Tumbler Ridge Museum - Press Releases

Encana Donates $5000 To New Dinosaur Discovery Gallery
(July 1, 2008)
EnCana Corporation has donated $5000 to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) towards the establishment of the new Dinosaur Discovery Gallery in Tumbler Ridge. The Gallery and the Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre are being moved from their current location in the community's Commercial Park into the disused Claude Galibois School, allowing for a major increase in exhibit space. EnCana Corporation has recognized the importance of this development for the community, the region and the province, and in particular its education potential. EnCana has expressed an interest in becoming a major participant in this process, and consequently has provided this donation as seed funding. More…

Take Only Photographs, Leave Only (Dinosaur) Footprints
(July 1, 2008)
There has been an unfortunate spate of vandalism at dinosaur footprints sites in the Peace Region that have been opened to the public. The removal of a superb footprint from the Wolverine River site near Tumbler Ridge a few years ago, and its subsequent recovery by the RCMP, have become well known. A similar 2008 attempt at the second Tumbler Ridge footprint tour site at Cabin Pool fortunately failed, but not without causing some instability to the site, threatening the future of well preserved theropod footprints with rare dew-claw impressions. More…

Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation Launches 2008 Dinosaur Programs
(July 1, 2008)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) dinosaur footprint tours and camps are starting in earnest now that school is out. This year the TRMF has attracted an outstanding bunch of local students to act as guides for these tours and as hosts for the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery. More…

TRMF Elects New Board Of Directors
(July 1, 2008)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) dinosaur footprint tours and camps are starting in earnest now that school is out. This year the TRMF has attracted an outstanding bunch of local students to act as guides for these tours and as hosts for the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery. More…

TRMF Elects New Board Of Directors
(July 1, 2008)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation has a new Board of ten Directors, following the June 2008 AGM. Charissa Tonnesen has taken over the reins as President from Dave Price, who assumes the Past President role. Bob Norman and Patsy Antle provide consistency by remaining in their roles as Secretary and Treasurer respectively, while Charles Helm slots into the Vice President position. Returning Directors at Large are Gloria Price and Jerrilyn Schembri, and there are three welcome new faces on the Board: Sarah Gamble, Jennifer Hawkes-Martin and Erik Wedholm. Rosaleen Ward from Hudson's Hope remains an Associate Director. More…

Dispatch From The Dinosaur Trenches
(July 1, 2008)
A new dinosaur excavation has just begun in the Tumbler Ridge area. What distinguishes this dig from the other excavations near Tumbler Ridge in recent years is that this appears to be an articulated, hopefully near-complete skeleton. More…

Much More Space for Northern-Eastern BC's Fossils
(April21, 2008)
The Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC) and the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery may be moving into a new building in Tumbler Ridge some time in 2008. The District of Tumbler Ridge recently granted the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) the use of the de-commissioned Claude Galibois Elementary School building which the district purchased in December 2007. The District’s decision was made after careful consideration of several other proposals by community-based organizations. More…

New Museum Exhibits Opened in Tumbler Ridge
(June 30, 2007)
While much attention was focused on the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery and its official opening on June 27th, further new Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) exhibits in the Community Centre have been developed and opened. More…

Three New Athletes Inducted into
Tumbler Ridge Sports Hall of Fame
(June 27, 2007)
Micheal Dufresne, Amber Kuenzl Prior and Cameron Smith were inducted into the Tumbler Ridge Sports Hall of Fame by Mayor Mike Caisley at a ceremony on 27 June. The join the elite group of Jason Delesalle, Al Tattersall and Kris Swanson, who were inducted when the Hall of Fame opened in January 2007. The Hall of Fame is the creation of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation, and is located downstairs in the Community Centre, strategically placed between the swimming pool, hockey arena and curling rink. More…

Dinosaur Discovery Gallery Opens in Tumbler Ridge
(June 27, 2007)
The sonorous mating call of a Hadrosaur signaled the moment of official opening of the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery in Tumbler Ridge on June 27th. It originated from a complex musical instrument, played by palaeontology student Tyler Shaw, who is one of the Dinosaur Camp instructors for the summer of 2007. This moment was the culmination of years of work by the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF), and its staff and volunteers. More…

TRMF to Open New Exhibits and Gallery
(June 15, 2007)
On the June 27th 2007 the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery will be officially opened, along with new exhibits in the Community Centre. Members and guests will meet at 6 p.m. in the Community Centre, where refreshments will be provided by the District of Tumbler Ridge. More…

