Travel Reference
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Campus, near N. 9th St. and E. Lewis St., 307/766-3386, www.uwyo.edu/geomuseum ,
1pm-4pm Tues.-Fri., 10am-2pm Sat., noon-4pm Sun., free). The museum houses some of
the best fossils in the country and dedicates plenty of space to Wyoming's earliest inhabit-
ants: the dinosaurs. In addition to the usual suspects—from Allosaurus to T. rex —the mu-
seum lays claim to one of only six Apatosaurus skeletons on display worldwide. This one
is 145-160 million years old and was discovered in Albany County in 1901. There are also
skeletons of Diatryma gigantea, a prehistoric carnivorous flying dinosaur more than seven
feet tall, found in 1876. One of the most unique exhibits is the fossilized remains of a di-
nosaur who died giving birth. The bones of the baby are clearly visible. Dozens of displays
tell the stories of the more than 50 species of dinosaur whose remains have been found in
Wyoming soil. And when displays are missing here, they are often on loan to the Museum
of Natural History in New York City. These are serious bones in a very unassuming pack-
age.
MM Laramie Plains Museum at the Historic Ivinson Mansion
Entrepreneur and banker Edward Ivinson was a local hero in Laramie, not only for his eth-
ical business practices and his community-minded role in the construction of the prison and
the university, but also for the home that he built in 1892, the same year he lost the Wyom-
ing gubernatorial race. Indeed, the Ivinson Mansion (603 E. Ivinson Ave., 307/742-4448,
www.laramiemuseum.org , tours 9am-5pm Tues.-Sat., 1pm-4pm Sun. summer, 1pm-4pm
Tues.-Sat. fall-spring, hours can change for private events, $10 adults, $7 seniors, $5 stu-
dents, free for children under 6) is among Laramie's most impressive buildings. The house
was designed by architect W. E. Ware and built for $40,000 with then-unheard-of amen-
ities that included central heating, electricity, and running water. Jane Ivinson, Edward's
wife, decorated the home with elegant appointments from around the world. After his be-
loved wife died, Ivinson donated their regal residence to the Episcopal Missionary District
of Wyoming with the understanding that it be used as a school-home for teenage ranch girls
who otherwise might not be educated. The school operated until 1958, at which point the
house sat vacant at the mercy of vandals for more than a decade.
In 1972 the Episcopal Church sold the mansion to the Laramie Plains Museum Associ-
ation. Under the museum's care, the home has been beautifully restored and is open to the
public as the Laramie Plains Museum. The home is filled with artifacts from all over the
state, including the largest collection of Wyoming Territorial Prison furnishings, gorgeous
wood pieces made by Swedish prisoner Jan Hjorth, a regional gun collection spanning more
than a century, period furnishings, and more. Seeing the artifacts in such a stunning home
setting makes this museum absolutely worth seeing.
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