Apollo: When We Went to the Moon at The Henry Ford

This exhibit is no longer running at the The Henry Ford.

“We choose to go to the moon— we choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills…”

With those words, President John F. Kennedy changed the world and unleashed the torrents of ingenuity and creative pursuit of excellence that created the world we live in today.

This sense of history, of urgency, of passion, of precision is captured brilliantly at the exhibit at The Henry Ford Museum exhibit- “Apollo: When We Went to the Moon.”

Visitors will walk through a captivating and immersive display of visual imagery, creative storytelling, and interactive displays that will engage viewers from the moment they walk into the exhibit hall.

This prescient exhibit rises to this historical moment showing the space age commencing with the conflict between the USSR and the United States initiated by the launching of Sputnik.

In a wonderful display, part of the exhibit brilliantly exposes this tension with one video screen showing JFK’s famous speech at RIce University commencing the race to the moon, with Nikita Khrushchev on an opposite video screen demonstrating the Soviet’s case for space exploration.

Other engaging parts of the exhibit include details of space suits, the technical manual used to launch Apollo to the moon-literally a 3 ring binder, as well as other creative displays that tell this important story.

Especially engaging is the interweaving of the social conflict that was occurring in the United States during this time, the Vietnam War and its protests, the Civil RIghts movement in stark juxtaposition of the analytical and precise engineers who landed men on the moon.

A PEACE demonstrator provides historical context at Apollo: When We Went to the Moon

It is a reminder of the best of the human condition and even the benefits of competition- the unyielding desire to learn, to explore, to create and it stands in stark contrast to this moment of dark global events, making the exhibit even more poignant.

The exhibit “Apollo: When We Went to the Moon” is at the Henry Ford until May 8, 2022. It is suitable for all family members and includes several displays that school age children will especially enjoy.

Viewers enjoying scale model of shuttles inside Apollo: When We Went to the Moon at The Henry Ford