The Museum of Northwest Colorado, located in Craig, Colorado, was established in 1964 as the

Moffat County Moffat County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,292. The county seat is Craig. With an area of 4,751 square miles, it is the 2nd largest county by area in Colorado, behind Las An ...

Museum to house artifacts and preserve legends of the Old West. The museum features a large, nationally recognized

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

gear collection, that includes rare Winchesters, Colts,

chaps Chaps ( or ) are sturdy coverings for the legs consisting of leggings and a belt. They are buckled on over trousers with the chaps' integrated belt, but unlike trousers, they have no seat (the term "assless chaps" is a tautology) and are not jo ...

, spurs,

saddle The saddle is a supportive structure for a rider of an animal, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is equestrian. However, specialized saddles have been created for oxen, camels and other animals. It is not kno ...

s, gun leather, and other artifacts. The Moffat Road Railroad Display features photos and memorabilia about the

Denver, Northwestern & Pacific Railway The Denver and Salt Lake Railway (D&SL) was a U.S. railroad company located in Colorado. Originally incorporated in 1902 as the Denver, Northwestern and Pacific (DN&P) Railway, it had as a goal a direct connection of Denver, Colorado, with Sa ...

, founded by

David Moffat David Halliday Moffat (July 22, 1839 – March 18, 1911) was an American financier and industrialist. Moffat was one of Denver's most important financiers and industrialists in late 19th and early 20th century Colorado, and he was responsible fo ...

. Other exhibits include American outlaw Harry Tracy and includes his actual gun rig, Ann Basset along with her original spurs, African American cowboy Isam Dart who was murdered by Tom Horn etc. Also included are displays regarding mining, ranching and pioneer artifacts, rocks and fossils including a large dinosaur footprint and bones, and period historic room displays.

State Armory building

Originally housed in the Moffat County Courthouse, the museum opened in the former Colorado State Armory in 1991.http://www.museumnwco.org/ Museum of Northwest Colorado The building, at 590 Yampa Ave. in Craig, was built in 1922 and was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1992 as State Armory. It was designed by architect

John J. Huddart John James Huddart (25 August 1856 – 1930), known usually as John J. Huddart, was a British born and trained architect who practised out of Denver, Colorado in the United States. At the end of the Nineteenth century he was one of Denver's ...

. With

References

External links

Museum of Northwest Colorado
- official site American West museums in Colorado History museums in Colorado Museums in Moffat County, Colorado National Register of Historic Places in Moffat County, Colorado Buildings and structures completed in 1922 Armories in Colorado {{Colorado-museum-stub