Mastodon takes up residence in Goshen

GOSHEN — A replica of the Warren mastodon is now on display at the Orange County Government Center in Goshen. The exhibit features a full-sized, museum quality replica of the skull, which measures over eight feet long, as well as several original fossils. The mastodon, an Ice Age animal related to the elephant, was found in 1845 just outside Newburgh by a crew digging for peat fuel. It was the first complete mastodon skeleton ever found in the United States. It was named after the Harvard professor of anatomy John Warren, who first bought and wrote about the find. The actual skeleton is now on display in the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The county acquired the exhibit from a private collection. “This acquisition is important as a private sale was imminent in 2006 that would have resulted in the items leaving our county,” said county Executive Ed Diana. Donors who helped contribute to this exhibit are: Edward Devitt, Paul Halpern, Meadow Creek Development LLC, Constantine Sidamon-Eristoff, Irving Zuckerman, Jacobowitz and Gubits LLP, John L. Lease Management, Susan and Roger Metzger, Rosemarie Werkman, David Church, Ted Sly, and students from Golden Hill Elementary — 2005-06 4 Grade Class.