A two-story building celebrating the history, life and ways of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe. 3,000 square feet of exhibits, including a mural on the migration of the band into the Great Lakes area; maps; artifacts; a Waaginogam — or wigwam — fur trading post and school re-creations; a wall on spirituality and beliefs; a lifeways exhibit that includes education on topics such as ricing, bead work and basketing; a constellation ceiling; and a veteran’s wall that pays tribute to Bois Forte band members who served in the U.S. armed forces.

Please call the museum or check out our website for current hours.

Bois Forte Heritage Center and Cultural Museum
Fortune Bay Casino
1500 Bois Forte Road
Tower,MN 55790
(218) 753-6017

The Dorothy Molter Museum is a memorial to the legendary last resident of the BWCAW, who died in 1986 after living most of her 79 years on Knife Lake near the U.S.-Canada border. Canoeists often stopped at Molter’s home to enjoy her hospitality and famous homemade root beer (she was often referred to as “the Root Beer Lady”) The museum’s log cabins were transported out of the BWCAW piece-by-piece and reassembled in Ely.  Please visit the museum's website for tour and programming schedules. 

Located east of Ely on Hwy. 169
Phone: (218)365-4451
www.rootbeerlady.com

Located at Pioneer Mine on Ely’s north side, the site is managed by Ely Greenstone Public Art (www.elygreenstone.org). The mine is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Shaft House, 401 North Pioneer Road, is open Memorial Day through Labor Day on Tuesdays from 1-4 p.m. and by appointment (235-1721). Photos and artifacts from the underground mine which closed in 1967 are displayed. The Miners Dry House, 105 Miners Lake Landing Road, features events, art shows and classes throughout the year and is located alongside the Trezona Trail.

Located on Ely’s Vermilion Community College campus, this center shows the local history of logging and mining through artifacts, photographs and displays.

Please call the museum or check out our website for current hours.

1900 East Camp St., Ely, MN 55731
Phone: (218)365-3226
http://www.vcc.edu/ewhs/

Five Unforgettable Experiences Await You...

• Look a gray wolf in the eye from only inches away
• Thrill to the mezmorizing howl of our ambassador wolves
• Learn new and fascinating facts about wolves from our experts
• Explore wild wolf habitat and track them through radio telemetry
• Take amazing photographs of our Exhibit Pack in their natural habitat

Families, individuals, kids, groups, scouts, educators—there's an hour-long,
day-long or weekend-long adventure awaiting you at this multi-million dollar
interpretive museum and exhibit.

Located east of Ely on Hwy. 169
Phone: (800) ELY-WOLF
http://www.wolf.org

About 30 miles southwest of Ely – near Embarrass – you can see actual pioneer homesteads, saunas, a rare housebarn and more representing the Finnish heritage of the entire community. Several of these buildings are on the National Register of Historic Places. Please call the museum or check out our website for current hours.

This Minnesota State Park features the first, deepest, and richest underground iron ore mine in Minnesota. Tours of the mine lead visitors through the world of underground mining. The 1.5 hour guided tour will take you 2,341 feet down and more than 100 years into our past.

Visitors can also tour the underground physics lab and learn about experiments involving neutrinos and WIMPs.

Please call the museum or check out our website for current hours.

Educational and group tours are available by special arrangement. Located west of Ely off of Highway 169 in Soudan, MN.

Phone: (218) 753-2245
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/soudan_underground_mine/index.html

The Historic Pillow Rock is an excellent example of an ellipsoidal lava flow said to be 2.7 billion years old with peculiar masses formed when dark lavas flowed under water.  One of the few specimens of its kind in the world; the rock is an outcrop of Ely Greenstone, volcanic origin.  Turn north on 13^th Avenue and go 4 blocks.  Signs will take you to Main Street where the rock is located.

The North American Bear Center is the only Science/Nature museum of its kind. Dedicated to replacing old myths with facts, it lets people learn from the bears themselves about bear behavior, ecology, and their relations with humans.

Great things await you inside!
The most common expression we hear from first-time visitors as they step inside the door of the Bear Center is "Wow!"

A wall mural depicting area wildlife greets Bear Center visitors
Both polar, black, and brown/grizzly bear mounts in natural poses add to the mood. A huge life-size replica of an extinct short-face bear skeleton dominates the main exhibit area. A wall of windows overlooks the bear enclosure with its pond and waterfalls. Subtle background sounds of bears foraging, cubs nursing, and birds singing fill the air—all natural sounds that come from the 50+Exhibits featuring TVs playing high-definition video footage of wild black bears, brown/grizzly, and polar bears as they go about their daily activities in the forests.