Hey y’all! Welcome back to another museum review! Today, we’re visiting the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History in Norman, Oklahoma. I loved visiting this museum when I was little. My dad would take me, my sister, and my Nana to go see the dinosaurs. We lovingly called it the “Dinosaur Museum” and still call it that to this day!
As a child, I had an obsession with dinosaurs and wanted to be a paleontologist when I grew up. I seriously thought I could find dinosaur bones in my grandparents pasture if I looked hard enough! Ohhh to be young and full of dreams – my Nana and Papa let me dig holes to my hearts content.
Back to the museum though, my last visit to this museum was during my sophomore year of college. So the pictures are a few years old, but they are photos of the permanent collections so these items are still there! Let’s get started!
*All photos were taken at the Sam Noble Museum in Norman, Oklahoma.
Museum History
The Sam Noble Museum of Natural History opened to the public on May 1, 2000 and is located on the University of Oklahoma (OU) campus in Norman, Oklahoma. The museum’s collection was founded in 1899! There are over 10 million specimens ranging from earth sciences, life sciences, and social sciences stored in 12 collections! Those 12 collection categories are: archaeology, ethnology, herpetology, ichthyology, invertebrate paleontology, mammalogy, Native American languages, the Oklahoma collection of genomic resources, ornithology, paleobotany, recent invertebrates, and vertebrate paleontology. Wow!
The Sam Noble also conducts extensive research and the curators teach classes at OU! Additionally, Undergraduate and Graduate students have an opportunity to do hands-on research.
Exhibits
There are 6 permanent exhibits in the museum: the Orientation Gallery, Hall of World Cultures, Hall of Ancient Life, Hall of Natural Wonders, Hall of People of Oklahoma, and the Conoco Oil Pioneers of Oklahoma Plaza.
My Favorite Pieces
The Pentaceratops Skelton pictured below is one of my favorite pieces in the entire collection. It’s massive, y’all. This skeleton holds the Guinness World Record for being the largest at 10.5 feet!
This dinosaur skeleton is my most favorite piece in the entire collection. Remember at the beginning how I told you about my dinosaur obsession as a child – well imagine walking into the museum and seeing this right in front of you! Talk about a dream come true!
But do you want to know the coolest part? This photo was taken from an elevator that takes you to eye-level with the dinosaur! Yes, eye-level with a dinosaur. Literally, the best thing ever!
Historical Marker
“In 1899 the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature created a natural history museum to preserve Oklahoma’s rich heritage. More than 100 years later, the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History was built to protect the museum’s priceless collections. Museum Director Michael A. Mares and University President David L. Boren presided over the groundbreaking in 1996 and the museum’s dedication in 2000 when the 195,000 square-foot facility became one of the largest university-based natural history museums in the world.
Professor Albert Heald Van Vleet, a member of the original university faculty developed the first collections of natural history, which were lost when the first administration building burned in 1903. The collections expanded greatly in the 1930’s under the direction of Dr. J. Willis Stovall, a vertebrate paleontologist who collected some of the most significant dinosaur fossils ever found. Stovall served as director of the museum from 1943 until his death in 1953.
The museum is now home to more than six million artifacts and specimens, including the largest Apatosaurus and Pentaceratops in the world, as well as priceless Native American materials, such as the “Cooper Skull,” the oldest painted object ever found in North America.
The building is named after Samuel Russel Noble in honor of his service to the University as a benefactor and member of the OU Board of Regents from 1987 to 1991. A philanthropist who was dedicated to the enrichment of Oklahoma and its people, Noble served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation Inc., which was established by Noble’s father, Lloyd, in 1945. A large donation from the Noble Foundation and friends, family and business associates of Sam Noble helped turn the dream of a new museum into a reality. The Friends of the Museum developed a strong support for a bond election for a new building. The City of Norman voted overwhelmingly to fund the project in 1991.
Dr. Mares, a prominent field biologist and national leader in the museum community, worked as director for 17 years to protect the collections, expand the museum’s visibility, increase its staff and budget, and garner public support for a new building. The museum features five major exhibit halls. The Siegfried Family Hall of Ancient Life displays prehistoric life in Oklahoma from the earliest life forms to the Age of Mammals.
The McCasland Foundation Hall of the People of Oklahoma features 25,000 years of human history in Oklahoma, with examples of early Native American dwellings, tools, and artwork and pays tribute to the state’s native people. The Noble Drilling Corporation Hall of Natural Wonders showcases the diverse and beautiful landscapes of Oklahoma, including the state’s rich flora and fauna. The Merkel Family Foundation Gallery of World Cultures uses artifacts from the more than 125 nations represented in the collections to display treasures from throughout the world. The Fred and Enid Brown Native American Art and Special Exhibitions Gallery highlights the museum’s collections that reflect diversity and beauty of the art of America’s Native people and provides a venue for traveling exhibits. The Richard and Josephine Andree Discovery Room makes exhibits come alive for adults and children, with hands-on activities that stimulate the senses as well as the mind.
The museum is situated on 60 acres of native plants that showcase the many lovely habitats of this rich land called Oklahoma.”
Concluding Thoughts
I love the visiting the “Dinosaur Museum,” but don’t get to go very often. It’s always a special day when I get to road trip to see the dinosaurs!
Happy traveling! I’ll talk to ya soon! 🙂
Visit
2401 Chautauqua Ave.
Norman, Oklahoma 73072
The Active Historian 
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