History of fossil discovering in Southern Manitoba

Morden & District Museum/Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre
Data compiled by Adolfo Cuetara

Early Discoveries and Railway Construction

The existence of fossils in the Cretaceous rocks of the Manitoba Escarpment has been known since the 1860s. In 1865, J. Leidy described a tooth of a plesiosaur from the “Red River Settlement, about 50 miles south of Selkirk Settlement.”

On June 1, 1890, the Northern Pacific and Manitoba Railway Company opened a 145-mile branch line linking the Manitoba towns of Morris and Brandon. Construction of the line began in Morris in 1877, reaching the town of Miami in 1889. As grading the track west between Miami and Altamont, the line proceeded to cut through the Cretaceous shale beds of the Manitoba Escarpment. Area calculations conducted south of the main “horseshoe” curve (west of Miami) suggest that approximately 1.8 million cubic feet of Pierre Shale was removed during the construction of the track in 1889. Due to the absence of spoil piles in the area, the shale would have been excavated by steam shovel and hauled away by train to an alternate location. It would have been the rail workers and machine operators who discovered layers of bentonite and shale containing fossils as they turned up in the piles of spoils in the train cars and in the fresh cuts made by the steam shovels.

Early Studies and Bentonite Discoveries

Joseph B. Tyrrell, the namesake of the Palaeontology Museum in Drumheller, Alberta, was the first to study the sedimentary layers of the Manitoba Escarpment in 1890-92. The first bentonite deposits reported at the Manitoba Escarpment were found in 1914. In 1915, more exposures of bentonite were reported from the US border to Babcock, near Roseisle.

In the early 1930s, farmer Earnest Spencer found clay on part of his property, a few miles northwest of Morden. He was an avid reader and artifact collector and read that the clay might be valuable. He sent samples “down east,” and it was identified as very high-quality bentonite. John O’Day was interested as well and sent Thornhill samples to oil refiners for testing in 1933. O’Day filed the first mine claims for bentonite in Manitoba in 1934. He also worked at Spencer’s farm. O’Day sold some claims for $2,000 in the mid-1930s, a significant amount of money at the time. Early mine customers included Canada Packers, CSP Foods, Monarch Fine Foods, and Proctor and Gamble. Bentonite was widely used as an oil refining compound, toothpaste ingredient, and anti-caking agent for cattle feed. The clay was also used in its natural dried state as a binder in stock feeds, foundry sand, pesticide carrier, animal fur cleanser, toothpaste ingredient, and kitty litter. When activated by treatment with sulfuric acid, it was used to purify and decolorize petroleum, vegetable oils, animal fats, waxes, beverages, and syrups.

Significant Fossil Discoveries

In 1934, O’Day found two articulated skeletons of mosasaurs in two different locations while prospecting mining areas at Spencer’s. O’Day reached the town of Morden and also Loris S. Russell, a member of the Geological Survey of Canada, looking for someone interested in those findings. Russell had previously worked with the Sternberg family in Alberta, so he contacted Charles Mortar Sternberg, a palaeontologist at the Geological Survey of Canada and the National Museum of Canada (Canadian Museum of Nature) in Ottawa. Sternberg came to Morden in early summer 1934 and immediately started the excavation of both skeletons. The greatest delay encountered by Sternberg during his work in Manitoba came from the very curious populace. Spencer, against the wishes of Sternberg and O’Day, spoke freely regarding the discovery of the mosasaurs. As word spread, nearly a thousand people came to see the skeletons. Reporters from the Winnipeg Free Press even began to report the story. On some days, Sternberg spent more time guarding the fossils and answering questions than working on the skeletons. Sternberg finally finished his work on July 16, 1934. The specimens were shipped from the train station at Miami, MB, to the National Museum of Canada in Ottawa, ON. Later on, one of the specimens was discarded by the National Museum due to its poor preservation, but the other one ended up being a new species, Plioplatecarpus nichollsae by Cuthbertson et al. in 2007.

