Whitman Mission National Historic Site
One moment can change the fate of many nations. After thousands of years of habitation by the Cayuse Nation, life in the Columbia River Plateau begins to change rapidly with the influx of missionaries, newcomers from the Oregon Trail, and diseases. A single violent act of desperation to protect a community ignites a series of events that will reshape the United States forever.
Alerts
- InformationPhone Lines Currently Down
The Whitman Mission NHS phone lines are currently down. If you need to contact us, please email whmi_interpretation. For field trip scheduling, please email [email protected]
Fire nearby
- WildfireDorran Road
18 mi from the park's reference point · 200 acres
- WildfireWildhorse Road
18 mi from the park's reference point · 25 acres
- WildfireWhiskey Creek
23 mi from the park's reference point · 120 acres
- WildfireParadise
24 mi from the park's reference point · 9,656 acres · 86% contained
Within 50 miles, as of 2026-10-14. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge. Check the park's alerts and the managing office before you drive.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
Hours
| Whitman Mission National Historic Site | Daily · Sunrise to Sunset |
When to go
May draws the most visits here and December the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Visitor centers
- Whitman Mission Visitor CenterPassport stamp
The Whitman Mission Visitor Center includes a museum exhibit and a 25 minute park film. The hours below are for the Whitman Mission Visitor Center. If you are planning a trip, you can find seasonal hours and other exceptions listed at the bottom of this page.
No campgrounds, no webcams or events in Park Service data. What is here comes from the official page. The rest lives there.
Checked nightly. Modules appear as soon as the Park Service publishes the data.
Explore
Things to do
- Programs at Whitman Mission NHS30-60 Minutes
Ranger programs at Whitman Mission National Historic Site occur Thursday through Sunday at 10:30 and 1:30. Check with rangers to find out what the program each day.
Opens on the Park Service site - Watch A Prophecy Fulfilled25 Minutes
For an introduction to Whitman Mission National Historic Site, watch the park film titled "A Prophecy Fulfilled."
Opens on the Park Service site - Whitman Mission NHS Audio Tour30-90 Minutes
The Whitman Mission NHS Self-Guided Audio Tour is a audio tour on the NPS exploring the history of Whitman Mission. It is a 10 stop tour starting at the Whitman Mission Visitor Center with each stop being about 2 minutes of audio.
Opens on the Park Service site - Walk the Trails and Tour the Mission Grounds15-60 Minutes
Walk the grounds and stand where history happened. Spot wildlife flitting from tree to tree, hiding in the grass, or sunning on the trail. Reflect while surrounded by an expansive view of the Walla Walla Valley.
Opens on the Park Service site - Picnic at Whitman Mission
Enjoy a picnic at the Whitman Mission picnic shelter. The picnic shelter is available whenever the park grounds are open unless otherwise noted. Please refrain from picnicking outside of the picnic area.
Opens on the Park Service site - Visit the Whitman Mission Museum
The one room exhibit includes Native American cultural items, archeological artifacts, and items that belonged to individuals who lived at the mission including the Whitmans.
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
On the National Register nearby
- Saturno-Breen Truck GardenBuilding · College Place · 4.1 mi
- John F. Boyer HouseBuilding · Walla Walla · 4.7 mi
- Walla Walla Valley Traction Company Car BarnBuilding · Walla Walla · 5.4 mi
- Washington SchoolBuilding · Walla Walla · 5.7 mi
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for the Pacific Northwest
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthEastern Fox Squirrel 1×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 209 birds, 32 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican kestrel · Bald Eagle · Cooper's Hawk · Ferruginous Hawk · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Long-eared Owl · Merlin · Northern Saw-whet Owl · Northern harrier · Osprey · Peregrine Falcon · Prairie Falcon · Red-tailed hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-eared Owl · Swainson's hawk · Turkey Vulture · Western Screech-Owl · barn owl
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Bittern · American White Pelican · American Wigeon · American coot · Barrow's Goldeneye · Black-crowned Night Heron · Black-necked Grebe · Blue Goose · Blue-winged Teal · Bufflehead · Canada goose · Cinnamon Teal · Common Goldeneye · Common Merganser · Common Teal · Double-crested Cormorant · Eurasian Wigeon · Great Blue Heron · Great Egret · Greater Scaup · Greater White-fronted Goose · Hooded Merganser · Lesser Scaup · Northern Pintail · Ring-necked Duck · Ross' Goose · Ruddy Duck · Sandhill Crane · Snowy Egret · Tundra Swan · Virginia Rail · Wood Duck · great egret · pied-billed grebe · white faced ibis
