Pioneers Museum opening new exhibit celebrating Colorado Springs’ sesquicentennial

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The Pioneer Museum has a unique exhibit opening this weekend, celebrating the 150th birthday of Colorado Springs along with part of KRDO's past.

“There are artifacts of all different sizes from all different eras," said Leah Davis Witherow, curator at the Pioneers Museum.

“The selection process was very difficult," she told KRDO.

The exhibit, which opens Saturday at 10 a.m., displays 150 objects -- stories, really -- celebrating 150 years of Colorado Springs. Among the pieces of Colorado Springs' history on display, you can also see the early beginnings of KRDO.

“Almost everything about KRDO was historic. It was the first station. They had a mobile unit loaded into a bus," explained Davis Witherow.

The first-known photograph ever taken of present-day Colorado Springs, the first edition of The Gazette, and the jacket worn by local war hero and Tuskeegee Airman Frank Macon are just a few of the remarkable artifacts visitors will see in the new exhibit.

“What we hope to do is to convey or include both highs and lows, challenges and triumphs," said Witherow. “Our community’s history is so rich, so interesting, and so relevant that we try to create a selection that will attract or interest just about anyone."

Every item displayed in the sesquicentennial exhibit comes from museum archives or was donated from the community.

“When you think about history as a story about people, it’s really interesting and that’s what we’ve presented to our visitors," said Witherow.

"We have a unique story. And this is the best way to get to know it," she said.

The exhibit is free. But visitors must register ahead of time at Cspm.org.