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But its history before Fort Belknap is where the true lore and mystery of the meteorite lies and where the history and prehistory is less certain. The history from Fort Belknap to the Texas Memorial Museum seems pretty clear. In describing the meteorite after the fire in the Capitol building the Catalogue says "There is no appearance of any effect from the Capitol fire through which it passed very probably the weight of the mass may have carried it rapidly, on the giving way of the floor, down to some position in the basement in which it was sheltered from the heat by masonry accumulated over it." After the fire, the meteorite was moved about, eventually winding up on exhibit at the Texas Memorial Museum, where it has remained since 1938. This document indicates it was transported to San Antonio in 1858 or 1859, then later to the old Texas Capitol building that burned in 1881. As indicated on the plaque, Neighbors had the Wichita Iron transported to San Antonio this task fell to one James Duff, a merchant and freighter from San Antonio whose wagons were utilized.Īn important document that crops up in conjunction with the history of this meteorite is Catalogue of the meteorites of North America, to Janu(henceforth I'll just call it the Catalogue). When one starts poking around, reading various articles and research papers on this meteorite, the history after its arrival at Fort Belknap is about as certain as one gets. It was exhibited in 1935 at the Texas Centennial Exhibition in Gregory Gymnasium at the University of Texas, and, since 1938, has been exhibited in Texas Memorial Museum. Upon return to Austin it was deposited in the Museum of Economic Geology (145 k.g.) before being transferred to the Bureau of Economic Geology. The meteorite (160 k.g.) was retrieved from the ashes and stored in the State Archives Building until 1904 when it was exhibited at the St. It was taken to Austin for exhibit in the Texas Capitol that structure burned in 1881. From there it was moved to San Antonio by Major R. In 1856, the specimen was transported 60 miles by the Wichita people to Fort Belknap (now in Young County, Texas). This specimen is shown in an 1834 painting by George Catlin which is now in the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. It has been known to Native Americans since prehistoric times and was first reported in 1813 by John Maley, who was shown the meteorite by the Osage people. This is the fifth largest iron meteorite found in Texas.
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Photo of Wichita Iron and plaque taken 1999, Texas Memorial Museum Here's the text from the plaque shown in the photo of the meteorite: Hit earth, and some of the lore - and perhaps misinformation - that surround it.įrom Fort Belknap to the Texas Memorial MuseumĪs mentioned, this meteorite can be seen at the Texas Memorial Museum in Austin. Outer space, but the focus here is the trail it took to Austin after it The meteorite of course began its journey from This is the story of the trail of the Wichita Iron and how it came to Native Americans found them no less fascinating and Austin's Texas Memorial Museum has on exhibit one we know held special importance to Native Americans: the Wichita Iron Meteorite.