The Grand County Historical Association (GCHA) has a new exhibit celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Powell Expedition, an exploration of the Green and Colorado Rivers that ended in the Grand Canyon. Led by scientist and Civil War amputee John Wesley Powell, a team of 10 men in four small wooden boats departed Green River Wyoming on May 24, 1869. Only six men and two boats completed the 95-day journey, but the expedition succeeded in recording some of the earliest known maps, data, topographic measurements, geology, and local Native American culture, for much of the treacherous Colorado River that runs through modern-day Grand Canyon National Park.

The new exhibit at Pioneer Village Museum in Hot Sulphur Springs opens Saturday in conjunction with the local Hot Sulphur Days Festival and the museum will be offering free admission.  Serena Fanning, Museum Manager said, “ It is really quite something, I am very impressed with the new exhibit.”

Ray Sumner, PHD in anthropology from University Colorado has done extensive research on the Powell Expedition and put together much of the GCHA exhibit. Photographs, artifacts and even an official Powell Postage stamp is on display. Many of the artifacts are on loan from History, Colorado Museum Collection.

Dave Naples created several dioramas for the exhibit that depict 3-D scenes of the journey. Dave a model railroad professional enthusiast and president of the Moffat Road Railroad Museum in Granby said, “It was a fun project.”  Naples a professional diorama artist is well known for his model railroad dioramas and model train layouts. The Powell Expedition exhibit will be on display for at least six months according to Fanning. Pioneer Village is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10am – 4:00pm.  Visit GrandCounty HIstory.com for more information.