October 6, 2011 - Will Florida one day disappear beneath rising sea waters? Or will mankind continue to flourish here indefinitely?

Those questions and more will be explored at an upcoming Polk State College lecture titled “Fossil Hunting on the Peace River.” Dr. Richard Geringswald, a professor of archaeology at Jamaica Christian College in Kingston, Jamaica, will give a presentation and display dozens of fossils collected along the Peace River.

The lecture is free and open to the public and scheduled for 10 a.m. on Oct. 8 in Room 254 of the Administration Building on the Winter Haven Campus.

Geringswald has spent the last 25 years searching for and collecting fossils, assembling a collection that includes a wooly mammoth molar, a saber-toothed cat’s skull and knuckle, wooly mammoth fur and shark teeth.

PSC Archaeology Club sponsor Kathleen Riley said the lecture is an opportunity for the public to learn about the history of their surroundings.

“Dr. Geringswald has extensive training in archaeology. He has gone out on his own for decades hunting fossils and researching the history of the Peace River,” she said.