:15 via ZOOM. Board members--check your email for ZOOM log-on information Membership Meeting at 6:45 01. No formal meeting agenda 02. No non-member visitors 03. No food/drink to share. You are welcome to bring your own food and drink. 04. You MUST wear a mask 05. You MUST maintain social distancing 06. You MUST stay home if you feel sick, have a fever or if you may have been exposed to Covid-19 07. Your temperature will be checked before you enter the area 08. You must stay in the assigned areas [you will have access to the restrooms] Members--check your email early on 09.11.20 for details of planned displays and activities. Bring a display of things you have found. Every member that attends will receive a door prize. Click here for more meeting details and other stories in the September Rockhound News. FROM THE AUGUST 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS MAGS Update 08.05.20: WC McDaniel: We have entered our fifth month of cancelled events and restrictions due to the Covid 19 virus. It remains uncertain as what the near future will bring. However, MAGS is looking ahead and here is an update. [1.] Currently Memphis/Shelby County is in Phase 2 and has delayed moving into Phase 3. [2.] The next two Membership meetings would normally be scheduled for August 14 and September 11. [3.] The August 14 Membership Meeting is cancelled. [4.] Field trip Charles Hill has scheduled a field trip for Saturday, August 15. As usual we will not publish field trip details and will distribute to Members upon request. The trip will be to Crow Creek with a new site and access point. Members only. Contact Charles Hill for details. [5.] When a membership meeting is scheduled I will update you as to the date and format-It will be differe. Click here for the August Rockhound News. FROM THE JULY 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS Looking forward and remembering the past 07.10.20: Matthew Lebanon: In the July issue of MAGS Rockhound News: the latest on plans to resume MAGS meetings, pictures to remind you what field trips look like, a court ruling important to rockhounds, our regular feature Fabulous Tennessee Fossils, a historical (MAGS history) document, a contest announcement, new information on two (count em) mass extinctions, and one or two other things. Read and enjoy. Click here for the July Rockhound News. FROM THE JUNE 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS No MAGS activities in June 06.10.20: Matthew Lebanon: All MAGS activities have been cancelled for the month of June. We will keep you informed as the month progresses. In the meantime, enjoy the June newsletter archaeological finds in the local area, some MAGS history, link to a movie from over a century ago showing a dinosaur moving around (beats fuzzy stills of the Loch Ness Monster), Federation news, and more. Hope you find it interesting. Click here for the June Rockhound News. FROM THE MAY 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS In Defense of Rocks 05.08.20: WC McDaniel: All MAGS activities were cancelled for the month of May. In the meantime, enjoy the newsletter and let us know if you have been able to incorporate your love of rocks into your everyday activiites during this time. Hear are some of my thoughts in defense of rocks. The use of the phrase Dumb as a Rock appears to be on the increase, especially by politicians, and it is time to stand up for rocks. I love and adore rocks, collect them, play with them, hoard and board them, display them, sell them, and put them to work. But I have never met a dumb rock. Met a few that were hard and somewhat ugly and of little use, some made my back ache and few that tried to remove my big toe. But through it all, they were rocks, not dumb rocks. Read more in the May Rockhound News. FROM THE APRIL 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWSAll MAGS meetings and events for April have been cancelled 04.06.20: MATTHEW LYBANON: The 2020 Memphis Mineral, Fossil, and Jewelry Show is cancelled and will not be rescheduled for later in the year. The Agricenter, our Show location, has cancelled all events until mid-May. More details are in the April newsletter. All scheduled club activities are cancelled until May. The March 29th DMC Field Trip hosted by the Mobile Rock Gem Society has been cancelled and will be rescheduled at a future date. So far, the April 18 DMC Field Trip is still on. Stay tuned for additional information about future MAGS events and meetings. READ MORE IN THE APRIL ROCKHOUND NEWS FROM THE FEBRUARY 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS The Parsons Vulcan Materials Quarry 02.05.2020: MATTHEW LYBANON: In 1957, a small limestone pit operated by N. J. Boogie was opened under the name of Western Materials, a few miles north of Parsons, Tennessee. During the February meeting, Dr. Michael Gibson talked to us about this incredible quarry. Read more about this quarry, why MAGS members love it so much . . . and more in the February Rockhound News. RECENT ABSTRACT ADDED TO MAGS REPOSITORY OF ARTICLES Survey of Florida's Invertebrate Marine Fossils by David H. Hanes During the