Natural History Museum Los Angeles County, Natural history museum in Exposition Park, Los Angeles, United States
The Natural History Museum Los Angeles County is a natural history museum in Exposition Park displaying geology, paleontology, zoology, and cultural history collections across several connected buildings. The central rotunda in Mediterranean style links exhibition rooms with mounted mammals, fossils, minerals, and archaeological finds from Latin America.
The institution opened in 1913 after years of preparation by benefactors who wanted to secure natural history collections for the growing city. Renovation work starting in 2003 reinforced the load-bearing structures and created additional rooms for contemporary exhibition design.
The name refers to the entire county jurisdiction, though the building itself sits in the park south of downtown. Visitors today see dioramas from the 1920s displaying North American habitats with mounted animals, reflecting museum techniques considered modern at that time.
The main entrance sits on the north side of the building with direct access from the parking lot and public transport. Wheelchair-accessible paths run through all levels, with elevators connecting the different floors.
The basement holds a collection of more than two million insects that researchers from around the world use for comparative studies. The beetle and butterfly collection ranks among the most complete in North America and grows annually through donations and expeditions.
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