USA
Sand Origin
Sentinel Butte Formation, Mackenzie Country, ND*
*OUAW’s jewelry with worldwide sand, holding every nation, has a mix of sand from all US states but Hawaii as a USA-sand. Hawaii is excluded due to Hawaiian traditions and nowadays also rules regarding its sand.
Here sand deposited by a river some 57 million years ago, collected by North Dakota’s Geological Survey, McKenzie County, gets to represent all.
Local Sand Trivia
Did you know that there’s a shaker with sand at each desk in the United States Senate Chamber?
In the past, they sprinkled freshly written documents with blotting sand to dry the ink quickly. Imagine senators like Aaron Burr using sand to absorb the ink on papers while debating crucial issues in the young republic.
To this day, each desk still has a small container holding “blotting sand.” Although it’s unlikely anyone uses it today, it serves as a historical reminder.
So, next time you come across a Senate desk in a newspaper or movie, keep an eye out for the special place with sand. (If it’s missing, you’ll know the prop could have been better done.)
Sand as ordinary as it is can connect us to the past!Â
