There are over 23,000 museums nationwide, and many thriving museum environments are located far from major metropolitan corridors. Remote cities combine strong historical preservation, unique local industries, and academic support to sustain vibrant cultural institutions. Museums in these places often highlight cultural heritage sites, university research collections, historical battlefields or archaeological sites, notable birthplaces, and local art. Some small hubs, such as Marfa, Texas (population about 2,200), attract tens of thousands of visitors annually. Cities outside metropolitan statistical areas were ranked by museum count using 2024 IMLS data.
While many of the country's museum capitals are in major metropolitan areas like New York City and Washington, D.C., some of the country's richest museum environments exist far from any urban corridor. In these remote cities, strong historical preservation, unique local industries, and support from academic communities support vibrant networks of cultural institutions. Many showcase cultural heritage sites, university research collections, historical battlefield or archaeological sites, birthplaces of notable figures, or local art scenes.
Several remote cultural hubs exist hundreds of miles from any major city - Marfa, Texas, for example, where the population is just 2,200 people - and draw tens of thousands of tourists every year. A closer look at the data reveals the remote cities with the most museums. To determine the remote cities with the most museums, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed 2024 data from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Cities located outside of any metropolitan statistical area were ranked based on the number of museums within their boundaries in 2024.
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