Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois

The Museum of Science and Industry is located in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. The facility is housed inside the former Palace of Fine Arts from the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. The museum was originally endowed by Sears, Roebuck and Company president, Julius Rosenwald, and first opened its doors to the public in 1933, during the Century of Progress Exposition.

The Palace of Fine Arts was designed by Charles B. Atwood, and unlike other "White City'' buildings, the structure was constructed using bricks under the fazade of plaster. After the World's Fair, the site initially housed the Columbian Museum, which eventually evolved into the Field Museum of Natural History. When the new Field Museum was opened near downtown Chicago, the museum organization relocated and the site was vacated.

Sears, Roebuck and Company president Julius Rosenwald, and the Commercial Club of Chicago, pledged $3 million toward converting the old Palace of Fine Arts, into a new museum. During the conversion of the building, a new limestone fazade was added and helped the structure retain its 1893 art-beaux look, and the interior was redesigned using a more modern style, by Alfred P. Shaw.

The new Museum of Science and Industry opened up to the public in three stages that took place between 1933 and 1940. The first opening ceremony took place during the Century of Progress Exposition in 1933, during the Century of Progress Exposition.

The facility has several permanent exhibits on display. The Coal Mine is located inside the museums Central Pavilion and is designed to replicate a coal mine shaft. In 1954, the museum put a U-505 Submarine on display, which was one of only two German submarines captured during World War II. The Take Flight exhibit features a San Francisco flight to Chicago using a genuine Boeing 727 jet plane donated to the facility by United Airlines.

The Transportation Zone exhibit showcases displays on air and land transportation, including the 999 Empire Express steam train and two World War II warplanes donated by the British government. On display in the Great Hall is the first diesel-powered streamlined stainless-steel train the Pioneer Zephyr, and a free tour goes through every 10-20 minutes.

The Museum of Science and Industry's Henry Crown Space Center includes the actual Apollo 8 space capsule which carried Frank Borman, William Anders and James Lovell on the first lunar orbital mission. Other interesting exhibits in the area are an Omnimax Theater, Scott Carpenters Mercury Atlas 7 capsule and a life-sized replica of a space shuttle.

In addition to three floors of exhibits and displays, the Museum of Science and Industry features both temporary and traveling exhibits. The exhibitions differ from the typical exhibits in that they are offered for a span of five months. The facility also contains an ice cream parlor, gift shop, cafy and several other interesting areas to explore.

The Museum of Science and Industry is opened daily Monday through Saturday from 9:30 am until 4:00 pm, and on Sunday from 11 am until 4 pm. The facility invites visitors to explore, interact with the exhibits and gain a firsthand knowledge and appreciation of the history it holds.