November 14, 2024

Rowan University's fossil museum, with life-sized dinosaur depictions, is set to open in March

The park will be situated above a quarry where over 100,000 remains from more than 100 species were unearthed.

By Franki Rudnesky
PhillyVoice Staff

Provided Image/Edelman Fossil Park & Museum

The Edelman Fossil Park & Museum of Rowan University will open in March in Gloucester County. The attraction will feature life-sized reconstructions, virtual reality experiences, live animals and nature trails.

Rowan University's long-awaited fossil museum is nearly ready to welcome visitors for a journey into South Jersey's distant past.

The Edelman Fossil Park & Museum (EFM) will open in March 2025 at 66 Million Mosasaur Way in Mantua Township, Gloucester County, the university announced. The attraction will be situated 40 feet above a quarry where over 100,000 fossils from more than 100 species — including mosasaurs, marine crocodiles, sea turtles and sharks — were unearthed.

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The museum will offer galleries full of life-sized dinosaur reconstructions, depicting some of the creatures that roamed the mid-Atlantic seaboard 66 million years ago. There will also be live animal interactions, virtual reality experiences, a theater, cafe, paleontology-themed playground and nature trails. According to Rowan, visitors will also have the opportunity to dig for real fossils at the "only place in the world to see a preserved fossil ecosystem from the exact moment of the asteroid impact that marked the end of the dinosaurs."

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"The opening of Edelman Fossil Park & Museum marks a momentous occasion for our region and for visitors from around the world," Kenneth Lacovara, founding executive director of EFM, said in a release. "This is not just a museum — it’s a gateway to a breathtaking chapter of Earth's history. Here, we open a window onto the profound and pivotal events of the fifth mass extinction, during which the dinosaurs and 75% of species perished, shaping the modern world as we know it.”

Construction on EFM, which was initially slated to open last year, began in 2021. Rowan purchased the fossil park in 2016 for $1.95 million. The Glassboro-based university received a $25 million donation from alumni Jean and Ric Edelman that year to expand and preserve the space.

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