Not to upset the apple cart, but things are changing at the Royal Gorge Regional Museum & History Center.
The newest exhibit, "Getting to the Core: The Story of the Apple Industry in Fremont County," will blossom June 1 with an opening reception from 5 to 7 p.m. at the museum, 612 Royal Gorge Blvd. Refreshments will be provided by the Friends of the Museum.
"Some of the artifacts that we will have on display are ribbons from the Fruit Days, one is dated 1899; the traveling band competition trophy that started in 1973; a fruit-picking ladder and an apple-picking bag," said Archivist/Curator Lisa Studts.
Photo boards showcase the Fruit Day Festival that originated local festivals, including the May Day Festival, the Blossom Festival and Penrose's Apple Day Festival.
Assistant Archivist Sue Cochran said early-day miners played a key role in the formation of Fremont County's rich and long-standing apple industry.
"The miners that came out here went into the hills with very little prep time," she said. "They were living on dried-meat and biscuits -- their diets were horrible."
She said miners needed a way to get fresh fruits and vegetables into their diets, but canned goods were not available on the frontier, and there was not a railroad at that time in the area.
"There was a handful of guys that came along that said there's a buck or two to be made here, and they started growing the fruits and vegetables for the purpose of supplementing the miners' diets," Cochran said. "The big surprise was that the soil here was just really, really good for that."
The exhibit will be up for about two years. Regular hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and admission is free. For more information, call 269-9036.
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Royal Gorge Regional Museum & History Center explores the apple industry
