| Show THE UTAH NEWSPAPER HALL OF FAME study At the bank customers had often brought in Indian artifacts theyfound in their fields when plowing -an arrow head spearhead or pieces of pottery That too piqued Beckwithcuriosity and he became intensely interested in both modern Indians and those wholived in the area hundreds of years earlier Demands of the newspaper had prevented him pursuing this research but givenbit more freedom from the Chronicle he went into it with enthusiasm He also took up photography and made an outstanding pictorial record of points of interest in and around Millard County The hobby that gave him his greatest pleasure was geology of the area and he became extremely well-read on the sub ject Atone time he had sent000 trilobites fossilized remnants of ocean life to the Smithsonian Institute It wasmatter of great pride to him that one rare specimen was named Beckwithia Typa and is included in the Index of Fos sils It was his custom each weekend after the Chronicle was off the press to set out in his old pickup truck outfitted with camera bedroll and lunch box He would return with his prized findings andplentiful supply of notes In later years when he could no longer make such rigorous trips he took many airplane rides photographing from the air Not only did his pictures and articles appear in his Delta paper but many were also sent to the Salt Lake City dailies and others were contributed to the Utah State Historical Society Though his monetary recompense was small his reward was numerous visitors who came to the Chronicle office to examine and discuss his collection His correspondence with interested readers far and near was voluminous He made many field trips to various points of interest with Boy Scout troops and other organizations Both adults and youths frequently brought in Indian relics or fossils which he placed in his showcase at the newspaper writing about the more interesting ones and later returning the item to the finder The Chronicleoffice was lined with his books and collected specimens In 1947 his book Millard and Nearby which he had 425 Digital image 2005 Marriott Library University of Utah Al rights reserved |
