Midgley Museum facts for kids
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| Location | 1001 Sequoyah Drive Enid, Oklahoma, United States |
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The Midgley Museum is a special place in Enid, Oklahoma, where you can explore amazing rocks and minerals. It's like a treasure chest filled with nature's wonders! This museum is known for its huge collection of rocks, including a giant petrified tree stump that weighs as much as a small car. You can also see cool rocks that glow under a special light. The museum is looked after by local groups called the Northwest Oklahoma Masonic Lodges.
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A Home Built from Rocks
The Midgley Museum tells the story of the Midgley family. They moved to the United States from England in the 1870s. The Midgleys were farmers who grew wheat and hay. As they traveled to sell their crops, they started collecting unique and beautiful rocks. They found these rocks in many different places.
Over time, their rock collection grew very large. The family decided to build a special home using these rocks. They hired skilled stonemasons from Texas to help them. Later, the Midgley family gave their amazing rock collections and their unique home to the city of Enid. This is how the Midgley Museum began.
What You Can See at the Museum
The museum itself is a big part of the exhibit. The house is built from the many rocks and minerals the Midgleys collected. It's like a giant puzzle made of nature's art!
In the front yard, you can see a huge petrified tree stump. It weighs about 7,000 pounds, which is like a small elephant! This amazing stump was found near Woodward, Oklahoma. Inside the house, the fireplace is made from very old fossil stone. There's also a large piece of gypsum selenite, which is a type of crystal. This piece is the biggest one ever taken from Oklahoma's Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge.
The museum's entire collection has more than 30 different kinds of rocks and minerals. These include exotic rocks, fossil stones, shiny crystals, agate, sandstone, and petrified wood.
The Glowing Rock Room
One of the coolest parts of the museum is a special closet. This closet is filled with rocks that glow! These are called fluorescent rocks. When you view them under a black light, they light up in bright, amazing colors. It's a truly unique sight!
The Trophy Room
The museum also has a "trophy room." Here, you can see stuffed animals like a large buffalo and a Royal Canadian elk. There's also a moose and some javelinas, which are wild pigs found in the Americas.
