The Yellowstone Gateway Museum’s “People and Place” virtual speaker series continues on Wednesday, April 14, 7:00pm with Museum Curator Karen Reinhart and “Montana Women: Making Do and Making a Difference.” Participants can register for any or all of the Zoom programs here: https://www.parkcounty.org/Yellowstone-Gateway-Museum/webinars-programs/people-place/. Programs are uploaded to museum’s YouTube channel after the live virtual event.

The Friends of the Yellowstone Gateway Museum Annual Meeting begins at 6:30pm to re-elect board members and give brief updates about the museum. Program registrants may attend meeting or join program at 7:00pm.

Reinhart stated, “While doing research about Montana women, I was especially drawn to stories of ordinary women who had accomplished extraordinary things. These aren’t just stories for women but stories for anyone who appreciates their grandmothers, mothers, aunts, daughters, and sisters.”

Women’s History Month has just ended but the stories of women who made a difference in Park County and across Montana deserve continued recognition. Reinhart highlights stories of hardworking women who worked the land, worked outside the home to make ends meet, either in traditional roles or in trailblazing endeavors, and then, returned home to chores and children. The virtual program includes stories documented by authors Donna Gray, Martha Kohl, Edward Saunders, and Doris Whithorn, revealing compelling stories of midwives and nurses, including a World War I heroine; educators; business owners; an advocate for tribal people; railroad workers, an artist, a basketball team, and a cattle queen. The program is richly illustrated with images from the museum’s collections.

Karen Reinhart, a native of central Montana, has worked thirty years in area museums. She worked as a National Park Service Interpreter in Yellowstone National Park, as curator of education and outreach at the Jackson Hole Historical Society and Museum, and currently, as curator at the Yellowstone Gateway Museum. Reinhart manages the museum’s collections; develops and designs exhibits, including virtual offerings; gives education programs; and manages the museum’s web site and social media posts, including Glimmers of History. She invites people to share their stories through oral histories or written accounts. Reinhart believes that stories make an area’s history relevant and interesting.

Reinhart is also the author of two interpretive history books about Yellowstone, “Old Faithful Inn: Crown Jewel of National Park Lodges,” and “Yellowstone’s Rebirth by Fire: Rising from the Ashes of the 1988 Wildfires,” as has published many articles about the natural and cultural history of the Greater Yellowstone. She lives near Gardiner with her daughter, Mariah.

The series continues Wednesday evenings throughout April with “A Brief History of Cooke City” with Kelly Hartman on Wednesday, April 21, 7:00pm; and "Livingston and Park County: The Early Years" on Wednesday, April 28, 7:00 pm with Paul Shea. Participants can register for any or all of the Zoom programs here: https://www.parkcounty.org/Yellowstone-Gateway-Museum/webinars-programs/people-place/. Programs are uploaded to museum’s YouTube channel after the live virtual event.

Visit Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for program updates or contact Karen Reinhart, 222-4184 or kreinhart@parkcounty.org.