{"id":26239,"date":"2024-08-08T20:22:54","date_gmt":"2024-08-08T20:22:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/aztec-museum-pioneer-village-to-host-free-weekend-events\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T05:35:59","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T05:35:59","slug":"aztec-museum-pioneer-village-to-host-free-weekend-events","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/aztec-museum-pioneer-village-to-host-free-weekend-events\/","title":{"rendered":"Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village to host free weekend events"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Program
Program to include the rededication of the museum\u2019s replica D&RG caboose in recognition of the Atchison-Johnston family\u2019s donation and preservation of the caboose (Courtesy Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Free events are planned Friday and Saturday at the Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village after kicking off with a free concert by The Badly Bent in the Pioneer Village.<\/p>\n

On Saturday afternoon, the museum will feature a Chautauqua program with New Mexico railroad historian Fred Friedman and the rededication of the museum\u2019s replica D&RG caboose.<\/p>\n

The Badly Bent, a Durango-based band known for high-energy traditional and original bluegrass, will perform Friday at 7 p.m. The band, active since 1998, has a reputation for its musicianship and has won numerous music competitions, including the Telluride Bluegrass Band Competition.<\/p>\n

\"The
The Durango-based band The Badly Bent bluegrass band has been performing in the Four Corners and across the country for 26 years (Courtesy Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cWe are absolutely thrilled to welcome back The Badly Bent for a third year playing in the Pioneer Village for our Music at the Museum Concert Series,\u201d said Joan Monninger, executive director of the Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village. \u201cThey love our venue, and our audience loves them and the great energy they bring to our nostalgic setting.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concert starts Friday at 7 p.m. in the museum\u2019s Event Shed; the museum\u2019s west gate by the Aztec Splash Pad opens at 6:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Aug. 10, the museum will welcome Fred Friedman, one of New Mexico\u2019s leading railroad historians, for a special public program at 2:30 p.m. titled \u201cAztec and its Railroading History.\u201d Friedman has presented numerous programs on various aspects of New Mexico railroading for the Historical Society of New Mexico, New Mexico Humanities Council, and other organizations. His program will focus on the unique railroad history of Aztec and the surrounding area.<\/p>\n

Following Friedman\u2019s program, the museum will host a rededication ceremony for the replica D&RG caboose in the Pioneer Village. The caboose underwent a meticulous preservation process from late 2022 to early 2024, made possible by the generosity of the Atchison-Johnston family. Originally, in 1992, Ray Atchison had the caboose constructed for the museum by employees of the Cumbres and Toltec Railroad, utilizing an old D&RG boxcar. This caboose serves as an engaging exhibit, connecting visitors to the region\u2019s transportation history and railroading heritage as part of the museum\u2019s collection of historic structures and equipment.<\/p>\n

\"Moving
Moving the caboose to the museum in 1993. (Courtesy Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The Pioneer Village features more than a dozen historic wood structures, all of which require ongoing upkeep and costly preservation efforts. Honoring Ray\u2019s legacy, the Atchison-Johnston family has funded the caboose\u2019s preservation in 2016 and again more recently.<\/p>\n

The contract work on the caboose was executed by Robert Parker of Aztec, while the authentic lettering was done by museum volunteer and Durango\/Farmington train artist, Jeff Ellingson. The program will take place in the Pioneer Village by the caboose, with seating provided. Admission to the museum is free for this event.<\/p>\n

The museum is at 125 N. Main Ave. in Aztec. Music at the Museum free concerts at the museum are possible by the Connie Gotsch Arts Foundation. Fred Friedman\u2019s railroad program is possible by the New Mexico Humanities Council. All 2024 programming is possible by the museum\u2019s 60th anniversary sponsors. For information, call (505) 334-9829.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Concert by The Badly Bent and railroad program with historian Fred Friedman highlight weekend festivities<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":26240,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-26239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79281,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26239\/revisions\/79281"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26240"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26239"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=26239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}