Museum Of Science And Industry
Museum Of Science And Industry
The Museum of Science and Industry, is one of the most popular and visited museums in the world. This museum has got humble ties to two great World's Fairs and to civic spirit and imagination of a forward thinking Chicago businessman Julius Rosenwald.
Rosenwald, then Chairman of Sears Roebuck and Company, was inspired by a 1911 visit with his son to the Deutches Museum in Munich. He returned to Chicago determined to create America's first center for "industrial enlightenment," a vehicle for public science education as he wanted everyone to know what could be achieved through science.
With the help of other Midwest business leaders, Rosenwald restored and converted the Palace of Fine Arts, the last remaining major structure from the 1893 World's Fair, into a new type of American museum - where visitors could interact with the exhibits, not just view displays and artifacts. In 1933, the Museum of Science and Industry opened to the public, at the same time as the Century of Progress Exposition. Rosenwald thought the hands on aspect was very important for people to learn, especially children.
Since its opening in 1933, the Museum of Science and Industry has the distinction of being the oldest science Museum of its kind in the Western Hemisphere and attracts approximately 2 million visitors per year.
Some of the highlights of their collection include :
A WWII captured German submarine on the National Register of Historic Places.
A working coal-mine shaft elevator from 1933.
A cantilevered Boeing 727 that visitors can walk through.
A 3,500-square-foot model railroad, one of the largest in the world.
and so much more.
Make the Museum of Science and Industry a stop on your next tour of Chicago!
The Museum of Science and Industry, is one of the most popular and visited museums in the world. This museum has got humble ties to two great World's Fairs and to civic spirit and imagination of a forward thinking Chicago businessman Julius Rosenwald.
Rosenwald, then Chairman of Sears Roebuck and Company, was inspired by a 1911 visit with his son to the Deutches Museum in Munich. He returned to Chicago determined to create America's first center for "industrial enlightenment," a vehicle for public science education as he wanted everyone to know what could be achieved through science.
With the help of other Midwest business leaders, Rosenwald restored and converted the Palace of Fine Arts, the last remaining major structure from the 1893 World's Fair, into a new type of American museum - where visitors could interact with the exhibits, not just view displays and artifacts. In 1933, the Museum of Science and Industry opened to the public, at the same time as the Century of Progress Exposition. Rosenwald thought the hands on aspect was very important for people to learn, especially children.
Since its opening in 1933, the Museum of Science and Industry has the distinction of being the oldest science Museum of its kind in the Western Hemisphere and attracts approximately 2 million visitors per year.
Some of the highlights of their collection include :
A WWII captured German submarine on the National Register of Historic Places.
A working coal-mine shaft elevator from 1933.
A cantilevered Boeing 727 that visitors can walk through.
A 3,500-square-foot model railroad, one of the largest in the world.
and so much more.
Make the Museum of Science and Industry a stop on your next tour of Chicago!
