Kenai Peninsula Museums & Cultural Centers

The Hope-Sun­rise His­tor­i­cal and Min­ing Muse­um exhibits pho­tographs and arti­facts of the Tur­na­gain Arm Gold Rush of 1896 and the years since.

Sol­dot­na His­tor­i­cal Soci­ety, locat­ed on Cen­ten­ni­al Park Road, fea­tures a wildlife muse­um and his­toric log vil­lage. Among the log build­ings is the last ter­ri­to­r­i­al school built in 1958, where stu­dents stud­ied by the light of gas lanterns, still hang­ing in the school. Sol­dot­na’s foun­ing set­tlers arrived in 1947. The ​“hab­it­able dwellings” which enti­tled two of these first home­stead­ers to 160 acres from what is now mid-town Sol­dot­na are part of…  ...more

Take a step back into Seldovia’s past while learn­ing about the present at the Sel­dovia Muse­um & Vis­i­tor Cen­ter. Check out detailed exhibits on the cul­tur­al tra­di­tions and lega­cies of the Native peo­ples of the area, see inter­ac­tive wildlife exhibits and pick up free trav­el infor­ma­tion and maps.

Homer’s Pratt Muse­um pre­serves the sto­ries of the Kachemak Bay region and pro­vides a gath­er­ing place for peo­ple to learn and to be inspired by this region and its place in the world. The museum’s exten­sive col­lec­tion offers an excel­lent way to learn more about the land­scape, com­mu­ni­ties and ecosys­tems of the area.

Soldotna’s home­stead­ers arrived in 1947, vis­it the Sol­dot­na Home­stead Muse­um and take a look at some of the area’s ear­ly home­stead cab­ins. The muse­um also fea­tures hand­made uten­sils and pio­neer objects as well as Alas­ka Native arti­facts, boats and the orig­i­nal school­house. Hours Sum­mer only or by appt. Admis­sion No admis­sion fee, dona­tions accepted.

The Chal­lenger Learn­ing Cen­ter of Alas­ka was cre­at­ed to meet the edu­ca­tion­al needs of stu­dents through­out Alas­ka. Using sim­u­lat­ed space and earth sci­ence mis­sions, dis­tance edu­ca­tion and hands-on work­shops, the CLCA inspires youth to devel­op an inter­est in sci­ence, tech­nol­o­gy, engi­neer­ing and math (STEM), and to con­sid­er careers in these fields. Using space and earth sci­ences as a medi­um, par­tic­i­pants work in an envi­ron­ment that spans the…  ...more

This lit­tle muse­um is a must see in Coop­er Land­ing. Housed in two his­toric build­ings, the old school house, built in 1955 and Jack Lean’s Cab­in, cir­ca 1920; the Coop­er Land­ing His­tor­i­cal Soci­ety Muse­um cov­ers the min­ing his­to­ry of coop­er land­ing, the lifestyle of ear­ly res­i­dents and the nat­ur­al his­to­ry of this area. Don’t miss the brown bear skele­ton recon­struct­ed by local school children.

The muse­um presents the chief events of Seward’s his­to­ry through pho­tographs, arti­facts and doc­u­ments. There is also a fine col­lec­tion of Native bas­kets and ivory carv­ings on dis­play. Dur­ing the sum­mer there are evening pro­grams con­sist­ing of two slide shows: The His­to­ry of Seward and The His­to­ry of the Idi­tar­od Trail. A spe­cial open house is held every August 28 in hon­or of the found­ing of Seward in 1903. Muse­um shop car­ries books by local  ...more

While you’re explor­ing Homer and it’s eco­log­i­cal-rich envi­rons, a stop at the Cen­ter for Alaskan Coastal Stud­ies adds to your appre­ci­a­tion of the his­to­ry and wildlife of the area.