Las Vegas’ Wacky and Wonderful Museums

Our city has some of the best eccentric and off-beat museums 

Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort

I do a lot of writing about Las Vegas, most of it over on the 10Best Las Vegas page, but most of it is about the obvious things people are looking for when they visit the city: hotels, restaurants, casinos. Recently I had the chance to write about our museums, which is one of my favorite topics. 

I covered the most popular museums, which includes what I like to think of as the Big 3: The Neon Museum, The Mob Museum, and the National Atomic Testing Museum. If you visit these three museums, you’ll get a pretty good look at the history of the city – and all three are home to unusual collections. While you should definitely visit them, there are also plenty of other historic sites, nature viewing areas, and museums you should check out, especially if you’re a local.

If you’re visiting the Atomic Testing Museum, you should also check out the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, which is on the grounds of UNLV. Admission is free and it showcases all kinds of art. Exhibits rotate regularly.

If you’re checking out the Neon Museum or the Mob Museum, you’re in the right part of town for museum-going. The Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort, which is next to the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, is the site of the oldest non-native structure in the state of Nevada. As the name implies, the location was where early Mormon pioneers built a settlement in 1855. In addition to the restored buildings on the grounds, the visitor center also has exhibits and a wealth of information about early Las Vegas. 

Portions of this building date to 1855

Not far from the Cultural Corridor, the Springs Preserve sits on the place that gave Las Vegas its name. It’s home to both the Nevada State Museum and the Origen Museum, but the entire site is fun to explore and holds all kinds of history in its archaeological sites. There are hiking trails, outside play areas for kids, and a botanical garden.

You can easily make an entire day out of museum-going and historical sight-seeing if you plan a trip to Hoover Dam with stops at the Clark County Museum, the Nevada State Railroad Museum, and the Boulder City/Hoover Dam Museum in the Boulder City Hotel. Alternatively, if you’d rather take in some nature in the eastern part of the valley, you could visit the Clark County Wetlands or the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve. Out in Boulder City, you could also swing by Hemenway Park, home to a herd of Bighorn Sheep.

Clark County Museum's Ghost Town

Hemenway Park, Boulder City

Of course, since we’re in Las Vegas, you could explore history of a whole different kind at the Erotic Heritage Museum or the Burlesque Hall of Fame Museum.

And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the Pinball Hall of Fame, also known as the Pinball Museum, which is home to the world’s largest pinball collection (according to their website). This is totally a hands-on experience – visitors can play all of the games.  

There are even more museums than this – like the DISCOVERY Children’s Museum and museum-like experiences like the Bodies Exhibit and the Titanic Exhibit – but I think I’ve made my point: if you think Las Vegas doesn’t have great museums, think again.

What are some of your favorite Southern Nevada Museums?

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All photos by Terrisa Meeks

Kid-Friendly Vegas in the Summer

A Las Vegas parent faces two dilemmas in summer. First, there’s the universal parental question that arises when a child is out of school for any extended length of time: “What the heck am I going to do with this kid?” Second, in the summertime heat of the Las Vegas desert, a parent has to come up with inside things to do. Outside activities are not always an option. Not unless you’re checking to see if you can fry eggs on the cement.

Make sure you have plenty of indoor activities on hand, but get out once in a while or you'll get cabin fever, Las Vegas style. If you’re looking for things to do, a little homework will uncover plenty of kid-friendly activities that involve air conditioning. Click on over to VegasParent.com for ideas, and be sure to check the Friday Review Journal. The Clark County Library District also hosts a variety of programs, most of them free. Of course, be sure to browse through my blog for ideas!

Visit outside destinations early in the morning or late in the day—after dark if it’s very hot. There’s a reason most desert animals are nocturnal. Pack a picnic dinner and make the drive to Spring Mountain Ranch for Super Summer Theater; this month it's "The Buddy Holly Story," next month, "West Side Story." Visit indoor attractions, like museums. I recommend the Atomic Testing Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Lied Children’s Discovery Museum, The Springs, and the Nevada State Museum in Lorenzi Park. If you’ve got a plump budget, check out some of the Strip’s attractions: Mandalay Bay’s Shark Reef, Circus-Circus’s Adventuredome, or Luxor’s Bodies: The Exhibit.
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Picture: My photo taken at the Las Vegas Natural History Museum

