BALTIMORE COUNTY — The Maryland Natural History Society in Overlea is soon to be designated as the state natural sciences museum. All that is left to do is get the governor's signature.
State Sen. Carl Jackson backed the legislation to bring the museum to eastern Baltimore County. Added to the legislation is also a designation for the state shark, the megalodon.
"What I envision is folks coming here from all over the state, maybe out of the state to visit this museum," Jackson said.
Maryland Natural Sciences Museum designation a signature away from happening
Being designated a museum is a game changer for the group dedicated to keeping these artifacts safe and accessible to the public. People dedicated hundreds of hours to collecting the artifacts of Maryland over nearly 100 years.
The depths of the museum contain artifacts from across the state, and even some from Alaska. Visitors can see everything from the bedrock of the state to glow-in-the-dark seashells.
Program Director Bronwyn Strong showed off a woolly mammoth tusk from Alaska. Along with rock from when the state was formed.
"This rock is almost 1.1 billion years old," Strong said.
The museum also features an entomology section for the study of insects.
"If you want to take a look at that, so these are Syropia moths. Have you ever seen moths as beautiful as this?" Strong said.
"It's important because we tell the story. This 1.4 billion year story of this place that we now call Maryland," Strong said.
"It's really interesting just to see all the different kinds of animals and things that they have here," Jackson said.
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