Yosemite's Museums and Historic Buildings

Yosemite Valley 

Yosemite Valley Visitor Center

The new exhibit hall at the Yosemite Valley Visitors Center provides a wealth of information on the Yosemite Valley, it's history, it's origins, it's inhabitants throughout the centuries (both man and animal) and it's future. One of the things you'll enjoy at the Visitors Center is a 23-minute film that is free to attend and offers a beautiful overview of Yosemite's magnificent splendor.

The Yosemite Museum

Completed in 1925, the Yosemite Museum was built to provide Yosemite visitors with an in-depth education on Yosemite's rich and historic past.

The museum was designed to encourage visitors to take a chronological tour through Yosemite's history, starting with geological exhibits that share the story of Yosemite's formation and proceeding through time to when early American settlers began visiting the Yosemite Valley via stagecoach in the early twentieth century.

There is a reconstructed Indian Village of the Ahwahnee people behind the museum which is always open. The art gallery at the Yosemite Museum is open periodically and often exhibits pieces from the Yosemite Museum collection.

Nature Center at Happy Isles

The Nature Center at Happy Isles is a destination that the entire family is sure to enjoy. Here you will learn all about the flora, fauna, and geology of the Yosemite Valley. The nature center that features natural history exhibits (with an emphasis on wildlife) and interactive displays on the areas natural history. Nearby you can explore a series of short trails each devoted to a different aspect of Yosemite's environment, with forest, river, talus, and fen each being represented. The nature center also is home to a comprehensive bookstore geared toward exploring the nature of the valley. The nature center is a short walk from the Happy Isles shuttle bus stop and is open May through September.

LeConte Memorial Lodge

The LeConte Memorial Lodge, Yosemite's first public visitor center and a National Historic Landmark, is operated by the Sierra Club. The structure, very unique in its design and built to honor Joseph LeConte an early director of the Sierra Club who died in the Yosemite Valley in 1901.

Although it is called a lodge, the LeConte Memorial Lodge is not a lodge in the sense of a place where visitors can stay overnight. The term is meant more to reflect a general gathering place like an Elks Lodge or Masonic Lodge. The small stone building has never been used to house visitors overnight, rather it serves as a public library and education center.

Ansel Adams Gallery

Named after famed Yosemite photographer Ansel Adams, this gallery displays many of the artist's well-known works in its permanent collection. In addition to displaying several of Ansel Adams works, this gallery also displays contemporary work by today's artists whose work focuses on the Yosemite area. The gallery also offers free weekend camera walks when weather permits (reservations required). The delightful gift shop features not only prints of Adams' work but also videos, Native American crafts, and books about photography as well as the valley. The admission to this gallery is free.

The Ahwahnee Hotel

The Ahwahnee Hotel with its striking granite facade, magnificent log-beamed ceilings, massive stone hearths, richly colored Native American artwork and finely appointed rooms is a shining example of what we consider to be the premier lodge in the Yosemite area.

Completed in 1927, The Ahwahnee features a unique blend of design influences including Art Deco, Native American, Middle Eastern, and Arts & Crafts Movement. These elements can be seen in every aspect of the hotel including stenciling, woodwork, lighting fixtures and china patterns. Every room is designed for comfort and visual delight and reflects the natural surroundings and Native American influence of Yosemite.

Tuolumne Meadows

Parsons Memorial Lodge

This lodge is a good place to begin exploring Tuolumne Meadows. Tuolumne Meadows is the place where John Muir and Robert Underwood Johnson conceived the idea of establishing Yosemite National Park. Walk one of the trails in the area and you will easily see why John Muir affectionately termed the Sierra's “The Range of Light.”

Parsons Memorial Lodge is staffed mostly by volunteers and hosts rotating exhibits and special events. The museum is open all year depending upon weather and the availability of staffing.

Wawona and the Mariposa Grove

Wawona Hotel

A National Historic Landmark, this facility combines old world charm with a truly western mountain setting. Housed in six buildings, the rooms at Wawona Hotel are furnished in period pieces and antiques. The Wawona may not offer all of the conveniences of a four-star lodge like the Tenaya, but what it lacks in convenience, the Wawona more than compensates for with her unique personality and uncommon flair.

Pioneer Yosemite History Center

The Pioneer Yosemite History Center is a small village of historic buildings that have been moved to this location from various other places around the park. The buildings all represent a different time period from Yosemite's rich history. During the summer, volunteers and park rangers dress up in costumes specific to each building's period and play a sort of living history, giving you a flavor of the past. See horse-drawn wagons, walk across a covered bridge, and visit historic buildings out of Yosemite's past. The history center explains how Yosemite was the inspiration for national parks across America and throughout the world. The history center is always open, and explanatory signs and brochures are available. There is no fee to visit this attraction.