(Riverton, WY) The Riverton Museum’s Main Gallery has been undergoing several changes over the past few months, the results of which will be unveiled at an Open hHouse event at the museum’s location on the corner of East Park and North 7th Avenue.
Open House admission will be free on Saturday, April 13 from 10:00 to 4:00 p.m. The public is invited to see the work done, meet some of the staff, and get information about the museum’s 2024 activities and events. Donations are gladly accepted and appreciated.
‘Goodbye, old paint’…new paint, new carpet, new cameras, new schedule
The work in the museum’s Main Gallery began in November 2023 with the painting of the walls after the installation of new drywall, and the laying of new carpet. Many of the displays depicting the story of Riverton and the vicinity have been and will be rearranged in a more chronological timeline.
Site Manager Nathaniel Griffee’s vision for the Main Gallery’s new layout is for visitors to take a walk through the history of the area starting with natural history, pre-history, “and then come around to Riverton.”
“The energy industry, more recent history…some exhibits will come up from downstairs, and we’ll be changing some of those exhibits as well.”
Collections Manager April Peregoy and Program and Events Manager Kevin Scannell have been assisting Griffee with the display items and arrangements.
Peregoy said that when people donate items or artifacts to the museum, “it helps that they come with the prominence of the items,” she said. “It’s isn’t just something that is old, but something that is uniquely associated and has significance with Riverton or Eastern Fremont County communities, or the Reservation.”
The museum’s surveillance system has also been upgraded, with more interior and exterior security cameras.
Another change will be that, for the first time in several decades, the museum will now be open seven days a week, Monday through Sunday: The hours will remain the same, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults; seniors and students are $5, kids 5 and under are free.
‘A Town of Rivers’: Mural by Dan Weeks
The town was first dubbed the name “Wadsworth”, after H.G. Wadsworth, before it was officially renamed Riverton in 1906, because of the town being situated at the convergence of four rivers, namely: The Big and Little Wind Rivers, the Big and Little Popo Agie Rivers.
The United Methodist Church was established in 1916 and became the Riverton Museum in 1969. The church’s original stained glass windows were removed in October of last year and have since been returned to the Methodist church.
Griffee said he had been wanting to rearrange the interior for a while. “Once the windows were removed, that pretty much kicked off the whole interior project.”
It was in December of last year when the museum commissioned local plein air artist Dan Weeks to create three mural paintings where the stained glass windows once were. Weeks’ paintings are also in the museum’s downstairs gallery.
Weeks said that, in the summer when he took treks to the river to do his daily painting, he began noticing the architecture of some of the buildings around the pond area. He began to do some research on the area and the history of how the rivers functioned as a part of the railroad industry and the development of Riverton’s economy through the years.
“This is where all the action was, right where I sit and paint every day,” Weeks said. “Nobody had any information, so I came to the Riverton Museum to find out if they had any information or photographs of the old creosote facility. Nathaniel was able to pull some photos of the retorts and a layout of the field where they had all of the buildings and the power plant up by Monroe.”
After the stained glass windows we removed, the question was what to put in their place.
“So they thought, ‘How about that painter that’s downstairs?’ Weeks chuckled. “So they asked me and I said yes. I’m so grateful. For a plein air guy like me down by the river, to do this? It’s an opportunity of a lifetime.”
Weeks’ vision of “A Town of Rivers” was to do a panorama of what the landscape might have looked like before even the Native Americans or white settlers came to the area…from the mountains and foothills down to the animals, rocks, and sagebrush, and of course, the rivers.
To map out the mural, he went to Google Earth to find out where the river systems met. “You can clearly see the rivers and irrigation systems, where it’s green…but everywhere else? It’s bare, dry desert!”
He and Nathaniel were also able to dig out some old photos of pre-civil war Wyoming,“but again, there was nothing,” he said. “Maybe one cottonwood tree…maybe there were bison, moose, Pronghorns, cactus, sage…probably coyotes.”
Weeks painted several examples and studies before and throughout the process, and said that the challenge has been the size and scale of the project, as he has been used to painting on 6 x 8-inch canvases for the past five years. “My biggest canvas was 9 x 12,” he said. “So to even think about doing anything this size made me totally reevaluate everything.”
Also, primarily an oil and casein painter, Weeks had never even considered painting in acrylic. “The reason I didn’t like it before is that it dries so fast,” he said, “but this is what you need for this. It works perfectly for these murals The texture is fantastic.”
Discovering your local museum
Program and Events Director Kevin Scannell works with Griffee in planning the museum’s programs and events, which include their Adventure Treks, Discovery Speaker Series, and Children’s Exploration Series which are scheduled throughout the year. Their 2024 season includes the upcoming “100 Years of the Old Yellowstone Highway” Adventure Trek on May 19, and the “Allan Maybee and Roger Melton: 2001 Jet Ski Expedition” on June 12. Their Facebook page features their weekly “Doodad Tuesday” and “What’s It Wednesday”, and information about their events and activities.
The Riverton Museum is located at 700 East Park Avenue at the corner of East Park and N. 7th Ave. and is open seven days a week, Monday through Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information, call 307-856-2665, or visit the Fremont County Museum System website.
