The Norris Geyser Basin Museum, also known as Norris Museum or Norris Comfort Station, is one of a series of "trailside museums" in Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...

 designed by architect

Architect

An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...

 Herbert Maier

Herbert Maier

Herbert Maier was an American architect and public administrator, most notable as an architect for his work at Yosemite, Grand Canyon and Yellowstone National Parks. Maier, as a consultant to the National Park Service, designed four trailside museums in Yellowstone, three of which survive as...

 in a style that has become known as National Park Service Rustic

National Park Service Rustic

National Park Service rustic, also colloquially known as Parkitecture, is a style of architecture that arose in the United States National Park System to create buildings that harmonized with their natural environment. Since its founding, the National Park Service consistently has sought to provide...

. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

, and is one of three parts of a National Historic Landmark

National Historic Landmark

A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...

, the Norris, Madison, and Fishing Bridge Museums

Norris, Madison, and Fishing Bridge Museums

The Norris, Madison, and Fishing Bridge Museums is a conglomeration of three separate "trailside museums" within Yellowstone National Park which together make up one National Historic Landmark of the United States....

, which were funded by Laura Spelman Rockefeller

Laura Spelman Rockefeller

Laura Celestia Spelman Rockefeller, , , was a philanthropist, the namesake of Spelman College, founded to educate black women in the South, and the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial, and the wife of John D. Rockefeller, the founder of Standard Oil...

's grant of $118,000. Built 1929 - 1930, the Norris Museum is sited on a hill between the Porcelain Basin and the Back Basin of Norris Geyser Basin. Its central breezeway frames a view of the Porcelain Basin for arriving visitors.

The 94 feet (28.7 m) by 20 feet (6.1 m) museum consists of two rectangular sections divided by the breezeway, which is roofed by a prominent jerkinhead gable., framed in massive logs. The pavilions to either side are of shingle-coveredframe construction on a massive stone base. A stone and concrete terrace surrounds the building.

A nearby comfort station or toilet is included in the National Register nomination. It was probably built in the 1930s. With the construction of a modern facility the one story log structure is now used as a bookstore operated by the Yellowstone Association.

The museum exhibits focus on geothermal geology, features of Norris Geyser and plant and animal life in thermal areas.

See also

• Fishing Bridge Museum
  Fishing Bridge Museum
  The Fishing Bridge Museum is one of a series of "trailside museums" in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA, designed by architect Herbert Maier in a style that has become known as National Park Service Rustic. It is one of three parts of a 1987-declared National Historic Landmark, the Norris,...
  
  
• Madison Museum
  Madison Museum
  The Madison Museum is one of a series of "trailside museums" in Yellowstone National Park designed by architect Herbert Maier in a style that has become known as National Park Service Rustic. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and is one of three parts of a...
  
  
• Old Faithful Museum of Thermal Activity
  Old Faithful Museum of Thermal Activity
  The Old Faithful Museum of Thermal Activity was one of a series of four "trailside" museums built in Yellowstone National Park in 1929. Funded by a grant of $118,000 from Laura Spelman Rockefeller, the museums interpreted park features for visitors, and represented an early version of the visitor...
  
  

External links

• Norris Geyser Basin Museum
• Norris, Madison and Fishing Bridge Museums National Historic Landmarks at the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office