ABCs of Jackson Hole: Chief Washakie
Chief Washakie was a popular Shoshone leader. In his early life he worked as a trapper alongside Jim Bridger, and participated in raids against the Blackfeet in Montana. His early career allowed him to become a welcome liasion between the Shoshone and incoming Western immigrants. He was instrumental in the creation of the Fort Bridger Treaty which created the Wind River Reservation. The photos and content for this video were adapted from existing educational resources on the JHHSM website created as part of the Shoshone Homelands Project. For more information please visit:
Jackson Hole Traveler Historical Walking Tour
Jackson Hole Traveler blogger, Chris Hanson, checks out the walking tour of historic downtown Jackson. The tour is sponsor by the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum and meets at the Town Square every Tuesday and Thursday, June through August.
ABCs of Jackson Hole: Elk
Learn about the elk in Jackson Hole and how their relationship with the landscape changed under human use. Photos courtesy of the Stephen Leek Collection, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming and the Jackson Hole Historical Society & Museum.
ABCs of Jackson Hole: Hayden Survey
Learn about the geological surveys that led to the creation of Yellowstone National Park. Photos courtesy of Jackson Hole Historical Society & Museum.
Jackson Hole, Wyoming - 1927
A look at a young man's 1927 visit to conservationist Stephen Leek's Camp to help with the construction of Leek's Lodge. Once nestled on the shores of Jackson Lake, Wyoming, a 1998 fire destroyed all but the stone chimney of this historic lodge. Leek (viewed at 8:46) was a major force in the creation of the National Elk Refuge which now includes more than 25,000 acres. The opening scenes begin on the train platform at North Platte, NE.
Film provided courtesy of Peter Randall. 16mm to digital transfers and editing by Rick Helin of California Pioneers of Santa Clara Co.
*All Rights Reserved*
To view the Pioneers' own historic collection, go to
Snow King Resort - Jackson Hotels, Wyoming
Snow King Resort 3 Stars Hotel in Jackson, Wyoming Within US Travel Directory One of our top picks in Jackson. This ski-in/ski-out resort is surrounded by the Bridger Teton National Forest and is 1.3 km from downtown Jackson. It offers an outdoor pool with 2 hot tubs, a restaurant and rooms with mountain views.Guest rooms at Snow King Resort are spacious and feature cable TV, free WiFi and deluxe bathroom toiletries. Select accommodations offer a living room with a fireplace and a full kitchen.The Haydens Post Restaurant serves traditional American cuisine as well as signature dishes.
Guests can enjoy their meal inside or on the patio which overlooks the pool. The Lounge offers light dining and a full drink menu.Resort Snow King features an on-site beauty salon and massage services. A games room and concierge services are also offered. Outdoor activities include skiing, horseback riding and hiking.The Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum is 5 minutes' drive from Snow King. Grand Teton National Park Entrance Turnout is 9.3 km from the property.
Snow King Resort - Jackson Hotels, Wyoming
Location in : 400 East Snow King Avenue, WY 83001, Jackson, Wyoming
Booking now :
Hotels list and More information visit U.S. Travel Directory
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ABCs of Jackson Hole: Q & A Part 1
You asked, we answered! Episode Q will be released in two parts, due to the generous feedback we received. From homesteading to conservation, these questions represent a large cross-section of Jackson Hole's history!
ABCs of Jackson Hole: Rodeo
Did you know the rodeo is older than the town of Jackson? We can trace the rodeo back 106 years to when it was just three days in the beginning of September. The original rodeo grounds were just outside of town on lands now occupied by businesses like the Center for the Arts.
The Real USA - Radical art in the 1930s
The Red Front: Radical Art in the Red Decade 1929-1940 is the name of an exhibition near Chicago. Currently on display at the Block Museum the exhibit will soon be touring the US. It looks at a period in US history marked by social ferment and upheaval and strong socialist and communist influence on the arts as a tool in the struggle for a better world. Clara Ibarra reports from Chicago. teleSUR
Introduction to Old Man Coyote Stories
Introduction to Old man Coyote Stories, told by Crow storyteller, Grant Bulltail. Presented by Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum.
