Telluride Historical Museum
Telluride Historical Museum
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Located at the top of N. Fir street in Telluride, Colorado the Telluride Historical Museum works to bring the regions rich history to life through engaging exhibits, insightful programming, and entertaining events. The Museum displays the regions history from it's geological formation to prehistoric times (they have dinosaur bones!), on to it's indigenous roots- housing an Anasazi blanket from between 800-900 years ago- and history of the native peoples followed by the boom and bust mine years with an incredible collection of artifacts showing what life was like during those times. They also offer a robust overview of Telluride's mining history and innovation including photos, maps, and artifacts from the local mines as well as history on the Rio Grande Southern Rail Road and it's inception as well as the first commercial use of Alternating Current (AC) electricity. Their more contemporary collections retell the founding of the ski area and popular local festivals.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
176 reviews
Excellent
127
Very good
44
Average
5
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Taylor B
Chicago, IL8,478 contributions
Sep 2022
The Telluride Historical Museum, located at 201 West Gregory Avenue, in the restored 1896 miners' hospital, recalls the regional and geological history of this one-time mining camp and the cultures of the Ute Indians, settlers and miners who once lived here. It also reflects upon the town's skiing and transportation histories and the building's history as a hospital. Ten thematic rooms, a gallery which rotates exhibits and a museum store all showcase Telluride's dramatic history. The eclectic collection is displayed in dramatic settings, telling three-dimensional stories with theatrical groupings of displays and interactive features. The permanent exhibits include the Origins Room, which explores how earth forces carved the San Juan mountain range over 65 million years ago; the Telluride Blanket, the only fully intact example of a brown/red/white twill fabric from the Ancestral Puebloan peoples, or Anasazi, which has been radiocarbon dated to have been made between 1041-1272 AD; From Mining Camp to Community, how Telluride evolved from the 1870s to 1880s; Community Life, exploring the daily life of Telluride's families in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; The Miners, explaining the often complex mining and milling process to extract the gold, silver and zinc and learning how engineers and miners tackled the job; and Otto Mears: The Pathfinder of the San Juans, who built toll roads and railroads to make the San Juan mountain ranges accessible to travelers and commerce.
Written October 5, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Seessee
Boulder, Colorado76 contributions
Aug 2024 • Couples
Excellent! If you enjoy history and museums, definitely visit and plan to spend some time here - there's a lot of great info covering various periods of this town and region. Easily one of the best museums we've visited in a very long time. Admission fees are very reasonable and cheap enough to come back to visit several times. There's a good sized gift shop with excellent selection of books. Two stories, so call if an elevator is needed. If you like museums, don't miss this one.
Written August 28, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rene A
Craig, United States2 contributions
Oct 2024 • Family
We were greeted with a smile and wonderful information about the museum. They detailed the building’s individual room displays and some brief history. This is a great place to take kids and learn about the early history of mining.
Written October 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Laura B
Washington DC, DC20 contributions
Mar 2020 • Friends
Really enjoyed an interesting and educational break at this well-curated museum. Content was very manageable - you can read everything in under 2 hours (opted not to do the audio tour) and I learned the origins of the terms “red light district” and “basket case.” Wish there has been a bit more about the ski resort, but 900 year-old blanket and history of the mining/frontier town were fascinating.
Written March 11, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
longandshortofit
Overland Park, KS134 contributions
Aug 2022
Small museum with interesting exhibits. If you aren't spending all your time outside in Telluride, you can learn a lot of interesting information here. Includes the history of the ski resort, the town in mining days, a dinosaur bone and a 900 year old blanket.
Written August 21, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Will C
1 contribution
Mar 2024 • Solo
Very enjoyable museum! Interesting presentation of the local history that doesn't gloss over the difficult or seedy parts. Definitely recommend doing the audio tour; it's well done.
Overall, a good value and well worth the visit.
Overall, a good value and well worth the visit.
Written April 7, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Yvette Minton Moss
Franklin, TN111 contributions
Dec 2021
If you want a little bit of History take a walk thru this place. Its not a huge place but worth the 7.00 to see and hear some History. The lady who took our money was a retired school teacher( cant remember her name) was very friendly and answered our questions when we had one. Took about 40 mins to look around!
Written December 17, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mary M
Telluride, CO34 contributions
Jul 2015 • Friends
This is a great way for travelers to get an idea of the history of Telluride and it's done very well at the Historical Museum; it's a colorful history and a worthwhile visit.
Written July 27, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sarah r
Geneva, IL441 contributions
Feb 2020
This is a surprisingly professional museum for a ‘local’ history museum. Very thoughtfully curated. Telluride has a fascinating history and I think they convey that very well.
Written February 10, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
momonthego75
Fort Lauderdale, FL54 contributions
Oct 2016 • Family
Great visit, we had our kids with us 12 and 15 they both enjoyed it, the lady at the desk was knowledgeable and helpful she explained so many interesting things to us and gave my kids a quiz sheet to fill they loved that and it made them pay more attention and read everything! Definitely worth a visit!
Written October 14, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
As it's a historical museum housed in a historic building I'd doubt it, but perhaps if it was a service dog?? Give them a call.
Written July 13, 2017
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