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TOP 100 MUSEUMS IN THE UNITED STATES

The United States has several thousand museums. But which ones are widely considered to be the best? We have put together a highly-opinionated list of what we believe to be the top 100 museums in the United States. It is not an easy task to pick 100 top museums out of a pool of thousands, so this web-page will forever be a work-in-progress as we travel & visit more museums across the country.

This top 100 museums list is sorted alphabetically by state (and not by rating or quality). Remember, though, this is just our opinionated list. There are hundreds of other fascinating museums in the United States, including some really quirky & and unique ones (for example, the Salt & Pepper Shaker Museum in Gatlinburg, Tennessee). That being said, you probably won't want to miss any of these 100 undeniably outstanding museums:

STATE	MUSEUM NAME	MUSEUM TYPE(S)	TOWN / CITY
Alabama	Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Birmingham
Alabama	USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park	Boat Museum & Military Museum	Mobile
Alaska	Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Fairbanks
Arizona	Musical Instrument Museum	Music Museum	Phoenix
Arizona	Pima Air & Space Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Tucson
Arkansas	Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art	Art Museum	Bentonville
Arkansas	Museum of Native American History	History Museum	Bentonville
California	Alcatraz / Alcatraz Island	Prison Museum	San Francisco
California	California State Railroad Museum	Railroad Museum	Sacramento
California	Getty Center, The	Art Museum	Los Angeles
California	Huntington, The	Art Museum	Pasadena
California	Nethercutt Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Los Angeles
California	Norton Simon Museum	Art Museum	Pasadena
California	USS Midway Museum	Boat Museum & Military Museum	San Diego
Connecticut	Yale University Art Gallery	Art Museum	New Haven
Delaware	Air Mobility Command Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum & Military Museum	Dover
Florida	Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art	Art Museum	Winter Park
Florida	Dali Museum, The / Salvador Dali Museum	Art Museum	St. Petersburg
Florida	Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex	Space Museum	Cape Canaveral
Florida	National Naval Aviation Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum & Military Museum	Pensacola
Florida	Ringling, The	History Museum & Art Museum	Sarasota
Georgia	National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center	Military Museum	Columbus
Georgia	National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force	Aircraft/Aviation Museum & Military Museum	Pooler
Hawaii	Battleship Missouri Memorial	Boat Museum & Military Museum	Honolulu (Oahu)
Illinois	Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum	History Museum	Springfield
Illinois	Art Institute of Chicago	Art Museum	Chicago
Illinois	Field Museum, The	Natural History Museum & Dinosaur Museum	Chicago
Illinois	Museum of Science & Industry	Science Museum	Chicago
Indiana	Children's Museum of Indianapolis, The	Children's Museum	Indianapolis
Louisiana	National World War II Museum	History Museum & Military Museum	New Orleans
Maryland	Walters Art Museum, The	Art Museum	Baltimore
Massachusetts	Museum of Fine Arts Boston	Art Museum	Boston
Massachusetts	New Bedford Whaling Museum	Maritime Museum	New Bedford
Massachusetts	U.S.S. Constitution Museum	Boat Museum	Boston
Michigan	Detroit Institute of the Arts	Art Museum & Art Museum	Detroit
Michigan	Gilmore Car Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Hickory Corners
Michigan	Greenfield Village	History Museum & Living History Museum	Dearborn
Michigan	Henry Ford, The / Henry Ford Museum	History Museum & Auto/Transportation Museum	Dearborn
Minnesota	Minneapolis Institute of Arts	Art Museum	Minneapolis
Mississippi	U.S.S. Cairo Museum	Boat Museum & Military Museum	Vicksburg
Missouri	Harry S. Truman Library and Museum	History Museum	Independence
Missouri	Missouri Civil War Museum	History Museum	St. Louis
Missouri	National World War I Museum and Memorial	Military Museum	Kansas City
Missouri	Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art	Art Museum	Kansas City
Montana	Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center	History Museum	Great Falls
Nevada	Mob Museum, The	Offbeat/Unusual Museum	Las Vegas
New Jersey	Princeton University Art Museum	Art Museum	Princeton
New York	American Museum of Natural History	Natural History Museum	New York City
