Join in the fossil fun as national parks and partners hold National Fossil Day events across the country. Meet paleontologists, sift for fossils, go on scavenger hunts, and more. Most events are either on or around National Fossil Day.
This website will be updated with park and partner sponsored events as quickly as possible, but there are many other local, unafiliated, or guided fossil events that can be discovered elsewhere on the internet. Check the websites of your local community calendar, college, university, museum, or geologic society to see what they may be offering.
Hosting an event? Find more information on adding it to this list.
National Fossil Day Events
National Fossil Day EventsMany exciting events are being held at museums, federal and state agencies, fossil sites, science and education organizations, and avocational groups across the country. Some events may require reservations or admission fees. Please contact the event host for more specific information about the event. Alabamaevent information Alaskaevent information ArizonaPetrified Forest National Park National Fossil Day at PEFO Petrified Forest National Park Come out to Petrified Forest National Park to celebrate National Fossil Day in our unique Triassic style! Activities include watching fossil preparation, touring museum collections, creating your own plaster fossil cast, and chatting about all things fossils with our staff paleontologists. Fossil preparation demonstration lab 9 am - 3pm Create-a-fossil plaster casting 9 am - 3 pm Demo Lab at Painted Desert Visitor Center Lab and collections tours 11 am & 2 pm Painted Desert Visitor Center Meet a paleontologist 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm Rainbow Forest Museum Wednesday, October 10, 2018 Adam Marsh, lead paleontologist. e-mail us https://www.nps.gov/pefo/index.htm Californiaevent information ColoradoDinosaur Ridge Visitor Center Girl Scout/National Fossil Day Friends of Dinosaur Ridge Come celebrate National Fossil Day with Dinosaur Ridge! Girl Scouts can register to earn requirements for badges of all levels. October 13, 2018 9am to 3pm: Dinosaur Ridge Visitor Center: 16831 W Alameda Parkway, Morrison, CO 80465 Erin LaCount: education@Dinoridge.org Delawareevent information District of ColumbiaFloridaevent information Illinoisevent information Indianaevent information Marylandevent information Massachusettsevent information MichiganMichigan State University National Fossil Day Michigan State Federal Credit Union (MSUFCU) The MSU Museum celebrates National Fossil Day on Sunday, October 14, 2018, 1-4 p.m., an afternoon of fossil fun! Michigan fossil dig & sift Junior Paleontologist hunt Fossil molds to make and take Face painting “Ask the Expert”: a paleontologist will be on hand to answer your fossil questions and to identify specimens Fossil puzzle station Fossil ID competition with prizes Special opportunity: A “fossils only” version of MESTA’s famous Rock Shop will be set up for educators to acquire invertebrate fossils for study in the classroom or at home. In partnership with Michigan Earth Science Teachers Association (MESTA), brought to you by Michigan State University Federal Credit Union (MSUFCU) National Fossil Day (NFD) is a celebration organized by The National Park Service and the American Geosciences Institute to promote public awareness and stewardship of fossils, as well as to foster a greater appreciation of their scientific and educational value. October 14th, 2018 1:00 PM- 4:00 PM
MSU Museum Nick VanAcker vanack22@msu.edu 517-432-1472 https://www.museum.msu.edu/?event=national-fossil-day Mississippievent information Missourievent information Montanaevent information Nebraskaevent information Nevadaevent information New JerseyRutgers University Geology Museum Fossils and Dinosaurs Late Night Rutgers Geology Museum Take a step back in time to discover the different types of dinosaurs and other creatures that inhabited Earth during the Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic Eras! Demonstrations, arts and crafts and educational activities will be set up around the museum and people are welcome to come and go as they please. The event is free and open to visitors of all ages! Wednesday, October 3, 2018 4-8 pm Rutgers University Geology Museum, Geology Hall, 2nd Floor, 85 Somerset St, New Brunswick, NJ 08901 New Mexico New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science National Fossil Day Celebration More details to follow Las Cruces Museum of Nature and Science Fossil Day at the Las Cruces Museum of Nature and Science The Bureau of Land Management Las Cruces District and Prehistoric Trackways National Monument (PTNM) are partnering with the Las Cruces Museum of Nature and Science (MoNaS) and the New Mexico State University Department of Biology to celebrate National Fossil Day 2018. The MoNaS will be open to the public on Main Street during the popular downtown Farmer’s Market. Docents will be available to provide tours of the exhibits, which include BLM fossil specimens from Prehistoric Trackways National Monument and live reptiles from the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert. Dr. Peter Houde, NMSU Biology Department, will also bring and discuss fossil specimens of more recent Plio-Pleistocene mammals found in the District. The BLM and MoNaS will set up touch stations for the public to examine both fossil casts and real ichnofossil trackway slabs, as well as a fossil craft station for the kids, and a Geology and Paleontology BLM Junior Ranger activity station. Saturday, October 13th, 2018 9am-12pm Museum of Nature and Science, 411 North Main Street, Las Cruces, New Mexico 88001 Stephanie Hawkins Education Curator/Quality of Life/Las Cruces Museum System Direct: 575-532-3372 Main: 575-522-3120 Colin Dunn Bureau of Land Management, Monument Paleontologist/Geologist 575-525-4454 http://www.las-cruces.org/departments/quality-of-life/museum-system/museum-of-nature-and-science https://www.blm.gov/visit/ptnm