Museum Expansion Project

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MUSEUM OF NATURE & SCIENCE MAJOR MILESTONES (Updated August 18, 2010)

1936	Dallas Museum of Natural History established
1946	The Science Place established
1995	Dallas Children’s Museum established
2005	4.7 acres purchased in Victory Park thanks to $10-million gift from Hunt Petroleum
2006	Unique merger of the three museums – Dallas Museum of Natural History, The Science Place and the Dallas Children’s Museum – results in a new institution: Museum of Nature & Science at Fair Park
January 8, 2008	2005 Pritzker Prize Laureate Thom Mayne named as architect for new Victory Park facility
May 30, 2008	The five children of H. Ross and Margot Perot – Katherine Perot Reeves, Carolyn Rathjen, Suzanne McGee, Nancy Mulford and Ross Perot, Jr. – announce a $50-million gift made in honor of their parents. The new Victory Park museum will be named for the parents.
October 23, 2008	Naming of and plans unveiled for Tom Hunt Energy Hall
May 2009	Balfour Beatty Construction named as General Contractor
September 17, 2009	Thom Mayne and his California-based firm Morphosis unveil building model and schematic designs.
November 18, 2009	Official groundbreaking ceremonies held at the new Victory Park facility and excavation work begins at site.
April 26, 2010	Building construction begins as Margot Perot and daughters hand off “notice to proceed” to Balfour Beatty, the general contractor for the Perot Museum of Nature & Science.
August 18, 2010	Leadership Campaign Chair Forrest Hoglund announces plan for “Final Fifty” campaign to raise the remaining $50 million of the $185-million goal in an accelerated fashion.
January 20, 2011	Museum of Nature & Science leaders announce a second major gift in two years from The Rees-Jones Foundation that brings its total contribution to $25 million. Two major halls will be named in honor of the gift -- The Rees-Jones Foundation Dynamic Earth Hall and the Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones Exhibition Hall.