Question of the Day - 20 December 2007

Actually, Las Vegas has a number of museums. We covered the popular Liberace Museum in the QoD on 8/1/06 and the Carroll Shelby Mustang Museum on 7/16/07. Pop-culture museum includes Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum (at the Venetian). For art museums, there are the Las Vegas Art Museum, the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art, and the Guggenheim-Hermitage Museum (Venetian). Natural-history and science museum would include the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, and the Lied Children’s Discovery Museum. Finally, unnatural history is covered at the Atomic Testing Museum (very cool interactive museum with really imaginative gift shop -- see QoD 5/20/06), the Pinball Hall of Fame and last but not least, the Clark County Heritage Museum in Henderson.

For your purposes, you should consider the Nevada State Museum, the Clark County Heritage Museum, and the Springs Preserve, with a possible side trip to the Neon Boneyard.

The Nevada State Museum and Historical Society (700 Twin Lakes Dr., 702/486-5205, open daily 9 am-5pm, $4 admission for adults and $3 for children under 15 and seniors) has a number of fine permanent exhibits that bring to life the Mojave Desert and Spring Mountains ecology and southern Nevada history, ranging from the Ice Age to present-day Las Vegas. Exhibits range from a life-size model of a 48-foot-long ichthyosaur and hand-woven Native American baskets to nuclear testing in Nevada and photography of some of Las Vegas’ most notable neon signs. This museum is big enough to be worth making the trip out to Lorenzi Park (take Valley View north to Bonanza, go right and drive a long block to Twin Lakes Drive, then turn left and enter the park), but not so big that you feel you can’t see everything. The current featured exhibit is "The Art of Nature: Images from the Wildlands of Southern Nevada."

The Clark County Heritage Museum (1830 S. Boulder Hwy., Henderson, 702/455-7955, open daily 9 am-4:30 pm, $1.50 admission for adults and $1 for children 3-15 years) is much more extensive and comprehensive. The main museum houses a historical collection, tracing Indian cultures from the prehistoric to the contemporary and chronicling the exploration, settlement, and industry of the area. A gallery in the main building also features changing and traveling exhibits.

Step outside into the rail cars for a full course on Nevada’s railroads. A 1912 steam locomotive is on display, along with a baggage car, a boxcar, and a caboose. Inside the actual 1932 Boulder City Depot, you’ll find plenty of railroad memorabilia.

Then stroll down Heritage Street, with its four original houses, restored to recreate the lifestyles of important periods in local history; there are also a 1900s’ newspaper print shop, a barn, a vintage travel trailer, and a motel cabin.

The mining exhibit is filled with minerals; there’s also a ghost town that features a real jail, general store, blacksmith, and toll house; if it’s clement, take a short walk on the nature trail.

The Clark County Heritage Museum is about the best $1.50 you can spend in southern Nevada if you’re interested in history and its preservation.

• "Did the Las Vegas Art Museum disappear overnight? It does not appear in your survey." No, it didn't disappear, although it is moving from the modest quarters it currently shares with Las Vegas’s West Sahara Library to a larger, more centrally located facility, at 121 E. Sunset Rd. The new facility is due to open Sept. 2009. In the meantime, here's the link to the Las Vegas Art Museum Web site, where you can find out details about the current exhibition, "Las Vegas Diaspora: The Emergence of Contemporary Art from the Neon Homeland."
• "I wanted to add to your QOD about museums: There is a great science museum. I don't remember the address but it is north of downtown. There is an exhibit of sharks, dinosaurs, and if I remember correctly, live animals as well. I found it by just driving around. I really enjoyed going through this museum and now make it part of my regular sites to see every time I come to Las Vegas." That's the Las Vegas Natural History Museum and you're correct, they do have live exhibits too, including marine life, Burmese pythons, tarantulas, scorpions, snakes, and lizards. The museum's located at 900 N. Las Vegas Blvd. (at Washington, adjacent to the Cashman Center) and is open daily from 9 am to 4 pm. Admission's $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, students, and the military, and $4 for kids aged 3 to 11.