Discovery World

Discovery World is a science and technology center located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The museum focuses on innovation and technology, as well as Great Lakes education and conservation. It contains interactive exhibits, the Reiman Aquarium, and two theaters, and is home to Wisconsin's official flagship, the Denis Sullivan, a fully functional sailing vessel modeled after a 19th-century Great Lakes schooner. Many of the exhibits have to do with Milwaukee or the Great Lakes. The entire Great Lakes watershed, built to scale in the Great Lakes Future Exhibit, addresses freshwater issues, stewardship, and the human relationship with freshwater resources.

Founded by Robert Powrie Harland, Sr., Discovery World was initially known as the Science, Economics and Technology Center. Plans for it appeared in the Milwaukee Journal in 1981. Articles mentioning Discovery World dating back to 1986 in the Milwaukee Sentinel suggest that the museum's early location was the Milwaukee Public Library, Paul Krajniak was director of exhibit development at the time inside the Wisconsin Ave. entrance of the library. The museum featured hands-on exhibits, computerized simulations, and science shows.

Discovery World contains 14 interactive science, technology, and freshwater exhibits in its 120,000 foot facility. These exhibits include:

Other exhibits at Discovery World include The Challenge, Simple Machine Shipyard, Briggs & Stratton Milwaukee Muscle, WE Energies Energy & Ingenuity, Johnson Controls Techno Jungle, HIVE 3D Environment, Clean Air Trek, BIG Presented by Caterpillar, and The Distant Mirror - an Anne Gayman Johnson Experience.

In May 2012, Discovery World unveiled a rotating seasonal exhibit. The first of these exhibits was centered upon the Summerfest musical festival. Most recently, Discovery World featured "Baseball – Innovations That Changed the Game" during the summer of 2013.

Discovery World also offers:

Discovery World has 10 labs and studios that allow visitors to become involved with innovation, creativity, science, technology and the environment, especially with freshwater resources and the Great Lakes. The 10 labs and studios are made up of:

Discovery World is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization that does not receive any public funding. The organization has received significant donations for area corporations, including $2.5 million from Rockwell Automation in October 2014, and $2 million from Kohl's in January 2016.

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