Hello! My name is Amelia, and my mom and I went to the Virginia Museum of History and Culture to see the Apollo: When We Went To The Moon exhibit (and the rest of the museum). It was a fun way to learn about our Virginian history and culture, and I recommend going. Before you plan your visit there, check out my (and my mom’s) top five things about the museum experience.
Hi, I’m Amelia’s mom! It was a delight to explore the VMHC and experience all it has to offer, including its new Apollo exhibit, which will be on display through December. The museum offers a great mix of exhibitions that cater to adults, kids, history buffs, and everyone in between. And now, Amelia and I present our “Top 5 at the VMHC” review.
1. The Our Commonwealth Exhibition
Mom says: As both a museum patron and Virginia resident, this was easily my favorite exhibit at the VMHC. Visitors can take an immersive tour through the different regions that comprise the Commonwealth. From local landscapes and their sights and sounds to the notable events, history, and people specific to each region, the spirit of the state shines through. I’ve lived in a handful of Virginia cities throughout the years and was surprised by how much I didn’t know.
Amelia says: If you’ve lived in Virginia your entire life, there’s still more to know! Travel the wonderful state of Virginia in a few hundred paces. There’s plenty to do – “slug” to the Pentagon (a unique kind of hitch-hiking my grandpa used to), go flat footing (dancing), and see plenty of cool photos!
2. The History Matters Exhibit
Mom says: This is such a neat, eye-catching tribute to the ways in which Virginia’s history has made a difference for so many. A variety of objects and artifacts tell the stories of the many faces of the state. From historic baseball memorabilia to a Save the Bay sticker to a COVID-19 vaccine vial and other artifacts from history both recent and distant, the exhibit is engaging and captures the attention of visitors young and old(er).
Amelia says: One of my favorite things about one of my favorite exhibits (History Matters) was that you could leave your mark on the museum. There is an interactive wall that asks What Object Would Tell Your Story? and provides lots of paper so you can write about the object that would tell your story.
3. Landscapes of Virginia
Mom says: As an unabashed lover of art galleries, this exhibit was right up my alley. We enjoyed stopping at each painting and taking in the artist’s rendering of a slice of the Virginia landscape. From Mount Vernon to the Blue Ridge Mountains, pastoral scenes with train cars to depictions of Native American life, the gallery was brimming with representations of outdoor scenes across the Commonwealth’s geography and history.
Amelia says: In art, you can travel anywhere without even moving a foot! As an artist (I’d say sketcher), I appreciated the cool paintings of Virginia landscapes.
4. The Apollo Exhibition
Mom says: Ever since Apollo 13 was released on VHS in 1995, I’ve been a huge space nerd, so I was thrilled to visit the museum during this limited-time exhibit’s stay at the VMHC. It details, through artifacts, objects, and film from the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, America’s journey to the moon. There’s an Apollo 15 Lunar Rover model, a section dedicated to NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, spacesuits, period film footage, and heaps of objects that tell our country’s space story.
Amelia says: Even though I wasn’t alive for any of the six American moon landings (they stopped after Apollo 17 in 1972), the Apollo exhibit made me feel like I was watching Neil Amstrong land on the moon on my 1969 boxy television set. It has a lot of cool visuals and even a spacesuit and model rockets! It was a very cool experience seeing the exhibit.
5. Commonwealth Explorers
Mom says: Much of the museum is kid-friendly, but this part takes the cake. Commonwealth Explorers is a hands-on, engaging, and creative space dedicated to immersing younger visitors in all the state has to offer. Children can explore stations that highlight Virginia’s nature, food, communities, and even how and why they can appreciate a museum. Younger kids will definitely get a kick out of this interactive exhibit (and parents get a break from shouting “don’t touch that!”).
Amelia says: The Commonwealth Explorers exhibit is one of the best (if not the best) kid-friendly exhibits in the museum. Young kids could spend hours learning in the hands-on room complete with a mini- library, dress up clothes, and an ice cream truck! (Don’t worry, parents, it’s just pretend.)
Honorable Mentions: The Gift Shop and Clean Bathrooms
Mom says: In addition to VMHC swag and exhibit-specific gifts and trinkets, I loved how local artisans were represented in the museum’s gift shop. A second nod goes to the museum for its impeccably clean bathrooms. As a parent of two young ones, the value of this cannot be overstated.
Amelia Says: Three cheers for gift shops and sanitary bathrooms!
And there you have it – our mother-daughter review of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture. Based on the engaging and educational exhibits and our lovely, we are happy to give the museum two thumbs up! We hope you and yours will add the VMHC to your RVA must-visit list and enjoy it as much as we did.
Visit SummerofSpace.com for details on Apollo: When We Went to the Moon, on display through December 31, 2023.
