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Arriba, Colorado
 If you ever lived at Arriba, Colorado or even wondered about other people who did, or if just wish you had lived at Arriba or think you might someday stop there just to stretch your legs, then you need to visit The Arriba Museum at 317 Lincoln Avenue.
This museum is in a tiny, 100-year-old home at the northeast corner of Arriba’s city park, and it’s full of local history.
Arriba Museum
317 Lincoln Avenue, Arriba, CO 80804
Open April 15 - October 15 Daily 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Off Season by appointment only (719-768-3257)
get a map | driving directions
It’s believed that Jess Switzer built the little house around 1900, but Leonard and Irene Puritan moved the house to its present location after World War II. Subsequent occupants were Frederick Borden and Lloyd “Cactus” Place. After Cactus moved out, the little house stood vacant until Bob and Shirley Coulson purchased it in 2004.
 At the time they bought the lots, the Coulsons intended to move or raze the house and garage, and the garage ultimately WAS moved. But the Coulsons discovered the house to be structurally sound, so they fixed it up as a showcase for old family photographs and artifacts from Bob’s maternal and paternal grandparents…all Arriba homesteaders, arriving in 1887 and 1907, respectively.
The little museum attracted a lot of local attention, and soon other residents were donating or loaning items of historical value…including an entire collection of school annuals from 1925 to 1982. Other additions include a comprehensive history of the Arriba post office and a chronological record of Arriba’s history between 1888, when the first home was built, to 1937, after the Great Depression. This timeline is illustrated by a liberal collection of old photos, newspapers and household items used during that period.
 Also on hand are books and local history articles written by area residents, and a complete collection of Grassland Anthology, an area literary magazine published from 1987 to 1991.
The Arriba Museum is handicapped accessible, although visitors in wheelchairs are reminded that “jake brakes” are not permitted on the ramp. Visitors are greeted by volunteers who will be happy to chat and answer questions, or…if you prefer…to leave you to an uninterrupted private perusal of the museum’s offerings.
You don’t have to explain to anybody why you choose to visit the newest little museum on Colorado’s Central Plains. Just be sure to save some time for it!
More Museums:
- Lincoln County's Hedlund House Museum - Hugo, CO
- Limon Heritage Museum & Railroad Park - Limon, CO
- World’s Wonder View Tower - Genoa, CO
- Arriba Museum - Arriba, CO
- Grampa Jerry’s Clown Museum - Arriba, CO
- Flagler Hospital Museum & Hal Borland Room - Flagler, CO
- Second Central School Museum - Flagler, CO
- Kit Carson County Carousel - Burlington, CO
- Old Town - Burlington, CO
- Kit Carson Museum - Kit Carson, CO
- Cheyenne County Museum - Cheyenne Wells, CO
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