In a quarry of Mantua Township, N.J., sits a fossil park that overlooks a small emerald lake and a muddy dig site taking up 123 acres of land. The Edelman Fossil Park & Museum seeks to educate visitors on the past and present them with an image of the future through its findings.
Entering the futuristic blocky building, you’ll pass the lake, a playground with wooden dinosaurs, and the cretaceous garden—all leading to the entrance of the fossil museum that uses no fossil fuels, built with sustainable materials and special windows so native birds can see them.
The park allows activities that are completely free and open to the public, while others are paid pursuits that allow more in-depth exploration.
Visitors can pay for a ticket to tour the museum that begins with an animated short film called “Our Place in Time.”
The tour then begins with the first of three sections of the museum, “Dinosaur Coast,” a segment to show dinosaur replicas in action poses, all narratively telling a story to the next section, “Monstrous Seas.”
The second section is entirely made up of fossils found directly on the site, including several full turtle shells and even a fully preserved fish that shows the head, eyes, and gills.
The narrative story ends in the “Hall of Extinction and Hope.” This section shows the stories of eight people, from the first indigenous female member in the Brazilian parliament to a North Dakotan farmer practicing regenerative agriculture. Each story is connected to pushing back on climate change and the biodiversity crisis.
The Hall of Extinction and Hope presents a main hypothesis of Dr. Kenneth Lacovara, founding director of The Edelman Fossil Park & Museum, who argues that humans are currently living and causing the sixth mass extinction event, but can stop it.
“People love what they know, and protect what they love,” said Lacovara.
The statement is a guide for the education section, wanting people of all ages to connect with the dinosaurs and using the hall of hope section to educate visitors on what they can do to help.
The park also allows visitors to purchase tickets to the public dig site of the quarry, a VR experience, and access to the “Critter Cove”—all efforts to help sustain the bills to keep the park functional and operational.
The museum’s grand opening is March 29.
Article written by Shayne Crowley. Photos by Gavin Schweiger.