Museums We Love To Visit
People love to explore all the neat things they can see and learn about in America's museums. Here I'll show you the top 25 most visited museums in America. Maybe after you learn more about them you'll want to pack up and head out with your family to visit one (or more) of them yourself. You can get an idea about what each museum has to offer. I know I had fun making this lens and learning from it myself. There's even a handy Index of the Contents at the very bottom, so you can come back and quickly find the museum you want to check out again.
1. Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History
Washington,D.C.
The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington,D.C. is the number one most visited museum in America, with 5.8 million visitors a year.The museum's collections total over 125 million specimens of plants, animals, fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites, and human cultural artifacts. It is also home to about 185 professional natural history scientists - the largest group of scientists dedicated to the study of the natural and cultural history in the world.
The museum was established in 1910, with its building designed by Hornblower & Marshall. The building, designed in the neoclassical architectural style, was the first constructed on the north side of the National Mall, along Constitution Avenue, as part of the 1901 McMillan Commission plan.
National Gem and Mineral Collection
The National Gem and Mineral Collection is one of the most significant collections of its kind in the world. The collection includes some of the most famous pieces of gems and minerals including the famous Hope Diamond and the Star of Asia Sapphire. There are currently over 15,000 individual gems in the collection, as well as 350,000 minerals and 300,000 samples of rock and ore specimens. Additionally, the Smithsonian's National Gem and Mineral Collection houses approximately 35,000 meteorites, which is considered to be one of the most comprehensive collections of its kind in the world.
The Hope Diamond is one of the most popular attractions in the exhibit. It weighs 45.52 carats (9.104 g), and is most well known for the supposed curse that it puts on its owners. Almost all of the previous owners of the diamond have been forced to sell it out of financial strife. The Star of Asia Sapphire has no curse on it, however it is one of the largest sapphires in the world, weighing in at an astonishing 330 carats (66 g), it was mined in Sri Lanka.
Part of the collection is displayed in the Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems and Minerals, one of the many galleries in the Museum of Natural History. Some of the most important donors are Washington A. Roebling, the man who built the Brooklyn Bridge, who gave 16,000 specimens to the collection, Frederick A. Canfield, who donated 9,000 specimens to the collection, and Dr. Isaac Lea, who donated the base of the museum's collection of 1312 gems and minerals.
Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History
Cologram Depicting Salt Crystal-National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History-Prehistoric Sea Turtle
Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History
The Hope Diamond at Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History
2.Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum
Washington,D.C.
The second most popular museum in America is the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, also in Washington,D.C. with 5 million visitors a year.It maintains the largest collection of aircraft and spacecraft in the world. It is also a vital center for research into the history, science, and technology of aviation and spaceflight, as well as planetary science and terrestrial geology and geophysics. Almost all space and aircraft on display are originals or backup crafts to the originals.
The National Air and Space Museum is widely considered one of Washington's most significant works of modern architecture. Because of the museum site's close proximity to the United States Capitol, the Smithsonian Institution wanted a building that would be architecturally impressive but would not stand out too boldly against the Capitol Building. St. Louis-based architect Gyo Obata of Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum accepted the challenge and designed the museum as four simple travertine-encased cubes containing the smaller and more theatrical exhibits, connected by three spacious steel-and-glass atriums which house the larger exhibits such as missiles, airplanes and spacecraft. The museum, built by Gilbane Building Company, was finished in 1976. The west glass wall of the building is used for the installation of airplanes, functioning as a giant door.
Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum
Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum
3. National Gallery of Art
National Mall, Washington D.C.
The third most visited museum in America is the National Gallery of Art, with 4.69 million visitors each year.The National Gallery of Art is an art museum, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The museum was established in 1938 by the United States Congress, with funds for construction and a substantial art collection donated by Andrew W. Mellon plus major art works donated by Lessing J. Rosenwald, Italian art contributions from Samuel H. Kress, and more than 2,000 sculptures, paintings, decorative art, and porcelains from Joseph E. Widener. As a result of bequests such as these, the National Gallery today houses one of the finest collections of Western painting and sculpture in the world.
