The newest facility, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences at Greenville, was announced in 2020 and opened to the public on September 18, 2021.

[3][4][5] The North Carolina State Museum was created in 1879 by combining two existing state-owned collections of geologic and agricultural specimens.

[4] The museum's collections, outreach and education programs, and status grew over the next 60 years under the stewardship of Herbert Brimley.

[10] In 2020, the museum announced its acquisition of the Dueling Dinosaurs, a well-preserved and scientifically important specimen from Montana of a Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus possibly locked in combat.

First found in 2006, there were unsuccessful attempts to sell it to museums or private collectors for over a decade until the NCMNS reached out in 2016, prompting negotiations to purchase the fossil.

Following the construction of a dedicated display wing in the Nature Research Center, the Dueling Dinosaurs exhibit was officially opened to the public in 2024 in the newly-built SECU DinoLab.

The museum also makes use of distance learning to broadcast lessons and virtual field trips to classrooms around the state.

It includes Piedmont prairie, forest, ponds, a stream, and sustainable building features integrated with a wildlife-friendly landscape.

[40] Prairie Ridge is part of the museum's mission of enhancing public understanding and appreciation of the natural environment by providing an outdoor learning space while acting as a model for renewable and sustainable energy.

[42] Displays and interactive exhibits include an outdoor Tree Trail and Fossil Dig Pit, and the museum offers educational program experiences and special events.