Museum of Indigenous People

Museum of Indigenous People American Indian Art and Culture The building, designed by Christopher Totten, is meant to resemble a Hopi Pueblo structure.
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🔥 Uplifting Indigenous voices through art & action
🪶 Prescott’s only Indigenous cultural hub
🎨 Events • Exhibits • Advocacy
đź’Ž Sponsor | Donate | Experience

The Museum of Indigenous People is a 501(3) organization - donations are tax-deductible. Built in 1935 from native rock and timbers from the Prescott National Forest, the museum building was constructed using CCC and WPA funding, procured by

the one and only Grace Sparkes. Kate Cory, Artist of Arizona helped put the finishing touches on the building, including our Zuni two-sided fireplace.

What's the easiest way to hear about upcoming events and exhibits at the Museum of Indigenous People? Subscribe to our m...
05/29/2026

What's the easiest way to hear about upcoming events and exhibits at the Museum of Indigenous People? Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter!

Read about upcoming museum events every month by sending us a message at https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/contact or tell our front desk volunteer you'd like to receive our monthly newsletter next time you visit the museum at 147 N Arizona Ave, Prescott, AZ!

(Pictured: Five-Time World Champion Hoop Dancer Tony Duncan (San Carlos Apache, Mandan Hidatsa Arikara) performed at the MIP in 2011. Photo courtesy of Scott Orr/The Daily Courier)

INDIGENOUS FOOD CONTRIBUTIONS - Different Approaches to Food between the Akimel O'odham, Tohono OĘĽodham and Western Apa...
05/28/2026

INDIGENOUS FOOD CONTRIBUTIONS - Different Approaches to Food between the Akimel O'odham, Tohono OĘĽodham and Western Apache - The National Park Service has gathered descriptions of the early food growing and gathering methods of all three groups, showing how food in the same general location can be approached very differently between cultures.

“Even the Akimel O'odham, most highly developed agriculturists of the three tribes considered, depended more on wild products than on their agricultural staples. Most important in the food supply was the bean of the mesquite. In times of crop failure, it became their principal reliance.

Other mainstays of Akimel O'odham diet were screwbeans, the fruits of various opuntias, cactus, yuccas, chenopodiums, salvias, ironwood nuts, and various species of atriplex (salt brushes), which was boiled with other foods because of the salty flavor.

Saguaro fruit was highly prized, particularly for making an intoxicating beverage. Its harvest was so important that the Akimel O'odham started their new year with it.

The Tohono OĘĽodham used similar foods but in different proportions. They also utilized much more mescal and saguaro than the Akimel O'odham. The saguaro is gathered by both peoples by a pole with a hook at the end.

The Apache traditionally cooked the hearts or roots of mezcal in a pit oven. The White River and San Carlos Apache also made tulupi, an intoxicating drink made from sprouted corn.This appears to have been learned from the Chiricahua, who are said to have learned from the Tarahumare, where it appears to be traditional. Hrdlicka (1904, 190-191).

Other wild foods gathered by the Apache included the pods and bean of a locust. These are gathered and dried when not quite mature, later being ground on the metate and mixed with water. Pinon nuts and acorns were also gathered extensively.

And all of this just one small snapshot of Southwest Indigenous food innovation over the centuries.

For more info about Indigenous CONTRIBUTIONS - the special exhibit at the Museum of Indigenous People (February 13th to July 31st, 2026), go to: https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/contributions

'Contributions' features technology, ideals, philosophy and other things many different Indigenous communities shared with others, which are still being used today!

(Pictured: A Tohono OĘĽodham woman harvesting cholla cactus buds.)

The Museum of Indigenous People was proud to participate in the 100 Men Who Care event last week as four different loc...
05/27/2026

The Museum of Indigenous People was proud to participate in the 100 Men Who Care event last week as four different local non-profits make the case for a one time grant from this organization, voted by the attendees of the event.

During that event, our fellow Prescottonians awarded the MIP a one-time grant of $11,550.

In recognition of this generous gift, MIP Executive Director Manuel Lucero (pictured) said, "We Thank 100 Men Who Care for thinking of us and asking us to participate! There were great folks from some wonderful organizations who also participated that evening - Sharlot Hall Museum, Western Heritage Center, Frontier Day's Rodeo Foundation - and we're proud to be in such good company."

You can find out more about 100 Men Who Care here: https://100menwhocareyc.com/

PART OF THE MUSEUM'S MISSION - Supporting Education in Rural Native Communities - The Museum of Indigenous People's Annu...
05/26/2026

PART OF THE MUSEUM'S MISSION - Supporting Education in Rural Native Communities - The Museum of Indigenous People's Annual Backpack Drive begins June 1st, 2026 and runs through June 30th, 2026!

