this tooth with doubt to his _Mastodon obscurus_; but the type of the
latter, a lower molar (Leidy op. cit., plate XXVII, fig. 13), presents
no such double series of trefoils.
Leidy (op. cit., p. 247, plate XVII, fig. 16) referred some fragments of
mastodon teeth found at Tarboro to his _Mastodon obscurus_; but these
seem to the writer to belong to _Gomphotherium rugosidens_. We do not
know that _G. obscurum_ is a Pleistocene species, nor is it certain that
it has been found in North Carolina.
SOUTH CAROLINA.
(Map 5.)
1. _Beaufort, Beaufort County._—In the region about Beaufort numerous
remains of mastodons have been found, most of which are to be referred
to _Mammut americanum_. In the Academy of Natural Sciences of
Philadelphia the writer has seen a fine left lower last molar of this
species. The collection of Rutgers College contains a part of a tooth
from Coosaw River. At Princeton University there is an upper second true
molar from somewhere about Beaufort. Field Natural History Museum has 3
teeth of _Mammut_, recorded as having been found in the phosphate bed at
Beaufort.
Leidy (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1870, p. 98) stated he had seen, in
the collection of C. N. Shepard at Amherst College, bones, fragments of
jaws, and teeth of mastodon from the marl at the head of Hilton Harbor,
on St. Helena Island, on which Beaufort is situated. Among these were 2
inferior tusks about 10 inches long and 2 inches in diameter at the
base. If the molars which accompanied them had differed from those of
_Mammut americanum_, Leidy would have been quick to note the fact.
Evidently the bones and teeth mentioned by Leidy are those now in the
mounted skeleton at Amherst College, described by Professor F. B. Loomis
(Amer. Jour. Sci., ser. 3, vol. XLV, p. 437, figs. 1, 3, 4) as _Mastodon
americanus_. This was a very large animal and the two large lower tusks
show that it belonged to _Mammut progenium_.
In the Academy’s collection at Philadelphia is a large hindermost molar,
180 mm. long and 96 mm. wide, which had been sent to the Academy in
company with the type of _Gomphotherium rugosidens_.
2. _Ashley River, above Charleston, Charleston County._—In 1860
(Holmes’s Post-Pl. Foss. South Carolina, p. 109), Leidy stated that
fragments of teeth and bones had been found in the Post-Pliocene
deposits of Ashley River, apparently referable to _Mastodon ohioticus_
(_Mammut americanum_). In a footnote to this statement, F. S. Holmes
says that since Leidy’s statement was written several perfect teeth have
been discovered, and referred to plate XIX, figures 1, 2, 3. These
figures illustrate the teeth which belonged to Dr. L. F. Klipstein,
Christ Church. In the preface to Holmes’s work he refers to the teeth on
this plate as being those associated with teeth of a horse, remains of a
deer, and a piece of pottery. On page III of the introduction there is
further explanation of the discovery. Exactly where the swamp which
Klipstein was draining was situated seems not to have been stated, but
the context appears to indicate that it was somewhere along Ashley
River.
In 1918 (Amer. Jour. Sci., ser. 3, vol. XLV, p. 438, fig. 2, not “fig.
3”) Professor Loomis described and figured 2 lower tusks, found in Nine
Mile Bottom, 9 miles above Charleston, probably along Ashley River. On
page 441 Loomis correctly described these, except that what he called
enamel is only a dense outer layer of dentine. Evidently these tusks had
been used for punching against hard objects. One may surmise that the
animal had been accustomed to bark trees with them.
Leidy (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1870, p. 98) states that he saw in
the collection of C. N. Shepard, at Amherst College, remains of
mastodons, etc., which had been found on Ashley River.
In the collections at Charleston, both the private ones and that of the
Charleston Museum, there are teeth of _Mammut americanum_, but records
of exact localities are usually wanting.
