Norris Geyser Basin Museum

Norris Museum/Norris Comfort Station
Location: Grand Loop Rd., Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Built: 1929-30
Architect: Herbert Maier
Architectural style: Other
Governing body: National Park Service
MPS: Yellowstone National Park MPS
NRHP Reference#: 83003362[1]
Added to NRHP: July 21, 1983

The Norris Geyser Basin Museum, also known as Norris Museum or Norris Comfort Station, is one of a series of "trailside museums" in Yellowstone National Park designed by architect Herbert Maier in a style that has become known as National Park Service Rustic. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and is one of three parts of a National Historic Landmark, the Norris, Madison, and Fishing Bridge Museums, which were funded by Laura Spelman Rockefeller's grant of $118,000.[2][3] Built 1929 - 1930, the Norris Museum is sited on a hill between the Porcelain Basin and the Back Basin of Norris Geyser Basin. Its central breezeway frames a view of the Porcelain Basin for arriving visitors.

The 94-foot (29 m) by 20-foot (6.1 m) museum consists of two rectangular sections divided by the breezeway, which is roofed by a prominent jerkinhead gable., framed in massive logs. The pavilions to either side are of shingle-coveredframe construction on a massive stone base. A stone and concrete terrace surrounds the building.[3]

A nearby comfort station or toilet is included in the National Register nomination. It was probably built in the 1930s.[3] With the construction of a modern facility the one story log structure is now used as a bookstore operated by the Yellowstone Association.

The museum exhibits focus on geothermal geology, features of Norris Geyser and plant and animal life in thermal areas.

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