National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History (German National Museum for American History ) deals with objects from the social, political, cultural, scientific and military history of America . The museum is part of the Smithsonian Institution and is located on the National Mall in Washington, DC
history
In 1964 the museum opened as the Museum of History and Technology . The building was one of the last constructions by the renowned architects McKim, Mead, and White . In 1980 the museum was renamed the National Museum of American History to better illustrate its basic mission: the collection, care, and study of items that reflect the experiences of the American people. There used to be a large pendulum in the middle of the building, which has since been dismantled. The museum displays the original flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to compose the national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner . You can also see Dorothy's slippers from the movie The Wizard of Oz .
On September 5, 2006, the museum was temporarily closed for a two-year renovation. The architecture firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) from New York and Turner Construction were responsible for the work. The big reopening ceremony took place on November 21, 2008.
The renovated museum has an atrium that is illuminated by a daylight system. Showcases around the atrium offer an overview of the diversity of the 3 million artifacts in the museum. A large staircase now connects the ground floor (Constitution Avenue entrance) and the 1st floor ( National Mall entrance ). New exhibitions such as the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Hall of Invention meet old ones such as B. "The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden" and "America On The Move".
construction
On both sides of the three-story exhibition area there are exhibits that refer to the theme of the respective wing of the building.
On the ground floor and first floor, the atrium is surrounded by a 84 m long wall of artifacts. These glazed display cases display items from the following areas: art, popular culture, economy, work and economy, home and family, community, land and natural resources; Settlement of America, Politics and Reform, Science, Medicine, Technology, and America's Role in the World.
ground floor
The exhibition area in the east wing of the first floor is geared towards traffic and technology and contains the exhibitions "America on the Move" and "Lighting a Revolution: Electricity Hall". The John Bull Locomotive is the selected attraction for this part of the museum.
The exhibition area in the west wing of the first floor deals with science and innovation and contains the exhibitions “Science in American Life featuring Robots on the Road” and “Bon Appétit! Julia Childs Kitchen at the Smithsonian ”and the“ Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation's newest hands-on space ”,“ Spark! Lab ”. A telescope from 1865 is the special attraction here.
There is also a café and the museum shop on the ground floor.
1. floor
The east wing of the 1st floor shows the American ideals and is also home to the Albert Small Documents Gallery in which changing exhibitions take place. From November 21, 2008 to January 4, 2009, the original Gettysburg Address , on loan from the White House , was shown. The Greensboro Lunch Counter is the attraction of this exhibition area. This is the original of a takeaway in the Woolworth department store in Greensboro, where a protest movement against racial discrimination began. The chairs were reserved for white people.
In the middle of this floor is the original Star Spangled Banner Flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write his poem , which forms the text of the American national anthem. The renovated 9.1 × 10 m flag is displayed in a specially constructed, air-conditioned exhibition space in the heart of the museum.
The exhibition area in the west wing on the first floor deals with life in America and includes the exhibitions “Within These Walls ...” and “Communities in a Changing Nation: The Promise of 19th-Century America”. The George Washington statue, which was created in 1841 for his 100th birthday, is the special attraction in this part of the museum.
The new welcome center and shop are also located on this floor.
2nd Floor
American wars and politics are the focus of the east wing on the second floor. The exhibits on this floor are "The Price of Freedom: Americans at War" and "The Gunboat Philadelphia". Clara Barton's ambulance for the American Red Cross is the characteristic attraction of this museum area.
In the center of the 2nd floor is the exhibition "The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden", the exhibition shows the personal, public, solemn and executive activities of the 44 men who had an enormous influence on the course of history over the past 200 years had.
The exhibition area in the east wing deals with entertainment, sports and music. This is where the exhibitions "Thanks for the Memories: Music, Sports and Entertainment History", the musical instrument exhibition and "The Dolls' House", a five-story dollhouse, are located. The attraction is an original Dumbo from the "Dumbo The Flying Elefant" carousel from Disneyland in Anaheim.
Basement
“Taking America to Lunch” is the exhibition in the basement. It shows the history and diversity of portable eating utensils such as lunch boxes , men with handles and thermos flasks . The “Stars and Stripes Café” and driving simulators are also located in the basement.
archive
The archive is dedicated to identifying, sourcing, and holding major archival records to document America's history and its diverse cultures. In the archive, the exhibits are prepared for use for science, exhibitions, publications and educational purposes.
The shelves of the archive are 3,700 m long in total. The focus is on the history of radio, television, telegraph and computer technology as well as other aspects of the history of technology with a particular interest in the history of the invention; Advertising, marketing and entrepreneurship; commercial ephemera (postcards, greeting cards); American music (sheet music, jazz) and musical instruments. These and a multitude of other topics are documented in business records, personal papers and extensive holdings of film, video and sound recordings, historical photographs and oral traditions.
Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
The Lemelson Center produces educational programs, popular and scientific publications, exhibitions, symposiums, and podcasts about inventions. The mission of the Lemelson Center is to document, interpret and disseminate information about the inventions and innovations in order to stimulate inventive creativity in young people and to promote recognition of the central role of inventions and innovations in the history of the United States . The center offers long-term studies of the influence of inventions on areas of American society such as: B. in 2002 the topic of "Invention and the Environment". Programs include an annual symposium, presentations and guest speakers inside and outside the National Museum of American History, and often the publication of a book detailing aspects of the current focus. The center also provides free educational materials to schools across the United States, organizes traveling exhibits (such as Invention at Play), provides research opportunities and scholarships; Furthermore, on behalf of the museum, the center is engaged in the search, procurement and processing of exhibits on the subject of inventions. The collections include the documents and materials that document the work of past and present American inventors.
Individual evidence
- ^ Center Core Renovation (2006-2008). ( Memento of the original of March 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: American History Museum (English).
Web links
- National Museum of American History
- Smithsonian's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
- About the renovation
Coordinates: 38 ° 53 '28.6 " N , 77 ° 1' 48.5" W.
