News Articles

May 29, 2015

Don't forget to register for our Summer Adventure Camps! The day camps for ages 3 to 11 explore the wonders of science, technology, engineering, math and nature to expand the imaginations and horizons of every camper, while allowing for a fun learning experience that cannot be found anywhere else. All participants are eligible to apply for scholarships that cover the costs associated with the week-long camp. For more information, please contact us at 276-634-4185 or discover@vmnh.virginia.gov and also check out the museums website for other upcoming events! http://www.vmnh.net/summer-adventure-camps

May 28, 2015

Bernard K Means, PhD., Instructor of Anthropology at Virginia Commonwealth University is at the museum today! He brought a 3D printer with him and plans to make a variety of prints. These prints are used for educational purposes, they allow for a hands on experience with many artifacts that are too fragile to handle themselves. These 3D prints are light weight and durable thanks to their hexagon frame work. Stop by the museum today to see Dr. Means and his collection of 3D prints!

May 28, 2015

Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce Post-Legislative Luncheon

May 28, 2015

Nancy Moncrief, Ph.D., Curator of Mammalogy presented at JMU's symposium for Virginia Environments last week. This symposium was last hosted in 1992. The symposium highlighted many of the changes that Virginia's environment has gone through. Dr. Moncrief's topics included mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, forests, land use, air quality, and water quality. http://www.whsv.com/home/headlines/JMU-Hosts-Virginia-Environmental-Symposium--304638361.html

May 27, 2015

VMNH is hosting the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce Post-Legislative Luncheon.

May 27, 2015

The Virginia Museum of Natural History will open its doors on Sundays from May 24 to September 6 as part of its Summer Discovery program. In addition to opening on Sundays from 1 to 5 p.m., the museum is offering discounts on the purchase of new memberships at the "Individual" level and above. Visitors can also take part in a variety of new and annual summer events designed to reach visitors of all ages. Learn more at http://www.vmnh.net/news/details/id/329/museum-open-sundays-this-summer.

May 25, 2015

Don't miss this Groupon offer for admission and a Museum Store/ PALEO Cafe gift card!

May 25, 2015

VMNH donated a flag pole to assist with the commemoration of the People's Cemetery in Martinsville, VA. Shown are Assistant City Manager Wayne Knox and Mayor Danny Turner.

May 21, 2015

Don't miss the deadlines for the upcoming Adventure Camps! Parents, we have days of fun lined up for your children, don't let them miss out! For more information, please contact us at 276-634-4185 or discover@vmnh.virginia.gov. Doodle Bugs! Camp out! (Ages 3 to 5 with adult) Date: June 3 - 5 Time: 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Fee: $30 members/ $35 non members Registration deadline: May 20 (extended in order to fill last few spots) Calling all campers to join us in enjoying nature! Campers will learn about nature through hands on activities, explorations, and crafts. Of course no camping experience can be complete without stories and singing around the (mock) campfire! Dress to get dirty! Nature Rangers (Ages 6 to 8) Date: ...

May 21, 2015

http://www.vmnh.net/summer-adventure-camps

May 21, 2015

If you'd like to find out what research is being done at the museum check out our blogs! They are updated with the most current information and findings by our research staff. If you can't find a topic that you would like to learn about, stop by the museum and check out our exhibits, which are filled with information! Have a great Thursday! http://www.vmnh.net/blog/tags/tag/research-and-collections

May 20, 2015

Congratulations to students of our Home School Wednesday program. These students were awarded a certificate with badges for each of program classes they completed. Our education department then handed out snacks to the kids before they left. The education department does a great job with these kids and if you would like your child to become a part of the next Home School program please contact us!

May 20, 2015

Just got in our new museum brochures. If any businesses around the area would like us to stop by and drop some off please let us know!

May 19, 2015

Piedmont Governor's School for Mathematics, Science, and Technology Visited the museum today and got a special behind the scenes tour. The students were shown our skinning lab and explained the process that the animals go through. Many of the students seemed slightly pale after seeing a recently skinned lamb. The color seemed to quickly reappear after they were shown the dermestid colony. Our dermestids have almost completed cleaning off the tissue from a cow. Students were then shown the Archaeology and Paleontology labs and told what is done in each. We are happy that the Piedmont Governor's School students were so interested! They enjoyed learning what our curators and research assistants work on everyday. We hope to ...

May 19, 2015

Awesome work by Bernard K. Means! He just finished 3D printing a Bootherium bombifrons bone. Thank you for helping us and keep up the great work. For all those who are unsure what I Bootherium Bombifron is, a picture was included. The museum utilizes 3D printed bones so that we can have hands on models without the risk of harming the original one.

May 18, 2015

Join us in welcoming our new archaeology intern Brenna Geraghty. Brenna is from Amelia County and a senior at VCU, where she will finish her anthropology major. We are happy to have her with us and look forward to the great things we will accomplish together.

May 18, 2015

ATTENTION PARENTS!!! Your children's opportunity to spend the day having fun and learning with the museum is coming up! Below is a listing of our upcoming adventure camps! But, be careful, deadlines for these camps are quickly approaching so sign up today! We look forward to seeing you at our camps! For more information, please contact us at 276-634-4185 or discover@vmnh.virginia.gov. Doodle Bugs! Camp out! (Ages 3 to 5 with adult) Date: June 3 - 5 Time: 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Fee: $30 members/ $35 non members Registration deadline: May 20 Calling all campers to join us in enjoying nature! Campers will learn about nature through hands on activities, explorations, and crafts. Of course no camping experience can be ...

