HAMPTON, Va. — A new exhibit is landing at the Hampton History Museum. "Chris Kraft: Hampton's Unlikely Space Hero" features a Hampton native and his contributions to NASA.
Kraft may not be the first name that comes to mind when you think about NASA, but he was an instrumental part of the agency's success. He began his work in 1945 at NASA Langley Research Center, then known as Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory. He was then assigned to the NACA Space Task Group in 1958, which was developing a system for manned space flight.
His role as Director of Flight Operations meant he was responsible for the planning, training, and execution of human spaceflight for the Apollo missions. He would go on to become the director of Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas until his retirement in 1982. The Mission Control Center there is appropriately named after him.
The Chris Kraft exhibition includes more than his contributions to NASA; the exhibit also includes personal items from Kraft's youth spent in Hampton. After Kraft died in 2019, his family donated a collection of his personal memorabilia to the Hampton History Museum.
The exhibit captures his legacy as a highly respected NASA engineer and his legacy as a Hampton resident.
Wednesday marks the 100th anniversary of Chris Kraft's birthday and features a members-only reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
The exhibit opens to the public Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024.