Collections

The geology of the Borough has been internationally famous since the early years of the 19th century. The mine and quarries around the town, (and its fossil shops) were regularly visited by those workers who were founding the science of geology itself. This was because the local rocks yielded rare and beautifully preserved fossils, which allowed these geologists to unravel the story of life on earth. Dudley has a very special place in the history of scientific thought and a totally unique social history associated with it.

 

As a consequence of this scientific activity great interest grew among the local people and one of the earliest scientific societies was born. This society realised that the local rocks had something more fundamental to tell us about ourselves than the simple quest for wealth and they began to assemble a collection of the geological treasures of the borough.

 

The Dudley and Midland Geological Society on its inauguration in 1842 and its successor, the Dudley and Midland Geological and Scientific Society and Field Club, originally established the geological collection. The geological collection passed into the Local Authority's ownership in 1903.

 

The present collection comprises approximately 12,000 fossil, rock and mineral specimens, the vast majority amassed by the two societies. Approximately 3,000 specimens have been added since the appointment of the first geology curator in 1987.