Jim Gatchell Memorial Museum

The Jim Gatchell Memorial Museum in Buffalo, Wyoming tells the story of Johnson County through objects from daily life, conflict, and trade. The building itself was constructed in 1909 as a Carnegie Library with rough stone walls, Norman-style columns, and a semicircular apse at its heart.

In 1900, pharmacist Jim Gatchell opened his drugstore in Buffalo, and it quickly became a gathering place for settlers, cowboys, Indigenous peoples, and soldiers. Grateful customers gave him personal items and family treasures over time, which eventually formed the core of this collection.

The exhibits show how the region developed through the objects people used: ranching equipment, weapons from conflicts, and everyday items that tell stories of settlers, cowboys, and Indigenous peoples who lived here. The displays reveal how these different groups coexisted and shaped the character of this place.

The museum is housed in a historic building within easy walking distance of downtown Buffalo; the rooms are clearly arranged and simple to navigate. Visitors should plan to spend enough time examining the many exhibits closely, especially if interested in learning about the region's past.

The museum holds several traditional medicine bags and clothing items from Indigenous communities that were originally given to the pharmacist as gifts. These personal objects are now rare, showing how different cultures knew and traded with one another in this frontier setting.