About

This building was constructed in 1925, and served as an elementary school until 1965. It and the adjoining park, formerly known as Cottonwood, were named the Whitman School and Whitman Park, in honor of frontier missionary Marcus Whitman, who passed through this area in 1842. Whitman was heading east to urge the United States Congress to lay claim to Oregon Country, occupied by both the United States and Great Britain.

The Museum of Arts and Sciences opened in this building in 1965, the predecessor of the Museums of Western Colorado.

This structure was sold to the Grand Junction Chamber of Commerce in 1925. The Chamber then rented the building for $1 a year to the brand new Museum of Western Colorado. It remained the main museum building until 2000, when the museum moved into the larger C.D. Smith building half a block east. Recent restoration uncovered much of original exterior, including the school name lettered in stone over the front door. The museum won a special award in 2001 from the Colorado Historical Society for the building’s rehabilitation.

Related person

Museums of Western Colorado (MWC)

Related places

Grand Junction
Downtown Grand Junction
Mesa County

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