PARK CITY — Visitors to the newly renovated Park City Museum can climb into a cramped, concrete jail cell from the 19th century, set off a dynamite explosion to feel the vibrations, or cozy up to a historic bar to view photographs of a 1955 "sin raid."

Starting Saturday, museum guests may also watch a short historic film from a replica train car or sit inside the world's only existing underground ski-lift cars.

"This is a huge heritage tourism asset for Park City and especially Main Street," said museum director Sandra Morrison, who led the Deseret News on a tour of the space as finishing touches were being laid for the grand reopening. "We wanted to put Park City history in the context of Western history but also make it fun."

The museum will reopen this weekend after two years and almost $7 million in renovation. The original buildings on Main Street were preserved, but a three-story, 5,000-square-foot addition was built onto the structures' rear.

The museum originally opened in 1984 in the historic city hall and library in old town Park City.

The dramatic changes have made room for an original three-story mine conveyor system and a two-story replica of the Ontario silver mine, complete with tiny plastic figurines, a replica water-pumping system and intricate tunnels supported by toothpick-size scaffolding. Miniature mine cars move up and down in tandem with a system of lights and buttons.

"The kids are going to have a blast," said museum public-relations consultant Stephanie Fischer.

With the changes, the Park City museum has been transformed from a bare-bones setup into a state-of-the-art display that rivals the best museums in the region.

The changes were needed to accommodate the 70,000 guests who visit the site annually, Morrison said.

"They're already here, and we know our tourists are interested in the history," she said. "So how do we give them a real experience?"

The museum touches on everything from grocery shopping to the story of skiing and the massive fire of 1898. Dozens of artifacts fill the space, shedding light on everything from Chinese immigrants to Depression-era advertising in the Egyptian Theater. The artifacts are complemented throughout with video, literature and sound presentations.

In the future, museum officials hope to create podcasts and self-guided "director's tours" that will be transmitted through mobile phones.

The museum has received a 99-year lease from Park City, which owns the underlying land. Now, the museum is faced with a $50,000 shortfall on repayment of the construction loan taken out by the city. Together, the ground lease and renovations totaled almost $9 million.

For the first time this weekend, the museum will charge an entrance fee to supplement its $500,000 annual budget. The museum has also opened a gift shop at the entrance, with the help of Main Street business owners.

So far, more than 250 people have volunteered to help out, Morrison said.

"The whole project is just embraced by everybody," she said.

If you go:

What: Park City Museum

Where: 528 Main, Park City

When: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays; noon to 6 p.m. Sundays

Cost: Adults $10, children $5

Tours: Schedule at 435-649-7457

e-mail: rpalmer@desnews.com