Travel Features
Top 10 Western Museums of 2011 - 3 MUSEUMS TO WATCH IN 2011
Looking back at the best Western history and art exhibits in 2010; plus, fan favorites from our Facebook friends.
- Written by Johnny D. Boggs
- Published August 29, 2011
- Top 10 Western Museums of 2011
- 1. Buffalo Bill Museum & Grave (Golden, Colorado)
- 2. Western Heritage Center (Billings, Montana)
- 3. The Autry in Griffith Park (Los Angeles, California)
- 4. National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum (Leadville, Colorado)
- 5. John Brown Museum State Historic Site (Osawatomie, Kansas)
- 6. Van of Enchantment Statewide (based in Santa Fe, New Mexico)
- 7. Draper Museum of Nat’l History (Cody, Wyoming)
- 8. Pueblo Grande Museum (Phoenix, Arizona)
- 9. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
- 10. Clark County Museum (Henderson, Nevada)
- HONORABLE MENTIONS
- 3 MUSEUMS TO WATCH IN 2011
- Art Museums of the Year
- 3 ART MUSEUMS TO WATCH IN 2011
- All Pages
3 MUSEUMS TO WATCH IN 2011
1. Southern Ute Cultural Center & Museum (Ignacio, Colorado): After more than 20 years of planning and building, this 52,000-square-foot wonder opened this past May 21, giving visitors insight into the tribe’s history and culture. This is not just a museum with permanent and temporary galleries. The 8½-acre site also features gardens, a corral and hiking trails.
2. Homestake Adams Research and Cultural Center/Adams Museum & House (Deadwood, South Dakota): The Adams Museum & House has always made this Black Hills gold town a great place for history buffs, but this new research and cultural center, which opened this past June 16, should make Deadwood even better. The 17,000-square-foot brick building will be a great tool for historians. Meanwhile, the Adams Museum & House has opened one quadrant of its redesigned mezzanine exhibit, “Make Unci: Grandmother Earth.”
3 Houston Museum of Natural Science (Houston, Texas): A natural science museum might seem a strange place to learn the history of Texas, but “Texas! The Exhibition,” which celebrates the 150th anniversary of Texas independence, is not to be missed. Guest curator J.P. Bryan, a descendant of Stephen F. Austin and whose Torch Collection is the envy of collectors anywhere, has assembled a first-rate exhibition of Lone Star heritage and history. The exhibit ends September 5.