Dinosaurs Enhance Math Teacking Experience for
TR Elementary Classes
(June 4, 2007)
In May three of the Tumbler Ridge Elementary classes (Mrs. Bell – Grade 4, Mrs Kennedy – Grade 5 and Mr Greengrass – Grade 6) visited the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery, not to learn about B.C.’s fossils, but to learn math lessons using real dinosaur data collected by the Museum Foundation / Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre’s scientists, Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley. The math lessons were based on fossil footprint and trackways. Several lengthy clear plastic sheets bearing the traced trackways of several types of dinosaurs were laid on the floor. The children took a series of measurements such as footprint length and width, pace, stride and pace angulation, and filled in the data on the sheets provided by their teachers. More…

Amateur Casting Activities damaging to
Tumbler Ridge Dinosaur Track Sites
(May 31, 2007)
"Take only pictures, leave only footprints" is a well-known mantra for enjoying the outdoors but, for some people, pictures are not enough. They want the footprints, specifically the dinosaur footprints. The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) offers summer tours to two dinosaur track sites that are well known in the region: the Wolverine Track Site, where night-time lantern tours are offered, and the Cabin Pool site on Flatbed Creek, where footprints of ankylosaurs (armoured dinosaurs) and theropods (carnivorous dinosaurs) can be found. The TRMF produces a souvenir track replica that also supports fundraising activities. More…

Dinosaur Camp in Tumbler Ridge - Ready to go in Summer 2007!
(May 19, 2007)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation is entering its fifth year of presenting Dinosaur Camp. Summer students Tyler Shaw and Chelsea Dupuis will be leading these camps, starting July 5 and running through August 28. The week-long camps run daily from Monday to Friday and cater to kids aged 8-13. In addition two-day Family Mini-camps will be held for kids aged 7-13 and their families. The Raptor Camp is for first-time registrants, while graduates can return for the second-tier Tyrannosaur Camp. This year for the second time there will also be a week-long camp in Hudson’s Hope. Registration is limited to thirteen campers per session. Registration costs are $170 per child ($70 for the mini-camps). More…

Talisman Energy Donates $10,000 to Dinosaur Discovery Gallery
(May 18, 2007)
A cheque for $10 000 was presented to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation on 16 May by Talisman Energy. This generous donation is being used for the construction of an interactive display in the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery in Tumbler Ridge, which is to be officially opened on June 27th, 2007. The opening of the Gallery will be a milestone for palaeontology in B.C. and for tourism in the Peace Region. More…

Dinosaur Footprint Tours Resume in Tumbler Ridge
(May 5, 2007)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF)’s “Meet the Museum Day” attracted 610 visitors. The events culminated in the long-anticipated presentation by Rich McCrea on the Kakwa Dinosaur Track-site, in Kakwa Provincial Park south of Tumbler Ridge. At the request of BC Parks the TRMF palaeontologists had done the first formal research on this site, which was only discovered a few years ago. More…

May Newsletter
(May, 2007)
This is the fourth and final newsletter during the term of office of our 2006-07 Board of Directors, which has continued to meet monthly. Meetings are usually about two hours in duration, and a huge variety of topics and projects gets covered. It has been a great privilege to preside over such a unified, determined and passionate group. On behalf of all our members, I wish to thank this bunch: Dave Price (V-P), Patsy Antle (Treasurer), Gail Neumann (Secretary), Amanda Battenfelder, Mark Deeley, Christine Goodwin, Wade Harvey, Gloria Price, Jerrilyn Schembri, Charmaine Shirley, and Charissa Tonnesen. In my role as President over the past two years, I am well aware that we are building upon the hard work of our past presidents: Loraine Funk, Carolyn Golightly and Rose Colledge, and their respective Boards. More…

LaPrairie Crave Donates $2000 to Museum Foundation Track-Site
(March 4, 2007)
LaPrairie Crane has provided a $2000 donation to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. The donation continues a long-standing support by LaPrairie Crane of Tumbler Ridge projects. In the past major donations have been made for the construction of the Tumbler Ridge swimming pool, and to the greening of the downtown core through planting thirty boulevard trees to commemorate the 10th and 20th anniversaries of the community. More…

The Kakwa Dinosaur Track-Site
(February 6, 2007)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF)’s “Meet the Museum Day” attracted 610 visitors. The events culminated in the long-anticipated presentation by Rich McCrea on the Kakwa Dinosaur Track-site, in Kakwa Provincial Park south of Tumbler Ridge. At the request of BC Parks the TRMF palaeontologists had done the first formal research on this site, which was only discovered a few years ago. More…

