Desert Caballeros Western Museum

The Desert Caballeros Western Museum welcomes and enriches diverse audiences by inspiring an appreciation of the art and history of the American West through creative exhibitions and educational programs that preserve the West's cultural legacy.

Starting its 51st year, the Desert Caballeros Western Museum (DCWM) provides access to the arts and culture of the West through services to local and regional audiences including school groups, families, adult learners and visitors to the area. As an American Alliance of Museums (AAM) accredited museum and a Smithsonian Affiliate, we adhere to professional museum standards in all areas. We served close to 50,000 people last year on-site and in the local and surrounding community. We offer free admission for Museum members, children under the age of 17, and active military members and a guest.
Highlights for FY 2019 include 12 temporary exhibitions:

The Next West: Wrangler Artists of the Month, a collaboration project with our local high school.
50 Years/50 Favorites
One Trader's Legacy: Steve Getzwiller Collects the West
Flower Power: Desert Botanicals
West of Center: Highlights from the Wickenburg Art Club
Dia de los Muertos
Trappings of the American West
The BNSF Desert Caballeros Express
Ed Mell's Southwest: Five Decades
Cowgirl Up! Art from the Other Half of the West
Congressional Art Competition
Western Music, Western Ways

In addition to exhibitions, we have a robust annual calendar of events including: audio tours for all ages in English and Spanish, author lectures, gallery talks with artists, art workshops, school field trips, teacher training, student Cowboy Poetry competition and performances, Fiesta de Septiembre; with a photo exhibition of local Hispanic families and activities during the weekend event, participation in the Gold Rush Parade, Festival of Lights Parade, and Wickenburg Literary Festival. 108 volunteers received ongoing educational opportunities and contributed over 10,000 hours of service.

Testimonials

Trip Advisor Review
Date of experience: December 2019
Well worth a visit
Review of Desert Caballeros Western Museum

We've been hearing about this museum for years and finally had a chance to visit. We weren't disappointed. The upper floor is mostly western art reflective of Wickenburg's history. The lower floor is a series of vignettes showing what life was like in historic Wickenburg. We particularly enjoyed the oral histories that had been recorded and made available to guests for listening.
The audio program is quite good -- it automatically plays relevant content as you walk around the museum. Several volunteer docents were quite friendly and helpful in offering additional insights and additional information.