Museum of the Rockies
Encyclopedia
The Museum of the Rockies, is located in Bozeman, Montana
. The museum, originally affiliated with Montana State University in Bozeman
, and now, also the Smithsonian Institution
, is known for its paleontological
collections, although these are not its sole focus. The Museum of the Rockies houses the largest collection of dinosaur
remains in the United States, possessing the largest Tyrannosaurus
skull ever discovered, as well as the thigh bone of a Tyrannosaurus rex that contains soft-tissue remains. The museum is part of the Montana Dinosaur Trail
and is Montana
's official repository for paleontological specimens.
The museum's collections focus on the physical and cultural history of the Rocky Mountains
and the people and animals who have lived there, and date back more than 500 million years. Permanent exhibits include: Enduring Peoples, which chronicles the life of American Indian
s on the Northern Plains
and near the Rocky Mountains; History of the Northern Rocky Mountain Region, whose inhabitants included Native Americans, fur traders, gold seekers, and white settlers from frontier days through World War II
; Living History Farm, which includes the Tinsley House, where costumed interpreters demonstrate life in a turn-of-the-century home; and the Taylor Planetarium, a 40 ft (12.2 m), 104-seat domed theater.
The Museum of the Rockies preserves and tells the stories of Montana and the Northern Rockies; educating visitors about the region's rich history, which includes its paleontological roots. The museum was founded in 1957, funded in part by a gift from Caroline McGill. The museum's collections have grown to include 300,000 objects that cover more than 500,000,000 years of history. In 1980, the museum acquired over 10,000 photographs and negatives from the heirs of Albert, Alfred and Chris Schlechten
(now known as the Schlechten collection). These photographs chronicle the Bozeman and Yellowstone National Park
areas over two generations (from about 1905 until the late 1970s).
The museum offers symposiums allowing Native Americans whose tribes called the region home, to share their oral histories with visitors. In 2005, the Museum became an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution
, which provided the museum greater access to the collections and programs of that institute.
Traveling exhibits that visit the museum have covered topics as diverse as African American art
, television
and film
costumes, the impact of weapons on the cultures of the Rocky Mountains, and King Tut.
The Tinsley House is preserved by the Museum of the Rockies as a living history museum. The 100+ year-old house was originally located in Willow Creek
and it was moved to its present site (on more than 10 acres (40,468.6 m²)) behind the museum in 1989. At the museum, visitors can learn about the life of the Tinsleys and others who lived at the time. Children can try on clothes and play with contemporary toys of the time. The house includes a functioning outhouse
, water pump and kitchen where food typical of the time is sometimes prepared.
. William and Lucy [Nave] Tinsley met in Virginia City, Montana
, where both worked. They relocated to the Gallatin Valley after they married. The Tinsleys built their house in 1889 when the original cabin became too small to accommodate their growing family. The house provides an overview of homestead
life in the 1800s in the Gallatin Valley
. The house was constructed of logs accumulated over the course of two years from the Tobacco Root Mountains
. Many of the interior items are believed to have been ordered from the Sears
catalog. Most items in the house have been donated by Tinsley descendants.
While not its sole focus, the museum is primarily known for its paleontological collections. This was not always the case, however. Specimens found in Montana had usually been taken out of state to other museums. This changed in 1990 with the discovery of a Tyrannosaurus rex
skeleton that would remain in Montana and be exhibited at the museum.
While fossils continue to be property of the federal government
, the museum has been able to increase its collection (due in part to Curator Jack Horner
's agreement and work with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
and the federal Bureau of Land Management
). The museum is now home to twelve Tyrannosaurus rex specimens, including one of only two complete that have ever been found.
Apart from housing one of the largest collections of dinosaur fossil
s in the world and the largest in the United States, the museum is also home to the world's largest Tyrannosaurus skull –narrowly beating out that of the Chicago
Field Museum's center-piece, main rotunda display, Sue
. The museum's Siebel Dinosaur Complex, designed by curator Horner, is home to one of the first identified female dinosaur
s, an ovulating T. rex. Curator Horner, who served as adviser to the Jurassic Park
films, was one of the lead scientists involved in the 2005 discovery of soft tissue remains in the thigh bone of a Tyrannosaurus, which were later brought to the museum. The museum has also been involved in a number of other finds, including a baby Triceratops
in Jordan, Montana
, in 2006.
In June 2008, the museum formed part of a consortium that obtained a mobile paleontology lab that would assist researchers, allowing them to chemically analyze fossils while still in the field in order to help prevent degradation.
Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
. The museum, originally affiliated with Montana State University in Bozeman
Montana State University - Bozeman
Montana State University – Bozeman is a public university located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's land-grant university and primary campus in the Montana State University System, which is part of the Montana University System...
, and now, also the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
, is known for its paleontological
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
collections, although these are not its sole focus. The Museum of the Rockies houses the largest collection of dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
remains in the United States, possessing the largest Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
skull ever discovered, as well as the thigh bone of a Tyrannosaurus rex that contains soft-tissue remains. The museum is part of the Montana Dinosaur Trail
Montana Dinosaur Trail
The is a series of fourteen Dinosaur themed museums, state parks and other attractions in twelve communities located in the central and eastern regions of the state of Montana in the United States of America. The trail, a plan to increase attendance at the region's museums and drive tourism in...
and is Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
's official repository for paleontological specimens.
The museum's collections focus on the physical and cultural history of the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
and the people and animals who have lived there, and date back more than 500 million years. Permanent exhibits include: Enduring Peoples, which chronicles the life of American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
s on the Northern Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
and near the Rocky Mountains; History of the Northern Rocky Mountain Region, whose inhabitants included Native Americans, fur traders, gold seekers, and white settlers from frontier days through World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
; Living History Farm, which includes the Tinsley House, where costumed interpreters demonstrate life in a turn-of-the-century home; and the Taylor Planetarium, a 40 ft (12.2 m), 104-seat domed theater.
