EXHIBITIONS
LOCATION:
3
East Flaming Gorge Way
Green
River, Wyoming 82935
Just
blocks from
I-80 Exits 89 & 91
HOURS:
Monday — Saturday
10
am to 6 pm
Closed Sundays
& major holidays
ADMISSION:
FREE!
CONTACT:
(307) 872-6435
(307) 352-6715
(307) 872-3234 fax
Email:
swchm@sweetwater.net
see us on Facebook
Click on map below to enlarge
Discover the rich cultural heritage of southwestern Wyoming at the Sweetwater County Historical Museum. Established in 1967 to preserve the history of Sweetwater County, the museum galleries feature both permanent and temporary exhibitions. The museum also maintains exhibits at several off-site locations in Sweetwater County, including the airport, hospital, and other public facilities.
Sweetwater County's history began long before written records. In prehistoric times the landscape was swampy and inhabited by great dinosaurs. Thousands of years later Native American, mostly Shoshone and Ute, claimed the land. The first white men moving through the area with regularity were the mountain men. The first Rocky Mountain Rendezvous was held in 1825 in Sweetwater County, as was a later gathering in 1834 that is said to have been the largest rendezvous ever.
Several major emigrant trails passed through the county including the Oregon, California, Mormon, Overland, and Cherokee Trails, as well as the Pony Express Trail, 1961 transcontinental telegraph county was the coming of the transcontinental railroad in 1868. this was instrumental in the creation and development of Sweetwater County's two major population centers, Green River and Rock Springs. Green River was the major railroad town due to the nearness of a water supply, while Rock Springs became the coal mining center of the county.
To learn more about the museum's exhibitions, please
click on a topic below.
Dinosaurs ۰ Fossils ۰ Prehistoric People ۰ Native Americans ۰ Mountain Men
John Wesley Powell ۰ Oregon-California Trail ۰ Mormon Trail ۰ Pony Express
Cherokee & Overland Trail ۰ Stagecoaches ۰ Union Pacific Railroad ۰ Coal & Trona Mining
Oil & Gas Booms ۰ Mormon War of 1857 ۰ Chinese Massacre
U.S. Army in Wyoming ۰ Outlaws & Lawmen ۰ Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid
Big Nose George ۰ Cattle Ranching ۰ Sheep Herding ۰ Riverboats ۰ Aviation
Lincoln Highway ۰ Amelia Earhart ۰ Women's History ۰ Wyoming General Hospital
Nursing ۰ Firemen ۰ Rialto Theater ۰ Home Entertainment ۰ Wild Horses
Offsite Exhibits ۰ Chinese Dragon Parade
2010 Christmas Seasonal Display
A new Wyoming Rock Art exhibit is on display at the Sweetwater County Historical Museum. The exhibit, sponsored by the Newcastle Field Office of Bureau of Land Management, was created to travel to communities throughout Wyoming. Museum visitors will learn about the rich cultural heritage that is recorded on cliffs, boulders, and rock shelters throughout Wyoming.
Petroglyphs and paintings from across Wyoming are featured. The exhibit is organized by commonly asked questions, such as What is rock art? How old is it? What is the oldest rock art in Wyoming? How do people damage it? What does it mean? How do you visit rock art? Rock art in Wyoming dates from the end of the Ice Age to the early historic era and includes a rich variety of images made on rock surfaces.
Rock art can be painted or indented into the rock surface by battering, incising, or abrading the rock. Rock art is fragile and can be easily damaged by people touching or scratching it. Rock art changes a natural landscape into a sacred place where Indians conducted religious ceremonies. Damaging the images destroys the sacred place and everyone’s enjoyment of the rock art. We hope that this exhibit will enhance your appreciation of rock art and encourage you to join us in protecting this vulnerable resource.