3. _Head of Cooper River, Berkeley County._—John Drayton, in his “View
of South Carolina,” in 1802, page 39, plate, figure 4, mentions the
discovery of fossil bones in Biggin Swamp, made in digging a canal
between Santee and Cooper Rivers. It appears probable that this swamp is
not far from Monks Corner. Drayton’s figure shows that the tooth was one
of _Mammut americanum_. It is said to have been buried at a depth of 8
or 9 feet. B. S. Barton (Archæologia Amer., 1814, pp. 22–23) stated that
he had examined teeth of both mastodon and elephant from this swamp.
George Turner (Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., vol. IV, 1899, p. 511) speaks
of the discovery of bones of what is called the mammoth in the
construction of the Santee and Cooper River Canal. Cuvier (Oss. Foss.,
ed. 4, vol. II, p. 275) stated that the naturalist M. Bose had witnessed
the exhumation of 5 molars of mastodon during the excavation of the
“canal de Caroline,” 15 miles from Charleston. They were found in pure
sand at a depth of 3 feet. It is possible that there is here an error in
the distance from Charleston.
4. _Lee County._—Tuomey (Rep. Geol. Surv. South Carolina, 1848, p. 178)
states that between Lynch’s Creek and Black River, “near Concord
church,” he found a bed of Pliocene marl about 4 feet thick, which, like
the Darlington deposit, rests on black shale. In an excavation made in
this marl, he found a portion of a tusk of a mastodon. This might,
indeed, have belonged to an elephant, but more probably to _Mammut
americanum_.
5. _Darlington County._—In 1848 (Rep. Geol. Surv. South Carolina, 1848,
pp. 177–180), Tuomey reported that 2 perfect molars of _Mastodon
maximus_ (=_Mammut americanum_) had been found on land of G. W. Dargan,
somewhere near Darlington. They were found in a swamp and covered with 3
or 4 feet of mud, but lying in a marl which he regarded as belonging to
the Pliocene. One was sent to the college at Columbia. In a note to the
geologist J. W. Foster (Proc. Amer. Assoc. Adv. Sci., vol. X, 1856, p.
167), Tuomey stated that he had placed in the cabinet of South Carolina
College a fine tooth of mastodon, found in Darlington district. At an
earlier date Robert W. Gibbes (same Proceedings, vol. III, 1850, p. 67)
exhibited before the association teeth of a horse found at Darlington,
associated with bones of Mastodon.
GEORGIA.
(Map 5.)
1. _Brunswick, Glynn County._—In Richard Harlan’s list (Proc. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vol. I, 1841–43, p. 189) of fossil vertebrates which had been
exhumed in making the Brunswick Canal were mentioned teeth of _Mastodon
giganteum_ (=_Mammut americanum_). About this time J. H. Couper (Proc.
Geol. Soc. Lond., vol. IV, p. 33) read a paper in which he mentioned the
occurrence of the same species in the canal referred to. Lyell (Second
Visit, etc., p. 348) included the mastodon among the species discovered
here. Richard Owen (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1846, p. 93) reported
the result of an examination of a collection submitted to him through
Lyell. Hippopotamus had been recognized in a supposed incisor; but Owen
showed that it was a small tusk of a proboscidean, probably of _Mammut
americanum_. Leidy (Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vol. VII, p. 248)
stated that he had examined in the collection of the Academy the hinder
part of a tooth of the American mastodon.
Gidley (Bull. 26, Geol. Surv. Georgia, p. 436) recognized _Gomphotherium
floridanum_ and _Mammut americanum_ in a collection which had been made
some years ago at Brunswick, probably in dredging in the harbor.
Inasmuch as only fragments of these teeth were present, the
identification was difficult. The writer has, through the kindness of
Professor S. W. McCallie, had the opportunity to examine these
fragments. They appear all to belong to _Gomphotherium rugosidens_, a
species rather common in that region. This species probably does not
belong to the Pleistocene, but to the upper Miocene or the Lower
Pliocene. It is possible, however, that it belongs to the lowermost
Pleistocene, the Nebraskan.
