Discovery Museum hosts family-friendly 'Civil War High Tech'

Posted February 27, 2011 12:00 am

By Samantha Nelson

Two young visitors enjoy the view from a re-created reconnaissance balloon at the Lake County Discovery Museum. Courtesy of Chip Williams

Most exhibits on the American Civil War focus on slavery or the devastating casualty numbers, but Lake County Discovery Museum decided to take another approach and explore telegraphs, balloons, submarines and the other technological innovations that shaped the war.

“The whole idea with this exhibit was ‘Let's do something different,'” said exhibits developer Justin Collins. “We wanted it to be family-friendly, and when you think Civil War exhibit you don't think ‘Bring the kids.'”

The temporary exhibit, “Civil War High Tech,” running through Aug. 21, opens with a timeline showing the invention of new technologies during the lead-up to the Civil War and beyond.

As part of the exhibit, visitors can step into the basket of a re-created hot air balloon and gaze down on a projected image of a diorama of a Civil War battle, getting the same sort of view an aeronaut would have had.

“That was revolutionary during the war to get a different perspective and be able to count troops,” Collins said.

Visitors can also sit inside a nearly full-sized model of a small Confederate submarine that was used in the first successful submarine attack. Kids can move hand cranks to power the propeller, just as the machine's real crew would have done. For a more in-depth look, visitors can read about the history of the subs and use a touch screen to look through different components.

Kids can also play with trains that have been painted to look like U.S. Military Railroad cars and make tracks that run across a map of the United States. In another display, a basic circuit shows how telegraphs worked. By connecting the pieces in the right way, a button can be tapped, which turns on a light or plays a song.

Visitors can step inside a to-scale model of the turrets and part of the deck of the USS Monitor, the first Union ironclad ship. The interior includes a slide show of different types of ships used during the Civil War on the ocean and rivers. An animation provides a view of what sailors might have seen out the turret during the Monitor's famous battle with the Confederate ironclad Virginia.

Along with plenty of interactive elements to engage visitors of all ages, “Civil War High Tech” displays items from the museum's collection, such as cannonballs and binoculars under glass to a massive 500-pound Gatling gun. The gun is displayed alongside a cannon and text plaques explain how the gun could fire 200 rounds per minute, while the cannon took 45 seconds to reload. Displays also show how the innovations of the day served as predecessors to modern technology, like telegraphs leading to today's text messages.

The exhibit also includes a display of Civil War-era photos of both soldiers and civilians.

“It was one of the first wars where you could take a photo,” Collins said.

A new interactive component is expected to open in March, which will allow visitors to take and view a picture of themselves as if using Civil War photograph technology.

In early April, the museum will open a companion exhibit memorializing the Civil War, which will include a model of a postwar house furnished with period pieces.

A family of visitors build circuits to learn how the telegraph works as part of the Civil War exhibit at the Lake County Discovery Museum. Courtesy of Chip Williams

A model train display allows visitors to move trains with supplies and troops across the United States. Courtesy of Chip Williams

The Civil War High Tech exhibit at the Lake County Discovery Museum includes displays of period rifles and information on rifle technology. Courtesy of Chip Williams

Get a close-up view of the Gatling gun from the Discovery Museums collection. Courtesy of Chip Williams

&#8220;Civil War High Tech&#8221;

Where: Lake County Discovery Museum, 27277 N. Forest Preserve Road, Wauconda, (847) 968-3400, lcfpd.org/discovery_museum

Hours: 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday through Aug. 21

Prices: $6; $2.50 for kids ages 4 to 17; $3 for seniors and students; free for kids younger than 4. Tuesdays: $3 for adults and free for kids.

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