Museum of Natural History -- Fair Park, Dallas TX
N 32° 46.697 W 096° 45.774
14S E 709523 N 3628922
The Dallas Museum of Natural History, one of the 1936 permanent attractions built for the Centennial and mentioned in the WPA Guide
Waymark Code: WMTGYP
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 11/23/2016
Views: 4
Blasterz always preferred the smaller and quieter Dallas Museum of Natural History to the louder and more chaotic Science Place next door -- and not just because Younger Blazterz were more fossils and animals and bug-oriented kinds of kids.
The historic Dallas Museum of Natural History ,merged with the Science Plce in 1006, and moved out of Fair Park and into the spiffy Perot Museum of Nature and Science that stands in downtown Dallas in 2011. In 2017 this historic building is used as overflow and specialized classroom space for programs at the Perot Museum.
The WPA writers must have enjoyed the dioramas of Texas wildlife in their habitats, which were made by famed artists and naturalists for the 1936 Centennial and were always intended to be permanent additions to the museum. Those dioramas with their natural plants and taxidermied animal specimens are dated but historic. (Mama Blaster admits that she was never one to enjoy looking at dead things on display, but recognizes that this was how many museums exhibited creatures 100+ years ago.)
This historical museum building is now part of the amazing Perot Museum of Nature and Science, and is used as offices, classroom space, and and archives for the Perot.
From Texas: A Guide to the Lone Star State:
"The MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY (open 8-5 workdays, 2-7 Sun.), facing east toward the lagoon, is neoclassic in design, of cream-colored [page 237] colored limestone. It is a two-story building, its walls unbroken by windows or other openings, except the entrance and the high windows serving the lobbies. Carved stone plaques relieve the wall expanse while at intervals pilasters rise from the base to the cutstone entablature. The trim used for the entrance and windows is aluminum.
The museum is divided into four great halls, in two of which are shown Texas mammals. Thirty-three bird groups occupy the other two. Native grasses, trees, rocks and shrubs provide for each exhibit its natural environment. There is also an exhibit of mineral resources of Texas, wild flower paintings and fossils and restorations of rare fossils."
Book: Texas
Page Number(s) of Excerpt: 236-237
Year Originally Published: 1940
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