A helpful resource for those who love creature-shaped rocks!
About the Author and the Website
The objective of this site is to help build knowledge and skills for anyone interested in fossils.
I was one of those dinosaur-crazy kids whose family refrigerator
was covered in crayon masterpieces of prehistoric beasts.
Growing up, my father took me and my brother hunting fossils all over the Dallas/Ft. Worth area in Texas. We had a few spectacular finds, but for the most part, we did not know very much about our treasure.
My childhood collection was packed away when I moved out, but I later rediscovered the old cardboard box while in my 30s. I hunted at sites around North Texas and joined the Dallas Paleontological Society (DPS). I made some great friends and widened my hunting circle and knowledge. Soon I was hunting at sites all over the US and learning tools and techniques from anyone that would share them.
I began prepping fossils after seeing the prep lab designed and built by Bob Carroll at Black Cat Mountain. Bob is one of the kindest and generous people I have met in the hobby. Through his willingness to share some of his knowledge, I discovered a whole new level of fossiling in preparation! Over the next few years, I amassed a nice fossil shop full of tools and equipment that make the job easier.
I once did a week long hunt with a fossil friend who brought a microscope with him. He showed me a sticky card covered in tiny black pepper-flakes and said they were fossils. I could not understand how anyone could be interested in that - until I tried it. I was hooked on micro-fossils and started bringing home buckets of screened pebbles from my hunts around the US. More tools were added to my shop!
As my hobby matured, I learned more about the importance of the science and historical context of my fossils and began sorting, photographing and cataloging my collection. I recognized that there are times when a specimen should be donated to a professional institution.
There are many professional paleontologists, museum staff and university teams that are willing to work with and teach amateurs. They are an invaluable source of wisdom and resources that every collector should honor and assist. I am hoping that through this site I may help bring the two communities closer together.
There are many wonderful things about this hobby that can be difficult to figure out. I am certainly not an expert, but I have learned quite a bit and am very resourceful. Fossiling is my joy and passion, and it is always made better when it is shared with someone eager to learn something new (or teach me something new)! I hope that something in this website helps bring more knowledge, capability and joy to your hobby. If it does, Be sure to let me know!
Happy Fossiling!
~ Jon Cartier, Melbourne, FL