Randall Museum
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The Randall Museum is a museum in San Francisco, California and is owned and operated by the City's Recreation and Parks Department. It focuses on the arts, crafts, sciences, and natural history. On view are a number of live native and domestic animals and interactive displays. The Museum is located in Corona Heights Park on a large hill between the Castro and Haight districts of San Francisco, and boasts stunning views of the city, downtown financial district and the bay.
The museum charges no admission and offers events, movies, plays, lectures, exhibits, and classes for ages 3–adult, but is geared mostly toward children and educational field trips.
Originally named the "Junior Museum", the facility was established in 1937 in an old city jail. In 1947, a $12 million bond was issued for the creation of recreation and park capital projects, one of which included a new museum. In 1951, what is now the Randall Museum opened at its current location with exhibits, a theater, classrooms, arts and crafts shops and studios, a live animal room and gardens overlooking the San Francisco Bay.
The Randall Museum takes its name from Josephine D. Randall, a zoologist who organized one of the first Girl Scout troops in the United States as well as one of the first Camp Fire Girl troops. She later went on to become the first Superintendent of Recreation for San Francisco, creating the museum and bringing national recognition to the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department for its outstanding services.
199 Museum Way, San Francisco, CA 94114