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The Ute Museum has a huge collection of Ute Indian artifacts that help to tell a story about the history of the Indians who inhabited the Uncompahgre Valley in Colorado. The museum features multiple changing exhibits that reveal the major events in Ute Indian life, as well as a memorial park, native plant gardens, teepees, and even a crypt. When visitors are finished exploring the vast history of the Utes that the museum offers, they can enjoy a gift shop that contains unique souvenirs, or a visitor information center if they want to continue their path of cultural enlightenment in Colorado. This museum is a wonderful choice for any family trip and offers many wonderful activities for groups of all ages to participate in.

The Ute Indian Museum

The Ute Indian Museum

Ute teepee exhibits

Ute teepee exhibits

Chief Ouray Memorial Park

Chief Ouray Memorial Park

Memorial to Chief Ouray and Chipeta at Ouray Memorial Park

Memorial to Chief Ouray and Chipeta at Ouray Memorial Park
The Ute Indians were a group of people who lived mostly in the American Southwest. While they tended to wander around in search of food and other resources, these particular Indians were notorious mountain-dwellers; in fact, the word "Ute" means "high land". The Ute Indians traveled through much of present-day Colorado, as well as Utah; they didn't stay in one place for very long.  The Utes wandered everywhere on foot until they were introduced to horses by the Spanish in New Mexico, and were led by Chief Ouray and his wife Chipeta. The state of Utah adopted the Ute Indian tribe's name as it's state name because the tribe was so important to the state's development in history and officials felt that they deserved some sort of honor for their role.
    The Ute Indian museum holds traces of large and small artifacts collected in the Colorado area that were left behind by the Ute tribe and displays them so that visitors can understand the cultural history of the Ute Indian tribe as they settled in Colorado. Much can be learned from studying artifacts that were let behind by groups of people, such as their culture, cooking and hunting methods, or their advancements in tool and weapon making. Not only does the inside of the Ute Museum hold valuable information and  changing displays about the lives of the Utes, but the outside does as well. The Museum itself is situated right in the heart of the lands that were once home to the Utes led by Chief Ouray. The museum surroundings include a Chief Ouray Memorial Park, a memorial of Chipeta's crypt, a native plants garden, a sculpture of Ouray and Chipeta, teepees, and even a memorial of the Spanish who also traveled through the area in 1776. 
    The the Ute Museum is also a visitors center that has many programs dedicated to teaching visitors about Ute culture and the surrounding areas, and provides many educational programs that take adults and children alike on tours of the facilities. Hungry? There's a picnic area. Have too much energy after being surprised and uplifted by all of the information that is gathered while inside of the museum? Try out a walking path. The Ute Museum provides multiple services for nearly anyone, and at cheap prices. Adults: $4.50, seniors (over 65): $4.00
children (6–16): $2.00, children (under 6): Free. Free parking is also available, as well as military discounts. 
     

"History Colorado," Accessed September, 2014, http://www.historycolorado.org/museums/ute-indian-museum-0 "Look Deeper: Montrose Colorado," Ute Indian Museum, accessed September, 2014. http://www.visitmontrose.com/186/Ute-Indian-Museum Switzer, C. "An Juan Silver Stage : The Region's Premier Publication for Western Lifestyles Since 1996." Ute Indian Museum. Last modified November 24, 2010. http://www.silverstage.net/07heritage/museums/ute_museum.html "Land Use History of North America: Colorado Plateau" Ute. Accessed September 2014. http://cpluhna.nau.edu/People/ute_indians.htm