Events

Aug 28

Fun for the whole family with entertainment, carnival, camping, exhibits and food.

Aug 27

Loud pipes contest, mustang parade and mustang drag racing.

Aug 30

Festival in the park, parade, carnival, rib cook-off and show and shine.

Aug 30

Blending music performances with captivating art instillations. 

Mar 23

For over 600 years, stringed keyboard instruments have served as repositories for human imagination, science, technology, craft, artistry, and music. They are admired for their stature – and oftentimes stunning beauty – alongside their ability to play both melody and harmony. Keyboard innovation has continuously expanded throughout the world, throughout time.



Opening in March 2024, the special exhibition “High Strung: Five Centuries of Stringed Keyboard Instruments” will explore the form, function and development of keyboard instruments from early harpsichords to the modern piano. The special exhibition brings together nearly 20 keyboard instruments from the NMM’s collections - some of which have never before been on exhibit.



Instruments that will be on display include:


• An octave virginal (NMM 4660), from the same workshop as the NMM’s Neapolitan harpsichord, c.1530 (NMM 14408)

• A highly decorated harpsichord by Andreas Ruckers, 1643 (NMM 10000)

• Harpsichord by Nicolas Dufour, 1683 (NMM 5943, pictured below), made in Paris in a native style that fell from popularity by the first decade of the 18th century

• French grand piano, Clavecin à marteaux, (harpsichord with hammers) by Louis Bas (NMM 4653) from 1781. This instrument, the earliest surviving French grand piano, is exceptional, retaining much of its original action parts

• Downward-striking piano by Nanette Streicher und Sohn (NMM 10298), and a small trapezoid hammer instrument by Gottfried Maucher (NMM 4570) – an example of a lesser-known instrument type, similar to the tangentenflugel by Späth and Schmahl, built c.1784 (NMM 4145), which was once a favorite instrument type of Mozart

• Grand piano by Erard (NMM 5984) and Chickering & Sons (NMM 5413), built at a time in which America led the way in piano technology, not only with grand pianos, but also with the large ”square” pianos by makers such as William Knabe & Company (NMM 14447)



“High Strung: Five Centuries of Stringed Keyboard Instruments” will open to the public on March 23, 2024 in the NMM’s Jason & Betsy Groves Special Exhibition Gallery. It will remain open through the calendar year. Support for the exhibition is provided by generous grants from the Clayton and Odessa Lang Ofstad Foundation and the City of Vermillion, SD.

Fee: $Included with Museum Admission

Aug 01

Make August awesome with our Arcade Special! Visit us August 1st – August 31st to get $5 in bonus cash for FREE when you buy a $20 Arcade Card. Buy online or in person.

Aug 28

The Patriots all shared one conviction…that our 13 Colonies should be free.

Visitors to this interactive, multi-media exhibit are invited to consider the choice faced by members of the revolutionary generation as tensions mounted in the 1770s: Would these ordinary citizens risk their lives and livelihoods in pursuit of liberty? Or would they remain loyal subjects of the British crown, coming into conflict with neighbors and family? …What would YOU do?

FREE - Sponsored by the Daughters of the American Revolution, The SD American 250! Commission & the American Battlefield Trust

Aug 27

Together, we strive to create a society of CURIOUS, SCIENTIFICALLY LITERATE, and ENGAGED problem solvers. You can be a critical part in fulfilling our vision by finding your volunteer focus below. Come in during volunteer hours to learn how you can help!

Aug 22

Together, we strive to create a society of CURIOUS, SCIENTIFICALLY LITERATE, and ENGAGED problem solvers. You can be a critical part in fulfilling our vision by finding your volunteer focus below. Come in during volunteer hours to learn how you can help!

Aug 30

“Drawing on the Bad River,” an exhibition of drawings and paintings by Mark Zimmerman, does what it says: it draws on time spent exploring and steeping in the Bad River’s incredible landscape. In varying degrees of abstraction, Zimmerman examines the look, feel, and subsequent memories of a storied landscape in the heart of South Dakota. The drawings are as much an exploration of the possibilities afforded by graphite as of the landscape itself. Likewise, Zimmerman’s paintings frequently push the limits of acrylic paint. “Drawing on the Bad River” is a labor of love awaiting explorers who enjoy that winding river valley together with the spaciousness of the High Plains and relish seeing them anew through an artist’s imagination. Thank you for the support of the South Dakota Arts Council, with funds from the State of South Dakota, through the Department of Tourism, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Open House Friday July 30 from 4pm to 7pm to kick off this six week exhibit. Complimentary hor d'ouvres and adult beverages. Join Mark Zimmerman and other artists/arts supporters at Waterfront Gallery located on the shores of the Missouri river.

Exhibit will run through October 13, 2024.