Pembina Mountain Clay Ltd and Further Discoveries

Pembina Mountain Clay Ltd was created, with a processing plant in Morden and another one in Winnipeg. The company ran from 1940 to 1962, then sold to Laporte Industries (UK), then to Filtrol (US) in 1979, and various others until Engelhard Corp. closed it in 1990. Pembina Mountain Clays Incorporated quarried the only non-swelling calcium bentonite in Canada, from the Pembina Member of the Cretaceous Pierre Shale in the Miami-Morden area of southern Manitoba, from 1939 to December 1990. The bentonite was extracted at a succession of 21 sites along the Manitoba escarpment, in the Morden-Miami area of southwestern Manitoba. Early mining history and deposits at these sites are described by Bannatyne (1963, 1970, 1984), Bannatyne and Watson (1982). Plants, located in Morden and Winnipeg, produced natural and acid-activated bentonite. The Morden drying plant and warehouse were built in 1943. Most of the bentonite production was then shipped by rail to Winnipeg for final processing, which included sulfuric acid-activation. Twelve grades of bentonite were sold in dry powder form primarily to vegetable oil refineries in Alberta and Ontario. It was also used to refine waste mineral oil and tallow soaps (Gunter, 1989). From 1949 to 1961, production averaged about 8,000 tonnes per year with a value of approximately C$0.4 million (Shetty, 1994). In 1988, Englehard Canada Ltd. of Edison, New Jersey, bought Pembina Mountain Clays from the previous owners. In 1990, 23 staff were employed, with an annual payroll of C$0.8 million (Winnipeg Free Press; June 10, 1989). Goods and services purchased in the area totaled nearly C$2.3 million, and more than C$43,000 was paid in local taxes. From 1982 to 1986, an average of 30,000 tonnes of clay was produced, at an approximate mining cost of C$15.00 per tonne (Shetty, 1994). The decision by Englehard to cease production of calcium bentonite was partially influenced by the signing of the Canada-United States free trade agreement, which removed tariffs from imported bentonite (Winnipeg Free Press; October 6, 1990).

Continued Fossil Discoveries and Museum Development

C.M. Sternberg came back to Spencer’s pit in 1937 to collect a turtle, shipped from the Miami Station to Ottawa. In 1959, Pete Roberts found a mosasaur flipper and shoulder bones, collected with Jack Westaway, identified by Professor Edward Leith (University of Manitoba) and Dick Sutton (Manitoba Museum). In 1964, a large mosasaur skull and a small mosasaur were found. In 1967, meetings of Morden Library Museum & Cultural Centre Action began. In 1967, David Bardack, from the University of Illinois, described 18 genera of vertebrates from the Cretaceous of southern Manitoba. In 1969, a separate museum committee was established, making plans for Manitoba Centennial. In 1970, the Committee hosted a weekend display in Morden Curling Rink during the Corn & Apple Festival with hopes to rent a vacant downtown store for the display year-round. On April 27, 1971, the Morden & District Museum was officially incorporated. Since 1940 until the early 1970s, Pembina Mountain Clays Ltd representatives were reporting continuous findings of fossils during operations to the Town of Morden and whoever could be interested with poor results in interest, causing the destruction of thousands of fossils during three decades.

Henry Isaak’s Contributions and Discoveries

In spring 1972, Henry Isaak, a Morden resident and university student, was on a canoe trip at the Pembina River with local farmer David Lumgair and local high school teacher Don Bell. Lumgair mentioned that fossils were just found in a bentonite mine just south of Morden. Isaak, filled with curiosity, visited the mine the next day with Don Bell. The mining operators were very friendly and showed them the last skeleton discovered, saying that they were finding fossils all the time and bulldozing them since nobody seemed to care about them. Henry and Don were in disbelief looking at an articulated skeleton of a short-neck plesiosaur just laying on the ground, so they started to pick them up. Every single day they visited the mine, collecting a good number of fossils. The personnel from Pembina Mountain Clays Inc. were very accommodating, calling Isaak every time they discovered something in any of the numerous open mining operations. Marcel Boutellier was the Company Representative, Dale Roberts was the Foreman, and Roy Friesen was the skilled Caterpillar Operator.

