Families can explore rocks, minerals and fossils for free on Saturday, Nov. 7, when the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) opens its Horace R. Collins Laboratory at Alum Creek State Park for Ohio Geology Discovery Day.
The event runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the lab, located at 3307 South Old State Rd. in Delaware.
ODNR's Division of Geological Survey is organizing the open house as part of the America 250 celebration, according to an ODNR press release. The division has partnered with educational institutions across Ohio to staff activity stations and provide free giveaways, maps and educational materials.
"Geology is ingrained in Ohio's economy, culture, and heritage," D. Mark Jones, chief of the Division of Geological Survey, said in the release.
ODNR geologists will be on hand to identify rocks, minerals and fossils that visitors bring in. Guided tours of the facility will run every 30 minutes throughout the day.
The Collins Laboratory is not a place most residents see up close. The facility, dedicated in 1999, houses the Ohio Geological Sample Repository and the Ohio Seismic Network. It stores core samples and geological collections in a climate-controlled environment used by researchers and industry professionals.
A Destination Delaware County listing for the event names several activity-station partners, including Ohio State University's School of Earth Sciences, the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery, the Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District and the Ohio Aggregates and Industrial Minerals Association.
The lab sits inside Alum Creek State Park in Delaware County, a short drive north of Powell and Lewis Center.
Coming up
- Oct. 29: Olentangy Baseball fundraiser dinner
- Nov. 7: Ohio Geology Discovery Day, 10 a.m.–2 p.m., H. R. Collins Laboratory, Alum Creek State Park
