New Display!

Titled "A Few of My Favorite Fossils", George Oliver's eclectic new display spans a time frame from the first fossil given to him by his father to his latest finds and features fossils from all over the world. One of the more interesting items in his collection is a Yorktown age whale skull he painstakingly restored.

New Picnic Area!

For many years our old gazebo has served us well but to accomodate larger groups, we decided it was time for a change. Our new picnic area has a larger covered area (think more shade) with ramps and tables that are wheelchair friendly.

The Learning Center

The Learning Center contains a growing lending library of scientific literature. If you're looking for a hard to find piece of paleo or geological literature, check out our selections. Outdoor classes and other gatherings can be held under the covered pavilion. Wall art depicts the earth as it may have appeared at various times in the past.

New whale display

Originally recovered by a sharp-eyed dragline operator at PotashCorp-Aurora (then PCS), this 8x8-foot block of Yorktown clay containing a partial baleen whale had sat unprepared for many years. In 2008, an anonymous donor gave the fossil whale to the museum. The 25 vertebra and mostly complete rib cage allow for an estimated length of the living animal between 35 and 40 feet.

Weighing nearly one ton, moving and working on this prehistoric specimen presented an astronomical number of challenges. It was only through teamwork of our hardworking Friends of the Museum, the Town of Aurora and various commercial entities that the outstanding display we now have was made possible. We thank them all.

A brief preview of the displays in our Learning Center