Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States California Desert Hot Springs Cabot's Pueblo Museum

Cabot's Pueblo Museum

The Hopi-style structure was built by the man who discovered Desert Hot Springs' famous mineral water.

Desert Hot Springs, California

Added By
Lee Hernandez
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum   Erin Johnson / Atlas Obscura User
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
Meditation tower built for Cabot’s wife Portia   Erin Johnson / Atlas Obscura User
  Avoiding Regret
Cabot’s trusty mule, Merry Christmas   Erin Johnson / Atlas Obscura User
Waokiye.   Stevan Rich/CC BY-SA 3.0
  Avoiding Regret
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum   Erin Johnson / Atlas Obscura User
Behind one of the 65 doors…   Erin Johnson / Atlas Obscura User
Waokiye.   Joe Crawford/CC BY 2.0
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
  Avoiding Regret
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  In Search of the Perfect Sunset
  In Search of the Perfect Sunset
  In Search of the Perfect Sunset
  In Search of the Perfect Sunset
  In Search of the Perfect Sunset
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  rickonpark / Atlas Obscura User
Cabot’s Pueblo   FrugePhoto / Atlas Obscura User
Cabbot pueblo  
  MtnLady / Atlas Obscura User
October 2018   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
October 2018   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum.   minnemom/CC BY-ND 2.0
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

There’s a fascinating museum high up in the hills above Desert Hot Springs, California. It centers around a Hopi-style pueblo and is full of artifacts from American Indian and Alaska Natives, as well as work by contemporary artists.

Cabot Yerxa, an explorer, activist, builder, Mason, and much more, built the American Indian-inspired structure from scrap materials he found in the surrounding desert. The entire pueblo is handmade, meticulously crafted from sun-dried bricks and wood leftover from abandoned cabins.

Before completing the museum, Yerxa was notable for having discovered the two hot springs that spew the now-famous mineral waters of Desert Hot Springs. He was also the founder and president of the local Theosophical Society.

Yerxa began constructing the 4-floor, 35-room building in 1941 and worked on it up until his death in 1965. With a bit of initial help from a trusty mule named Merry Christmas, he labored for over two decades on the unusual abode. He designed the house to take advantage of natural ventilation to help keep it cool, and drew inspiration for its shape from a replica of a pueblo he saw at the Chicago World’s Fair as a child.

Though the building still wasn’t complete, Yerxa debuted "Cabot's Old Indian Pueblo" in 1945. He dedicated the Hopi pueblo in honor of the area's native tribes. Yerxa and his wife ran the museum up until his death. The estate was then briefly abandoned and vandalized, but it has since been restored after being donated to the city by one of Yerxas’ friends.

Now, Cabot’s Pueblo Museum exhibits artifacts and artwork, as well as content from Yerxa’s own life. Cabot’s Trading Post & Gallery, located right near the main pueblo, sells work made by local artists.

In May of 1978, the museum also gained Waokiye, a towering wooden sculpture named for the Lakota Sioux term for “traditional helper.” It was made from a 750-year-old felled Sequoia redwood tree and is one of 74 giant carved heads created by Hungarian sculptor Peter "Wolf" Toth.

Related Tags

Museums Architecture Native Americans Museums And Collections Deserts Eccentric Homes Homes

Know Before You Go

The museum offers guided tours. There’s so much to see that it requires multiple tours to cover all the amazing details.

Community Contributors

Added By

littlestbiglee

Edited By

Avoiding Regret, Erin Johnson, Kerry Wolfe, In Search of the Perfect Sunset...

  • Avoiding Regret
  • Erin Johnson
  • Kerry Wolfe
  • In Search of the Perfect Sunset
  • ccesare
  • FrugePhoto
  • MtnLady
  • rickonpark
  • pstomjones

Published

October 3, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Cabot's Pueblo Museum
67616 Desert View Ave
Desert Hot Springs, California
United States
33.958019, -116.481531
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Volkswagen Spider Sculpture

Palm Springs, California

miles away

Shiprock, Palm Springs

Palm Springs, California

miles away

Kaleidoscope Desert

Morongo Valley, California

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of California

California

United States

Places 1,494
Stories 135

Nearby Places

Volkswagen Spider Sculpture

Palm Springs, California

miles away

Shiprock, Palm Springs

Palm Springs, California

miles away

Kaleidoscope Desert

Morongo Valley, California

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of California

California

United States

Places 1,494
Stories 135

Related Stories and Lists

14 Places to Celebrate Native American Heritage Day

List

By Jonathan Carey

Related Places

  • The bright yellow front of Yusupov Palace.

    Saint Petersburg, Russia

    Rasputin Museum at Yusupov Palace

    Palace where the nearly un-killable Rasputin was murdered.

  • North Adelaide, Australia

    David Roche House Museum

    A vast and opulent collection of art and show dog memorabilia collected over one man's lifetime.

  • Sheffield, England

    Bishops' House

    This house was home to a succession of park keepers for more than 90 years, but in all that time, it never had a toilet.

  • House, art gallery, and museum.

    Puerto Varas, Chile

    Pablo Fierro Museum

    This fairytale house on the shore of a Chilean Lake oozes an eclectic mix of Chilote and German Cultural heritage.

  • The James Museum

    St. Petersburg, Florida

    James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art

    This Florida museum dedicated to western artwork is entered through an artificial canyon with imported sandstone.

  • The 15th Century Merchants house that started it all.

    Stoke Heath, England

    The Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings

    A slightly surreal menagerie of structures that were lovingly spared from demolition and reconstructed in a field.

  • A traditional wooden building at the museum.

    Suzdal', Russia

    Museum of Wooden Architecture and Peasant Life

    300-year-old villagers houses and traditional churches preserve a nearly lost piece of Russian history.

  • The bathhouse that inspired Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away.”

    Koganei, Japan

    Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum

    Thirty architectural gems from the 19th- and early 20th-century Tokyo were restored and relocated to this space.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.