Uranium Museum - Route 66 - Grants, New Mexico, USA.
N 35° 09.193 W 107° 51.275
13S E 239964 N 3893765
The Uranium Mining Museum, Mother Road Visitor Center, & Chamber of trade are located alongside Historic Route 66, that runs through the heart of this small town, once known as 'The Uranium Capitol of the World' Grants, New Mexico.
Waymark Code: WMMMFW
Location: New Mexico, United States
Date Posted: 10/09/2014
Views: 10
The Chamber of trade Visitor & Info center, along with this little gem of a Museum officially called 'The New Mexico Mining Museum' share the same building. Known locally as the Uranium Museum, it offers a "Go Underground" self-guided tour, a unique opportunity to see, touch, feel and experience the atmosphere of the underground world, in a Uranium Mine.
Said to be the only Uranium Mining Museum in the World, offering you the opportunity to go underground. The Museum has several mining related artefacts, and sculptures, in its grounds, that offer several photo opportunities.
Grants was once a thriving railway & mining Town, at about the same time period that Hwy 66 was in its heydays, then they opened the interstate in 1985, bypassing the Town, business just disappeared overnight. The Uranium market collapsed soon afterwards, causing the locals to quote the period as the 'final bust' it would seem to be true as there are many vacant lots in this small Town once known as 'The Uranium Capitol of the World'.
The Sign outside the Museum ask you to please stay a while.
The Visitor Center & Chamber of Trade, make the area, so interesting, that I think you need to stop overnight at least, or a few days, rather than just passing through.
From the Mining Museum Web Site:
"The self-guided tour allows you to view the mine at your own pace. Descend the "cage" to the mine shaft. In a real mine, the descent could plunge down 900 feet or more, but our "Section 26" is just a short ride down, ending at the station where workers, materials and mine ore leave and enter the mine. Learn about the "lunchroom," drilling and blasting techniques and the forbidden "open stope."
See a wonderful display of Gems and Minerals from all over the world! A treat is in store for the visitor with an excellent collection of artifacts dating as far back as 700 A.D. The early ancient culture is represented in pottery, baskets, weaving and other items used by these early settlers in New Mexico.
In the spacious, galleried first floor of the museum, visitors can walk through the colorful history of the Grants/Cibola area, beginning with railroad, logging, ranching and uranium mining. It was uranium that brought the boom and bust cycle, and the now almost non-existent demand for U.S.-mined uranium has ended what many call the final bust." Text source: (
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Museum Hours: Monday to Saturday 9am to 4pm.
Adult Entry costs $3.00