From giant Viking ships to Air Force rockets: See it all at the museums of Fargo-Moorhead
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No matter the weather outside and no matter what’s in your wallet, the Fargo-Moorhead area has a museum for everyone.
The area’s museum scene is “definitely family oriented and family friendly,” Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County Executive Director Maureen Kelly Jonason said.
“All of the museums that I know about in our area are interested in having visitors of every generation come in and see what they have to offer. Some have more children’s activities than others, but the content is generally meant to be at a level and of interest to all ages and all educational levels,” Jonason said.
Local museums are slowly making a comeback after the pandemic, she said, and she hopes more folks will get out and explore them for education, art and entertainment.
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“As somebody who loves museums, I appreciate the great diversity of choices we have here,” Jonason said. “Even local history buffs will find tremendous differences between Bonanzaville, for example, and our organization — and that there is something for everyone.”
Plains Art Museum
704 First Ave. N, Fargo
Hours:
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tuesday: closed
Housed in a large brick warehouse in downtown Fargo, the Plains Art Museum is hard to miss. It started as the Red River Art Center in 1965 in the former Moorhead post office, moving to downtown Fargo in 1997.
Ongoing exhibitions include No Time For Despair, Bee in Flight, S.P.A.C.E., The North Dakota Mural and Fragile Preservation.
Find upcoming exhibits and more information at plainsart.org.
Hjemkomst Center
202 First Ave. N, Moorhead
Hours:
Monday through Saturday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tuesday: 5 to 8 p.m., free admission
Sunday: noon to 5 p.m.
Pronounced YEM-komst, the word means “homecoming” in Norwegian.
The building, owned and operated by the City of Moorhead Parks and Recreation Department, hosts the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County — one of 87 in Minnesota and parent of the famous Viking ship and Stave Church — as well as the Fargo-Moorhead Community Theatre, exhibitions and meeting places.
The Rourke Art Gallery + Museum
521 Main Ave., Moorhead
Public viewing hours:
Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m., free admission
Open by appointment:
Wednesday and Thursday from 1 to 5 p.m., call (218) 236-8861 to request
The Rourke Art Gallery started as a Moorhead post office and opened in 1966 as an arts building by brothers Orland J. Rourke and James O’Rourke.
Permanent collections include paintings by Aaron Holz, Aquatic Art, Ben Shahn’s “For the Sake of a Single Verse” and Roman glass and Egyptian ushtabi. Other exhibits travel in and out of the gallery.
The Rourke’s Micro-Theatre puts on shows like “Crossing Columbus” by Cathy Lee Crane.
Fargo Air Museum
1609 19th Ave. N, Fargo
Hours:
Tuesday through Saturday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed Sunday and Monday
This one’s relatively small — but you can spend plenty of time ogling the planes inside the two hangars.
The museum’s first hangar opened in 2001. Located across the street from the Fargodome, visitors (and their pets) can see aircrafts, drones, a recreation of a Wright Brothers’ plane and military memorabilia.
Fargo-Moorhead Visitors Center
2001 44th St. S, Fargo
Hours:
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
If the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Fargo is the Coen brothers film of the same name, this is the place to visit.
Located just off Interstate I-94 in Fargo, visitors can learn about the area and see the original woodchipper movie prop, a signed movie script and other movie memorabilia for free. Get your Fargo on!
Bonanzaville USA
1351 Main Ave. W, West Fargo
Hours:
Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
The history museum complex in West Fargo is owned and operated by the Cass County Historical Society. Sitting on 12 acres, the village has more than 30 buildings highlighting how settlers to the area lived.
Main museum, rotating gallery and Village admission is $12 per adult, $10 for seniors and college students, $6 for students ages 6 to 16 and free for children under 5 and those with a military ID.
Honorable mentions
West Acres Mall
Shop while you learn and contemplate!
The small Roger Maris baseball museum display and several art galleries are found at the mall. There is also an artist in residence, The Fountain and a freshwater aquarium.
Comstock House
The Victorian mansion in Moorhead is a state historical site.
According to the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County, it was owned by Solomon Comstock, a “prominent Moorhead booster, businessman and legislator” and his family: his wife Sarah and their three children George, Ada and Jessie. It was donated in 1965.
College galleries
The Minnesota State University art gallery is in the Roland Dille Center for the Arts and spans the skyway. It features works by local and national artists, students and faculty.
It is free and open to the public Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Find it at 801-13th St. S, Moorhead.
The Memorial Union Gallery at North Dakota State University, at 401 Administration Ave., Fargo, has seven collections.
They include student art, printmaking, collected art from Ralph Engel’s home, master printmaker works, paintings and drawings, poster prints and works donated to the University.
Well-known artists’ works at the NDSU Collections are Andy Warhol, Oscar Howe, Tracy Linder, Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro.
On Tuesday through Saturday, visitors can see works between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., or until 8 p.m. on Thursdays. Find more visitor information on NDSU’s website.
The Cyrus M. Running Gallery at Concordia University includes artwork by students and faculty, as well as local and regional artists.
Find the gallery in the walkway between the Olin Art and Communications Center and Frances Frazier Theatre, open Monday through Friday from 9 am. to 4:30 p.m. and Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m. It is closed on Saturdays and during academic breaks.
Find public receptions and more information at concordiacollege.edu.
Coming soon
Fargo-Moorhead Science Museum
A roughly 60,000-square-foot museum is expected to open near the intersection of Seter Parkway and 31st Avenue South in Fargo. Construction is expected to begin in summer 2025. People can find more information and see rendering images on the museum’s website.
Accessibility information can be found using the links to the museums and galleries above.
What other local museums or art spaces do you love? What are we missing? Join the conversation via our text club:
Want more Fargo-Moorhead news? Check out our local page.