Jump to content

St. Paul, Caesar’s Creek, and Napoleon


Velociraptor99

Recommended Posts

Hello all, it’s been a long time. I started getting back into fossil hunting now that I’ve gotten older. I had the chance to go out fossil hunting last month with my fossil club and a few friends. I’ll post the pictures over time of my finds.

 We went out to southern Ohio and southeastern Indiana. We stopped first at Caesar’s Creek. I had never been to any of these sites so it was very exciting.
Everything at Caesar’s Creek is tiny, and you aren’t allowed to take anything larger than your palm/hand home with you. The most common find were absolutely tiny brachiopods which literally litter the spillway floor. If you want to find anything, you’ll have to get on your hands and knees. I managed to find plenty of brachiopods and a few bryozoans.

But the best finds were 6 of the smallest whole trilobites I’ve ever seen or found. All of them smaller than my pinkie nail. Followed by some nice gastropods, a few pieces of horn coral, and a section of a cephalopod shell with its inner chambers partially intact. I was bummed that I didn’t find an isotelus roller but there’s always next time.

If anyone could help with ID on these that would be greatly appreciated. More to come in other posts in this thread. Sorry for the poor photography, all I have is my phone camera. 

2C492583-1CA4-4C8F-BE9D-A4034925008A.jpeg

05BD3CAD-C756-4B71-AC7B-661F19B985C9.jpeg

E8F5B847-C551-4EC0-B6C6-C5E8DDCF1AFF.jpeg

9DE12C18-380E-4783-A47E-E26941A085A0.jpeg

209EC507-1752-49DD-BC76-1D7F5A211D65.jpeg

62D1F833-F536-412E-BD6B-5E2DE21BD056.jpeg

F8711B38-2D06-45FE-AFBC-DAF536C12789.jpeg

63B25487-BADD-4CDD-BE06-6E9C5853B136.jpeg

50DFA81B-A5D6-49CA-B3F6-16BE1BA8C6B9.jpeg

3471B5D0-144D-41CD-80E0-D78DE37B8CB6.jpeg

11DCF33F-8EEE-4E50-A90B-CD1177BAC5C6.jpeg

81D3D5B5-79ED-4E5F-ADA6-8B2EE9621EDD.jpeg

F725A74F-2B67-4F1E-95F9-99236758F441.jpeg

C9389A04-F5F9-4AE1-92FC-39760F5C4115.jpeg

E1DD2CD8-C23A-4FAD-A96A-56A639AA0632.jpeg

941CC830-AB0A-41BB-B508-4566482886A9.jpeg

62A08CB3-33D6-48DE-9869-6F15936EF601.jpeg

7ED0BAB5-B467-4D94-A510-4B323822F57A.jpeg

C90832D7-FC57-4633-ABE5-1A655902C197.jpeg

4D693508-24F3-4BC5-BE42-A1E207F6F199.jpeg

5B3BFFE3-1FEA-44DC-B9DB-05816D336FD2.jpeg

E71C2251-C872-4769-9122-763EFC8C7596.jpeg

9714659F-28A1-4EAC-B13A-0FD0B14E9C00.jpeg

0AAB9EDE-6EAE-49F2-ADBB-5FCFDE153713.jpeg

ED19452A-048F-4655-B981-8666EEBA9D76.jpeg

AF39A391-B3FA-43C8-88BF-68D6CACDD950.jpeg

  • Enjoyed 4

So I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and door will be opened for you. -Jesus Christ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On our way to our hotel, we stopped by a roadcut in Indiana. The site was rich in fossil material. However, almost all of it was limited to brachiopods. Still, the quality of these brachiopods was nice. They generally lacked the other half of the organism, and are very thin. I picked up the ones I found the nicest and went along my way. I found a couple of small decent gastropods there too, as well as some bryozoans and trilobite cephalons.
 

Someone in my friend group managed to find a partial cephalopod shell at the roadcut. We were going to hit a famous large roadcut in the area that’s been historically open to collectors, but we decided against it as Indiana state/highway patrol put up a sign saying that “trespassers would be prosecuted”. It’s a shame they changed that spot because it’s well known for its trilobites. Better safe than sorry. 
 

