Not Your Father’s Museums

Say “museum,” and many see hushed galleries of paintings. But the term is being redefined by a crop of niche museums ranging from silly to sublime. Joining the ranks in the coming months are contenders that even kids will enjoy.

Charles M. Schulz Museum, opening Aug. 17-19. The “Peanuts” comic strip will soon be a cultural institution in more ways than one. Treasures on view at the $8-million, 27,000-square-foot facility in Santa Rosa, Calif., will include a recently salvaged mural that Schulz painted on the wall of his infant daughter’s bedroom in 1951, with early versions of Charlie Brown and Snoopy (who walked on all fours in those days). For the museum’s main hall, Japanese artist Yoshiteru Otani has created a tile mural commemorating Charlie Brown’s futile attempts to kick the football held by the sadistic Lucy Van Pelt, and a 7,000-pound morphing Snoopy sculpture showing the irrepressible beagle’s evolving look during the strip’s 50-year run. Across the street, fans can visit Snoopy’s Gallery & Gift Shop and the Redwood Empire Ice Arena, which is also home to the Warm Puppy coffee shop.

Charles M. Schulz Museum, One Snoopy Place (corner of West Steele and Hardies lanes), Santa Rosa; (707) 579-4452, www.charlesmschulzmuseum.org. Hours and admission prices were not available at press time.

International Spy Museum, opening in June. Billed as the largest collection of spy paraphernalia ever put on public display. 800 F St. NW, Washington, D.C.; (202) EYESPYU (393-7798), www.spymuseum.org. Open daily 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission ranges from free to $10.

Museum of Glass: International Center for Contemporary Art, opening July 6: The Tacoma, Wash., center features a stainless-steel cone wrapped in stairs to a rooftop plaza; a walkway by art-glass master Dale Chihuly; 13,000 square feet of gallery space and a hot glass studio. 1801 Dock St., Tacoma, Wash.; (253) 396-1768, www.museumofglass.org. Open Tuesdays through Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m, Thursdays to 9 p.m., Sundays noon to 5 p.m. Closed Mondays. Admission, free to $8.

SPAM Museum, grand opening June 15-16. Hormel Foods’ shrine to its storied luncheon meat opened in Austin, Minn., last fall, but festivities were postponed after Sept. 11. Highlights include a wall of 3,390 SPAM cans and a 5-foot SPAMburger. 1101 N. Main St., Austin, Minn.; (507) 437-5100, www.SPAM.com. Open Mondays through Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sundays noon to 4 p.m. Free.