346 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM vol.90 



are associated with its history. The records of the early years are 

 unfortunately incomplete, but most of the specimens of tliis period 

 were inferior in quality of preservation. This list has been to a 

 great extent compiled from the annual reports, and since the fiscal 

 year (introduced in 1885) runs from July 1 to June 30 of the follow- 

 ing year, many of the specimens and collections may have been col- 

 lected or acquired in the calendar year preceding the annual report 

 dates used here. 



1850 



A small lot of Oligocene Mammalia from the "Mauvaises Terres," 

 or Badlands, of Dakota Territory was collected for the Smithsonian 

 Institution by Thaddeus A. Culbertson. This collection, with other 

 materials, formed the basis of Dr. Joseph Leidy's report "The Ancient 

 Fauna of Nebraska" (Smithsonian Contr. KnowL, vol. 6, No. 58, 

 126 pp., 1853). 



1851 



A collection of fossil vertebrates from the Badlands of Dakota 

 Territory was presented by Capt. Stewart Van Vliet, U. S. Army. 

 Plaster cast of a fossil seal bone from Maryland was presented by 

 Dr. Jeffries Wyman. 



1853 



Vertebrate remains from the exploring expeditions under the direc- 

 tion of Dr. David Dale Owen were deposited by the Commissioner of 

 the United States Land Office. It is quite certain that these specimens 

 were the ones collected by Dr. John Evans in 1849 and 1853 fi'om the 

 Oligocene of the Badlands of Dakota Territory. 



1855 



Shark teeth and mastodon bones from the Pleistocene of Florida 

 were presented by Capt. John C. Casey, United States Army. Mrs. 

 Mary Hereford presented bones of "Zeuglodon" from a marl bed in 

 Calvert County, Md. 



1858 



The bulk of the collections of the National Institute was transferred 

 to the Smithsonian Institution. See page 311 for list of fossil 

 specimens. 



1859 



The type specimen of Dystropluteus viaemalae, collected by Dr. J. S. 

 Newberry of the Macomb Expedition from the Jurassic of southern 

 Utah, was deposited by the War Department (Cope, E. D., Proc. 

 Amer. Philos. Soc, vol. 16, p. 581, 1877) . 



