Museum of the Mountain Man opens for the summer season
Special mountain man art exhibit on display
by Dawn Ballou, Pinedale Online!
May 3, 2024
The Museum of the Mountain Man in Pinedale opened May 1st for the summer season. The Museum preserves and interprets the history of the Rocky Mountain fur trade era, 1820-1840.
New this season, is a special mountain man art exhibit in the downstairs rotunda. The exhibit is entitled: "One With the Land: The Mountain Man’s Journey Into the Unknown."
This exhibit features more than 70 original pieces of artwork from 38 artists all depicting historic mountain men on the landscapes they explored and lived. The display is on loan from the Peterson Family Foundation in Boston.
Artists whose work is in the exhibit include: Barry Eisanach, Charles Fritz, Chris Calle, Clark Kelly Price, David Wright, Don Crowley, Don Meiduch, Ernie Cselko, Frank Hagel, Frank Magsino, Frank McCarthy, Gary Carter, Gary Metz, Gerald Farm, Gordon Snidow, Harry Johnson, James Bama, Jeffrey Watt, Jim Norton, Joe Abbrescia, Joe Beeler, Joe Velazquez, Juan Dell, Judy Allen, Ken Riley, Lee Teter, M. C. Paulson, Maynard Dixon, Michael Coleman, Michael Dudash, Paul Calle, Richard Iams, Robert Lougheed, Russell Houston, Steve Devenyns, Tim Shinabarger, Todd Conner, and William Ahrendt. This impressive art exhibit will be on display through October of 2024.
In mid-May, the American Mountain Men (AMM) will be at the Museum for three days, May 7-9, for Living History Days. Schools from all over western Wyoming will bring classes of children to see demonstrations and hear talks by the mountain men about the daily life in the mountains during the early 1800s. The public is welcome to attend the talks during the day and visit with the mountain men at their camp on the Museum lawn in the evening. The AMM will return July 10-14 for Green River Rendezvous in Pinedale. There will be over 38 living history programs and demonstrations at the Museum, all free to the public. Additional presenters include talks by Native American historian Bad Hand, and children’s programs by Lapita and Dan Frewin. The schedule of events is posted on the Museum website here. Visitors are strongly advised to make their room reservations well in advance of rendezvous in July, as lodging in town fills up for that event. For information about lodging, see www.visitpinedale.com.
In the fall, the Museum of the Mountain Man will be the host for the National Fur Trade Symposium, September 12-15, which is held every three years around the country. This year’s symposium will launch the ‘Eve of Rendezvous’, and the 200-year anniversary of important fur trade era dates that will occur over the next twenty years. During the four-day symposium in Pinedale, there will be presentations by leading fur trade historians who will explore the evolution of rendezvous, discovery of South Pass, the events of 1824, Jedediah Smith, Thomas Fitzpatrick, Andrew Henry, John Weber, William Clark, John Colter, elk hide tipis, food & booze of the fur trade, and a debate on the greatest mountain man of all time. Special programs include keynote speaker Jim Hanson, a visit to the Green River rendezvous grounds, living history mountain man camp, a rendezvous meal, auto tours and special art exhibits. Registration is open for this conference. See www.MuseumoftheMountainMan.com/symposium for more about presentations, programs and speakers.
2024 Calendar of Events at the Museum of the Mountain Man:
May 7–9: Living History Days with the American Mountain Men
July 11: Annual Western Art & Wine Auction
July 11–14: Green River Rendezvous (American Mountain Men, Bad Hand, Lapita & Dan Frewin)
Sept 1: Sommers Homestead Living History Museum Open
House & Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame Celebration
Sept 12-15: National Fur Trade Symposium
Oct TBD: Halloween at the Museum
Nov 1: Museum closes for the Season
Dec 6: Wreath & Chocolate Auction
The Museum is located at 700 E Hennick St. They are open daily, including weekends, from 9AM to 5PM through October. Admission is $10 for adults (age 13 and up), $8 for senior citizens, children 12 and under are free. Phone: 307-367-4101, www.museumofthemountainman.com
|