Shorebirds & seabirdsAmerican Avocet · Baird's Sandpiper · Black Tern · Bonaparte's Gull · California Gull · Caspian Tern · Common Tern · European Herring Gull · Forster's Tern · Glaucous Gull · Glaucous-winged Gull · Greater Yellowlegs · Killdeer · Lesser Yellowlegs · Long-billed Curlew · Long-billed Dowitcher · Pectoral Sandpiper · Red Phalarope · Red-necked Phalarope · Ring-billed gull · Semipalmated Plover · Short-billed Dowitcher · Solitary Sandpiper · Spotted Sandpiper · Western Sandpiper · Wilson's Phalarope · Wilson's snipe
Gamebirds & dovesCalifornia quail · Mourning Dove · Northern Bobwhite · Ring-necked pheasant · Rock pigeon · Wild Turkey
WoodpeckersDowny woodpecker · Hairy Woodpecker · Lewis' Woodpecker · Northern flicker · Pileated Woodpecker · Red-naped Sapsucker · Williamson's Sapsucker · Williamson's sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsCalliope Hummingbird · Rufous Hummingbird · Vaux's Swift · black-chinned hummingbird
Also on the checklistAmerican Dusky Flycatcher · American Goldfinch · American Tree Sparrow · American crow · American robin · Bank swallow · Barn Swallow · Belted kingfisher · Bewick's Wren · Black-billed magpie · Black-capped chickadee · Black-headed Grosbeak · Bohemian Waxwing · Brant · Brewer's Blackbird · Brewer's Sparrow · Brown-headed cowbird · Bullock's oriole · Canvasback · Cassin's Finch · Cassin's vireo · Cedar Waxwing · Chipping Sparrow · Common Nighthawk · Common Poorwill · Common Redpoll · Common Yellowthroat · Common grackle · Cordilleran flycatcher · Dark-eyed Junco · Eastern Kingbird · European starling · Evening Grosbeak · Fox Sparrow · Gadwall · Golden-crowned Kinglet · Golden-crowned Sparrow · Grasshopper Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Gray Partridge · Great Grey Shrike · Hammond's Flycatcher · Harris' Sparrow · Hermit Thrush · Horned Lark · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Lapland Longspur · Lark Sparrow · Lazuli Bunting · Lincoln's Sparrow · Loggerhead Shrike · Mallard · Marsh Wren · Mountain Bluebird · Northern Goshawk · Northern Raven · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Shoveler · Olive-sided Flycatcher · Pine Siskin · Red Crossbill · Red-breasted Nuthatch · Red-eyed Vireo · Red-winged blackbird · Redhead · Rock Wren · Roughleg · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Savannah Sparrow · Say's Phoebe · Song Sparrow · Sora · Steller's Jay · Swainson's Thrush · Townsend's Solitaire · Tree Swallow · Two-barred Crossbill · Varied Thrush · Veery · Vesper Sparrow · Violet-green Swallow · Warbling vireo · Water Pipit · Western Bluebird · Western Flycatcher · Western Kingbird · Western Meadowlark · Western Tanager · Western Wood Pewee · White-crowned Sparrow · White-throated Sparrow · Willow Flycatcher · Winter Wren · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-headed Blackbird · american pipit · black-capped chickadee · black-legged stilt · brown creeper · bullock's oriole · cassin's vireo · cliff swallow · gray-crowned rosy finch · gray-crowned rosy finch · mountain chickadee · spotted towhee · spotted towhee
Small mammalsAmerican Beaver · Common Muskrat · Deer mouse · Fulvous Harvest Mouse · Northern Pocket Gopher · Vagrant Shrew · coast mole · columbian ground squirrel · common porcupine · eastern cottontail · eastern gray squirrel · great basin pocket mouse · house mouse · montane vole
PredatorsAmerican Badger · American Mink · Bobcat · Coyote · Striped Skunk · common raccoon · long-tailed weasel
Hoofed mammalsMule Deer · White-tailed Deer
BatsFringed Myotis · Little Brown Bat · Small-footed Myotis · Yuma Myotis · big brown bat · hoary bat · silver-haired bat
Also on the checklistCaucasian wildcat · Virginia Opossum
Activities
Activity guides for this park Birdwatching in the national parks · Hiking in the national parks · Wildlife watching in the national parks
All 14 activitiesHide
Weather & climate
Summers are hot. Hats, water and sunblock are recommended. Winters are mild and rainy with a few snow storms. Layered clothing is advised.
Questions people ask
Does Whitman Mission charge an entrance fee?
No. Whitman Mission is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
What are the hours at Whitman Mission?
Standard hours are Sunrise to Sunset, every day.
Source: National Park Service
Is anything closed at Whitman Mission right now?
1 active alert as of October 14, 2026: Phone Lines Currently Down.
Source: Alerts
How busy is Whitman Mission?
54,089 recreation visits in 2025, number 257 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is there cell service at Whitman Mission?
At the park's reference point, FCC coverage maps show Verizon 4G LTE and AT&T 4G LTE. No reported coverage for T-Mobile. Coverage inside the park varies by location.
Source: FCC Broadband Map
When was Whitman Mission established?
1936.
Source: Wikipedia
What is the weather like at Whitman Mission?
Summers are hot. Hats, water and sunblock are recommended.
Source: Weather & climate
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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