This is a great little Museum with lots of artifacts, relics and artwork on display. There are multiple little rooms so you have to wander around quite a bit to make sure you see everything. When I first walked in I was a little bit intimidated because I ended up in a small Auditorium type room where a group of young people were learning native dancing. There was an older man and young boy up on the stage slowly beating the drum beat on huge drums with a wonderful sound and probably 20 or so children and teenagers listening as he called out the moves they should make to the beat, kind of like a square dance caller would tell the dancers what moves to make. I sat and watched this for a while and enjoyed it.
As I was looking around I saw a doorway that said entrance so I eventually walked over to it. There were three ladies talking just inside the entrance and I asked them if I was going the right way. They gave me a few quick directions and told me to enjoy looking.
First I went into the little gift shop just to see what they had which was actually quite a bit in the way of jewelry, handmade items, Indian related gift items, better quality stuff than you see in a cheap tourist store. They had a wide selection of beads for sale also for people who were into doing their own beading. No one bothered me as I looked around and they seem to all know each other and enjoy visiting with each other. I'm sure if I'd had any questions someone would have been happy to answer.
In the other rooms there were displays of beaded items, moccasins, Indian clothing, headdresses, Buffalo and deer heads and skins, old photographs from the area, dioramas of cliff dwellings, Papoose carriers, weapons, and historical information regarding the various tribes of the area and of the country as a whole. See my photos for a sampling but they just scratch the surface of what there was to see. I probably spent about an hour wandering around looking and reading.
In one room there was some crafting going on of people working on beading. One person appeared to be making jewelry and others were working on beaded clothing. It was interesting to watch them for a few minutes. One whole wall was devoted to photos of young men from the area who had qualified as Eagle Boy Scouts. As a strong supporter of scouting through the school years myself I enjoyed looking through those.
As a side note, it looks like they are preparing to expand the building according to a sign I saw as I was walking in. They seem to be very involved in activities not just displays so I look forward to coming back another time and seeing the progress they have made. Also I should mention there is a decent parking lot with not a far walk to the entrance.
If you happen to be in Amarillo on one of the days this museum is open be sure to stop in and check it out if you are interested in the native heritage of the area. I thought it was well worth the time. I don't know about the summer hours but I'm sure their website tells what they are. In the winter they are only open from 1 to 5 p.m. on the weekends. read more