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Museum carries on its annual Day of the Dead tradition

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Museum volunteer Emilio Sanchez stands before the Día de los Muertos ofrenda he designed and built for the Sweetwater County Historical Museum. The special exhibit will remain up through the first week of November.

(Sweetwater County, Wyo. - October 21, 2021)     The Sweetwater County Historical Museum in Green River is continuing a special autumn tradition with a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) ofrenda. As featured in the animated Walt Disney film Coco, Día de los Muertos is a holiday for honoring the dead which originated in Mexico but is now celebrated in many countries and regions. Celebrants create ofrendas (offerings) using items such as food, flowers, photos, and sugar skulls.

Museum volunteer Emilio Sanchez of Green River created this year’s ofrenda exhibit at the museum.

Typically Día de los Muertos begins on October 31 and lasts through November 2. The Museum’s ofrenda, however, will be on display through the first week of November.

Anyone who would like to make an offering to deceased loved ones, friends, or celebrities may do so anytime during the museum's business hours. The offering can be as simple as a photo of your loved one or you may bring more elaborate items you have decorated for Día de los Muertos. Please keep in mind that this is a public display and the Sweetwater County Historical Museum is not responsible for lost or stolen items.

The museum is located at 3 E. Flaming Gorge Way in Green River. Hours are 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and admission is free.

Smithsonian Traveling Exhibit in Green River Closing Soon

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The Crossroads Change in Rural America Introduction Panel. The panel looks like a city welcoming sign with two large faux brick pillars holding a sign with the image of a fictional rural community. It says 'Crossroads Change in Rural Communities.'

(Sweetwater County, Wyo. - October 19, 2021)      The Sweetwater County Historical Museum’s special exhibit at the Green River Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center, “Crossroads: Change in Rural America,” will have its last day on Thursday, October 21.

Presented in cooperation with Wyoming Humanities / thinkWY and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, “Crossroads” examines the evolving landscape of rural America, including special display banners that feature Sweetwater County’s communities, including Rock Springs, Green River, Superior, Point of Rocks, Wamsutter, Little America, Granger,

McKinnon-Washam, Bairoil, Farson-Eden, and Reliance. There is no charge for admission.

Museum Director Dave Mead explained that “Crossroads” is a traveling exhibit and is closing two days early due to scheduling conflicts and shipping issues. The exhibit is set for display at five other communities in Wyoming through June 18, 2022; the Homesteaders Museum in Torrington, beginning October 27, 2021, the Laramie County Library in Cheyenne, in January 2022, the Nicolaysen Museum at Casper College, February 2022, the Homesteader Museum in Powell, March 2022, and the Converse County Library in Douglas, May 2022.

Over 1,300 people have visited the exhibit since it opened on September 11. The Visitor’s Center is currently on winter hours, which are Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM.

SMITHSONIAN TRAVELING EXHIBIT OPENS IN GREEN RIVER

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A large exhibit panel meant to look like a city welcome sign. The sign says Welcome to Crossroads Change in Rural America. Where people meet, ideas intersect, and change is constant.
September 14, 2021
The Sweetwater County Historical Museum’s new special exhibit, “Crossroads: Change in Rural America,” is now open at the Green River Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center. The exhibit is presented in cooperation with Wyoming Humanities / thinkWY and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.
“Crossroads” examines the evolving landscape of rural America, and will open and on view through October 24, 2021. There is no charge for admission.
The Sweetwater County Historical Museum and the communities of Sweetwater County were expressly chosen by Wyoming Humanities / thinkWY to host “Crossroads” as part of the Museum on Main Street program—a national/state/local partnership to bring exhibitions and programs to rural cultural organizations. “Crossroads” explores how rural American communities changed in the 20th century. The vast majority of the United States landscape remains rural, with only 3.5% of the landmass considered urban. Since 1900, the percentage of Americans living in rural areas dropped from 60% to 17%. The exhibit looks at that remarkable societal change and how rural Americans responded
The elaborate exhibit, which covers over 750 square feet of floor space, is part of Museum on Main Street, a unique collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), state humanities councils across the nation, and local host institutions. In addition to Sweetwater County, “Crossroads” will tour five other communities in Wyoming through June 18, 2022; the Homesteaders Museum in Torrington, beginning October 2021, the Laramie County Library in Cheyenne, in January 2022, the Nicolaysen Museum at Casper College, February 2022, the Homesteader Museum in Powell, March 2022, and the Converse County Library in Douglas, May 2022.
To learn more about “Crossroads” and other Museum on Main Street exhibitions, visit www.museumonmainstreet.org.
 
An official grand opening for the exhibit is scheduled at the Visitor Center at 1155 W. Flaming Gorge Way for Friday, September 17, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM, with a special ribbon-cutting ceremony at 5:30. Refreshments and snacks will be served, a cash bar will be available for those 21 or over, and the public is invited to attend.
The museum is also sponsoring “Music of the Community,” a combination concert and panel discussion emceed by Andrea Graham, a University of Wyoming Folkore Specialist, on Friday, September 24th, at the Broadway Theater in Rock Springs. Performing will be local talent ZamTrip, Sickamore Treezy, and Dave Pedri and the EIO Band. The doors at the Broadway will open at 5:30 PM, the panel opens at 6:00, and the concert will begin at 7:15. Admission will be free, and a cash bar will be available for those 21 and over.
You can see a preview of the exhibit here on our YouTube Channel.

County museum announces winners of scholarship program and essay contest

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Essay winner Green River High School Junior Faith Duncan receives a giant check for $100 at the museum from Director Dave Mead and Richelle Rawlins-Carroll of the Sweetwater County Museum Foundation

Photo #1 - Sweetwater County Historical Museum Director Dave Mead and Richelle Rawlings-Carroll of the Sweetwater County Museum Foundation presented Faith Duncan with her $100 essay prize on Thursday. Faith is a junior at the Green River High School.

 Scholarship contest winner Jessica Petri receives a giant check for $1,000 from Director Dave Mead and Zaundra Hamilton of the Sweetwater County Museum Foundation

Photo #2 - Zaundra Hamilton of the Sweetwater County Museum Foundation and Dave Mead, director of the Sweetwater County Historical Museum, present Jessica Lee Petri her $1,000 scholarship prize for her essay  “Carnegie Capitalism: An Analysis of the Importance of Philanthropy in Maintaining a Free Economy.”

 

(Sweetwater County, Wyo. - August 6, 2021)     The Sweetwater County Historical Museum and its not-for-profit partner, the Sweetwater County Museum Foundation, have announced the winners of 2021's Scholarship Program and Essay Contest.

Scholarship Winner

Jessica Lee Petri of Green River, a new freshman at the University of Wyoming, won a $1,000 scholarship for her essay, “Carnegie Capitalism: An Analysis of the Importance of Philanthropy in Maintaining a Free Economy.”

Essay Winner

Faith Duncan, a junior at the Green River High School, submitted her essay entitled “How Local History Inspired Me to Use My Voice to Spread Change” and won a $100 prize.

Funding for the contest’s awards was provided by the Sweetwater County Museum Foundation.

The museum’s director, Dave Mead, joined the rest of the museum staff in congratulating the winners, whose essays will be published soon in the Rock Springs Rocket-Miner and the Green River Star.

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