National Museum of the American Indian

The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum focused on the culture of the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

The museum has three facilities:

The National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
The George Gustav Heye Center is located at the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House in New York City.
The Cultural Resources Center, a research and collections facility, is located in Suitland, Maryland.

The foundations for the collections were first assembled in the former Museum of the American Indian in New York City, which was established in 1916. It became part of the Smithsonian in 1989.

National Mall, Washington, D.C. Branch

The Washington site is the first national museum dedicated exclusively to Native Americans. The curvilinear building is clad in a golden-colored Kasota limestone designed to evoke natural rock formations shaped by wind and water over thousands of years.

Simulated wetlands surround the museum. The museum’s east-facing entrance, its prism window, and its space for contemporary Native performances are the result of consultations with Native peoples.

Native Americans have designed the operation of the museum aiming to create a unique atmosphere and experience.

A theme of organic flow is reflected in the museum, with walls mostly of curving surfaces, with almost no sharp corners.

Piikuni (Blackfeet) elk-skin robe with painted decoration by Mountain Chief, the mid-1800s

Heye Center, New York City Branch

George Gustav Heye (1874–1957) traveled throughout North and South America, collecting native objects over 54 years.

The collection is now housed at The Museum’s George Gustav Heye Center, which occupies two floors of the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House in Lower Manhattan.

The Heye Center offers a range of exhibitions, film screenings, school programs, and cultural presentations throughout the year.

Cultural Resources Center, Maryland

In Suitland, Maryland, the museum operates an enormous, nautilus-shaped building that houses its collection, a library, and the photo archives. The Cultural Resources Center opened in 2003.

Highlights of the National Museum of the American Indian

American Indian weaved and leather artifacts
American Indian Horse culture artifacts
Exhibits on the history of the American Indians
Photograph Collection
Arts and Crafts covering over 800 years
Replica Teepees and domestic tools
Collection of American Indian clothing
A Parfleche collection of rawhide artifacts embellished by painting and incising
Exhibits from the different American Indian nations and cultures