See Dinosaurs at Ste. Genevieve Museum Learning Center

Check out dinosaur fossils and explore the oldest town in Missouri as part of a day in Ste. Genevieve, which is about an hour south of St. Louis.

The Story of Missouri Dinosaurs

Dinosaur bones were first found in a farm field in Bollinger County in the 1940s.

Discovered in the late 1980s were a jaw section and partial skeleton of a juvenile dinosaur now displayed at the museum.

Found also were bones of a larger dinosaur from a primitive duck-billed dinosaur similar to the Iguanodon and named Parrosaurus missouriensis.

Now you can see many different dinosaurs along with learn the history of the area at the Ste. Genevieve Museum Learning Center.

OUR TIME HERE

We entered through the gift shop before heading to the exhibits. This is where you pay admission or buy a toy. My son found a Godzilla-shaped pop-it.

Hall of Giants

Next, we stepped into the main dinosaur exhibit area called the Hall of Giants. Here you come face-to-face with the dinosaurs that ruled the Earth over 65 million years ago. Life-size models give a rare glimpse into the lives of these massive creatures. Also, there are giant insects, Ice Age fossils, and huge, geology-touch specimens.

Dinosaurs and Mastadons

Andrew liked the large dinosaur skull with long narrow teeth. (Main photo)

Then we checked out the many fossils on display. A large rock had “Cockle Shells” throughout it, much like you would see today at the ocean.

A back area showed fossils from eras even before the dinosaurs.

Then we gazed at the two-ton slab of sandstone from Wyoming covered with real dinosaur bones and various fossils.

The museum also has displays of mastodons and other large mammals that lived during the Miocene era after the dinosaurs.

*How my son measures up to a dinosaur leg.*

My son stood in front of a large leg bone modeling how tall the dinosaurs were.

Besides the displays, you will see a workroom where scientists are studying parts of the dinosaurs. Sometimes you can see scientists at work using microscopes or clearing out sediment to study the fossils.

Ancient Cultures Gallery

Another area on the first floor includes exhibits on daily life and cultural practices of early civilizations. This includes the Maya, Mississippians, Vikings, and Celts.

You can view authentic artifacts from the stone, copper, bronze, and iron ages.

Focus Gallery

Also on the first floor is the Focus Gallery. Here you can see fossil snail shells and eggs, including dinosaur eggs.

Look for a prop from the Jurassic Park III movie that includes a dinosaur egg incubator.

In addition, is a Crystal Radio exhibit on the first forms of radio communication that did not need electricity to work.

Second Floor Galleries

Exhibits in this gallery include mining tools, weapons of the Civil War along with other historical objects.

Fascinating to my son was a bank vault stolen by the Jesse James gang in a daring robbery.

An exhibit includes a phonograph that you used to wind a machine to have it play music.

A local history gallery has a Ste. Genevieve river transfer boat, a display on a nearby Prisoners of War Camp from World War II, along with antique guns.

He liked the intriguing miniature exhibit on the Hindenburg crash in 1937.

DETAILS

Drive: Take Interstate 55 south to Exit 154 for Highway O and go left on it then make a right onto U.S Highway 61 then make a left onto Market Street and look for Ste. Genevieve Museum Learning Center on the right between Fourth and Third Street.

Admission: 4 years or Younger – Free; K-12 – $5; Adults-$10; Seniors (62+) – $8; Active/Retired Military – $8; First Responders – $8

Hours: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Friday-Sunday; Monday-Thursday- Open by Appointment to Accommodate Larger Groups

Address: 360 Market St, Ste. Genevieve, MO 63670

More Activities in Ste. Genevieve

We walked around the town checking out the numerous historic houses although we didn’t have time to tour them.

Andrew and I stopped outside of the Bolduc & LeMeilleur House. Restored to how it was in the 1790s with vertical logs.

This house along with others in town can be seen on a tour done by the Centre for French Colonial Life.

The State of Missouri manages the Felix Valle State Historic Site. Built in 1818 and done in the Federal style with limestone.

For more information on the town and all the historic sites stop by the Ste. Genevieve Welcome Center. Inside is a large-scale model of how the town looked during its colonial era.