Henry Isaak initially piled up the fossils recovered in his parents’ house, filling up the garage and the basement. After conversations with the Town of Morden, the Council suggested using the basement of the vacant federal building (old post office) for storage of fossils, and the second floor for a museum. The official opening was during the Corn & Apple Festival that same year of 1971, with 600 visitors signing the guest book. In the summer of 1972, the highlight was the discovery of a complete, articulated plesiosaur skeleton. Henry Isaak was named the new Curator in the new Museum, and he was able to secure grants to hire students during the summer and to develop new exhibits.

In 1973, students working at the fossil excavation sites, led by Henry Isaak, uncovered valuable finds that prompted contact with the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. In 1974, students Liz Wolfram, Jim Kuchera, Liz Giesbrecht, and Gary Funk were hired with the Federal Opportunities for Youth Program. Henry Isaak’s activity and networking caused the interest from the Department of Vertebrate Palaeontology of the Royal Ontario Museum, at that time the only museum in Canada to have a special department in Palaeontology, which sent a team to help in the excavations and identification of specimens. The team was led by Curator Dr. Gordon Edmund, Assistant Curator Dr. Chris McGowan, Technicians Dave Fisk and Rudy Zimmerman (also a one-time Luftwaffe test pilot), PhD candidate Mrs. Helen Tyson, and a Grade XI student from Toronto, Linda Zernask. The ROM team had a great level of activity while their summer was spent in Morden, with conferences in Morden schools, and attending TV, radio, and newspaper interviews.

Major Discoveries at David Lumgair’s Farm

One of the most significant findings in July 1974, while working at a mine at David Lumgair’s farm, a few miles northwest of Thornhill, was a huge mosasaur skeleton which Dr. Gordon Edmund said, “It is the largest I’ve ever seen.” At the time, Morden and ROM teams working together were fans of the TV show Monty Python, and during those days of July 1974, they were joking about one of the sketches where everybody is called Bruce, so they were actually calling each other Bruce at the dig site, including the enormous mosasaur being excavated, which ended up being the biggest mosasaur ever found in the world. David Lumgair allowed not only the excavation on his land but also allowed the ROM team to camp on his property during the summer. The ROM team would come back in summer 1975 to complete the excavation at Lumgair’s.

The Morden Team in 1975 was formed by Henry Isaak and the students hired under the OFY Federal program: UofM students Jim Kuchera, Gary Funk, and Linda Dudgeon, as well as Manitou High School student Lesley Barnet and Don Gemmel of Red Deer Junior College. Earlier in the summer of 1975, Henry went with the Ontario crew on a field trip to Nevada, Denver, and Fort Hayes and Lawrence, Kansas, comparing fossil finds with museums there. The university museum in Kansas has a large collection of mosasaurs that were collected in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Eventually, the findings here will be compared with those in Kansas, to determine how unique the Morden specimens really are. Henry compared the Kansas specimens with pictures he has of the Morden specimens and thinks there are definitely some different ones here. When this is established, they will become type specimens and must then be kept in a museum for scientific study.

The basement of the old post office was rapidly being filled up and running out of space. Conversations were initiated with the Town of Morden to consider the idea of building a new place for the Museum. The Western School Division board had already displayed considerable interest in the project as a resource for the schools in this region. At a meeting of the Morden Town Council in the summer of 1974, Henry Isaak of the Project Prehistoric Southern Manitoba appeared before the council to inform them of plans the group had for acquiring space to display the prehistoric animals found in the area. Mr. Isaak told council members that when the project was first started, the museum had suggested that they could have room with them at the top of the Civic Center. This proved inadequate because the room was small and some of the animals now being excavated were up to fifty feet in length. Council was assured that the group wanted to keep the display in Morden even though they had been approached by other towns to house the display. The purpose of the visit to the council was to inform the members that the group would be approaching government and other agencies to build a home for the prehistoric display and they thought it best to let the Council know of their plans so they would be in a position to answer any questions coming from these agencies.

