Madison Museum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Madison Museum
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Madison Museum
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 Location in Wyoming
Location in the United States
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| Location | Madison Junction, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming |
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| Built | 1929 |
| Architect | Herbert Maier |
| Architectural style | National Park Service Rustic |
| MPS | Yellowstone National Park MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 82001720 |
| Added to NRHP | July 9, 1982 |
The Madison Museum is a special building located in Yellowstone National Park. It is one of several "trailside museums" designed by an architect named Herbert Maier. These buildings have a unique style called National Park Service Rustic, which means they look like they fit right into nature.
The Madison Museum was built in 1929. It is the smallest of three important museums in Yellowstone that were recognized as a National Historic Landmark in 1987. The museum sits on a small hill overlooking the beautiful meadows and canyon of the Madison River. Today, it still helps visitors learn about the park.
What the Museum Looks Like
The Madison Museum has a T-shape. When it was first built, one part was for a park ranger or naturalist to live in. The other part was a small area for exhibits.
The building has a base made of rhyolite stone. The rest of the building is made of wood and covered with shingles. A log connects the stone base to the wooden walls. The roof is held up by strong log columns and is also made of logs. In 1971, the building was updated and changed into one large room.
The museum was designed by Herbert Maier, who was an architect for the National Park Service. Money for the museum came from a large gift by Laura Spelman Rockefeller. This money helped fund many educational projects in Yellowstone. Maier worked with other experts, including Carl Parcher Russell, a park naturalist, and Hermon Carey Bumpus, who led the American Association of Museums.
The "Campfire Story"
For a long time, people believed a special story about the Madison site. They thought it was the exact spot where the Washburn Party, a group of explorers in 1870, decided that Yellowstone should become a national park. This idea made the Madison Museum, along with nearby National Park Mountain, a very important place. It was seen as a "shrine" to the beginning of the national park idea.
A window in the museum even had a picture showing this imagined event. Park staff used to act out the Washburn creation story every year. However, by 1960, a park historian named Aubrey Haines found out that this "creation myth" was not true.
At first, the National Park Service did not want to accept this new information. They kept putting up signs calling Madison a "Historic Shrine." They also continued to tell the story as if it were true. Aubrey Haines was even moved to another park and retired early because of his research.
After about twenty years of discussion, Haines's research was finally accepted as correct. The Madison Museum then became a visitor information station. It was no longer called a "shrine," but it still helps people learn about Yellowstone National Park.
See also
- Fishing Bridge Museum
- Norris Museum
- Old Faithful Museum of Thermal Activity
