This shell was found in 1889 by a 17 year old
Lucien Beckner (1873-1963) in Naples, Florida USA. Mr. Beckner was a mentor to Professor
James Conkin (1924-2017) and his natural history collection was left to him upon his
death.
I think the shell pictured in this posting is a Lettered Olive Snail or
Oliva sayana (Ravenel, 1834).
Lucien Beckner
was born into an established Kentucky family in 1873. He attended
Louisville Military Academy, Centre College, the University of Kentucky
and Transylvania College. Later he practiced law in Winchester, Kentucky
as well as serving as a newspaper editor there. Next he worked as a
geologist at the Kentucky Geological Survey and with Louisville Gas and
Electric. He switched careers and worked as an engineer with the
Louisville and Nashville Railroad and then helped build a railroad in
Ecuador.
In 1933, he became curator of the Louisville Museum of
Natural History and Science at the Louisville Free Public Library. He
held that position for 26 years helping educate the Louisville area
community about natural history. He is buried at
Winchester Cemetery in Clark County, Kentucky, USA.
