The Great Plains Dinosaur Museum (GPDM) is located in the rich land mass of Northern Montana where some the world’s most preeminent dinosaur fossils have been discovered.  A site and member of the Montana Dinosaur Trail, GPDM maintains permanent exhibits of dinosaurs and other prehistoric fossils to advance the visitors experience, allowing them to appreciate, enjoy and fully understand the rich prehistory  of this region.  The Museum also provides the rare opportunity for both youth and adults to explore, dig and excavate fossils with their staff and paleontologist partners in scheduled educational and dig programs.

The Great Plains Dinosaur Museum (GPDM) is governed and operated by volunteer board members of the Judith River Foundation, Inc.   The Foundation is an IRS exempt 510c3 non-profit corporation established in 2002.  The GPDM is not a municipal entity, is not affiliated with any higher education institutions, receives no general tax support, and is entirely self-funded through membership fees, admissions, dig and tour revenue and fundraising.

GPDM is guided by a mission to curate and prepare paleontological resources for use in educational programs, scientific research and interpretive displays in support of the advancement of knowledge and the benefit of all people.

405 North 1st St East | Malta, Montana (406) 654-5300 [email protected]

Testimonials

Good small town museum

“Small place but has a great collection. Have programs where people can join digs. Very friendly staff, very helpful. Excellent way to spend a few hours.”

-TripAdvisor

Awesome, right-sized museum to learn about dinos!

“If you visit this…museum when Cary Woodruff is there, make sure you strike up a conversation with him. I just stumbled on the whole dinosaur thing, not realizing I had spent two weeks roaming in the Hell Creek Formation area…I stopped in to the museum and learned all about the rich local area…I also learned about the (lack of) law protecting paleontological finds, and that there is a steady flow of fossils out of the U.S. to other countries with no science or public viewing before they leave. It’s legal! I left deciding dinos needed an advocate, and included them in my comments on preserving national monuments.

I was bummed that my trip was well before the “Wine and Dino” event, and wish I had known I could sign up for a fund-raiser dino dig with the Museum (better than a commercial outfit, which will charge you to dig and then charge the dude overseas who buys the dino- see the museum Web for info).

Many thanks to the local families who have donated the right to dig up dinos on their properties to museums and universities. We get to see the dinos and learn from them.

It was a fun way to finally get geologic time periods to actually stick in my brain. Cool exhibits, gift shop to bring well-appreciated gifts to the young and old kids I know.

Make sure you get your prehistoric passport and get a stamp here and next door at the most wonderful Phillips County Museum.”

-TripAdvisor

Museum with a Wonderful Personal Perspective

“Found this gem on Trip Advisor and stopped for a terrific visit. Nice collection of fossils from surrounding countryside including major dino finds. Especially enjoyed the many stories and photos of the local people/families who in some cases discovered or donated these fossils — they came from hunters, 4 year olds, local builders, etc.”

-TripAdvisor

Great Dinosaur Museum!

“We stopped by here on our way home…as we were driving through…The exhibits are wonderful. Many of them are touch exhibits and the majority of the fossils here are found locally…We loved it, and our son, who is absolutely in love with dinosaurs, was in his own little paradise. We will be back!”

-TripAdvisor

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