Yellowstone Gateway Museum

The Yellowstone Gateway Museum is the Park County museum in Livingston, housed in the North Side School, a schoolhouse built in 1906. It was founded by residents in 1977, first as the Park County Museum, and it tells the story of the county that sits at Yellowstone's northern door: its Native peoples, the railroad, ranching and rodeo, and the early tourist trade into the park.

The collection holds about 50,000 objects covering more than 12,000 years of human history, plus local geology, and about 10,000 historic photographs. The permanent galleries cover Native cultures, pioneers, transportation and Yellowstone. The Expedition Room deals with regional geology and has a station where children can dress in Corps of Discovery clothing. Outside are a one-room schoolhouse, a blacksmith shop and old vehicles, including a Northern Pacific Railway caboose. Temporary exhibits in 2026 include The Secret Language of Wolves, Ice Age Mammals and Ice Age Archaeology. National Park Service passport holders can get a Lewis and Clark Trail stamp here.

The museum's Friends group also runs downtown walking tours in season, with titles such as "Bars and Brothels", "Murders on the Streets" and "Ghosts and Ghost Signs"; tickets are sold online. The research center, with county archives, newspaper indexes and the photo collection, is open by appointment.

The museum is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and closed Sunday and Monday. Park County's current rates are $10 general, $8 for seniors and $6 for ages 6 to 17, with children 5 and under free and a $30 family pass for up to two adults and three children. Park County residents get $2 off with ID, and enrolled tribal members are free during National Native American Heritage Month in November. Some older listings still show $5 adult admission; use the county's page. Note that the old yellowstonegatewaymuseum.org web address no longer belongs to the museum, so use the Park County website or call 406-222-4184.

Allow about 90 minutes. The museum is on the north side of town, across the tracks from the 1902 Livingston Depot, and the two make a good half day in town.