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Alpena Rocks!
In 2010, Besser Museum embarked on
a courageous project to construct a simulated limestone quarry that would educate
the public about Northeast Michigan’s
significant heritage in the limestone mining industry. The dream was to build an
interactive exhibit that would allow visitors to learn about the formation of limestone, the economic benefits of the mining
industry and the process of using limestone to make cement. It also would allow
visitors to hunt for Devonian fossils and
keep all the fossils they find.
What transpired was a network of companies, educational institutions and volunteers unafraid to think big. Stepping up to
the challenge first was Lafarge Alpena
Plant and Cordes Excavating hauling over
83 limestone boulders weighing 1.5 to 8
tons each to create the quarry walls.
Then came 150 tons of crushed rock
filled with Devonian fossilized material.
Specification Stone Products was quick to
follow, bringing more tons of crushed fossilized materials filled with Petoskey
stones, brachiopods, branching corals,
trilobites, crinoid stems and crowns, and
more.
MSU Extension and Michigan Sea
Grant connected Besser Museum with
Lincoln Elementary students in Kelly
Poli’s classroom, who took on the task of
creating the interpretive signage for the
parks. Alpena Community College offered
expert guidance from their geology department.
Moran Iron Works also greatly contributed to the project by constructing
Congratulations
on 50 Years!
FOSSIL PARK
Cordes Excavating and Lafarge Alpena Plant created the foundation for the
Besser Museum’s Lafarge Fossil Park. The outdoor park draws fossil hunters
from across the state.
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