Tumbler Ridge Sports Hall of Fame Opening
(January 27, 2007)
As part of the “Meet the Museum Day” the Tumbler Ridge Sports Hall of Fame was officially opened on Saturday 26 January by Tumbler Ridge Mayor Mike Caisley, and the first three members were inducted: Jason Delesalle, Al Tattersall and Kris Swanson. The Hall of Fame is downstairs in the Community Centre, strategically placed between the pool, hockey arena and curling rink. More…

Tumbler Ridge Sports Hall of Fame - Call for Nominations
(December 3, 2006)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation is calling for nominations for the Tumbler Ridge Sports Hall of Fame. This exciting new exhibit will be housed in the downstairs section of the Tumbler Ridge Community Centre, and will be something that all Tumbler Ridge residents (past, present and future) and visitors will be able to cherish. It will hopefully also act as an inspiration in the pursuit of excellence for the next generation of Tumbler Ridge sporting greats. More…

Research Continues on the Kakwa Dinosaur Tracksite
(November 5, 2006)
During the summer of 2006 a team of professional palaeontologists from the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation's Peace Region Palaeontological Research Centre (PRPRC) conducted research for just under a month on the unique dinosaur tracksite in Kakwa Provincial Park. PRPRC palaeontologists were requested by BC Parks and its palaeontology advisory council to visit the track locality in the previous summer of 2005 in order to give Parks an accurate scientific assessment of these recently discovered fossil resources. The results of the 2005 trip were presented to BC Parks and its advisory council in the winter of 2005. The consensus was that the site be properly researched and documented before the inexorable forces of erosion inevitably destroy the site and all that can be learned from it. More…

Kids Dinosaur Contributions
(September 17, 2006)
Some photos of the kids and their fossil discoveries. More…

Veritas discovers new dinosaur track site
(September 13, 2006)
There will be a lot more than dinosaurs on display in the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation ’s Dinosaur Discovery Gallery, scheduled to be opened in Tumbler Ridge in late 2006. Prior to the Age of Dinosaurs, in the Triassic Period, some groups of reptiles re-entered the oceans and developed a marine existence, along with bony fish and sharks. Fossil evidence of this comes from sites that include Greenland, Japan, China, Madagascar, and the Tumbler Ridge area. More…

September Newsletter
(September 7, 2006)
The 2006 field season has been arguably our most successful ever. As it draws to a close, here is a brief summary of our activities. More…

Veritas discovers new dinosaur track site
(September 7, 2006)
When surveyor Sean Burk, doing work for Veritas DGC’s seismic program, saw what he thought was a dinosaur footprint in a creek bed near Tumbler Ridge, he did three correct things. He took a photo, he took a GPS reading, and he reported his find to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. More…

Monkman Pass Memorial Trail officially opened
(September 6, 2006)
Mayor of Tumbler Ridge Mike Caisley joined with Mayor of Beaverlodge Leroy Durand in unveiling the sign at the start of the Driving Route section of the Monkman Pass Memorial Trail on the outskirts of Beaverlodge on September 1. With them were Everett MacDonald, Reeve for the County of Grande Prairie and Dalton Longson, County Councillor (West). Symbolizing the potential of the Memorial Trail to bind the two provinces, both mayors spoke of the value of the project, which celebrates the region’s remarkable combined heritage by means of a driving and hiking route that promotes physical activity and healthy lifestyles in one of the most beautiful corners of Canada. More…

Mural Adorns Dinosaur Discovery Gallery
(August 25, 2006)
Two enterprising and talented artists are transforming the appearance of a building in the Tumbler Ridge Commercial Park. Tumbler Ridge’s Joan Zimmer, and Manzanita Snow from the Queen Charlotte Islands are tasked with creating large dinosaur murals on the outside walls of what will soon be the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery. This work has already attracted a lot of attention and has raised awareness of the potential this project holds for the community and region as a major tourist attraction. More…

Tumbler Ridge 25th Anniversary
(July 25, 2006)
In 2000 two young Tumbler Ridge boys (Mark Turner aged 11 and Daniel Helm aged 8) noticed impressions in the bedrock beside Flatbed Creek. They correctly believed they had found a dinosaur trackway, but initially struggled to convince adults of this. They were put in contact with Rich McCrea, Canada’s expert in dinosaur footprints, and the next year McCrea arrived in Tumbler Ridge for his first visit, during which he discovered one of BC’s first known dinosaur bones beside the trackway. More…

