Tucson Weekly: Listings: Museums (October 16

MUSEUMS
ARIZONA HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 949 E. Second St. 628-5774. Continuing through March 1998: Step Right Up: Patent Medicine in the Southwest. This exhibit will focus on the role of patent medicines from 1870 to 1906, before the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act. The exhibit looks at the trend toward self-medication to cure all kinds of ailments, real and imagined, which was facilitated by a booming mail-order business. Continuing through December 30: Angels of Restoration: San Xavier, a photographic exhibit of the mission from the AHS collection, and photographs of the restoration work currently underway. Ongoing exhibits include: Welcome to Tucson, a perspective on the Orndorff Hotel circa 1900, in which museum visitors become patrons in the lobby of the Orndroff Hotel from Tucson's Territorial days. Emergence: The South Park Story, 1940-1950, is a photo exhibit tracing the development of the South Park neighborhood, located along Park Avenue south of 22nd Street; and Exploring 1870s Tucson offers a hands-on exhibit for children. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Listings ARIZONA-SONORA DESERT MUSEUM. 2021 N. Kinney Road. 883-2702. Summer Saturday Evenings, from 7:30 to 10 p.m. weekly, continue through October 25. After sunset, paths and exhibits are set aglow, and docents and staff are available to answer questions and offer insights. Throughout the month of October, watch for shiny objects in the sky and on the ground with Stars & Minerals. The museum offers a daily variety of informative, entertaining guided tours and walks. Museum hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $8.95, $1.75 for kids 12 and under. Group discounts available.
400 MILLION B.C. Join Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum staff paleontologist Ron Ratkevich for a behind-the-scenes tour of the dinasaur lab from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, October 25, with 400 Million B.C. (Before Cactus). You'll see Sonorasaurus, the newest dinosaur discovery, and learn about some of the other dinosaurs of southern Arizona. You'll also find out how to spot and identify fossils, and extract one from bedrock--you can take your fossil home. This Family Special for kids ages 6 through 12 and adults, is $10 for adult members, $12 non-members, and $4 for children; fees include museum admission. Pre-registration is required. Call 883-3022 for information.
ARIZONA STATE MUSEUM. UA campus, east of University Boulevard at Park Avenue. 621-6302. Paths of Life: American Indians of the Southwest combines historic and contemporary art and artifacts with high-tech displays depicting the origins and history of Indians native to Arizona and Sonora. Mexican Masks: Faces of the Fiesta includes 350 colorful Mexican folk-masks. Long-term exhibits include Ancient Images: Plants and Animals of the Prehistoric Southwest, spotlighting plants and animals of ancient Arizona. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Sunday, and admission is free.
FLANDRAU SCIENCE CENTER. UA campus. 621-STAR. October brings spectral specters to Flandrau with Light Fright, a fun and scary show for people of all ages, choreographed to the music of David Bowie, Alice Cooper, Johann Sebastian Bach, the Moody Blues, and others. You'll also find The Spider's Maze, an intriguing room of Halloween fun and fantasy. Lightshow admission ranges from $4 to $6. Admission to The Spider's Maze is included in the purchase of a laser ticket. Show times and dates vary, call for a schedule. Call 621-STAR for information.
FORT LOWELL MUSEUM. 2900 N. Craycroft Road. 885-3832. On permanent display: The View From The Barracks, a photographic exhibit allowing a look at the daily life of enlisted men in the garrisons of the Southwest. And Surgeons, Scalpels and Malaria, a photographic exhibit documenting army medicine during the Apache Wars.
GADSEN-PACIFIC TOY TRAIN OPERATING MUSEUM. Foothills Mall. 7401 N. La Cholla Blvd. See and operate antique and contemporary toy trains at this free museum Friday through Sunday during mall hours. Call Bud Stewart at 749-0228 for information.
PIMA AIR MUSEUM. 6000 E. Valencia Road. 574-9658. Continuing through October 30: Buck Rogers--Fact and Fantasy, a new fun and informative exhibit for the entire family. Always on display are 185 military, commercial, and civilian aircraft, including a full-scale mock-up of Kitty Hawk, a presidential plane used by news media and JFK during the 1960s, numerous photos, air and space uniforms and memorabilia. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with last admittance at 4 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults, $5 for seniors and military and $3 for children ages 10 to 17. Free for aviation buffs under 10.
SOSA-CARRILLO-FRÉMONT HOUSE. 151 S. Granada St. 622-0586. Continuing through November 28: George Hand's Tucson, 1862-1887, George Hand's celebrated diaries describe life, death, festivals, and almost everything that happened in territorial Tucson from his arrival in 1862 through his death in 1887. The exhibit will also feature previously unseen scrapbooks, photographs, and other memorabilia. Selections from the writings of Hand's contemporaries will also be on display. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Admission is free, but donations are welcome.
TUCSON CHILDREN'S MUSEUM. 200 S. Sixth Ave. 792-9985. Check out the Museum's new exhibit Wee World, created especially for kids ages 5 and under, containing many fun and colorful places for young children to crawl and climb through. Make a mask to wear or hang in your room at Saturday Artworks, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., featuring a different theme each Saturday. Have fun with chemistry using ingredients found in your kitchen with Sunday Science from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Enjoy storytelling galore with Teens and Tots: Literature, Learning, and Fun at 11 a.m. Saturdays, and 1 and 2 p.m. Sundays. On Saturday from 1:30 to 3:30, or Sunday from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., October 18 and 19, roll your own tortilla at the Wisdomseekers Mini-Showcase. Museum hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $3 for kids, $5 for adults and $4 for seniors. During the After School Special, admission is just $2 per person; and the third Sunday of every month is free for all. Call 792-9985 for information.
DOCENT CALL. The Tucson Children's Museum is offering docent training for anyone interested in helping guide school groups through the Museum's interactive galleries. Training is October 27, November 3, 10 and 17, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information contact Mary Lynn at 792-9985, ext. 102.
VETERANS MUSEUM. MarketPlace USA. 3750 E. Irvington Road. 740-9429. Displays depict contributions made by area veterans. Hours are noon to 9 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Volunteer docents needed.
YOZEUM. 2900 N. Country Club Road. 322-0100. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. On display are all kinds of yo-yos, from styles popular in the 1920s to current designs, and yo-yo memorabilia. The owner of the museum is Don Duncan, Jr., son of the founder of Duncan Yo-Yos. Groups and schools can call ahead to arrange for a tour. Free admission.