Banff Park Museum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Banff Park Museum |
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Banff Park Museum exterior
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| Location | Banff, Alberta, Canada |
| Established | 1895 |
| Founded | Natural History Branch, Geological Survey of Canada |
| Built | 1903 |
| Architect | John Stocks |
| Architectural style(s) | Rustic |
| Governing body | Parks Canada |
| Designated | 1985 |
The Banff Park Museum is a special place in downtown Banff, Alberta. It is a museum that shows off the amazing nature of Banff National Park.
This museum building is the oldest one looked after by Parks Canada. It was named a National Historic Site of Canada in 1985. This means it is a very important historical place in Canada. The building itself is a great example of "rustic architecture." This style uses natural materials like logs to make buildings look like they fit into nature.
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What is the Banff Park Museum?
The Banff Park Museum was started in 1895. Its main goal was to show off animals, plants, and rocks found in Banff National Park. Many of the animals you see there are prepared using taxidermy. This is a way to preserve animals so they look alive.
The museum building was finished in 1903. It was designed by an engineer named John Stocks. He made it look like a "railway pagoda," using exposed logs and a natural, rustic style.
Who was Norman Sanson?
In 1896, a man named Norman Bethune Sanson became the museum's curator. A curator is someone who looks after a museum's collection. Sanson worked there until 1932.
He helped the museum's collection grow a lot! When he started, there were only a few animals. By the time he left, the museum had over 5,000 items. These included many different mammals, birds, and plant and mineral samples.
The Old Banff Zoo
For a while, from 1905 to 1937, there was a small zoo behind the museum. This zoo had a collection of animals. Some of these animals were not native to the Banff area.
At its busiest time in 1914, the zoo had 36 birds and 50 mammals. But the zoo started to get smaller in the 1930s. It finally closed in 1937 and was taken down in 1939.
When the zoo closed, 46 animals were given to the Calgary Zoo. These animals included wolves, lynx, and different kinds of bears. There were black, cinnamon, and even polar bears!
Restoring the Museum
The museum building was fully restored in 2010. A local company from Calgary, Alberta, did the work. They cleaned the outside of the building. They used an eco-friendly clear coating to protect the wood. This also made the beautiful wood structure stand out even more.
See also
In Spanish: Museo Banff Park para niños
