A Women’s Museum --Texas-Style

There’s a National Women’s Hall of Fame, a National Museum of Women in the Arts and a National Museum of Women’s History (on the Internet only, for now), among others. But until now, there’s been no major museum devoted to U.S. women in general, say activists in Dallas.

On Friday, they aim to correct that omission when the Women’s Museum: An Institute for the Future opens in Dallas. The 70,000-square-foot museum, housed in a renovated 1910 structure in Landmark Fair Park, is nothing if not Texas-style ambitious. Women in science, politics, literature, entertainment and sports are covered, from the 1500s to the present.

Collection highlights include social activist Jane Addams’ 1931 Nobel Peace Prize, the flight suit worn by aviator Amelia Earhart when she delivered mail for the U.S. Postal Service and many first editions of books, said founder Cathy Bonner. Most of the $30-million museum is funded privately, and it draws on the Smithsonian Institution’s holdings. Hours vary; closed Mondays. Adult admission is $5. Telephone (214) 915-0860.