In the Cherokee language, there are several phrases for how to address a visitor. The word ᎦᎵᏦᏕ galitsode is used when welcoming someone to our home—and we at the Museum feel like this place is our home. Our Museum is not like many other museums you may have visited before—we are not simply a history museum, an art museum, or a natural history museum. We tell our story here—a story that is living and still evolving. To our Cherokee visitors, welcome home. To our non-Native visitors, we also welcome you into our home. And just as we have a responsibility to be a gracious host to our guests, our visitors also have a responsibility to be respectful guests in our home.

We ask that you walk through the doors with a spirit of curiosity and humility. We know there is always more to learn, and we ask that you approach your visit with a willingness to learn and perhaps rethink some previously held beliefs about Native people and the Cherokee specifically.

• Outside food and drink are not permitted inside the Museum—please enjoy them at the tables located outside the Museum’s entrance.
• Pets are not allowed inside the Museum. Service animals are welcome.
• Firearms and weapons are prohibited.
• Smoking and vaping are prohibited inside the Museum.
• Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
• Please be mindful of others and refrain from disorderly or disruptive conduct.
• Non-flash photography for private, non-commercial use is welcome. For photography and filming of Museum objects and galleries for commercial use, please contact Lily Wright, Registrar at [email protected]. For photography and filming of Museum objects and galleries for press use, please contact Anna Chandler, Manager of External Affairs & Communications, at [email protected]. The Museum reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to withhold and/or withdraw permission to photograph on its premises or to reproduce photographs of objects in its collections.