The Fossil Discoveries of South Carolina’s Lowcountry Waterways

A Journey Far Into South Carolina’s Prehistoric Past

Beneath the dark waters of South Carolina’s Lowcountry waterways lie the fossil remains of creatures so fantastic, so seemingly mythical, that it’s hard to believe that they once roamed our landscape.

Millions of years before humans cruised comfortably on their boats or frolicked in the surf at the beach, fearsome marine life such as megalodons, sharp-toothed whales, and mosasaurs, prowled our waterways. During the last Ice Age when the coast was far to the east of where it is today and temperatures cooled, giant-sized animals like mammoths, mastodons, and  ground sloths, roamed the land. While these creatures of the past have long since vanished, the thought that they had ever lived at all is fascinating and curious.

South Carolina’s fossil record is both abundant and unique. Fossils, our link to this ancient past, have been found for centuries in the Lowcountry. From coastal beaches, to black water rivers, exposed river banks and road cuts, and in quarries, fossils can be found everywhere along and near the ocean.

From the large to the small, Beneath Dark Waters presents just a sample of the wide variety of fossils to be discovered. Are you ready to learn more? Join us as we explore what lies beneath South Carolina’s Lowcountry waterways!

This exhibit, located on the second floor of the museum, can be enjoyed Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. through May, 2019.

Also, be sure to join us for History for Lunch on December 5, 2018. “The Fossils of South Carolina” will be presented by Matt Gibson, Curator of Natural History, The Charleston Museum.
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