The Wyoming Room, history for everyone

With classes back in session, the Sheridan County Public Library System is happy to see the return of students, according to Executive Director Cameron Duff. 

While appearing on Sheridan Media’s Public Pulse program, Duff told listeners that the biggest draw to the newest Sheridan students is the Wyoming Room. 

According to Duff, early in the 1970s, Helen Graham was instrumental in developing the collection and expanding the Wyoming Room to the public resource it is today. The library collects historical information about Sheridan, Sheridan County and Wyoming in general. This could be in the form of journals, photographs, letters, art, maps, or genealogy and family history.

Like a museum, this growing collection is a local history that can be seen, Duff said. Due to this, The Wyoming Room has become a large draw for younger students. 

The Wyoming Room is open to the public 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Mon. – Fri. Library staff conduct research on behalf of residents utilizing the collection. For example, Duff said, questions might come up about who may have originally lived in a specific house or someone may be looking for an in depth history of a specific individual. Staff will search the digitized copies of newspapers as far back as needed to find any reference to that person, place or event. 

The sources of this local historical information are donated to the Wyoming Room. The Sheridan County Library System does not have a budget to purchase antiques or other items of value. According to Duff, families may find items of historical significance while searching through boxes of materials and donate those items to the library. Newer materials such as published books are usually the only items that The Wyoming Room may purchase to add to the collection.

To find out more about the Sheridan County Library Wyoming Room, click here.