Bailey Archives at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science

05/19/2026

05/15/2026

Postcard of summertime at the Colorado Museum of Natural History, circa 1928-1939. The caption on the back reads: “The museum occupies a commanding position at the east edge of City Park, with City Park and the distant Rockies spreading out before it. Within the building are numerable exhibits in life like settings of the wild life and botany of the Rocky Mountain region”

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04/24/2026

Robert Rockwell with young Long-billed Curlew, 1937
 
Rockwell was an investment banker, ornithologist and Colorado Museum of Natural History trustee who served the museum from its first decade. He was recruited him as a volunteer in 1906 to unpack, mark and systematize the Edwin Carter collections. This began Rockwell’s lifelong affiliation with the museum, where his own extensive collections were later exhibited.
 

04/03/2026

“Museum Records Five Millionth Visitor”

This short film commemorates the Museum’s five millionth visitor since 1941, Marjorie Wagner. Likely filmed sometime between 1946-1947 by photographer Jean Dubois. You can still see this exact diorama in the Northern and Rare Birds hall!

03/12/2026

The WOW (World of Wonder) Van, circa 1990

03/11/2026

03/10/2026

For Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating Martha “Marty” Hartmann, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science’s first Curator of Education (1969–1978). Hartmann helped transform the role of informal education at the museum by securing dedicated classroom and storage spaces for education programs and collections. Her vision brought laboratories and collections of teaching materials into museum classrooms, giving school groups new ways to explore science.

She also pioneered some of the Museum’s most beloved interactive experiences, including the early “touch room,” where young visitors could get up close with natural history specimens. Hartmann championed a philosophy of learning through all the senses—recognizing that museums have a unique advantage in education: real objects. Her influence lives on today in the Museum’s hands-on experiences and “touch carts,” which remain a favorite for visitors of all ages.