Backstage Pass to North Dakota History

This blog takes you behind the scenes of the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Get a glimpse at a day-in-the-life of the staff, volunteers, and partners who make it all possible. Discover what it takes to preserve North Dakota's natural and cultural history.

A giant turtle fossil cast hangs from a ceiling with underwater graphics on the background

If you’ve been to the North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum, you’ve probably noticed the giant sea turtle that hangs from the ceiling as you walk through the Underwater World section of the Adaptation Gallery: Geologic Time. Every time I walk by this turtle, whose scientific name is Archelon ischyros, I think about the fun fact that it was about the size of a Volkswagen Beetle. That’s massive!

Now that we have a staff member whose focus is digital interactives, I had an idea for making the Archelon fossil cast and a Volkswagen Beetle come to life as animated versions of themselves to tell you about our Archelon. I pitched the idea to my boss, and she loved it. I then talked to my team member who would be working on the project. She was very excited and started her research and design right away.

Fun facts about our Archelon is written on a movie theater screen graphic with a cartoon yellow Volkswagen Beetle and bluish green turtle. A tub of popcorn sits next to the vehicle, and a fountain drink sits next to the turtle.

She reached out to one of the paleontologists with the North Dakota Geological Survey to make sure she got the look and colors of the Archelon right. She also got a few interesting tidbits, such as where our Archelon was found, from the paleontologist to include in the animation. We geared the animation toward children, but we hope everyone enjoys it.

We don’t want to give too much away, so this is where the story ends. The animation is now up and running on a touchscreen in the gallery near our Archelon. Stop in for a visit to see it.

A touch screen table with a graphic of a turtle fossil on it sits in front of a giant sea turtle fossil cast exhibit display