Smithsonian exhibits drop in visitors in ’06

Published Thursday, September 21, 2006

WASHINGTON (AP) - Attendance at Smithsonian museums is down this year, reflecting both a nationwide trend and a spate of violent crime and flooding on the National Mall, officials said Tuesday.

Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence Small blamed stagnating museum attendance nationwide for a 5 percent decline in visits to the Smithsonian over the past eight months compared with the same time last year.

"We know the same thing is happening across the board in museums," Small said at a news conference held after the September meeting of the 160-year-old institution’s governing body, the Board of Regents. The Smithsonian had 17.4 million visitors through August this year, down from 18.3 million in the same time period this year. A survey by the American Association of Museums shows flat attendance at museums nationwide since 2000.

Small said local crime also meant fewer museum visits. During three nights in May and July, there were five attacks on the National Mall, a popular - and usually safe - tourist site where many Smithsonian museums are located. Those attacks "scared away people," he said.

Heavy summer rain and flooding also closed some of the larger Smithsonian museums for several days.