Museums and Other Activities Near Cities

Billings: Pictograph Cave State Park: See pictographs on cave walls dating from around 4500 years ago.

 

Billings: Yellowstone Art Museum: Many artists have settled in Montana, and many Montanans become artists -- perhaps inspired by the splendor of their natural surroundings. Most medium-sized towns in Montana have several galleries, but the Yellowstone Art Museum, inside the former Yellowstone County Jail, is the best in the state, and one of the best in the Rocky Mountain region.

 

Billings: Yellowstone County Museum: Features exhibits from every phase of Montana's colorful history.

 

Bozeman: Museum of the Rockies: This museum showcases Montana's amazing paleontology, including many discoveries by museum curator Jack Horner. Other exhibits focus on Montana's native cultures and more recent history. The Old Trail Museum in Choteau and the Carter County Museum in southeastern Montana also house fascinating collections of bones and fossils, especially of the great reptiles.

 

Butte: Copper King Mansion: The elaborate and luxurious interior of this 32-room mansion recalls the fashions of the late 19th century, and also evokes the Treasure State's history of mining and political intrigue.

 

Butte: Mineral Museum: Displays rotating exhibits from a collection of over 15,000 minerals and fossils.

 

Great Falls: CM Russell Museum Complex: 2000 paintings by the first famous Western artist, capturing much of the spirit of the old West and its inhabitants.

 

Great Falls: Lewis and Clark National Historical Trail Interpretive Center: A wonderful place to experience this part of American history. Great Falls is also the gateway to the Lewis and Clark National Forest, with almost 2 million acres of idyllic meadows and wilderness, along with mountains and canyons.

 

Helena: Cathedral of St. Helena: This impressive cathedral was modeled after one in Vienna, and has 68 German stained-glass windows.

 

Helena: Montana Historical Society Museum: Many interesting exhibits, as well as the Last Chance Tour Train, which takes visitors to all the city's major points of interest. The Historical Society Museum is also adjacent to the state capitol.

Marysville Ghost Town: Seven miles from Helena, this is Montana's most popular ghost town, complete with derelict churches, saloons, homes and shops.

 

Missoula: Aerial Fire Depot: This is the headquarters for aerial attacks on forest fires in the entire Western United States. Smokejumpers train here during the summer, and depart from this spot to deal with fire emergencies as they come up. Visitors can tour the parachute loft and training facilities.

 

Hamilton, near Missoula: Daly Mansion: The 42-room mansion of another of Montana's copper King's, dating from 1890.