Jefferson's Ground Sloth
Formerly, a famous fossil discovery — that of Thomas Jefferson's giant ground sloth (Megalonyx jeffersonii) — had been assumed to have come originally from Organ Cave. Jefferson never visited the area, but received the fossil from a local friend in 1796. In the early 20th century, a local man, Andrew Price of Marlinton, decided that the fossil had come from Organ Cave and popularized his theory. In 1995, however, Smithsonian paleontologist Frederick Grady proposed that Haynes Cave in nearby Monroe County was the true source. (His reasons had to do with historical land-ownership records.) The proprietors of Organ Cave, however, continue to insist on their property as the origin of the fossil in their interpretative exhibits and tour guide presentations.
Read more about this topic: Organ Cave
Famous quotes containing the words jefferson, ground and/or sloth:
“I hope our wisdom will grow with our power, and teach us, that the less we use our power the greater it will be.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
“Nor must Uncle Sam’s Web-feet be forgotten. At all the watery margins they have been present. Not only on the deep sea, the broad bay, and the rapid river, but also up the narrow muddy bayou, and wherever the ground was a little damp, they have been, and made their tracks.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“Moderation is the feebleness and sloth of the soul, whereas ambition is the warmth and activity of it.”
—François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680)