Your Underground Adventure Awaits: Museums’ 2021 Tour Season opens on May 1st

The Mining and Rollo Jamison Museums are pleased to announce the opening of our 2021 Tour Season and the kickoff of a year of milestone anniversaries: the 50th of the completion of the Mining Museum, the 45th of the opening of the Bevans Mine, and the 40th of the Rollo Jamison Museum in Platteville! This year’s tour season brings the return of a full complement of tours, including guided tours of the underground Bevans Mine, train rides, self-guided tours of interior museum exhibits, school fieldtrips, group tours, and private tours. The Museums are open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from May 1st through October 31st. We also offer a variety of virtual experiences for youth and adults. 

To thank the citizens of Platteville for their continued support, The Mining & Rollo Jamison Museums is excited to offer two community free days: season opening day, May 1; and season closing day, October 31. Museum admission, including a guided mine tour and train ride (weather permitting) is free to Platteville residents (proof of residency require). Reserve your spot today! Visit www.mining.jamison.musuem/programs to register. 

The Museums invite all to celebrate with us during this special year. Visit and enjoy the refreshed spaces and the many new artifacts on display and interpretive exhibits highlighting Rollo Jamison, science, and technology. Museum Director Erik Flesch says, “In this milestone anniversary year, we have been excited to reconnect to our museum’s roots as a living laboratory for innovation, know how, and can-do spirit.”  Watch for upcoming events, both virtual and in-person, to celebrate our trifecta of anniversaries. Visit our website to stay up to date on upcoming events or the register for tours, programs, and events. 

The Mining & Rollo Jamison Museums remains attuned to safeguarding public health during the COVID-19 pandemic as we reopen to the public for the 2021 season. To promote a healthy and safe experience for all our guests and staff, museum staff are disinfecting public areas on a regular basis, and we ask that guests wear a cloth face covering (disposable masks available), wash hands or use hand sanitizer upon entering the building, and practice social distancing. 

The Mining & Rollo Jamison Museums are located on Main Street in Platteville, Wisconsin, in the heart of the historic Upper Mississippi Valley lead-zinc mining region. Founded in 1964, the museum is a nearly three-acre campus with scenic greenspace, an underground 1845 Bevans Mine, and a 1930s-era narrow-gauge mine railroad pulled by a 1931 Whitcomb locomotive. The mission of the Museums is to continue in the pursuit of excellence in the areas of regional and mining history. To achieve that purpose, the Museums are commissioned to be custodians of the past; to interpret the rich lead and zinc mining heritage of the region, as well as to preserve, interpret, and display the artifacts that define Southwest Wisconsin. The Museums open daily from May to October 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cultural programs and special events are offered year-round. Follow The Mining & Rollo Jamison Museums on Facebook @MiningJamisonMuseum and visit our website at www.mining.jamison.museum for more information on current and upcoming programs or call (608) 348-3301 or email museums@platteville.org.