Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum - The Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences
Established	1857
Location	2430 N Cannon Drive Chicago, IL 60614 (since 1999)
Type	Nature Museum
Website	http://www.naturemuseum.org/

The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum - The Museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences is a nature museum located in Chicago, Illinois. The museum, which opened in a new facility in October 1999, is located at the intersection of Fullerton Parkway and Cannon Drive in Lincoln Park.^[1] The museum focuses on the natural history of the Chicago region and child and adult education. In addition, it has a popular live butterfly house.

History

The Museum is operated by the Chicago Academy of Sciences, which had previously been located at Lincoln Park's century old Matthew Laflin Memorial Building.^[2] The Academy was founded in 1857 by young prominent American naturalists, such as Robert Kennicott and William Stimpson.^[3] It was Chicago’s first museum dedicated to nature and science, and developed one of the finest natural history collections in the United States in the mid-19th century, but that collection was lost in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The museum was rebuilt but lost its home again in the financial turmoil of the 1880s. The museum then built a building in Lincoln Park in 1898, which became the model for the Chicago Park District's museum-in-the-parks program. In the 1990's, a new home for the museum was constructed nearby, on the southeastern banks of the North Pond. Its old building is currently used for Zoo administration.

Exhibits and Programs

The museum's exhibits today include displays about the ecological history of the Illinois region, a live butterfly house, and a green home demonstration.^[4] The butterfly house features more than 200 species of exotic butterflies. The museum also offers more than 100 educational programs for adults and children.^[5]

Name

The museum is named in honor of Peggy Notebaert, wife of Qwest Communications chairman and chief executive officer Richard Notebaert.^[6] The building was designed by Perkins and Will.^[7]

Front entrance on Cannon Drive   Butterfly house (left)   Landscape near North Pond   Garden fountain   The former home of the Museum (1898-1998), now Lincoln Park Zoo administration

See also

Chicago portal

• List of museums and cultural institutions in Chicago

References

1. ^ "Nature museum opens in Lincoln Park". Chicago Sun-Times. October 23, 2009.
2. ^ "Chicago Academy of Sciences". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved 2006-01-08
3. ^ "The Megatherium Club". Smithsonian Institution. http://www.150.si.edu/chap3/club.htm. 
4. ^ Donna Vickroy. "Notebaert Nature Museum evolves". Daily Southtown. October 1, 2004.
5. ^ "http://www.chicagotribune.com/topic/environmental-issues/nature/peggy-notebaert-nature-museum-PLCUL000214.topic"[1]
6. ^ Howard Wolinsky. "Qwest over for Notebaert - CEO who led company's 5-year turnaround calls it quits calling it quits". Chicago Sun-Times. June 12, 2007. 43.
7. ^ Lee Bey. "Notebaert Nature Museum is a harmonic convergence". Chicago Sun-Times. October 24, 1999. 30.

External links

• Official site

Coordinates: 41°55′36″N 87°38′07″W / 41.9267°N 87.6352°W / 41.9267; -87.6352