National Gallery of Art
4. The Metropolitan Museum of Art
5th Avenue and 82nd Street, Manhattan, New York
Our fourth one on the list of America's most visited museum's is the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York at 4.5 million visitors.The Metropolitan Museum of Art is an art museum located on the eastern edge of Central Park, along what is known as Museum Mile in New York City. It has a permanent collection containing more than two million works of art, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, often referred to simply as "the Met," is one of the world's largest art galleries, and has a much smaller second location in Upper Manhattan, at "The Cloisters," which features medieval art.
Represented in the permanent collection are works of art from classical antiquity and Ancient Egypt, paintings and sculptures from nearly all the European masters, and an extensive collection of American and modern art. The Met also maintains extensive holdings of African, Asian, Oceanic, Byzantine and Islamic art. The museum is also home to encyclopedic collections of musical instruments, costumes and accessories, and antique weapons and armor from around the world. A number of notable interiors, ranging from 1st century Rome through modern American design, are permanently installed in the Met's galleries.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
5. American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West at 79th Street New York City
Number five on our next stop at America's most visited museums is the American Museum of Natural History. That museum in New York has 4 million visits a year.Located on the Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York, USA, is one of the largest and most well-known museums in the world. Located on park-like grounds, the museum comprises 25 interconnected buildings that house 46 permanent exhibition halls, research laboratories, and its renowned library. The collections contain over 32 million specimens of which only a small fraction can be displayed at any given time. The museum has a scientific staff of more than 200, and sponsors over 100 special field expeditions each year.
Doll at American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
Thearter at American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
6. National Museum of American History
Washington, D.C., on the National Mall.
Next is the National Museum of American History in Washington,D.C. with 2.4 million visits.First floor
On the first floor, major exhibitions include "America on the Move," detailing the history of transportation in the U.S. from 1876 to the present and housing Southern Railway steam locomotive 1401 as well as automobiles and other forms of transportation. Also on the first floor is a showcase for various props from famous television shows, such as Archie Bunker's chair from All in the Family, Fonzie's leather jacket from Happy Days, Joanne Gardner's apron from Search for Tomorrow, the "Puffy Shirt" from Seinfeld, and Carrie Bradshaw's computer from Sex and the City.
Second floor
The second floor displays the inaugural gowns of First Ladies from Martha Washington to Laura Bush. The gigantic 15-star and 15-stripe American flag which flew over Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 and inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The Star-Spangled Banner" (the American national anthem) is located in a conservation lab on the second floor. It used to hang in the main hall but was removed due to its deteriorating condition. In its place, until the museum closed, was the modern 50-star flag which draped the Pentagon after the September 11, 2001 attacks. When the renovations are complete, the Fort McHenry flag will be displayed in its own dimly lit gallery so it can be seen during every moment the museum is open.
Third floor
Third-floor exhibits include "A Glorious Burden," an exhibit on Presidents of the United States; this voluminous exhibit displays everything from George Washington's Revolutionary War uniform to Bill Clinton's saxophone. Another major highlight is American Popular Culture, which shows popular culture artifacts. It is a changing exhibition, but Dorothy's ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz are a permanent part of the exhibit. The "History of Money and Medals," the museum's oldest exhibit, was on this floor but was recently closed. An exhibit entitled "The Price of Freedom" on U.S. military history opened on November 11, 2004; among its numerous treasures are a sword belonging to George Washington, the chairs that Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant sat in at the Appomattox surrender of the Civil War, and a Vietnam-era helicopter.
Archives
The National Museum of American History Archives Center occupies over 12,000 feet of shelving in the National Museum of American History building. The archives are made up of photographs, motion pictures, videotapes, and sound recordings of events in American history. The archives are acquired almost entirely from donations.
National Museum of American History
7. Museum of Modern Art
11 West 53rd Street, Manhattan, New York
The Museum of Modern Art in New York makes the list at number seven with 2.2 million visits a year. It has been singularly important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world. The museum's collection offers an unparalleled overview of modern and contemporary art, including works of architecture and design, drawings, painting, sculpture, photography, prints, illustrated books, film, and electronic media.MoMA's library and archives hold over 300,000 books, artist books, and periodicals, as well as individual files on more than 70,000 artists. The archives contain primary source material related to the history of modern and contemporary art.
Museum of Modern Art-New York
Museum of Modern Art
8. Field Museum of Natural History
East Roosevelt Road at South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL
Next on our list is the Field Museum in Chicago at 2.1 million visitors. It is the most popular cultural attraction in Chicago.The museum is organized into four major departments: Anthropology, Zoology, Botany and Geology.
