Collections and Interest in Wilson Hall Museum Have Increased Under New Supervisor, W. W. Bowen

The palaeontological collections, formerly housed in two cases in the zoology room of Wilson Museum, have recently been moved to a room of their own where, in eight new cases of modern design, they are displayed to their best advantage. Beginning with an introductory case which defines a fossil and illustrates various modes of fossilization, the series continues with two cases showing typical fossil representatives of the animal kingdom. A fourth case displays a selection of Ostracoderms and Eurypterids from the unique collection of the late Professor William Patten. The remaining cases house the series of North American index fossils.

Fossil Dinosaur footprints from the triassic strata of the Connecticut Valley form an interesting and valuable part of the display in the new palaeontology room of Wilson Museum. Many of these slabs, which were collected by Professor C. H. Hitchcock, have been in storage since the time when Wilson Hall was converted into a museum. Arranged according to families and appropriately labeled these slabs tell a fascinating story of previous life in this valley. A print or two on each slab has been accentuated by means of a coating of shellac in order to show more clearly the shape and size of the foot of the animal that made it.