October 26, 2004 > Irvington Fossils come Home to Fremont - Wes Gordon Museum of Discovery

by Joyce Blueford

The "Boy Paleontologists" were noted throughout the United States in the 1940s. A band of boys ranging in age from seven to 13 unearthed one of the best preserved fossil sites in North America. Fossils from the Irvington District created such an international event, that a section of geologic time was honored as the Irvingtonian Stage within the Pleistocene Era.

The motto of the Boy Paleontologists was, "What we find belongs to the public domain of science," controls the eventual destiny of the fossil portion. Indeed the underlying wish for the use of the whole Museum of Discovery held by the Gordon family and Estate is to see the collection used in a way that benefits the public, especially in an educational manner.

Leader of the Boy Paleontologists was a teacher, Wesley Gordon. As a teacher, he collected samples for his students so he could excite their interest. He would tell stories of mammoths, mastodons, saber-toothed cats, camels, and sloths that roamed the savannah type flatlands close to the bay.

On October 28, 2004, Thursday, 7-8:30 p.m. there will be a meeting at the Math Science Nucleus for those people interested in helping to set up the museum. The Nucleus, a non-profit organization will be managing the collection and a curating room will be created to reassemble the Wes Gordon collection.

Specimens that will be housed at the Math Science Nucleus will be labeled with a network of questions that require an observer to seek the answers from specimen to specimen, showcase to showcase; to learn, enlighten and appreciate our natural world. Hands-on specimens will be available for inquisitive fingers.

The unique "ingredient" is, of course, the sizable collection of fossils from Irvington District that represent local life of 1.8 million years ago. This fauna included over 58 species of animals including mammoths, giant short-faced bears, saber-toothed cats, a musk ox-like bovid, camels, horses, dire wolves, mice, fish, and fresh water mollusks. It is also hoped that this collection and the Museum of Discovery experience will serve as a model for other innovative, educational tools to inspire our next generation.

The Math Science Nucleus is a non-profit organization devoted to provide schools and community throughout the world with access to quality science. Please consult our website, http://msnucleus.org for more information.

Wes Gordon Museum Organization Meeting
Thursday, October 28
7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Math Science Nucleus
4074 Eggers Drive, Fremont
RSVP (510)790-6284