Longmont Museum & Cultural Center
The Longmont Museum & Cultural Center is a municipally-funded museum in Longmont, Colorado. It collects and interprets the history and culture of the St. Vrain valley in northern Colorado.
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| Established | 1936 |
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| Location | 400 Quail Road Longmont, Colorado (United States) |
| Coordinates | 40.1457°N 105.099°W |
| Type | History museum |
| Website | Longmont Museum & Cultural Center |
History
The Longmont Museum was founded in 1936, and became a division of the City of Longmont in 1970. In 2002, the new $6 million Longmont Museum & Cultural Center opened in south Longmont, nearly doubling the Museum’s exhibition and program space.[1]
The Museum was founded as part of the St. Vrain Historical Society. Then, in 1940, the Museum opened to the public with exhibits in the carriage house at the Callahan House. With new growths leading to 1970, the Museum changed from a private, nonprofit organization to a department of the City of Longmont. With the many changes in that the Museum has gone through, it now resides at 400 Quail Road, just east of Main Street in south Longmont with a voter approved $5 million in a bond issue and an anonymous $1 million.[2]
Exhibits and programs
The Longmont Museum has two permanent exhibits, the Longs Peak Room Interactive Gallery and Front Range Rising, both of which explore the history of Longmont and the northern Colorado Front Range region. Each year it hosts 6-8 special exhibits on a variety of topics. Major recent exhibitions have included Return to Route 66: Photographs from the Mother Road, Ansel Adams & Edwin Land: Art, Science and Invention – Photographs from the Polaroid Collection; and Edward Weston: Life Work. Special exhibits also feature the work of local artists, current issues in science, and in-depth explorations of local and regional history.
The Longmont Museum hosts a Día de los Muertos celebration each year, bringing in over 1,500 people to see altars from the community, hear traditional music, and try pan de muertos and other traditional foods eaten on Día de los Muertos. Another popular education program at the Museum is Discovery Days, an art and craft program for ages 2–5 and a parent.[3]
References
- Boulder Daily Camera, June 2, 2002
- Longmont Museum & Cultural Center History
- Young, Quentin (2010-10-15). "Museum of Memories". Longmont Times-Call. Retrieved 2010-10-23.
Martha Clevenger left her mark on every exhibit she was involved with as director of the Longmont Museum. Her memory is now part of the museum’s latest exhibit. Friends and family prepared an altar for Clevenger, who died in September, as part the museum’s annual Día de los Muertos — Day of the Dead — celebration.