Barbara Stanwyck in a still from the 1939 Cecil B. DeMille movie, Union Pacific. Barbara Stanwyck papers, American Heritage Center.

• Exhibit Opening at the American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming

The American Heritage Center (AHC) at the University of Wyoming invites the public to the opening of The West is Waiting: An Exploration of Railroad Advertising, a new exhibition curated by Kail Moede examining how the railroad shaped western migration, settlement, and everyday life.

Spanning from the arrival of the transcontinental railroad in Wyoming in 1867 through the 20th century, the exhibit highlights the many ways railroads promoted the West through advertising. Visitors will encounter a wide variety of materials—from postcards, illustrated maps, and matchbooks to fine art, photography, and Hollywood ephemera—that reveal how deeply the railroad influenced western culture and identity. The exhibit features items from the many collections the AHC holds on railroad history, including the Union Pacific Historical Society and the James L. Ehernberger Western Railroad collections.

In addition to the main exhibit, a companion installation, Life Between the Rails: Highlights and Insights from an Oral History Project, showcases personal stories gathered from Union Pacific Railway workers and their families through a large-scale oral history project of the same name conducted by Leslie Waggener and Tana Libolt for the AHC. Photographs and interviews provide a moving look at the lives of railroad families, preserving a vital part of Wyoming’s social history.

An illustrated map of the West, produced by the Union Pacific Railway to promote western tourism. Union Pacific Historical Society collection, American Heritage Center.

The public is invited to an opening reception with light refreshments.