News Articles

August 30, 2018

FREE ADMISSION ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 22!! Celebrate Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day and Forensic Science Saturday with us! SMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE MUSEUM DAY (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) Free admission to the museum will be offered to anyone presenting a Museum Day ticket! Tickets can be downloaded for free at www.smithsonianmag.com/museumday/venues/museum/virginia-museum-of-natural-history/! FORENSIC SCIENCE SATURDAY (noon to 3 p.m.) The museum is celebrating National Forensic Week by hosting its first-ever Forensic Science Saturday! Special activities will include fingerprinting, blood spatter analysis, forensic entomology, and footprint analysis! Best of all, anyone with a Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day ticket can participate ...

August 22, 2018

FUN. MEANINGFUL. REWARDING. Be sure to come out to the museum's Volunteer Info Session on Thursday, September 20 at 5:30 to learn how you can have the ultimate volunteer experience at VMNH! No RSVP or registration is necessary.

August 17, 2018

The museum is at Danville Stadium Cinemas displaying a sample of our Ice Age specimens in conjunction with the opening of the movie "Alpha"! If you're in the Danville, Virginia area, be sure to come see us!

August 16, 2018

Dr. Elizabeth Moore, curator of archaeology, was in Richmond last week at the Department of Historic Resources to teach the class "Zooarchaeological and Ethnobotanical Analysis". The class was part of the curriculum for students in the Archeological Society of Virginia's Archeological Technician Certification Program. After the lecture, students worked with archaeological samples to learn to identify the small plant and animal remains that shed light into past environments, past diets, and past cultures.

August 15, 2018

Thanks to the Harvest Foundation, VMNH is now offering scholarships to schools in Martinsville and Henry County to participate in museum educational programming! The programs can be conducted at the museum, inside the school classroom, or through distance learning! TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS The scholarships are on a first-come-first-served basis and programs must take place between September 1 and February 28, 2019. Be sure to contact us at 276-634-4185 or discover@vmnh.virginia.gov to to take advantage of these scholarships before it's too late!

August 14, 2018

Trivia Tuesday! Can you guess what this is? HINT: the crystals were deposited by hot, mineral-rich fluids around the edges of a large bubble made by gas expanding in a lava flow.

August 11, 2018

The VMNH is back at Danville Cinema today for #TheMeg movie release. Come check out some real #Megalodon teeth and other ancient sharks from Virginia! We'll be here until the last showing of the night.

August 11, 2018

The museum is at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Woodbridge, showing off a sample of our shark fossil collection, as well as other marine animals, such as the Sawfish, a ray. The display is in conjunction with the opening of the movie, "The Meg".

August 11, 2018

Be sure to visit the museum's booth and Dr. Elizabeth Moore today at Smith River Fest! We are near the water and, in honor of that, we have an assortment of fish skeletons to examine!

August 10, 2018

The VMNH is at Danville Cinemas today and tomorrow talking up it's fossil #shark collection for the release of #TheMeg. Come say hello and check out some fun & real fossil sharks including actual #Megalodon teeth!

August 10, 2018

Happy Birthday to one of our favorite reptiles, Corny the Corn Snake! He's slithering into 16 years young today! To celebrate he ate several mice (since snakes can't eat cake �).

August 8, 2018

VMNH will be at GTC Danville Cinemas Friday and Saturday for the opening of "The Meg"! We'll be showing off some of our fossil shark specimens, including actual Megalodon teeth! We hope to see you there!

August 8, 2018

Hey, teachers! Everyone at VMNH wants to wish you a fantastic beginning to the new school year! Always remember that we're here to help you reach your curriculum goals! We can provide exceptional programming to all grade levels here at the museum, inside your own classroom, or even through distance learning! Visit www.vmnh.net or contact us at 276-634-4185 or discover@vmnh.virginia.gov to learn more!

August 8, 2018

Our curators are shell-dom faced with this type of situation, but they came to the rescue yesterday and stopped a potential turtle disaster! Badum-ching x 2!

August 7, 2018

Senator William M. Stanley, Jr. (left) recently honored Mr. George W. Lester II for his community service in Martinsville, Henry County and the surrounding region. Mr. Lester and his wife, Lee, have been major supporters of the museum and played an instrumental role in bringing the modern VMNH Starling Avenue Facility to Martinsville in 2007. Congratulations and thank you to the Lester family for such tremendous support over the years!

August 5, 2018

HOMESCHOOL PARENTS AND TEACHERS! The museum is hosting a Homeschool Open House on Wednesday, August 15 from 10 a.m. to noon! The event is designed to give participants the opportunity to learn about the museum and its homeschool education programs, as well as the opportunity to meet the museum's educators. There's no need to sign-up. Just stop by and learn how the museum can provide exceptional STEM programming for your children and students this upcoming school year! To learn more about the museum's homeschool education programs, please visit www.vmnh.net/homeschool-education.

August 1, 2018

Trivia Tuesday Answer- The giant ground sloth!