Some musings after reviewing replies so far:

Admittedly, I was a little starstruck with CSRM's opening. I saw it in a packed room full of visiting school kids on a field trip. I love me a bit of PT Barnum and I wish rail preservation had more of this sense of presentation. It had me hooked.

I'm trying to imagine ways to think beyond static stuff, but also ways to enliven otherwise static material. Unfortunately the display in the Children's Museum in Indianapolis wasn't operating when I visited in November. The locomotive cab and model railroad in the Museum of Science and Industry has always been a favorite since I was a kid.

I think the Altoona Railroad Museum does a number of interesting things well with very classy displays and exhibits, and a lot of person-based storytelling in interesting settings.

I don't think every museum or interpretive facility should have the same takeaways and that displays and the experiences should be motivated by some of the context in which they're based i.e. does it correlate with the story/mission/vision. For example, at the Henry Ford kids have an opportunity to try and build a car on an assembly line which is very cool. I'd like to see something similar re-enacting a locomotive builder or Class repairs. Those kind of hands-on give you some impression and tactile knowledge beyond "hey that was cool when..."

And I was also thinking about locomotive demonstrators or simulators. I haven't been in the Strasburg simulator, but I wonder how to enhance even that experience. Could a simulator be hooked up to a model railroad so that the view of the static engine is that of a model? Could one conceivably design a simulator so that it becomes an operating HO or G-scale engine on a layout? While simulated screens or games are nifty, seeing the "real world" out the cab window of an F-unit would leave an impression on me.

KL

On the subject of locomotive simulators:

http://www.dnh757.com/index.html

Dave

The Franklin Institute in downtown Philly has a unique exhibit with Baldwin Demonstrator 60000 in how they have it moving 15 feet forwards and back on its display track and as far as I know is the only place where one can actually "ride" a locomotive that is cold and sealed inside a building.

I should say that I was impressed with the exhibits at Exporail in Montreal. They have a wonderful display of how electric traction functions. It uses a trolley pole and controller wired with lights to indicate each circuit and a trolley wire as the positive side of the circuit. Of course, it's all low voltage. Raise the pole and advance the controller and you see the various circuits light up.

The O Winston Link museum has a couple of interesting interactive exhibits that start with a Link photograph and allow you to selectively remove or add all of his flash sources. It shows you the resulting altered picture on a computer monitor. This makes it really clear how he designed his lighting. It's fun to play with and a real learning experience.

-Mark

Kelly,

Your response begs the question: What is the difference between the engaged, active museum volunteer and the excited, willing to learn museum visitor?

Most (non-railway) museums display objects and the average visitor would not be interested the learning process for curating and displaying these objects. The interest lies in the objects themselves. Railway museums differ in that the operations portion of the railway museum are of tremendous interest to visitors and something they could become engaged in with minimal instruction.

I would want to see every museum visitor to leave a member and a volunteer. This means they have become enthused enough to take a personal interest in the museum's activities. So we should design activities that allow audience participation. The best example I can think of is the WW&F's annual work weekends where people are invited to participate in the construction and maintenance of the railway. People who have experience on the WW&F guide those who have experience at other railways, and others with no background in railways at all to help get involved in the construction and operation of the railway. This participation and openness really resonates with visitors and appeals to them.

Steve Piwowarski

Many years ago, I was at the Dutch RR museum in Utrecht, and they had what appared to be the entire front end of a real locomotive, with film of going down the main line projected into the cab windows. I don't recall it being a 'smiluator' as such, but if you had the hardware already in place like that, I'd think making a real diesel sim wouldn't be too tough at all with all the simulators out there already. The hardware would be tough part.

Looking at this, it makes you wonder why you don't more projects like this.

The multiple 'Titanic' attractions located throughout the country might be a good angle to approach making exhibits more interactive.

First, you are given a card with one of the actual passenger or crew members names along with some quick facts about their life (who they were, how old, why they were on the Titanic, etc.). After you enter, you follow a guide dressed in costume to help you navigate your way through the display rooms and some things you might keep an eye out for; they ask some pointed questions while you find the answers in the exhibits.

Among the displays are ship yard photos of construction, a map of the ships layout, massive photos of the boiler room which helps you understand the scale, photos of mechanical engineers sitting at huge tables hand-writing out calculations, and an interactive display that kind of simulates what its like to shovel coal into a firebox.

