Boston Children's Museum

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The Boston Children's Museum is a museum in Boston, Massachusetts dedicated to the education of children. Located at 300 Congress Street in South Boston on the Fort Point Channel, the museum contains many activities meant to both amuse and educate young children.

The museum was founded in 1913 by a group of teachers in Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood. George Hunt Barton was an early leader and the museum’s first president. In addition, Michael Spock was the museum’s director from 1962-85.

The museum moved to its current site in the late 1970s and now occupies the first four floors of the building. At one time, the space was shared with the Boston Computer Museum, which closed in 1999.

1 Current exhibits
2 Former exhibits
3 Access
4 External links

[edit] Current exhibits

Arthur's World
Art Studio
Boats Afloat
Boston Black
Climbing the Walls — Indoor rock climbing
Construction Zone
Grandparent's Attic — An attic filled with things from the past (before television)
Hall of Toys
Japanese House — A complete Japanese house moved from Kyoto in 1979
KidStage
New Balance Climb — A huge, three-dimensional climbing maze in the form of jigsaw puzzle pieces
PlaySpace
The Recycle Shop
Science Playground — Kids can learn about science through play, including bubbles and more
Supermercado — A Latin-American grocery store
Weaving
We're Still Here — A full-sized wigwam and a contemporary Native American house
Zoom Zone

[edit] Former exhibits

Grandparent's House — A reproduction of a 1950s house
Teen Tokyo — A virtual trip into the life of Japanese teenagers
Under the Dock — A look at Boston Harbor from underneath the surface

[edit] Access

The museum is housed in a renovated industrial building. A large external glass elevator provides access to the upper floors of the museum. The ground floor houses the museum's admissions area, a gift shop, and a causal eating area. A McDonald's restaurant previously shared the building but is now closed; the museum is hoping to find another restaurant to replace McDonald's. Outside, a large deck overlooks the Fort Point Channel and Boston Harbor, and hosts a landmark: an ice cream stand in the shape of an HP Hood milk bottle. See article Hood Milk Bottle.

The museum can be accessed by public transportation. It is about a 1/4 mile (400 m) walk east from South Station, along Summer Street.

The museum is open daily from 10 AM to 5 PM, and on Fridays until 9 PM. It is closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. An admission fee is charged to non-members.