In 1968, Elgin resident Juan Padilla made a discovery that many archaeologists would give their eye teeth for.
That discovery was mammoth fossils protruding from an arroyo on a ranch owned by Richard Telles near the then-Elgin school where the sixth grader attended.
Mammoths migrated to North America from Asia 1.5 million years ago, during the Ice Age. They died out here 10,000 years ago.
Juan reported his findings to teacher George Bradt, and the information was relayed to Dr. Everett H. Lindsay, assistant professor of geology at the University of Arizona. Lindsay visited the site and, in short order, the lower jaw and a tusk of a mammoth were excised.
And for 56 years the Padilla fossils have remained in the University of Arizona research collection, until Bowman-Stradling History Center (BSHC) historian Cami Schlappy asked for their return for a limited engagement at the 2024 Santa Cruz County Fair.
It was an emotional time for Padilla’s family who, along with hundreds of fair goers, visited the exhibit.
“My dad was there the whole time. His presence,” said Ricardo, Juan’s son, who lives in Tucson. “He’s always around me.”
Angelina Ramsey, Juan’s daughter, flew in from North Dakota for the exhibit. Her father, who died in 2023, had been living there with her.
“The last seven years I have been able to reconnect with my Dad on a new level,” Ramsey said. “It’s been amazing. “
With cousins coming over from Patagonia and Juan’s brother Luis from Tucson, it was a family united to recognize the contribution made by a native son.
In addition to the University’s loan of the Elgin mammoth, supporting fossils came from the Southern Arizona Museum of Science and Technology in Sierra Vista and Schlappy’s private connection.
“I felt this was an important discovery that needed to be recognized,” Schlappy said. “It is especially important for our school children to see, at any age, you can make a contribution to the community. Juan certainly did that.”
Additionally, the BSHC raised $1,250 for the renovation of the Elgin Cemetery through a raffle of three J.P. Kelley bronze sculptures. Winners of the raffle were Pattie Holbrook Oliver, Sonoita; Linda Wisdom, Tumacacori; and Pat Laperuta, Tucson.
The next curated exhibit at the BSHC will be a show of Navajo Rugs and other native American fixtures from the Gail and Steve Getzwiller Museum, in Sonoita. The exhibit will be on display 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday October 12 and 13.