Notice of transfer of the University of Cincinnati paleontology collections to Cincinnati Museum Center

Journal of Paleontology, Nov 2000 by Sumrall, Colin D, Work, Paula T, Meyer, David L, Storrs, Glenn W, Merritt, Elizabeth

THE UNIVERSITY of Cincinnati invertebrate paleontology collections were transferred to Cincinnati Museum Center (formerly The Cincinnati Museum of Natural History in part), through the combined effort of N. C. Hughes, formerly of Cincinnati Museum Center, now at the University of California Riverside, E. Merritt of Cincinnati Museum Center, and D. L. Meyer of the University of Cincinnati. The University of Cincinnati transferred its vertebrate paleontology collections to the Cincinnati Museum Center in 1987, under the guidance of H. G. McDonald (formerly of Cincinnati Museum Center, now at Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument). This most recent transfer fulfills the vision of R. A. Davis, former curator of both the UC and CMC collections, to combine these two collections into one accessible repository.

All University of Cincinnati invertebrate paleontology specimens will retain the numeric portion of their specimen number. The prefix, however, will change from UCGM to CMC-PUC for specimens originating from the University of Cincinnati. Specimens which were originally reposited with the University of Cincinnati by the Cincinnati Society of Natural History, (a CMC forerunner organization) will be assigned the prefix CMC-P. This distinction reflects a 1942 agreement between CSNH and the University where CSNH specimens were placed on long term loan to the University. As per this agreement, these materials were assigned UCGM catalogue numbers, but were never accessioned into the University collections. The vertebrate paleontology collections, most of which also originated with the Cincinnati Society of Natural History, were catalogued by the university within the same numeric sequence as the invertebrate paleontology collections. The vertebrate fossils have been numerically recatalogued and assigned a new CMC-VP prefix. Specimen history is maintained in the unified CMC collections database.

The combined invertebrate paleontology collection is strongest in specimens from the Cincinnatian Series and includes nearly 150,000 specimen lots of which 46,500 are catalogued on paper and an additional 3,000 electronically. In addition, there are over 5,000 type and figured specimens in the collections, most of which are listed in two published type catalogues (Chappars, 1936; Hansman et al., 1962). These include many of the types of S. A. Miller, R. Flower, K. E. Caster, A. E Foerste, R. G. Osgood, Jr., and many others. Special collections include the Max J. Kopf Collection and the K. E. Caster Collection. The combined vertebrate paleontology collection contains over 6,500 catalogued specimens and an estimated 10-15,000 uncatalogued specimens. It is strongest in Midwest American Pleistocene and Paleocene specimens with a secondary concentration on Mesozoic marine fossils.

The collection transfer was funded by National Science Foundation Grant DEB9616480.

REFERENCES

CHAPPARS, M. S. 1936. Catalog of the type specimens of fossils in the University of Cincinnati Museum. The Ohio Journal of Science, 36:145.

HANSMAN, R. H., F C. SHAW, AND W. A. PETTYJOHN. 1962. Supplement to the catalog of the type specimens of fossils in the University of Cincinnati Museum. University of Cincinnati, 131 p.

ACCEPTED 1 JuNE 2000

COLIN D. SUMRALL,1* PAULA T. WORK,1 DAVID L. MEYER,2 GLENN W. STORRS,1 AND ELIZABETH MERRITT1^

1Frederick and Amey Geier Collections and Research Center, Cincinnati Museum Center, 1720 Gilbert Ave. Cincinnati OH 45202, and

2Department of Geology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221

* Present address: Department of Geoscience, University of Iowa, Iowa City 52242.

^ Present address: Museum Assessment Program, American Association of Museums, 1575 I St. NW, Washington, DC 20005.