The Burke: Behind-the-Scenes

The Burke Museum holds a special place in my heart. I’m a graduate from the University of Washington, and the Burke Museum was a frequent hangout spot for me while I was going to school there. It’s free for students, and even before the remodel the café was a cozy place to pull up a chair and study. Afterwards I could roam around and check out the dinosaurs before I headed back to my dorm. Eventually I started volunteering at the Burke, working in the biology department bottling up tissue samples for genetic research in Ornithology or transferring data into their new database every week for several years.

The Burke takes the experience of their visitors seriously, and the visitor experience was at the forefront of the design process when building their brand-new building. Opening in October of 2019, just months before the COVID-19 shutdown of 2020, the new building features glass walls that allow museumgoers to peek into the working lives of the researchers and scientists that work behind the scenes in the museum.

As the name suggests, Behind-the-Scenes night is specifically for members of the museum, but I’d say that it’s worth becoming a member for this event. Becoming a member gets you a year of unlimited admission, access to this event and more, and discounts at the museum store and the Off the Rez Café located onsite. You also get reciprocal admission to the Port Townsend Marine Science Center and Stonerose Interpretive Center & Eocene Fossil Site. Get more information on a membership to the Burke museum here.

Museums generally can only display a small percentage of their collections—the Burke, for example, has more than 18 million pieces! But by putting glass between the exhibits and the “back rooms,” they allow every visitor a chance to see items that would normally be kept far removed from guests. The glass also allows visitors to watch researchers hard at work. You might see a biologist using a microscope to sort microscopic shells, a paleontologist diligently preparing a recently found fossil, or an archaeologist working on a restoration project.

The structure of the building allows guests to experience what a museum truly is; a living, breathing community, working on research and education outreach. A far cry from the stuffy, frozen-in-time stereotype most museums (especially Natural History museums) get pinned with, the Burke is alive, ever-changing and ever-growing.

The Burke is always open in a behind-the-scenes way with the layout of their building, but they take this a step further one night a year, at their Behind-the-Scenes Night for Members. Every late winter, usually February, the Burke invites members of the museum to come after hours and explore the other side of those glass walls. With tables set out with the current research projects being done, staff’s favorite collections that don’t often get displayed, and lesser-known jobs of the museum getting a spotlight for a night (my favorite this year was an illustrator who uses botanical samples to make composite illustrations for field guides and biology textbooks), there is always something new to discover on this very special night.

All three floors of the museum are full of tables with specimens, artifacts, and knowledge that doesn’t always get to be seen by people outside of the museum staff. I spent three hours at this special event, and I didn’t see everything! There were hands-on activities like sorting microfossils with a microscope, handling real fossils and comparing them to casts, and flipping through an old-fashioned 3-D immersion viewer of fungi (like the kind from the ’50s).

This year there was a demonstration of mountain goat hair processing for Coast Salish weaving, information on repatriation work, and so many samples of so many specimens of so many species. Besides all the extra stuff to see on this eventful night, you get to interact with the museum staff, which is one of my favorite parts of the whole experience. I love asking questions about their research; they are knowledgeable, passionate, and eager to share what they know.

This event is perfect for all ages. There were some activities that specifically had kids in mind, and it’s to heart-warming for kids to get an opportunity to ask real scientists about their favorite dinosaurs—and maybe even get to touch a real fossil or two! Instilling a drive for curiosity and knowledge-seeking in today’s youth is a key part of the Burke’s mission.

Education is a huge part of the outreach that the Burke does with the community, providing “high-quality, hands-on science and cultural learning programs across Washington state.” From Burke Boxes that can be used to teach groups of kids in classrooms, libraries, and community spaces, to the BurkeMobile that brings the museum to schools across Washington, to even curriculum packets for families to do at home and virtual talks and tutorials, the Burke takes the knowledge outside the walls of the museum and brings it to the community. If you or your children have a desire to learn, the Burke has a way to teach.

The Burke Museum takes its mission seriously, as evidenced by the education programs it provides, the events it puts on regularly, even the layout and design of the building itself. It's a perfect museum for the whole family. Let me know in the comments for the video what you love about the Burke, or if you're planning on attending their next Behind-the-Scenes night!