The Buell Children's Museum is a children's museum in

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 111,876 at the 2020 United States Census, making Pueblo the ninth most populo ...

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 territori ...

that offers hands-on exhibits focusing on the

arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

and

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

. The Museum is

accredited Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

as a part of The Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center by the

American Alliance of Museums American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

(AAM), and is affiliated with the Association of Children's Museums.

History

Buell Childrens Museum Art Room by David Shankbone

The Buell Children's Museum is a part of ''The Sangre de Cristo Arts & Conference Center'' which opened in 1972, with funding provided by the

Economic Development Administration The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides grants and technical assistance to economically distressed communities in order to generate new employment, help retain exist ...

and

Pueblo County Pueblo County ( or ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 168,162. The county seat is Pueblo. The county was named for the historic city of Pueblo which took its name from the Spanish la ...

. In 1982, an expansion, funded by Puebloan Helen T. White, added three galleries, a gift shop and a small precursor children's museum. In 2000, a further expansion added the 12,000 square-foot, two-level Buell Children's Museum and the ''Jackson Sculpture Garden''. The Buell Children's Museum offers 7,500 square feet of interactive gallery space, a

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, a

café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non ...

and a

gift shop A gift shop or souvenir shop is a store primarily selling souvenirs, memorabilia, and other items relating to a particular topic or theme. The items sold often include coffee mugs, stuffed animals, toys, t-shirts, postcards, handmade collec ...

Exhibits

*The ''Reilly Family Gallery'' offers changing, hands-on exhibitions. *''Sensations'' is a high-tech, multi-sensory exhibit in which visitors activate lights, sound clips and videos. *The ''El Pomar Magic Carpet Theater'' allows visitors to watch a program or star in their own theatrical production. *The ''Artrageous Studio'' allows visitors to create arts & crafts. *The ''Buell Baby Barn'' has activities for those under four, in a barnyard theme.

Awards

In 2002 Child Magazine recognized the museum as the number two arts-related children's museum in the country. In 2004, the museum was named the winner of the Award of Excellence in Arts & Humanities by the

El Pomar Foundation El Pomar Foundation is a private, general purpose foundation established in 1937 by Spencer and Julie Penrose. With a mission to “enhance, encourage, and promote the current and future well-being of the people of Colorado,” El Pomar Foundatio ...

. Voted the Best Museum in Pueblo b
The Pueblo Chieftain
readers seven years in a row - 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 & 2017.Alyssa Parga, About Buell Children's Museum, https://www.sdc-arts.org/museum/about

References

{{Pueblo, Colorado Museums in Pueblo County, Colorado Buildings and structures in Pueblo, Colorado Tourist attractions in Pueblo, Colorado Museums established in 2000 Children's museums in Colorado