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Museum of Northwest Colorado

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The Museum has one of the largest cowboy gun/leather/spur collections ever on public display. It is one of the finest of its kind and represents 50 years of collecting by its original owner, Bill Mackin. It is the basis of his own book, "Cowboy and Gunfighter Collectibles" (available in the Museum Gift Shop). Parts of the collection have been featured in numerous other publications and TV shows. The collection is displayed on the second floor of the museum in its entirety.


Mackin Collection

Mackin Collection

Cowboy and Gunfighter Room

Cowboy and Gunfighter Room

Bill Mackin looks over the vast array of cowboy materials on display at the Museum of Northwest Colorado. A longtime collector of items like guns, spurs and other Western equipment, Mackin donated and later sold his collection to Moffat County and volunteers regularly at the museum.

 Bill Mackin looks over the vast array of cowboy materials on display at the Museum of Northwest Colorado. A longtime collector of items like guns, spurs and other Western equipment, Mackin donated and later sold his collection to Moffat County and volunteers regularly at the museum.

The Cowboy and Gunfighter collection is extraordinary in more ways than one. Not only is it one of the largest of its kind, but it also contains many one of a kind items such as: "Wild Horse Jack's" Remarkable Chaps, Brigham Young’s “Destroying Angel”, and one of the world's rarest Winchesters. All three of these items were collected by Bill Mackin and are on display in the Museum. They are just a few of the hundreds of items that the Cowboy and Gunfighter collection houses.

The Museum's "Museum Marvels" is an ongoing project done by the Assistant Director Paul Knowles. Mr. Knowles features individual items and gives them a little more detail than what can be provided on the plaques in the Museum. Many of the featured items in the "Museum Marvels" series are items located in the Cowboy and Gunfighter collection. They can be found by a silver star with a corresponding number. If you stop into the Museum there are paper booklets (free for guests) located in the front entrance. If you can't stop in, don't worry, the Museum also features these items weekly on their Facebook Page.

Museum of Northwest Colorado

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Museum of Northwest Colorado - Bill Mackin

Museum of Northwest Colorado

Andy Bockelman - Craig Press