Are you interested in finding antediluvian fossils within less than a two hours drive from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania? Did you know that you can find these fossils in Centralia, PA—the old coal town with a fire burning under it?
Our Family Experience Finding Fossils in Centralia, PA
On Labor Day 2020, our family decided to embark on our 1.5 hour drive to Centralia—you may know it as the ghost town that has had a fire burning under it in the coal mines for fifty years!
The first type of fossils we noticed and found were ferns. They were very plentiful and easy to spot. Sometimes you’d see them as you were walking and look down, and sometimes we had to split a rock open and then find it in between the sediments.
Next, we found what we thought was a snake skin. It was really exciting as we tried to determine what it was and when it was from! After researching, we discovered that it was actually the bark of a lycopod tree. See image below.
Here are three examples of the different types of fossils we found from the lycopod tree bark:
What should we bring with us for fossil digging?
Pack these things to make your experience fossil hunting a more pleasant one—that you’ll enjoy for hours!
- Bottled Water. You are in direct sunlight when searching for these fossils and even with a breeze, it can get hot so be sure to take plenty of water.
- Gloves. These are an absolutely necessity! You’ll be picking up tons of rocks and dirt and your hands will thank you.
- Chisels. This makes it easier to split the shale in half and uncover fossils.
- Hammer. We used this as an aid for driving the chisel in between the layers of shale sediment.
- Shovel. You won’t need to dig too much, but it can be handy to have a shovel with you—plus it makes it more fun for the kids. We really like our folding shovel.
- Box or Bucket. Depending how many fossils you find, this will make it much easier to carry your fossils back to your vehicle.
- Tin foil. Sometimes it’s helpful to wrap your fossils in tin foil to keep them safe from being scratched.
- Pick axe. You may find an area that you really want to break into and loosen the shale. We found it helpful to have our pick axe along.
- Knee pads. My son found knee pads incredibly helpful, as he was on his knees a lot to do his digging and searching.
How do I find the fossil dig area and where do I park?
Parking was very simple. Just follow your GPS to the Old Fellows Cemetery in Centralia. Park next to the cemetery, or anywhere in that HUGE open parking lot area that is all dirt.
Then walk east along the cemetery and along a dirt/gravel road for about 1/4 mile. You will start to go downhill slightly on the other side of the mountain and have a gorgeous view.
It won’t be far until you can turn right and see the large open area of shale (black rock). This is where you’ll find the fossils!!! On the map below, you’ll see a long oval-type dark spot just to the right of the cemetery—that’s the shale field.
And some more fossil digging photos – just because!