ABCs of Jackson Hole: Q&A Part 2
You asked, we answered! Here is Part 2 of Episode Q: Q&A, due to the generous feedback we received. From homesteading to conservation, these questions represent a large cross-section of Jackson Hole's history. Have another question or missed the ferry this time? No worries, we're always happy to help! There are many ways to get in touch, by phone or email, or send us a message on Facebook or Instagram!
Mardy Murie - Main Street, Wyoming
Born in 1902 and raised in Alaska, Mardy Murie has called Jackson Hole home for the past 70 years. Murie and husband Olas, who has been dubbed the “Greatest Naturalist of this Continent”, spent a lifetime of travel, scientific research, and involvement in conservation activities. Main Street visits Murie and her friends: Homestead Publishing owner Carl Schreier, author Bert Raynes, and teacher Jackie Gilmore to reminisce. Original air date 1/9/2005.
Massive military museum under construction near Dubois, Wyoming
Wyoming’s next great museum is under construction and will open next May.
The National Museum of Military Vehicles is a massive facility located just south of Dubois, Wyoming in Fremont County.
The $100 million self-funded museum has been a dream of Dan Starks, who bought his first Wyoming property in 2011. Construction on the new museum started in May of 2017. It is a 140,000 square-foot facility designed to hold 150 military vehicles.
But it is much more than a display of vehicles.
Dan Starks, 65, is not a veteran but has such a high degree of respect for those who served that he sees this project as his life’s work. And what a life it has been.
Dan Starks and his wife Cynthia Starks' life’s dream was to settle in Dubois and launch some project to recognize the service of America’s veterans. And boy, is this ever some project.
Despite the gigantic size of the facility, (you can almost put three football fields inside its walls), Starks now worries that it might be too small. The couple owns more than 400 of pristine historic vehicles from World War II and other conflicts, presumed to be the largest and best private collection of tanks and military vehicles in the world.
Dan Starks thinks he might only get 150 of them inside the walls.
Dan Starks’ daughter Alynne Starks is the executive director of the facility.
Their plan for the museum has gone far beyond just a place to display vehicles.
“We want to create displays that show the landing at Normandy, the surrenders in Germany and Japan, the Battle of the Bulge, and other great moments in our country’s military history,” Starks says.
Starks sees the facility having three components:
First, to honor the service and sacrifice of millions of Americans; second, preserve the history of what happened during these wars, and third, provide an educational experience.
The vast array of vehicles goes beyond the killing machines of tanks, artillery, and flamethrowers. It also includes dozens of the machines that made the wars winnable.
Starks likes to discuss how the “Red Ball Express” helped secure the victories. This was the truck-based supply chain that seemed to provide endless amounts of food, ammo, and war machines as Allied troops marched toward victory.
Dan Starks pp
wants to show how America was able to convert its massive manufacturing expertise to enable the Allies to fight two different wars in different parts of the world and win both in just three and one-half years. The new museum will show how the American ability to mass-produce cars and trucks was converted to produce tanks, jeeps, airplanes, and other war machines in record amounts that just wore down the enemy.
“Germany built beautiful machines, but they did not understand mass production like Americans did,” Starks said. “It was impossible for them to keep up when it came to replacing and resupplying their troops at key moments in World War II. We want to honor everyone who participated in this great victory. This museum will showcase that effort but showing the machines that were built and how they were utilized.”
Alynne, as executive director, said the project will probably employ about 15 people. They have not decided on what admission will cost but one thing is sure: “Veterans will get in free! My dad insists on that,” she said.
Near the middle of the building’s interior is an amazing vault that will hold Starks’ $10 million collection of historic weapons, including a rifle fired at Custer’s Last Stand and a pistol used by General Pershing in World War I. The collection also includes 270 Winchester rifles. The facility will have meeting rooms and members of the Wyoming Legislature are convening there in October.
It also has the Chance Phelps Theatre, named for the brave Dubois Marine who died April 9, 2004, in Iraq. The movie “Taking Chance”was about that soldier.
There will also be a large library with one of the world’s largest collections of manuals and other information about military vehicles.
