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Shell Factory to open fossil museum

2 min read

For those who like to see old bones and gems, the Shell Factory has something in store for them.

The new fossil and gem museum will hold a grand opening celebration next Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m.

The museum, which had a soft open about two weeks ago, will be the third museum at the Shell Factory, along with the shell and the natural history museums.

“We’re setting it up to be educational, as well as another free museum, and there will be fossil-related items for sale such as digging kits for kids,” said Rick Tupper, marketing director.

The idea came up about six months ago, but they needed someone who could implement the ideas.

That’s how they found Pam Plummer, who has been putting the museum together for the past two months.

“I belong to the fossil club of Lee County and I was meeting with the Cronins to tell them about our fossil show and they told me about their museum,” Plummer said. “I told them I’d like to put it together and they hired me.”

Plummer has received a lot of help from collectors nationwide, and as of last week had the museum about 90 percent complete.

There will be bear, bison, mastodons, mammoths, minerals, gems, manatees, horses, deer, camel, walrus, dolphins and much more, including many fossils from the sea, Plummer said.

We just picked up a mammoth jaw. We will only have it for a short period before it’s sent to the university for research,” Plummer said. “It’s a huge animal and such a small jaw.”

Tupper said he hopes to get educators, principals and fossil collectors to come, and a fossil show is in the works for December.

It will be part of a busy week at the Shell Factory.

The facility will be open for Easter Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with special pricing, a photo op with the Easter Bunny, a doggy costume contest, games, prizes, and an Easter egg hunt at 2 p.m.

For more information, call the Shell Factory at 995-2141 or visit them online at www.shellfactory.com.