1815BD69-63BE-4025-8FF8-2F50FDDF608C.jpeg

D553D21A-7468-409B-BD1E-B37DA9B03A6E.jpeg

0C0B6579-DB48-413A-AE1C-C572ED68EBCD.jpeg

9A99659F-11D6-4942-8942-0F8FF13EF212.jpeg

73AF7B3E-ACC7-4996-89C3-DD1DD389DFEB.jpeg

FE5B5E6E-FDB1-4BB4-9651-7499AA970730.jpeg

1CDA862C-BB8B-4E8E-8A86-DFC107F5876F.jpeg

CA3AC540-20D0-43FD-BF6A-571E739E032C.jpeg

DAA2B450-390D-4401-A020-CC57A8D8A1A8.jpeg

C8D029D3-E217-4350-BDAB-8ACB613E2719.jpeg

7F4B30AF-93AF-47F8-9F50-F20C0D0B8CD0.jpeg

BBA13D41-7C54-4323-8B48-D19000D7C897.jpeg

23A60C6F-8850-4029-8B78-193D168952C2.jpeg

E97E1818-6122-4E91-8668-84ECC151511E.jpeg

19048C65-C56E-4D53-B11B-7EDF1FC76319.jpeg

5887EA5D-C42F-4BE2-B138-15B934DA040C.jpeg

4AF3C143-8E29-4845-89A5-C18C73062DFF.jpeg

A6CFDD06-971A-4C12-98FD-C8DEDC65BB1A.jpeg

  • Enjoyed 2

So I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and door will be opened for you. -Jesus Christ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, Velociraptor99 said:

We were going to hit a famous large roadcut in the area that’s been historically open to collectors, but we decided against it as Indiana state/highway patrol put up a sign saying that “trespassers would be prosecuted”. It’s a shame they changed that spot because it’s well known for its trilobites. Better safe than sorry.

Are you talking about St. Leon?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, connorp said:

Are you talking about St. Leon?

I believe so, the name rings a bell. 

So I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and door will be opened for you. -Jesus Christ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, Velociraptor99 said:

I believe so, the name rings a bell. 

The signs say that people who dig will be prosecuted. Surface collecting is fine there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 minutes ago, connorp said:

The signs say that people who dig will be prosecuted. Surface collecting is fine there.

Oh, well that’s good news at least. Thank you for the heads up and correction. My club may be heading down that way again in the fall to visit St. Paul again, so I’ll try and visit that site. 
 

After a while we reached our hotel, tucked in for the night after getting dinner together. The next day we visited Napoleon quarry in Napoleon, Indiana. This site is known for its cystoids, many of them seemingly loose or free from matrix. Well, not for me that is. I me managed to find a few cystoids and at least 1 to 3 complete ones at that. But all were in matrix. One of my friends managed to find at least a full small baggie of them, all loose.
 

It really started to rain there after a while, just on and off. It got really muddy, but that helped the cystoids kind of “pop out” for you due to their unique color and texture. I found most of my cystoids this way. Aside from cysptoids and a few brachiopods, there were some nice cephalopods to be found including this giant piece. And some horn coral. I also managed to find a weird fossil that someone from the Dry Dredgers who was present at the trip, who was also part of our club, told me was likely a conostichus. I also managed to find some gastropods. As for my cystoids, if anyone knows how to prep them loose that would be greatly appreciated. Or at least anybody I can pay to have them prepped. 

A7220F02-6105-4C50-A81F-6A7E987C43FA.jpeg

11E60D20-A878-4EFF-85BB-84CBE263E9FB.jpeg

60C2022B-1E86-440E-8638-5A81ACEDE81B.jpeg

4479B502-FF26-4720-984C-F4AFA9C53E29.jpeg

B0F16E0E-F49C-4767-8BDE-30D8EA6DC8E4.jpeg

E33FA9F0-25E5-4AC1-9CAE-23AA5756B59C.jpeg

69FB7181-74BD-4836-8E4D-73C7C693B7D7.jpeg

D5570176-3FC0-4005-9C55-C2C49CA72E02.jpeg

8E3DAD06-4118-431A-AA48-23295A07E167.jpeg

C3E91918-F4EF-4957-B506-B0B76EBD43D1.jpeg

9C5A53B2-1016-4B0F-AC2D-3C75B0FFB564.jpeg

8E86EBF9-0F4D-4AED-8394-E3F9B96DCC33.jpeg

09864029-BF64-4DE2-AEBF-D15EF074EE3A.jpeg

DA66D27B-B5CD-496C-B5A2-D25AAD38066F.jpeg

7B2C0D51-2D1D-436B-990A-F762CBCFB441.jpeg

73D30250-2BD1-4512-B2C2-72BFF447AA18.jpeg

9C5744BF-4EE5-40E7-A8A0-E6E60A2317C8.jpeg

2F6F001C-65A0-4F32-BEF6-3E0D91EF9535.jpeg

78088036-3643-4DD5-B741-BC7993E2B4C1.jpeg

FCDFB001-C0D7-4EB6-9F85-FEB982231FE6.jpeg

BDE136E3-A277-44FE-81DC-4E258115D434.jpeg

AF8EF1B3-D275-44C3-AE1D-A03ABB66CE51.jpeg

3AC37D08-C1E6-47C7-828E-421C563138F4.jpeg

6E71F07D-581B-4C2D-B75F-6554CDF33183.jpeg

7A8E6D0A-E756-4E6C-9E32-488733373BEA.jpeg

2DB4F825-4A5C-4CBF-8785-32C425837F39.jpeg

2C029723-845A-4855-A9AD-5EAE22A04989.jpeg

D28A88B8-C727-4FE0-8081-D2B9AE74A853.jpeg

9B85E1DC-4515-4A21-8647-5BFE65161F62.jpeg

8C054075-62BC-4C74-BE9C-647BE8A531D0.jpeg

  • Enjoyed 4

So I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and door will be opened for you. -Jesus Christ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, Wrangellian said:

Nice... I like that snail. And is that tiny thing a bivalve?

