TRACKING FOSSIL FOOTPRINTS IN THE FIRST 60 YEARS OF AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SCIENCE

In thinking about fossils during the early 19th century, one of the earliest lines of paleontological investigation was the study of the fossil footprints in New England.

In 1836, Edward Hitchcock of Amherst College published his first study of the tracks in volume 29 of the American Journal of Science. In keeping with current popular opinion, he named the tracks “Ornithichnites”, literally, stony bird tracks, and he proposed a distinct branch of inquiry called “Ornithichnology” to study them. Over the course of the next 60 years, over 30 articles on fossil footprints and tracks by various authors appeared in the American Journal of Science.

Hitchcock's original theory proposed that the tracks were made by large antediluvian birds. As State Geologist of Massachusetts, Hitchcock had a rare opportunity to examine, describe and classify the different types of fossil imprints. He continued to collect footprints for Amherst, publish his observations and to develop his system of nomenclature until his death in 1864.

However, the American Journal of Science records that Dr. James Deane also had a claim on the discovery of the tracks. Dr. Deane was the first to bring the tracks to Hitchcock's attention. Deane continued to study and write about the tracks through 1848.

Both men were pioneers in their studies. Since the concept of a dinosaur was not envisaged until 1854, their line of reasoning was logical and rational, given the evidence at hand.