Pioneers Museum Downtown Colorado Springs

One of the best kept secrets in our area is the Pioneers Museum located at 215 South Tejon Street in Downtown Colorado Springs.  Owned by the City until recently, the Pioneers Museum is operated completely on the generosity of businesses and individuals and philanthropic organizations.

The Pioneers Museum has occupied its current location since 1979, and admission is still FREE.  From the moment you enter the doors of this 1903 Courthouse with its expansive marble and beautifully carved woodwork and ornate light fixtures, you know you have entered into treasured halls.  There is an antique, open gilded elevator that takes you between floors, which is worth the trip just for this experience.

For over seventy years, the Pioneers Museum has been responsible for collecting and preserving, researching and maintaining, and exhibiting and educating about area history and culture.  It is a huge responsibility, and includes a collection of over 75,000 artifacts and more than 80,000 historical photos.  Volunteers donated almost 4000 hours in 2009.

They have permanent exhibits, just a few of which include local information about Pikes Peak; the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho Indians that inhabited the region; Tubercular Huts and history that were prevalent in Colorado Springs at the end of the Victorian era; Van Briggle pottery; local founders such as William Jackson Palmer and Spencer Penrose; part of the home and the furniture of Helen Hunt Jackson; and many other fascinating displays.  They have also beautifully preserved one of the original courtrooms, a classic step back in time.

In addition to their permanent exhibits, the Pioneers Museum continually has traveling exhibits.  Two of the current temporary exhibits are the History of Photography and the History of the Bicycle.  Others have included Quilt displays, space exploration, American Indian History, motorcycle exhibits, mining and agricultures, and a myriad selection of topics to appeal to all.

Almost 60,000 people per year experience this beautiful historic reflection.  Enthralling for children and adults alike, the Pioneers Museum is open Tuesday thru Saturday from 10:00 am until 4:00 pm.