“No place is a place until the things that have happened
in it are remembered.”
  Wallace Stegner

The Bushwhacker Museum takes great pride in preserving the memories of Vernon County, Missouri.
It is widely regarded as one of the premier small town museums in the Midwest.

Visit Us Today! The museum is open Wednesday-Friday, 10am-4pm and Saturday, 10am-1pm

Visit Us Today! The museum is open Wednesday-Friday, 10am-4pm and Saturday, 10am-1pm

The Bushwhacker Museum is located in the lower level of the Nevada Public Library building on the northwest corner of the historic Nevada Courthouse Square. Get Directions Here!

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Check out our Gift Shop!

Check out our Gift Shop!

The museum gift shop has a unique selection of local and regional history books, locally handmade souvenir items and woodcrafts and our new T-Shirt design for adults and children.

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2023 Events & Happenings!

2023 Events & Happenings!

Don't miss the walking tour of historic Deepwood Cemetery, October 13th & 14th. This is a ticketed event.

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Historic Deepwood Cemetery Tour

October 13th & 14th, 2023     ||     5:00pm-6:00pm     ||    Tickets: $10.00/ Person   ||     Deepwood Cemetery, 800 S. Washington St, Nevada Meet historic characters from Vernon County’s past come back to life for two evenings of fun and education. Vernon County Historical Society plans to partner with the Nevada High School’s Advanced […]

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Fall Quarterly Program: “This Place of Promise: A Historian’s Perspective on 200 Years of Missouri History”

October 8, 2023     ||     2:00pm     ||     Bushwhacker Museum, 212 W. Walnut St., Nevada, Dr. Gary Kremer, Executive Director of the State Historical Society of Missouri, will give a presentation about his book This Place of Promise, a comprehensive history of Missouri created for the state’s bicentennial in 2021. He will have books […]

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The Bushwhacker Museum . . .
is designed to appeal to all ages, with an informal atmosphere and many interactive exhibits. Children seem to be especially fascinated by the Native American exhibits, and enjoy playing “school” in the old child-sized classroom.

With over 10,000 square feet of exhibit space, the Bushwhacker also caters to a wide range of interests. Exhibits include everything from prehistoric tools and fossils to antique medical instruments and women’s wedding finery. You will find Civil War artifacts, antique carriages, old handmade quilts, children’s toys, antique sidesaddles, early fire department memorabilia and so much more … Come take a stroll with us through Vernon County's past!

The Bushwhacker Jail . . .
is a rare example of prison facilities in the late nineteenth century. It is the oldest structure in Nevada, and one of the few buildings spared when Federal Militia burned Nevada to the ground in 1863. You can tour the beautifully restored jailer’s family quarters, step inside a grim, dark jail cell, or marvel at the graffiti in the old drunk tank. This is an unusual adventure for the entire family.