"A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions."
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
The Discovery Center is an educational history and science center offering children a hands-on learning experience to stimulate a passion, curiosity and wonder for the environment and physical sciences. It plays a major role in the lives of thousands of children each year in a variety of ways, including field trips, science camps, educational outreach, and hand-on learning opportunities.
We are a community educational history and science center offering children a hands-on learning experience to stimulate a passion, curiosity and wonder for the environment and physical sciences.
Founded in 1954, The Discovery Center is a non-profit science education center that is fully self-funded. We do not receive any funding from the City of Fresno. All donations are gratefully appreciated.
We deliver science successfully to thousands of children each year in a variety of ways, including field trips, camps, outreach, birthday parties and more.
The Discovery Center is located on 5 acres (The Roessler Winery) donated to the children of the Valley. The Roessler Winery was once the site of the Estella Blanca Vineyards, founded by F.M. Roessler in 1892. The winery produced brandy, not wine. The winery closed when Prohibition went into effect. The land was then donated and became "Reedy Park".
"The Fresno Jr. Museum of Science and Natural History" was established in 1954, and in the 1970's renamed the "Discovery Center."
1894: The Roessler Winery (still located on TDC property) was built. It is the oldest adobe building in Fresno. The adobe bricks were made on land the current airport is now on.
1923: Bungalow that the current TDC office is in (across Winery from main TDC property) was built. It was owned by the Roessler family who also built the main large building the Dream Center is in, next to us. The Dream Center was the main house, the office bungalow was the mother-in-law house.
1954: "The Fresno Junior Museum” founded at Reedy Park (TDC's current location).
1979: Womans Junior League helped transform the complex into The Discovery Center.
1991: The Gemini space capsule was lent to TDC, from Pine Crest Elementary. It was used by NASA for demonstration and promotional purposes after being used to test seat injection techniques.
1995: The Deutsch Cactus Garden was moved from the Deutsch Van Ness Estate to TDC.
1995: The Garden of the Sun was also allowed an acre to develop.
2000: Fire damaged TDC's museum. Most exhibits/items were rescued and put in storage. Programs moved to other buildings already on property.
2001: TDC continued to provide science education programs through field trips and outreach, birthday parties, Starlab, star parties, class visits, and special events.
2011 June: A new 40 + 5 year lease was signed with the City of Fresno and a marketing plan to enable the rebuilding of the museum is launched.
2012 June: Rebuilding of the museum is near complete and will have an opening by Spring of 2013.
2013 March 28: We held a Grand Re-Opening of The Discovery Center Museum.
2015 October 23: Junior League of Fresno opened The Discovery Youth Garden behind the Center's office.