Natural History and Science

The Everhart provides of a snapshot of the natural world of the present and the past, locally, regionally, nationally, and globally, through its immense collections of fossils, taxidermy, rocks, and minerals. It was Dr. Everhart’s own assemblage of taxidermied birds as well as other mounted animals and natural history specimens that formed the foundation of the Museum’s original collection in 1908. Many of his own specimens are on view today, over a century later.

The natural history and science galleries include the Rocks and Minerals Gallery, the Fossil Gallery, and the Bird Gallery, which in addition to over 600 preserved birds also contains a selection on mammals, reptiles, and amphibians.

Fossil Gallery

The Fossil Gallery includes fossil specimens from millions of years ago, spanning the Cambrian to the Quaternary period; fossil casts of prehistoric animals, including a fully articulated casts of Stegosaurus and a Tyrannosaurus rex skull; artwork depicting dinosaurs and Ice Age mammals by Charles Robert Knight.; and more.

Many specimens have been collected regionally, as Northeastern Pennsylvania’s anthracite coal deposits, formed from Pennsylvanian Period swamps that existed roughly 300 million years ago, are a trove of prehistoric fossils.

Rocks and Minerals

The Rocks and Minerals Gallery features a fluorescent rocks and minerals case; a variety of regionally-collected rocks and minerals; educational exhibits highlighting rock and mineral properties and origins; and a showcase of exceptional specimens collected both locally and from around the world.

Learn about how fluorescence works to produce vibrant colors, how different types of rock form on and beneath the Earth’s surface, what makes minerals fracture and cleave in specific patterns, why Pennsylvania is a trove for mineral collecting, and much more! Current exhibits include Types of Rocks; Fluorescent Rocks and Minerals; Pennsylvania Rocks and Minerals; Mineral Properties; and the regularly-changing Rocks and Minerals Showcase.

Bird Gallery

Featuring over 700 bird specimens, the Bird Gallery has been a visitor favorite since 1908. The Gallery encompasses birds from around the world, from those found locally to the vibrant exotic birds found in the tropics. Several extinct and endangered species of bird, such as the passenger pigeon, whooping crane, and the ivory-billed woodpecker, are represented. Many birds were prepared by Museum founder Dr. Isaiah Fawkes Everhart over a century ago and were gifted to the public from his collection.

In addition to the expansive bird collection on display, the gallery includes four lifelike dioramas of native Pennsylvania habitats, as well as several cases of assorted mammals, reptiles, and amphibians from the Museum’s taxidermy collections.