MuseumRembering Columbia Museum
Hemphill · Sabine County · Dedicated 2011 · THC Atlas #4200001009
Texas history, up close and curated.
About this site
Rembering Columbia Museum is a museum in Hemphill, Sabine County, dedicated in 2011. It is one of 2 museums documented in Sabine County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 152 historic sites cataloged across the county.
The site sits at 31.3459, -93.8447 near Hemphill. The nearest cataloged historic site is Hemphill First United Methodist Church (historical marker), about 0.2 miles away. Others within a short drive include First Baptist Church of Hemphill, Hemphill, and Sabine County Courthouse.
This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #4200001009. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
History
The Patricia Huffman Smith NASA Museum 'Remembering Columbia' in Hemphill memorializes the Space Shuttle Columbia, which broke apart over East Texas on February 1, 2003, killing all seven astronauts; much of the debris fell around Hemphill and Sabine County, a key area in the largest ground search in U.S. history. Funded in memory of Patricia Huffman Smith, whose family had roots in Sabine County, the museum opened February 1, 2011. Rather than displaying wreckage, it exhibits the crew's personal belongings and includes a shuttle flight-deck simulator.
Sources: nasacolumbiamuseum.comaustinchronicle.com
