Denver is full of fascinating museums. There are world-renowned art museums, a research-grade ice-core laboratory, massive nature and science museums and in-depth Colorado history museums.
But there are also some smaller diamonds hidden in the rough, ones that are often overlooked in the hunt for a good exhibit.
From one-of-a-kind oddity collections to warehouses full of comic books, these unique stores and museums offer a glimpse into some of the most unique collections around the country! Check them out below!
Unique collections and museums in Denver
Forney Transportation Museum
Antique vehicles
If cars are your thing, and even if they’re not, the Forney Transportation Museum is a must-see in Denver.
Forney Industries founder J.D. Forney found his love of antique vehicles back in 1961 when his family gifted him a 1921 Kissel, becoming the first of over 600 transportation-related artifacts to be housed in Forney’s ever-growing warehouse.
In addition to an impressive collection of antique trains, planes and cars, the Forney Transportation Museum holds some truly one-of-a-kind pieces within its massive walls. Strange custom vehicles with anything from eight wheels to three, Amelia Earhart’s very own 1923 Kissel ‘Gold Bug’ and a stunt vehicle from “Herbie the Love Bug,” as well as hundreds of others. If it’s on wheels, then it’s got a place in the museum, especially if there’s something strange about it.
Arguably as famous as the cars themselves are the strange spectators who keep the antiques company. Hundreds of mannequins fill empty seats, gaze up at planes or stand in awed crowds around the antiques. These mannequins make for quite the sight, so check them out alongside the cars.
Mile High Comics Mega Store
Comic books
Over 45,000 square feet of the Mile High Comics Mega Store is filled with over 10 million comic books, plus a plethora of related memorabilia that makes for a collection hard to top outside of Colorado.
Owner and collector extraordinaire Chuck Rozanski started his collection back in the 1960s with a handful of comics he particularly enjoyed. He hit the figurative goldmine when he began selling back-issue comics advertised in Marvel comics, and his success led him to establish his warehouse in the heart of Denver.
The first floor of the warehouse acts as the comic mega store, while the second floor plays host to a collection of toys, posters and memorabilia worthy of a museum. Make sure to head over if you’re looking for anything specific!
The Learned Lemur
Animal skulls
With curios ranging from animal skulls to taxidermized creatures to beetles and more, The Learned Lemur is one of Denver’s favorite oddities shops around.
Owner Jonathan Alberico began his collection in college with a few dermestid beetles, also known as flesh-eating beetles, which sparked his interest in collecting the creatures. Today, he uses his vast beetle collection to clean the animal skulls, bones and skeletons he brings into his store to sell.
The Learned Lemur shop, currently located on Colfax Avenue, opened in 2016 after Alberico spent years collecting any and all oddities he came across. Part of the store’s main mission is to provide quality oddities that meet a high ethical standard for an affordable price, providing patrons ample opportunity to collect unique pieces that would otherwise be near impossible to find.
If you’re interested in browsing through The Learned Lemur’s stock, be sure to check out the two-headed calf skull!
Fifty-Two 80's
Cartoon culture
Feeling nostalgic for some Saturday morning cartoons? What if we told you that there was a place that could transport you back in time to a happier, more carefree slice of life in the form of a warehouse full of ‘80s and ‘90s happiness?
Fifty-Two 80’s is a vintage store that stocks pop culture items from the 1980s through 1990s, including nearly 4,500 items ranging from gaming consoles, VHS tapes, toys, clothes, puzzles, action figures, trading cards, music and more! You could spend another whole decade just browsing through the entire collection, quite honestly, and you can even find rare and unique items like “Jurassic Park” cereal!
Buckhorn Exchange
Taxidermy
Is it a steakhouse? Is it a historic house? Is it a Rocky Mountain Oyster restaurant? Is it a museum? Who knows?
The Buckhorn Exchange is covered nearly wall-to-wall with taxidermy ranging from sub-Saharan wildcats to brown bears to rattlesnakes and more, and their menu boasts just as impressive a list of wild and exotic game. The bright red walls and low-lit atmosphere harken back to its early days in the early 1890s, back when it was founded, making it not just Denver’s oldest steakhouse, but also the oldest restaurant in the entire city!
Be sure to browse their expansive menu of game, fowl, fish and more, all under the watchful eyes of a hundred unseeing animal eyes…
So, if you live in our luxury Denver apartments, and you’re looking around for something unique and special to see, these museums around Denver are perfect for an afternoon outing and educational adventure!
Enjoy!
Pin it!
Featured photo courtesy Pixabay/Engin_Akyurt
Colleen Ford is a South African who now lives on Oahu in Hawai'i. She loves to travel, camp, spearfish and hike. She's also part of a super cool canoe club and is pretty decent at it. Colleen enjoys Star Wars and also not being cold ever.
View All Posts by Colleen Ford