Our Museum

Step through our doors and get ready to immerse yourself in the deeply enriching history of the Black Hills and Native American history. As you enter complete darkness in our twinkling Star Room, open your ears and eyes to the scientific and cultural perspectives of the beginning of time. Venture into the earth’s crust and visualize the many rocky layers that lay beneath our feet. As you make your way through the uplift of the Black Hills, touch and feel the very rocks and gems that are found right here in this area, housed inside the natural history museum. Dig up dinosaur bones and see a working fossil lab in our Paleontology Field Tent. See real arrowheads and jump into an archaeological dig pit. Marvel at the intricate beadwork of the indigenous peoples and step inside a real tipi. Travel back in time to Deadwood and see the demise of Wild Bill. Walk the boardwalk and take some time inside what a general store in pioneer times looked like. Don’t forget to take in the history of the tragic Rapid City Flood of 1972. Read the names of those that lost their lives and see the heroes that risked their own lives to save others. Observe the Stratobowl, the location of where some of the earliest astronauts dared to take to the skies. No journey is a straight line so explore what we have to offer at this unique natural history museum! 

Your Black Hills Journey starts here. The Journey Museum & Learning Center brings together five major prehistoric and historic collections to tell the complete story of the Western Great Plains - from the perspective of the Lakota people and their unique Native American history, and the pioneers who shaped its past, to the scientists who now study it. Interactive learning experiences such as the Wells Fargo Theater, Paleontology Tent and the STEAM Lab give you the chance to learn and play every day!