Museums offer indoor adventures
Here are some area museums that winter visitors might enjoy visiting:
* Adams Museum, Deadwood. Three floors of exhibits explore the geological, natural and cultural history of Deadwood and the northern Black Hills. View a rare plesiosaur, the mysterious Thoen Stone and paintings, guns, photographs, minerals and American Indian artifacts. Exhibits include The Legends of Deadwood, Cabinet of Curiosities and On the Move. Wheelchair accessible. Winter hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Closed holidays. 605-578-1714. www.Adams-MuseumAndHouse.org.
*Anna Miller Museum, Newcastle, Wyo. Originally a cavalry barn built in the 1930s by the federal WPA and CCC, the facility includes the Jenny Stockade cabin, the oldest existing building of the Black Hills Gold Rush. Open all year. 307-746-4188. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday or by appointment. www.newcastlewyo. com/anna.html.
* Custer County 1881 Courthouse Museum, Custer. Built before South Dakota became a state, the museum includes local history exhibits, artifacts relating to George Armstrong Custer and a look at the life of early Custer settlers. Open May through September. 605-673-2443. www.1881courthousemuseum.com.
* Days of ’76 Museum, Deadwood. The museum includes a collection of horse-drawn carriages associated with Deadwood’s Days of ‘76 celebration, rodeo and cowboy heritage collection, and the Don Clowser collection of American Indian and pioneer artifacts. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily April through Oct. 15. 605-578-2872. www. daysof76.com/museum/.
n Old Fort Meade Museum, Sturgis. The museum is on the military outpost built by the Seventh Cavalry in 1878 and contains the history of General George Armstrong Custer’s 1874 Black Hills Expedition. Open May-September. 605-347-9822. www.fortmeademuseum.org.
* High Plains Western Heritage Center, Spearfish. The museum celebrates the region’s Old West pioneers and includes exhibits of Western art and memorabilia. There also are special events such as live music and poetry performances, and the “Campfire Series,” which focuses on historical topics. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Closed major holidays. 605-642-WEST (9378). www.westernheritagecenter.com.
* Historic Adams House, Deadwood. The stately 1892 Queen Anne-style home recounts the tragedies and triumphs of two of Deadwood’s founding families. The house museum reveals a time capsule of Deadwood’s history. First floor and orientation center are wheelchair accessible. Winter hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Closed winter holidays. 605-578-3724. www. AdamsMuseumAndHouse.org
* Museum of the Fur Trade, Chadron, Neb. Dedicated to preserving the history of the North American fur trade, the museum includes an extensive collection of trade goods, including munitions, cutlery, axes, firearms, textiles, costumes, paints and beads. The new exhibit hall features a special exhibit of the Mountain Man era. Winter visits are by appointment. Call 308-432-3843, or e-mail museum@furtrade.org. www.furtrade.org.
* Pioneer Historical Museum of South Dakota, Hot Springs. Located in a former schoolhouse built in 1893, the museum features memorabilia from local residents that show how the pioneers lived. Open May to mid-October. 605-745-5147. www.pioneer-museum.com.
* South Dakota Air and Space Museum, Interstate 90, Exit 67, is outside the main gate to Ellsworth Air Force Base. Winter hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The museum preserves South Dakota and EAFB aviation history with more than 52 aircraft/ exhibits as well as numerous indoor displays. Open mid-May to mid-September; base bus tours are available which includes a stop at the Minuteman II missile silo. Call 605-385-5188 or 5189, or e-mail sdasm@ wildblue.net or go to www.sdairandspacemuseum.com
* Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame, Sturgis. The evolution of motorcycles from the early 1900s to the present is displayed. Open all year. Winter hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday. Closed Saturday and Sunday. 605-347-2001. www.sturgismuseum.com.
* The Journey Museum, Rapid City. The Journey Museum takes you on a trek through time, from the violent upheaval that formed the Black Hills more than 2.5 billion years ago to the prehistoric and historic collections, to tell the complete story of the western Great Plains. Call 605-394-6923 for hours or go to www.journeymuseum.org.
* Tri-State Museum, Belle Fourche. The museum features Western history with a local flair, such as the original Roundup at Belle Fourche. Open all year. Call 605-723-1200 for hours or go to www.tristatemuseum.com.