Fossils Have Waited Eons for a Museum

In recent weeks, several significant discoveries of prehistoric remains in Orange County have been reported in The Times. Long-term residents of Orange County have read similar stories over the past two decades, as reefs of fossils containing whole whale skeletons were unearthed when South County hillsides and canyons were bulldozed for development. Archeological sites continue to be excavated along the San Joaquin Hills tollway through cooperative agreements with developers, indigenous peoples and researchers.

So where are all these magnificent treasures being curated?

Sadly, not here in Orange County. Many fossils are long gone, shipped to museums around the country, a legacy lost to the future generations of Orange County. Others fill a 10,000-square-foot county warehouse (“On the Rocks,” July 15).

In 1974, one of the great attractions for my accepting a teaching position in Corona del Mar was the rich array of possibilities for elementary-age students to get hands-on experiences in archeology. Several of those students, who later became geologists, biologists and physicists, now have advanced degrees. What sparked their interest as 11-year-olds were the presentations by the speakers brought into the classroom, who then took us out to real sites.

Many in the community have pitched in to help retrieve artifacts and fossils from the East Bluff site in Newport Beach, one of the first significant discoveries in the county of Ice Age mammals and sea creatures. As the deadline for construction of homes and roads loomed ever nearer, those volunteers decided to give this historical treasure visibility to the community. The dream of a natural history museum began then, in the early ‘70s.

Twenty-five years ago, however, neither the public nor private sectors in the county seemed to have the resources to establish a permanent home for the artifacts and fossils. Individuals with vision attempted to remedy this with small projects to display a few treasured fossils.

It is time to issue a challenge to the county community to recognize that this is the moment for the public and private sectors, corporations, and individuals, foundations, universities and schools to unite to campaign for a natural history museum.

It has been done before. A few visionaries dreamed of a performing arts center in the ‘70s. The energy that created the center in Costa Mesa abounds, for the county has grown and attracted many new resources. Revenue in the form of tourist dollars would come to the county. Researchers from around the globe would have access to material that could also be used by local students.

Kids from 5 to 95 will surely be the beneficiaries.