Maturango Museum

Maturango Museum
The front of the Maturango Museum
Established	1975
Location	100 E. Las Flores Ave. Ridgecrest, CA
Type	Cultural history, natural history and geology
Director	Harris Brokke
Website	http://www.maturango.org/

Maturango Museum is located in Ridgecrest, California, USA. The Museum is best known for the guided tours of the Coso Rock Art District located on China Lake Naval Weapons Station.^[1] The Museum offers exhibits and displays featuring both the natural and the cultural history and diversity of the Northern Mojave Desert with exhibits of animals, plants, rocks and minerals, Native American artifacts, and contemporary arts and crafts.^[2]

Exhibits

^[3]

Creosote Scrub Habitat Wildflowers & Desert Animals Foothills and Petroglyphs Pleistocene Lakes Map Native Californians Historical Society of the upper mojave exhibit Naval air weapons station, China Lake Mineral Display Case - local minerals, fossils.

Ecology Islands Bristlecones Geology History Exhibit Searles Lake Birds in the Desert Joshua Tree Habitat Paleontology

Annual Events

^[4]

• Annual Dinner
• Wildflower Show
• Sylvia Winslow Exhibit Gallery Show
• Ridgecrest Desert Wildflower Festival

Location / Description

Main article: Ridgecrest, California

Ridgecrest was incorporated as a city in 1963. Formerly known as Crumville, it is located in the Indian Wells Valley in northeastern Kern County, California adjacent to the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake. Ridgecrest is the only incorporated city along US 395 in Kern County. The population was 24,927 at the 2000 census and increased to 27,616 at the 2010 census.

Ridgecrest is surrounded by four mountain ranges; the Sierra Nevada on the west, the Cosos on the north, the Argus Range on the east, and the El Paso Mountains on the south. It is approximately 80 miles from the Lancaster/Palmdale area and approximately 115 miles (185 km) from both Bakersfield and San Bernardino, the three nearest major urban centers.

See also

• List of museums in California
• Arboreta in California
• Aquaria in California
• Botanical gardens in California
• Historic landmarks in California
• Forts in California
• Museums list
• Nature Centers in California
• Observatories in California
• Registered Historic Places in California

Resources

• Museums in the USA: California
• Southern California Museums & Historical Sites
• California Association of Museums
• California Historical Societies and Museums
• LA Tourist: Museums
• House Museums, Open Air Museums and Ship Museums in Southern California
• Things to do in Los Angeles

External links

• Maturango Museum Home Page
• Maturango Museum (DesertUSA)
• Historical Society of the Upper Mojave Desert
• Ridgecrest Desert Wildflower Festival
• MAP for Maturango Museum

References

1. ^ "Maturango Museum Home Page". http://www.maturango.org/. Retrieved 2009-03-28. 
2. ^ "The Maturango Museum". data from Desert USA. http://www.desertusa.com/mag98/mar/poi/feb_matmuseum.html. Retrieved 2009-03-28. 
3. ^ "Permanent Exhibits in the Museum's North Gallery". Maturango Museum. http://www.maturango.org/#Exhibits. Retrieved 2009-03-28. 
4. ^ "Annual Events". Maturango Museum. http://www.maturango.org/#Annual. Retrieved 2009-03-28.