When the Smoky Hill Museum reopens to the public on Tuesday, visitors will be able to see the new exhibit The 1950s Part 2: Beyond the American Dream and step into a real fallout shelter from the past.

Nona Miller Curator of Education at the museum tells KSAL News that visitors can walk into a recently completed bomb shelter, built to specifications from the 1950’s.

 

Miller says the shelter and the items inside gave many Americans a sense of safety in a time of uncertainty.

 

According to the museum, The 1950s Part 2: Beyond the American Dream looks at the vein of fear that was creeping into the minds of Americans. This might seem a bit extreme, yet in the 1950s this was a reality.

There are some hands-on features of this exhibit as well, such as a fallout shelter based on plans from the 1950s; a kiosk featuring important court cases of the decade; an electronic football game, and the Daytona Speedway.

Museum staff are taking heightened precautions for visitor safety. The galleries, including hands-on items, have been treated with Prevent X, a long-lasting antimicrobial that provides continuous surface protection in between regular cleaning and disinfecting. In addition to the daily cleaning and disinfecting, sanitizing wipes and hand sanitizer are also stationed throughout the galleries for visitor use.