Summer Hours: Open Mon. – Sat. 9am – 4pm | Sun. 1pm – 4pm
Welcome back. We are open to the public with our regular winter hours. So glad to see you!
Opened in 1989, the High Plains Western Heritage Center features a 5-State Regional Museum founded to honor the Old West Pioneers and American Indians of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana.
The Black Hills are rich with history. It is a region that was at the unique intersection of nearly every culture and economic circumstance that shaped the American West. The Center was founded to preserve this past, inform the present and interact with our visitors through our extensive collections, archives and live events.
Remembering Marguerite Kleven
CLICK THUMBNAIL TO THE RIGHT
Recorded in September of 2016. Marguerite and Les Kleven of Sturgis, SD, were influential in the early support of the High Plains Western Heritage Center. Their late 1970’s telethon on KBHB radio helped raise more than $150,000 toward construction of the HPWHC. In this interview Marguerite, a long-time board member, talks about how the telethon came about, she talks about what it must have been like to be a western pioneer, her family history, her favorite places in the Center, why it is important to remember our history and what the legacy of the HPWHC will be. Marguerite passed away on April 25, 2022.
An Interview with Board Member Terry Matson
HPWHC Volunteer Larry Miller interviews HPWHC Board Member Terry Matson.

New at the High Plains
Now open. A display of artifacts from the site of historic Ft. Sully northwest of Pierre. Also on display are native American potsherds unearthed from near the fort site. The items are currently on display in our Early Pioneers Room. More items will be coming. READ MORE