Wood River Museum

Wood River Museum of History and Culture: Timeline

How, When, and Where to Find Us

Wood River Museum of History and Culture
580 Fourth Street East, Suite 130, Ketchum, Idaho 83340 
Entry to the Museum is FREE.

Open: Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
208-726-8118 
Email us here.

Sunday	closed
Monday	closed
Tuesday	10:00am - 6:00pm
Wednesday	10:00am - 6:00pm
Thursday	10:00am - 6:00pm
Friday	10:00am - 6:00pm
Saturday	10:00am - 6:00pm

Note: The Regional History Museum in Forest Service Park closed permanently on June 1, 2023 to make way for the new, re-imagined Wood River Museum of History and Culture.

All New Exhibits

All of the exhibits at the Wood River Museum include interactive elements where visitors are encouraged to write, type, talk, and remember – because we all are part of history! More here.

Shoshone-Bannock Homelands: The Tribal Room, at the entrance to the Museum, honors the history and present-day of the Shoshone and Bannock Tribes, which have inhabited the lands of Central Idaho since time immemorial.

How in the World Did You Get to Sun Valley?: This exhibit explores the many reasons and ways that people have come to this hard-to-reach area over time. It is not easy to find Sun Valley and Central Idaho in general, here in the high desert mountains of the American West, but a wide range of people have done so…

Portrait of a Mountain: Over the past 150 years, the greater Ketchum and Sun Valley area has taken shape around, and been shaped by, the iconic Bald Mountain. This exhibit looks deeply at the mountain that defines the local landscape and affects life and imaginations here in so many ways.

The Cabinet of Wonders invites visitors to discover history by opening the doors and drawers of a fanciful cabinet that holds a great variety of regional history artifacts – from a telegraph key to vintage skis and sheep shears.

A Writer in New Country: Hemingway in 1939: This exhibit examines who Hemingway was when he arrived in 1939: a writer at his peak, a globetrotter drawn to remote places, a rugged outdoor enthusiast, and a man with complicated personal relationships.

Library Foyer Exhibit: Museum Reads

The Center for Regional History curates special exhibits in the Foyer of The Community Library in Ketchum. Currently on display: Museum Reads. The new exhibits at the Wood River Museum of History and Culture are illuminated in collections of books curated by our librarians. Topics include Sun Valley history, Bald Mountain, Native American tribes, Ernest Hemingway, and geology of the Wood River Valley. Check out a book/s and pick up a free bookmark and recommended reading list. See more here.

Past Exhibits

2014-2022: Inspired exhibits began rotating and covered topics such as ski history, Ernest Hemingway in Idaho, the history of sheep ranching, ice skating in Sun Valley, and the documentation of cultural change. See more here.

Leading the Way

Our Team

Regional History Librarian Kelley Moulton, Museum Librarian Olivia Terry, Intern Diana Tellez-Muñoz, and Director of Regional History Mary Tyson.

Our History

In 2014, The Community Library Association in Ketchum, Idaho assumed operation of the museum known formerly as the Ski and Heritage Museums. More here.

Our Collections

The Wood River Museum is a collecting museum and showcases exhibits for the public about central Idaho. The Museum’s collection and programming is designed to promote a greater sense of place.