Museums

Mountaineering MuseumBradford Washburn American Mountaineering Museum

710 10th Street
(303) 279-3080

Golden’s newest museum opened its doors in February 2008 to be the first and only museum in the United States dedicated to the heroism, technology, culture and spirit of mountaineering. The Mountaineering Museum brings visitors into the world of mountain and rock climbing and honors the achievements of mountaineers from America and around the world. Exhibits on climate, science, cultures and the humanities as they relate to mountains promise to make the visitor experience rich, exciting, and interactive.

Buffalo Bill's GraveBuffalo Bill’s Gravesite and Museum

987 1⁄2 Lookout Mountain Road
(303) 526-0747

Buffalo Bill’s Gravesite and Museum features exhibits exploring Buffalo Bill’s life and times, including Wild West show outfits and posters, Indian artifacts, and antique firearms. Temporary exhibits, which change every year, explore a variety of Western themes. Children and adults alike can try on cowboy outfits and get a picture while seated on “Stumpy,” the Museum’s fiberglass horse. The complex on Lookout Mountain includes the Buffalo Bill Museum, Buffalo Bill’s grave, and the Pahaska Tepee gift shop and snack bar.

Colorado Railroad MuseumColorado Railroad Museum

17155 West 44th Avenue
(303) 279-4591
(800) 365-6263

The Colorado Railroad Museum features twelve acres of narrow and standard gauge locomotives, cars, and 50 thousand rare old photographs, papers and artifacts. The museum itself is a replica of an 1880-style masonry railroad depot. The gift shop has over a thousand railroad books, videotapes, posters, prints, jewelry, and other memorabilia. www.crrm.org

Dinosaur RidgeDinosaur Ridge

State Highway 26 (between C-470 & Hwy 93)
(303) 697-DINO (3466)

Dinosaur Ridge is a world-renowned geological and paleontological outdoor museum, containing more than a hundred dinosaur tracks discovered in 1937. Bones were first discovered in 1877, igniting the dinosaur rush to the West. You can take your own tours with fifteen interpretive signs and guided tours on open days, or take a guided tour for a small fee. Children will enjoy digging for fossils in the sand pits in front of the museum.

Foothills Art CenterFoothills Art Center

809 Fifteenth Street
Golden, CO 80401
(303) 279-3922 

The Foothills Art Center is dedicated to “leading and inspiring the community through art, education, and cultural excellence.” Housed in an 1872 renovated Gothic church and a Victorian mansion—both works of art themselves and official members on the United States National Registry of Historic Buildings—the center features exhibitions of both traditional and contemporary artworks in all mediums. In addition to exhibitions on both a national and a local scale, the Foothills Art Center offers classes for children and adults at all skill levels.

Geology MuseumGeology Museum

Colorado School of Mines
13th and Maple St.
(303) 273-3823
(303) 273-3815 Tours Hot Line

The Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum offers free admission to extraordinary exhibits including Minerals from Colorado, Colorado Mining Heritage, Mining Artifacts, Gold & Silver Display, Gemstones, Mineral Properties & Earth History, special Radioactive exhibits, World Minerals and Fossils. A favorite for many visitors is the representation of a uranium mine, complete with driller and crystal pocket.

Golden History CenterGolden History Museum

923 10th Street
(303) 278-3557

From Castle Rock, kayakers, burros, and trains, to Rosebud pottery, Orediggers, and Demons, the history of the second territorial capital runs deep with color and intrigue. Start exploring Golden’s unique characters and places through exhibits and programs at the Golden History Museum. As far back as 1938, citizens officially began collecting, exhibiting and preserving Golden artifacts.

Clear Creek History ParkGolden History Park

11th and Arapahoe
(303) 278-3557

Get outside and see how Golden’s early settlers worked and played in the late 1800s (1867–1915, to be precise) at the Golden History Park. The park is ideally located along Clear Creek in downtown Golden. Its outdoor setting recreates the look and feel of a late 1800s mountain ranch complete with gardens, a working blacksmith shop, schoolhouse and chicken coop (chickens included). The grounds are open from sunrise to sunset every day of the year. Stroll around for free and peek through the windows of these beautiful old buildings. For more information and opening times, please visit the Golden History Park website.

Lookout Mountain Nature CenterLookout Mountain Nature Center and Preserve

910 Colorow Road
(720) 497-7600

Connect with nature at this 110 acre park. Inside Lookout Mountain Nature Center and Preserve, experience exhibits that depict migrating birds and reveal secrets of the ponderosa pine forest. Visit the Discovery Corner and Observation Room. Outside stroll trails winding through forest and meadow, picnic beneath towering pine trees or join a naturalist-guided program.

Rocky Mountain Quilt MuseumRocky Mountain Quilt Museum

200 Violet Street, Suite 140
(303) 277-0377

Come explore the world of quilts at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum. RMQM is dedicated to the preservation of quilts, and the continuation of the art of both traditional and contemporary quilt-making. We present ten quilt exhibits a year, each with a unique and different style, history and theme. Our Quilt Market is a great place to find quilts and related gifts.

COG Mesa

 Golden was named after Thomas L. Golden,
a gold prospector who arrived in Jefferson County in 1858.

Additional Resources

City of Golden, Colorado
COG Mesa
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