There were several proposals from local farmers, like Mr. Dale Roberts offering property near the excavation site on his farm, and Mrs. Winkler wanting to donate the family homestead and property to build a museum. There was also the possibility that the museum might be taken over by the government. At the time, the Town had plans to expand the Community Centre with a large Community Hall and an indoor pool. Councillor J.M. Wiens, who was also a member of the Museum’s building committee, said that the total area of the lower level where the indoor pool was intended to be built was 90′ x 120′. He estimated that about half of this space would be needed for dressing rooms and showers and that the ice plant machinery and heating system would occupy a quarter. The remaining space could be utilized as a museum. Councillor Wiens went on to say that he believed it was up to the citizens to get the things they needed, and while the Council could give them support, he warned that this project was closer to their hearts than to their pockets. Councillor Gebler noted that this should be looked on as a town project but at present, this funding was not feasible. The discovery of the animals had brought Morden a good deal of national publicity and should be encouraged.

Proposals for a New Museum Building

The Board of Directors at the Museum & District Museum proposed then to the town that the Museum would get the funds to build a separate basement underneath the Community Hall to host the Museum. The Council agreed, stating that the Town would not fund the construction. In 1975, Paul Sigurdson, Chairman of the Morden & District Museum, took the initiative of Jack Bender, Manager at the Pembina Valley Regional Development Corporation, to contact Ronal Bourgeois, advisor to the National Museum in Ottawa. Mr. Bourgeois was impressed with the fossil specimens and the work done in cataloging and preserving the collections, encouraging the Board to make a submission for federal grants for the construction of a suitable building.

In 1976, a plan was set up and a 200-page brief with plans and precise details was submitted to the National Museum in Ottawa. The plan was approved by Museums Canada to the Museum & District Museum for an amount of $169,200 in 1976. William F. Latter, Secretary of the Morden & District Museum, said that it was difficult getting the National Museums of Canada to give them the grant for the Museum. “It was an uphill battle all the way,” Latter said, “We are just a small group working in a rural area. It was difficult to create interest. The lack of interest has taken its toll.” Mr. Sigurdson said the museum would be a place where scholars and visitors from around the world would be drawn because of the importance of the prehistoric discovery.

$10,200 were received immediately. The remaining $159,000 were divided into three sums of $53,000 each, to be available during a three-year period, the last in spring of 1980. To ensure that the museum was completed before 1980, when the final portion of the grant was received, the community would get some interim financing elsewhere. In 1977, W. L. Wardrop and Associates drew up the plans for the new Museum. Those architectural and engineering projects had a cost of $13,131.18. On August 10, 1977, the executive of the Museum Committee awarded three honorary life memberships at a special dinner meeting held at the Pembina Cafe. Receiving life memberships were three men from Pembina Mountain Clays Ltd, the company which mined the bentonite in the hills: Roy Friesen, caterpillar operator, Dale Roberts, foreman, and Marcel Boutellier, company representative.

Two bids for construction were received, both at a higher price than the initially estimated $169,200, creating a problem with funding and many uncertainties for the project. The Board announced that they would fall approximately $23,000 short of the construction costs. The new Building Committee was formed by Chairman George Andrew, Basil Agnew, Abe Thiessen, and Dave Winter. Help was asked from the Council of Morden, but the Council rejected any financial help, even though the Town was saving a significant amount of money in the expansion of the Community Centre by getting the Museum to cover the costs of the foundation and the basement for the Community Hall.

In 1978, additional funding of $8,000 was secured by the M&DM from the Government of Manitoba, and $12,457.39 more from the Morden & District Museum from private fundraising. After many months spent in planning and overcoming numerous obstacles, work began at the construction site in January 1978. The contractor commissioned by the Morden & District Museum for the construction was Morden Lumber & Fuel Ltd, with John M. Wiens as Manager and Alvin Dyck as Foreman. The construction costs were $188,021. The Town of Morden finally contributed $11,494.79, although not in cash, but by waiving the cost of the building permit.

