Best Ethnographic Museum Pomona Near Me

4worldlovers: The historic Spadra Cemetery is one of the oldest cemeteries in the Pomona Valley! Filled with people who headed west in a hurry, and the people who followed, this cemetery tour ties together the stories of the Phillips Mansion, the Currier Home, and the expansive Rubottom Family.

The Barbara Greenwood Kindergarten building is a lovely craftsman built to suit the smaller stature of younger students! Barbara Greenwood introduced the concept of teaching younger children in ways designed for them to the American school system, and this building showcases that concept with lower windows, lower toilets, and a variety of artifacts and antiques from previous education models.

The Palomares Adobe is the larger home that the Palomares Family built while living in the Casa Primera! It's furnished and decorated with period antiques and artifacts, several of which are from the Palomares Family. This tour also includes religious artifacts from the first Catholic Chapel in the Pomona Valley that started in the Vejar Adobe, including two newly restored paintings from the 1750's!

4worldlovers: Pomona, CA – From the beginning, Wally Parks envisioned a museum as THE place to view and learn about hot rods, customs, race cars, and speed records, and discover the stories of the people who made them possible.


Since 1998, the Museum has been a separate organization with its own governing Board of Directors who direct the Museum’s vision, purpose, and activities. The Museum is an independent California non-profit 501(c)(3) educational and cultural organization.


The Museum’s mission is to celebrate the impact of motorsports on American culture. The Museum collects, preserves, exhibits and interprets the vehicles, stories and artifacts that represent America’s affection for, and the influence of, automotive speed and style in all its forms.

The Museum’s collection includes dragsters, land speed vehicles, race cars, customs, hot rods and a changing array of one-of-a-kind vehicles that tell the story of American hot rodding. We are located in a historic Art Deco style exposition building on the grounds of the Los Angeles County Fairplex, which is also home to In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. The National Hot Rod Association has had a continuous presence here since it’s very first event, the Southern California Championships, were held at this drag strip on an April weekend in 1953. Today, the NHRA starts its season here with the Winternationals and concludes the season with the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals.

The Museum is open year-round and features thirty-thousand sq. feet of permanent and changing exhibitions. As you explore this site you’ll find more information on a variety of programs and events we present throughout the year, including our Hot Rod Reunions in Bowling Green, Kentucky and Bakersfield, California.