New York	Corning Museum of Glass	Art Museum	Corning
New York	Frick Collection	Art Museum	New York City
New York	Glenn H. Curtiss Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum & Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Hammondsport
New York	Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum & Space Museum & Boat Museum	New York City
New York	Metropolitan Museum of Art ("the Met")	Art Museum	New York City
New York	Museum of Modern Art ("MoMA")	Art Museum	New York City
New York	Strong National Museum of Play, The	History Museum & Children's Museum	Rochester
New York	Tenement Museum	History Museum	New York City
North Carolina	Airborne and Special Operations Museum	Military Museum	Fayetteville
North Carolina	Battleship North Carolina	Boat Museum & Military Museum	Wilmington
North Carolina	Wheels Through Time Transportation Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Maggie Valley
Ohio	Cleveland Museum of Art	Art Museum	Cleveland
Ohio	National Museum of the U.S. Air Force	Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Dayton
Ohio	Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum	Music Museum & Hall of Fame Museum	Cleveland
Ohio	Toledo Museum of Art	Art Museum	Toledo
Oklahoma	Museum of Osteology	Natural History Museum	Oklahoma City
Oklahoma	Philbrook Museum Of Art	Art Museum	Tulsa
Oregon	Columbia River Maritime Museum	Maritime Museum & Military Museum	Astoria
Pennsylvania	Barnes Foundation, The	Art Museum	Philadelphia
Pennsylvania	Eastern State Penitentiary	Prison Museum	Philadelphia
Pennsylvania	Gettysburg Museum & Visitor Center	History Museum	Gettysburg
Pennsylvania	Gettysburg Museum of History	History Museum	Gettysburg
Pennsylvania	Independence Hall	History Museum & Living History Museum	Philadelphia
Pennsylvania	Philadelphia Museum of Art	Art Museum	Philadelphia
South Carolina	Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum	Maritime Museum & Military Museum	Mount Pleasant
Tennessee	Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum	Music Museum & Hall of Fame Museum	Nashville
Tennessee	Hermitage, The	History Museum	Nashville
Tennessee	National Civil Rights Museum	History Museum	Memphis
Tennessee	Sun Studio	Music Museum	Memphis
Tennessee	Titanic Museum	History Museum & Boat Museum	Pigeon Forge
Texas	Amon Carter Museum of American Art	Art Museum	Fort Worth
Texas	Houston Museum of Natural Science	Natural History Museum	Houston
Texas	National Museum of the Pacific War	Military Museum	Fredericksburg
Texas	Space Center Houston	Space Museum	Houston
Vermont	Shelburne Museum	History Museum	Shelburne
Virginia	Colonial Williamsburg	Living History Museum	Williamsburg
Virginia	Mariners' Museum & Park, The	Maritime Museum	Newport News
Virginia	National Air and Space Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum & Space Museum	Chantilly
Virginia	National D-Day Memorial	Military Museum	Bedford
Virginia	National Museum of the Marine Corps	Military Museum	Triangle
Virginia	Virginia Museum of Fine Arts	Art Museum	Richmond
Washington	Chihuly Garden and Glass	Art Museum	Seattle
Washington	Museum of Flight	Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Seattle
Washington, D.C.	National Air & Space Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum & Space Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	National Gallery of Art, The	Art Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	National Museum of American History, The	History Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	National Museum of Natural History	Natural History Museum & Dinosaur Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	National Portrait Gallery	Art Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	Newseum	History Museum & Movie/TV Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	Smithsonian Institution Building	History Museum	Washington, D.C.
Wisconsin	EAA AirVenture Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Oshkosh
Wyoming	Buffalo Bill Center of the West	History Museum	Cody

Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, California

Titanic Museum, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, Vermont

RUNNER-UPS: MUSEUMS ALMOST GOOD ENOUGH TO MAKE THE TOP 100 LIST

Here are a list of other outstanding museums in the United States that we considered for the top 100 museums list above. Let me know if you think there are any other museums of this caliber/quality that we should be considering, either for this "runners-up" list or the top 100 museums list itself. (email = gparsons66 @ hotmail.com).

