Museum Collections and Archives

Museums in the National Park Service collect, preserve, study, and provide access to both natural and cultural resources and preserve these materials as educational tools for staff, researchers, and the public. The Museum Collections and Archives at Zion National Park manages over 880,000 of these important items including archival documents, natural history specimens, archeological artifacts, photographs, historic objects, ethnographic objects, and fine art. These collections contain materials which detail the history of the park from early park development and the Civilian Conservation Corps to the plants and animals which call the canyon landscape home. Select artifacts from the collection are on display in the Zion Human History Museum.

Zion museum and archives staff are currently working on a wide range of projects to ensure long-term preservation and access to museum collections and archives. Collaborative work with National Park Service conservators has identified preservation needs and guided staff in best practices for proper collections care and safe storage. Public benefit from the collections is provided through permanent and temporary exhibits, as well as recent efforts to digitize collections for public use. Digital collections are made available through NPGallery, the digital asset management database used by the National Park Service.

Zion National Park also manages the museum collections and archives for Bryce Canyon National Park and Cedar Breaks National Monument. Similar to the museum collections and archives at Zion, the collections of Bryce Canyon and Cedar Breaks detail the history of each park culturally, naturally, and administratively. Learn more about the collections of all three parks.