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Progress

 

Generations of change in the blink of an eyes. Cobblestone and wood give way to concrete and steel. Parking meters replace hitching posts. A livery stable disappears, and in its place—a gas station.

 

Exhibit Information

Location

Level 2

Hours

10am – 5pm

Price

Included with General Admission

Accessibility Notes

None

About the Exhibit

Take the path through time to see how one road progressed by human ingenuity. Are you ready to take this journey?

Step into 1898, where telegrams deliver urgent messages, horses pull carriages, and life moves at the pace of the past. Then, turn the corner—and suddenly, it’s 1962. Neon signs glow, television brings the world into living rooms, and the hum of progress fills the air.

In just 64 years, telegraphs gave way to television, Morse code became telephones, and fresh produce markets turned into frozen TV dinners. Stand at the crossroads of Hope Street and Fear Street and ask yourself: what will the next revolution bring?

  • Send a telegram in the Amalgamated Telegraph Office.
  • Pose in a carriage for the perfect old-world photo.
  • Play with 19th-century toys and games like children of the past.
  • Step into 1962 and serve up diner fare, squeeze into a phone booth, and even become a TV news anchor in the WNWS television studio.