Overview
Albert, Alfred and Chris Schlechten
Albert , Alfred , and Alfred "Chris" Schlechten were members of a family noted for their photography of Montana, especially their images of Gallatin County, Montana, and Yellowstone National Park...
(now known as the Schlechten collection). These photographs chronicle the Bozeman and Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
areas over two generations (from about 1905 until the late 1970s).
The museum offers symposiums allowing Native Americans whose tribes called the region home, to share their oral histories with visitors. In 2005, the Museum became an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
, which provided the museum greater access to the collections and programs of that institute.
Traveling exhibits that visit the museum have covered topics as diverse as African American art
African American art
African American art is a broad term describing the visual arts of the American black community . Influenced by various cultural traditions, including those of Africa, Europe and the Americas, traditional African American art forms include the range of plastic arts, from basket weaving, pottery,...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
costumes, the impact of weapons on the cultures of the Rocky Mountains, and King Tut.
Tinsley House
Willow Creek, Montana
Willow Creek is a census-designated place in Gallatin County, Montana, United States. The population was 209 at the 2000 census. It is part of the 'Bozeman Micropolitan Statistical Area'.-Geography:Willow Creek is located at ....
and it was moved to its present site (on more than 10 acres (40,468.6 m²)) behind the museum in 1989. At the museum, visitors can learn about the life of the Tinsleys and others who lived at the time. Children can try on clothes and play with contemporary toys of the time. The house includes a functioning outhouse
Outhouse
An outhouse is a small structure separate from a main building which often contained a simple toilet and may possibly also be used for housing animals and storage.- Terminology :...
, water pump and kitchen where food typical of the time is sometimes prepared.
Background
The Tinsleys migrated west during the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. William and Lucy [Nave] Tinsley met in Virginia City, Montana
Virginia City, Montana
Virginia City is a town in and the county seat of Madison County, Montana, United States. In 1961, the town and the surrounding area was designated a National Historic Landmark District, the Virginia City Historic District...
, where both worked. They relocated to the Gallatin Valley after they married. The Tinsleys built their house in 1889 when the original cabin became too small to accommodate their growing family. The house provides an overview of homestead
Homestead Act
A homestead act is one of three United States federal laws that gave an applicant freehold title to an area called a "homestead" – typically 160 acres of undeveloped federal land west of the Mississippi River....
life in the 1800s in the Gallatin Valley
Gallatin River
The Gallatin River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately 120 mi , in the U.S. states of Wyoming and Montana...
. The house was constructed of logs accumulated over the course of two years from the Tobacco Root Mountains
Tobacco Root Mountains
The Tobacco Root Mountains lie in the northern Rocky Mountains, between the Jefferson and Madison Rivers in southwest Montana. The highest peak is Hollowtop at...
. Many of the interior items are believed to have been ordered from the Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, officially named Sears, Roebuck and Co., is an American chain of department stores which was founded by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck in the late 19th century...
catalog. Most items in the house have been donated by Tinsley descendants.
Paleontology
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
skeleton that would remain in Montana and be exhibited at the museum.
While fossils continue to be property of the federal government
Federal government
The federal government is the common government of a federation. The structure of federal governments varies from institution to institution. Based on a broad definition of a basic federal political system, there are two or more levels of government that exist within an established territory and...
, the museum has been able to increase its collection (due in part to Curator Jack Horner
Jack Horner (paleontologist)
John "Jack" R. Horner is an American paleontologist who discovered and named Maiasaura, providing the first clear evidence that some dinosaurs cared for their young. He is one of the best-known paleontologists in the United States...
's agreement and work with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...
and the federal Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
). The museum is now home to twelve Tyrannosaurus rex specimens, including one of only two complete that have ever been found.
Apart from housing one of the largest collections of dinosaur fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
s in the world and the largest in the United States, the museum is also home to the world's largest Tyrannosaurus skull –narrowly beating out that of the Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
Field Museum's center-piece, main rotunda display, Sue
Sue (dinosaur)
"Sue" is the nickname given to FMNH PR 2081, which is the largest, most extensive and best preserved Tyrannosaurus rex specimen ever found. It was discovered in the summer of 1990 by Sue Hendrickson, a paleontologist, and was named after her...
. The museum's Siebel Dinosaur Complex, designed by curator Horner, is home to one of the first identified female dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
s, an ovulating T. rex. Curator Horner, who served as adviser to the Jurassic Park
Jurassic Park (franchise)
The Jurassic Park franchise is a series of books, films, comics, and videos centering on a disastrous attempt to create a theme park of cloned dinosaurs...
films, was one of the lead scientists involved in the 2005 discovery of soft tissue remains in the thigh bone of a Tyrannosaurus, which were later brought to the museum. The museum has also been involved in a number of other finds, including a baby Triceratops
Triceratops
Triceratops is a genus of herbivorous ceratopsid dinosaur which lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago in what is now North America. It was one of the last dinosaur genera to appear before the great Cretaceous–Paleogene...
in Jordan, Montana
Jordan, Montana
Jordan is a town in and the county seat of Garfield County, Montana, United States. The population was 364 at the 2000 census.-History:Originally settled in 1896, Jordan received a post office on July 11, 1899...
, in 2006.
In June 2008, the museum formed part of a consortium that obtained a mobile paleontology lab that would assist researchers, allowing them to chemically analyze fossils while still in the field in order to help prevent degradation.