NEMI and TRMF work together on dinosaur tracks
(July 23, 2006)
The Triassic fish and marine reptile fossils of Fossil Fish Lake (in Wapiti Lake Provincial Park) grace many of the great museums of the world, and this famous locality south of Tumbler Ridge once almost became a World Heritage Site. Ironically, one of the places where these magnificent fossils are NOT visible to the public is the Peace Region from where they originate! The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) and Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC) are setting out to rectify this, and are busy collecting and cataloguing such fossils. Many of these will be displayed in the Dinosaur Discovery Gallery, which is scheduled to open soon. More…

NEMI and TRMF work together on dinosaur tracks
(June 19, 2006)
NEMI’s recent surface mining activities at the Trend Mine on Roman Mountain, south of Tumbler Ridge, have uncovered a number of dinosaur trackways on a steeply sloping footwall. These were reported to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation by NEMI geologist Kevin Sharman (Manager of Technical Services). The tracks occur on a number of different rock surfaces, some of which also show large tree stumps with complex root systems. The track-bearing portion of the footwall extends a few hundred metres in length and 20 meters in height and possesses surfaces which were trampled or 'dino-turbated' by large plant-eating ankylosaurs (armoured dinosaurs), with well over a thousand prints in total. More…

Ornithologist in Tumbler Ridge
(June 8, 2006)
NEMI’s recent surface mining activities at the Trend Mine on Roman Mountain, south of Tumbler Ridge, have uncovered a number of dinosaur trackways on a steeply sloping footwall. These were reported to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation by NEMI geologist Kevin Sharman (Manager of Technical Services). The tracks occur on a number of different rock surfaces, some of which also show large tree stumps with complex root systems. The track-bearing portion of the footwall extends a few hundred metres in length and 20 meters in height and possesses surfaces which were trampled or 'dino-turbated' by large plant-eating ankylosaurs (armoured dinosaurs), with well over a thousand prints in total. More…

Monkman Pass Memorial Trail Getting into Gear
(May 5, 2006)
The Monkman Pass Memorial Trail, spearheaded by Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society in conjunction with the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation, is rapidly becoming a reality. Designed to celebrate the Peace Region’s tangible history while taking visitors through some of the finest scenery on the North American continent, the trail will roughly follow the route that Alex Monkman and his heroic band of pioneers established in the 1930s. More…

Trail & Canoe Route Boardwalk
(May 4, 2006)
Trail Crew at Work - WNMS volunteers Doug Foerster, Charles Helm, Alan Sims, George Scammell and Jack McNeill manoeuvre a boardwalk into position on a short new trail near the headwaters of Flatbed Creek, which will give access to an easy canoe route. More…

Robin Sissons - Dinosaur Camp Co-Ordinator
Dinosaur Camp has a new and enthusiastic leader this summer. Robin Sissons of Edmonton has taken over the reins of this popular Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation program, and hopes to bring some special attributes to it. More…

Fossils to get a Better Deal in Tumbler Ridge and B.C.?
The District of Tumbler Ridge frequently reviews details of proposed tenures brought forward by the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. A new phrase has recently appeared in some of the comments that the District provides. It reads "Palaeontological Survey must be completed prior to any development," if the tenure in question lies in an area that could contain fossils. More…

Dinosaur Footprint Tours in Their Third Year in Tumbler Ridge
One of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation ’s most popular programs is returning for the third successive year. Good news is that Jennifer Becker, who has made her mark on these unique tours since 2004, is returning for her third summer as Tour Guide. More…

TRMF Opens Exhibit Screen, Hosts Presentation
(February 8, 2006)
A 37 inch LCD screen, donated by the Lake View Credit Union, has been connected to the Sci Tech North interactive exhibit, which has also been upgraded. Lori Ackermann of Sci Tech North and Scott Trim of Lake View Credit Union each said a few words, then it was over to Rodger Legault, the TRMF’s hi-tech expert, to explain the technology and introduce Mayor Mike Caisley, who with a touch of finger opened the exhibit in the Tumbler Ridge Community Centre by activating the Mayor’s Welcome Message. Mayor Caisley also introduced Mayor Evan Saugstad from Chetwynd, who presented a $5000 cheque to the TRMF from Duke Energy. More…

Tumbler Ridge Trail to get International Exposure
(January 7, 2006)
Tumbler Ridge will be in the international spotlight in the lead-up to the 2010 Olympics! Infinity Films was in town on January 1 and 2, working with the palaeontologists of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) and shooting footage that will be broadcast internationally over the next four years, starting next month in Turin, Italy. More…