In 1978, there was an agreement between the School Division and the M&DM to hire Henry Isaak (now a teacher), sharing the costs of the position and working both as a Curator and Teacher at the High School. The Western Division agreed to take Henry Isaak on staff, on a part-time basis, on the grounds that the museum would add a valuable educational resource to the community. During 1979 and 1980, new specimens were being excavated and still stored at the old post office building while the completion of the new building was conducted. Under the advice of Henry Isaak for the design of the future displays and exhibits, Bill Little Associates was commissioned by the M&DM for the design and plans of the new museum space in July 1979, at a cost of $10,000. This design firm had also been in charge of the design of the exhibits at the Museum of Man and Nature in Winnipeg.

In 1980, the fossils started to be not as plentiful as they were, since the bentonite business, under new management, had to move their operations to the west of Miami as the supply of bentonite had run out at Thornhill. Heavier equipment was also now used, which meant there was more damage to the finds. Even though, the new managers were quite cooperative with the Museum. The construction of the interior of the Museum, with galleries, offices, workshop, collections room, and laboratory, faced another big problem of funding, with an estimated cost of $212,000. In 1981, the current Board, chaired by Peter Dabbs, kept tirelessly working to reach the necessary funds. A conditional Federal grant was approved as a contribution of $125,000. This Federal grant was conditional on a contribution from the province. Finally, the Province approved funds for an amount of $45,000, making it possible to receive the Federal part. The Minister of Highways, Don Orchard, personally delivered the cheque in July 1981. The Board was still welcoming any donations to the Museum. The target date for the grand opening was during Morden’s special Centennial week in July 1982.

Under the supervision of Designer Bill Little, the exhibition area advanced with Sculptor Otakar Pavlik and artwork done by Betsy Thorsteinson. In 1981, Thomas Sill made a donation of $5,000 for the completion of the Museum. One of the most impressive projects completed in the summer of 1981 was the rubber latex mold of one of the quarry walls. This large 10×40 foot mold was used to recreate the layers of bentonite in the entrance and various displays of the Museum. To allow entrance to the Museum, built and owned by the Morden & District Museum, through the main hall of the Community Centre, there was a lease agreement signed between the Town of Morden and the Morden & District Museum to allow visitors to enter the Museum through the main lobby.

On July 8, 1982, the Morden Museum Curator Henry Isaak cut the ribbon to officially open the Morden & District Museum during the Morden Centennial Homecoming Week. 2027 visitors signed the guest book that night. On August 27, 1982, the Lieutenant-Governor Pearl McGonigal visited the newly inaugurated Museum. Also in late 1982, the Honourable Eugene Whelan (Federal Minister of Agriculture) visited the Museum. In November 1982, the Western Teachers Association (representatives Karen Guenther and Lee Lumgair) donated $500 to the Museum. Dr. Henry Marshall, President of Morden and District Museum, presented on February 21, 1983 (Heritage Day) Paul Sigurdson with the 1st Order of the Mosasaur, a new order established by the museum in appreciation of the foundation work Paul did that helped to put us where we are today. In 1983, Henry Isaak was awarded for Merit by the Canadian Museum Association for his service and initiative within the museum community. The award was presented at the Association Annual Meeting in Saskatoon on May 24, 1983.

In 1984, a plan was proposed to expand the museum westwards, giving the museum outside visibility and a ground level, with a local contractor estimating $74,100 for the construction. The Museum then made an agreement with the Town of Morden to lease the adjacent 8,400 sq/ft where originally had been planned the construction of an indoor pool, a project then stalled due to the high costs of the installation and forecasted maintenance. The space was undeveloped though. By 1987, the Museum had invested about $80,000 by constructing concrete walls and footings and preparing the floor for concrete.

