GALENA, Kans. — A local artist is helping the Galena Mining and History Museum spruce up its walls.
Sandra Pemberton is a local artist. She’s done work all over the four-states region, including a mural on Main Street in Joplin. Her latest project is underway at the Galena Mining and History Museum. She and museum representatives say it is all about connecting the town to its roots.
“Don’t forget where we come from. You know, it’s like too fast-paced and it’s so easy to get caught up on your device and forget about the history and the scenery and everything,” she said.
“The mural is going to depict our mining history, our railroad history, and Route 66 history. I think that is an interest to a lot of people,” said Linda Phipps, Museum Director.
Phipps and Pemberton believe a town with such a history deserves a mural to do it justice. They share the inspiration behind getting this project started.
“I was visiting my son, in Elko, Nevada and Elko has a lot of murals there. One in particular really struck me and struck my heart, it was a train looking like it was bursting through a wall with smoke and I just thought that that would be something, with our train depot, that would fit very nicely here,” said Phipps.
“Linda, the director here, found me and we got to talking about it and it just really…sometimes they just happen. It’s hard to describe but one thing led to another and within the first like five or ten minutes of us talking I already had it lined out and pretty set,” said Pemberton.
Pemberton has been working on the mural for less than a week now but expects to be finished by next Friday. Visitors are welcome at the museum during operating hours to check the progress of the project.
