The Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History is a natural history

Natural history

Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...

 museum in Morro Bay State Park

Morro Bay State Park

Morro Bay State Park is a state park in Morro Bay, in western San Luis Obispo County, California. On the bay’s northeastern edge, there is a saltwater marsh that supports a thriving bird population. -Recreation:...

, Morro Bay, California

Morro Bay, California

Morro Bay is a waterfront city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 10,234, down from 10,350 at the 2000 census.- History :...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, opened in 1962.

The museum sits on a hill overlooking the Morro Bay estuary, midway between Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 and San Francisco, with a view of Morro Rock

Morro Rock

Morro Rock is a volcanic plug located just offshore from Morro Bay, California, at the entrance to Morro Bay Harbor. A causeway connects it with the shore, effectively making it a tied island. The area surrounding the base of Morro Rock can be visited. The rock is protected as the Morro Rock State...

. It is the only natural history museum

Natural History Museum

The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...

 in the California State Park system. It has 65,000 visitors annually, including 14,000 children who visit free in support of California's required science and social studies programs. It is open daily except Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...

, Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

 and New Year's Day

New Year's Day

New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...

.

From 1993 through 2002, the museum was remodeled in a three phase modernization project, with exhibits by Exhibitgroup Giltspur, which has also created exhibits for the Smithsonian and J. Paul Getty

J. Paul Getty Museum

The J. Paul Getty Museum, a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust, is an art museum. It has two locations, one at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, and one at the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, California...

 museums. Interactive displays focus on the ecology of the Morro Bay estuary, including building a sand dune, operating the hydrologic cycle and creating food chains.