Museum of Geology
Museum of Geology
4.5
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
About
The Museum of Geology at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology explores the natural history of Earth through scientific inquiry, preserves specimens and data as a dedicated repository for scientific research, and promotes understanding of geoscience and evolution through outreach. The Museum of Geology is located in two buildings on the School of Mines campus. The exhibits and public programs are located in the O'Harra Building; the collections and laboratories are located in the new Paleontology Research Laboratory.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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4.5
390 reviews
Excellent
271
Very good
93
Average
23
Poor
2
Terrible
1
marygrace58
Columbus, OH658 contributions
July 2020 • Couples
Recently back open due to Covid, very well managed for cleanliness and safety.
The museum is located on a college campus and we find free parking right in front.
The museum is well planned out in a timely fashion regarding dinosaurs etc.
The rock display is awesome, They even have a children’s section,
Plenty of bathrooms also.
The museum is located on a college campus and we find free parking right in front.
The museum is well planned out in a timely fashion regarding dinosaurs etc.
The rock display is awesome, They even have a children’s section,
Plenty of bathrooms also.
Written 9 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
rebecca b
Conway, SC30 contributions
Oct 2022
Enjoyed our time at this stop. The museum is on a college campus, however parking was easy. We spent probably only about 45 minutes here and were able to take our time seeing the exhibits. Since this museum is at a college, there is no admission fee. Displays were very impressive and children and adults seemed to all be enjoying themselves. If you are even just slightly interested in dinosaurs and fossils, you will enjoy your visit.
Written 21 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ransom007
Anaheim, CA1,116 contributions
Jan 2021
The museum is located on the campus of South Dakota School of Mining & Technology on the third floor of the O'Harra Building (building 19 on the interactive campus map). There is a free visitor parking area directly in front of the museum. The museum has free admission (there is a donation box if you want to chip in). Taking the recommended clockwise path through the museum, you first go through the paleontology portion. It has many fossils from the small to very large (a full plesiosaur). Then you cross over into the geology side which has many examples of minerals). There is a gift shop in the geology side. COVID-19: Employees were masked and visitors were expected to remain masked and observe social distancing protocols. The clockwise walk through is also to promote social distancing.
Written 24 January 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mary Margaret O
Wilmington, NC320 contributions
Aug 2020 • Couples
This free museum was a great, short visit on the quieter side of Rapid City. It is tucked away in the School of Mines & Technology. Entire dinosaur skeletons on display. There is a cool childrens’ interactive section and a brilliant Mineral and Gem exhibit. Who knew that geology students sometimes lick stones to differentiate minerals? Of course, there are some that are absolutely poisonous (good to know!). Thoroughly enjoyable. Something for a rainy day or if you’ve run out of things to see.
Written 8 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Brendan S
Arlington, VA2,152 contributions
June 2021
The Museum of Geology is worth a visit if you have a spare hour. It's free, small and has several great specimens, including a mosasaur and plesiosaurus. It's an old museum without multimedia features, and the presentation is honestly pretty dry. Unless you are very interested in different rocks, there's not a whole lot here for casual visitors aside from the dinosaur and other fossils. But that's probably to be expected for a geology museum on the campus of a research university.
Written 3 June 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Holly M
12 contributions
Oct 2022
Don't miss this wonderful small museum on the University campus - admission is free, and the fossils and dioramas are of excellent quality. The gem and mineral section of the museum is packed full of beautiful specimens, and a recent remodel has improved the visibility of the smaller items. I could spend many happy hours here!
Written 11 November 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Christine C
Palos Hills, IL19 contributions
Oct 2020
We enjoyed this little free museum.. lots of interesting fossils and rocks with good explanations of what it is and where it was found. The badlands diorama was interesting as well as the murals depicting what the area may have looked like way back in the distant past.. well worth the visit.
Written 22 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MinotGirl
Minot, ND219 contributions
Mar 2022 • Family
This is an excellent museum. Whether you’re an adult or a child! We spent probably an hour and a half browsing their unique collection of fossils and rocks. The free scavenger hunt available for kids was a hit with our kiddos as well. The free admission was a huge bonus as we were looking for budget-friendly things to do while we were in Rapid City. There is a nice gift shop there and you can leave donations as it all goes towards museum operations. It wasn’t hard to find despite it being on the college campus. I would highly recommend!
Written 13 March 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mark R
Fort Worth, TX103 contributions
June 2021
Everybody seems to have fossils. But, this museum has an amazing collection of rocks of every combination of minerals and crystallizations. Even if you are a geologist, gem collector or rock hound, I suspect you will see items you haven't seen before. Walking through the museum is like walking through the displays of nature's jewelry store.
Written 12 June 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dave M
Leesburg, VA19 contributions
Aug 2021
Small but full of high quality fossils and exhibits you would expect to see in a major museum. Seeing that it is tucked into a University I appreciated the extra educational feel it had especially when exhibiting different types of rocks and minerals, their uses and where they are found. Can't beat the price either.
Written 27 August 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Museum of Geology
Rapid City, South Dakota
The Museum is always free and open to the public during our business hours, Mon-Sat 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM during the summer. Our address is 501 East Saint Joseph Street and we are located on the third floor of the O'Harra building at the SDSM&T campus.
Written 30 May 2017
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