The gate to Agricultural Park, which is now known as Exposition Park, the home of the Science Center. In 1876 when Agricultural Park opened, the land was used for agricultural fairs.

The California Science Center is housed in a location that has long played an important role in the history of Los Angeles. The first State Exposition Building, which stood in the exact spot of the current Science Center, opened in 1912 and housed simple, agriculturally based displays of natural resources and industrial products from across the state.

After World War II, as technology-based businesses began to grow, the State Exposition Building was remodeled to show visitors the role of science and technology in everyday life. To better describe this new objective, it was renamed the California Museum of Science and Industry in 1951.

In 1987, the Museum began a comprehensive, long-range planning effort that included a reassessment of its role and its methods. The final plan called for the transformation of the Museum into a state-of-the-art science education facility, designed to respond to the needs of diverse communities and a state that continues to grow and evolve. Its new name, the California Science Center, reflects the redesign and ambitious goals.

The California Science Center's Master Plan includes three phases. The first phase (1988-98) of the three-part plan called for the construction of the Science Center's main building, the Howard F. Ahmanson Building, which opened in February 1998. Although the Ahmanson Building was totally redesigned, it still keeps the historical façade of the original State Exposition Building. Two permanent exhibits, World of Life and Creative World, were the main exhibit components of Phase I, offering over 100 hands-on activities.

We are currently in the middle of Phase II (1998-2006), which will introduce the Science Center School (a neighborhood school within the Los Angeles Unified School District) and the Amgen Center for Science Learning, a resource center for teachers, students and scientists, which will offer professional development opportunities, training and tools for science, math and technology instruction. The other main features in Phase II are the Air and Space Gallery renovation (completed in March 2002), an underground parking structure with over 2,000 spaces, surrounding gardens and fun outdoor activities (2003), and World of Ecology (2006), a permanent exhibit gallery focusing on Earth's ecosystems. So far in Phase II, we've reopened the Air and Space Gallery and broken ground on the Science Center School and Amgen Center for Science Learning, and more is coming soon! Find out about our future plans.