Front entrance on Broadway Street to the Witte Museum in San Antonio, Texas
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Established | 1926 |
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Location | 3801 Broadway, San Antonio, Texas, United States |
Coordinates | 29°27′43″N 98°28′02″W / 29.46187°N 98.467155°W |
Type | Natural History |
Website | www.wittemuseum.org |
The Witte Museum, established in 1926 under the charter of the San Antonio Museum Association, is located adjacent to Brackenridge Park in Midtown Brackenridge, San Antonio, Texas, USA, on the banks of the San Antonio River. It is dedicated to natural history, science and South Texas heritage. The permanent collection features historic artifacts and photographs, Texas art, textiles, the world-renowned Harry Hertzberg Circus Collection (which includes the Tom Scaperlanda Room), dinosaur bones, cave drawings, Texas wildlife dioramas and the four-story H-E-B Science Treehouse, in addition to nationally acclaimed traveling exhibits. Artwork in the collection includes sculpture by San Antonio-born, Bonnie MacLeary.
The most recent addition is the 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2), Robert J. and Helen C. Kleberg South Texas Heritage Center—a permanent home for the Witte’s South Texas collections, exhibitions and public programs, combined with the latest museum technology, to trace the legendary history of South Texas. The Witte’s South Texas collections are links to the area's heritage and include saddles, spurs, basketry, branding irons, historical clothing, land grants, art and firearms.
The Witte Museum is named after San Antonio businessman, Alfred G. Witte, who bequeathed $65,000 to the city for construction of a museum of art, science, and natural history.
The first Director of the Witte Museum was Ellen Schulz Quillin.
The Twohig House, built 1841 by merchant and banker John Twohig, was relocated to the Witte.
The Celso-Navarro House at the Witte is now used for administrative offices. It was originally built in 1835 by Jose Antonio Navarro, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence and the namesake of Navarro County.