Cenozoic Era, the geologic and stratigraphic history of the State we now call Florida left invertebrate fossils that reflected the rise of a diverse marine fauna. Two geologic formations, the Tamiami and Caloosahatchee, were deposited through central and southwest Florida. This article focuses on a small sample of invertebrate fossils that reflect the form and shape of their extant fauna. Gastropoda and Mollusca marine fossils found in Tamiami and Caloosahatchee formation shell pits survived the moving shorelines of Florida during the Pliocene and Pleistocene Epochs. Surveys completed by the US Department of the Interior detected significant traces of rare earth elements, brought by ground water movement. At one fossil site in central Florida, fossils were transformed by the same ground water movement into beautiful mold aggregates of calcite crystals. Click here to download the 14-page PDF. FROM THE JANUARY 2020 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS King Mastodon Excavation 01.05.2020: MATTHEW LYBANON: The King Mastodon Site is named after George King, who brought some large bones to the Arkansas State University Museum in April 1999. Dr. Julie Morrow, Station Archaeologist at the Arkansas State University-Jonesboro station of the Arkansas Archaeological Survey will be talking to us at the January MAGS membership meeting about this excavation. Read more about this, learn about the Younger Dryas Period in ancient history, Jewelry Bench Tips and more in the January Rockhound News. FROM THE NOVEMBER 2019 MAGS YOUTH PROGRAM Who Are the Native Americans and Where Did They Originate? 10.31.19: MIKE BALDWIN: The November MAGS Youth Program was presented by Mike Baldwin and youth member, Fulton Ledbetter [who spoke about the Mayan civilization and culture]. Native Americans are not Indians. Native Americans are the indigenous people of North and South America. Indigenous means the first [the original] people that inhabit an area, or continent. The term Indian originated when Christopher Columbus reached the Antilles islands and mistakenly thought he had reached the Indian Ocean. He labeled the inhabitants as Indians and the term stuck. Join the MAGS youth on November 8 as we learn about and discuss the indigenous people of the western hemisphere. To learn more about upcoming events and programs, check out the November Rockhound News. FROM THE NOVEMBER 2019 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS The Sinkholes of Fulton County, Arkansas 10.03.19: MATTHEW LYBANON: On June 9, 2018, an accident at a sinkhole at Saddler Falls along the Spring River in Fulton County, Arkansas, involving three people, resulted in one person escaping, one person seriously injured, and one fatality. Following an onsite inspection by Arkansas Geological Survey staff it was realized that the sinkhole was not formed in the carbonate bedrock as expected but was formed in a carbonate structure which had formed in the river itself. To learn about this sinkhole and much, much more, check out the October Rockhound News. FROM THE OCTOBER 2019 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS Scyphocrinites loboliths from the early Devonian Ross Formation in Hardin County, Tennessee Dr. Elizabeth Rhenberg, U. Memphis 09.03.18: MATTHEW LYBANON: During the Early Devonian, West Tennessee was covered by a shallow sea. While covered, the Ross Formation was deposited on this shallow, marine shelf. The Ross Formation is divided into two members: Rockhouse Limestone Member and Birdsong Shale Member. The fossils that we are concerned with are found in the Birdsong. Read more in the September issue of Rockhound News. FROM THE JULY 2019 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS Chucalissa Display Case and Native American Pottery 07.04.19: MIKE BALDWIN: This beautiful display case and the pottery housed in it are the result of a collaboration between the Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society and the C.H. Nash Museum at Chucalissa. The pottery inside this case has not been viewed by the general public until now. All the pots were found during excavations at the Chucalissa Indian Village years ago. The case was dedicated to the memory of 21-year MAGS member, Sherri Baldwin on Saturday, July 6. Read about this and other MAGS activities in the July issue of Rockhound News. FROM THE JUNE 2019 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS MAGS and Chucalissa: Seven Decades of Collaboration 06.02.19: MATTHEW LYBANON: In the early 1950s, the Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society played a crucial role in the founding of Chucalissa. MAGS Members participated in excavations at the site and promoted development of the museum, working closely with the first director, C. H. Nash. In the following decades, MAGS continued to be involved with the museum in a variety of ways. Read more in the June issue of Rockhound News. FROM THE MAY ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS The Geologic History of the Lower Mississippi River Valley 05.02.18: DR. RANDEL COX, UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS: The Lower Mississippi River Valley runs from Cairo, Illinois, four hundred miles south to the Gulf of Mexico, where it merges imperceptibly with the coastal plain of Louisiana. East to west, it extends from the rocky hills of middle Tennessee to the Ozarks. To learn more about the Lower Mississippi River Valley and much, much more, check out the May Rockhound News. FROM THE MARCH 2018 ISSUE OF MAGS ROCKHOUND NEWS Adult Program [Crater of Diamonds] and Youth Program [What Are Fossils?] 