The Children's Museum of Indianapolis

Where can you go in the City of Indianapolis that is within minutes of the downtown and features five floors of interactive learning and fun that will keep your children having fun for a full day? The Indianapolis Children’s Museum, where families and kids spend the day exploring, imagining, and playing all while learning in a 500,000 square foot space that features over 120,000 artifacts. Over one million visitors come each year to be immersed in the one-of-a-kind experiences and fun the Museum offers kids of all ages. 

The Museum has earned several votes as a top attraction, and there is no doubt with a first glance at the towering 43-foot tall Fireworks of Glass sculpture, which features over 3,200 stunning brilliant pieces of blown glass. It has received numerous awards and accolades from Planetware, Frommer’s, Time for Kids Magazine, Reader’s Digest, USA Today, and New York Times.

The Children’s Museum has recently grown with the addition of the Riley Children’s Health Sports Legend Experience, a 7.5-acre outdoor health and fitness area that includes soccer, hockey, football, basketball, pedal car racing, golf, tennis, and baseball. The Experience also has two indoor additions, the National Art Museum of Sport and World of Sport History of Hoops. A perfect way for sports lovers to spend a day.

A wealthy Indianapolis resident, Mary Stewart-Carey, founded the Museum in 1925. After a trip to the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, the wealthy Mrs. Stewart-Carey was inspired to create a children’s museum in Indianapolis and opened in a small local civic club. The first exhibits were creations made and donated by local school children. The current main building was built in 1976 and has grown to include over 400 hundred employees and over 1,500 volunteers.

The Museum’s mission states, ” To create extraordinary learning experiences across the arts, sciences, and humanities that have the power to transform the lives of children and families.” The Museum’s primary focus is to have children and families actively participating in the hundreds of interactive exhibits while learning from the fun-filled experiences. The Museum holds thousands of fun and unique activities each year including, workshops and classes for school children, traveling exhibits, and plays at the Lilly Theater.

The main entry opens to the main stairwell, a giant spiral ramp that offers visitors access to all five floors of the museum. It houses the breath-taking Dale Chihuly four-story blown glass sculpture Fireworks of Glass Tower and Ceiling through the spiral staircase.

The Lower level houses the National Geographic: Treasures of the Earth exhibit with three areas to explore. The first area contains artifacts from an Ancient Egyptian replica of the tomb of Seti I. The second area simulates an archeological dig unearthing artifacts from Ying Zheng, the First Emporer of China. And the third area is home to artifacts from the shipwreck of pirate Captain William Kidd, including an authentic cannon.
The lower level is also home to an 11,000-pound steam train engine, a planetarium, and the Liley Theater.

The main floor is home to a grand Welcome Center with life-like sculptures of an adult and young Brachiosaur climbing into the front. The focal point of the main level is the eye-catching water clock, designed by French physicist and artist Bernard Gitton. It is North America’s most giant water clock. Outdoors take a trip through The Seven Wonders of the World Garden and the green rain garden. The food court, birthday party rooms, volunteer center, and toy store are also found on the main level.

The second floor houses the Infozone, a 3,000 square foot branch of the Indianapolis Public Library. Many temporary exhibits are hosted here. The “Take Me There” exhibit highlights a different culture every two to three years. Currently, it is showing “Take Me There Greece,” showing the ancient Parthenon and its history along with a trip to a modern Greek city showing traditional homes, cooking, music, and traditional dances.

The third floor is home to Playscape, a massive learning playground featuring a water play area and a giant indoor sandbox. These are just a few highlights of this area designed specifically for children five years and younger, also with a special section for little ones two and under. The permanent exhibit “The Power of Children: Making a Difference” features the lives of Anne Frank, Ruby Bridges, and Ryan White, their stories, and the contributions they have made worldwide. Immersive and historically accurate environments show how and where the children spent their lives.

The fourth level explores natural and physical science in the Science Works exhibit. Children of all ages will love the chance to learn through building an Arch, a toy boat to float, climb a rock wall, observe a large pond, play in a construction zone or crawl through tunnels. The Biotech Lab has daily shows featuring incredible chemistry and DNA info. This level is also home to the “The Broad Ripple Park Carousel,” the museum’s most significant artifact. It was built in 1917 for The White City Amusement Park; in 1973, it was restored and moved to the museum and is a National Landmark with a rare Wurlitzer Band Organ.

One of the big attractions is Dinosphere; it gives visitors the experience of a day in the Crustaceous period of over 65 million years ago. It spans one side of the lower, main, and second levels and provides a fantastic exhibit complete with both lights and sounds of a Crustaceous dinosaur world. Many real dinosaur fossils are on display, along with recreations of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops, Prenoceratops, Bambiraptor, and Gorgosaurus, plus many more! It is a dinosaur lover’s dream experience.

The award-winning Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is a fantastic family-friendly place where children learn through one of their favorite activities: play! It is one of the city’s most fun attractions, not to be missed! The Museum will surely not disappoint with hundreds of interactive exhibits and activities; there is something to please kids of all ages. 

Check out Eagle Creek Park and Nature Preserve which is in Indianapolis too.

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