The Roger Tory Peterson Institute Reopens Saturday with Celebration

The Roger Tory Peterson Institute on Curtis St. in Jamestown, NY.

The Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History will be holding a special reopening ceremony this weekend at its Curtis Street location in Jamestown.

The institute, which is named after the Jamestown native and world-renowned nature artist, will open on Saturday for the first time since early December, when a fire broke out at the facility. The free outdoor event will feature live music, along with food and beverage offerings. In addition, discount admission will be provided for entry into the facility itself, where visitors can see the new exhibit, “The Art of the Osprey.”

RTPI Chief Executive Officer Arthur Pearson said the event is intended to celebrate the facility’s reopening and also remind the community about what a special jewel it has in its midst, “The building is worth the visit in of itself. It was designed by Robert A.M. Stern, so it’s a gem of a building holding this collection. And it’s our privilege, our joy, our honor to share this with our community. And so we want to utilize these assets to really amplify the opportunity for RTPI not only to share the legacy of Roger but share the essence of the legacy of Roger.”

Pearson also explained that even though the December fire led to extensive water damage to portions of the facility along with its gift shop, the invaluable artwork included in the collections didn’t suffer any loss, “We had an electrical fire and that was probably put out within a minute or so, but then it was the water from the sprinkler system that really continued to go for about a half hour or so. A good portion of the building was impacted by the water, especially the basement. We lost 85% of the contents of the basement and we lost the entire museum store. The good news is the collection we have, this world class collection, absolutely, perfectly safe.”

All told, Pearson said the fire led to about a million dollars worth of damage, which is why it has remained closed for the past six months to accommodate repairs and renovations.

The Saturday reopening celebration will be highlighted by a ribbon cutting ceremony at 1:30 p.m., with several local officials and community leaders planning to attend. The entire celebration will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, visit RTPI.org.