Everyone told us we had to go to the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City. John was really looking forward to it; and, I was only moderately interested. As soon as we pulled onto the grounds and entered the lobby, I realized we were in for a real treat. This is a world-class museum.
This massive sculpture, End of the Trail by James Earle Fraser in 1915, is on display at one end of the lobby. It is stunning.
In front of the Dub and Mozelle Richardson Theatre are two bronze sculptures of two iconic cowboys of film: Charleton Heston and John Wayne.
At the end of the hallway is the Abraham Lincoln statue, and on the opposite end of the building is this statue, Canyon Princess by Gerald Balcier.
The 47thAnnual Prix de West was underway when we visited the Museum (through August 4, 2019). It includes 300 paintings and sculptures by the finest contemporary Western artists in the nation. Cash prizes and awards are presented to select artists. The Prix de West Award Winner is acquired by the Museum each year. Here are some winning pieces from previous years.
We wandered through the galleries featuring 2019 Prix de West entrants…and they were so impressive. Here are just a few of them.
The Native American Gallery had some amazing displays of clothing and other artifacts. This was one of my favorite galleries in the museum.
The Western Performers Gallery was full of memorabilia of the many great stars we watched as kids (and still do, on occasion).
The American Rodeo Gallery features the great men and women of the sport.
…and cowboy clowns, too, the fearless funnymen.
Some of the champions continued their careers at Wild West Shows popular at the time.
There is just so much to see at this museum that it is a bit overwhelming. We went from one amazing gallery to the next. Below are a few of them: fine firearms, cowboy clothing, ranching brands and barbed wire, iconic chuckwagons of cattle drives, and bunkhouse life.
Prosperity Junctionis a replica turn-of-the-twentieth-century cattle town inside the museum. A railroad depot with cattle cars, bank, school house, church, stable, and more.
Don’t miss the beautiful gardens and many sculptures you can see there. The first one is Frederic Remington’s Coming through the Rye, enlarged by Franco Vianello.
And some more…
Buffalo Bill is memorialized in this huge sculpture. And, this one is Code of the West and is located in the front of the museum.
The Museum Store was huge and features beautiful, American West, gift items.
The museum and grounds here are amazing. You could spend an entire day here enjoying lunch at the Museum Grill and spending time in the gardens in addition to the many galleries and Gift shop. I enjoyed this museum so much more than I had expected. If you are in Oklahoma City, this should be at the top of your list!
Admission to the Museum is $12.50/adults (well worth it). For additional information about the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, go to www.nationalcowboymuseum.org.
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