14 Places to Celebrate Native American Heritage Day

Though Native Americans have long been part of Thanksgiving lore—and not always in culturally appropriate ways—it wasn’t until 2008 that the day after the holiday was declared Native American Heritage Day. Created to honor and recognize Native American culture and struggles, and encourage all Americans to interact with this heritage, it is a great opportunity to visit one of the country’s thousands of monuments, museums, and historical sites dedicated to Indigenous life. 

On Park Avenue in Albuquerque, New Mexico, a small, multicolored building brightens a quaint corner: Red Planet Books & Comics, the country’s only Native American comic store. The brainchild of Lee Francis IV, it is filled with indigenous literature, graphic novels, and comic books. The building’s facade also contains an ode to the Pueblo Revolt. Amid a serene setting in Pendleton, Oregon, is the only Native American museum located on the Oregon Trail. For more than 10,000 years, the Cayuse, Umatilla, and Walla Walla peoples have called this region home. All three groups established and currently operate the museum. From a tribute to the Navajo Code talkers to the burial place of Chief Pontiac, here are some of our favorite places all over the country to learn more about the wide range of Native American cultures.