LITERATURE + LECTURES

The Houston Museum of Natural Science presents an HMNS Special Lecture. Fascinating Speakers, Cutting Edge Science.  Hear about the latest scientific discoveries - from the world's foremost experts. Throughout the year, HMNS hosts a variety of distinguished lecturers to enhance your understanding of a current exhibition or provide new perspectives on captivating topics.

Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011 at 6:30PM: Bringing Camels to America. Speaker:  Stewart B. Nelson, Ph.D., (pictured) Historian and Oceanographer.

In the 1800s Galveston was the port of entry to many immigrants coming to the United States, but people were not the only immigrants. In the 1850s, Galveston also welcomed camels from the Middle East. After their arrival in Galveston, camels were initially kept in corals on land that later became the front yard of Colonel Moody's mansion. To this day in Galveston, it is illegal to have a camels run loose in the street.

The genesis of the "Texas Camel Corps" can be credited to a US Navy survey of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea undertaken in 1848. Sponsored by then US Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, the camels were enlisted to provide the Army with a more efficient means of transportation across the Great American Desert.

Oceanographer, historian and author Dr. Stewart B. Nelson will tell the colorful story of the Texas Camel Corps. Nelson has participated in oceanography and historical research projects in all of the world's oceans and more than 100 countries. He has served as president of the American Oceanic Organization and is honored as a Congressional Fellow and Fellow of the Explorers Club and Marine Technology Society.

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