2. _Skidaway Island, near Savannah, Chatham County._—Remains of _Mammut
americanum_ have been found at two places in Chatham County, Heyner’s
Bridge and Skidaway Island. Lyell (Travels in N. A., 1845, vol. I, p.
163) records his visit to Heyner’s Bridge, on White Bluff Creek, about 7
miles south of Savannah. In Hodgson’s memoir this locality is said to be
on Vernon Creek (map 40). Lyell had learned from Dr. Habersham that
bones of mastodons and other extinct mammals had already been found
there. Lyell himself secured a grinder of a mastodon. It was found in a
bed of clay about 6 feet thick exposed only at low water. The tooth
referred to may be the one mentioned by Lydekker (Cat. Foss. Mamm. Brit.
Mus., pt. IV, p. 23). Hodgson (“Memoir on Megatherium,” p. 12) reported
the discovery of mastodon remains at this place, specifying a section of
a tusk 3.25 feet long and nearly 11 inches in circumference; also a
femur, which was sent to Paris. Reference is made to the mastodon
remains on page 42 of the memoir mentioned. For the geology of this
locality and a list of the species found there the reader is referred to
page 371.
FLORIDA.
(Maps 5, 10.)
It has not been practicable to arrange the figures on the map of
mastodons in Florida in an orderly manner. Below, the localities are
described by beginning at the northern end of the State and ending at
the southern end.
1. _Marianna, Jackson County._—In the U. S. National Museum (No. 324) is
a tooth of _Mammut americanum_, recorded as having been sent to the
National Institute, September 25, 1847, by Walter Yonge, from Marianna.
No additional information has been preserved. It is a large upper right
last molar, with 5 cross-crests, a hinder talon, and nearly complete
roots. Marianna is situated on Chipola River.
12. _Little River, Gadsden County._—Dr. E. H. Sellards (8th Ann. Rep.
Florida Geol. Surv., 1916, p. 104) reported that a tooth of _Mammut
americanum_ had been obtained from Little River.
2. _Fort White, Columbia County._—Dr. E. H. Sellards reported to the
writer the discovery of a tooth of _Mammut americanum_ at a point 3
miles northwest of Fort White. No details have been received. The town
is on Santa Fe River.
3. _Citra, Marion County._—In Ward’s Natural History Establishment, at
Rochester, New York, the writer saw in January 1914, 2 cross-crests of a
probably hindermost upper molar of _Mammut americanum_. There had been
present a large pulp-cavity. Nothing definite about the history of the
specimen could be obtained, except that it had been found at Citra.
15. _Neals, Alachua County._—From this locality Sellards (5th Ann. Rep.
Florida Geol. Surv., p. 58) reported the discovery of a mastodon,
probably _Gomphotherium floridanum_. Associated with this species was an
undetermined species of _Hipparion_. At the same place has been found
_Tapirus terrestris?_ On his plates IV and V of the same volume,
Sellards has figured teeth belonging to two undetermined species of
mastodons. All of these fossils came from the phosphate deposits at
Neals.
16. _Archer, Alachua County._—Dr. Joseph Leidy (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1886, p. 11) reported that Dr. W. H. Dall had discovered at
Archer remains of a mastodon to which Leidy gave the name _Mastodon
floridanus_. It is here referred to the genus _Gomphotherium_. It was
associated in the Alachua clays with a species of _Hipparion_, three
species of _Procamelus_, and a rhinoceros; also an astragalus of
_Megatherium_. All of these, except the last, are usually referred to
the Lower Pliocene or the Upper Miocene. The writer believes that they
belong to the lowest Pleistocene, the Nebraskan.
17. _Williston, Levy County._—Leidy (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1887,
p. 309) reported the finding of several species of fossil vertebrates in
the Mixon bone-bed, at or near Williston. The species were
_Gomphotherium floridanum_, _Hipparion plicatile_, _Procamelus major_,
and _Teleoceras proterus_. These were found in the Alachua clays at
depths from 2.5 to 6 feet. In Dall’s list of 1892 (Bull. U. S. Geol.
