LEVEL ONE MAP | LEVEL TWO MAP | PRINTABLE MAP
PPHM CONTAINS
- the most comprehensive collection of Texas art in the state
- the finest repository of American Indian art in the country
- the best collection of American Indian baskets in the nation
- one of four Georgia O'Keefe oil paintings
- oldest known assembly line car in the world
- original cable tool drilling rig
- Quanah Parker's headdress
The museum has 22 galleries and houses over three million artifacts in its collection. Please refer to the calendar for details on events and exhibitions.
LOWER LEVEL
Many adults can remember coming to the museum as kids and looking at the animal dioramas. Visitors can still see every detail of native birds’ feathers and animals’ fur coats and survey their natural environment in the Panhandle-Plains region. The dioramas give way to the human influence and culture clash of the Spanish expeditions, American Indian, and ranchers. Artifacts from each culture show the diverse lifestyles that have called this area home through the centuries.
LEVEL ONE
Derrick Room—Captivating the eye before stepping into the building, this massive glass walled room gives passersby a peek into the past. The museum is seemingly built around an oil patch left by the field workers who went home after a long day of work in the Texas Panhandle.
Geology—Dazzling gem and crystal specimens put a twinkle in the eye. Stand underground looking up at the prairie to examine the layers of dirt and rock forming the Panhandle. Along side it, a scale model of Palo Duro Canyon’s Lighthouse formation beats a 6-mile hike in the summer heat any day.
Paleontology—Amidst a jungle of skeletal remains, kids are enthralled to look straight into the mouth of a metoposaurus and an even meaner and toothier phytosaur. The Allosaurus is ready to grab anybody who gets too close, and surrounding him is a team of other boney sidekicks.
People of the Plains—Walk through 14,000 years of history. Colors, sights, sounds and artifacts capture attention in the Wild West environment. Smell the coffee from the chuck wagon, make a home in a waddle and dub house, and walk through a style show of old-fashion fashions. Cultures collide and lifestyles make leaps through the centuries.
Pioneer Hall—The grandeur of the Art Deco style and grandly colorful murals is breathtaking. Whetting the taste buds, Pioneer Hall introduces the vastness of the museum’s collection. Originally comprising the whole museum, Pioneer Hall was the building block for the largest historical museum in Texas and the start that produced a grand future.
Pioneer Town—Retreat in time and walk the streets of Pioneer Town. Bring your horse to the livery stable, pick up some horseshoes at the blacksmith, tip your hat to the Sheriff, get some money from the bank and buy clothing and staples from the store. Stop by Sam Wood’s house and say hello, but be careful of a shoot out by the saloon.
Transportation—Let the good times roll as you stroll through our car lot looking for a ride. From a speedy 1930 Cadillac V-16 to a 1916 Detroit Electric Brougham with curved glass and Cinderella carriage look to a 1933 Pierce Arrow Sedan to fit all the family, check out what's under the hood.
T-Anchor Ranch House—The origins of the T-Anchor Ranch headquarters centered on Charles Goodnight’s brother-in-law, Leigh Dyer. In 1877, Dyer built a log cabin made from juniper logs cut in the Palo Duro Canyon. He planted a small plot of oats, which he estimated would make 40 bushels an acre, but a small herd of buffalo grazed the oats to the ground a few nights before Dyer planned his harvest. He sold the cabin and land the next year. It later became the center of area ranching and development. The T Anchor Ranch Headquarters, including the outbuildings, was disassembled board by board, numbered, then reconstructed at PPHM and is the oldest surviving house in the Panhandle.
Windmills—Meander with the Panhandle wind to meet windmills face to face, including a giant in the clouds: the 22.5 foot diameter Eclipse windmill and its gargantuan tail vane. While walking through, act as the wind and take one for a spin.
LEVEL TWO
Bugbee Gallery— The Museum houses some 1000 works by Harold D. Bugbee (1900-1963) and his wife Olive Vandruff (1908-2003), including a reconstruction of Bugbee's studio. Bugbee illustrated numerous Western history books and created easel paintings and murals of the West including work under the New Deal art programs in the 1930s and 1940s. Vandruff was a well-known animal and landscape painter.
Firearms—With more than 1,000 pieces dating from the 15th century to the 20th century, PPHM has one of the largest firearm collections in Texas. From cannons to rifles, firearms run the gamut manufactures models, calibers and gauges.
Furniture—The furniture collection includes about 400 British, European, and American examples that date from the 1500s until the 20th century. A five-piece Rococo Revival parlor suite made by John Henry Belter about 1855, a dining table purchased in 1888 by Charles and Mary Ann Goodnight, and a late 19th century horn chair that belonged to Amarillo founder Henry W. Sanborn and probably was made by San Antonio craftsman Wenzel Friedrich, are among the most outstanding items in the collection.
Hazlewood Lecture Hall—A beautifully decorated, spacious gallery, Hazlewood also serves many a history buff and museum enthusiast with lectures, socials, and exhibit openings.
Petroleum—While oil brings money to mind, see the labor and toil in the lifestyle of oil field workers. Tunnel through rock with oil well drilling tools at work and emerge to find a 1920s oil and gas field with working pump jack just waiting for its workers to come in for the day. Stroll through Cal’s Filling Station just as it would have existed in the 1930s.
Reaugh Gallery— Over 700 works of Western artist Frank Reaugh (1860-1945), the “Dean of Texas Painters,” are presented on a rotating basis in the Reaugh Gallery. Reaugh came to Texas in 1876, exhibited nationally in the 1890s, and helped establish the Dallas art community around 1900 as both teacher and artist.
Southwestern Gallery—Step into a re-created Southwest with rough-hewn log framework and walls adorned with some of the great artists of New Mexico. The collection’s strength is historic New Mexico art with works by members of the Taos Society of Artists as well as the Santa Fe colony.
Texas Gallery—PPHM’s historic Texas collection is the most comprehensive in the state and is exhibited in the only permanent gallery in Texas devoted to the state’s artists. The collection contains works from major artists ranging from the late-nineteenth century to mid-twentieth century. Look for the animal tracks while stepping onto the authentic terrazzo tile in the gallery.
Textiles—The textile collection adds personality and life to history with exhibits of evening gowns, exquisite hats, handmade quilts, and work clothes worn by people of the Panhandle-Plains. Each artifact is a window into the social, cultural, and economic values of a given time.
Transportation—Back when riding with the wind in your hair was not just for convertible owners, buggies were the best way to travel. Wagons even found use in the twentieth century; on display is a World War I ambulance wagon. |
