Oregon Trail Experience: New Exhibit Opens At Baker Heritage Museum
Randy Yawn, left, and Kim Orr ponder their choices for packing a virtual wagon, part of the new Oregon Trail exhibit at the Baker Heritage Museum, on Saturday, May 29, 2022.
- Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Visitors explore the new Oregon Trail exhibit at the Baker Heritage Museum on Saturday, May 29, 2022.
- Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
A new exhibit at the Baker Heritage Museum introduces visitors to the history of the Oregon Trail.
- Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
A basket of magnets allows visitors to the Baker Heritage Museum choose items they’d like to bring in their wagon on the Oregon Trail, but without exceeding the weight limit for their team of oxen.
- Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Kim Orr picks up the magnet labeled pickles, hesitates, then sets it back in the basket.
Instead, she chooses the one labeled rice.
You dont like rice, but we need it, she says, securing it onto the display board.
Then she chooses another magnet.
Piano! Yes!
You dont even play the piano, says Randy Yawn, sorting through the remaining magnets.
These two, who live in the Willamette Valley and spent Memorial Day weekend in Baker County, pretended to pack the wagon while exploring the new Oregon Trail exhibit at the Baker Heritage Museum, 2480 Grove St.
The Interpretive Center exhibit is in the Heritage Museums Leo Adler Room, and a full-size wagon is in the second-floor ballroom.
National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center Moving Operations To Baker Heritage Museum During Construction
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BAKER CITY The Bureau of Land Management has leased a portion of the Baker Heritage Museum to temporarily house the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center while the center facility undergoes major renovations, scheduled to begin in 2022.
This partnership allows the interpretive center to continue to reach the public with stories and hands-on exhibits of the historic Oregon Trail during the closure of the facility for building renovations, Acting Center Manager Alexandra Botello said.
New exhibits are being developed for the museum space, located at 2480 Grove St. in Baker City. Visitors will receive an overview of the Oregon Trail and its place in history, and learn more about the pioneer experience through hands-on activities for all ages. Events, programs, and performances will also be held at Baker Citys Geiser-Pollman Park.
Were very excited about this partnership, Museum Board Chairwoman Cammy Warner said. I think it will be a very good collaboration. It benefits the community, BLM and the museum.
An official opening date for the new Oregon Trail exhibit has not yet been set but will take place in the spring.
The interpretive center is currently closed to allow for the removal, curation and storage of artifacts and exhibits in preparation for construction, which is expected to begin March 1, 2022.
For more information, contact Larisa Bogardus at or 523-1407.
The National Oregon/california Trail Center Located In Montpelier Idaho Offers Visitors A Unique And Entertaining Interpretive Indoor Adventure Simulating An Actual Wagon Train Experience Of The 1850s Re
The National Oregon/California Trail Center and the City of Montpelier, Idaho are located on the historic Oregon/California Trail, mid-way between Jackson/Yellowstone and Salt Lake City. Our hotels, restaurants and location are within the beautiful Bear Lake Valley and offer the tourist traveler a unique vacation stopover.
Step Into the Days of the Oregon Trail by taking our simulated Wagon Trail Adventure. You and your family will become members of a simulated wagon train headed west and be guided by our live cast of pioneers whose dialogue and stories will make the adventure come alive! Sign up at our front desk.
The Center also offers spacious and clean restrooms, the Peg Leg Smith Trading Post gift shop, exhibits , Rails and Trails Museum, the Allinger Community Theatre, an original art exhibit of Oregon Trail paintings by Idaho artist Gary Stone and the beautiful murals of artist-in-residence John Wayne Cook. This will be an experience you will never forget!
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National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center
The National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center brings to life the Oregon Trail experience through living history demonstrations, interpretive programs, exhibitions, and special events. Oregon Trail ruts carved by pioneer wagons are located onsite and are featured in a four mile interpretive hiking trail system. Trails and picnic areas offer scenic vistas of the Blue Mountains, the Wallowa Mountains, and Baker Valley.
Presenting A New Series Of Online Videos
NEW!Barlow Road: Oregon Historic Trail
We are pleased to announce a new series of video presentations! Visit our new videos page to see the trailers for these intriguing new videos, and access to the full-length feature presentations Barlow Road: Historic Oregon Trail, The Oregon Trail Journey, and Women of the West.
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Located In Downtown Baker City
The Oregon Trail Motel & Restaurant is conviently located in downtown Baker City Oregon.