If you strongly feel that any of these museums should be included in the top 100 list above, please send us an email!

STATE	MUSEUM NAME	MUSEUM TYPE(S)	TOWN / CITY
Alabama	Space Camp / U.S. Space and Rocket Center	Space Museum	Huntsville
Alaska	Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center	History Museum & Art Museum & Science Museum	Anchorage
Alaska	Museum of the North	Art Museum & Natural History Museum	Fairbanks
Arizona	Heard Museum	Art Museum & History Museum	Phoenix
Arizona	O.K. Corral	History Museum	Tombstone
Arizona	Titan Missile Museum	Military Museum	Sahuarita
California	Asian Art Museum	Art Museum	San Francisco
California	Cable Car Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	San Francisco
California	California Science Center	Science Museum	Los Angeles
California	Crocker Art Museum	Art Museum	Sacramento
California	de Young Museum	Art Museum	San Francisco
California	Exploratorium, The	Science Museum & Children's Museum	San Francisco
California	Getty Villa, The	Art Museum	Malibu
California	Legion of Honor	Art Museum	San Francisco
California	Los Angeles County Museum of Art ("LACMA")	Art Museum	Los Angeles
California	Maritime Museum of San Diego	Maritime Museum & Submarine Museum	San Diego
California	Oakland Museum of California	History Museum	Oakland
California	Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits	Natural History Museum	Los Angeles
California	Palm Springs Air Museum	Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Palm Springs
California	Walt Disney Family Museum	Movie/TV Museum	San Francisco
Colorado	Denver Art Museum	Art Museum	Denver
Colorado	Denver Museum of Nature & Science	Science Museum & Natural History Museum	Denver
Connecticut	Mystic Seaport: The Museum of America and the Sea	Maritime Museum & Living History Museum	Mystic
Florida	Air Force Armament Museum	Military Museum	Fort Walton Beach
Florida	Chihuly Collection	Art Museum	St. Petersburg
Florida	Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens	Art Museum	Jacksonville
Florida	Lightner Museum, The	History Museum	St. Augustine
Florida	St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum	History Museum	St. Augustine
Florida	Ximenez-Fatio House, The	History Museum	St. Augustine
Georgia	National Prisoner of War Museum	History Museum	Andersonville
Georgia	High Museum of Art	Art Museum	Atlanta
Georgia	Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site	History Museum	Atlanta
Georgia	Museum of Aviation	Aircraft/Aviation Museum	Warner Robbins
Hawaii	Bishop Museum	History Museum	Honolulu (Oahu)
Hawaii	US Army Museum of Hawaii	Military Museum	Honolulu (Oahu)
Hawaii	USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park	Boat Museum & Military Museum & Submarine Museum	Honolulu (Oahu)
Illinois	Richard H. Driehaus Museum	Art Museum	Chicago
Kansas	Kansas Cosmosphere & Space Center	Space Museum	Hutchinson
Kentucky	Kentucky Derby Museum	Sports Museum	Louisville
Kentucky	Kentucky Horse Park	Sports Museum	Lexington
Kentucky	National Corvette Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Bowling Green
Louisiana	Mardi Gras World / Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World	Offbeat/Unusual Museum	New Orleans
Louisiana	Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden	Art Museum	New Orleans
Maryland	American Visionary Art Museum	Art Museum	Baltimore
Massachusetts	Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum	History Museum	Boston
Massachusetts	Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum	Art Museum	Boston
Massachusetts	Jenney Museum	History Museum	Plymouth
Massachusetts	Museum of Science	Science Museum	Boston
Massachusetts	Norman Rockwell Museum	Art Museum	Stockbridge
Massachusetts	Peabody Essex Museum	Art Museum	Salem
Massachusetts	Plimoth Plantation	Living History Museum	Plymouth
Massachusetts	Worcester Art Museum	Art Museum	Worcester
Minnesota	Minnesota History Center	History Museum & State Museum	St. Paul
Missouri	Arabia Steamboat Museum	Boat Museum	Kansas City
