PENNSYLVANIA
Dinosaur Deb’z Travels
PENNSYLVANIA
Pennsylvania is a state that is very close to my home state of New York. I have been taking trips throughout y life to visit family, tour scenic areas as well as ride in The Bicentennial Wagon Train Pilgrimage in 1976. We even had a small home in the northeast Pocono Mountains for many years.
Pennsylvania, the “Keystone State,” is a large, beautiful state with a very important history. It was one of the original 13 colonies and played a vital role in the founding of our nation.
The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Gettysburg Address were all written in here. The Declaration of Independence and The U.S. Constitution were both signed in Liberty Hall. The Liberty Bell, a symbol of American independence, is in Philadelphia.
The state was founded by William Penn, a Quaker who wanted a place where people could practice their religion freely. Pennsylvania has a diverse population and is home to various religious communities like the Quakers and the Amish. Some people in Pennsylvania, called the Pennsylvania Dutch, have their own unique dialect and customs, which came from German immigrants.
Aside from the Quakers, Amish, Mennonites and Pennsylvania Dutch, dinosaurs also lived in Pennsylvania, particularly during the late Triassic Period. Good fossil evidence includes dinosaur footprints and trackways found in the southeastern sections of the state, including the area around Gettysburg. These footprints were most likely from the tyrannosaurs, raptors, and ceratopsians that once thundered through the region. Scientific studies show that other species like Coelophysis, Coelosaurus, Hadrosaurs, Ankylosaurs, Tylosaurus, and early crocodilians may have inhabited the area.
HERSHEY PARK®
This 117 year old park has been one of our favorite parks to visit with our family friends. We always had a wonderful time. There are more than 75 rides, water slides, and lots of great rollercoasters – but not for me, I’m a ‘Fraidy Cat!
Then there is an 11 acre zoo that the kids will like. Of course there are plenty of places to grab a bite and taste chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. Did I mention I like chocolate?
Hershey’s Chocolate World is a ride where you see a simulated chocolate-making. It shows the steps involved in creating many of Hershey’s famous candies. You will view the process of taking the cocoa beans all the way to a finished chocolate product. The easy ride shows the processes of roasting, milling, mixing, and molding. There is also a factory tour where your family can see the cocoa beans being roasted and the candies being produced on conveyor belts.
Sesame Street Parade
There are many other amusement parks and zoos in Pennsylvania. I have only included the ones that my family and I have visited.
SESAME PLACE®
100 Sesame Road, Longhorne, PA 17033
This is a nice park for families with young children. The kids can meet and greet their favorite characters, watch a parade, and sing along at several character shows. There are 17 rides, 2 rollercoasters and 9 water rides. You can even dine with Elmo and friends.
Also, Sesame Place® is proud to be designates the first Certified Autism Center theme park.
Sesame Place® Philadelphia has partnered with The International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards to become the first theme park in the world designated as a Certified Autism Center. As a former SEPTA parent and CSE volunteer parent for over 12 years with the Hicksville School District, I think that this is amazing!
PENNSYLVANIA MUSEUMS WITH DINOSAUR EXHIBITS
CARNEGIE MUSEUM
OK, this is a museum that you must see if you love dinosaurs, fossils and seeing how they lived.
About 75% of the fossils on display are original fossils from one of the finest paleontological collections in the world. Most of the exhibition’s dinosaur skeletons are real. This exhibition uses up-to-date paleontological evidence to accurately show both the appearance and behavior of their giant dinosaurs.
Dinosaurs and other Mesozoic animals are shown in detailed reconstructions of their environments. Like the dinosaurs themselves, all of the habitats in thse exhibition are based on the best scientific evidence known. If different species of dinosaur are exhibited together, they actually lived together. Their fossils have often been found in the same rock formations.
Kids of all ages – and big kids too – can discover science and the wonders of the natural worls. They can dig for bones in Bonehunter’s quarry, touch real and replica specimens in Discovery Basecamp, and more. Dinosaurs are just the beginning! There are free family activities, touchables, and Bonehunters. The Quarry is available every weekend and on weekdays during the summer. You will have a blast!
The museum gained prominence in 1899 when scientists unearthed the fossil Ddiplodocus carnegii. Notable dinosaur specimens include one of the world’s very few fossils of a juvenile Apatosaurus, the world’s first specimen of a Tyrannosaurus rex, and a recently identifies species of oviraptorosaur named Anzu wyliei.