Some prized exhibits at The Field Museum include:
* The largest major mapping exhibit ever assembled with the world's first interactive 3D Museum Gallery.
* Sue, the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus rex fossil skeleton currently known.
* A comprehensive set of human cultural anthropology exhibits, including artifacts from ancient Egypt, the Pacific Northwest and Tibet.
* A large and diverse taxidermy collection, featuring many large animals, including two prized African elephants and the infamous Lions of Tsavo, featured in the 1996 movie "The Ghost and the Darkness".
* A large collection of dinosaurs in the Evolving Planet exhibit (formerly Life Over Time).
* A large collection of Native American artifacts. The main exhibit with these artifacts reopened as Ancient Americas in March 2007.
Field Museum of Natural History
9. Museum of Science-Boston
Boston, Massachusetts
Our number nine on the list is the Museum of Science in Boston, Massachusetts at 2.01 million visitors. Located in Science Park, a plot of land spanning the Charles River. Along with over 500 interactive exhibits, the museum features a number of live presentations throughout the building everyday, along with shows at the Charles Hayden Planetarium and the Mugar Omni IMAX theater, the only domed IMAX screen in New England. The Museum is also an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and is home to over 100 animals, many of which have been rescued and rehabilitated from various dangerous situations. 
Museum of Science-Boston
Museum of Science-Boston
Museum of Sceince-Boston
Museum of Science-Boston
Museum of Science-Boston
Museum of Science-Boston-Butterfly Garden
10. Ellis Island Immigration Museum
New York
Number ten is the Ellis Island Immigration Museum in New York with 1.67 million visits.Ellis Island is a symbol of America's immigrant heritage. From 1892 to 1954, this immigrant depot processed the greatest tide of incoming humanity in the nation's history. Nearly twelve million landed here in their search of freedom of speech and religion, and for economic opportunity.
Under management of the National Park Service, the monument has been preserved for generations to come.
Situated in the New York Harbor, the Ellis Island Immigration Museum is accessible via the Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island Ferry from Battery Park in lower Manhattan, New York or Liberty State Park, Jersey City, New Jersey.
Ellis Island Immigration Museum
Ellis Island Immigration Museum
Ellis Island Immigration Museum
Statue of Liberty~Ellis Island
Statue of Liberty
11. Smithsonian Insitution's National Museum of the American Indian
National Mall in Washington, D.C.,
At 1.6 million visitors a year, the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian ranks at the number eleven most visited museum in the nation.The Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian is an institution of living cultures dedicated to the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere; the museum was established in 1989 through an Act of Congress. Operating under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution, the National Museum of the American Indian has three facilities: the National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., which opened on September 21, 2004; The George Gustav Heye Center, a permanent museum in New York City; and the Cultural Resources Center, a research and collections facility in Suitland, Maryland.Fifteen years in the making, it is the first national museum in the country dedicated exclusively to Native Americans. The five-story, 250,000-square-foot (23,000 m²), curvilinear building is clad in a golden-colored Kasota limestone that is designed to evoke natural rock formations that have been shaped by wind and water over thousands of years. The museum is set in a 4.25 acres (1.72 ha) site and is surrounded by simulated wetlands. The museum's east-facing entrance, its prism window and its 120-foot (37 m) high space for contemporary Native performances are direct results of extensive consultations with Native peoples. Similar to the Heye Center in Lower Manhattan, the museum offers a range of exhibitions, film and video screenings, school group programs, public programs and living culture presentations throughout the year.
Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian
Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian
Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian
Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian
12. De Young Museum
San Fransisco,California
At number twelve, the De Young Museum in San Fransisco sees 1.6 million visitors each year. The controversial M.H. De Young Museum building was completed in October 2005. It stands near the San Andreas fault, where the original De Young had been severely damaged in 1989 by the Loma Prieta earthquake. The terrain and seismic activity posed a problem for the designers Herzog & de Meuron and principal architects Fong & Chan.To address the problem of the fault, "[the building] can move up to three feet (91 centimeters) due to a unique system of ball-bearing sliding plates and viscous fluid dampers that absorb kinetic energy and convert it to heat."
De Young Museum
De Young Museum
De Young Museum
De Young Museum Art
De Young Museum Art
13. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Washington,D.C.
