Museum Overview
The Miller Museum houses a large collection of beautiful mineral and crystal samples from around the world. Two exhibits highlight the geology and geological history of the Kingston area which has in the past been the site of a billion year old Himalaya-scale mountain range, a 470 million year old tropical ocean, and a thick coating of glacial ice a mere 11,000 years ago.
A second gallery features fossils including a dinosaur exhibit, and displays about the earliest known animal fossils found at Mistaken Point Newfoundland (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and at other localities in Canada and around the world. The newest exhibit is an interactive Augmented Reality Sandbox in which visitors can create a landscape in the sand and watch in amazement as a computer projects a continuously updated topographic map onto the sand surface. To watch movies of the sandbox in action, see the news item on the Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering site: "Miller Museum Receives Funding for Permanent Augmented Reality Sandbox Display"
Self-guided Visits
The museum is open to everyone for free self-guided visits Monday - Friday from 9am-4pm. There is no admission charge for individuals or groups who want to come to the museum without booking a classroom program. If you will be bringing a larger self-guided group however (more that 10 people), email or call the museum ahead of time to make sure that there isn't another group here at the same time. Please note that there is no parking lot for the museum and visitors must park on the street at the metered spots ($3/hr in 2024). Come in the front doors of MIller Hall at 36 Union Street and you will be on the museum level.
Pre-booked Educational Programs for Groups
See the Group Educational Programs web pages for information about the many hands-on learning opportunities for groups of 10-30 participants presented in the Dr Richard Milne GeoScience Education classroom at the museum. Engaging and educational curriculum-linked, hands-on programs are offered for all ages. Frequent visitors to the museum include school groups of all ages, cub and brownie groups, and any other group interested in learning more about geology and geological engineering. Programs must be booked in advance (minimum of one week prior to the program date) and a group fee applies for each program. Download a Program List (PDF 82.7KB).
Getting to the Museum
The museum is located at Queen's University in Miller Hall, 36 Union Street, Kingston on the south side of Union Street opposite the end of Division Street. Simply enter through the front doors of Miller Hall (look for the building name carved in the stone above the doors) and you will be on the museum level. The self-guided exhibit galleries are to your right as you come into the main building foyer.