If it’s what I think you’re referring to, then yes it is some kind of clam/bivalve. The other small thing above it is a part of a crinoid calyx I think. 
 

On our last day we went to St. Paul quarry. Known for its trilobites, pyritized fossils, and crinoid “cups”. I unfortunately, found almost no crinoid calyxes. I did too much splitting when I should have been surface collecting. All my best finds came from just getting on my hands, knees, and elbows surface collecting with my face glued to the ground.  

I did manage to fine at least 1 or 2 small complete/mostly-complete crinoid cups. And a partial large one. The best finds were two large gastropods and at least one small complete trilobite. I think I may have two other complete ones but they are surrounded by matrix so I’d need a couple second-hand opinions on that. I found a decent variety of brachiopods and clams/bivalves. There was one find I wasn’t sure about, a weird thing I’ve included as a picture. A club member brought in a nicer one that looked similar and someone said it was likely a “worm tube”, any guesses on mine?

 

This site I was looking for the tube worm Cornulites proprius, which a member of the club had found at the previous year’s visit. Unfortunately for me I was looking in the wrong quarry because it was actually found at the Napoleon Quarry. I hope someday I can find a nice tube worm fossil. The only thing that has me stumped is the little thing “growing” on my giant gastropod. It looks like either a bryozoan or a piece of tube worm. All in all I had a great time. If anyone knows where the best place to look for tube worm fossils is in northeast Ohio let me know. 

 

 

F67C67B4-6F24-423A-AC23-B53285173FCD.jpeg

C010D12A-18F5-4F32-98AD-17951AB229F0.jpeg

B2A4FDC3-561C-475E-96FE-93B8AA2F25CA.jpeg

31B31251-37EE-4F1F-9FE0-3B29B5D90550.jpeg

0E095BF8-4978-4957-BB1A-E7BEC15CA8B8.jpeg

A345F675-4B02-4601-B2E8-8558DA95BCED.jpeg

3D61EC4D-3E9A-406F-BF6A-15E5066A00C8.jpeg

D1B6E1E5-E1BE-4002-BD4E-278907AD86B5.jpeg

019C2256-DA89-4940-B4D7-F463F880C634.jpeg

B8A8D58A-79A4-43A2-B526-0DBC948DAD61.jpeg

4749EE0E-E451-4079-90C2-0BCC305CF0CF.jpeg

8663BC7D-F012-45ED-8E46-DF3A3CE01D58.jpeg

64183A14-29DE-4ACF-A0A2-E4A9E2137C57.jpeg

7AF4C465-CD53-4620-B8D4-9554E81ACDF9.jpeg

0064BC7F-E3CC-4B4B-B8C5-23B7B2C29DAC.jpeg

2310B2FA-4CA6-46F0-BA12-1D117D2DD338.jpeg

F20ADC4E-05EA-4210-BC21-0695CCB1AC62.jpeg

49E7BF03-8FAA-4413-A78B-8AB23CFC2F16.jpeg

2EC380A2-0B3B-4BFD-A4F6-D7CB2B8120BB.jpeg

3F60B443-E766-4119-8E62-204FC4290DC6.jpeg

CDF1BAA1-FDC3-47FC-872A-F1697A0E481B.jpeg

ADF5B790-9070-4AE2-BF3C-33E7C89CE5F2.jpeg

E3F29B2E-10F5-4993-B05C-BF7D720FC0F6.jpeg

292F8592-29FB-4D73-BACB-1C58ED451424.jpeg

3F6C0401-A040-47E1-8C04-AB9C1A15DEAB.jpeg

97173646-9102-4D8B-A576-16C2FE68CF72.jpeg

1D069A75-7158-48ED-BB10-FE1702CE981C.jpeg

65BA93C0-C4C6-4E4A-8846-82071D62F0A7.jpeg

98EB14C5-BDDC-405F-9556-293925409577.jpeg

53A4716F-1C4B-486E-B14A-579745234D82.jpeg

So I say to you, Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and door will be opened for you. -Jesus Christ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, the little dinky one... I'm not sure how you even found it except that your face must have been close to the ground! Anyway it sounds like collecting heaven in that spot, picking up loose fossils one after another. That's a rare experience in my area.

That last one looks like either a 'worm' tube or a small horn coral, but I'll leave it to others with more specific knowledge of that fauna to give you a better ID. Might need more pics of that one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...