What is the Significance of Museums in the Telling of History

It is said that a good museum can help keep history not only alive, but in the forefront of our minds. And what kind of history are we talking about? Political? Military? Scientific?

The answer to the above question is an emphatic YES! And much, much more.

There are historical museums for almost every facet of the past.

For example there are history museums for the history of railroads, dolls, baseball, the Old West, guns, historic documents, and costumes of every period. There are animal history museums and dinosaur museums, furniture museums and museums denoting almost every culture that has ever existed.

One of the best ways to understand the culture or history of a place is to visit the local museums as soon as possible. If you relocate to Salt Lake City, the museum of the Beehive House will tell you much about Brigham Young and the early pioneers of the area. If you move to Los Angeles, be sure to take in the Los Angeles Museum of the Arts as well as the Natural History Museum in order to understand the area.

San Diego is known to have the largest zoo in the world. This zoo is a museum of natural history, in its own right, as well as a fantastic experience. If you are in New York, then The Metropolitan Museum of Art is an absolute must. Moving to Washington D.C.? Lucky you to be right next door to the Smithsonian and its 19 museums!

The point is that museums can help us understand the history of an area, a state, a country, a culture. When it is at our fingertips to study dinosaurs or fissures, ancient American Indians or scientific achievements, not to mention incredible art, through the satisfying experience of a museum, then what’s stopping us?