Attraction Type: Museum
O. Henry Museum
The O. Henry Museum is the former home of William Sydney Porter, better known as O. Henry. The short story writer authored such standards as “The Gift of the Magi,” “The Ransom of Red Chief” and “The Last Leaf.” The museum collects, preserves and interprets artifacts and archival materials relative to Porter. Through exhibits, programs and tours, the museum focuses on Porter’s years in Austin. While living in the city, he wrote his earliest stories.
Harry Ransom Center
While many know the Harry Ransom Center as an internationally renowned humanities research center, it hosts many exhibits of interest to the general traveling public. The center, located at The University of Texas at Austin, is home to 100,000 works of art, 5 million photographs, more than 42 million manuscripts and nearly 1 million books. The collection’s highlights include one of only 20 complete copies of the Gutenberg Bible in the world.
Susanna Dickinson Museum
The Susanna Dickinson Museum occupies the house Joseph Hannig constructed in 1869 for his new wife, Susanna Dickinson. Dickinson survived the Battle of the Alamo and delivered the news of its fall to Sam Houston. Houston went on to defeat Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto, winning independence for the Republic of Texas. Dickinson earned the nickname of the “Messenger of the Alamo.” The “rubble-rock” style house, a style of architecture brought to
LBJ Presidential Library
The LBJ Presidential Library gives visitors have the opportunity to learn about America’s 36th President, Lyndon B. Johnson, a particularly complex leader. The museum features state-of-the-art exhibitions to highlight many of the critical issues Johnson faced, including education, civil rights, the environment and the Vietnam War. Visitors can pick up a telephone and listen to audio recordings of Johnson as he conducts business. Beyond the political aspects, the museum sheds light on the personal lives
Hall of Flame Fire Museum
The National Historical Fire Foundation is better know as the Hall of Flame. The museum is dedicated to preserving firefighting equipment used in Arizona and around the world. The museum has five exhibit bays and the National Firefighting Hall of Heroes gallery. The equipment is grouped as: Hand & Horse Drawn (1725–1908); Motorized Apparatus (1897–1948); Motorized Apparatus (1918–1968); Motorized Apparatus (1919–1950) and Wildland Firefighting. It has also have a large collection of Fire Department arm patches.
Phoenix Police Museum
The Museum traces its origins to October 1993. The original small museum in the city’s historic city hall has today blossomed to a more robust museum located in the same building. Open to the public without charge, the museum features a number of exhibits that interpret the city’s law enforcement history. One of the more unique exhibits is the jail rock with leg shackles attached to it. Dating to the 1860s, the jail rock was used to
Musical Instrument Museum
This 200,000-square-foot, $250 million museum museum opened in April 2010. Its collection is astounding, bringing together more than 15,000 instruments from 200-plus countries under one roof. But, these are not just static displays. To bring the instruments to life, the museum uses a combination of wireless technology and high-resolution videos. When a museum guest approaches a video screen, they can listen to and watch the instruments in action, played by true artisans who can bring them to life.
Heard Museum
The story of Arizona would be far from complete without the Native American perspective. While it is at times a difficult story to tell and a difficult story to hear, the Heard Museum does a magnificent job brining the Native American Experience to life. Dwight B. and Maie Bartlett Heard founded the museum in 1929 to house their personal art collection. Today, the 130,000-square-foot museum features more than 40,000 items in its collection, including the