Speak To the Earth and It Will Teach You: The Life and Times of Earl Douglass, 1862-1931

Speak to the Earth and It Will Teach You is a book that tells the story of Earl Douglass, a paleontologist who made a remarkable discovery of Jurassic dinosaur bones one hundred years ago. Written by his only son, Gawin, the book includes many, never-before published, excerpts from the diaries which Earl kept for forty-seven years of his life, beginning in 1884. It tells of the pleasures and sorrows, financial problems and successes of one man’s life, dedicated to science and a search for truth. On a field expedition for the Carnegie Museum during the summer of 1909 Douglass made his famous discovery near Jensen, Utah, an area which was later set aside as Dinosaur National Monument. This discovery late in August, kept him working in Utah, living in tents with his wife and 18-month old son throughout one of the coldest winters on record for that area. The book also contains many photographs taken by Douglass during this period showing excavation and shipment of the bones.