The Highlands Museum and Discovery Center is a

heritage center A heritage centre, center, or museum is a public facility – typically a museum, monument, visitor centre, or park – that is primarily dedicated to the presentation of historical and cultural information about a place and its people, and often ...

and science center located in Ashland,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The museum displays exhibits on local history and specialized science displays for children along with providing educational outreach programs.

History

The Kentucky Highlands Museum and Discovery Center was established in 1984 in Ashland's historic

Mayo Mansion Mayo Mansion is a historic mansion at 405 Third Street in Paintsville, Kentucky. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 3, 1974, as John C.C. Mayo Mansion and Office. The mansion is currently occupied by Our Lady of th ...

as the Kentucky Highlands Museum. By 1994, additional space was needed and the museum was moved to the former C.H. Parsons Department Store Building in Ashland's Commercial Historic District. The museum was renamed the Highlands Museum and Discovery Center in 1997.A Brief History
Highland Museum and Discovery Center. Retrieved on 2010-11-25 In 2003-2004, the museum began developing plans to renovate and expand spaces, with specific plans of implementing additional interactive exhibits which focus on the history of Ashland and the

Eastern Mountain Coal Fields The Eastern Kentucky Coalfield is part of the Central Appalachian bituminous coalfield, including all or parts of 30 Kentucky counties and adjoining areas in Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee. It covers an area from the Allegheny M ...

. Phase I of redevelopment began in November 2005 and was completed in January 2006. Phase II began in the fall of 2006 after Perry and Susan Madden, the owners of the Parsons Building, donated the structure to the Community & Technical College Foundation of Ashland. The donation required that the museum must remain a tenant in the Parsons Building and that it must join a partnership with

Ashland Community and Technical College Ashland Community and Technical College (ACTC) is a public community college in Ashland, Kentucky. It is an open-admissions college and part of the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. It was founded in 1938 to allow students the o ...

, allowing the college to use the building in its educational programs. However, in July 2013, the foundation, citing economic conditions and other factors, placed the building for sale. The museum finalized the purchase of the building in November 2013. 'A new beginning' for the Highlands Museum & Discovery Center.
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References

External links

Highlands Museum and Discovery CenterPermanent Exhibits
{{EMCF Attractions Ashland, Kentucky Museums established in 1984 History museums in Kentucky Science museums in Kentucky Museums in Boyd County, Kentucky 1984 establishments in Kentucky