Did you know that February 11 is National Inventors’ Day? Designed to honor inventors past and present while also motivating and inspiring innovators of the future, you may be wondering about the different ways to celebrate such an occasion. If you happen to live in or around Alexandria, Virginia, I have the perfect suggestion. How about a visit to the National Inventors Hall of Fame?
Established in 1973, the National Inventors Hall of Fame is an American nonprofit organization that recognizes engineers and inventors who hold a U.S. patent concerning an innovative technical or technological achievement of significance. Doubling as their main headquarters and an awe-inspiring museum that’s open to the public free of admission, you’ll find the National Inventors Hall of Fame at the United States Patent and Trademark Office campus in Alexandria.
Featured attractions comprise various interactive, hands-on displays and kiosks, crafted to cater universally to all ages and interests. Whether visiting as a family or as a group, the various in-house activities are all dynamic, enticing, and engrossing on every level.
The museum’s holdings include many impressive exhibits. Among them is the alluring Gallery of Icons, individually showcasing the highlights, milestone markers, and contributions of more than 600 inductees. And every year, a new class of inductees joins the ranks of the existing ones.
They also have a special focus on Women in Innovation. This includes interviews with current and future leaders in STEM and past and present life-changing contributions by female innovators. You’ll learn some pretty fascinating, unexpected facts along the way, including those showcases on certain figures you may not have even realized were such masterminds in science and technology.
Breaking Barriers is a focus geared toward those innovators who have overcome the odds and gone on to do great things. From ethnic minorities to unlikely heroes, it’s a showcase of groundbreaking work, inventions, and all-around improvements to life in general.
Other highlights include Champions of Innovation, which showcases breakthroughs in fashion and athletics, and Connectivity Changes Everything, an evolutionary display of wireless technology developments through the ages.
For the car-enthused, there’s the 50 Years of Automotive Design and Technology exhibit, which allows visitors to climb inside a car that merges Ford Mustang models from 1965 and 2015. It compares the evolutionary feel and appeal of automotive design and technology through the ages.
In addition to permanent collections housed within the museum’s holdings, you’ll find changing, limited-time exhibits on your visit. Another of the many onsite features includes a versatile store packed with impressive merchandise, memorabilia, and even activity kits for carrying out at-home experiments.
The National Inventors Hall of Fame is located at 600 Dulany St, Alexandria, VA 22314. To learn more about hours of operation and where to park, visit the website at www.invent.org.