PERMANENT EXHIBITS
Paluxysaurus jonesi
This Early Cretaceous sauropod lived about 110 million to 115 million years ago. Paluxysaurus jonesi was estimated to stand about 12 feet high at the shoulder and weigh 20 tons. That’s about the weight of seven elephants! From nose to tail, the dinosaur measured about 60 feet long.
The skeleton on view is actually a combination of four different Paluxysaurus skeletons found in a similar area. Though 60 to 70 percent of a full skeleton was found, most of the bones are too fragile or deformed to be mounted, so casts were made using 3D modeling techniques!
Paluxysaurus jonesi’s name comes from the location of the dig site, a sandstone quarry on the Jones ranch in Hood County, Texas. This site was close to the town of Paluxy on the Paluxy River.
It took 16 years for students, faculty, staff, and volunteers from Southern Methodist University, the Museum, and other organizations to uncover, clean, and mount the pieces on view. The sandstone matrix surrounding Paluxysaurus was difficult to remove specimens from, so some parts of the skeletons are still embedded in blocks of quarry rock and stored in the Museum’s collection.
After paleontologists confirmed these bones belonged to a new species of dinosaur, the Texas State Legislature passed a bill making Paluxysaurus jonesi the official State Dinosaur of Texas in 2009! During the Museum’s 75th anniversary, Paluxysaurus jonesi was moved from the Dino Labs exhibit to a prominent position in Museum’s atrium.
Fun Facts
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One Paluxysaurus jonesi femur bone fossil weighs approximately 200 pounds.
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It took six weeks to move Paluxysaurus jonesi from one end of the Museum to the other during the 75th anniversary. Watch the time lapse of the installation!
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Check out House Bill 16, approved on June 19, 2009, that made Paluxysaurus jonesi the Texas State Dinosaur!
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Most of the specimens on display in the Museum are from Texas. You could say everything is bigger in Texas, even the dinosaurs!
Innovation Studios
In Innovation Studios, you can invent, doodle, design, explore and imagine! Whether you're young or just young-at-heart, there's no better way to discover the world than with your hands. In the Studios, you set your own agenda and chart your own path. The possibilities are endless—what will you chose?
- Take charge of your own art in Doodler Studio
- Explore light and sound in Designer Studio
- Discover something new and exciting in Imaginer Studio
- Build and play in Inventor Studio
Energy Blast
Energy Blast tells the dynamic story of energy resources in North Texas through a unique combination of science and history. Physics, technology, and innovative thinking spring to life as you are asked to explore geophysical formations, calculate drilling depths and directions and experiment with new resources.
- Explore a model drilling site for natural gas
- Get the latest info on how Texas is generating power
- Uncover the energy pioneers who put Texas on the map
9/11 Tribute
At the center of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History’s 9/11 Tribute Exhibit is N-101, a full-façade panel that supported three floors (101-103) two stories above the center of the impact zone of the North Tower. The beam is comprised of three steel columns, bolted together, three stories tall and is the largest World Trade Center artifact in Texas.
Officially known as "WTC 1, Column 133, floors 100-103 NIST Steel # N-101, Impact Steel", it is one of the few recovered pieces traced to an exact location within the tower by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Children's Museum Exhibit
The Children’s Museum gallery targets the Museum’s youngest guests – age birth to 8 – and those who care for them. The purpose is to encourage opportunities for children to play, knowing that at this age level, children are learning through play.
- Shop at the kid-size grocery store
- Become a doctor, nurse, or EMT
- Design your own building or train system
- Explore ideas of friendship, cooperation, and community
- Restroom, parent resource room, and nursing room available
DinoLabs + DinoDig®
Learn about dinosaurs that roamed in your own backyard millions of years ago and bring them to life using creativity and imagination! In DinoLabs you’ll discover dinosaur skeletons native to North Texas and cutting-edge technology that brings the experience to life! Explore DinoDig® and see what you discover in a replica field site.
- Imagine dinosaur camouflage with DinoGlow™
- Discover the difference between a bone and a fossil
- Come face-to-face with fighting dinosaurs
- Dig for fossils in our mock field site
Noble Space Gallery
It's a big universe out there, but we've got the highlights. Find out what it was like to go to the Moon. Explore the tools astronomers use to study the cosmos today and decide for yourself where we should explore next.
- Discover how scientists collect and study meteorites
- Check out objects that visited the Moon
- See yourself in infrared light
- See the Museum's first planetarium equipment
Plains Cultures Gallery
Fort Worth History is the best kind of history! Welcome to a new gallery space dedicated to exploring the indigenous peoples of the Great Plains. Featured is the bison robe worn by Cynthia Ann Parker, mother of the last Comanche Chief, Quanah Parker.
