Montshire Museum of Science
Hands-on science spills from galleries into a river-edge landscape, with science park and water exhibits shaping the visit
Artwork inspired by Mary Azarian
Hands-on science spills from galleries into a river-edge landscape, with science park and water exhibits shaping the visit More than one hundred exhibits explore mechanics, light, puzzles, living systems, astronomy, and water across indoor floors and a 110-acre outdoor campus. The Montshire works because experimentation does not stop at the door: trails, native plants, and summer water features extend the same habits of testing and observation.
Start indoors while attention is fresh, then use the outdoor landscape rather than saving it as an afterthought. Water exhibits are seasonal and children require active supervision; outdoor surfaces and river conditions change with weather. Adults who participate instead of observing usually get the better visit.
- Exhibits
- 100+
- Campus
- 110 acres
- Setting
- Connecticut River
Quick guide
- Build first
- Hands-on mechanics reveal how the museum teaches.
- Follow living systems
- Move from bees and aquariums to outdoor ecology.
Know before you go
- Build first
- Hands-on mechanics reveal how the museum teaches.
- Follow living systems
- Move from bees and aquariums to outdoor ecology.
- Save dry clothes
- Summer water features invite full participation.
- Walk the grounds
- Trails turn the museum into fieldwork.
Good to know
Water exhibits are seasonal and children require active supervision; outdoor surfaces and river conditions change with weather.
Notice these
- Science Park
- Water exhibits
- Indoor experiment galleries