Greeley History Museum
The Greeley History Museum showcases and preserves Greeley and Weld County’s history through permanent and temporary exhibitions, educational programs, research and collections. Check out the museum’s main exhibit, “Utopia: Adaptation on the Plains,” and then head over to one of the museum’s other galleries, which include updated themes several times each year. At the Greeley History Museum, artifacts, photographs and hands-on opportunities create a meaningful visitor experience.
In addition to exhibits, the lower level of the museum contains the Hazel E. Johnson Research Center, which has an impressive collection of documentary and photographic resources available for researchers, students and genealogists.
Check out Greeley History Museum’s gift shop, which includes books and items relevant to state and local history as well as our latest exhibits.
The building, originally built in 1929 for the Greeley Tribune, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and became home to the Greeley History Museum in 2005.
Greeley History Museum
714 8th Street, Greeley CO 80631
Hours
Wednesday-Saturday, 10am–4pm
Sunday, noon–4pm
Closed on major holidays
Admission:
$5 Adult
$3 Youth (3 to 17) & Seniors (60+)
$15 Family Rate (max. 2 adults and 4 youth)
Members receive free admission. Join today!
Our museum is handicap accessible, with a wheelchair ramp located on the south side building entrance. We also have an elevator.
Entrance and Parking
The museum has entrances on both the north and south side of the building, adjacent to three-hour parking lots. Overflow parking is located at the corner of 8th Street and 7th Avenue, near the Greeley Chamber of Commerce. Greeley is bicycle-friendly and the museum provides 2 bicycle racks outside on the north side of the museum.
Group Tours and Field Trips
The Greeley History Museum is located between Cheyenne, WY, and Denver, CO, making it the perfect destination for your next group tour or field trip. Whether you’re planning a day trip or an overnight, our museums can keep your group entertained. Let us help you customize your next group tour to Greeley.
Facility Rental Space
Reserve the Greeley History Museum Community Room for your next meeting. The room seats up to 50 people and features an adjacent kitchen with a refrigerator, freezer, oven, sink and microwave.
Exhibitions
Utopia: Adaptation on the Plains
Located in the museum’s main gallery, this exhibit highlights various areas of visual and audio interest. Visitors can learn about the formation of the Union Colony and see images and artifacts from Weld County’s earliest settlers. Learn the history of some of Northern Colorado’s most famous residents like “Rattlesnake” Kate Slaughterback, and see her original rattlesnake skin dress, Nathan Cook Meeker, Greeley’s founder who died in the Meeker Massacre, and more. Youngsters can enjoy imaginative play in our kid-friendly section of the gallery.
Skål! Scandinavian Spirits
Located in the museum’s east gallery and created by the Museum of Danish America and presented by Aalborg and Linie Aquavits, “Skål! Scandinavian Spirits” explores the history and traditions of drinking culture in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, and how those traditions came to the U.S. Also discover the stories of Scandinavian immigrants who made Weld County their home. Exhibit open February 2 through July 20, 2019.
The Dakan Perspective: Over a Century of Father & Son Photography
Located in the museum’s west gallery, visitors can explore over 100 years of photographic history of Northern Colorado through the work of father and son photographers Lew and Denny Dakan. From 1917 to 2017, their photos capture both nature and cities as they grew side by side. Over 75 photographs will be on display in the exhibit, but the museum houses over 1500 Lew Dakan photographs in its collections. You can view them at the Hazel E. Johnson Research Center on the lower level of the museum. Photography is not permitted in this special exhibition. Exhibit open March 15, 2019 through January 5, 2020.
Reclaiming Our Heritage
Located in the museum’s mezzanine, “Reclaiming Our Heritage” explores the ways cultural groups lose their heritage and the steps they take to reclaim it. What does it mean to hold on to your own cultural heritage? If you lose your heritage, how do you find it again? Based on a grant project completed by the Immigrant and Refugee Center of Northern Colorado and the University of Northern Colorado, the exhibit features stories from Native American, Karenni, and African American communities in the United States and Denotified Tribes and Adavasi groups in India. Exhibit open July 19 through September 22, 2019.
Reporting from Greeley
The building that houses the Greeley History Museum was originally built in 1929 for the Greeley Tribune and the lower level exhibit is dedicated to the history of printing. It includes historic photos, stereotype mats, and turn-of-the-century printing equipment including an 1899 Chandler and Price treadle press.
Curator’s Corner
Curator’s Corner, located in the Greeley History Museum’s lower level, allows the public an opportunity to see items on display from the museum’s collection. The exhibit changes quarterly so it’s worth visiting the museum regularly to see the new material on display!
Policies
- Food and beverages are not allowed in the galleries.
- No backpacks allowed in the galleries.
- Photography: Non-flash photography welcome except in special exhibitions. No tripods or selfie sticks allowed. Commercial photography allowed with prior permission from Museum Manager.
- City ordinance does not permit smoking, including electronic cigarettes and other vaping devices, in the museum or within 25 feet of any of the building entrances.
- No pets allowed. Service animals are welcome.
- Please silence electronic devices while in the museum.
Visit Us!
Greeley History Museum
Do you remember anything about July 6 in the year you were 13 years old?
In her oral history, part of the Greeley History Museum’s collection, Charlotte Beeten recalls what she saw near her home in Johnstown on that day in 1924, when she was 13 years old :
“The meteorite fell on July 6, 1924, and I shall never forget that day. My sister had been visiting us from California and she was leaving for home that day. My father and I were putting her suitcases in the back of the car. We were out in the yard doing that. All of a sudden we heard this horrible, horrible roar and we looked up and saw this big ball of fire coming from the southwest. It looked as if it was going to land right in our front yard. My father said, “Run into the house!” By that time my mother and sister were running out of the house to see what was happening. So I never did get into the house. It finally landed right across the road from Village [?] Chapel and, of course, we saw the landing and we saw the smoke still coming from it. My father was the first one on the scene. When it was cooled and the smoke had subsided, he held the meteorite out of its resting place. […] It embedded itself about two feet into the ground.”
The 20-pound meteorite was given to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and its story has lived on in newspapers as recently as 2000. On July 6, whatever you’re doing, watch the sky - you never know what a day will bring!
Please note : Personal stories are a really important way of saving history. If you’re interested in helping us transcribe oral histories like this one, please call 970-350-9220.