In the late 1960s, the late Harley Garbani went to the valley of Hell Creek in northeastern Montana with the goal of collecting skeletons of dinosaurs for exhibit at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. He was particularly successful in his discoveries on the Engdahl Ranch. In addition to two skeletons of Tyrannosaurus rex he discovered the remains of other non-avian dinosaurs, which were collected with the help of Lester Engdahl and his sons, Robert and Larry.
On the Engdahl Ranch, Harley also discovered concentrations of fossils of mammals, lizards, turtles, and other relatively small vertebrates that lived with the dinosaurs. In 1972, Harley, who became a field research associate of UCMP, introduced Bill Clemens and students from our museum to the Engdahls and these rich concentrations of small fossils. This was the beginning of a continuing project to study the evolution of the fauna and flora that lived with the last of the dinosaurs and the survivors of the mass extinction at the end of the Cretaceous. UCMP’s collections now contain extensive samples of fossil plants and animals from this interval of earth history. These continue to be the bases for a wide variety of research projects.
Through the years until his death in 1995 Lester Engdahl supported UCMP field parties. For example, he helped us refurbish a homesteader’s cabin and made it available to our field crews. In the summers the cabin provided a kitchen and shelter from the more than occasional thunderstorms. The rest of the year it served as a secure storage place for field supplies. Lester’s son, Robert Engdahl, his wife Jane, and their children, Duane and Cathy, were particularly supportive and helpful. Jane and her children “caught the bug” and became skilled in prospecting for vertebrate fossils. Many summer field seasons opened with expeditions to collect fossils or evaluate sites that they had discovered.
Field work in Garfield County continues to be more than just collecting old bones, shells, and leaves. Since 1972 over fifty undergraduate and graduate students from Berkeley and other universities have come to Garfield County in the summer to learn collecting and research techniques. Nine of these students from UCMP completed research for their Ph.D. degrees making use of information on the geology and fossils collected in the area. This involvement continues as the Engdahls support the work of field parties from the University of Washington and the Burke Museum led by UCMP alumnus Greg Wilson.
Jane Engdahl and Cathy Engdahl Bras attended the meeting in Raleigh and received the Skinner Award. We add our thanks for all they and their family have contributed to the success of UCMP’s programs of research and education.