The Arizona Museum of Natural History, 53 N. Macdonald in Mesa, will close the fiscal year on June 30th, with a record-breaking year for revenue from attendance. On Thursday, June 26th, the museum surpassed $500,000 from visitors coming to the museum, exceeding the previous best year of 2003-2004 by more than $25,000.
The Young family from Cave Creek and their children put the museum over the $500,000 mark. The museum expressed its appreciation to the Young family with a complimentary membership to the museum and a certificate thanking them for helping the museum reach its “mammoth” goal.
Museum attendance grew to 127,000, an increase of 20,000 from the previous fiscal year. This year’s attendance included 37,810 children visiting the museum as part of school field trips. They were not only from the Valley but also from all over the state, from Window Rock to Parker and from Kingman to Casa Grande. Museum staff members expected more visitation, revenue & statewide public support after the name was officially changed from Mesa Southwest Museum to Arizona Museum of Natural History October 1st, 2007. Since 2000, more than one million people have visited the museum.