https://www.facebook.com/BLMLasCruces/ New YorkMuseum of the Earth, Paleontological Research Institution FOSSIL MANIA Museum of the Earth at the Paleontological Research Institution This event is a fun and educational event with hands-on activities to help you explore and discover fossils in many ways. We have lots of cool late Cretaceous fossils to explore. From the life-sized Quetzelcoatlus that flew the skies to the strange heteromorph who lived in the oceans. Museum of the Earth has something for all to learn and experience. Saturday, October 13, 2018 10 am – 1 pm Museum of the Earth- Ithaca, NY 14850 607-273-6623 x33 North Carolinaevent information North DakotaGrand Forks Public Library and the Dakota Science Center STEM @ the Library Earth Systems Grand Forks Public Library and the Dakota Science Center Geology and Earth Science STEM activities for families October 14th, 2018 Grand Forks Public Library Dr. Laura Munski, Dakota.Science@gmail.com OhioCleveland Museum of Natural History National Earth Science and International Archaeology Day! Dig into archaeology, geology, mineralogy and more from 10am to 4pm Saturday, October 13. This event is included with general admission. Members get in free! Non-members: Free with general admission. Talk with Museum curators, volunteers and staff from the departments of:
Meet guest scientists and representatives from local clubs and societies including:
Bring in a fossil, rock, mineral or artifact for identification Visit the Educator Resource Center on the Museum's lower level and see archaeology and Earth science teaching kits from 10am to 1pm Assemble a pottery puzzle and take part in a rock matching activity in Smead Discovery Center on the Museum’s lower level Enter a free raffle hosted by the Cleveland Geological Society. A winner will be chosen every hour! (must be present to claim your prize). October 13th, 2018 10:00 AM to close Cleveland Museum of Natural History, 1 Wade Oval Drive, Cleveland OH 44106 https://www.cmnh.org/archaeology-earth-science-day Ohio Statehouse National Fossil Day-Ohio Statehouse Fossil Tour Join us for National Fossil Day, held during Earth Science Week, and enjoy a Statehouse Fossil Tour--a geology tour of the Statehouse with special guest Dale M. Gnidovic, Curator of the OSU Orton Geological Museum. Experts will discuss the "Building Stones of the Capitol." For more information, visit ohiostatehouse.org. To reserve a free spot, call 614-728-2130 or lstedke@ohiostatehouse.org. October 17th, 2018 12:00 PM- 1:00 PM http://www.ohiostatehouse.org/ Oregonevent information Pennsylvaniaevent information South Dakotaevent information TennesseeMcClung Museum of Natural History and Culture Can you Dig it? McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture Archaeologists and paleontologists and their graduate students from the University of Tennessee will present on displays about their projects across the world, and talk with public about their work. Visitors can also bring artifacts, rocks, and fossils for identification. A number of activities for children, including games and take home crafts related to archaeology, will be available. All activities are free and open to the public. Sunday, October 14 1:30- 5:00 McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Drive Knoxville, TN 37996 Leslie Chang Jantz, Curator of Education, lcjantz@utk.edu https://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu/events/family-fun-day-10-14-2018/ TexasWaco Mammoth National Monument Fall Fossil Festival City of Waco Family friendly event full of fossils, food, fuzzy friends, and fun. Tour our dig site. Have fun with arts and crafts, face painting, and games. Paint a pumpkin. Enjoy this relaxed fall-themed festival with our friendly park rangers. October 13, 2018 9:00a-5:00p Waco Mammoth National Monument, 6220 Steinbeck Bend Dr, Waco TX 76708 Raegan King raegank@wacotx.gov Waco Mammoth National Monument 254-750-7946 nps.gov/waco and wacomammoth.org UtahGarth and Jerri Frehner Museum of Natural History, Southern Utah University Amazing Fossil Discoveries on Your Public Lands Garth and Jerri Frehner Museum of Natural History Did you know that Utah is home to a Jurassic Dinosaur Death Pit? Or that the dinosaur centerpiece of the Smithsonian Museum in Washington DC is a 90-foot long Diplodocus longus from Utah? The Garth and Jerri Frehner Museum of Natural History will be hosting a day long event celebrating the amazing fossils found on public lands all over the United States and how they have contributed to human understanding of life on Earth. Exhibits will be open from 9am until 5pm with a special kids fossil activity at 3 pm and an evening lecture by local scientists from 6:30-8:30 pm to discuss ancient DNA, paleontology in Utah, and the status of fossils on Utah's public lands. 10/17/2018 all day, see description Garth and Jerri Frehner Museum of Natural History, Southern Utah University, on the corner of S 300 W and E 200 S, Cedar City, Utah. Dr. Jacqualine Grant, jacqualinegrant@suu.edu, 435-865-8549 https://www.suu.edu/cose/museum/ WashingtonBurke Museum of Natural History and Culture National Fossil Day Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture Celebrate National Fossil Day™ and see live fossil preparation at the Burke! The doors will be open to our Testing, Testing 1-2-3: Work in Progress fossil prep lab so you can get up close to examine the incredible progress our paleontologists are making on the “Tufts-Love” T. rex skull and other fossils Saturday, October 13, 2018 1–5 PM Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1413 NE 45th St, Seattle, WA 98105 theburke@uw.edu | 206.616.3962 Wyomingevent information Submit an Event to Add to this ListTo add your organization's event to the events list, please contact us with the following information:
Organizations are encouraged to hold events to celebrate National Fossil Day on the scheduled NFD date, the weekend before or after, or another date that works for them. |
Last updated: August 15, 2018