Nevada State Museum, Carson City — Attraction in Carson City

Definite MUST SEE for Young & Old Alike🤗 As first-time visitors to the Lake Tahoe area, we were encouraged to check out the Nevada State Museum in Carson City—and we’re so glad we did! This museum exceeded our expectations with its rich variety of exhibits and insightful presentations of Nevada’s fascinating history.

Housed in the original U.S. Mint building from the late 1800s, the museum features a remarkable underground mineshaft that gives visitors a glimpse into the state’s mining legacy. We especially enjoyed learning about the Comstock Lode and its role in Nevada’s path to statehood.

The mineral displays were informative and well presented, showing not only the physical beauty of the specimens but also the process of excavation and their societal impact. One traveling exhibit that stood out included artistic side-by-side portraits of individuals in their everyday lives versus their ceremonial traditions—an incredibly powerful and moving visual experience.

Other highlights included fossilized dinosaur bones, natural history specimens, and beautifully preserved birds and mammals. The museum does a fantastic job blending natural science with human history.

This is truly a must-visit for anyone traveling near Carson City or Lake Tahoe—an engaging, educational, and enriching experience for all ages. We plan to come back again someday and bring our five...

A wonderful place to visit to learn about the history of Nevada. You will be thoroughly immersed in in learning here and surprised you were actually in a museum.

Conveniently located off the main through drag. Price for admission was awesome for a large family. It's refreshing that museums such as these are affordable to families. Ultimately, the rewards is in the the children's positive experience learning something about something.

The museum does a great job illustrating its role in the mining industry. Kids will love going in mine and walking through a mockup of a typical old west town. I am amazed at the amount of effort and time has been put in to create an immersive experience.

The museum houses many artifacts, from guns to clothing of various time periods in Nevada. Another highlight was the coin mint press presentation. On our visit the mint press was not working. However, the presenter did a fantastic job explaining the role this coin mint press played in the Western United States. I learn much about the sheer size and mass of this press and the challenge to house the press in the museum.

The grounds are kept fantastic. A nice gift shop is available for purchases that...

It's like the exhibits are only half finished.

I didn't go to school here in NV so I've never been to there before. I was surprised that the Native American exhibit would be so sparse, also I was amazed there was no mention or the Ghost Dancers, that had originated in NV by a Piute Shaman, which had an overwhelming effect on the history or the entire NA population in the 1800's. Also there wasn't any staff around you could ask questions to. The mining section was okay but really made for school kids not thinking adults. The natural history part was not very good either, many of the taxidermied animals didn't have any information about them. Also, some of the mineral displays were lacking. One of the things that was lacking was of the mineral formations from Pyramid Lake, there was nothing about what they were or how they came to be. I didn't get a chance to really check out the Mint portion of the museum, so I can't comment on that. The weapon section was interesting but the descriptions were lacking IMHO. The museum might be better for children...