The Wyoming town of Jackson Hole continues to attract visitors year‑round, and a major new cultural amenity — the reimagined Jackson Hole History Museum campus designed by interdisciplinary firm HGA in collaboration with local Prospect Studio — now deepens the community’s ties to its past and offers another compelling reason to visit.
© Albert Vecerka/Esto
Operating as History Jackson Hole (formerly the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum), the campus establishes a permanent, visible home in downtown Jackson for history, education and community gathering. The new facility consolidates and showcases the organization’s extensive collections — approximately 7,200 objects, 19,200 photographs, 8,200 documents and 460 oral histories — and makes them accessible to both residents and visitors in ways that foster meaningful connections to the landscape and the many peoples who have lived here.
Set on a quarter‑acre site within a prominent historic block, the campus centers around a three‑story museum (two stories aboveground plus a basement) and totals 13,200 square feet. The site also includes two preserved historic log cabins and integrated outdoor spaces. The design weaves the natural, cultural and architectural history of the region into a contemporary, high‑performance building that respects local character while meeting modern sustainability and accessibility standards.
© Albert Vecerka/Esto
The campus sits on a downtown block valued for its history, public green space and active local businesses, and parts of the area are protected by conservation easements. Funding came through a public‑private partnership, and the project included a robust community engagement process led by HGA and History Jackson Hole. That process sought input from residents, Indigenous communities and partners to shape design, program and sustainability strategies and to ensure the museum’s storytelling reflects the region’s full history.
“Jackson Hole is a community brought together, enriched and strengthened by compelling connections to the history of the region and the preservation of its resources,” said Morgan Jaouen, executive director of History Jackson Hole. “The newly designed history museum campus furthers this vision by expanding its capacity and reach.”
© Albert Vecerka/Esto
Architecturally, the building draws on Jackson’s Western vernacular. The street‑facing ground floor features glazed storefronts that recall historic commercial facades, while the second floor uses punched openings for a more intimate scale. A covered boardwalk along the façade aligns with traditional town boardwalks, visually and physically linking the museum to the central square.
Inside, the museum offers a mix of permanent and rotating exhibitions designed to create human connections to place and history. A signature installation, “Windows on Jackson,” is an interactive photo wall presenting faces and stories from the community. Rotating galleries highlight contemporary voices, including a show by six Wind River artists whose work investigates relationships among land, animals, people and homelands.
The campus intentionally integrates Native American art, storytelling and collaboration. A large mural on the museum’s west elevation was created by artist Nanibah Chacon in partnership with the Eastern Shoshone Tribe. The mural highlights the Shoshone language, Newe Daygwap, and affirms the role of Indigenous language and cultural knowledge in preserving community life and continuity.
© Albert Vecerka/Esto
Exhibit spaces maximize connections to the surrounding urban and natural environment: double glass walls orient galleries toward both the museum’s greenspace and the downtown streetscape so passersby can glimpse living history. Outdoors, a ground‑level patio incorporates the two relocated log cabins into the museum’s circulation, and a second‑floor rooftop terrace provides visitors with views toward Snow King Mountain Resort and the nearby hills.
Beyond exhibitions, the campus provides flexible spaces for educational programming, special events and community use by members and partners. By combining thoughtful preservation with contemporary design and programming, the new Jackson Hole History Museum campus strengthens the region’s cultural infrastructure and invites deeper engagement with the stories that shape this place.