The Paul W. Bryant Museum closed for the entire month of February, but Alabama football fans will soon learn that the wait was well worth it.

The museum recently unveiled the results of a near-$600,000 renovation that includes sleek new interactive video boards that will enhance the exploration of Crimson Tide history.

When you walk into the museum, you’ll immediately see a bust of Bryant in front of a panel of six 55-inch vertical monitors that serve as six work stations where visitors can use touch-screens to sift through an impressive archive of Bama football history through various media.

Fans can explore every season by touching the years, teams, recaps of each game, all with audio and video components. They can also search for and read about individual players with an A-to-Z directory, also including photos, audio and video from the museum archive.

“The original idea for the museum came from Coach Bryant. He wanted to honor all his players and coaches,” said Bryant Museum director Ken Gaddy. “The exhibit we had here was at the core of the museum, pictures of the teams, lists of the players. Took the same idea and used new technology to include more information.”

On the other side of the new panel is the theater area where fans will now find a 98-inch touch-screen television, where visitors can also choose from several videos offered.

“It’s important for us that the visitor gets to control what they want to see,” Gaddy said. “We’ve had the idea for a while. We just had to get the money and resources together. We found the right mix of people and companies to help us so we could push this information out. Everything came together at the right time.”

Gaddy said the renovation cost about $600,000, which included more than the new technology like carpeting, painting, electrical work and air conditioning.

“We took advantage of being shut down to do a lot of that other type of work, a lot of things a 30-year-old building needed.”

The Bryant Museum opened its doors to the public Oct. 8, 1988. It exhibits artifacts and memorabilia that trace the long history of Alabama football. State-of-the-art displays enhanced by videos highlighting great players, plays and games are produced from the museum’s archives.

The museum is open daily from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Admission for members and children under 6 is free. Admission costs $2 for adults, $1 for senior citizens and children ages 6-17. Admission is free for students with an ACT card. Learn more at bryantmuseum.com.