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum comes in at thirteen on our list with 1.5 million visitors. In 1980, Congress voted unanimously to create the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The museum is the United States national institution for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust history and serves as the national memorial to the victims of the Holocaust.The museum's primary mission is to advance and disseminate knowledge about the Holocaust, to preserve the memory of those who suffered, and to encourage visitors to reflect upon the moral and spiritual questions raised by the events of the Holocaust as well as their own responsibilities as citizens of a democracy. Everything about the museum is powerful; even the architecture was intentionally designed to give visitors a sense of life under the Nazis. The stark brick and limestone exterior is supposed to remind people of a German factory. Inside, James Freed's design seems flawed: Rooms do not always have right angles, the windows are different sizes, the floor is fractured, and the interior brick walls are uneven in shape and color, as were the bricks used in the crematoria. Freed intentionally wanted to convey the sense of a world gone awry.
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
Tower of Faces at U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
Ghetto Section-U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
14. California Science Center
Los Angeles
At 1.4 million visitors a year, the California Science Center in Los Angeles comes in at fourteenth place on our list. The California Science Center (sometimes spelled California ScienCenter) is a state agency and museum located in Exposition Park, Los Angeles. Billed as the West Coast's largest hands-on science center, the California ScienCenter is a public-private partnership between the State and the California Science Center Foundation.Formerly known as the California Museum of Science and Industry, the Museum was remodeled in 1998 as the California Science Center. Currently it consists of the IMAX Theater, the Sketch Foundation Gallery - Air and Space Exhibits (formerly Aerospace Hall) and the Science Center itself.
California Science Center
California Science Center
California Science Center
15. Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Chicago, Illinois
Number fifteen on our museums most visited list is the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. It has 1.38 million visitors a year. Housed in the only remaining building from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, the CMSI proclaims itself the largest science center in the Western Hemisphere. The 1.38 million visitors in 2006 flocked to exhibits like U-505 Submarine, The Coal Mine, Baby Chick Hatchery, and The Pioneer Zephyr.It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts (also known as the Fine Arts Building). It is the fourth largest cultural attraction in Chicago, based on 2006 attendance.
Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Christmas Around the World Exhibit-Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
16. J. Paul Getty Museum
Los Angeles, California
The J. Paul Getty Museum is number sixteen with 1.3 million visits a year (a tie).The Getty Conservation Institute (GCI), part of the Getty Trust, was conceived in 1982 and began operation in 1985. Its central objective is to advance the conservation of the visual arts, in all their dimensions. It achieves this objective through four key strands: international model field projects; scientific research and analysis into materials; educational initiatives for the conservation professional; and by sharing the results of its activities and the activities of others in the field. 
J. Paul Getty Museum
Coast View- J. Paul Getty Museum
17. The Art Institue of Chicago
Chicago. IL
The Art Institute of Chicago makes it to number seventeen on our list with 1.3 million visits a year (a tie).The AIC's collection ranges from ancient Greek, Etruscan, Roman, and Egyptian sculpture to modernist painting and new-media work. Its "Thorne Miniature Rooms" are a series of 69 small-scale recreations of European interiors from the late 13th century to the 1930s and American furnishings from the 17th century to the 1930s.
Lions Out Front of Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
18. Indianapolis Childrens Museum
Indianapolis,IN
Number eighteen is the Indianapolis Childrens Museum with 1.2 visits a year. This 400,000-square-foot facility proclaims itself the "largest children's museum in the world." It's interactive exhibits include "Dinosphere: Now You're In Their World," a "one-of-a-kind immersive dinosaur experience." 
Indeanapolis Childrens Museum
Indianapolis Childrens Museum-Water Clock
19. Museum of Fine Arts -Houston
Houston,Texas
Next, at number nineteen is the Museum of Fine Arts-Houston with 1.12 million visits (a tie). The MFAH claims special status as "the largest art museum in America south of Chicago, west of Washington, D.C., and east of Los Angeles." It has special programs like the film-exhibition program. The museum's Cullin Hall addition, opened in 1958, was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.The MFAH's permanent collection totals over 55,000 pieces with a total 300,000 square feet of exhibition space is fifth largest in the United States. The museum's collections and programs are housed in seven facilities.
