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Laramie, Wyoming was the home of the National United States Marshals Museum formerly known as the "America's Star" traveling exhibit , to commemorate its 200 year history, It traveled to 13 different cities in the United States for 2 1/2 years. When the bicentennial celebration came to a close in 1991, the United States Marshal Service was looking for a permanent home for the exhibit and other items and artifacts. A committee was formed to explore the possibilities. There were several cities that expressed interested in having it. They were Washington D.C., Nashville, TN., St. Louis, MO., Ft. Smith, AR. and Laramie, WY. After all the cities presented their cases. Laramie, Wyoming won out. The Museum was located in the lower level of the Wyoming Territorial Park's Horse barn theater, the museum features an impressive array of artifacts, some of them dating back nearly 212 years. One of the more popular displays is "The Gunman:" Romance and Reality" which showcases Hollywood's perception of the West through a series of short clips of Western movies. Artifacts from the other displays include a large collection of U.S. Marshal badges, arrest warrants of notorious outlaws and a stunning collection of seized jewelry by the U.S. Marshals. As of January 2003 the museum was closed and is in storage in Ft. Smith, AR awaiting the building of a museum along the banks of the Arkansas River. https://www.fortsmith.org/future-home-national-us-marshals-museum/ |