The Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium is northern New England's premiere museum of natural history. The Museum was founded in 1889 by St. Johnsbury industrialist Franklin Fairbanks. A lifelong amateur naturalist, Fairbanks collected examples of nature's artistry and diversity throughout the world. His vast personal collections were first made accessible to the public in his "cabinet of curiosities" at Underclyffe, his elegant St. Johnsbury mansion. Fairbanks commissioned architect Lambert Packard to design a monumental structure in which to make his remarkable collections available for display and study. To this day, the collections of Franklin Fairbanks remain the backbone of northern New England's largest museum of natural history.

Crafted in the elegant Richardsonian Romanesque style, the Museum first opened its doors in 1891. At its dedication, Fairbanks set his museum on a distinctive course: "It is my expectation that studies in the natural sciences will be introduced into our public, common schools....In this way, the Museum will truly become a factor in the education of our children and young people. It is my desire that this institution take its place...as an educator of the young, lifting all who shall avail themselves of its advantages to a higher and larger knowledge concerning the things of God's creation." Today, the Museum's mission remains in harmony with the vision of Franklin Fairbanks: to "...inspire an appreciation and responsibility for our place in the natural world."

Collections
Estimates total 175,000 in the following categories —

Natural Science
75,000 (including mounted birds, mammals, reptiles, and fish; insects; nests and eggs; shells; fossils; rocks; minerals; herbarium)

Historical
95,000 (including tools, toys, over 2,500 dolls, political memorabilia, textiles, weapons, 55,000 archival photographs and documents.

Ethnological
5,000 (including Oceania, the Near East, Africa, Egypt, Japan, and native North America)

Annual Public Programs
Weather Spotlight (March); Conservation Practices Workshop (April); Wildlife Close-up (June); Special Exhibitions (July-August); Children's Nature Corner (July-August); Astronomy Week and Astronomy Camp (August); Fairbanks Festival Weekend and Festival of Traditional Crafts (September); Rural History Discovery (November); Holiday Open House (December); First Night Celebration (December).

Facilities
The Museum is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is located on 3.0 acres in the heart of St. Johnsbury's Main Street Historical District. The Museum Main building's 21,500 square feet contains three floors of exhibits, the planetarium, the Northern New England Weather Center, a lecture room, a classroom/laboratory, administrative offices, and the Museum Shop. Two smaller buildings house the Douglas B. Kitchel Center for the Study of the Northeast Kingdom, the Fairbanks Archives Center, and offices.