RIP, Las Vegas Art Museum

On March 12, 2009, the Las Vegas Art Museum ceased. LVAM was 59 years old at the time of its death. LVAM is preceded in death by droves of Las Vegas businesses and organizations, including the Guggenheim, The Neverending Story (our only independent children’s bookstore), and Cheesecake & Crime (Henderson’s last locally owned bookstore). LVAM is survived by the Arts District, the Art Center at Neonopolis, and by all of Las Vegas’ determined and talented (if often also ignored) artists.
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Photo Information: My picture of LVAM's exterior

The Vegas Girl Ventures Back into the News

The Vegas Girl is not alone in her opinion of the daily news--namely, that it contributes to Prozac sales. But I like to be informed, at least somewhat, so I resolved to find a way to keep current on the news without becoming clinically depressed. Today, I bravely skimmed the Friday edition of the RJ/Sun as well as the weekly View, then I took a trip to Barnes and Noble (what a hardship, I know) to pick up some of the alternative/freebie magazines—Las Vegas Weekly, CityLife, Home News, BLVDS (clean, crisp, professional layout) and Las Vegas Woman. I’m happy to say that I feel informed, but not terrified of any impending apocalypses. Here are some of the stories I found:

From Las Vegas Weekly: “The Museum We Can’t Use.” The Springs Preserve, a project Las Vegans should be proud of, is home to the almost-complete new Nevada State Museum. All that stands between it and completion is about $7 million dollars. Wouldn’t this be a project that might benefit from some of the controversial programs in the current stimulus proposal? Like that NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) money everyone is so up in arms about?

If you want the inside Vegas scoop, don't miss the Knappster (aka George Knapp) in CityLife. This week his column discusses the monorail and the Nevada Water Authority's revisionist memory about its stance on global warming and drought. Seems that 1,000-foot bathtub ring is impossible for even bureaucrats to ignore.

Every Friday the RJ runs an automotive section, Drive. Today, I read that the Mint 400 is back in town, and Tech Inspection will take place on Fremont Street March 27. My son and husband are marking their calendars. They love the smell of high octane racing fuel in the morning.

The proposed cuts to Nevada's educational system have enraged and shocked many residents. I thought it was interesting to read Geoff Schumacher's commentary, "Schools blame game" in today's RJ. How are we ever supposed to attract a more diverse economic base if our school system can't do its job? And it was so. . . interesting to read that Higher Education Chancellor Jim Rogers feels that rotten parents are to blame for our failing students.

The Summerlin Home News reports that the Summerlin Art Festival has been cancelled this year due to the poor economy. This is truly a loss for festival season; the sidewalk-chart art of La Strada dell'Art sets it apart from other Las Vegas festivals. They plan on resuming in 2010.

Years ago, when my husband and I climbed to the peak of Mt. Charleston, near the summit we passed the site of a 1950s plane crash. I had no idea at the time that the passengers onboard were working on the U2 spy plane. Now a local group would like to commemorate the victims of the crash. Summerlin South View carried a story on the crash and the effort to memorialize the passengers and crew in "Honoring silent heroes."

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Photo information: My picture of the 2008 La Strada dell'Arte (September). See my post from October 2, 2008, for more photos and information about the festival.

Looking for Las Vegas Info?

Newcomers to Las Vegas tend to complain about a lack of non-gambling things to do. If you’re waiting for friendly advice from your neighbors on day trip destinations, or for an invite from co-workers to a barbeque, well… I hate to break the news to you, but chances are you won’t have much luck.

The best way to uncover things to do around here is to pick up a paper. Of course, you can always check here at the Vegas Girl Blog, but for a truly comprehensive listing of everything that might be happening in the valley, you might want to bookmark a couple of mass-media web pages like the Review Journal’s Neon, CityLife, and Las Vegas Weekly.

