"We try to make it as educational and interactive as possible," explained Eddie Lott, educational director for the museum. "Some people come in with children and say to their children, 'Now don't touch anything!' But we want them to touch, to be involved! We're the new generation of museums."

Lora Bridger, who brought her two-year-old daughter Katie from Buffalo, NY, has visited children's museums in several other states. She was delighted by what she found here in South Carolina. "This museum isn't as big as the others, but it's more hands-on!" she said. "It's more at a kid's level."

At about 8,000 square feet, the South Carolina facility is considered one of the smallest children's museums in the country. The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, for example, has over 500,000 square feet and is adding new space. However, the board and staff of the Myrtle Beach museum are developing plans for enhancement and expansion. "Our goal is to have a state-of-the-art children's museum at a permanent location in a larger facility in the next five years," commented Pam Barnhill, museum director.

Though small, the building is filled with stimulating exhibits and activities, most of which were donated or contributed to by Grand Strand businesses and organizations. The Discovery Lab, with exhibits funded by HTC, focuses on northeastern South Carolina's environment and habitats. The dental office was donated by the Grand Strand Dental Association. The museum's newest exhibit on electricity, sponsored by Santee Cooper, lets kids crank a WWII-era generator to create enough electricity to turn on the lights in a model of the city. Budding malacologists can examine specimens from a collection of local shells donated by the Grand Strand Shell Club.

These exhibits are big hits with the children who attend the museum. Brittany Brattain of Florence liked the U.S.S. Kids Afloat, sponsored by Better Brands, Inc. "It felt like you were really in the water!" she enthused. Her mother, father, and younger sister also enjoyed the museum's medical area, which they explored as a family.

The museum doesn't have many adult-sized seating areas, with good reason. "We want the parents and children to interact, too," emphasized Lott. "Our targeted age group is children between one and eleven. All the exhibits are hands-on, and there's text and information that a grown-up needs to explain to a child who can't yet read."

Seeds for the museum were planted by a group of local business people in 1993. "They traveled a lot and saw children's museums in other cities, and realized there was a need here," Barnhill said. The museum opened in an unleased 1,200 square foot store in Myrtle Square Mall. When the store was leased, the museum moved to its current space at 2501 North Kings Highway, where it has been located since March 1996.

The non-profit museum's annual budget is approximately $227,000, reported Barnhill. "17% came from local grants or funding, 43% came from contributions, and the remainder from revenue, programs, and special activities," she explained. Approximately 58% of the budget is spent on operational costs, programs and upkeep of the museum's interactive exhibits, which need constant maintenance and repair. 42% is used for personnel costs for the staff of three full-time and five part-time employees. Local businesses provide corporate contributions and grants for acquisition and installation of new exhibits. The City of Myrtle Beach provides support for marketing through accommodations tax allocations.

Some 28,000 people visited the museum in 1998, Barnhill said. About 51% were from out-of-town, and 49% were local. 57% were children. The museum hosts many field trips, both from local schools and also from other towns and cities in South Carolina and neighboring states. The average museum visit lasts for about two hours.

Barnhill noted that summer attendance increased significantly in 1999 over the previous year. "There are over 300 children's museums in the United States, and 30% of those have opened in the last ten or fifteen years. So there is a wider recognition of children's museums as a viable place to go for interactive family activities," she said.

All fifty of the United States have children's museums. "South Carolina was the last state to get one," said Lott, "and we're the currently the only one in the state geared toward children." Many South Carolina museums are now following the trend toward interactivity and children's exhibits, he said.

The museum's programs are popular with participants of a wide variety of ages. The Toddler Tuesday program has won a loyal crowd. Other programs will be offered later this year. "In the spring, we'll start our arts and crafts program. We'll also resume Science Saturday, with demonstrations of physics & electricity," said Lott. Participation in some programs is free with museum admission; in others, a charge of $1-$3 per child covers the cost of materials.

"Anything like this has to have local support," Lott commented. "51% of our business comes from tourists, but community support sustains us throughout the year. This is a wonderful place to volunteer or get your child involved with a great program."

Barnhill agreed, and said that many local residents might be completely unaware of the museum's existence. "As a non-profit organization, it is a challenge to have a designated budget for marketing and public relations. We do it on a shoestring. So I think many locals don't realize we're here. We're probably one of the best-kept secrets in the area!"

The Children's Museum of South Carolina is located at 2501 North King's Highway, to the left of Office Depot. Admission is $4 per person; children age 2 and under are admitted free. The Museum is open on Tuesday-Saturday between 10AM and 4PM. For more information, call 946-9469.