Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum
4610 Carey Ave
Cheyenne, WY
The keeper of the story behind the Daddy of 'em All, the world's largest outdoor rodeo, in Cheyenne's Frontier Park.
Cheyenne Frontier Days is billed as the Daddy of 'em All, the world's largest outdoor rodeo and Western celebration, and it has thundered through Cheyenne every summer since 1897. The Old West Museum in Frontier Park is where that story lives the other fifty weeks of the year, and it is a genuine gem for anyone drawn to the real history of the West.
Inside, the museum holds one of the country's most admired collections of horse-drawn carriages and wagons, alongside saddles, spurs, rodeo gear, and Western art. It is the memory bank of a celebration that helped define how the world pictures Wyoming, and it rewards a visit whether or not you catch the rodeo itself.
What Guests Love
- One of the country's finest collections of horse-drawn carriages and wagons
- The full story of Cheyenne Frontier Days, running since 1897
- Saddles, spurs, and Western art that bring the rodeo era to life
- A quieter way to feel the history when the rodeo itself is not in town
Worth Knowing
- The museum is open year round, well beyond the late-July rodeo dates
- During Frontier Days the park and roads around it are extremely busy
- Allow an hour or two to take in the carriage hall and the galleries
- It makes a natural pairing with the State Capitol and downtown Cheyenne
Details
Cheyenne, WY
Learn about Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum
The Daddy of 'em All
Cheyenne Frontier Days began in 1897 as a single day of Western contests and has grown into a ten-day festival of championship rodeo, parades, concerts, and pageantry that draws hundreds of thousands of people to the city each July. It stands among the oldest and largest rodeos anywhere, and it put Cheyenne on the map of the West.
The museum tells that whole arc, from the first rough contests to the modern professional rodeo, through photographs, posters, trophies, and the gear of the cowboys and cowgirls who made it famous. It captures both the sport and the community effort, still largely run by volunteers, that keeps the tradition alive.
The carriage collection
The heart of the museum for many visitors is its carriage hall, one of the finest collections of horse-drawn vehicles in the country. Stagecoaches, surreys, buggies, freight wagons, and fine carriages fill the space, many of them beautifully restored and still paraded through the streets during Frontier Days.
Together they trace how people and goods moved across the frontier before the automobile, from workaday farm wagons to elegant town carriages. Standing among them, you get a vivid sense of the age the rodeo grew out of, when the horse was the engine of daily life.
Art and the Western story
Beyond the carriages, the museum's galleries hold Western art, saddles, firearms, clothing, and Native American work that broaden the story past the arena. Changing exhibits and an annual Western art show bring in painters and craftspeople carrying the traditions forward.
The land the celebration sits on is the traditional territory of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, and other Plains nations, whose horse cultures shaped the very skills the rodeo tests. The museum's fuller exhibits acknowledge that deeper history alongside the settler and cowboy story.
Visiting
The museum is in Frontier Park on the north side of Cheyenne, easy to reach and open year round with regular daytime hours. Parking is ample except during Frontier Days itself, when the park fills with the rodeo crowds.
Give yourself an hour or two to take in the carriage hall and the galleries, then head downtown to see the gold-domed State Capitol, the historic depot, and the big painted boot sculptures scattered around the city. Together they make a rich half-day of Wyoming history.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Cheyenne
Wyoming State Capitol
About 3 miles south
Wyoming's restored capitol with its gleaming gold dome, open for tours through the historic chambers and rotunda in downtown Cheyenne.
Cheyenne Depot
About 3 miles south
A grand restored Union Pacific depot at the foot of downtown, now a museum and plaza that anchors the city's historic core.
Wyoming State Museum
About 3 miles south
The state's museum of Wyoming history, from dinosaurs and Native cultures to ranching, mining, and the frontier era, near the Capitol.