For many years, long before its true nature was known, it served as a doorstop and flower bed ornament. It was even painted green for a time. "It" is a 33-pound meteorite discovered in a cow pasture near Tazewell, Tenn., in the 1930s by Tilmon Brooks, the late grandfather of Donna Lewis, a school secretary in Pineville. It wasn't until Lewis' husband, George, received a strong signal from his metal detector that the Lewises realised maybe this was no ordinary rock. Read more
Meteor finds new home at Eastern in New Science Building
Acquiring the meteorite has many in the physics department excited with its predicted use as a teaching tool and also its national attention. The meteorite has gained national attention, making the headline news on Yahoo! and being covered by newspapers in several states. The rock also made an appearance during the Kentucky Academy of Science, which was held by Eastern earlier in October. Read more
EKU given meteorite found in cow pasture in the 1930s
On Thursday, the Lewis family formally announced that the meteorite found in a cow pasture near Tazewell, Tenn., in the 1930s is now the property of Eastern Kentucky University. It will eventually go on display in the new Sciences building. Read more
The Tazewell (Iron) meteorite was discovered in Tennessee, USA, in 1853. A total mass of 27.2 kg was recovered.