The Staten Island Children's Museum is a

children's museum Children's museums are institutions that provide exhibits and programs to stimulate informal learning experiences for children. In contrast with traditional museums that typically have a hands-off policy regarding exhibits, children's museums fea ...

on the grounds of Sailors' Snug Harbor on

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. The museum opened in 1976 following community and government support for the project. The museum stresses a hands-on interactive approach to its exhibits A large metal sculpture of a Praying Mantis, named Francis the Praying Mantis, is located in front of the museum.

Exhibits

The museum currently offers visitors nine separate exhibit areas. Current exhibits include "House About It" which teaches children about home building and construction, "Bugs and other insects" which features a collection of living exotic spiders and insects as well as a small collection of fossils and preserved insects, "Great Explorations", "Sea of Boats", "Ladder 11" which features a real decommissioned fire truck, "veterinary clinic" which teaches children about being a veterinarian and proper pet care, "Portia's Playhouse", "the Garden Terrace" and "Big Games".

Grants

The museums veterinary and pet care exhibit was created in part with support from VCA veterinary clinics. In 2005, the museum was among 406

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

arts and social service institutions to receive part of a $20 million grant from the

Carnegie Corporation The Carnegie Corporation of New York is a philanthropic fund established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to support education programs across the United States, and later the world. Since its founding, the Carnegie Corporation has endowed or othe ...

, which was made possible through a donation by New York City mayor

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...

Building History

The Children's Museum consists of two buildings with a connecting walkway. The main building, that houses the museum administrative offices, the live animal collection, the fire truck and the "house about it" exhibit, was originally built in 1913 as part of the Snug Harbor Complex. The portion of the museum that houses the food court area and the great explorations exhibits is the old snug harbor barn, where the livestock was originally kept to feed the residents of Sailors Snug Harbor. When the museum was developed, a modern walkway was built connecting the two structures to create one museum building. During the 1950s, the building was designated as civil defense shelter for local residents in the event of an air raid. The sign can still be found on the back of the building.

References

Museums established in 1976 Museums in Staten Island Children's museums in New York City Sailors' Snug Harbor {{NewYork-museum-stub