Virginia Natural History Museum
| Established | 1984 |
|---|---|
| Location | 21 Starling Avenue, Martinsville, Virginia, 24112 |
| Director | Joe B. Keiper, Ph.D. |
| Website | www.vmnh.net |
Coordinates: 36°41′12″N 79°51′48″W / 36.6866°N 79.8633°W
The Virginia Museum of Natural History is the state's natural history museum located in Martinsville, Virginia founded in 1984. The museum has several different award winning publications, is affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution, and has more than 22 million items. This includes the first intact stromatolite head ever found in Virginia, which is one of the largest complete 'heads' in the world, at over 5 feet in diameter and weighing over 2 tons.
The Virginia Museum of Natural History was founded in 1984 as the The Boaz Foundation, named after Dr. Noel T. Boaz, Founding Director. The museum was founded as a private institution, but on June 2, 1985, the museum opened to the public with the new and current name. Three years later in 1988, local and statewide leaders such as Speaker of the Virginia General Assembly, A. L. Philpott, helped the museum become an agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The first meeting of the Board of Trustees was also held in the same year. In 1994, the museum was accredited by the American Alliance of Museums . On March 31, 2007, the new museum facility was opened at its current location. In 2010, the museum was re-accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, a high honor as fewer than 5% of the museums in America receive re-accreditation.
The Virginia Museum of Natural History features award-winning permanent and temporary exhibits. VMNH exhibits and items are also featured throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia in different museums, state parks, and other facilities.
...
Wikipedia