- Find indigenous peoples of Texas using the map on the wall
- Examine the bison robe worn by Cynthia Ann Parker during her recapture
- Read Cynthia Ann's story as told by her descendants
Projection Niche
Our main hallway, affectionately known as the "Spine" of the museum, houses several niches displaying items from our science and history collections. Our newest installation houses projection and camera equipment used to entertain and wow viewers!
Film projection has come a long way since its inception in the late 19th century. Early projectors, such as the Lumière brothers’ Cinématographe, used small 35mm film reels to display silent, black and white films with a hand-cranked mechanism. The introduction of synchronized sound led to the use of larger, more advanced projectors that could handle soundtracks. Later improvements included color film and digital projectors. Today, moviegoers enjoy high-definition screenings with advanced sound systems in multiplexes across the world, but the basics of projecting light through film frames to create a moving image remain the same.
La proyección de filmes ha recorrido un largo camino desde sus inicios a fines del siglo XIX. Los primeros proyectores, como el Cinematógrafo de los hermanos Lumière, utilizaban pequeños carretes de película de 35 mm para mostrar películas mudas en blanco y negro con un mecanismo de manivela. La introducción del sonido sincronizado condujo al uso de proyectores más grandes y avanzados que podían manejar bandas sonoras. Avances posteriores incluyeron película a color y proyecciones digitales. Hoy en día, los cinéfilos disfrutan de proyecciones de alta definición con sistemas de sonido avanzados en multicines alrededor del mundo, pero sus conceptos básicos de proyectar luz a través de fotogramas de películas para crear una imagen en movimiento siguen siendo los mismos.
SPECIAL EXHIBITS
Cowtown Takes Flight
Soar into the world of Fort Worth Aviation history when you visit our newest exhibit, located in the Havener Gallery!
Fort Worth’s history with aviation is long-standing, beginning with pilots performing aerial stunts in fields to becoming a leader in commercial and military aircraft production. Cowtown Takes Flight focuses on the social histories surrounding aviation’s development in our area. Examine the history of flight and aviation in Fort Worth through an amazing collection of photographs, artifacts, and hands on learning.
Cowtown Takes Flight is generously sponsored by Lockheed Martin, Meta Alice Keith Bratten Foundation, and Humanities Texas.
We appreciate the community partners and organizations that have made this exhibit possible:
American Airlines C.R. Smith Museum
Bell
Braniff International
Community Archives of Belleville and Hastings County
Cradle of Aviation Museum
Elbit Systems of America
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Public Library
Gideon Toal Managment Services
Lamar University, Archives and Special Collections McClatchy Publishing
Southwest Airlines Archives
Special Collections, Mary Couts Burnett Library, Texas Christian University
Special Collections, The University of Texas at Arlington Libraries
Tarrant County Office of Historic Preservation and Archives
The University of North Texas, Portal to Texas History
The University of Texas at Dallas, Special Collections and Archives Division
Vintage Flying Museum
Wright State University Libraries’ Special Collections and Archives
An Unexpected Friendship: Jimmy Stewart’s Love for Fort Worth
April 13, 2023 - October 1, 2023
“An Unexpected Friendship: Jimmy Stewart’s Love for Fort Worth” features photos, scripts and other artifacts from the legendary actor’s time in Fort Worth. Through his friendships and experiences across five decades, Stewart, an Academy Award winner and Honorary Texan was an advocate of the city of Fort Worth. He was a frequent promoter of the Fort Worth Zoo because of his love for conservation. In 1966, the world premiere of his film, “The Rare Breed,” took place during the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo at the original Palace Theater downtown.
Visit Fort Worth recently unveiled a new, cinematic marketing campaign featuring the iconic voice of Jimmy Stewart from the 1977 short film, “Fort Worth: The Unexpected City.” The exhibit will also feature this original short film, sponsored by First National Bank of Fort Worth in celebration of the bank’s 100th anniversary.
Individuals and institutions who assisted in documenting the exhibit include Visit Fort Worth, the Fort Worth Zoo, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, Fort Worth Aviation Museum, Fort Worth Camera, Ms. Jane Schlansker, Mrs. Debbie Head, Mrs. Ramona Bass and the Stewart Family.
Very Eric Carle: A Very Hungry, Quiet, Lonely, Clumsy, Busy Exhibit
- Become the Very Hungry Caterpillar as you follow his path
- Weave a web with the Very Busy Spider
- Find your light with the Very Lonely Firefly
- Make the Very Clumsy Click Beetle flip and jump
- Compose a night symphony with the Very Quiet Cricket
- Create artwork using many of Eric Carle’s materials and techniques
- Enjoy a gallery of prints from Eric Carle’s Very Series as well as works in progress
Very Eric Carle is included in general admission or museum membership! This exhibit can be found on the first floor, in our temporary exhibits gallery at the back of the Innovation Studios Gallery. Plan your visit today!