Seismic Lines changed to Preserve Tumbler Ridge Trail and Dinosaur Site
(December 29, 2005)
In November Burlington Resources Canada announced its intention to conduct a new seismic program close to Tumbler Ridge, involving close to 90 kms of seismic line. The company asked for input from stakeholders. More…

November Newsletter
(November 2005)
So many exciting things are happening that it is hard to squeeze them all into a page or two. Thank you to everyone who is contributing so generously, whether it is with volunteer hours, in-kind donations, or financial contributions. All the hard work and discipline of the past few years is paying off and bringing us to the verge of a new and inspiring era in our brief history. More…

WNMS and TRMF Team Up for Monkman Memorial Trail Project, Burlington Announce Mahor Support
(November 6, 2005)
Individually the Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society (WNMS) and Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) have already been responsible for diversifying the regional economy and enhancing the lifestyles of residents and visitors, through the hiking trail system and palaeontology products respectively. Now these two Tumbler Ridge volunteer organizations are teaming up for another ambitious project, the Monkman Memorial Trail. More…

NEMI Collaberates with Museum Foundation
(November 2, 2005)
Industrial activity often leads to fossil discoveries, and the new mines in the Tumbler Ridge area are no exception. During the construction of its rail loadout, NEMI has uncovered a number of interesting plant fossils. Employees of the construction contractor, Tercon Construction Ltd., first noticed these in the rock cuts built at the rail loop. Recognizing the importance of these discoveries for the region, NEMI has donated these fossils to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation, where they will be studied by a palaeobotanist, catalogued, and eventually exhibited. More…

Museum Foundation to Celebrate Tumbler Ridge 25th Anniversary with Town Hall Exhibits
(November 1, 2005)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation has exciting plans for the celebration of the community's 25th anniversary in 2006, in addition to the creation of the BC Dinosaur Discovery Gallery in the Community Centre. Mayor and Council recently approved the development of two exhibits in the foyer of the Town Hall. More…

Tumbler Ridge Scientists attending International Conference
(October 24, 2005)
Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley, the vertebrate palaeontologists working in the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC), are attending the Sixty-Fifth Annual Meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology at the Mesa Southwest Museum in Mesa, Arizona in late October 2005. More…

Rare fossil bird tracks discovered near Tumbler Ridge
(October 7, 2005)
In August 2005 a new dinosaur footprint site was discovered near Tumbler Ridge by Curtis Lettley, a Ph. D. candidate at University of Alberta, while doing field work. He immediately reported it to the Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre in Tumbler Ridge, and took the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation palaeontologists, Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley, to the site. More…

Palaeontologists descend on Tumbler Ridge
(August 30, 2005)
Late August almost twenty of Canada’s palaeontologists, both professional and amateur, arrived in Tumbler Ridge to visit three local field sites and be toured through the Museum Foundation’s Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC) and the Community Centre exhibits. More…

Tumbler Ridge Dinosaur Project Evolving
(August 11, 2005)
The British Columbia Dinosaur Discovery Gallery will be the next step in the ongoing evolution of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s Peace Region Palaeontology Research Center (PRPRC). It all started with the initial discovery of dinosaur tracks by two local young boys beside a creek near the town of Tumbler Ridge in 2000. Then the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) was formed with palaeontology as one of its major themes. In 2002 BC’s first (and by far western Canada’s oldest) accumulation of dinosaur bone material was discovered in another creek bed close to town. More…

All-Girl Class Launches Dino Camp 2005
(July 8, 2005)
Tumbler Ridge – The third season of Dino Camp kicked off on July 4 from the Tumbler Ridge Campus of Northern Lights College with an all-female class. More…

New Exhibits
(July 3, 2005)
Denise McWhirter has been one of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s JCP (Job Creation Program) workers this year. Her position is “Archive Assistant”, in which she learns new skills under the supervision of palaeontologists Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley at the Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (P.R.P.R.C.). More…

New Exhibits
(June 4, 2005)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) recently opened five new exhibits in Rooms 4 and 5, focussing on pioneer history and early exploration in the Tumbler Ridge area. The intention is to create an enhanced atmosphere and new ambience in these rooms, which are frequently used for meetings, and whose walls were previously bare. The exhibits were developed at the request of Peter Thomas, Director of the Community Centre. More…

Annual General Meeting Agenda
(May 8, 2005)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation's Annual General Meeting on Sunday 15 May in the Tumbler Ridge Public Library. More…

Dinosaur Trackway Tours Resume in Tumbler Ridge.
(May 6, 2005)
The popular Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation dinosaur trackway tours will resume on Monday 16 May, and will continue through August. B.Sc, student Jennifer Becker, who pioneered these tours in 2004, will return for another year, and is very excited about the possibility. More…

