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Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
The Bob Bullock Texas State
History Museum is owned by the state and devoted to explaining the
history of the great state of Texas, and named after the former
state Lieutenant Governor, Bob Bullock, that instigated its
construction. It is found in Austin, Texas, just a couple of blocks
from the state capitol. It contains three floors of interactive
displays, an IMAX theater and a special effects theater. The
construction began in 1999 and cost $80 million, opening on San
Jacinto Day, April 12, 2001. There is a huge 35 foot bronze Lone
Star sculpture that welcomes you to the museum with a very colorful
terrazzo floor in the rotunda that shows a marvelous campfire scene
with other murals of the state's colorful past. It has a cafe inside
and outside, and the museum store that has special Texas memorabilia
for anyone. There are three distinct themes about the state's
history; identity, opportunity and land. You will become encompassed
by sights, sounds and occasionally smells of the Texas heritage with
each floor showcasing the most prominent chapters in the story by
showing objects, recreated environments and media programs. On the
first floor, Land, the story starts before it became known as Texas,
with encounters on the land, telling of the first meetings or
encounters between the Native Americans that lived here and the
European explorers that came here. You will discover the numerous
native people that lived on the diverse land, and what they found.
First the Spanish, then the French and finally the Americans, and
all the while, the native peoples wondered when or if it would ever
end. Listen to the words spoken, view the objects that were a main
part of their lives, and see what the harsh environment was like for
these early adventurers. The story tells of the first missionaries
that came with the soldiers, and then the settlers that came here
for a completely different reason, the land, to homestead, farm,
raise animals and more. Why did all these people come to Texas, and
what did they find that kept them here, wanting to build, discover,
raise and learn. You will hear about the story that tells about the
last vestige of unexplored territory in the state, the Big Bend area
and how it was settled after getting mapped and surveyed. The second
floor contains the display of Identity and how this marvelous
territory, so vast and spread out, became an independent entity and
hear the very words that Stephen F. Austin spoke from the jail cell
in Mexico City that foretold of the Texas Revolution that would
bring other heroes from across the new lands like Jim Bowie and Davy
Crockett, and others. See the battles through the eyes of Juan
Seguin, political leader and Tejano military leader. Hear about the
different visions of Sam Houston and Mirabeau Lamar, who would
become Presidents of the Republic and travel along the story to the
territory becoming the 28th state in the United States. And why it
chose to secede from the Union and joined the Confederacy, fighting
alongside other soldiers of the south. Ultimately coming to the fork
that led this nation to what it has become today. You will learn
about the way the state would grow in the 20th century and become
part of its 1936 centennial, and then sit back and see it all appear
on a 60 foot video wall, with many interactive places for you to
become involved in this tremendous trek through the state's
continuing history. Then off to the third floor where Opportunity
lives and you can learn about the perseverance that is instilled in
Texans from birth and how they set their sights on oil drilling to
technology. Learn about the incredible opportunities of ranching and
how they had to adapt to the different and mostly difficult
conditions of the land so they could stay and grow into the huge
state. As the state progressed into the future, you can learn about
the advances into medicine, space and technology, and how their hard
steady work affected the world around them; and finally sit in the
Oil Tank Theater as Texan Walter Cronkite narrates the media
presentation that tells the story of oil in the state and how this
affected both the state and world. You will learn more about the
state then you ever thought possible, so be sure to visit the museum
when you come to the capital of Texas.
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