100 Years of the Witte Museum Comes to Life in New Exhibition
San Antonio, TX, April 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For 100 years, the Witte Museum has connected generations of Texans with the natural history, science and culture of their state. Beginning April 11, 2026, the Witte invites you to step into that remarkable story with The Witte Museum: 100 Years.
In October 1926, thousands of visitors poured into the newly opened Witte Memorial Museum in Brackenridge Park, encountering fossils, wildlife, art, and artifacts that told the story of Texas. The museum was founded through the vision of educator, botanist, and photographer Ellen Schulz Quillin, who believed every great city should have a museum, creating a unique environment where people could explore and understand their region.
A century later, the Witte continues that vision by inspiring curiosity through discovery and connecting visitors to Texas Deep Time.
The Witte Museum: 100 Years traces the museum’s evolution through defining eras, from its grassroots beginnings in a high school classroom to the transformation of the “New Witte,” a $120 million campus expansion completed in 2017. Visitors will discover this journey through artifacts, photographs, specimens, and archival materials drawn from the Witte’s own collections bring stories of the Witte’s past to life. Explore both the beloved objects visitors remember and learn about the pivotal decisions made by leaders who guided the institution forward.
“The Witte has always been a place where people learn by doing and where curiosity leads to discover, said Michelle Cuellar Everidge, PhD, CEO & President of the Witte Museum. “For a century, we have invited Texans to explore their land, their history, and their culture in ways that are active, engaging, and meaningful. This exhibition celebrates the people who built the Witte Museum and the generations who continue to shape it.”
Visitors will encounter stories that span generations, including:
• The vision of founder Ellen Schulz Quillin and the schoolchildren who helped launch the museum’s first collections
• Early natural history displays and pioneering educational programs rooted in hands-on discovery
• Transformational exhibitions and blockbuster experiences that captivated audiences in the late twentieth century
• The development of iconic Witte spaces such as the H-E-B Science Treehouse and the New Witte campus
The exhibition highlights the Witte’s educational legacy to spark a sense of wonder about the land, water, and sky of Texas through the stories of the animals and people who lived here before us. Throughout its history, the Witte has been shaped by educators, scientists, artists, donors and community members whose curiosity and commitment helped the museum grow. Their work continues to influence how the Witte inspires exploration today.
The exhibition also serves as a companion to the forthcoming book The Witte Museum: 100 Years of Inspiration, Innovation, and Resilience by President Emeritus Marise McDermott, expected to be released in fall of 2026. In July, the Witte will dive into this narrative through Adventures in Texas Deep Time.
Open through Jan. 9, 2027, The Witte Museum: 100 Years invites visitors to reflect on the past while imagining the future of one of Texas’ most beloved cultural institutions.
Exhibition Listing:
The Witte Museum: 100 Years
April 11, 2026 – January 9, 2027
Witte Museum, Russell Hill Rogers Gallery and Laura and Sam Dawson Gallery
Included with General Museum Admission
Attachments
Katye Brought The Witte Museum 210-790-6013 katyebrought@wittemuseum.org
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