T.R.M.F. and P.R.P.R.C. Salute The Contributions of Amateur Palaeontologists.
(February 21, 2005)
As the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) and its Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC) look forward to another season of field work and dinosaur discoveries, it can reflect with appreciation on the remarkable contribution of amateur palaeontologists in 2004. More…

Fossil Protection Essential.
(February 4, 2005)
Tumbler Ridge made the front page of the 26 January Vancouver Sun in an article entitled: “B.C.’s fossils need legal protection: scientists.” Tumbler Ridge palaeontologists Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley (Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre) were quoted on the virtual absence of legislation in the province (compared with Alberta) to protect this precious resource, along with Jim Haggart, Chairman of the BC Palaeontology Alliance, and Blair Lekstrom, MLA for Peace River South. The implications are particularly important in the Peace Region with its large vertebrate fossils, which can fetch a considerable price on E-bay if they fall into the wrong hands. More…

Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation Opens Three New Exhibits.
(January 24, 2005)
A crowd of one hundred and twenty gathered on January 20 for the opening of three new museum exhibits in the Tumbler Ridge Community Centre, followed by an address by Tumbler Ridge palaeontologists Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley. More…

Oldest Tumbler Ridge Area Maps Discovered.
(December 28, 2004)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation recently came upon an exciting discovery. The oldest known maps of the Tumbler Ridge area, made in 1906, have been in the library of the American Geographical Society at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for almost a century. Thanks to the wonderful help of their staff, Jovanca Ristic and Chieko Maene, the relevant maps have been brought out of these collections, and digital copies made available to the TRMF. More…

Monster Dinosaur Footprint Brought to Tumbler Ridge.
(December 8, 2004)
It is over sixty cms (two feet) long and almost as wide. It was made by a tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur 75 million years ago. It was found east of Tumbler Ridge by visiting hunters in a block of rock weighing five tonnes. And it has just been brought to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC) through the generous support of Burlington Resources, who donated the necessary equipment and time. More…

Historic Moore Falls Photographs Rediscovered.
(December 8, 2004)
Tumbler Ridge matriarch Janet Hartford was rummaging through a forgotten drawer in a basement cupboard when she came across two old black and white photographs she never knew she had. She realized that they were of two of The Cascades in Monkman Provincial Park, south of Tumbler Ridge, and that they had been taken in 1939 by Reg Leake, a professional photographer from Beaverlodge. In fact Janet had been there herself that summer during the building of the Monkman Pass Highway, and immediately recognized their timeless historic value. The two photos overlapped, and had been joined together to create a stunning image of mountain scenery.More…

"Coal Mining in Tumbler Ridge" Exhibit Opens.
(December 7, 2004)
Acting Mayor Don McPherson cut the ceremonial ribbon on Monday 6 December in the Tumbler Ridge Community Centre, thereby officially opening the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s permanent Coal Mining exhibit. He used the same golden scissors that were used in 1984 to open the Bullmoose Mine. More…

TRMF Palaeontologists team up with Tumbler Ridge teachers. (November 15, 2004)
It’s potentially an ideal fit: use paleontological discoveries and local scientific expertise to provide exciting learning opportunities in the regional schools. And that’s exactly what a group of Tumbler Ridge teachers is trying to do. Enthusiastic about the educational potential of the recent fossil finds in Tumbler Ridge and in the Peace Region, they have demonstrated a commitment to integrate this into their curriculae.More…

Pivotal Dinosaur Bone Returns to Tumbler Ridge. (October 22, 2004)
It was one of the defining moments in the evolution of Tumbler Ridge. In July 2001 palaeontologist Rich McCrea laid down his compass on a projecting piece of rock beside Flatbed Creek, and realized it was the second dinosaur bone ever to be found in the province of British Columbia. More…

Old fish returns to Tumbler Ridge. (August 27, 2004)
The palaeontology collections of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation were made richer by the recent addition of an intriguing fossil, with an interesting history. The story begins in the 1960s with Maynard Bergh at Wapiti Lake. More…

Lieutenant Governer accepts patronage of
Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. (August 20, 2004)
Her Honour, the Honourable Iona Campagnolo, Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, has accepted an invitation from the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) to become its Honorary Patron. This follows Her Honour's May visit to Tumbler Ridge in which she was escorted through the TRMF's new Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre by palaeontologists Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley, TRMF Vice President Charles Helm and Mayor of Tumbler Ridge Clay Iles. More…

