The Climate is Always Changing, by Warren Cole Smith

Editor’s Note: This article is the first of a five-part series on climate change.

The North American Inland Sea, sometimes called the Western Interior Seaway, once covered a huge portion of North America. It was 2500 feet deep in places, and 600 miles wide. Louisiana and Oklahoma were underwater. So was Texas, except for a few islands we now call the Texas Hill Country. Much of Canada, too. Most of the states of the Intermountain West — Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming and others — were a vast mountainous island.

We know about the North American Inland Sea in part because of fossils. Professional scientists and amateur collectors find fossils of ancient seagoing animals in rock sediments in Colorado, Wyoming, the Dakotas. Indeed, all over the West.

What are Fossils of Marine Animals Doing in Iowa?

One of the more fascinating figures of the 19th and early 20th century was Frank Springer. Springer was a lawyer, politician, and entrepreneur who moved from Iowa to New Mexico as a young man. The town of Springer, New Mexico, is named for him. He was a key figure in the development of Santa Fe into a globally-known arts colony. ….

Read more at  stream.org