Sydney Mines Heritage Museum

Story

The Fossil Interpretive Centre offers visitors a unique hands-on learning experience. Featuring a large collection of fossils from Cape Breton and elsewhere, visitors get a first-hand look at the past.

Sydney Mines is one of eight important fossil sites in Nova Scotia, and is known internationally for excellent examples of plant fossils. Our community showcases the rich deposits found in the Sydney Coalfields. These Coalfields extend 21 miles along the Cape Breton coast dipping under the Atlantic Ocean.

Shales and sandstone of the coal fields produced fossils from 300 million years ago in the Carboniferous Period. A walk along the shoreline near Sydney Mines uncovers many treasures from an era when Cape Breton Island was close to the equator, including impressions of fern leaves, bamboo-like plants and trunks of extinct trees standing upright above the coal.

Make a visit to the Fossil Interpretive Centre a must-see on your next visit to Cape Breton Island. See 300-million-year-old plant fossils from the rich deposits of the Sydney coal field, enjoy stories from our guides and explore the coastline to find your own hidden treasure.

The Centre is an excellent place for school children to learn about fossils and the history of our region. Bring the entire family for a day of fun and exploration!

Please ask about our guided fossil tours!

Admission Rates to Site:
$3 Children under 12
$5 Seniors
$6 Adults
$12 Family Pass (4 to 6 people)
Prices include admission to the Cape Breton Fossil Centre, Sydney Mines Heritage Museum and the Sydney Mines Sport Centre.