Is a Mastodon Being Unearthed in Illinois?

Believe it. Students at Principia College on the bluffs above Elsah, Illinois are excavating a mastodon this week.

This isn’t the first time a dig has been centered on the schools’ campus. There have been three previously, including a mastodon uncovered in 1999. That find is on display at Principia’s science center.

Originally discovered in 2022, while he was using a bobcat on campus, facilities worker Michael Towell found what turned out to be a tusk quite by accident. Faculty led classes began fossil digs that fall.

Principia is a private college that sits atop the bluffs above Elsah, Illinois overlooking the Mississippi River along Great River Road.

The campus is 2500 acres large, so there is potential for more finds and digs for years to come. A portion of the land Principia is on is designated as a National Historic Landmark, due to some of the architecture of the buildings on the grounds.

Good question. No, the school’s mascot is not the Mastodon. They are the Panthers.

What else is up there? Time will tell.