Museum of Fine Arts-Houston
Gardens at Museum of Fine Arts-Houston
Museum of Fine Arts-Houston
Museum of Fine Arts-Houston
Museum of Fine Arts-Houston
Museum of Fine Arts-Houston
20. Franklin Istitute Science Museum-Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA
Next at number twenty on our list of most visited museums in America, we have the Franklin Institute Science Museum-Philadelphia, with 1.12 million visitors (a tie).The permanent exhibits at this hands-on, youth-friendly Philadelphia institution include a giant, model walk-through heart, an interactive space research station, a 350-ton experimental steam locomotive, and a showcase of its namesake's most famous science-experiment subject: "Franklin--He's Electric."
Founded in honor of Benjamin Franklin, The Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest and premier centers of science education and development in the United States. The Franklin Institute itself comprises three centers, The Science Center, The Franklin Center, and The Center for Innovation in Science Learning. It also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.
Franklin Institute Science Museum-Philadelphia
Walk-Thru Heart - Franklin Institute Science Museum
21. The Science Museum of Minnesota
St. Paul, Minnesota
Twenty-one on the list is th Science Museum of Minnesota with 1.11 million visits per year.The Science Museum of Minnesota is an American institution focused on topics in technology, natural history, physical science and mathematics education. Founded in 1907, the non-profit is staffed by over 500 employees and over 1,600 volunteers and is located in the state's capital city of Saint Paul, Minnesota. The museum's mission statement, "To invite learners of all ages to experience their changing world through science", reflects its intention to provide exhibits and education programs that bring science and technology to the general public.
"The Upper Midwest's most popular museum attraction". Highlights include the largest of only four Triceratops in the world, the first convertible dome Omnitheater in the United States, and the Mississippi River Gallery, including an "authentic, climb-aboard Mississippi River towboat perched on a 75-foot-high gallery balcony overlooking the river."
Science Museum of Minnesota
Science Museum of Minnesota
Electro-Metabograph at Science Museum of MN
22. Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Boston, MA
The Museum of Fine Arts- Boston is number twenty-two on this list with 1.1 million hits a year.It contains over 450,000 works of art, one of the most comprehensive collections in the Americas. The museum was founded in 1870 and its current location dates to 1909. 
Appeal to the Great Spirit-Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Egyptology-Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
Harp-Museum of Fine Arts-Boston
23. Pacific Science Center-Seattle, Washington
At number twenty-three on our chart, the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, Washington gets 1.02 million visitors a year.Pacific Science Center is an independent, non-profit science museum based in Seattle, Washington. It sits on 7.1 acres of land located on the south side of the Seattle Center. A satellite campus in Bellevue, Washington, the Mercer Slough Environmental Center, teaches children and adults about environmental stewardship, wetland ecology and nature awareness. Like many museums, Pacific Science Center creates, builds and rents many traveling exhibits. Pacific Science Center also has a fleet of vans that provide science education to schools all across the state. A division of staff workers show teachers in the state how to teach science.Its original buildings were the United States Science Pavilion, part of the 1962 World's Fair in Seattle.The Pacific Science Center's buildings, located next to the Space Needle, served as the U.S. Science Pavilion during the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. The museum started the day after the fair ended. Permanent exhibits include the Insect Village and the Tech Zone-a virtual soccer match where you get to be the goal keeper.
The fountains appeared in the movie "It Happened at the World's Fair" with Elvis Presley. After the fair ended, the museum was re-opened as the Pacific Science Center.
Pacific Science Center-Seattle, Washington
Pacific Science Center-Arches and Fountains
Pacific Science Center-Seattle, Washington
24. St. Louis Science Center
St. Louis, MO
Number twenty-four on the list of museums we like best here in America, is the St. Louis Science Center with 1.02 million hits a year.The St. Louis Science Center is a science museum with its facilities in St. Louis, Missouri and a member of the Association of Science and Technology Centers. It is among the largest of its type and, like all science centers, is intended to be a place of informal science education for all ages.The Science Center campus is made up of four buildings.
Planetarium at St. Louis Science Center
Inside Planetarium at St. Louis Science Center
Energizer Ball Machine at St. Louis Science Center
25. Smithsonian Insitution Steven F. Udvar Hazy Center
Chantilly, VA
Our final museum on the list at number twenty-five with 1 million visitors a year, is the Smithsonian Institution's Steven F. Udvar Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.Located near Washington Dulles International Airport, this companion museum to the National Mall's Air and Space center is actually larger than the main space in D.C., and displays aircraft on three levels. Highlights include the space shuttle Enterprise and the Boeing B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay.
