In 1940, upon completion of Berthoud Hall, home to Mines' geology department, the collection was unpacked by its newest Curator, J. Harlan Johnson and informally exhibited there until 2002.

In 2003, a space designed specifically for the museum was built as part of the GRL (General Research) building on campus.

This 15,000 square foot space is the current home of the museum with more than 2,500 fossils, gemstones, meteorites, minerals, and mining artifacts.

Significant objects in the Museum's collection include: the Miss Colorado Crown, two lunar samples from the Apollo 15 and 17 missions, the Allison-Boettcher gold collection, the Wolcott silver pitcher and tray, an apatosaurus femur, an impressive assortment of fluorescent minerals, and the most comprehensive public collection of Colorado minerals in the world.

Mines Museum is open seven days a week and admission is FREE.