C. M. Russell Museum Complex

The first museum of Western art in the United States, the C.M. Russell Museum Complex has grown substantially since its incorporation in 1953, with considerable support from the residents of Great Falls and Montana and with backing from individual patrons and collectors from across the United States and around the world. Today, the C.M. Russell Museum Complex fills an entire city block and encompasses 65,000 square feet of exhibition galleries and educational programming spaces. The museum complex includes the Russells’ original house and studio, a National Historic Landmark, the Frederic G. and Ginger K. Renner Research Center, the Candace and Jim Fish, Sr. Discovery Gallery, and the Charlie Russell Riders Outdoor Sculpture Garden.

Because the collections of the museum span Russell’s entire lifetime and include the artist’s home and studio, the C.M. Russell Museum Complex is the only place in the world where members and guests can experience a total immersion in the art and stories of Charles M. Russell. Russell’s artistic subjects were based on Western history and traditions and his personal experience, reflecting themes of Northern Plains Indian life, cowboy culture, and wildlife.

In total, the museum collections number 13,080 objects, including 3,184 examples of fine art, 2,659 archival documents, 2,634 photographs, 1,818 books and periodicals, 1,104 studio props, 767 objects associated with the Russell house, 601 ethnographic objects, 159 firearms, and 154 pieces of ephemera. Collections associated with Charles M. Russell include 402 drawings, 243 sculptures, 156 letters, 121 watercolors, and 52 oil paintings.