There are over 100 tanks and other impressive war machines parked in row after row in a big field next to the new building. There is even a Russian-built MiG 21 parked in the field that was used in the Viet Nam War against American soldiers. It is flyable. Starks’ other machines are in downtown Dubois, on his ranches and stored in Salt Lake City. Besides the main museum facility, the Starks built a large building just off Main Street in Dubois to hold many of their vehicles and a shop to keep them running.
Kevin Krasnow-Fire History of Jackson Hole (Grand Teton and Bridger Teton NF)
Green River Rendezvous Pinedale, Wyoming July 2018
Every year the fur trade festival rendezvous takes place in Pinedale, Wyoming. 8 miles from the original site of six of the original sixteen historic rendezvous.
The Coach: An American Crossroads - Short Promo
When is a bar more than a bar? When it's the Stagecoach in Wilson, Wyoming, an authentic Western experience since 1942. As lines blur between culture, class and generations the atmosphere at the Coach demonstrates what gives a community longevity, integrity and strength.
This is a short promo for a one-hour film aimed at national and regional public television. The documentary is a program of the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum and being produced by JenTen Productions of Jackson Hole. We are currently in pre-production and will begin filming in the late summer. The story is about community and we will need broad-based community support to accomplish our goal of having the film done and ready for PBS by early 2012. To support this project please contact Jen through her website: jentenproductions.com. Donations to this program are tax deductible through the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum. All the material collected in support of this film will be archived for future generations.
Great Museum in a Small Town
See more of our museum online at
The first reaction most people have when they see the Buffalo Bill Center of the West is awe at how surprisingly large and impressive it is for a museum in a small Western town far from urban centers. How did such a large museum end up in Cody, Wyoming?
Cody, Wyoming is located on Routes 14, 20, and 16 out to Yellowstone National Park. We are just 50 miles outside of the East Gate.
It all started when the town founder, William F. Buffalo Bill Cody, passed away in 1917. The people in the town wanted to create something to memorialize him. They started the Buffalo Bill Historical Society, but that was only the beginning!
The Wyoming State Legislature designated $5,000 dollars toward the construction of a museum in honor of Buffalo Bill. The original Buffalo Bill Museum was impressive and wonderful, but it was quite a bit smaller than the current facility.
Meanwhile, many people in the town wanted a statue to honor their founder. Through useful connections, town members managed to contact Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, a famous artist and heiress. As it turned out, she always had a great deal of interest in Buffalo Bill. Buffalo Bill had many fans, especially since he was quite possibly one of the most famous men in the world at the turn of the 20th century.
Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney came with her son C.V. Whitney in 1923 in order to survey the site for a new statue that would become the centerpiece of the town. That statue is now known as Buffalo Bill--the Scout.
The town of Cody imagined that the statue would go in the center of town, but Mrs. Vanderbilt Whitney thought the statue deserved a grander backdrop that included scenic views of the mountains. She purchased 40 acres of land for the statue.
It wasn't until 1959 that C.V. Whitney came back to Cody and intended to create a museum to honor his mother. He donated $250,000 and founded the Whitney Gallery of Western Art. $250,000 dollars is certainly a large sum of money in present day; however, it was was a staggering amount in 1959.
This event was the beginning of the current Buffalo Bill Center of the West. In 1969, after it became clear that the Buffalo Bill Museum didn't have enough room to house all of their incredible artifacts, and with the completion of the Whitney Gallery of Western Art, the Buffalo Bill Museum moved into the same building as the Whitney and formed the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.
The Buffalo Bill Center of the West has expanded many times over the years and now holds five incredible galleries, all focused on different aspects of the American West. The five major topics of each gallery are Western American art, the culture of the Plains Indian peoples, Buffalo Bill and western history, firearms, and the natural history of the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem.
We would love to have you visit on your way in or out of Yellowstone National Park; we're located on the same road that goes to the East Gate of Yellowstone--less than an hour from our front door!
There is something for everyone here. Come explore!
What's In A Name (Story, Dubois, Greybull) - Main Street, Wyoming
In this episode, we visit Story, a beautiful haven in the Big Horn Mountains. Then we head to Dubois and its beautiful scenery and wonderful origin story. Finally, we pass through Greybull and dig in to its unique name and explore its charming streets.
Heavy Tanks in Wyoming
Tanks in 4th of july parade