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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

Museum Support Center

The Museum Support Center (MSC) is the principal off-site conservation and collections storage facility for the National Museum of Natural History’s irreplaceable national collections. One of the first such facilities in the world, MSC was designed to address the needs of collections storage, conservation, and research. Located in Suitland, Maryland, this state-of-the-art facility houses more than 31 million objects.

Photo of the exterior of the MSC building

MSC is home to the Biorepository Center, the Laboratories of Analytical Biology (LAB), the Smithsonian's Museum Conservation Institute (MCI), and numerous department collections from the National Museum of Natural History. It also houses collections from the Hirshorn Museum, the National Museum of American History, and the National Anthropological Archives.

 

Directions to MSC

Photograph of whale bone storage at the museum support center

As a research facility, MSC is open to the public by appointment only. To arrange a visit to MSC, please coordinate with your research contact. You will need to show a valid photo ID to enter MSC.

Museum Support Center
4210 Silver Hill Road
Suitland, Maryland 20746

The Smithsonian operates a free hourly shuttle bus service from the National Museum of Natural History on the National Mall to the Museum Support Center. The shuttle runs from 8:00 AM to 6:15 PM, and departs from the Mall entrance of the museum on Madison Drive on the hour. It arrives at MSC 27 minutes later. It departs MSC on the half hour, from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM.

You will need a pass to ride the shuttle bus, so please let us know in advance if you plan to ride the shuttle. You will also need a photo ID to board the shuttle and enter the Museum Support Center. Please let us know if you would like to schedule a wheelchair-accessible shuttle bus.

The walk from the Suitland Metro station to MSC is about 10-15 minutes. Take the Green Line to the Suitland Station. Turn right as you exit the station, and keep veering right onto the path that takes you to Silver Hill Road. Follow the sidewalk across the bridge over Suitland Parkway. The Museum Support Center is the second large building on the right side of the street, behind a black wrought iron fence. Ask the guard at the entrance to the campus to direct you to the Museum Support Center. You must present a photo ID to enter the Museum Support Center.

Accessing and Checking in to MSC

You will need to bring a photo ID to be permitted into MSC. Please remember to bring the contact information of the individual meeting you. Please check in at the MSC Security desk at the main entrance. You will need to register your laptop, cameras, and other valuables at the MSC Security desk before you can enter the building.

 

Available Facilities and Equipment

Guest wifi is available throughout the building.

Please check with your contact in regards to any equipment you may need to facilitate your work.

Food is available for purchase at MSC's cafeteria, or you may bring your own. As MSC is a collections care and storage facility, MSC has a strict food and beverage policy that we ask you to follow. This is to limit the attraction of pests that can cause significant damage to the collections. Food consumption, storage, and disposal is only permitted in certain areas. Your contact can inform you of the nearest designated breakroom for food consumption and storage.