The Journey Museum

The Journey Museum in Rapid City offers exhibits on geology, paleontology, archaeology, Native American culture, and pioneer history, providing a comprehensive view of the Black Hills region.

Planning your visit

The Journey Museum brings together five separate collections under one roof, and the result covers the Black Hills from the geological to the recent: the Museum of Geology's fossils, including the marine reptiles and mammals of the White River badlands; archaeology of the region; the Sioux Indian Museum's collection of Lakota material culture; and pioneer history from the 1874 Custer expedition and the gold rush that followed.

That gold rush is the pivot the whole region turns on. The Black Hills were guaranteed to the Lakota by treaty in 1868; gold was found in 1874; the treaty was abandoned; and the resulting war produced Little Bighorn and, eventually, Wounded Knee. The museum presents Lakota and settler perspectives alongside each other rather than merging them, and the Lakota material is presented with community involvement.

Rapid City is the base for Mount Rushmore, Badlands National Park and the Crazy Horse Memorial, and this museum is the best available preparation for understanding what those places mean to different people.

Allow two hours. Bookable options include guided city tours with admission. Current availability is shown below.