Surv. No. 84, p. 129) _Hipparion ingenuum_ is included.
18. _Juliette, Marion County._—Sellards, in 1913 (5th Ann. Rep. Florida
Geol. Surv., p. 58), stated that _Gomphotherium floridanum_ had been
found in hard phosphate in a mine at this place. As in other such cases,
he referred the species to the Upper Miocene or the Lower Pliocene.
5. _Dunnellon, Marion County._—In the collection of the Florida
Geological Survey is a fragment of a molar of _Mammut americanum_ which
was dredged up from Withlacoochee River during operations by the
Schilman and Bene Phosphate Company. It was presented by John D.
Robertson.
In the possession of Mr. J. D. Robertson of Ocala, Florida, is a part of
a skull of _Mammut americanum_, reported by him to have been found in
the northeast quarter of the southeast quarter of section 1, township 17
south, range 19 east. This would be about 6 miles east of Dunnellon and
not far from Withlacoochee River.
In the region about Dunnellon the mastodon _Gomphotherium floridanum_
has been collected. For the list of species found at Dunnellon and in
Withlacoochee River the reader may consult page 376.
19. _Near San Pablo Beach, Duval County._—From station 120, on the
Inland Waterway, near San Pablo Beach, Sellards (8th Ann. Rep. Florida
Geol. Surv., p. 106) reported the discovery of a tooth of _Mammut
americanum_ in place in the bank of the canal. Remains of _Elephas
columbi_ and undetermined species of _Bison_ and _Odocoileus_ had been
thrown out by the dredge.
4. _Almero Farm, St. John County._—At the residence of Mr. Fred R.
Allen, 113 King street, St. Augustine, Florida, the writer had the
privilege of examining seven teeth of _Mammut americanum_ which had been
found near Mr. Allen’s farm, 28 miles south of St. Augustine, in the
Inland Waterway Canal. At the same place Mr. Allen had found remains of
a fossil horse, a mylodon, alligator, and a part of the plastron of
_Terrapene antipex_. The deposits are to be regarded as belonging to
some part of the first half of the Pleistocene, probably the first
interglacial.
6. _Daytona, Volusia County._—In the U. S. National Museum (No. 2150) is
an upper left last molar of _Mammut americanum_, sent in August 1901
from Daytona by E. T. Conrad & Company. It had been found at a depth of
5 feet in an old oyster-bed which was being dug up for surfacing the
streets. The locality is within the limits of the town and about 2 miles
from the Atlantic coast. The senders reported a little later that they
had found four other teeth, a piece of tusk 40 inches long and 7 inches
in diameter, and about a bushel of bones and fragments. There appeared
to be other bones in the pit, but nothing more is on record. Since that
mastodon died there, the land appears to have been depressed beneath the
sea, permitting the growth of the oyster-bed, after which there was
again an elevation.
13. _Fellsmere, St. Lucie County._—Dr. E. H. Sellards (8th Ann. Rep.
Florida Geol. Surv., p. 105) stated that _Mammut americanum_,
represented by a tooth or teeth, had been found at Fellsmere in
connection with the construction of drainage canals.
7. _Vero, St. Lucie County._—At this place have been found
well-preserved remains of _Mammut americanum_. Besides a part of a lower
jaw, there are some parts of tusks and fragments of other parts. The
right side of a palate containing the second and the third true molars,
found in what has been called stratum No. 2, has been figured by
Sellards (8th Ann. Rep. Florida Geol. Surv., plate XXXI). The age of
these will be discussed on pages 381–384.
