When we visited the Tri-Valley I immediately loved it. Everything about Livermore, Pleasanton and Danville were a combination of artistic, adorable and quaint, and I could see why you’d want to live here, let alone visit. Whilst on our short stay in the Tri-Valley, we visited the Blackhawk Museum in Danville

We’d shortly had some food at Harvest, Danville (which I’d highly recommend) before heading over to the Black Hawk Museum. Based amongst some shops at the Blackhawk Plaza Shopping centre, next to a gorgeous foundation and a somewhat epically grand statue of an Elephant was the Blackhawk Museum. We’d been invited by the manager who was so kind to have opened the museum especially for Nick and me to explore. I’d had no prior knowledge of the museum or what it contained, so this was going to be a complete surprise.

Blackhawk Museum History

The Blackhawk Museum was founded back in 1988, as the Behring Auto Museum, and it has been standing proud in sunny California ever since. It was set up by the partnership of Ken Behring and Don Williams, who opened it up as an automobile museum with cars dating back to 120 years. This was something both Nick and I were super excited about, as we both thoroughly enjoy attending classic car shows, and this museum was bursting with them!

Although the non-profit museum began just as an exhibition for vintage and famous cars, it began to expand into other areas from 1991, and introduced a permanent collection upstairs in 2015, Spirit of the Old West. Another part of American history I’m absolutely fascinated by, and so I was incredibly excited to see all the artifacts.

The Cars

One major area this museum is renowned for is their epic and might I add, spectacular, selection of automobiles. There are so many from celebrity cars from films and a clear evolution from the first cars on the road to today. One of my favourites was the Harrods green car we saw, it had a somewhat British feel to it and you could almost envisage someone of higher status riding the streets of London for a spontaneous shop at Harrods! Unfortunately, I’m no major expert in cars but all I can say is that even if you aren’t, this is still a must see just to have a look at these incredible models. As you can see from the mere snippet of photos of them above, they were incredible.

Spirit of the Old West

I’ve been somewhat fascinated by American history, so I was thrilled to discover Blackhawk Museum had a collection of artefacts stemming the length to explore how the west was won. A mind-boggling extensive range of history spread out across a vast room, with clothing to weapons and a very impressive, 10,000 piece model sized journey through history. You don’t really know where to begin when you enter, but I assure you, this will keep you mentally stimulated for a good hour.

Into China & Art of Africa

We only got a glimpse into the next two exhibitions, because I spent so much time exploring the Wild West! I will say this though, Into China is quite spectacular in the sense of creations. There was a huge piece of art carved with a wave of horses galloping across the length. There was all sorts, and to be honest, I wish we’d had more time to explore.

Should you visit Blackhawk Museum?

Yes! Not only will can you enjoy the museum in this area, but there are also shops and places for coffee in the complex. Nick and I both said how easy it would be to spend your morning or afternoon here. Blackhawk Museum is closed every Monday & Tuesday, but open the rest of the week 10 am – 5 pm. The prices start from $15 for adult admission then concessions. Visit Blackhawk Museum to find out more.

A huge thank you to Blackhawk Museum for not only hosting us, but opening especially for us to have a look around.