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About the Sheridan County Historical Society

A message from Judy Musgrave,
Sheridan County Historical Society President

It is with great pleasure that I take the helm of the Sheridan County Historical Society for the year 2008. I have an extremely hard act to follow in succeeding Linda Prill. She has been the guiding force of SCHS through the last several years of very hard work in creating the Sheridan County Museum. On behalf of myself, the SCHS Board, and the entire SCHS membership, I extend a hardy thank you!

Now that the task of obtaining a beautiful building and setting up a first class museum is on firm ground, the SCHS Board is turning some of their efforts towards constructing a framework by developing Policies, Procedures and Conditions – the nuts and bolts of an organization. Most organizations do that first, but because of the whirlwind opportunity to obtain our wonderful facility, we put the cart before the horse. While the P & P are in draft form for SHCS, the P & P for the Museum are in place and are being implemented. One of the guidelines called for is the establishment of three committees to help keep the Museum running smoothly without undue use of staff time. Those committees are Museum/Exhibits, Collections, and Building.

Historical Society Memberships

When joining the Sheridan Chapter, your dues includes membership in the Wyoming State Historical Society. As a state member, you will receive subscriptions to the quarterly, Annals of Wyoming, and the state newsletter, History News. You will also receive the Sheridan County Chapter monthly newsletter, with news of Society programs, calendar of events, and recognition for donors. You may click here to download an SCHS and WSHS membership form.

Our website is not equipped to take online orders, so you can just print the form, fill it out, and mail it in.

Museum memberships, which include museum season passes, are a separate membership, and you may click here to find that form.

A Bit About Our Past…and Our Future Too

The Sheridan County Chapter of the Wyoming State Historical Society was founded in 1960 and played a large role in saving both the Sheridan Inn and John Kendrick’s Trail End from demolition. Through the years we have published books, conducted tours, held regular dinner meetings with programs, nominated worthy candidates for state historical Society awards, and supported other historical activities. From 1991 until 2004, we exhibited some of our collections in the Sheridan Inn Basement.

In 2002, the Society hired a professional museum curator to catalog, assess, and improve the preservation of our collections. In 2003, the Sheridan Chapter hosted the Wyoming State Historical Society Trek and we were recognized as the outstanding chapter that year. Gaining more community support for our efforts, one thing lead to another, and In 2004, the collections were moved to a small house on Alger Avenue, where the Sheridan County Museum presented its first season’s exhibits. We also began the Sheridan County Memory Book Project. With the collection now under professional care, more artifact donations found their way to the little museum and more of our local history was preserved. That same year, the Society became a local sponsor for the National History Day, and hosts the regional competitions for grades 6-12 every April. Within a very short time it became evident that the little museum on Alger Avenue was way too small.

In 2005, we received an offer we couldn’t refuse. A substantial discount was made to the purchase price of the former Bubba’s Barbeque Restaurant and we went to work to see if we could raise One Million Dollars! In only four months, and with much community support, the Society raised over $1 million in donations and pledges. About nine months later, the doors of the new Sheridan County Museum opened on July 1^st, 2006. Needless to say, our work has just begun, there's plenty to do, and we invite you to become a Society or Museum member.

Sheridan County Historical Society

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Judy Musgrave, President

Tom Ringley, Vice President

Karen Gardner, Treasurer

Mary Ellen McWilliams, Secretary

Linda Prill, Past President

Tim Barnes, Finance Chair

Katie Curtiss

Evelyn Ebzery

Helen Laumann

Dwight Layton

Annette Rinaldo

ADVISORS

Scott & Anne Nickerson

Jo Forbes

Bob Prill

Ken Kerns

Dick Bodine

Mike Nickel

Jeff Prater

Steve Maier

Susie Ponce

Mac Grimm, Chapter Historian

Monthly Dinner Meetings and Programs

Check our events page to learn more about the upcoming programs.

Awards Program

The Wyoming State Historical Society recognizes individuals and organizations in the field of Wyoming History by an annual awards program. The awards are presented each year at the annual meeting of the Society on the Saturday following Labor Day. As a chapter of the Wyoming State Historical Society, the Sheridan County Historical Society nominates local individuals and organizations for the state awards program.

Click here for a listing and descriptions of the award categories

Click Here for the 2007 local winners

Click Here for the 2006 local winners

You can also visit the Wyoming State Historical Society website for more information and for a listing of the state-wide winners.