14. _Palm Beach, Palm Beach County._—In his report of 1916, already
cited, Dr. Sellards noted the fact, on page 105, that several teeth of
_Mammut americanum_ had been obtained by him, 8 miles west of the
Florida East Coast Railroad, in the canal constructed to drain the
Everglades. From the same canal had been secured _Elephas columbi_,
_Equus complicatus_, and a femur of a species of _Bison_. Sellards
informs us that the vertebrate fossils here, as at Vero and many other
localities, are embedded in the sand and muck beds which lie above the
Pleistocene marls.
8. _Hillsboro County._—Remains of mastodon have been reported from
various places in this county, but the localities have not been very
exactly defined.
In the National Museum (No. 6726) is a lower left hindermost molar of
_Mammut americanum_ which was sent by Mr. W. L. Spitler, of Tampa.
Exactly where it was found is not recorded. The tooth is white and well
preserved. There are five cross-crests. The cones are unusually low, and
such teeth may possibly represent an undescribed species.
At Heidelberg University, Tiffin, Ohio, the writer has seen a mastodon
tooth, labeled as having come from Tampa Bay. The tooth is heavy and
rock-like. A part of an atlas of the mastodon is from the same place.
In the collection of Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio, is a lower right
last molar of a mastodon, labeled as having been found at Sulphur
Springs, Hillsboro County. The writer has not found where this place is
situated. All of the specimens mentioned belong to _Mammut americanum_.
9. _Alafia River, Hillsboro County._—Dr. E. H. Sellards (7th Ann. Rep.
Florida Geol. Surv., p. 112, fig. 45) records the finding of an upper
right last molar of _Mammut americanum_ in this river. The tooth is
unworn and has four cross-crests and a large talon. It was preserved in
the collection of S. A. Robinson. With a collection of teeth of _Equus_
found in Alafia River and preserved in the American Museum of Natural
History, New York, is a single cross-crest of _Mammut americanum_.
20. _Brewster, Polk County._—In his report of 1915 (p. 106, fig. 36) Dr.
E. H. Sellards figured a fragment of a tusk, found in a phosphate mine,
which he supposed might belong to _Gomphotherium floridanum_. He figured
also a tooth (p. 104, fig. 34) which he definitely referred to this
species, but it is not clear that it was found at Brewster. A list of
the species found associated with the tusk will be found on page 380.
Among these species is _Mammut progenium_, a species ranging from the
Aftonian to the Late Wisconsin. While all the species of the list are
referred by Sellards to the Upper Miocene or Lower Pliocene, _M.
progenium_ appears to favor a later reference.
10. _Pains Creek, Polk? County._—In the collection of the Academy of
Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, is a tooth of _Mammut americanum_
recorded as having been found on Pains Creek, 50 miles from Tampa. It
appears to be a second milk molar; the length is 43 mm., the width at
the second crest likewise 43 mm.
There is a Big Pains Creek in the northwestern corner of Polk County,
which empties into Peace Creek. A little further south is Little Pains
Creek, which empties into Peace Creek in De Soto County, near Bowling
Green. On which of these the tooth was found can not be determined.
11. _Peace Creek, De Soto County._—In the U. S. National Museum (No.
1990) is an upper right hindermost molar recorded as having been found
on Peace River. It was a part of the exhibit of the Plant System at the
Centennial Exposition at Atlanta, Georgia. It is credited also to the
Peace River Phosphate Company. Probably the tooth was found somewhere
not far from Arcadia. Leidy (Bull. 84, U. S. Geol. Surv., p. 129) does
not record the species from Arcadia, but his undetermined species of the
genus may have been _M. americanum_.
The tooth mentioned above has five cross-crests and a conical talon. At
the ends of the transverse valleys are large tubercles.
ALABAMA.
(Map 5.)
1. _Bogue Chitto, Dallas County._—The U. S. National Museum contains 3
or 4 fragments of large molars of _Mammut americanum_ found not far from
the town named. One fragment is labeled as having been found in section
10, township 17 north, range 7 east. This would probably be 6 or 7 miles
west of north from the town named. Another fragment is said to have been
found in the bed of Bogue Chitto. The teeth were sent to the U. S.
