Despite gray skies and intermittent, spitting rain on Saturday, thousands of people waited in long lines to take advantage of one day's free admission to area museums.
The preliminary count for Museum Day 2010 was 86,715, up more than 2,000 over last year's attendance.
And this despite Fairytale Town's surprise closing, because last week's rains had left the playground wet and quite muddy.
Other institutions, like Stanford Mansion, Governor's Mansion and the Crocker Art Museum, saw steady lines all day long.
"We were really busy," says Crocker spokeswoman LeAnne Ruzzamenti. "It was an interesting mix of people. Some had never been to a museum, much less the Crocker. And there was a lot of interest in the new building."
The Crocker's new $100 million wing will open in October, in plenty of time for the 2011 Museum Day.
Bob LaPerriere reported record attendance at the Sierra-Sacramento Valley Museum of Medical History: 606 visitors.
"We were never above 300 in the past." he says.
Previous coverage:
Art to oddities, it's all free on Sacramento's Museum Day - Feb. 5, 2010
How Museum Day became one man's life-altering event - Jan. 31, 2010
