Alamo staff, community leaders and visitors gathered to watch as the final beam was placed atop the repurposed Crockett and Woolworth buildings. (Parks Kugle/Community Impact)
The Alamo celebrated the completion of the Alamo Visitor Center and Museum’s structural frame with a topping out ceremony, which is the placing of the final steel beam, March 25.
The details
The Alamo Visitor Center and Museum is an adaptive reuse of the historic Crockett and Woolworth buildings located across from the Alamo Church. The roughly 160,000-square-foot building will house over 5,000 artifacts and be divided into eight galleries, including the Indigenous Peoples, Mexican Rule, Texas Revolution and Civil Rights Era Galleries. Additionally, the center will have a 4D theater and a 700-person event space, with a wraparound terrace overlooking the church building.
Hope Andrade, president and CEO of the Alamo Trust, said the new space will provide an immersive experience worthy of the history of The Alamo.
“Steel is rising, walls are forming, and with this final beam, we will mark the moment where that bold vision as big as Texas will become a reality,” Andrade said. “When this museum opens, visitors will do more than learn history; they will step into it.”
Hope Andrade, president and CEO of the Alamo Trust, spoke about the importance of reclaiming the Alamo's original footprint. (Parks Kugle/Community Impact)
Dawn Buckingham, commissioner of the Texas General Land Office, emphasized the importance of developing the new museum for Texas history.
“The story of The Alamo is each and every one of our story,” Buckingham said. “And when we know that we are standing on the shoulders of the giants of the defenders that came before us, we can step up a little braver, we can step up a little bolder, and we can make Texas even better.”
Visitors, Alamo staff and local leaders signed their names on the final beam before it was raised into place. (Parks Kugle/Community Impact)
The Alamo Visitor Center and Museum is estimated to be completed in 2027 and open in spring 2028.
The final beam marked the completion of the new visitor center and museum's structural frame. (Parks Kugle/Community Impact)
The background
The Alamo Visitor Center and Museum is part of the $550 million Alamo Plan, a series of projects that seek to tell the larger story of Texas history. The plan includes reestablishing the original 4 1/2-acre footprint, the Alamo Promenade, the Texas Cavaliers Education Center and a pedestrian mall.
The Alamo Plan is an ongoing effort with projects already completed, including the opening of the Ralston Family Collections Center on March 3, 2023, and the opening of the Mission Gate and Lunette on May 10, 2024.
Project timeline:
Nov. 21, 2025: Alamo Promenade opened
Late 2026: Texas Cavaliers Education Center opens
Spring 2027: Church building restoration begins
Spring 2028: Alamo Visitor Center and Museum opens
