We urgently need your donations to keep the museum doors open.
Please help us save the museum! A donation in any amount will be most helpful.
All donations are tax deductible and greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for your support!

The museum was built in 1997 to house the collections that it contains for public viewing. With the economic down turn the museum has been unable to keep its payments current and is now facing the possibility of foreclosure. This would result in the loss of these collections to the public forever. If enough funds can be raised within the next 6 months, the museum can be saved. We are currently trying to collect money from grants, donations, and pledges. If you have the ability to help us in any way please contact us by phone or email. Becoming a member will keep you updated on our progress and other events including historical tales through the newsletter.

The museum hosts many tours for individuals, schools, and organizations. We have something for everyone! It's our hope that you enjoy our website and we look forward to seeing you at our museum.

Each summer we organize a social event which is open to the public. Past events have included, dances, live music, gun fights, pack horse demonstrations, baking contests, craftwork demonstrations, and more. Check out our summer social page.

The museum is located halfway between Missoula and Kalispell, near the National Bison Range and the Owl Institute. It is bordered by the Ninepipes Bird Refuge, a nationally recognized bird watching area, and fish and wildlife land on all sides. Housed in a log and concrete structure built to museum specifications and standards, the museum includes both long term and temporary exhibits that provide the viewer with articles representing the life of early people in the area. Your trip through time begins with the Gallery of the Art of the Old West. You can get a first hand picture of how the noted artists of the different time periods found the life. You will find work by Alfred Jacob Miller, Charlie Russell, and E.S. Paxson, as well as later artists. Indian artifacts are displayed in cases. The Hall of Photographs contains pictures of men and women who helped compose this history: Native Americans, trappers, miners, loggers, cowboys, ranchers, and settlers. As you continue through the museum you will find a collection of weaponry including clubs, bows & arrows, and guns. There are spurs and saddlery, life-size mannequins in cowboy, cowgirl and Indian dress. You will see a grizzly trap, depicting the lost art of preparing a "grizzly set". Throughout the museum is a vast collection of Native American Beadwork.

The center of the building contains a life-size diorama of wild animals and an Indian camp scene that includes a creek, elk hide teepees, a woman scraping a buffalo hide, children playing, and a rack of drying meat. An old cabin, originally built by the Jocko River has been moved to the museum grounds. Wagons and buggies dot the front of the museum grounds. To the side of the cabin is the entry to our Nature Trail, a handicapped accessible area giving the opportunity to view the beauty of the valley and Mission Mountains. Signs along the walkway help you to identify the birds and small animals in the area. Plans for the future include more trails.