Each year, through the generosity of donors, volunteers, and community partners, we collect new backpacks and school supplies to support Native students in rural communities. This campaign is more than a supply drive — it’s a commitment to helping young scholars begin the school year with confidence, dignity, and the tools they need to succeed.

From Prescott, AZ to communities across the Navajo Nation and other Native regions, your donations make a direct and meaningful impact.

How You Can Help
We will be accepting:

NEW backpacks

NEW school supplies

Monetary donations

Starting June 1st, 2026, donations may be dropped off at:

The Museum of Indigenous People - 147 N Arizona Ave Prescott, AZ 86301

Monday–Saturday | 10 AM – 4 PM

Supplies are distributed to Native students in rural communities with limited resources.

Why It Matters
For many families in rural Native communities, access to school supplies can be limited. A new backpack filled with essentials does more than prepare a student for class — it communicates care, encouragement, and belief in their future.

This annual campaign has become a joyful and meaningful tradition at the museum. It brings together donors, schools, volunteers, and community members who want to invest in the next generation.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who contributes from donors who provide supplies, to volunteers who sort and transport materials across long distances, to partner organizations who help us coordinate distribution.

Together, we can help equip young Native scholars with the tools of knowledge!

The Museum's Mission: "To instill understanding and respect for the Indigenous Cultures of the Southwest."

(Pictured: Museum staff and the 266 filled backpacks donated in 2018 as we loaded them up for transport to students in the Navajo Nation.)

WE'RE OPEN TODAY! Our staff and volunteers thank all the many visitors, young and old, who visit the Museum of Indigeno...
05/25/2026

WE'RE OPEN TODAY! Our staff and volunteers thank all the many visitors, young and old, who visit the Museum of Indigenous People on holidays, weekdays, weekends, and throughout the year.

Thank you all for your kind words in our visitor book and thank you for visiting us at the MIP!

If you'd like to learn more about visiting the museum, go to: https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/

The Museum of Indigenous People
147 N Arizona Ave, Prescott, AZ 86301
Mon-Sat 10 AM - 4 PM
(Pictured: Students from Maryvale Prep take a hands-on tour of the museum in 2016.)

Our staff and volunteers thank all the many visitors who will visit the Museum of Indigenous People this weekend and thr...
05/22/2026

Our staff and volunteers thank all the many visitors who will visit the Museum of Indigenous People this weekend and throughout the year.

Thank you all for your kind words and thank you for visiting us at the MIP!

If you'd like to learn more about visiting the museum, go to: https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/

The Museum of Indigenous People
147 N Arizona Ave, Prescott, AZ 86301
Mon-Sat 10 AM - 4 PM

05/21/2026

Welcome to our new exhibit: CONTRIBUTIONS - featuring technology, ideals, philosophy and other things the Indigenous communities shared with others, which are still being used today!

This exhibit is schedule to run through July 31, 2026 so we encourage you to make plans to visit us before then!

To learn more about this exhibit, go to
https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/contributions

The Museum of Indigenous People
147 N Arizona Ave, Prescott, AZ 86301
Mon-Sat 10 AM - 4 PM

(Pictured: MIP Executive Director Manuel Lucero (Cherokee) in the main museum building on our campus in Prescott, AZ - with special guest appearance by native artist Gordell Wright (Shinnecock Nation) who was demonstrating his traditional artform that day. Thanks Gordell!)

Supporting Education in Rural Native Communities - The Museum of Indigenous People's Annual Backpack Drive begins June 1...
05/20/2026

Supporting Education in Rural Native Communities - The Museum of Indigenous People's Annual Backpack Drive begins June 1st, 2026 and runs through June 30th, 2026!

Each year, through the generosity of donors, volunteers, and community partners, we collect new backpacks and school supplies to support Native students in rural communities. This campaign is more than a supply drive — it’s a commitment to helping young scholars begin the school year with confidence, dignity, and the tools they need to succeed.

From Prescott, AZ to communities across the Navajo Nation and other Native regions, your donations make a direct and meaningful impact.

How You Can Help
We will be accepting:

NEW backpacks

NEW school supplies

Monetary donations

Starting June 1st, 2026, donations may be dropped off at:

The Museum of Indigenous People - 147 N Arizona Ave Prescott, AZ 86301

Monday–Saturday | 10 AM – 4 PM

Supplies are distributed to Native students in rural communities with limited resources.

Why It Matters
For many families in rural Native communities, access to school supplies can be limited. A new backpack filled with essentials does more than prepare a student for class — it communicates care, encouragement, and belief in their future.

