Boston Children's Museum facts for kids
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| Former name | The Children's Museum of Boston |
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| Established | 1913 |
| Location | 308 Congress Street Boston, MA 02210 |
| Type | Children's museum |
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| Public transit access |
Red Line
Silver Line
Courthouse Station |
The Boston Children's Museum is a special place in Boston, Massachusetts. It's a children's museum made just for kids to learn and have fun. You can find it on Children's Wharf right by the Fort Point Channel. This museum is actually the second oldest children's museum in the whole United States! It has tons of activities that are both entertaining and educational for young people.
Contents
Museum History
How the Museum Started
The idea for a children's museum in Boston began in 1909. Some local science teachers created a group called the Science Teacher's Bureau. Their main goal was to open a museum. They wanted a place with natural objects, books, pictures, and other helpful items for science lessons. They planned for exhibits to be at a child's eye level and use simple words.
The Women's Education Association also helped with the plans. After four years of hard work, The Children's Museum officially opened on August 1, 1913. It was located in the Pinebank Mansion near Jamaica Pond in Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood. This made it the second oldest children's museum in the country. The first exhibits had birds, minerals, and shells. George Hunt Barton was the museum's first president, and Delia Isabel Griffin was its first curator.
Growing and Changing
In its early years, the museum opened smaller "branch museums" in different parts of Boston. These were often in schools like the Quincy School. They usually had one room with a few interesting items. In 1919, a larger branch opened, but it closed in 1926.
By 1935, the museum needed more space. It moved to a new building on 60 Burroughs Street and opened there on November 18, 1936.
From 1962 to 1985, Michael Spock was the museum's director. He helped introduce the idea of "hands-on learning" to museums. This meant kids could touch and interact with exhibits. The first interactive exhibit, "What's Inside," was created during his time. In 1972, the museum received special recognition from the American Alliance of Museums.
New Home on Fort Point Channel
In 1979, the Boston Children's Museum moved to a large, empty warehouse on the Fort Point Channel. This new location gave it more room and made it easier for people to visit. The next year, Boston's sister city, Kyoto, Japan, gave the museum a real Japanese silk merchant's house. This house, called Kyo-no-Machiya, is still a very popular exhibit today.
Kenneth Brecher became the director in 1986. During his time, a special exhibit called Kids Bridge opened. It taught visitors about different cultures and how to be kind to everyone. This exhibit later traveled around the United States.
Lou Casagrande led the museum from 1994 to 2009. Many important exhibits opened during his leadership. In 2004, the museum officially changed its name to Boston Children's Museum.
In 2006, the museum started a big project to expand and update its building. It closed for four months in early 2007 to finish the work. The project added a large glass area to the front, a new theater, and new exhibits. The museum also made sure its renovation was "green," meaning it was good for the environment. It was the first "green museum" in Boston. It reopened on April 14, 2007. In 2008, it received a special award for its environmentally friendly design.
In 2013, the Boston Children's Museum received the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. This is a very high honor for museums that do great things for their communities. Carole Charnow is the museum's current president and CEO.
Fun Permanent Exhibits
The Boston Children's Museum has many exciting exhibits that are always there for you to explore:
- Arthur & Friends: Step into the world of Arthur and his friends from the books and TV show. You can play in the Read Family Kitchen, Mr. Ratburn's Classroom, and even have a backyard sleepover!
- Art Studio: This is a creative space where kids and families can make art together.
- Boston Black ... A City Connects: Learn about Boston's Black community, its history, and its many cultures. You can decorate a Carnival float, shop at a Dominican store, or learn about hairstyles.
- The Common: This central area is great for light shows, musical chairs, and a giant checkers game. It's also used for special gatherings.
- Construction Zone: Inspired by Boston's "Big Dig" project, this exhibit lets you ride a Bobcat, play with toy trucks, and use pretend jackhammers.
- Countdown to Kindergarten!: This exhibit looks like a real classroom. Kids can pretend to be in Kindergarten, and adults can ask staff "teachers" questions about starting school.
- Explore•a•Saurus: Become a scientist and discover amazing facts about dinosaurs. Learn about their bones, their science, and why they are so fascinating.
- Japanese House: This is a real two-story townhouse from Kyoto, Japan. It's a great place to learn about Japanese family life, culture, art, and architecture.
- Johnny's Workbench: Here, you can work with real hand tools and natural materials. You can even create a small woodworking project to take home!
- KEVA Planks: Use these special wooden planks to solve problems and build amazing structures. It's a fun way to learn about math, physics, and design.
- Kid Power: This exhibit teaches you how to live a healthier life. Learn about eating well and getting enough exercise.
- KidStage: Watch and sometimes even join in performances on this kid-sized stage. It's a great introduction to music, singing, dance, and comedy.
- New Balance Foundation Climb: This is a huge, three-story climbing structure right at the front of the museum. It was designed by Tom Luckey.
- Peep's World: This exhibit brings the TV show Peep and the Big Wide World to life. Young children can learn science skills in a fun way.
- PlaySpace: This area is just for the museum's youngest visitors, from babies to three-year-olds. They can explore a tree house, a toy train set, and a "messy activities" area. There's also a special soft area for crawlers.
- Science Playground: Discover the natural world in "Investigate," learn about how things move in "Raceways," or play with bubbles in "Bubbles."
Museum Collections
The Boston Children's Museum has a huge collection of objects from all over the world. Most of these items were given to the museum as gifts. There are more than 50,000 objects in total! Most are kept safely in storage. However, you can see some of them in special areas like the Native American Study Storage and the Japanese Study Storage on the third floor. The museum also lends objects to schools through its Educational Kits Program.
Global Influence
The Boston Children's Museum has inspired other museums around the world. For example, the Museo Pambata in Manila, Philippines, and Le Musée des Enfants in Brussels, Belgium, were both inspired by this museum.
The Museum Building
The museum is located in an old industrial building that has been updated. A large glass elevator takes visitors to the upper floors. This elevator used to be outside but is now inside after the museum's big renovation. On the ground floor, you'll find the entrance and a gift shop. Outside, there's a large deck overlooking the Fort Point Channel and Boston Harbor. This deck is also home to the famous Hood Milk Bottle.
The Hood Milk Bottle
The Hood Milk Bottle stands proudly in front of the Boston Children's Museum. It arrived there on April 20, 1977, after being shipped by ferry in an event called the "Great Bottle Sail." This giant bottle is 40 feet (12 meters) tall and 18 feet (5.5 meters) wide. It weighs 15,000 pounds! If it were a real milk bottle, it could hold an amazing 58,620 gallons (221,900 liters) of milk.
The bottle had a big makeover in 2006. Its top half was carefully removed so its base could be moved and rebuilt. A newly renovated bottle was put back in place and officially celebrated on April 20, 2007. This was exactly thirty years after it first moved to Children's Wharf.
The Hood Milk Bottle was originally built in 1933 by Arthur Gagner in Taunton, Massachusetts. He used it to sell homemade ice cream next to his store. It was one of the first fast-food drive-in restaurants in the United States. Gagner sold the bottle in 1943, and it was empty for ten years starting in 1967. Then, H.P. Hood and Sons, Inc. bought it and gave it to the Boston Children's Museum in 1977. Sometimes, movies are even shown on the side of the bottle for museum events!
See also