A Tyrannosaur once walked in British Columbia. (July 26, 2004)
Tyrannosaurs, dromaeosaurs and hadrosaurs in British Columbia…. in the first of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s (T.R.M.F) summer lecture series, palaeontologists Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley unveiled some of the highlights of their 2004 field season to date. More…

Another Tumbler Ridge Dinosaur Find. (June 25, 2004)
Palaeontologists Rich McCrea and Lisa Buckley, working for the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF), identified an accumulation of distinctive dinosaur bone material at a new site near Tumbler Ridge on Monday 21 June, 2004. More…

Dinosaur Footprint Recovered Intact. (May 27, 2004)
The theropod dinosaur footprint that had been illegally excavated from one of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation's field sites has been recovered. TRMF would like to thank the RCMP for their assistance with the investigation. The footprint-bearing rock slab has been returned intact to Tumbler Ridge. More…

Fossil Footprint Theft. (May 10, 2004)
Some time during April of this year, a person or persons, descended upon the Wolverine River Dinosaur Footprint Trail near Tumbler Ridge to commit an act of theft and vandalism. This scenic trail had been constructed through the forest with great care in 2003 by volunteers of the Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society, Tumbler Ridge’s outdoors group. More…

Tumbler Ridge Dinosaurs Awarded Federal Funding. (April 21, 2004)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation was one of four successful applicants in the Peace Region to receive funding through Western Economic Diversification’s Softwood Lumber Industry Community Economic Adjustment Initiative (SICEAI), intended to assist communities affected by lumber tariffs. The $327,000 project to equip the newly established Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre (PRPRC) has been awarded $163,650 from the SICEAI program. More…

Second Annual General Meeting. (April 18, 2004)
On Sunday April 18 the public library hosted the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation's second Annual General Meeting. More…

Monkman - the Man, the Pass and the Park. (February 22, 2004)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) shone the spotlight on local history in a big way on February 18 when they hosted an evening combining the epic history of the 1930s Monkman Pass Highway project with the grandeur of present-day Monkman Provincial Park. More…

Souvenirs Promote Museum and Dinosaurs. (February 9, 2004)
The Souvenir Committee of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation comprises Crys White (chair), Rosemary Foerster (treasurer), Mary Buist, Doug Foerster, George Hartford, Janet Hartford and Hazel Peters. More…

Museum Foundation salutes volunteer. (February 3, 2004)
In a chance conversation early in 2003, Hazel Peters let slip that she had worked with statuary plaster and casting moulds in a previous business operation. Within days the directors of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation approached her, asking if she would assist in their efforts to make replicas of some of the dinosaur footprints that had been found in the canyons around town. More…

Dino Camp is back for summer 2004…and it’s big. Tyrannosaur-big. (January, 2004)
Last year, the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation and Northern Lights College jointly marketed and delivered a pilot project for a children’s dinosaur theme camp in Tumbler Ridge. The program was such a success that it will be repeated, on a larger and grander scale, with slight changes made to the age categories and the registration process. More…

2003 Summary (January, 2004)
One year ago the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation was contemplating the concept of a dinosaur theme camp for kids and wondering how to get the dinosaur remains, embedded in 93-million-year-old rock, out of a canyon and safely relocated to Tumbler Ridge. More…

Museum Advisor on the Dino Trail (August 11, 2003)
For sixteen years Kevin Sharman was one of the geologists at the Quintette Mine near Tumbler Ridge. More recently he has been working on the reclamation of the Quintette and Bullmoose mines following their closure. His knowledge of the area and its rocks made him an obvious choice as one of the scientific advisors to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. And he is now fulfilling that role in much more than an advisory capacity – bitten by the dino fever that is gripping Tumbler Ridge, he is hot on the discovery trail. More…

Talisman Energy Flies Visiting Media Around Tumbler Ridge (July 30, 2003)
It was a hectic week for the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. With interest in the dinosaur excavation building, and the project gathering momentum as enters its final week, the provincial, national and international media came to visit. First it was Knowledge Network, (filming for BC Moments), then the Globe and Mail, and finally Discovery Channel. More…

Largest Local Dinosaur Footprint Rescued (July 29, 2003)
Six Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation volunteers rescued a 190 pound dinosaur footprint cast 29 July. The footprint was discovered a few weeks ago by Rich McCrea, the U of A palaeontologist, and Larry White, who recently received training at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. More…

The Fossil Road Show (July 23, 2003)
What was possibly BC’s first fossil road show was held at the Tumbler Ridge Public Library July 23. Arranged by the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation, it enabled rock and fossil hounds to show their prize specimens to experts and an enthusiastic audience of 130, and get scientifically accurate (and sometimes surprising) answers. More…

