J. C. Penney Avenue and South Main Street of Kemmerer, 1977.

Kemmerer will be part of a special statewide event for Wyoming Historic Preservation Month in May. The Alliance for Historic Wyoming will produce a calendar highlighting a different community in the state for each day of May, encouraging locals and tourists to explore the towns.

Kemmerer Historic Preservation Commission chair Linda Goetz outlined the community’s role in the statewide event.   

“They contacted our board and asked if Kemmerer wanted to participate, and of course we said yes,” Goetz said.

The event focuses on historic buildings that house retail businesses. Neilson’s Furniture will represent Kemmerer on the state calendar.

Kemmerer’s day on the calendar is Saturday, May 25. The local preservation board is creating a community walking tour map for the event. Retail businesses that are in historic buildings are encouraged to participate and let the commission know they would like to be included on the map.

The map will be distributed locally and displayed in store windows.

“A historic building is one that is 50 years old or older,” Goetz said. “If the business owners don’t know the age of their building, the commission can help with that, too.”

Goetz said interested businesses should contact the commission by the end of April.

“We’re hoping we can help build momentum with this event, and that more people become aware of the history that is here and want to travel here,” Goetz said.

The calendar featuring Kemmerer will be distributed statewide and on social media, and the event will be publicized on Wyoming Public Media.

“We anticipate lots of participants, both locally and from outside areas,” Goetz said.

Goetz added the commission is also planning a presentation in May to coordinate with Historic Preservation Month.