Eureka! The National Children's Museum
The exterior of Eureka! The National Children's Museum in Halifax, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Exterior of Eureka!
Established1992
Location53°43′12″N 1°51′18″W / 53.72000°N 1.85500°W / 53.72000; -1.85500
TypeChildren's Museum
Visitors300,000 per annum
DirectorLeigh-Anne Stradeski
Websiteeureka.org.uk

Eureka! The National Children's Museum is an interactive educational museum for children in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, with a focus on learning through play. It is run as an educational charity and not-for-profit organisation. Eureka! is based on the North American model of children's museums, aimed at families with children aged 0–11 and encourages hands-on inter-generational learning.

History

Eureka! is situated on the now demolished parts of Halifax station seen to the left, the remaining platforms can be seen to the right.

The Museum for Children was formally constituted as a registered charity in 1985 by Vivien Duffield who was inspired to create the museum after visiting a children's museum in Boston in the United States.[1] The museum is intended for children aged up to 12 with accompanying adults, and it was established with £9 million funding, £7 million of which came from the Clore and Duffield foundations with the rest from grants and private donations.[1] It is located on former British Rail land next to Halifax railway station. Eureka!'s location was suggested by King Charles III who thought the empty site particularly suitable for the museum and believed that it can serve as a stimulus for the regeneration of Halifax.[1] King Charles III opened the museum on 9 July 1992 when he was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and was its patron until 2002.[2]

The building design was led by Ken Moth of the architectural practice Building Design Partnership (BDP),[3] and the exhibition designs were produced by an in-house team as well as a diverse group of designers who produced various elements of the museum – co-ordinated by Richard Fowler. Design groups included Imagination (the Me and My Body gallery) and Conran (original gift shop) and individuals included Tim Hunkin who created the Archimedes display at the entrance,[4] and Satoshi Kitamura who provide illustration and cartoon signage for the museum.[5]

Eureka! celebrated its 25th birthday in 2017 by launching the Eureka! Stories website and opening the Spark Gallery, a flexible exhibition space which launched with the European premiere of the interactive art exhibition digiPlaySpace, created by Toronto International Film Festival.

Galleries

The museum has four main galleries:

  • Spark Gallery – Opened July 2017 as part of the museums 25th anniversary celebrations; it is a flexible exhibition space
  • All About Me – Opened in March 2013; a £2.9 million gallery, lead funded by the Wellcome Trust, exploring the themes of health, well-being and the human body
  • Living and Working Together – A miniature town square (including a bank, fountain, garage and shops) and house
  • SoundSpace – An interactive gallery encouraging children to discover the science of sound and music, with the help of Orby the Alien
  • SoundGarden
  • Desert Discovery
  • The Beach – possibly the largest outdoor sandpit in the North of England.
  • The Wonder Walk – An outdoor sensory trail

References

  1. 1 2 3 Pearman, Hugh (5 July 1992). "The Fun Factory". The Sunday Times Magazine. pp. 50–51.
  2. ↑ "Eureka! History". Eureka!. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  3. ↑ "Fun Factory in Halifax". RIBA Magazine. 1992. p. 44.
  4. ↑ "Archimedes". Tim Hunkin.
  5. ↑ Caulton, Tim (2006). Hands-On Exhibitions. pp. 32–33. ISBN 9781134709205 – via Google Books.
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  1. ↑ Dixon, Rachel (13 October 2018). "20 of the best indoor family activities for half-term". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
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