This annual campaign has become a joyful and meaningful tradition at the museum. It brings together donors, schools, volunteers, and community members who want to invest in the next generation.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who contributes from donors who provide supplies, to volunteers who sort and transport materials across long distances, to partner organizations who help us coordinate distribution.

Together, we can help equip young Native scholars with the tools of knowledge!

(Pictured: During the 2025 Backpack Drive, our BackPack Committee members Greg Byrum, Andy Gibbs, Robert Johnson, MIP Executive Director Manuel Lucero and Administrative Coordinator Trudy Gibbs in St. Michaels, just outside Window Rock on the Navajo Nation. Photo courtesy of long-time MIP Executive Director Cindy Gresser)

100 Men Who Care - Northern AZ. is an organization launched in 2019 to raise funds and awareness for local charities and...
05/19/2026

100 Men Who Care - Northern AZ. is an organization launched in 2019 to raise funds and awareness for local charities and nonprofits in Arizona's Quad Cities. To date, 100 Men Who Care has raised over $435,000 to help those in need.

How It Works - 100 Community-minded men promise to gift/donate $100 to the winning group, whether present at the event or not! $10,000 raised. At the event, local organizations give a 10 minute presentation about their non-profit and how these funds would be used by the organization to benefit the community it serves.
The attendees vote by paper ballot; the organization with the highest votes received is awarded the money raised for the evening.

Proceeds raised at each quarterly event are awarded to a charity voted on at that event. Your $100 donation joins with others to create a meaningful impact right here in our community.

THIS WEDNESDAY - May 20, 2026, our executive director, Manuel Lucero, will represent the museum as four different local non-profits make the case for a one time grant from this organization, voted by the attendees of the event!

This special gathering brings our community together for an inspiring hour of connection, generosity, and local impact hosted at the iconic Rodeo Grounds.

The more people who come, the more funds will be available for the grant. The more fans of the museum who come, people who value and support its mission "To instill understanding and respect for the Indigenous Cultures of the Southwest," the more chance our museum has to be awarded this true "People's Grant."

Please consider being part of this outpouring of community love and support!

The non-profit organizations presenting at this event will be:

• Sharlot Hall Museum
• Prescott Frontier Days Foundation
• Museum of Indigenous People
• Western Heritage Center

For more info about the event, go to: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CzffxMgc9/

đź“… Wednesday, May 20 - Doors Open at 5pm, Event Starts at 6pm - The event starts at 5pm with a free taco bar.

📍 Rodeo Grounds – 840 Rodeo Dr., Mackin Building # D, Prescott, AZ 86305

And, a big thank you to the Event Sponsors for making this event possible:

• Allied HVAC
• Blushing Cactus
• Rodeo Grounds

Volunteers are the lifeblood of any non-profit and the Museum of Indigenous People is especially proud of ours. You nee...
05/18/2026

Volunteers are the lifeblood of any non-profit and the Museum of Indigenous People is especially proud of ours. You need not possess special areas of expertise or work experience to join our volunteer team. An eagerness to contribute, a willingness to learn, and a welcoming smile are our only requirements.

We will always appreciate volunteers like Gary Sloan (Diné) on the left and Isaiah Bernal (Apache) on the right who helped hang "Eye on the Storm," our 2020 exhibit celebrating generations of Navajo Weavers working in Storm Pattern from the past to the present.

Thank you to all the volunteers whose work helps make it possible for all visitors to learn more about the Native Cultures of the Southwest.

Learn how to become a MIP Volunteer by going to:
https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/volunteer

(pictured - left photo - museum volunteer Gary Sloan (Diné) making sure visitors can see all the detail of a rug)

(pictured - right photo - museum volunteer Isaiah Bernal (Apache) hanging Bessie Manygoats (Dine') masterpiece weaving. Mark Winter said of this rug, "Near-tapestry woven (70+ wefts per inch), I feel this is the largest and finest rug from Bessie's highly distinguished career.")

Our staff and volunteers thank all the many visitors who will visit the this weekend and throughout the year. Visitors ...
05/15/2026

Our staff and volunteers thank all the many visitors who will visit the this weekend and throughout the year.

Visitors like Ian, who wrote: "This is a fascinating and well organized museum. It is small but mighty. We loved it and do not forget to look at the wonderful, original crafts in the gift shop."

Thank for your kind words, Ian, and thank you for visiting us at the MIP!

If you'd like to learn more about visiting the museum, go to: https://www.museumofindigenouspeople.org/

The Museum of Indigenous People
147 N Arizona Ave, Prescott, AZ 86301
Mon-Sat 10 AM - 4 PM

(Many thanks to Elizabeth R Rose for sharing this photo of our museum!)

Address

147 N Arizona Avenue
Prescott, AZ
86301

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

(928) 445-1230

Website

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