Love To Learn: North State Museums Hold True Treasures

Museum.” For some, this word piques excitement and interest. For many, it evokes bored childhood memories of hushed voices, slowly plodding steps, and the ever-constant scolding: “Don’t touch that!”

If you fall into the latter category, it might be time to give museums another try. Among its many treasures, the North State can boast top-quality museums that feature everything from modern science to local history. Hands-on activities entertain young children, interactive experiments intrigue older kids, and relevant, informative exhibits fascinate all ages.

The region’s local museums turn learning into a fun process of discovery. Spending time in these kid-friendly environments can also teach positive public behavior, like using indoor voices to avoid frightening an animal, or taking turns with other kids at an experiment table.

Turtle Bay Exploration Park is the largest science and art museum in the North State.

Check out this list to see some of the treasure-filled museum options the North State has to offer.

           Mt. Shasta Sisson Museum; Mt. Shasta. If your kids love trains, this is the museum for them. But they won’t just be looking at train exhibits. They’ll get a feel for the trains through the interactive railroad diorama, including functional trains, cows that moo and sheep that baa. Inside an authentic recreation of a train station office, they can sit in a big chair with all the gauges and dials from a real locomotive, and using the video and the controls, guide the train down the tracks. Children of all ages will have fun exploring a late 1800’s era cabin. Or they can climb through a lava tube in the Mt. Shasta Inside Out exhibit, learn about all types of volcanoes and get up close to giant crystals and fascinating rocks formed in our local volcanoes. In the Lulabelle Firetruck exhibit, kids can sit in the driver’s seat of a fully interactive 1915 Mt. Shasta firetruck and imagine themselves on the way to fighting a fire. Got some very young explorers in your family? They’ll love the museum activity room filled with books, toys and activities for young children. The museum is open April through December, Thursday through Sunday10 am to 4 pm, and is free of charge. mtshastamuseum.com

Valene D. Smith Museum of Anthropology; Chico. Since its inception in 1970, the Valene L. Smith Museum of Anthropology has served as a multifaceted educational facility. The museum is deeply committed to cultural programming and community collaboration, offering free K-12 school tours, lectures, and community events. Current exhibitions include Deeply Rooted: How Soil Connects Us & On Location: Film Tourism Around the World. Visitors to the soil show will marvel at the subterranean tunnel and soil horizon table that offer insights into how rainfall and volcanic activity shaped our region. The exhibit also recognizes the Mechoopda tribe’s enduring presence on the land with stories and art by current tribal members. For movie buffs, the Film Tourism show is an invitation to explore famous movies and their filming locations. Watch clips from fan favorites, take a movie location quiz, and think about spaces and places movies create for us all. The museum is centrally located on Chico State campus at the Meriam Library complex and is open Tue-Sat, 11am-3pm. Free admission. www.csuchico.edu/anthmuseum

           Gateway Science Museum; Chico. Since opening in 2010, this hands-on museum has certainly lived up to its mission of “inspiring the exploration of science and natural history in the Butte County region and beyond.” Open Wed-Sun, the museum makes weekend visits especially tantalizing by offering special hands-on activities included in museum admission. Current Exhibits include “Bombus! The Natural History of Bumble Bees,” which brings to life the beauty, ecological importance and joy of these charismatic native bees. Children can get their creativity flowing with Imagination Playground’s Big Blue Blocks. Ongoing exhibits include the museum’s drought-tolerant gardens, the skeletons of ice-age animals and cross-sections of some of Chico’s oldest valley oak trees. For those who can’t get enough of museums, the museum is conveniently located next to the historic Bidwell Mansion. gatewayscience.org. 625 Esplanade. (530) 898-4121.

Gold Nugget Museum; Paradise. The museum is currently under construction, with micro-exhibits available for viewing, Mon-Thu, noon-4pm. Exhibits include the “C-Hook”- the items that were the cause of the catastrophic Camp Fire. Various other artifacts and small exhibits are on display, on rotation. They continue to focus on the building of their 2,000 square foot exhibition space, with an exhibition schedule coming soon. (530)762-2613, gnmuseum.art

           Paradise Depot Museum. A venue of the Gold Nugget Museum, this wonderful grassroots museum is located in the Paradise Community Park and features a full-sized restored caboose in addition to its star attraction: a 30-foot working HO gauge model of the Butte County Railroad. Kids can operate the interactive model that represents the 33-mile rail line that ran between Chico and Stirling City. Currently open on the first Saturday of each month from 12pm-4pm, 5570 Black Olive Dr. (530) 413-9129. For questions related to the Depot Museum, please contact the main museum at (530) 762-2613, or info@gnmuseum.art. Website: gnmuseum.art

Gaumer’s Mineral & Mining Museum; Red Bluff. Set in Gaumer’s jewelry and lapidary shop, this unexpected gem of a museum will delight everyone in your family, from the novice geologists to the fashion divas. The museum displays collections of fossils, rocks and gems from all over the world, and Native American artifacts. Perhaps most fascinating are the fluorescent minerals, which glow under black light. Open during weekdays, this museum also offers schools the chance to schedule tours of the sparkling surprises it holds. gaumers.com. 78 Belle Mill Rd. (530) 527-6166.

Turtle Bay Museum; Redding. With two of its core values listed as “playfulness” and “community,” Turtle Bay Exploration Park clearly understands kids and families. In addition to the museum, the Park includes the Sundial Bridge, a forestry and wildlife center, botanical gardens and an arboretum. Inside the museum, kids can view local fish, peer through a glass floor to see a tree’s complex root structure and explore interactive exhibits. The Water Wonders program invites guests to explore the wonders of our local Sacramento River. Animal Trainers will guide them into the ecosystem of this Riparian habitat through fun interpretive talks with animals who call it their home. Little Explorers (children 5 and under) are invited to discover, investigate and create in a special play-based environment designed to encourage children’s social, emotional, physical and cognitive skills. Kids can learn about the natural world around them through experiments, demonstrations and other activities on Science Saturdays, every third Saturday of the month. Their year-round walkthrough aviary, interactive multi-media displays and historical and natural exhibits makes it a great place to take the kids when winter cabin fever strikes. The park is open 9am-4pm, Wed-Fri; 10am-4pm Sat & Sun. turtlebay.org. 844 Sundial Bridge Dr. 530-243-8850.

Siskiyou County Museum; Yreka. This charming museum, built in 1950, continues to carry out its original mission to “collect, preserve, disseminate, and interpret the history of the area for future generations.” Wander through local history in a series of galleries featuring Siskiyou County’s Native Americans, pioneer settlers, Chinese immigrants, gold miners and trappers. Another gallery gives insight into the area’s timber industry, and yet another features historical firearms. At no additional cost, visitors can step into the past by exploring authentic and reconstructed local buildings that compose the 2.5-acre outdoor museum. Open 9am-3pm Tue-Sat (outdoor museum closes 2pm through October, weather permitting). co.siskiyou.ca.us/museum. 910 South Main St. (530) 842-3836.

For a comprehensive list of North State museums, visit the Museums & Historical Sites page in the Family Resources section of North State Parent’s website at http://www.NorthStateParent.com/Museums