In July 1984, Palaeontologist Phil Currie and graduate student by University of Calgary Elisabeth “Betsy” Nicholls visited Morden. Betsy was pursuing her PhD studying the marine reptiles at the Morden Museum. She was the first academic Palaeontologist to dedicate scientific research to the museum collections. She said, “The place to be for marine reptiles in Canada is Morden.” Her work was made a little easier thanks to Curator Henry Isaak’s computer cataloging system. She credited the high school teacher’s system with being at least as good as that in major museums including the National in Ottawa and Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. “This is a good place to study,” Betsy said, “as the large number of fossil marine reptiles make it the best collection in Canada. It is also a prolific area for Pierre Shale vertebrates and Morden has the largest collection in the world.”

In 1988, Betsy Nicholls published her PhD, including the description of a new species, Hainosaurus pembinensis (later Tylosaurus pembinensis) to which Bruce and the mosasaur Sid located in the Miami Museum belong. In 1989, Morden Museum curator Henry Isaak was recognized for his work by the Manitoba Naturalists Society. Isaak received the Ralph D. Bird Award in recognition of the excellence of his contribution to natural history in Western Canada. He received the award at the 1989 MNS annual general meeting awards ceremony.

The end of the 1980s would close a two-decade-long golden era for the Museum, bringing deep changes to the Museum. In 1989, Henry Isaak would change his life, moving to Winnipeg, leaving the Museum and the diggings in a stall. Early in 1980, U.S. President Ronald Reagan had already made the idea of free trade between the USA and Canada part of his presidential campaign. After the signing of the Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement in 1988, the administrations of U.S. President George H. W. Bush, Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari, and Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney agreed to negotiate what became NAFTA. This agreement allowed US bentonite providers to bring the mineral at a lower cost to Canada, making the Manitoban mines not profitable anymore. As a consequence, bentonite mining highly declined in 1988 and the last of the bentonite mining operations closed in 1990.

1990 started with no paid employees at the Museum, with former Treasurer John Wall as a volunteering manager and with only one summer student to help in operations that year, Mike Waddell. Almost a whole decade between 1990 and 1999 passed with little to no activity, with just John Wall opening the Museum on a part-time basis.

Rediscovery and Revitalization of the Museum

During the late 1990s, the Museum was largely forgotten, attracting barely 1,000 visitors a year. In 1999, the renewed Museum’s Board of Directors and other supporters stepped forward with a plan to revitalize the museum and make it a source of pride for Morden. The Board began discussions about a possible 8,500 sq/ft expansion, estimated to cost $500,000, and petitioned the Council of Morden to fund a Curator position.

Mayor of Morden Gerry Gebler stated, “The museum has a lot of possibilities. There are palaeontologists all over the world who would like to come here, knowing that they would find something.” He emphasized that the museum had been a hidden gem for too long and that it was time for Morden to take its potential seriously. “We’re at a point where the town and council must decide whether we want to have a museum or not,” he said. “We either have to get serious about it or just forget it. I think it’s about time we give these people support and make this museum well-known across Canada and the United States.”

In May 1999, Mike Waddell was hired as Curator, with Theresa Knox as Summer Program Coordinator, and employee Dustin Boehr, with the goal of promoting the Museum and organizing the new “Paleo Tours” program for visitors. In early 2000, Gilles Danis from Prehistoric Past Structures (PAST) in Alberta was commissioned to create a reconstructed replica of a short-neck plesiosaur from the Morden collections. Jackie Neufeld was hired for the summer as a Program Coordinator. The Museum acquired a van to transport kids to the dig sites for the Paleo Tours, with financial help from the Morden Community Thrift Store and the Morden Area Foundation.

From October 12-14, 2000, the Morden & District Museum hosted the annual conference of the Association of Manitoba Museums. More than 80 representatives, including those from Culture Heritage and Tourism, the Canadian Heritage Information Network, and the Canadian Museum of Nature, attended and were impressed with what Morden had to offer.

In the late 2000s, the Museum received funds from the Town and a $25,000 grant from Manitoba Community Places to support the expansion to the adjacent basement to the west. The plan included building needed spaces like a classroom and additional exhibit space. Another grant from Canadian Heritage for $6,500 for furniture was secured. In late February 2001, the new replica of a short-neck plesiosaur was installed in the museum. In May 2001, the Manitoba Tourism Innovation Award was given to the Museum & District Museum for its Paleo Tours program. In June 2001, the Museum received the Prix Manitoba Heritage Awards for its outstanding contributions in culture, heritage, and tourism in the areas of education and communication.