Smithsonian's Udvar Hazy Center-Aerial View
Smithsonian's Udvar Hazy Center
Smithsonian's Udvar Hazy Center
Watch American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Radio and Electricity
A brief tour of America's best kept secret. A Museum with 4 centuries of human achievement on display.
Runtime: 2:01 | 25769 views | 0 Comments
Your Guide to the Smithsonian
Turtleback: 221 pages
The Official Guide to the Smithsonian
Amazon Price: $12.55 (as of 09/06/2008)
Book Description
The Smithsonian Institution, the largest museum complex in the world, holds more than 142 million artifacts and specimens in its trust. This colorful guide to the eight museums and galleries on the National Mall, five more in the Washington metropolitan area, two in New York City, and the National Zoo presents an enormous amount of history and pertinent museum information, ensuring a rewarding visit. Each detailed section presents the history of each museum and offers a fully illustrated, gallery-by-gallery tour. All the practical information-location, hours, phone numbers, public transportation, services, tours, dining, gift shops, special attractions for children, Web site addresses-is also included. This strudy guide has been accessibly produces by the Smithsonian's award-winning designers and is beautifully photographed throughout in full color.
Watch Hall of Science--New York
Boston Museum of Fine Arts Video
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Boston Museum of Fine Arts with host Tom Lowe
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Museums in America
Paperback: 263 pages
Riches, Rivals, And Radicals: 100 Years of Museums in America
Amazon Price: (as of 09/06/2008)
Product Description
Highly illustrated, exhaustively researched, and eminently readable, Riches, Rivals and Radicals describes the rise of the museums in America from the early 20th century to the early 21st - a story that parallels the historic changes in the United States. Through the decades, museums transformed themselves from cabinets of curiosity to centers of civic pride and prestige, stewards of who and what we are, our shared heritage, good and bad. The museum story is "filled with many notable and even some notorious characters," writes Marjorie Schwarzer, chair of the museum studies department at John F. Kennedy University. "How the American museum got to where it is today has required a long journey, sometimes arduous, often fascinating." Published in celebration of AAM's centennial and The Year of the Museum.
Museum of Science-Boston Video
Boston's Museum of Science, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Science and technology abound at Boston's Museum of Science.
Runtime: 3:27 | 2313 views | 14 Comments
Comedy Time-Movie to Watch on DVD
Number of discs: 2
# DVD Release Date: April 24, 2007
# Run Time: 110 minutes
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only.
Night at the Museum (2-Disc Special Edition)
Amazon Price: $30.99 (as of 09/06/2008)
An irresistible concept meets computer-generated wonders in Night at the Museum, inspired by a 1993 children's book by Milan Trenc. Ben Stiller stars as Larry Daley, an underachieving inventor waiting for his ship to come in while getting evicted from one apartment after another for lack of funds. Larry's son needs some stability, so the well-meaning ne'er-do-well takes a job as night watchman at New York City's Museum of Natural History. What the soon-to-retire guards (Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney, Bill Cobbs) don't tell him is that an ancient pharaoh's tablet in the museum causes everything on display to come to life at night. Thus, Larry meets representations of Teddy Roosevelt, Attila the Hun, fire-worshipping cavemen, and Roman Empire soldiers, and learns to cope with an excitable T-Rex and man-eating, ancient animals. The film might have left things at that, but an added story element gives Night at the Museum some extra urgency and excitement, especially for kids: Larry becomes responsible for keeping this nightly miracle going and preventing anything in the museum from dying due to exposure to sunrise. Computer effects, as well as wildly imaginative costumes and makeup, help make the film appeal to the 8-year-old in everyone. Director Shawn Levy (The Pink Panther) works with a hugely talented cast, including Robin Williams, Owen Wilson, Ricky Gervais, Carla Gugino, and Steve Coogan. --Tom Keogh
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Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
National Treasure
Another Movie to Watch on DVD
# DVD Release Date: May 3, 2005
# Run Time: 131 minutes
# Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Extra tracks, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