03.04.2019: MATTHEW LYBANON: During the March adult program, Mike Howrd talked about the geology, history of discovery and exploration, unusual facts about the diamonds, things to see in the Park, how to hunt for diamonds, and more. Jane Coop presented the March youth program on What Are Fossils and How Are They Made? Read more about MAGS activities and interests in the March issue of Rockhound News. HERE'S A VERY IMPORTANT WEBLINK FOR YOU FROM THE TN GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Click on the image below to learn about Tennessee fossils The 50mm-wide specimen represented here is Dalmanites retusus. Known only from isolated pygidia. The pygidium is distinct from other Birdsong trilobites in that it has a rounded profile and lacks a pygidial spine. Excerpt from Devonian Fossils of West Tennessee, by Kieran Davis. The Lower Devonian system is well represented in Tennessee, forming part of an almost unbroken sequence of deposits ranging in age from the Middle Silurian to upper Lower Devonian. The Ross Formation of west-central Tennessee contains the most diverse and abundant Lower Devonian invertebrate fauna and this guide focuses on the most fossiliferous member of the Ross--the Birdsong Shale. The Birdsong Shale is well exposed in road cuts along State Highway 69 and in the many active and disused quarries of western Tennessee. Click here or on the trilobite to download your copy of this 40-page PDF. Excerpt from Late Pleistocene Megafauna, by Dr. Nina L. Baghai-Riding, Danielle B. Husley, Christine Beck, and Eric Blackwell. The late Pleistocene of North America is characterized by vertabrate animals (mostly mammals weighing 44kg) including Mammut americanum (American mastodon), Bison spp. (bison), Megalonyx jeffersonii, and Arctodus simus. Disarticulated skeletal elements of vertebrate fauna are frequently exposed on floodplain and gravel bar deposits after floodwaters retreat throughout the Mississippi Alluvial Plain. Click here or on the lefthand image to download your copy of this 24-page PDF. During the Cenozoic Era, the geologic and stratigraphic history of the State we now call Florida left invertebrate fossils that reflected the rise of a diverse marine fauna. Two geologic formations, the Tamiami and Caloosahatchee, were deposited through central and southwest Florida. Many researchers have cataloged and documented the evolution of the fauna, and describe how the regression of the Atlantic Ocean during the Cenozoic was the result of periods of glaciation and climatic warming that resulted in the changing shorelines, and the deposition of beds of invertebrate marine fossils. This article focuses on a small sample of invertebrate fossils that reflect the form and shape of their extant fauna. Click here or on the lefthand image to download your copy of this 14-page PDF. For information about The Earth Wide Open, the annual Rock Show sponsored by MAGS and held at the AgriCenter in Memphis, TN, click here. In addition to the Gallery listed in the top navigation, you can find pictures of MAGS events in our Online Album and picture pages such as these: 2014 Sugar CreekField Trip Click here to visit, ask questions, or leave comments on the MAGS Field Guide to Rocks, Minerals and Fossils. Click here for an index of topics on the blog. CHUCALISSA (Choctaw word meaning Abandoned House ): The ruins of this native American town sit on the Mississippi bluff five miles south of downtown Memphis. At one time the population of Chucalissa could have been a thousand to fifteen hundred. The town existed into the seventeenth century, when its townspeople left and never returned. Hence, the name Chucalissa. Since most native Americans north of the Rio Grande never developed a written language, we can never know the town's real name. Read about MAGS' involvement in the early years of Chucalissa. Visit the MAGS Flickr gallery of pictures MAGS MEMBERS: We now have a place to showcase your field trip, rock show, and mineral-collecting vacation pictures. Visit our Flickr gallery of pictures. If you have pictures you would like to share, send them to the MAGS webmaster and [if they are pictures all members of MAGS would enjoy] he will get them in the gallery. When out fossil hunting, it is very easy to forget that rather than telling you how the creatures lived, the remains you find indicate only where they became fossilized. Richard E. Leakey This Web site was built and is maintained using Dreamweaver and Macintosh. 1998-2020 Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society. This page last updated 09.10.2020.

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