The first time my 8-year-old nephew saw you, he fell in love! You were all he talked about for several months. It's been over a year and he still travels with his penguin stuff animal. What a joy to watch his eyes light up!
On September 29, 2023, Steinhart Aquarium is turning 100! You’re invited to add to this community scrapbook by sharing a favorite memory, creature, or aha! moment from the museum. Thanks for contributing your stories—and being part of ours.
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Dear Penguins
Aunt Sandi
2023-03-25T15:54:05-07:00
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Dear P is for Penguin P is for People,
We love your penguin puppet show so much!! Thank you for creating a great core memory to my nanny babies. We’re still waiting for the spotify version of your penguin song.
Love, The Besties.
2023-03-23T17:28:34-07:00
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Gabor Mate
thank you for helping me and my family
N & L & I
2023-03-23T16:52:04-07:00
Dear CalAcademy
Back in the fall of 1978, I had just started working at Macy’s Union Square, and was living down the Peninsula. The Academy had an exhibit about Shakespeare (I’m still not quite sure how that fit with the usual mission but I'm pretty sure it was you who had it) but wasn’t open on any weeknights. I was too nervous to ask for time off, so told my staff I was going to leave for a couple of hours one afternoon and work that evening. Which I did, and enjoyed my visit. When Christmas came around, my team remembered how much I wanted to go to this exhibit so gave me a membership at CAS! I have been a member to the present day – even though literature hasn’t featured much in your displays since. Some of your member lectures left such an impression on me (poisonous bird talk given when you were located downtown, and Dr. Slowinski's talk), and I love being able just to "pop in" .
Gratefully, Chris M.
2023-03-23T14:30:17-07:00
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Dearest academy of sciences
Our favorite memory was this year during especially rainy January. It was difficult to do anything fun outdoors and the museum became a perfect haven for doing it all: aquarium, rainforest and more. It helped make great memories during the gloomy season. We are so grateful for this piece of paradise in San Francisco.
Maya and Steve Davis
2023-03-23T14:14:21-07:00
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Dear California Academy of Sciences
One of my favorite memories is performing with the San Francisco Ukulele Rebellion in front of the Reef Tank for the “Beyond the Reef” NightLife event in January 2019. The staff was great to us and being able to play “reef music” in front of that amazing tank was an amazing experience. Thank you for the opportunity!
San Francisco Ukulele Rebellion
2023-03-23T11:29:54-07:00
Steinhart Aquarium
Thanks for such a peaceful and tranquil setting with beautiful fish and a spectacular coral reef. The Aquarium is a real treasure and simply just watching the fish swim around is a real joy.
Sincerely, Josh
2023-03-22T21:50:57-07:00
Dear California Academy of Sciences
I am a close neighbor of the academy and have always been a member. Once particular memory stands out. After picking up my son at preschool we would often stop at the Steinhart Aquarium to visit our favorite creatures. One I particularly remember was a manatee who had been rescued from a fish market in Columbia, South America. Named "butterball" he was our favorite!
Cheers, Barbara Koenig
2023-03-22T18:25:25-07:00
Dear Academy,
There are so many wonderful experiences to make us love the Cal Academy. Our son took classes here, playing behind the scenes in the fish tanks. He was 4 when he was fascinated by the Allosaurus in the entry. After a trip to the Caribbean we counted all the similar fish in the old Aquarium. We’ve brought nieces and nephews on similar great adventures to see Claude, the penguins, the planetarium (old and new). Our grandson loved watching baby chicks being born in the Piazza, the snow machine and the.reindeer, the Foucault pendulum, and the Tide Pool. He loved the Earthquake simulator and the fog room. The color exhibit was very cool. Our granddaughter loved the winged dinosaur simulator, the collections of bugs, bones and amphibians. She took the pre-school class in the Children’s Corner, and both grandchildren, nieces, nephews love the Rainforest and we all love the carts with explainers letting them touch specimens. In addition to watching the children enjoy so much, l have loved the lectures, behind the scenes visits. There’s really so much more!
Walter family
2023-03-22T13:42:11-07:00
Dear CAS
I joined CAS when I moved to San Francisco in 1986. I took one of the courses offered at the time - basic physics - and was astonished at all that had been learned in physics since I took it in college 20 years earlier. I'd love to re-take such a class now to find out what has been learned in the subsequent 35 years!
Fan of life-long learning, Katherine Fines
2023-03-22T12:59:14-07:00
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California Academy of Sciences
My favorite memories of the Academy were the holiday-themed dive shows. As a long time academy diver I was privileged to be "Scuba Santa" for a couple of the dive shows (which I hope will soon be reinstated). It was such a hoot seeing the kids in the audience react to (and ask questions of) an underwater Santa. Ho ho ho.....
Jamie Black
2023-03-22T10:46:30-07:00
In Memoriam for Butterball
I spent my first seven years of life living on 9th Ave and Fulton. Remaining in the Richmond District all my sixty years, the "Aquarium" (Steinhart) and Hall of Science has always been a part of my life. So many memories, but my fondest were all my visits just to see my special friend, a huge fantastical Sea Being who lived in a large corner tank. I would run to the window and put my hand on it, talking to him as he would come up to the window to greet me. I loved watching him eat whole heads of lettuce. He was probably the first Animal I bonded with outside my home where I had a Dog and Bird I loved. I also loved this Beautiful Being. I had named him early on, but while I knew it all these years, my old brain is blanking at this moment. I only recently read it was Butterball. It would be sometime after our meeting before I even knew they called him a Sea Cow. As an adult I gravitated towards Manatees and realized that's what he was. In hindsight I felt bad he lived in such a small space for his size, but I read it was ideal for his health needs, and was comforted that he was well-cared for. I'm happy to have those memories of time spent with Butterball and the joy he brought me.
Kim Forwood
2023-03-22T10:00:39-07:00
The Coral Reef
I have visited many times, but my most fond memory is when my son sent me a text on Mother's Day to look at the coral reef webcam. He was standing there with a sign that said "Happy Mother's Day!" I love the coral reef and that was really special. I love everything about the Academy and visit there whenever I'm in the area. Thanks for a great facility.
Love, from G. Weaver
2023-03-22T06:22:39-07:00
Dear Academy,
Thank you so much for growing my love for science as a young child. My mom would bring me here as much as she possibly could, to feed my ever-growing curiosity for life, and it definitely worked. I hold the Academy very close to my heart and constantly reminisce on all my experiences here. The planetarium helped kickstart my love for space and our place in the cosmos, the aquariums and animal exhibits for learning as much as I can on all creatures, for the earthquake exhibit really helping me get into history, and for so much more. I hope to eventually bring my friends and even my children here, so that they may feel the sheer love I have for this place.
With love and appreciation, Avrora Baird.
2023-03-21T22:55:21-07:00
Dear long term members
My favorite moments were the wonderful class by Dorothy Washburn where we studied Pueblo indian culture and art through the artifacts of the Charles deYounng Elkus collection. And the course by John Dobson where my son and I ground and constructed an eight inch reflector telescope.
Joanne Whitney.
2023-03-21T22:32:07-07:00