In March 2002, PAST (now owned by Frank Hadfield) was again commissioned by the Museum, this time to create a reconstructed replica of Bruce, the giant mosasaur excavated in 1974. In 2002, Betsy Nicholls, now Curator at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, returned to Morden to attend the Great Canadian Fossil Trail, hosted at the Museum on February 23. In an interview with the Morden Times, she said, “Morden has THE best marine reptile collection in Canada, and one of the best in North America.” The convention drew about 40 representatives, mostly from Western Canada, including palaeontologists and amateurs.

In June 2003, the giant replica of Bruce’s skeleton was finally installed in the new basement space to the west. In the summer of 2003, Joe Brown found a near-complete short-neck plesiosaur in a field close to Miami, the most complete skeleton to be found since the 1980s. The skeleton was excavated in 2004. In March 2004, Anita Janzic was hired as Acting Curator after Mike Waddell left the position vacant.

2004 marked an important step in the Museum’s history; a decision was made to deaccession all the Pioneer and Human history artifacts, dedicating its total resources to a centre of research in palaeontology, and changing its name to the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre. Additionally, the Centre agreed to purchase 109 acres of land where the Paleo Tours had been conducted for years. The $35,000 cost for the land was covered with the help of the Town of Morden and a loan.

In 2005, the Town of Morden increased operational support for the Centre to $90,000, with plans to hire an Executive Director. David Wilkinson was selected for the position. In 2006, Travel Manitoba granted Star Attraction status to the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre. The Thomas Sill Foundation pledged $30,000 towards the cost of a feasibility study for a new stand-alone facility for the Museum. In 2007, the Council approved a $15,000 contribution at its March 26 meeting to help the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre prepare an exhibit for a major exhibition at the Forks and IMAX Theatre in Winnipeg. In December 2008, the Thomas Sill Foundation approved a $250,000 grant for a new facility for the Museum, the largest grant in the Foundation’s history. In 2008, Morden was designated as a Cultural Capital of Canada.

In early 2009, Dave Wilkinson was dismissed, leaving the Board, led by Henry Penner, to search for a new Executive Director. Tyler Schroeder was eventually hired as General Manager. Plans for a multi-million-dollar facility continued while seeking funding. Joseph Hatcher was hired as Collections Manager. In 2011, the University of Manitoba and the CFDC signed a Memorandum of Understanding for collaboration in scientific research.

Leadership Transitions (2012-2014)

In 2012, Tyler Shroeder stepped down from his role, and Curator Anita Janzic was appointed as the new Executive Director. Under her leadership, the institution continued its mission of preserving and sharing Manitoba’s rich fossil heritage.

However, the spring of 2014 brought significant changes when both Anita Janzic and Joseph Hatcher resigned from their positions. Following their departure, Peter Cantelon assumed the role of Executive Director, while Matt Duda took over as the new Curator, marking a new era for the organisation.

National and International Recognition

In 2013, the Royal Canadian Mint honoured Manitoba’s prehistoric heritage by unveiling a commemorative quarter featuring Bruce, the giant mosasaur. This recognition underscored Bruce’s importance as a symbol of the region’s ancient past.

In 2014, PC MLA Cameron Friesen introduced Bill 200, officially designating the mosasaur species Tylosaurus pembinensis as Manitoba’s provincial fossil emblem. This legislative milestone celebrated the mosasaur’s scientific and cultural significance.

Bruce’s fame reached global heights when he was officially recognised by the Guinness World Records as the largest mosasaur on display. This remarkable distinction solidified Bruce’s status as a world-renowned symbol of Manitoba’s prehistoric legacy.

From leadership shifts to historic honours, Bruce the Mosasaur’s story is one of resilience, discovery, and enduring legacy—a prehistoric giant celebrated by science, culture, and history alike.