Where to Find Fossils in Maryland
Maryland has 8 mapped collecting spots that report fossils, spread across 4 counties. The largest share sits in Calvert County with 3 spots. 8 of the spots are on land mapped as publicly accessible.
Map of 8 fossils collecting spots in Maryland
Standout fossils spots in Maryland
Hand-picked from the full list below, with the reason each one earns a trip.
Calvert Cliffs State Park
Calvert County
The cliffs here expose the Miocene Calvert Formation, roughly 8 to 18 million years old, one of the richest marine fossil beds on the East Coast.
Flag Ponds Nature Park
Calvert County
Flag Ponds Nature Park fronts the same Miocene Calvert Formation as nearby Calvert Cliffs, and its Chesapeake Bay beach gathers fossil shark teeth, ray plates, and shell fragments washed down from the cliffs to the north.
Douglas Point
Charles County
Douglas Point is one of the few Bureau of Land Management recreation areas in the eastern United States, protecting about 1,270 acres of Potomac River shoreline jointly managed with the State of Maryland.
Mallows Bay Park
Charles County
Mallows Bay is best known for the Ghost Fleet, more than 100 scuttled World War I era wooden steamships now protected within a national marine sanctuary and visible just off the shore.
Purse State Park
Charles County
Purse State Park sits on the tidal Potomac where the Paleocene Aquia Formation, roughly 56 to 60 million years old, is exposed along the shore, making its teeth older than the Miocene material at Calvert Cliffs.
Best counties for fossils in Maryland
Ranked by the number of mapped fossils spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.
- Calvert County3 spots
- Charles County3 spots
- Anne Arundel County1 spot
- Washington County1 spot
Every fossils spot we track in Maryland
Sorted by county. Coordinates open in Google Maps.
| Spot | County | Minerals | Coordinates | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Ferry PointNorth Ferry Point Road | Anne Arundel County | 39.0857, -76.5026 | Public | |
| Calvert Cliffs State ParkJuliet Low Trail | Calvert County | 38.4070, -76.4120 | Public | |
| Chesapeake BayBeach Boardwalk | Calvert County | 38.4477, -76.4548 | Public | |
| Flag Ponds Nature ParkFlag Ponds Parkway | Calvert County | 38.4415, -76.4550 | Public | |
| Douglas PointRiverside Road | Charles County | 38.4427, -77.2497 | Public | |
| Mallows Bay ParkWilson Landing Road | Charles County | 38.4690, -77.2636 | Public | |
| Purse State ParkRiverside Road | Charles County | 38.4303, -77.2528 | Public | |
| HancockNational Freeway | Washington County | 39.7170, -78.1953 | Public |
Fossils in Maryland FAQ
Where can you find fossils in Maryland?+
How many fossils spots are mapped in Maryland?+
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Where else to find fossils
More minerals to hunt in Maryland
Hunt fossils in Maryland with the map in your pocket
RockHoundR puts these spots on an offline map with BLM and Forest Service overlays, geology layers, and a log for your finds.
