PRESENTATION OF THE HARRELL L. STRIMPLE AWARD TO STEPHEN FELTON

Abstract

In Cincinnati we are very fortunate to have the support of one of the nation's most active and well-informed groups of amateur paleontologists, the Dry Dredgers, founded in 1942 by Ken Caster. Steve Felton has been a member of the Dry Dredgers for 30 yr. During this time Steve has been unquestionably the most knowledgeable member of this enthusiastic group. He has also been the most helpful to professional paleontologists, students, and fellow amateurs among a group of amateurs who are generally very willing to help others in paleontological endeavors. Steve contributes to paleontology in a wide variety of ways, ranging from volunteer presentations at local schools to providing advice to researchers and graduate students to carrying out his own research program. In these activities he has been unflagging in his interest and involvement with research and graduate education at the University of Cincinnati over the 26 yr I have known him. I will briefly share with you some of the many ways Steve has earned our recognition through the Strimple Award. Steve Felton is first and foremost, an astute observer of the complexities and subtleties of Cincinnatian stratigraphy. Early on, I learned about Cincinnatian stratigraphy from Steve. As a newcomer to the region, I was bewildered with the great thickness of seemingly undifferentiated limestone and shale, and wondered how one could ever recognize key horizons. I well remember an early field trip with Steve, a “grand tour” of the Western Hills, on which he pointed out many key outcrops and horizons. It soon became clear to me that Steve had a keen eye for stratigraphic and paleontologic detail, and possessed a vast knowledge of …