Geologic History of Wellesley talks

The Wellesley Conservation Land Trust Educational Series, co-sponsored with the Natural Resources Commission and Wellesley Free Library, is presenting a two-part online talk on the Geologic History of Wellesley by amateur geologists. Four walks will follow at dates to be determined.

• Part 1: Surficial Deposits — Thursday, April 14 at 7pm
• Part 2: Bedrock — Tuesday, April 26 at 7pm

Those interested are invited to pre-register.

These visually inspiring presentations will cover 800 million years of geologic history in Wellesley, from the town’s beginning on an island arc off Africa to the formation of an extensive lake that covered over half the town. Much of the history of the geologically significant Boston Basin can be found in Wellesley, owing to the town’s unique position between fault zones and (previously) under a mile-thick continental ice sheet. Presented by:

• Chris Crowley. Chris is an amateur naturalist and 26 year resident of Wellesley, who used his Covid semi-confinement to research and photograph the 56 local geological sites identified in Fowler-Billings’ “The Geological Story of Wellesley.”

• Alisa Fine. Alisa has an MA in geography from the University of Colorado-Boulder and 2 young boys whom she hopes will grow up to love rocks and the outdoors as much as she does.

• Mike Thonis. Mike has a graduate degree in earth science from MIT, and is a trustee of the Boston Museum of Science, having previously been a trustee of the Geological Society of America Foundation.

More: Wellesley, Mass., rocks

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