Welcome to the Wieghorst Museum!
Rated among the Top 10 Western art museums in the United States by True West Magazine.
Visit the Museum
Located in downtown El Cajon at 131 Rea Avenue, the museum is open every Friday 11 AM to 3 PM & Saturday from Noon to 4 PM.
Admission is free. Donations accepted.
Take a Virtual Tour
Can't come in person? Our interactive virtual tour takes you through the Heritage Center Museum galleries, Olaf's House, the mural walk and southwest cactus garden.
An American Story
Olaf Wieghorst was a Danish teenager who arrived in the U.S. in 1918. He had little money. He spoke three words of English.
Yet he rose to become an internationally recognized painter of western art.
The American West
Wieghorst Western Heritage Center presents the art of
Olaf Wieghorst
Known for his magnificent portrayals of the nineteenth century American West, Olaf exhibited a remarkable affinity for the cowboys, the Native American Indians, and the settlers who helped shape this country’s Western landscape.
“When the time comes for me to put away my palette and unsaddle my pony for the last time, I hope that my canvases will in some small measure add to the historical recording of an era, the cowboy, and the great American West.” ~ Olaf Wieghorst