Fort Worth Museum of Science and History facts for kids
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| Established | 1945 |
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| Location | 1600 Gendy St. Fort Worth, Texas |
| Type | Science and history |
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 opening after renovations was on Friday, November 20, 2009.
Contents
Permanent exhibits
Fort Worth Children's Museum
Designed for children 8 and under.
DinoLabs & DinoDig
Full articulations of dinosaur skeletons and a dig site replicating a local paleontological field site where children can play.
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
Regional energy and alternative energy resources.
Innovation Studios
Innovation Studios are located off the Museum’s central corridor. These five glass-walled studios – which surround Innovation Gallery – are called "Inventor," "Doodler," "Designer," "Imaginer," and "Explorer." They are 6,000 square feet of flexible, engaging learning spaces.
150 Years of Fort Worth
"150 Years of Fort Worth" traced Fort Worth's development, from its beginning as a frontier outpost, through its 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 also features an exhibit area that provides large screens with views of the Sun, as well as downlinks offering information from the Hubble Telescope.
Omni Theater, an IMAX Dome
Since its opening on April 19, 1983, the Omni has earned a reputation as an engaging learning environments. More than 10 million guests have journeyed to remote islands of the Pacific, explored deep under the ocean surface, splashed down the mighty Colorado of the Grand Canyon, stampeded across the vast Serengeti, traveled through the galaxy to the craters of Mars, and inched up the treacherous peaks of Mount Everest without ever leaving their Omni seats!
With an eight-story domed screen and 30-degree stadium seating, the Omni Theater is the largest IMAX dome in the United States west of the Mississippi River. The Omni’s 120-foot-wide screen places the audience in the center of the action. The theater embodies a revolutionary concept in film presentation, which combines the drama of oversized film, state-of-the-art projection equipment, innovative tilt-domed theater architecture and the most sophisticated production techniques to create unique cinematic experiences.
Museum School
