In celebration of its 60th anniversary on April 22, the Chisholm Trail Museum is launching a $6 million fundraising campaign dedicated to expanding and renovating the museum.

The campaign officially kicks off May 1 and the museum will have a head start.

Approximately $2 million of the funds have already been secured, leaving $4 million to be raised.

“This project will allow the museum to rebrand as ‘The Chisholm’ and refocus its mission to provide a more sustainable future while ensuring that Oklahoma’s farming and ranching history, from its early roots to contemporary issues, are shared,” said Jason Harris, executive director at the museum.

Farming and ranching have long played a role in shaping the lives of Oklahomans and the state and the campaign will allow the museum to combine the old with the new, Harris added.

“At The Chisholm, we will strive to engage, educate and enrich our community and those who explore it by making the unique stories of Oklahoma’s past relevant to today’s visitors,” Harris said.

“We sit at the crossroads of Oklahoma’s wheat belt and along the Chisholm Trail. Our location makes us an ideal place to share exhibits on indigenous agriculture and herd management, the cattle drive era, agriculture mechanization and modernization, conservation efforts, ranch rodeo, agriculture and the environment and more.” With more than threefourths of the state as farmland, Oklahoma is home to more than 77,000 farms and ranches, ranks second in the U.S. in cattle production, fourth in the number of farms and shapes agribusiness across the nation through education training.

The museum’s new exhibits will focus on the individuals, families and industries that have shaped Oklahoma agribusiness through the decades, Harris added.

More than $1.5 million has been allocated for The Chisholm out of $46 million in Legacy Capital Financing funds given to the Oklahoma Historical Society by the legislature to make improvements to more than 20 sites across the state.

The museum plans to raise additional private funds through 2026, with work beginning at the complex this summer.

The project will be completed in four phases, Harris said, and provided the following projected timeline and aspects of each phase: Phase 1 will focus on the restoration of the heritage village with funding already in place for this effort.

Log restoration on the cabins and new roofs on the remaining buildings have been completed. Exterior restoration of the bank, church and school as well as new roofs on the cabins will begin this summer. In addition, new exhibits will be installed in both cabins and additional interpretation will be provided at the bank and school.

Phase 2 will begin later this year and includes making improvements to the large implement building, with new electrical service inside the building, installation of equipment storage shelving, insulation and lighting and creation of a new exhibit fabrication shop for future projects. Also, exterior work will include improved lighting and drainage.

Phase 3 will be focused on the preservation of A.J. Seay’s home, Horizon Hill, and has received the necessary funding. It will include extensive outdoor preservation work on the windows and doors, interior renovations, exterior landscaping and drainage improvements, improved sidewalks and additional parking. Work on the mansion is currently planned to take place throughout 2025.

Phase 4 will be targeted at renovating the main museum, which will include major upgrades to the museum, new educational and meeting spaces, new exhibits and more. Its new mission and vision will focus on Oklahoma’s farming and ranching heritage and the project will begin at some point in 2026 when fundraising is complete, taking approximately 18 months to finish.

“An additional $4 million dollars is needed to finish this portion of the project and fundraising is underway,” Harris said.

“As part of our fundraising efforts, we are specifically asking our friends and neighbors in our immediate area to help us raise $450,000 in local support for the project.”

The museum has launched new programs to help raise awareness, engage the public and highlight our project.

That includes the Summer Sounds Concert Series, which begins May 16 and will feature a different band and food trucks each month.

“This fall, we will host Parlor Jams, an acoustic jam session in the parlors at the mansion for musicians and the public,” Harris said, noting that other new programs will be coming soon.

Harris said this campaign will enable the museum to completely renovate the museum building and its mechanical systems, preserve historic structures in the heritage village, complete extensive preservation work on the territorial governor’s mansion and allow for better visitor experiences and care of its collections.

The design includes creating new educational and community meeting spaces, modernizing collections storage for artifact care, providing improved ADA accessibility, installing new exhibits throughout the museum complex and more, Harris added.

“It is about more than just our buildings,” Harris said. “It is about transforming the museum to appeal to many of our state’s citizens and visitors while helping the Oklahoma Historical Society meet its institutional goals.

“Our objective is to provide our community with an invaluable resource while stimulating tourism in the region.”