The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History is located on 1600 Gendy Street, Fort Worth, Texas 76107 in the city's Cultural District. It was opened in 1945 as the Fort Worth Children's Museum and moved to its current location in 1954. In 1968, the museum adopted its current name. Attractions at the museum include the Noble Planetarium and the Omni Theater, with Star's Cafe and Shop Too! gift shop, in addition to both traveling and permanent science and history exhibits.
In the fall of 2007, the museum was closed for renovations. During construction the museum had a limited presence in the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame next door, with a temporary "2 museums, 1 roof" campaign. The entire museum was moved into a new building at the same site in 2009. The new building, was designed by architects Legorreta + Legorreta with Gideon Toal and consists of 166,000 square feet. The original Omni Theater and lobby were refurbished but left mostly intact. In addition, the museum left one tree from the original museum courtyard undisturbed and built the museum around it, leaving the tree in an open area called the Heritage Courtyard. The total maximum occupancy is 3,369 individuals. The museum's grand opening after renovations was on Friday, November 20, 2009.
Mission statement
A visit to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History -
Dedicated to lifelong learning and anchored by our rich collections, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History engages our diverse community through creative, vibrant programs and exhibits interpreting science and the stories of and the Southwest.
Permanent exhibits
Fort Worth Children's Museum
The Fort Worth Children’s Museum, designed for children 8 and under, encourages opportunities for children to play, knowing that at this age level, children learn through play.
DinoLabs & DinoDig
DinoLabs and DinoDig bring the fascinating story of North Texas dinosaurs to life with full articulations of dinosaur skeletons and a dig site replicating a local paleontological field site.
Cattle Raisers Museum
A “museum within a museum,†the Cattle Raisers Museum is a 10,000-square-foot exhibition dedicated to preserving and celebrating the vital history of the cattle industry.
Energy Blast
Through interactive exhibits, multimedia, dioramas, and learning stations, Energy Blast immerses you into the world of regional energy and alternative energy resources.
Innovation Studios
Innovation Studios are located off the Museum’s central corridor. These five glass-walled studios â€" which surround Innovation Gallery â€" are called “Inventor,†“Doodler,†“Designer,†“Imaginer,†and “Explorer.†They are 6,000 square feet of flexible, engaging learning spaces dedicated to supporting lifelong learning for families, educators and adults. Innovation Studios set the stage for unique opportunities that nurture your imagination, curiosity, and creativity and support science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEM) education.
150 Years of Fort Worth
“150 Years of Fort Worth†traced Fort Worth's development, from its beginning as a frontier outpost, through its rowdy youth as a cattle town, to present day. Created by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, in cooperation with City Center Development Co., the exhibit was housed in the historic Fire Station No. 1, which was built in 1907. Fire Station No. 1 is located in the City Center complex at the northeast corner of Second and Commerce streets. This exhibit closed on February 19, 2016.
Noble Planetarium
The 90-seat Noble Planetarium brings the first Zeiss-manufactured hybrid planetarium system â€" an immersive all-dome video combined with a fiber optic dual-hemisphere star projector to see more than 7,000 stars â€" to the Southwest United States. The planetarium also features an exhibit area that provides large screens with up-to-the-minute views of the Sun, as well as downlinks offering the latest information from the Hubble Telescope.
Omni Theater, an IMAX Dome
Since its opening in April 19, 1983, the Omni has earned a reputation as one of the most engaging learning environments in our community. Over the past 30 years, more than 11 million guests have visited the Omni Theatre. The Omni is the only part of the museum that was not demolished in 2007. The Omni shows documentaries daily, as well as showing feature-length films including Star Trek, The Hobbit, Skyfall, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, Night at the Museum, and Polar Express, among others.
The Museum frequently has themed events called Reel Adventures for certain Omni movies. For The Polar Express the museum hosts Polar Pajama Parties where participants attend in their pajamas, are served hot chocolate, and can participate in winter themed games, followed by a showing of the movie. The last Polar Party of the year features Santa and Mrs.Claus, as well as the conductor character from the film. This year, the museum has introduced a Night at the Museum scavenger hunt through the museum after dark, preceding a showing of the movie.
Museum School
For more than 60 years, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History’s Museum School program has been the foundation of the Museum's work in early childhood learning. Since its founding in 1949, more than 200,000 children have participated in this one-of-a-kind program, which was the first in the United States to be accredited by the National Association of the Education of Young Children.
See also
- Fort Worth Flyover, a short IMAX film commissioned by the museum and traditionally shown before Omni Theater movies
- CSI: The Experience, an exhibit developed by the museum and its partners
- List of museums in North Texas
- Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary
- Perot Museum of Nature and Science
References
External links
- Official website
- Fort Worth Museum of Science and History is a member of NISE Net, and participates in NanoDays
- The architecture of Fort Worth Museum