Missouri	Kaleidoscope	Children's Museum	Kansas City
Missouri	Titanic Museum	History Museum	Branson
Nebraska	Joslyn Art Museum	Art Museum	Omaha
Nevada	Bodies The Exhibition	Offbeat/Unusual Museum	Las Vegas
Nevada	National Automobile Museum	Auto/Transportation Museum	Reno
Nevada	Neon Museum, The	Offbeat/Unusual Museum	Las Vegas
Nevada	Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition	History Museum	Las Vegas
New Jersey	Silverball Pinball Museum	Offbeat/Unusual Museum	Asbury Park
New Mexico	Explora Science Center & Children's Museum	Children's Museum	Albuquerque
New Mexico	Museum of International Folk Art	Art Museum	Santa Fe
New York	Ellis Island Immigration Museum	History Museum	New York City
New York	Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum	History Museum	Hyde Park
New York	National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum	Sports Museum & Hall of Fame Museum	Cooperstown
New York	Whitney Museum of American Art	Art Museum	New York City
North Carolina	Billy Graham Library	History Museum	Charlotte
North Carolina	Museum of Life & Science	Science Museum & Natural History Museum	Durham
North Carolina	NASCAR Hall of Fame	Sports Museum & Hall of Fame Museum	Charlotte
North Carolina	North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences	Natural History Museum & Dinosaur Museum	Raleigh
Ohio	Cincinnati Museum Center	History Museum & Children's Museum	Cincinnati
Ohio	Pro Football Hall of Fame	Sports Museum & Hall of Fame Museum	Canton
Ohio	USS Cod Submarine Memorial	Boat Museum & Military Museum & Submarine Museum	Cleveland
Oklahoma	National Cowboy Hall of Fame & Western Her. Museum	History Museum & Hall of Fame Museum	Oklahoma City
Oregon	High Desert Museum	Natural History Museum & Living History Museum	Bend
Oregon	National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center	History Museum	Baker City
Oregon	Oregon Museum of Science and Industry	Science Museum	Portland
Pennsylvania	Franklin Institute, The	Science Museum	Philadelphia
Pennsylvania	Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania	Railroad Museum	Strasburg
Tennessee	Johnny Cash Museum	Music Museum	Nashville
Tennessee	Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum	Music Museum	Memphis
Tennessee	RCA Studio B	Music Museum	Nashville
Tennessee	Stax Museum of American Soul Music	Music Museum	Memphis
Texas	Bullock Texas State History Museum	History Museum	Austin
Texas	Dallas Museum of Art	Art Museum	Dallas
Texas	George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum	History Museum	Dallas
Texas	Kimbell Art Museum	Art Museum	Fort Worth
Texas	LBJ Presidential Library	History Museum	Austin
Texas	Museum of Fine Arts, Houston ("MFAH")	Art Museum	Houston
Texas	Perot Museum of Nature and Science	Science Museum & Natural History Museum	Dallas
Texas	Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, The	History Museum	Dallas
Texas	USS Lexington	Boat Museum & Military Museum	Corpus Christi
Virginia	Chrysler Museum of Art	Art Museum	Norfolk
Virginia	DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum	Art Museum	Williamsburg
Virginia	Frontier Culture Museum	Living History Museum	Staunton
Virginia	Historic Jamestowne	Living History Museum	Williamsburg
Virginia	Jamestown Settlement	Living History Museum	Williamsburg
Washington	EMP Museum / Experience Music Project Museum	Music Museum & Movie/TV Museum	Seattle
Washington, D.C.	International Spy Museum	Offbeat/Unusual Museum	Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.	National Archives Museum, The	History Museum	Washington, D.C.
West Virginia	Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum	Medical/Health Museum	Weston
Wisconsin	Harley-Davidson Museum	Motorcycle Museum	Milwaukee
Wisconsin	Milwaukee Art Museum	Art Museum	Milwaukee
Wyoming	Cody Dug Up Gun Museum	Gun/Firearm Museum	Cody
Wyoming	Cody Firearms Museum	Gun/Firearm Museum	Cody
Wyoming	National Museum of Wildlife Art	Art Museum	Jackson

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