# Mastodon State Historic Site: Ice Age Fossil Museum & Woodland Spring Trails

> Place to go for families in the St. Louis area (MO / IL). Times are Central Time.

- When: Winter Museum Hours (Nov 16–Mar 15): Thu–Sat 11:00 AM–4:00 PM; Sun 12:00 PM–4:00 PM…
- Where: Mastodon State Historic Site, 1050 Charles J Becker Dr, Imperial, MO 63052
- Ages: All ages; youth 12 and under admitted free to museum; trails open to all
- Price: $4.00 museum admission for adults and teens (ages 13+); children 12 and under are free; park grounds and trails are completely free
- Schedule: Winter Museum Hours (Nov 16–Mar 15): Thu–Sat 11:00 AM–4:00 PM; Sun 12:00 PM–4:00 PM (Closed Mon–Wed); Historic site trails open daily 8:00 AM to sunset
- Organizer: Missouri State Parks
- Official page: https://mostateparks.com/park/mastodon-state-historic-site
- Last checked: Thu, Nov 5

Source: Grassy Knees is a directory of real family events, places and programs for kids across major U.S. metro areas, where every listing is researched from the organizer’s own page and shows the date we last checked it. https://grassyknees.com covers 42 metro areas as of Nov 11, 2026, with more added regularly. About: https://grassyknees.com/about
Freshness: listings are re-checked on a daily research run (latest check 2026-11-10), and new events are added as organizers post them. Sell-outs, weather cancellations and time changes show up on the live page first: https://grassyknees.com/st-louis/activities/mastodon-state-historic-site-ice-age-fossil-museum-and-woodland-spring--listing-91056f1b5e6c72c13da35fee

## About

Located just south of St. Louis in Imperial, Mastodon State Historic Site contains the famous Kimmswick Bone Bed, where archaeologists made the landmark discovery of human-crafted Clovis stone projectile points in direct association with American mastodon fossils. The heated museum provides a fascinating paleontology adventure for young dinosaur and Ice Age enthusiasts.

Inside the museum, kids marvel at a life-sized replica skeleton of an American mastodon, touch real fossilized bones, and watch a short educational film detailing the prehistoric Ice Age mammals that roamed Missouri 12,000 years ago. Outside, the 0.4-mile Spring Branch Trail is a flat, packed-gravel woodland loop running alongside a clear spring-fed stream, easily navigated with rugged strollers. The museum includes clean accessible restrooms and picnic tables for family lunches.

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