Cave Creek Museum

The mission of the Cave Creek Museum is to preserve the artifacts of the prehistory, history, culture and legacy of the Cave Creek Mining District and the Cave Creek/Carefree foothills area through education, research, and interpretive exhibits.

We offer monthly family fun workshops and demonstration of the Golden Reef Stamp Mill in our one-of-a-kind event, The ARIZONA GOLD MINING EXPERIENCE; lectures on area Native American prehistory, regional history, and arts; annual events that celebrate our mining and Native American heritage; and architectural visits of area buildings and homes. We preserve large collections of natural resources and cultural heritage related to the Cave Creek\Carefree Desert Foothills region and the Cave Creek Mining District.

Testimonials

"On the 2nd Sat of every month , Oct-May they run a 90 minute program called the Arizona Gold Mining Experience. Guided tour with operating Stamp Mill, Ore Tram, exploding mine simulation, gold panning and a blacksmith demo. Great fun and a learning experience. Well worth a special trip on those 2nd Saturdays, but good any time."

"Yesterday was the first running of the newly completed tramway for the stamp mill at the Cave Creek Museum; what a fantastic job these volunteer mill men have done. They are keeping alive what is only a memory now about how mining was done in the AZ area many years ago It's noisy but it is informative and thanks to these great volunteers"

"This was a great museum to see a lot of Native American artifacts. They have a huge display of pottery amongst other things the natives used in the area of Cave Creek and Carefree. They have a really neat mill and if you make and get reservations you can see them fire it up and crush rock and learn how they used to get gold. It was a pretty neat guided tour and informative. The people that work at the museum are all volunteers and have a passion to tech and show you how things were many years back. We live in the area and it was very cool to see the operations and all of the displays."

"50 years this museum has been quietly collecting, promoting and showcasing the virtues of Cave Creek and it's people. Volunteers from all over the state have come to rebuild the stamp mill that is the only one in the state still able to crush rock. The children of our community have continuously benefit from experiencing things like the TB cabin.
Local history combines with today's technology in interactive displays and unique video tours."

"We visited the museum to attend the gold mining experience. I brought my two older grandsons(9 and 15) and we all enjoyed it. The volunteers were helpful and informative. We learned a ton of history not only about Cave Creek but about Arizona as well. Lots of artifacts to see and even panned for gold! I recommend a visit here and I know I'm coming back again!"

"Cave Creek Museum does a great job relaying the history of Cave Creek and its native people and early settlers with an emphasis on mining. One room dedicated to archeology of the area. An original 5 star tuberculosis cabin. An actual working mine stamping (rock crushing) machine that operates every 2nd Sat."

"Wow! What a great place. The volunteers sure know their stuff. Well worth a visit."

"This is a neat and sometime too hidden gem in our community. I like taking visitors and guests here and always learn something new too. The running of the stamp mill is something to see! A real, unique and restored piece of American history. The docents and knowledgeable and really paint a picture of what the town was like way back when. It is a wonderful asset to Cave Creek."