ND Cowboy Hall of Fame - Stories & Articles

Grandma, Get the Gun

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June 4, 2009

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Darrell Dorgan 250-1833

-- GRANDMA, GET THE GUN –

The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame will host its second annual “Gun Road Show” for gun owners with one of the nation’s top firearms experts on June 13 and 14 in Medora.

Gun owners from throughout the region are invited to dig out the family heirloom and have it evaluated by firearms experts. One of those schedule to help with evaluations, National Firearms Museum Curator Doug Wicklund. Wicklund, a noted author about firearms who’s often seen on the History Channel and published in numerous publications, will tell gun owners who have questions, what they have, what it’s worth and where it came from.

Wicklund, who’s in charge of the National Rifle Association’s 4,500-piece collection at the National Firearms Museum in Virginia, has tentatively agreed to do the Medora event and says, “A lot of people have guns they’ve inherited, and many have great legends that go with them. Some of the stories are true and, if you would like to know what you’ve got in the closet, bring it to Medora. We’ll look it over.”

Wicklund will be joined at this year’s “Gun Road Show by noted historian and firearms collector Gerald Groenewold from Grand Forks, and historian Mark Halvorson of the State Historical Society of North Dakota.

NDCHF Executive Director Darrell Dorgan says, “Anyone who wants to have a gun evaluated must have it checked at the door, and only one gun per person will be allowed. We’re really lucky to have people with the reputation of Doug Wicklund, Gerald Groenewold and Mark Halvorson willing to spend time evaluating guns in Medora.”

Wicklund and the NRA, in a cooperative effort with the State Historical Society of North Dakota, provided the historic guns for the “Guns of Dakota” exhibit that opened at the Hall of Fame last summer. The exhibit features a cross section of guns used in North Dakota from the time of Lewis and Clark until the early 1900s. This year, NDCHF is also featuring a .36 caliber Colt that once belonged to world famous 1800s showman “Buffalo Bill” Cody, who took his famous Wild West Show around the world.

Other featured pieces include one of Teddy Roosevelt’s hunting rifles, a set of dueling pistols that once belonged to the Marquis de Mores, a rifle used at the Battle of the Little Big Horn and a plank cannon found at the site of Fort Dilts near present-day Marmarth, North Dakota. There are also 30 other historically important guns on display in the Hall of Fame’s Hauer Gallery.

Dorgan says the unique “show and tell” for gun owners will run from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. (MDT) on Saturday and will feature a 7:00 p.m. evening talk by Groenewold on the important firearms of North Dakota. The Gun Road Show continues Sunday afternoon from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m. (MDT) at the Hall of Fame in Medora.

Access will be on a “first come, first serve basis”, and all guns will have to be inspected and tagged at the door before they can be brought in to be examined and evaluated.

The Center of Western Heritage and Cultures: Native American, Ranching and Rodeo draws more than 25,000 visitors a year to Medora. The facility was named North Dakota’s 2007 Tourist Attraction of the Year, is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (MDT) until the end of September. Its galleries and exhibits detail the history of the plains horse culture.

The facility is also used for meetings, reunions, weddings and other events. An attached patio provides room for more than 200 people for catered events. Catered food and beverage service is available.

Fundraising for the project continues. Dorgan says the Hall of Fame hopes to raise an additional $1 million over the next year to become debt free. Contributions for the project may be sent to the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame, 120 N. 3rd Street #85, Bismarck, North Dakota 58501.

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