# Language: English
# Subtitles: French, Spanish
# Region: Region 1 U.S. and Canada only.
National Treasure (Full Screen Edition)
Amazon Price: $14.99 (as of 09/06/2008)
Amazon.com
Like a Hardy Boys mystery on steroids, National Treasure offers popcorn thrills and enough boyish charm to overcome its rampant silliness. Although it was roundly criticized as a poor man's rip-off of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Da Vinci Code, it's entertaining on its own ludicrous terms, and Nicolas Cage proves once again that one actor's infectious enthusiasm can compensate for a multitude of movie sins. The contrived plot involves Cage's present-day quest for the ancient treasure of the Knights Templar, kept secret through the ages by Freemasons past and present. Finding the treasure requires the theft of the Declaration of Independence (there are crucial treasure clues on the back, of course!), so you can add "caper comedy" to this Jerry Bruckheimer production's multi-genre appeal. Nobody will ever accuse director Jon Turtletaub of artistic ambition, but you've got to admit he serves up an enjoyable dose of PG-rated entertainment, full of musty clues, skeletons, deep tunnels, and harmless adventure in the old-school tradition. It's a load of hokum, but it's fun hokum, and that makes all the difference. --Jeff Shannon
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National Treasure
National Treasure
National Treasure 2 on DVD
# Language: English
# Region: Region 1 U.S. and Canada only.
# Number of discs: 2
# Rating:
# Studio: Walt Disney Video
# DVD Release Date: May 20, 2008
# Run Time: 124 minute
National Treasure 2 - Book of Secrets (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Amazon Price: $22.99 (as of 09/06/2008)
Product Description
Join Nicolas Cage on a heart-pounding adventure that will have you on the edge of your seat in a race to find the Lost City of Gold. Grounded in history imbued with myth and mystery Disney's NATIONAL TREASURE 2: BOOK OF SECRETS takes you on a globe-trotting quest full of adrenaline-pumping twists and turns -- all leading to the final clue in a mysterious and highly guarded book containing centuries of secrets. But there's only one way to find it -- Ben Gates must kidnap the President. Packed with fast-paced action and crackling humor NATIONAL TREASURE 2: BOOK OF SECRETS is a movie your entire family will want to rediscover again and again.System Requirements:Running Time: 125 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLERS Rating: PG
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National Treasure 2
National Treasure 2
Useful Road Map
Spiral-bound: 144 pages
American Map 2007 Road Atlas: United States - Canada - Mexico (Road Atlas: United States, Canada, Mexico (Spiral))
Amazon Price: $11.01 (as of 09/06/2008)
Book Description
The 2007 edition delivers all the features you expect from a Deluxe Atlas at a price you'd expect to pay for an atlas with much less to offer. Colorful, easy-to-read road maps of the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Highly visible road network features more cities and roads than other atlases. Detailed city vicinity maps. Rich "3-D" shaded relief. On-page locator map and mileage table. Comprehensive index with statistical data. Interstate and National Park maps. 8 pages of fabulous drives and adventures. Scenic routes.
Don't Forget a Good Camera to Record Memories
Canon PowerShot SD1000 7.1MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Silver)
Amazon Price: $323.80 (as of 09/06/2008)
Cameras
Camera Memory Cards
Ipod's For Music on Your Trip
Music For Your Trip With MP3's
Data Traveler 2 GB USB Drive
Kingston Data Traveler 2 GB USB Drive (DTI/2GB)
Amazon Price: $3.05 (as of 09/06/2008)
Amazon.com Product Description
This 2 GB USB flash drive lightens your load without emptying your wallet. As easy as click and drag, the DataTraveler holds just about any file you can think of--from reports and pictures, to spreadsheets and other important documents. It works with virtually any device with a USB port--even cross-platform from Macintosh to PC and vice versa. Manufactured with the highest quality available, this Kingston flash drive comes with a 5-year limited warranty.
Travel Hair Dryer
Andis RC-2 Ionic 1875W Ceramic Hair Dryer with Folding Handle and Retractable Cord
Amazon Price: $19.99 (as of 09/06/2008)
Product Description
Andis 80020 1875 Watt ceramic ionic hair dryer uses ions which reduce frizzies while conditioning hair. Ionic technology dries hair faster by breaking up water molecules. Moisture balance is restored and the hair cuticle is sealed. It has 3 heat/air speeds for ultimate styling and control and a cool shot button locks in style. There is a retractable cord and folding handle for convenient storage. The results achieved with the ionic dryer are immediate. Hair is renewed, repa