After that section, you meet up again with the tour guide who takes you up the grand staircase (an exact replica) which also takes you to the next level of exhibit rooms. There you can see a fully furnished state room, real silverware and artifacts, and photos taken on the ship.

You then start the disaster part of the tour. Models show what parts of the ship were compromised, a timeline shows events that happened as it sank. For interaction, there floor mock-ups that are inclined at increasing intervals to show how difficult it would have been to move around, a stairwell behind glass that floods with cold water, a mock-up of the wheelhouse that simulates visibility conditions, and when you step "outside" into the night, the room is kept at the same temperature as it was along with a trough of water kept at the same temperature as those conditions that night.

After all of that, you enter the final room which has a wall displaying the names of every person on the ship, their age, and class. The majority of names are at the top of the wall, signifying individuals who perished. Underneath is a dramatically smaller section listing those who survived.

The popularity of shows like 'Downton Abbey' and 'Mad Men' is partly due to peoples curiosity to understand what past generations lived like. I think half of the examples I listed above from the Titanic attractions could be easily translated to a railroad museum, but unfortunately I rarely see much effort put into interactive displays. And, unlike the Titanic, our stories can have a better outcome and museums can have a deeper connection with people who are more than casually interested by allowing them to come back and be a part of the program.

The O Winston Link museum has a couple of interesting interactive exhibits that start with a Link photograph and allow you to selectively remove or add all of his flash sources. It shows you the resulting altered picture on a computer monitor. This makes it really clear how he designed his lighting. It's fun to play with and a real learning experience.

This is such a great part of the Link Museum! I spent nearly an hour discovering how Link manipulated his images with light.

If I had to choose one museum display, one exhibit out of all the museum exhibits I've seen over the years, it would have to be the U-505 display at the Museum of Science & Industry. Totally immersing; lots of hands-on...just a fantastic exhibit.

Thank you Steve.....and apologies to my friends in Cincinnati for getting it wrong.

I think we also have to be careful to not let the technology used to create the interactive nature of the exhibit become the story we're telling, rather than let it help us tell the story.

dave

The Titantic exhibits had the advantage of following one of the top grossing movies of all time. Before seeing the exhibits, visitors had the luxury of being introduced to the Titantic story through the fictional love story of Jack and Rose. Visitors had a previous emotional connection with the Titantic story that carried over as they viewed the exhibits.

Railroad history does not have the same connectivity with today’s general public. As discussed at length on this board, we are a couple of generations removed since railroads, through passenger service, held a personal connection with the general public.

The Steinbeck museum in Salinas has an exhibit on the working conditions of farm laborers. Designers placed text below waist level forcing the reader to bend, mimicking the everyday work position of the laborers. Laminated cards were available nearby for those visitors unable, or unwilling, to make the effort.

Engaging museum exhibits are the ones that foster an emotional connection with the visitor. The thoughtful selection of text, images, layout, etc have a role in this effort.

Ken

CSRM has some of the best overall displays I've ever seen in a RR museum of all the museums I've been to in the US and Europe.
That said, once you get past the movie and diorama of the building of the transcon in the 1860s, it's then just a standard museum of 'stuff on display,' though it's very well done. Not much interaction to speak of.

The sad part of that is when you went to one of these exhibits like my wife and I did several years ago, a lot of visitors were ticked when the real passenger's name they were given wasn't one of the fictional characters from the movie. I could tell the woman at the start of the exhibit was having real difficulty not screaming at some of these folks something like, "Come on, you know that's a movie and not based on real people, don't you?"

The attraction makes no references to the movie, whatsoever. The point of why I shared the experience seems to be missed. Railroading has major cultural footings and a lot of avenues seem yet to be explored, as mentioned in many of the previous posts in this thread.

It doesn't have to, the public does that, and apparently all the time according to the lady I talked with who worked the exhibit.
But no more so, I'd guess than kids go through RR museums looking for any tank engine switcher to think that it is Thomas...

Sometimes it's the little details that matter....

One of the best uses of historic signage I've seen. An authentic N&W Water sign as displayed by the O Winston Link Museum, Roanoke, Va.