Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum

Our Mission

Inspire a community for innovation and discovery, preserve aerospace history, and honor those who serve.

https://www.evergreenmuseum.org/

About the Organization

The Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum (EASM) is the result of a visionary dream by co-founders Captain Michael King Smith and his father, Delford M. Smith. Captain Smith’s passion for flying led to his dream of an aviation museum unlike any other—a living museum that celebrates aviation’s rich history, honors the patriotic service of our veterans, and offers enlightening educational programs. Together, they began collecting vintage warbirds and the process of creating a world-class aviation museum in Oregon; a museum that would keep the inspiring stories of early aviators alive while encouraging other visionaries to pursue their dreams.

The museum was opened to the public in 1991 as a non-profit educational institution. It was located in a 12,000 square foot building on the south side of Highway 18 in the Evergreen Corporate campus and featured a collection of vintage World War II aircraft that were on loan from the Smith family. Within a year of that opening, Captain Smith embarked on his largest project--that of acquiring the world-famous Hughes H-4 Flying Boat, “The Spruce Goose.” After the death of Howard Hughes in 1976, the aircraft was purchased by the Aero Club of Southern California and exhibited by the Wrather Corporation in a geodesic dome near the R.M.S. Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. The Walt Disney Company acquired it in 1988 and made it clear that the Flying Boat was not in their future plans. By 1992, the Aero Club awarded the stewardship of the aircraft to Evergreen, and the giant seaplane made its way by barge up the Pacific coast, then in through the Columbia and Willamette Rivers to Portland. Waiting until the water levels in the rivers could allow the Spruce Goose to pass under the bridges on the Willamette, the aircraft came ashore near Dayton and completed the last 7.5 miles of its trip by truck.

For the next 8 years, the Goose would undergo restoration to ready it for display, but sadly Captain Smith would not see the results of that labor. He died in a tragic auto accident in March 1995. 

In 1999, ground was broken for the new museum building that would house the Spruce Goose, and by September 2000, it was able to house the first parts of the flying boat, which were assembled under the roof that enclosed 121,000 square feet of display area. In 2001, the new Aviation Museum opened to the public on June 6th and the final assembly of the Goose was completed on December 7th.

Since the opening of the Aviation Museum, a Digital Theater opened in 2007, and the Space Museum building--a twin of the Aviation Museum building-- on June 6, 2008. The Space Museum features artifacts and exhibits from the entire history of space exploration, with displays developed with the cooperation of the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center.

Currently, the museums receive over 150,000 visitors per year, and host tens of thousands of school children each year for tours and educational programs. The collections, which range from the earliest days of flight to the latest work on the International Space Station include over 150 significant aircraft and space artifacts as well as thousands of supporting objects, documents, and photos.