Thursday, June 23, 2022

Craig's Wyman Living History Museum

The last major activity we participated in during our extended Father's Day weekend in northwestern Colorado was to visit the Wyman Living History Museum in Craig, Colorado.

The website for Wyman Living History Museum includes the slogan, "getting you in touch with the past" and that is exactly what happens when one visits this museum just east of Craig (and west of Heyden) on U.S 40.

The Wyman Living History Museum is the #2 item listed in "15 Best Things to Do in Craig (CO)".

There is no charge for admission to Wyman Living History Museum, but it's so interesting that it's worth making a donation.

Clyde, the beloved and famous elk in northwest Colorado, passed away in 2012, but is still celebrated at Wyman Living History Museum and the "Exhibits" web page states, "Clyde was the original elk mascot at the Wyman Museum. He was raised on the Wyman Elk Ranch on the Williams Fork river by Lou Wyman prior to opening the museum near Craig." The Craig Press article "Clyde the elk passes away at Wyman Museum" stated, "Craig has lost a unique member of its community" and added that "Clyde the elk" left "behind a legacy of friendliness to employees and visitors that lasted throughout his eight years there."

As described in the Steamboat Pilot & Today article "J.R. the elk arrives at his new home at Wyman Museum", the new living elk resident at Wyman History Museum is named Junior (or J.R.).

Junior is big and has very impressive antlers.

Junior is a big fan of apples.

The Wyman Living History Museum started with and largely represents the collection of Lou Wyman. Seeing so many historical artifacts and antiques in one location is memorable.

The old telephones, often seeing in period television shows and movies, are interesting to see.

The old Pepsi vending machine and old Mountain Dew cans are interesting to see in person.

The old automobiles and carriages, including a hearse, are also interesting to see in person.

There's even an airplane!

The Wyman Living History Museum Exhibits page describes the museum's license plate collection, "The Wyman Museum has a complete set of Colorado licence plates. The licence plates start with a homemade licence plate from 1912 and end with one from 1979. We stopped with 1979 because stickers where introduced instead of the year being punched into the plate."

The trophy room is upstairs at the Wyman Living History Museum.

Junior the elk is not the only thing worth seeing outside of the Wyman History Museum main building.

The transplanted general store and schoolhouse are also worth seeing.

The Wyman Living History Museum Historic Building page describes the Axial Schoolhouse: "The one room Axial schoolhouse was relocated to the Wyman Museum site from where it was built alongside the highway south of Craig on the route from Craig to Meeker, CO."

The Wyman Living History Museum Historic Building page also describes the Pagoda Store: "The Pagoda Store is a special highlight of the museum complex, with authentic displays of the variety of goods that were available to country folk over the last 100 years."

The Wyman Living History Museum also features other historical buildings.

The Wyman Living History Museum delivers on its promise to connect visitors with the past.

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