Geological Survey by Crawford P. Lewis. From this same region there have
been collected remains of _Elephas imperator_ and _Equus leidyi_.
MISSISSIPPI.
(Map 5.)
1. _Perthshire, Bolivar County._—In the U. S. National Museum is a
fragment, the rear end, of an upper left hindermost molar of _Mammut
americanum_, received from Perthshire in August 1914. It is the gift of
Mr. S. D. Knowlton and was reported as having been sucked up with gravel
from the bed of Mississippi River. This place is in the northern part of
Bolivar County and immediately south of latitude 34°.
2. _Caseilla, Tallahatchie County._—The writer has seen a lower left
last molar of a mastodon, found in 1915, near this place. It was sent to
the U. S. National Museum for identification by Dr. B. Franklin, of
Caseilla. He stated that the tooth had been found in Avant Creek, about
3 miles above its entrance into Yalobusha River, apparently in the
southeastern corner of Tallahatchie County, in township 23 north, range
7 west. The tooth had been buried in joint clay. The banks of the creek
are usually about 10 feet high, but where the tooth was found, on the
south side of the creek, the bluff is about 50 feet high.
3. _Jackson, Hinds County._—In the collection of the Academy of Natural
Sciences of Philadelphia is a lower left last milk molar, presented by
Dr. Isaac Lea and reported to have been found near Jackson, Mississippi.
No additional information was furnished. The tooth is but slightly worn
and has complete roots.
4. _Vicksburg, Warren County._—In the U. S. National Museum (No. 344) is
a fragment of an upper right last molar, said to have been found at
Vicksburg. The fragment consists of the hindermost crest and the talon.
In Wailles’s report on the geology of Mississippi, 1854, page 284, there
is a statement to the effect that mastodon remains had been found in the
deep cut of the railroad at Vicksburg.
5. _Bovina?, Warren County._—In Wailles’s report, just cited, it is
stated that mastodon bones had been found in the vicinity of Big Black
River, near the eastern line of Warren County. While the statement is
rather indefinite, the locality is probably somewhere in the region
about Bovina, on the railway from Vicksburg to Jackson.
6. _Claiborne County._—According to Dr. Leidy (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1859, p. 111), portions of jaws with teeth of mastodons have
been found in this county, associated with a skull of a bear which he
could not distinguish from that of _Ursus americanus_.
7. _Jefferson County._—In Wailles’s report of 1854 (p. 284), already
cited, it is stated that remains of the mastodon had been found in this
county, near the former town of Greenville. The writer has not been able
to learn more exactly where this town was situated.
8. _Natchez, Adams County._—The region about Natchez is a fertile one
for remains of mastodons and various other fossil vertebrates. The first
mention of the finding of fossils here appears to be a note by S. L.
Mitchill in 1826 (Cat. Organ. Remains, p. 10), who presented two teeth
to the Lyceum of Natural History, New York. G. Troost, in 1835 (Trans.
Geol. Soc. Penn., vol. I, p. 143), stated that he had in his cabinet a
tooth of a mastodon, found near Natchez.
In 1845 (Proc. 6th Meet. Assoc. Amer. Geologists and Naturalists, pp.
77–79), M. W. Dickeson read a paper on the geology of the Natchez
bluffs, in which he mentioned the occurrence of mastodons.
In 1846 (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1846, p. 106), the same writer
exhibited at the Academy a large collection of fossil bones which had
been made near Natchez. His account treats especially of the remains of
_Megalonyx jeffersonii_ and a human pelvis; but it is mentioned that the
deposit abounds in bones and teeth of the mastodon. Dickeson stated that
the stratum which contained these organic remains is a tenacious blue
clay which underlies what he called the diluvial drift east of Natchez.
This “drift” is now regarded as being mostly loess.
Lyell, in 1846 (Second Visit to U. S. N. A., ed. 2, vol. II, p. 195),
wrote that mastodon remains had been found in the loam (loess) which
contained land-shells at different depths.