Artist Recreates Missing Mammoth Skeleton
By: Shayla Patrick
Updated: May 8, 2012
CARL JUNCTION, MO - It's not every day you see a large skeleton being hauled through a small town on the back of a trailer. But that's exactly what happened this morning in Carl Junction.
"One of the big parts of Carl Junction's history was the discovery in 1892 of mammoth remains, which then disappeared," said Gary Stubblefield, Carl Junction Area Chamber of Commerce President.
Local artist Marv Dahmen made a replica of the missing skeleton, which he assembled this morning in the lobby of city hall.
"This is a life size, relatively accurate model," explained Dahmen. "It's as close as foam rubber can get to the a Colombian Mammoth," he added.
This 15 foot tall model resembles the actual discovery, but a glaring question still remains. What happened to the original bones? After being sent off by train to be cleaned and examined they were never seen again.
"Now there is a couple scenarios, we don't know, it's a mystery," said Dahmen. "There was a fire on a train leaving Chicago and the bones could have been burned up or lost in the fire," Dahmen explained.
Another theory is the man that discovered the bones, Silas A. Stuckey might have sold them.
"I think Mr.Stuckey probably made his fortune on those bones. I'm not sure, it's just a speculation, we don't really know," Dahmen said.
A find like this in the late 1890's is estimated at around $100,000. That's equivalent to $900,000 today. The replica will be on display at the Carl Jnction city hall until the end of June.