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Highest-rated specialty museums in Montana by visitors

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Radu Bercan // Shutterstock
Radu Bercan // Shutterstock
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In 1683, Elias Ashmole, an Oxford graduate and true polymath, founded the Ashmolean, the modern world's first public museum. Stocked with his private collection of artifacts, curios, and special scientific equipment, the goal of the museum was to create a center for practical research and the advancement of knowledge. This, Ashmole felt, was a goal "very necessary to humaine life, health [and] the conveniences thereof."

According to figures from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, there are more than 35,000 museums in the United States today. Their collections encompass everything from modern art, like at the MoMA in New York City, to mustard, like at the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wisconsin, and everything in between.

Museums are anchors of our communities. The American Alliance of Museums reports that museums support more than 725,000 jobs and contribute upwards of $50 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Three-quarters of Americans agree that museums are an important part of our civil society and have an important role in promoting knowledge and civic engagement.

Beyond their educational and economic significance, museums are just plain fun. Whether you have a developed interest in natural history or just want to learn a little bit more about funerary history (the National Museum of Funeral History in Houston), there's sure to be a museum that strikes your interest. There's simply nothing else quite like spending an afternoon learning about famous figures, arts and crafts, military history, or what else you fancy.

Here, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated specialty museums in Montana on Tripadvisor as of Aug. 13, 2025. Keep reading to see what unique museums are in your home state. Then, make sure to plan a visit. With many museums facing funding cuts due to the current administration's efforts to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, who's to say how much longer these treasure troves will be available to us?

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#26. Fort Peck Interpretive Center And Museum

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#26. Fort Peck Interpretive Center And Museum

- Rating: 4.6/5 (46 reviews)
- City: Fort Peck
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#23. Carbon County Historical Society and Museum

Tripadvisor

6 / 28

#23. Carbon County Historical Society and Museum

- Rating: 4.7/5 (35 reviews)
- City: Red Lodge
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#22. Museum of the Northern Great Plains

Tripadvisor

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#22. Museum of the Northern Great Plains

- Rating: 4.8/5 (45 reviews)
- City: Fort Benton
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#21. Fort Benton Museums & Heritage Complex

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#21. Fort Benton Museums & Heritage Complex

- Rating: 4.5/5 (79 reviews)
- City: Fort Benton
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#17. Blackfoot Pathways:Sculpture in the Wild

Tripadvisor

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#17. Blackfoot Pathways:Sculpture in the Wild

- Rating: 4.7/5 (53 reviews)
- City: Lincoln
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#16. Missoula Butterfly House & Insectarium

Tripadvisor

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#16. Missoula Butterfly House & Insectarium

- Rating: 4.5/5 (24 reviews)
- City: Missoula
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#15. Museum of the Plains Indian

Tripadvisor

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#15. Museum of the Plains Indian

- Rating: 4.4/5 (150 reviews)
- City: Browning
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#6. Old Montana Prison Complex

Tripadvisor

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#6. Old Montana Prison Complex

- Rating: 4.5/5 (320 reviews)
- City: Deer Lodge
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#2. American Computer & Robotics Museum

Tripadvisor

27 / 28

#2. American Computer & Robotics Museum

- Rating: 4.8/5 (331 reviews)
- City: Bozeman
- Read more on Tripadvisor

#1. World Museum of Mining

Tripadvisor

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#1. World Museum of Mining

- Rating: 4.6/5 (561 reviews)
- City: Butte
- Read more on Tripadvisor

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Madison Troyer, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 51 states.

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