[meteorite-list] Mifflin with provenance

[Jack Schrader]

With all of the goings on now concerning Mifflin stones, I want to mention two 
important things here.  


The first concerns Todd Parker and the 10.3 gram Mifflin stone that he has on 
eBay right now.  

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mifflin-Meteorite-Fresh-Fall-Wisconsin-10-3-gram-/170637598575?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27bacb1f6f


I bought this stone directly from the finder Vicky Olds and traded it to Todd 
recently so it is a bonified true blue Mifflin stone.  That is the chain of 
ownership.  This stone is even more collectible as it comes with a map which 
pinpoints the exact spot on the 40 acre field where Vicky found the stone on 
April 28, 2010.  The map consists of a Google earth image of the 40 acre farm 
with 5 stones marked in red dots and the stone that Todd is auctioning off 
circled.  Vicky didn't have a scale so she estimated the weight of the stone at 
9 grams which is pretty close for a guess.  The stone actually weighs 10.3 grams 
on a good scale.  The bottom part of the page she gave me with the Google Earth 
map on the top reads "1 of 5 meteorites from the 40 acre field North of 
Iowa-Grant Schools Found by Vicky Olds on April 28, 2010 Livingston, WI 9 grams" 
and then it is signed by Vicky Olds.  Vicky is well known as the most successful 
local hunter involved in the Mifflin recovery efforts and to have one of her 
stones is a very unique opportunity as she did not sell all of her stones.  I 
think, but not certain, that her grand total in the end was 8 stones recovered.  


I made a trade with Todd for his 108 gram Mifflin stone that I found.  Todd gave 
me permission to disclose details of our trade.  I traded Todd four Mifflin 
stones (one of which was the Vicky Olds stone) and a slice plus some cash for 
his stone.  I can vouch for Todd and tell you that anything he sells on eBay as 
a Mifflin stone is just as he says....and you can take that to the bank.

Which brings me to the second point concerning the Mifflin recovery efforts.  
The discussion has centered around hunters stealing stones from landowners.  The 
hunt wasn't all roses lollipops and sunshine for the hunters either.  The car 
dealership owner (whose name escapes me right now and that is just as well) gave 
hunters permission to hunt his property.  His property was across the road from 
the barn where the first stone was found.  I hunted his property right alongside 
Robert Ward with permission from the car dealer.  A deal had already been made 
and agreed to by all parties involved to pay the pre agreed on rate for and 
stones found.  The dealer, his son, Robert Ward and I were all strolling along 
the back part of his property when Robert finds a 26 gram fragment just inside 
the fence on his property.  I could tell right then by the look on this guys 
face that he was not happy about Robert finding the stone, but a deal is a 
deal.  Right?  Not this time sports fans.  The car dealer asks Robert if he can 
take the stone home so he can show it to his wife and photograph it.  At this 
point, I had a very uneasy feeling.  You guessed it.....he refused to give the 
stone back to Robert and in doing so, stole from Robert and broke his given 
word.  And that is all I have to say about that.

Best wishes and a Happy Mother's Day to all.....we would not be here otherwise, 
Jack Schrader IMCA #2329