May 15, 2015

Welcome Washington and Lee University's Field Methods Class! We love having the opportunity to meet with students and give them a behind the scenes tour of our facility and our collections. The group of students were shown around the Archaeological lab by our curator Elizabeth A Moore, Ph.D. The students enjoyed seeing a modern lab and being able to learn from our staff members. The groups were also shown our storage facility where the mass of our collection is held. We were able to show them a few of the fossils and artifacts which they enjoyed. Our paleontology lab was also visited. Ray Vodden, Research Technician, explained some of his current work and the process that he goes through. Thank you for the visit, and we ...

May 15, 2015

Faith Christian Academy students visited the museum today. They can be seen here getting an up close view of our 500 million year old stomatolite. We are so happy to have had the chance to tour these students around, and look forward to having them back in the future.

May 15, 2015

We have BIG plans coming!!! Find out what our plans are and how Big Al is going to help! Follow our monthly electronic newsletter. http://www.vmnh.net/big-als-almanac

May 14, 2015

Dr. Nancy Moncrief, Curator of Mammalogy at VMNH, presented the final program in the museum's 2014-2015 "2nd Thursday Science Talks" series on May 14. This fascinating program is made possible by generous donations to the VMNH Discovery Fund http://www.vmnh.net/donate-now. Details about the 2015-2016 series will be announced in the coming weeks!

May 14, 2015

With 6th graders at Martinsville Middle School.

May 14, 2015

A special thank you to Juliet Crowell and the crew of the scientific research vessel JOIDES Resolution! We connected via live two-way video with homeshool families, Bassett Community Center after school, VMNH Science Cafe, and at Martinsville Middle School. It was an amazing experience! Science in practice and STEM careers!

May 14, 2015

It's not too late to sign up for our summer camps! Tomorrow is the Deadline for our first set of camps, however. We do offer funding assistance for families! For more information visit our Adventure Camp site. Website: http://www.vmnh.net/summer-adventure-camps

May 14, 2015

Attention!!! Our Paleontology lab is looking for volunteers! If you have any interest in fossils and would like to find out more about this opportunity please contact us! Ph: 276-634-4141 E-mail: information@vmnh.virginia.gov

May 14, 2015

#ThrowbackThursday to last year's reptile day. These two young men put on quite the puppet show. #vmnh

May 14, 2015

We want to hear about your favorite museum memories!

May 13, 2015

Join us in welcoming our new paleontology intern Sam Popejoy. Sam is from Virginia Beach and is studying Geology at Radford University. She is also the student museum manager of the Museum of the Earth Sciences. We are very happy to have Sam working with us and look forward to our work together.

May 13, 2015

UPCOMING SUMMER ADVENTURE CAMPS!!! Doodle Bugs! Camp out! (Age:3-5) Date: June 3 - 5 Time: 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Fee: $30 members/ $35 non members Registration deadline: May 20 Calling all campers to join us in enjoying nature! Campers will learn about nature through hands on activities, explorations, and crafts. Of course no camping experience can be complete without stories and singing around the (mock) campfire! Dress to get dirty! Who Done It? (Age:6-8) Date: June 1 - 5 Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fee: $95 members, $105 non-members Registration deadline: May 15 Mystery abounds at the Virginia Museum of Natural History. Come use your sleuthing skills to find out who ate the last cookie, where did Teddy the bear travel, ...

May 13, 2015

Today, Rich Acres fourth graders came to the museum to explore the exhibits and take part in an educational program.

May 13, 2015

Help us grow our social media! We are also on Instagram and Twitter! give us a follow, you will be glad that you did. Twitter: @VMNH Instagram: Va_museum_NH

May 12, 2015

Join us in welcoming our new marketing intern Eddie Bowman. Eddie is from Collinsville and just finished his second year at the University of Charleston, West Virginia, double-majoring in business administration and integrated communication. We look forward to all the great things we will accomplish together.

May 12, 2015

We would like to take a moment to talk about Edward Hastings Littlefield, more commonly known as Ward. This year, Ward was recognized for his time at the museum as he reached his 5,000th hour of volunteer work. Ward has worked 20,000 hours as a volunteer for many local businesses in Martinsville and Henry County. But, he has always had a love for archaeology. He explained that it all started when he was a child and would find sharks teeth around his home, which was a dried up sea bed. The museum is very happy to have such a great volunteer working with us. Thank you and congratulations on another milestone of volunteer achievement.

May 12, 2015

http://www.vmnh.net/summer-adventure-camps

May 11, 2015

http://www.vmnh.net/events/details/id/181#

May 1, 2015

The museum's Hall of Ancient Life is home to a 500 million-year-old stromatolite (a mound produced in shallow water by mats of algae that trap mud and sand particles) discovered in 2008 at a nearby Boxley quarry. This specimen is the first-ever intact stromatolite head found in Virginia, and is one of the largest complete "heads" in the world, at over 5 feet in diameter and weighing over 2 tons. Stromatolites are among the earliest known life forms, and are important in helping scientists understand more about past environments. #FossilFriday

May 1, 2015

Don't miss "BUG BASH!" on Saturday, May 9 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the museum! Forensic entomology tours, live insect displays, behind-the-scenes tours, games and crafts will take place throughout the day. It's all part of our "Science Saturdays" programming taking place the 2nd Saturday of each month from May through August. Click to learn more!