T.rex Discovery Centre facts for kids
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| Established | 2001 |
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| Location | 1 T-Rex Drive Eastend, Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Type | Natural history |
| Visitors | 10,000 |
| Owner | Government of Saskatchewan |
The T.rex Discovery Centre is an exciting natural history museum in Eastend, Saskatchewan, Canada. It's a special place where you can explore the amazing world of fossils and dinosaurs! The museum first opened its doors in 2001.
It was built to keep and show off many important fossils. One of the most famous fossils here is a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton. This huge dinosaur is lovingly nicknamed "Scotty". Scientists found Scotty not far from the museum in 1991. Since 2013, the Royal Saskatchewan Museum has been in charge of running the T.rex Discovery Centre.
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Discover the T.rex Discovery Centre's History
The idea for a top-notch place to keep fossils from southwest Saskatchewan started way back in 1988. People in the town of Eastend, Saskatchewan had meetings. They decided they needed a special centre for ancient life. This centre would show off all the amazing fossils found in the Frenchman River Valley and the Cypress Hills.
The T.rex Discovery Centre officially opened in 2001. It is located in the Frenchman River Valley. This is about 25 kilometers southeast of Eastend. On February 14, 2013, the Royal Saskatchewan Museum took over running the centre.
Explore the Galleries
The T.rex Discovery Centre has different areas, called galleries. Each gallery helps you learn about different times in Earth's history. You can see fossils from millions of years ago!
Cretaceous Gallery: Dinosaurs and More
This gallery takes you back to the Cretaceous Period. This was the time when dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex lived! You'll learn about the types of rock layers found here. These layers are called the Bearpaw Formation and the Frenchman Formation. They hold many fossils.
In this gallery, you can see fossils of sea creatures. These include ammonites and baculites. You can also find fossils of fish, sharks, turtles, and marine reptiles. From the Frenchman Formation, you'll see fossils of giant dinosaurs. These include Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, and Hadrosaurus.
Cenozoic Gallery: After the Dinosaurs
After the dinosaurs disappeared, new animals appeared. Some types of mammals, birds, and fish survived the big extinction event. This event happened at the end of the Cretaceous Period. The Ravenscrag Formation is where fossils from this time are found.
This gallery shows you creatures from Saskatchewan's prehistoric past. You can see fossils of reptiles like Borealosuchus and Champsosaurus. There is also a life-size model of a huge mammal. It is called a Brontothere.
Fossil Research Station: See Scientists at Work
The museum has a special area called the Fossil Research Station. Here, real museum scientists work all year long. They study the fossils that are found during the summer. You might even get to see them carefully cleaning and examining ancient bones!
Meet Scotty the T. rex
Scotty is a very famous Tyrannosaurus rex fossil. Scientists from the Royal Saskatchewan Museum found Scotty's fossilized bones. This happened on August 16, 1991. The discovery was made in Saskatchewan's Frenchman River Valley.
It took a very long time to remove Scotty's bones from the rock. Workers carefully dug them out, mostly by hand, over two decades! By 2011, the preparation was finished. What they found was amazing: a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton that was 65% complete!
How Scotty Was Found
Robert Gebhardt, a local high school principal, found "Scotty" the T. rex. This was on August 16, 1991. He was with palaeontologists Tim Tokaryk and John Storer. They were looking for fossils near the Frenchman River Valley.
Gebhardt was walking along a cattle trail. He suddenly found a tail bone from the T. rex! Later, they found a piece of its jaw with teeth still attached. It was sticking out of the side of a hill. Today, about 65% of Scotty's bones have been found.
Scotty's Journey to Fame
A model of Scotty was first shown at the T.rex Discovery Centre. This happened on March 15, 2013. Another model was later displayed at the Australian Museum in November 2013.
On March 21, 2019, scientists announced something incredible about Scotty. They said Scotty was the largest and oldest T. rex ever found! They estimated Scotty weighed about 8,870 kilograms. That's like 15 small cars! Scotty was also about 13.2 meters long. Scientists believe Scotty lived for over 30 years. The previous record for the longest-lived T. rex was held by a dinosaur named Sue, who lived to be 28.
On May 17, 2019, another model of Scotty was shown at the Royal Saskatchewan Museum.
