Museums, Historic Sites & Attractions

The Discovery (Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum) in Reno, Nevada, provides children and families with an exciting place to explore Nevada and the natural world through seven hands-on exhibits and a variety of events and activities.

Take a picture tour of The Discovery (Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum) in Reno, Nevada. This tour highlights exhibits and a variety of things to do for children and families.

W.M. Keck Earth Science and Mineral Engineering Museum is packed with an amazing collection of mineral specimens, rocks, fossils, photographs, and historic mining artifacts from Nevada and many other locations around the world. The W.M. Keck Museum is located on the University of Nevada, Reno campus, in the Mackay School of Mines building.

The Nevada Historical Society (NHS) is the state's oldest museum. The NHS facility in Reno houses a vast collection of artifacts and documents that chronicle Nevada's history. The collection covers everything from the time of prehistoric people through the coming of white settlers and the vast changes they wrought. Also included are stories...

The Historic Reno Preservation Society helps educate both local residents and visitors through walking tours, bus tours, and bike rides through Reno's historic districts and other areas of historic interest around the Truckee Meadows and northern Nevada.

The Historic Reno Preservation Society presents free lectures about Reno's historic districts and other areas of historic interest around the Truckee Meadows and northern Nevada.

Enjoy one of the best of its kind at the National Automobile Museum in Reno.

Nevada's Historical Marker Program was authorized in 1967, with the purpose of commemorating and bringing to public attention the state's historic heritage. The 267 markers (as of early 2011) highlight the significance of people and places that have shaped Nevada - archaeological sites, early exploration, emigrants and pioneers, cowboys and...

The California Trail Interpretive Center brings to life a defining chapter in American history - the westward migration of over 250,000 people during the 1840s and 1850s.

To mark the invention of riveted blue jeans right here in Reno, the Historical Resources Commission placed a plaque at the spot where Jacob Davis's tailor shop once stood. It's on the west side of Virginia Street in downtown Reno, across from Harrah's.

Donner Party Park, a City of Reno public park, is a simple expanse of grass with some shade trees. There is nothing remarkable about the spot today, but its name alludes to a historic connection in the Truckee Meadows. It was near this spot, in October of 1846, that the emigrant Donner party established a camp and rested before attempting to...

Virginia City is a place right out of the Old West. Visitors will find intact many of the places that made it one of the richest spots on Earth during its late 1800s heyday. You can stroll the wooden sidewalks, have a drink in a saloon, learn the history in numerous museums, tour a mine, and marvel at how millions in silver and gold were wrested from the bleak environment on the side of Mt. David…

The Kokanee Salmon Festival at the Lake Tahoe Taylor Creek Visitor Center is an annual event focused on the fall spawning run of these unique fish. Taylor Creek Visitor Center has educational exhibits, events, and activities related to the Lake Tahoe Basin and is a great destination for outdoor family fun.

The Taylor Creek Visitor Center at Lake Tahoe is operated by Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. Taylor Creek Visitor Center has educational exhibits, events, and activities related to the Lake Tahoe Basin and is a great destination for family fun in the great outdoors.

Fort Churchill State Historic Park, a Nevada state park, offers history, camping, hiking and wildlife viewing, all within a short drive of Reno.

This City of Reno website describes several sites significant to the history of Reno.

This stately old mansion was home to Myron Lake, recognized as Reno's founder, and his wife Jane. Today it is home to VSA arts of Nevada. It can be rented for both public and private functions.

The park is located in Genoa, south of Carson City and right up against the east slope of the Sierra Nevada. Founded in 1850, it was the first settlement in Nevada territory.

The Comstock History Center in Virginia City houses the Virginia & Truckee Railroad engine #18, the Dayton. It is also home to the Comstock Historic District Commission and its non-circulating reference library.

The Sparks Heritage Museum has been open for for over twenty five years and is completely volunteer operated and donation funded. The Sparks Heritage Museum is located on the corner of Pyramid Way at 814 Victorian Avenue.

Follow students' footsteps through the authentically preserved 1876 Victorian school building. Sit in the same wooden desks as the children and teachers did from 1876 to 1936. Explore Virginia City history and education in a 19th century western city.

The Nevada State Museum in Carson City preserves the Nevada's natural and cultural history. The Museum is located in the historic Carson City Mint.

There are two museums south of Reno in the Carson Valley, preserving the history of Nevada's first area of white settlement.