Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Closed Mondays: George C. Page Museum
Los Angeles is home to some of the most magnificent museums in the country. Amongst the excitement of LACMA and the glamour of the Getty, some of the smaller museums go unnoticed. Let's visit the overlooked, the obscure, and even the unusual. If we're lucky, they won't even be closed Mondays.
When people think of the La Brea Tar Pits, they usually think of the outdoors -- the replicas dramatically "trapped" in tar, and Pit 91, where scientists continue to unearth fossils under tourists' watchful eyes. But the George C. Page Museum is where the real action is.
George C. Page was a philanthropist with a keen interest in the "tar pits." According to the museum's website, he came to Rancho La Brea in 1917 and was disappointed to find that "the skeletons of Ice Age animals he sought were not on-site, but seven miles away at the Natural History Museum." After making his fortune, he offered to finance an on-site facility in 1973. "Construction began in 1975 and the museum opened to the public in 1977."
More than one million bones have been recovered at Rancho La Brea, the oldest of which is a wood fragment dated at around 40,000 years old. "Nearly all of the skeletons on display are real fossil bones found at the tar pits...Missing bones or parts originally composed of cartilage have been reconstructed with resin or plaster."
There are two films shown repeatedly throughout the day. Although they are educational, they might be upsetting for children or the very empathetic. It is a common belief that animals sunk into the tar like quicksand, but they usually became mired in only inches of tar, where they slowly died due to exposure and predators. In a bit of instant karma, predators also found themselves trapped more often than not. The films graphically recreate the animals' struggles, which can be poignant for some viewers, and disturbing for others.
The museum, which is located in Hancock Park, is open seven days a week, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. excluding major holidays. Admission is $7 for adults, and free on the first Tuesday of each month.
Insects, birds, and even large mammals continue to become stuck in the tar even today, so if you tour the grounds, watch your step!
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
-
Hexavalent chromium is the same carcinogen Erin Brockovich warned about in the 1990s, but researchers say more study is needed on the potential health effects of nanoparticles detected earlier this year. Experts will answer questions at a webinar this evening.