(Cheyenne, WY) – The Wyoming Semiquincentennial Planning Task Force has announced the sixth round of awardees for the Semiquincentennial Grant Program, including funding for the second phase of a two-part project headed by the Eastern Shoshone Tribal Council.
For the project, titled “Travel Story GPS Wind River Canyon,” the Eastern Shoshone Tribal Council will create a mobile audio tour to introduce travelers to the Wind River Scenic Byway and learn about and be inspired by its use and value to the Shoshone people at the time of the nation’s founding.
The second phase of the two-part project will be used for script drafting, interviews, audio editing, marketing promotion and a launch tour.
Trailblazer Days
The Eastern Shoshone Tribal Council was among eight entities awarded grants totaling $115,036 this round.
The awardees include the Learning Center of Hot Springs County, Thermopolis, which will provide interpretive tours of area State Parks on Sunday, June 14, 2026, to coincide with the town’s Trailblazer Days.
The Learning Center is also working with Wind River Tribal Buffalo Initiative for the Hot Springs State Park tours in the afternoon.
Both sites remain sacred and instrumental to Native Americans inhabiting this area for these many thousands of years.
The tour includes an additional stop at the Arapahoe Ranch.
The other grant awards went to:
- Crook County, Moorcroft Historical Walking Tour- West Texas Trail Museum
The Moorcroft Historical Walking Tour- West Texas Trail Museum will take you on a journey when the cattle bawling was louder than mid-day traffic and the cowboy’s stories were as large as their hats. This walking tour will help to enrich the understanding of the town’s heritage through the tour and guide book.
- Hot Springs County – Trailblazer Days, Opening the Last Frontier
In June of 2026, Hot Springs County 250 Committee will take visitors back in time with a fun filled weekend of historical demonstrations. Events include mule team freighting parade, cowboy poets, interpretive tours of Legend Rock and Hot Springs State Parks, and the Hot Springs County Museum “Hole in the Wall Bar” will be open with free admission to the Museum.
- Campbell County Rockpile Museum
The “Powering America: Energy in the Powder River Basin” Exhibition at the Rockpile Museum Summary is a new exhibit to share the important role the Powder River Basin and Wyoming have played in powering our nation for the past fifty-plus years. Featuring significant artifacts, interactive elements, photos, graphics, and text information, this display will teach guests about our energy industries and establish the incredible value that this energy production has had for our nation, our growth, and our security.
- Jaques Laramie Chapter, NSDAR, Laramie – Treatment and Restoration of Albany County WWI Monument
The Jacques Laramie Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) will restore the World War I Monument in Albany County, Wyoming at the County Courthouse. The monument commemorates those from Albany County and the University of Wyoming who served and died in World War I.
- Carbon County School District 2, Rawlins – Connecting Wyoming’s Past, Present, and Future through SchoolAI-Powered Learning Spaces
Carbon County School District #1 will use SchoolAl interactive learning spaces to design a series of student- and community- centered programs that align with Wyoming’s America 250 Semiquincentennial themes. Key activities include an oral history and archival project, Al-assisted mapping linking physical historical markers to multimedia stories; community forums in Al Spaces; and a student innovation challenge using SchoolAl brainstorming tools to design solutions for Wyoming’s environmental, economic, and cultural future.
- Park County School District 6/Cody High School – Annie Get Your Gun
The students and faculty at Cody High School will put on the musical Annie Get Your Gun, a classic musical depicting the colorful life of Annie Oakley, the famous sharp shooter, and her rise to fame on Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. The show will run April 16-18 in the Wynona Thompson Auditorium.
The grants program was launched last year and is supported with a $2 million appropriation from the Wyoming Legislature.
The grants program allows communities to recognize and celebrate Wyoming’s unique role in American history and to explore both Wyoming’s lasting legacy and future potential.
The projects will take place in conjunction with the celebration of the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026.
Grant funding is still available and applications can be accessed and submitted online.
Governor Gordon established the Wyoming Semiquincentennial Planning Task Force to develop and coordinate events and activities that honor this significant milestone.
More information on the celebration will be made available on the dedicated Semiquincentennial celebration website at https://wyoming250.com.