A couple of new entries into this category are BLVDS Magazine and the Home News, which publishes neighborhood-specific papers for communities throughout Southern Nevada. Visit the Las Vegas Sun’s page and scroll down to find a neighborhood.
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Photo courtesy of Svilen Mushkatov at bigphoto1.blogspot.com

Atomic Las Vegas

If you remember duck and cover, mushroom clouds, and bomb shelters, you’ll definitely want to visit the Atomic Testing Museum at 755 E. Flamingo. Even though I was born about the same time above-ground testing was banned in 1963, the artifacts on display took me back to a time when the threat of nuclear war loomed large; when I was a kid growing up in Las Vegas, the underground tests still shook our breakfast table periodically. For those whippersnappers who think the Cold War was a battle fought in the Arctic, the Atomic Testing Museum will fill in the holes in their education.

Arranged in chronological order from the beginning of the atomic age during the last years of World War II to today, the museum offers a rich variety of displays that include hands-on exhibits and video. To get a taste of what witnessing an above-ground atomic test was like, visit the Ground Zero theater for a shaking, ear-shattering re-creation. “I think my hearing is damaged,” my son said after we viewed the film. I told him that watching an actual test would have been far louder and scarier. (This led us to a discussion of the Pepcon explosion, which I remember well.)

My favorite display was the information on the Jackass and Western Railroad, a short railway used at the Test Site to transport nuclear powered rockets. A couple of years ago, I wrote some material for the folks at the Boulder City Railroad Museum, where the historic locomotive from that railroad now lives. Being the museum geek that I am, I was dancing with excitement when I discovered this connection.

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Photo Information: My picture of the exterior of the Atomic Testing Museum. Photography is not allowed inside the museum.

School is Back in Session for the Las Vegas Meeks Academy for One

This year, my son and I are doing homeschool again. Friday is field trip day at the Meeks Academy for One (MAFO)—with only one student, we can go on a field trip every week.

So far this year, we’ve been to the Las Vegas Springs Preserve, the Las Vegas Natural History Museum, the Lied Children’s Discovery Museum, and the Old Mormon Fort. These photos were taken at the Old Mormon Fort.

We’ve learned about flash floods in the desert at the wonderful display at the Springs Preserve (it comes complete with rushing water). The Springs’ high-tech displays are well worth the price of admission. I suggest going early in the day at this time of year so you can take full advantage of the hiking trails. At the Natural History Museum, we visited the creepy CSI Bugs display—it comes complete with simulated morgue body freezer (and body). If you haven’t been to the Lied Children’s Discovery Museum lately (right across from the Natural History Museum in the Cultural Corridor), I’m happy to say that the exhibits have been both improved and expanded. My favorite new exhibit was the hurricane winds exhibit, which allows visitors to stand inside a phone-booth type contraption while a fan whips up the “wind” to about 78 mph.

The Old Mormon Fort, also located on the Cultural Corridor, is the oldest non-native building in the state of Nevada. Today only a portion of the original 1855 adobe remains in the ranch house. I was impressed with the visitor’s center; ask for a treasure hunt to keep your young scholar occupied finding the freight wagon, petrified wood, and other artifacts. Dedicated restoration prevented the Fort from suffering the same fate as the Kiel Ranch. By far, the most intriguing figure of early Las Vegas history, in my opinion, is Helen J. Stewart, a pioneer woman who wound up in charge of one of Las Vegas’ most important early stops after her husband was killed in a gunfight. (By the way, the local school is not named for the pioneer woman herself but for her handicapped granddaughter.)
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Photo information: My pictures of the fort. Hard to believe, but this slice of very old Vegas history is at the corner of Washington and Las Vegas Boulevard.

The Vegas Girl On The Go

Since last Friday, I've been from end of the Valley to the other, and I'm on my way back out shortly. John Edwards is scheduled to be at the Egg and I for a meet-and-greet at noon. For a homeschooler, an election year offers some of the best hands-on type of instruction. Now that Nevada actually matters to the political powers that be, we can even meet some of the people in the running for leader of the free world. And what better way to introduce a kid to politics than by hearing former President Bill Clinton speak? That's how we kicked off our day yesterday.

On Friday we visited the DaVinci Exhibit in Henderson and the Clark County Heritage Museum:

I'll have more on my treks all over Las Vegas as soon as I'm parked back at my desk!

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My photo information: Top - former President Clinton speaking to the crowd at the Centennial Hills YMCA; first pic on bottom - The DaVinci Exhibit, which brings to life many of Leonardo's sketches and ideas; second pic on bottom - the Ghost Town area at the Clark County Heritiage Musuem.