McCrea Provides Update on Tumbler Ridge Dinosaur Bone Excavation (July 16, 2003)
Palaeontologist Rich McCrea, team leader of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s dinosaur excavation project, addressed an enthusiastic audience of a hundred and ten residents and visitors in the Tumbler Ridge Public Library Wednesday 16 July. McCrea is one of the top three dinosaur footprint experts in North America. More…

Museum Exhibits Light Up Community Centre (July 8, 2003)
On Thursday, July 3 at 7 pm, the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation’s first exhibits were unveiled and with the flick of a switch, Mayor Clay Iles illuminated the cabinets that now house various specimens of coal, plant fossils and dinosaur footprints, and other items of interest. More…

Dino Camps Kick Off with Surprise Visit from Dinosaur Expert (July 7, 2003)
Dino Camp got off to an extra special start when one of the world’s leading dinosaur experts happened to be in town the very morning that classes began. More…

Projects on target thanks to sponsors (June 26, 2003)
The three major projects undertaken by the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) have met their combined $72,000 budget targets, thanks to the support of local and provincial sponsors. More…

Skin Impressions (June 26, 2003)
Hudson’s Hope resident Michelle Beam had no idea when she registered for a week-long UNBC Geography course at NLC’s Tumbler Ridge campus she would defy the odds and discover rare skin impressions in a dinosaur footprint. More…

Museum Foundation Launches Summer Projects and Exhibits (June 15, 2003)
On Thursday, July 3 at 7 pm, the Tumbler Ridge Community Centre’s Fireside Lounge will be the site of the unveiling, by Mayor Clay Iles, of the first official exhibits of the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. More…

DINO Camp Sold Out (June 10, 2003)
Organizers of the summer Dino Camps project in Tumbler Ridge announced earlier this week that the six-week pilot program, scheduled for July and August 2003, is sold out. More…

Second Dinosaur Footprint Open to Visitors (May 27, 2003)
The Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation is pleased to announce that a second dinosaur footprint field site is open to visitors. Museum members have teamed up with Tumbler Ridge’s outdoor group, the Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society, to build a hiking trail that will make the site, on a canyon floor, more accessible. More…

First 2003 Exhibition in the Community Centre (May 25, 2003)
Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) opened its first 2003 exhibit in the Community Centre on Friday 24 May. This display, on one of the large walls above the Fireside Lounge, focuses on the remarkable fossil fishes and marine reptiles of the Fossil Fish Lake site in the remote mountains near Wapiti Lake, south of Tumbler Ridge. This site is so important internationally that it was recommended for World Heritage status. More…

Bergeron Cliffs Trail Opened (May 25, 2003)
With the hammering in of the nail of the last "Caution" sign, Wolverine Nordic and Mountain Society (WNMS) president Kevin Sharman officially opened the Bergeron Cliffs Hiking Trail, just north of Tumbler Ridge, on Sunday 18 May. This was the culmination of four hundred volunteer trail-building hours. More…

New "Dino Camp" Coordinator (May 21, 2003)
Northern Lights College and the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF) are pleased to announce the arrival of Marisa Gilbert, coordinator of the six-week summer "Dino Camp" program in Tumbler Ridge, BC.
Marisa, a student of palaeontology at the University of Alberta, was highly recommended for the 14-week coordinator position and her duties include developing the camp curriculum, securing the materials and equipment and delivering the program to 60 children, aged 7 through 12. The dinosaur theme camp - a joint pilot project between Northern Lights College and the TRMF - is a 5-day format, operating for six weeks during July and August. More…

Tumbler Ridge Resident to Study at Royal Tyrrell (May 7, 2003)
On May 10, Tumbler Ridge resident and amateur palaeontologist Larry White will begin an intensive six-week training session with the renowned scientists and technicians at Alberta’s "Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology" in Drumheller. More…

CFI donates helicopter time for removal of Dinosaur bones (April 16, 2003)
Chetwynd Forest Industries, a division of West Fraser Mills Ltd, announced on April 11 that it would commit up to $10,000 in helicopter time for the excavation of British Columbia's first dinosaur. More…

Bullmoose Mine donates Fossils to Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation. (April 4, 2003)
Following the April 4 closure of the Bullmoose mine, the workers at the mine recovered several fossil and geological specimens that had been accumulating thoughout the 20-year lifespan of the mine and made the decision to donate the specimens to the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation (TRMF). More…