- Budget Motel
- On-site Parking
- Daily/Weekly/Monthly Stays
Situated in Baker City, we’re a motel hotel within a 10-minute walk of Baker Tower and Adler House Museum. Baker Heritage Museum and Quail Ridge Golf Course are also within 1 mi . All rooms provide conveniences like refrigerators and microwaves, plus free WiFi and flat-screen TVs with cable channels. Ceiling fans, desks, and free toiletries are among the other amenities that guests will find. We’re only 27 miles from the Anthony Lakes Ski Resort! We serves a daily continental breakfast and offers cable TV with HBO and free Wi-Fi in every room.A microwave and refrigerator are provided in the traditionally decorated rooms at Oregon Trail Motel & Restaurant. There is a work desk along with a seating area.Alder House Museum is a 10-minute walk from the motel. Baker City Golf Club is 1 miles away and Oregon Trail Monument is 3 miles away.Lodging Amenities Include: Pet Friendly, Recreation Area, High-speed Internet Access, Restaurant / Lounge, Handicap Accessible, Air Conditioning, Swimming
Book here through Oregon Trail Motel & Restaurant’s website!
Oregon Trail Interpretive Center
Hiking, history and heritage, thats the theme of the Oregon Trial Interpretive Center just East of Baker City.
The center, managed by the Bureau of Land Management, is about 26,000 square feet nested on top of Flagstaff Hill. The trip to the top of the hill is a winding affair, but once you make the mile-long journey, it is well worth it.
The first thing you notice when you arrive at the center, are the authentic, scale Oregon Trail wagons in the summer they come complete with canvas tops, during the winter months the wind is pretty brutal so the fabric is taken inside. During the Spring and Summer, volunteers act out a camp scene, and will even feed you trail stew, if you dare. There are big events during three-day weekends during the summer, so make sure to plan your trip to the center accordingly.
Thats the thing about the interpretive center, you might go to learn about the history of the Oregon Trail, but there is so much more.
Kelly Burns, a park ranger at the center, said that since its opening in 1992, approximately 60,000 people a year visit. She also pointed out that to really enjoy all aspects of the center, and the surrounding area, make sure to give yourself a half a day at least.
I have the best drive to work in the morning, the views are just amazing, especially in the Fall when the snow starts on the mountains, Burns said. There is so much to keep people interested up here.
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Oregon Trail Regional Museum
Oregon Genealogy | Baker County | Baker City | Baker County History Book
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Oregon Trail Interpretive Center Moving To Temporary Space At Baker Heritage Museum
Life-size mannequins at the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center near Baker City show what life looked like for the people who embarked on the arduous journey. The center is a national historic site, managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
The wagons are packed and moving west into Baker City this winter as the National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center takes up a temporary home at the Baker Heritage Museum.
The change is due to a multi-year closure of the Interpretive Center for renovations to make the building, which opened in 1992 on Flagstaff Hill about five miles east of town, more energy efficient.
The move to Baker City will maintain a presence in town while the center is closed, said Larisa Bogardus, public affairs officer for the BLMs Vale District, which manages the center.
We wanted to be someplace visitors can find us, she said.
Work on the Interpretive Center is expected to begin March 1, 2022.
The center, which has been closed since November 2020 due to the pandemic, will get new siding, roofing, insulation, windows, doors and HVAC system. Currently, Bogardus said, the centers monthly electricity bill is about $10,000 one of the highest for any of the agencys facilities.
The BLM and Baker County have signed a lease for about 4,500 square feet at the Heritage Museum, including the Leo Adler Room and about one-third of the ballroom upstairs. The Museum, formerly the citys natatorium, is at 2480 Grove St., just east of Geiser-Pollman Park.
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Oregon Trail Interpretive Center To Close In 2022 For Two Years For Renovations
The crest of the hill that gives visitors a panoramic view of the Baker Valley and the Elkhorn Mountains also exposes the center to the summer sun and to year-round winds that often gust above 25 mph. New materials will provide better insulation and reduce power costs.
- Jayson Jacoby, Baker City Herald
BAKER CITY — Starting about a year from now, people who visit Baker County to learn about the Oregon Trail will have to go somewhere other than the interpretive center that has stood atop Flagstaff Hill for almost three decades.
But only temporarily.
The Bureau of Land Management, which owns and operates the center, is planning a major renovation of the building to make it more energy efficient.
The center, which has lured nearly 2.4 million visitors since it opened on May 23, 1992, about five miles east of Baker City, will be closed during the approximately 2 1/2-year project, which will cost at least $3 million, said Larisa Bogardus, acting director for the center.
During the closure, the BLM will have a temporary Oregon Trail Experience in Baker City, Bogardus said.
BLM officials are working on plans for the temporary facility, including its location, she said.
It will absolutely be in Baker City, said Bogardus, who is also the public affairs officer for the BLMs Vale District, which manages the interpretive center. Were very cognizant of the economic role of the interpretive center in Baker County.
Its location contributes to the centers energy gluttony.
