Discovery Place
| Former name | Discovery Place |
|---|---|
| Established | 1981 |
| Location | 301 N. Tryon Street, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States |
| Type | Science Museum |
| Visitors | 520,000 (as of 2009) |
| Director | Catherine Wilson Horne |
| Website | Discovery Place |
Discovery Place Science is a science and technology museum for visitors of all ages located in the Uptown area of Charlotte, North Carolina. Discovery Place Science brings science to life through hands-on interactive exhibits, thrilling activities and experiments, an IMAX Dome Theatre, and boundless other educational opportunities and programs. The Museum, which first opened in 1981, underwent an 18-month, $31.6 million renovation in 2010 that transformed it into a reimagined state-of-the-art science and technology museum.
Discovery Place Science also operates an IMAX Dome Theatre, sometimes referred to as an OMNIMAX theatre. Discovery Place's Charlotte Observer IMAX Dome Theatre offers an immersive, up-close movie experience in the largest IMAX Dome Theatre in the Carolinas.
In 2016, the organization became known as Discovery Place, consisting of three Museum brands: Discovery Place Science (formerly Discovery Place) in uptown Charlotte, Discovery Place Nature (formerly Charlotte Nature Museum) in Freedom Park and Discovery Place Kids in Huntersville and Rockingham. Additionally, the organization provides extensive professional development through the Education Studio and educational programming throughout the community through its outreach program.
The story begins in 1946 with a school teacher named Laura Owens.
Friends, colleagues, parents and community members had been bringing her objects, live animals and specimens from the natural world, and she decided that her students needed a hands-on environment in which to observe and learn about these things. With help from the community, she opened a small museum on Cecil Street in Charlotte.
Ms. Owens’ small experiment was so well-received that soon the community, led by the Junior League of Charlotte and the Lions Club, worked with Mecklenburg County to develop a new Children’s Nature Center. The building was situated on property adjacent to the new Freedom Park, which allowed for access to the outside and the wonders of the natural world.
When the new Museum opened in 1951, it was one of the first facilities in the Southeast focused on bringing families and nature together. Its new hands-on approach to science and nature education was embraced by the community, and in 1965, the Museum opened a planetarium to begin educating students about the skies above. Students traveled from all over the state to learn about the night sky.
By the 1970s, Charlotte Nature Museum had grown into one of the most popular attractions in town, and its leaders were intent on expanding its reach and scope. Interest in science education was growing, spurred on by a post-Sputnick Soviet Union. The community responded to the demand for quality science education by approving funding and plans for a comprehensive hands-on science and technology center. Seeking to provide access for a growing Charlotte and to encourage uptown development, leaders decided to locate the new Museum on North Tryon Street.
...
Wikipedia