FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Sundlov
May 1, 2008
(701) 572-9034
SUMMER HOURS TO BEGIN AT MISSOURI-YELLOWSTONE
CONFLUENCE INTERPRETIVE CENTER NEAR WILLISTON MAY 16
WILLISTON – Beginning Friday, May 16, visitor hours will change at the Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center near Williston. At that time, the Confluence Center’s summer schedule will take effect.
Located 21 miles southwest of Williston, the Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center is open year-round. It is considered part of the Fort Buford State Historic Site, also managed by the state’s history agency, the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Now through May 15 it is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central Time, Wednesdays through Saturdays, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. From May 16 through September 15, its hours will be 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week. It is closed on New Year’s Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Admission is $5/adult, $2.50/child, ages 6-15, and children 5 and under are admitted free. Admission is half-price from September 16 through May 15. The fee also covers admission to the Fort Buford State Historic Site, located ½ mile west of the Confluence Center.
Visitors to the Confluence Center will see the exhibit, North Dakota Remembers World War II, which opened April 12. Presenting stories of North Dakotans from all branches of the armed forces and their experiences worldwide, North Dakota Remembers World War II features World War II‑era uniforms, medals, photographs, and other artifacts related to personal experiences in the war. The exhibit focuses its attention on North Dakota’s soldiers and civilians that were directly impacted by the war.
A permanent exhibit in the Field Officer’s Quarters at the Fort Buford site explores the life of a frontier military officer at Fort Buford and also examines the role of women at an army post. Life by the Bugle features several objects original to Fort Buford’s days as a military post from 1866 to 1895. The Field Officer’s Quarters will open for the visiting season Friday, May 16.
The Confluence Center also includes a meeting room, rotunda and an open plaza facing the Confluence. The meeting room is available for use during and after operating hours. Equipment is available for no charge, including a slide projector, overhead, screen, easel with white board, public address system, and a coffee percolator. The rotunda and open plaza are available to groups after operating hours only. A $25 security fee is charged for after hours use, with a minimum use requirement of two hours.
Free admission to all sites administered by the State Historical Society of North Dakota (SHSND) is one of the many benefits for members of the SHSND Foundation. Others include a 15 percent discount on museum store purchases, and the quarterly publications, North Dakota History and Plains Talk. To become a member, call the Foundation at (701) 222-1966 or visit the website at www.statehistoricalfoundation.com.
Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center
Summer 2008 Program Schedule
May 3: Paddlefishing the Confluence, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Only two days after the opening of paddlefish season at the Confluence, learn more about the mysterious paddlefish and the waters where they live during a presentation by Fred Ryckman of the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center.
May 11: History Book Club, 2 p.m. Join Williston author Lester J. Lohse, Lt. Colonel Air Force Reserves, as he discusses his World War II experiences and his book, Now It Can Be Told. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center.
May 16: North Dakota State Historic Sites, including Fort Buford State Historic Site, open for the season, through September 15. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center begins summer hours through September 15, open seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Center admission is $5/Adult, $2.50/Child (6-15), $1/Student in Group. Half-price admission September 16 through May 15. Fee also covers admission to Fort Buford State Historic Site and vice versa.
May 17: Seasonal Concert and Flag Raising, 11 a.m., Fort Buford State Historic Site. Enjoy a free concert and watch the Sixth Infantry Regiment Association proudly raise the flag over Fort Buford on its first weekend of the visitors’ season.
June 14-15: History Alive! performances featuring champion buffalo hunter Yellowstone Vic Smith, at 3 and 5 p.m. Fort Buford State Historic Site.
July 4-5: History Alive! performances featuring legendary steamboat captain Grant Marsh, at 1 and 3 p.m. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center.
July 19-20: History Alive! performances featuring champion buffalo hunter Yellowstone Vic Smith, at 3 and 5 p.m. Fort Buford State Historic Site.
August 2-3: History Alive! performances featuring Sgt. John Ordway of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, at 3 and 5 p.m. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center.
August 10: Children’s Carnival at the Confluence, 1 p.m. Offering old-style carnival games for prizes, face-painting, an educational scavenger hunt, craftmaking, and a children’s movie. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center.
August 16-17: 26th Annual Fort Buford Sixth Infantry Frontier Military Encampment, Fort Buford State Historic Site. Be at Fort Buford for this weekend as the Sixth Infantry reenactors bring the fort back to life. Special events all weekend long.
August 23: Five-year anniversary of Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center. Enjoy a free Concert at the Confluence to mark this special event. Free admission and refreshments.
September 14: Seasonal Concert and Flag Retreat, 3 p.m. Enjoy the final weekend of Fort Buford’s visiting season with a free concert followed by a formal military retreat ceremony lowering the flag.
September 27: Natural World of the Confluence, 12 noon. Learn to bird and begin your lifelist. Collect and identify plants, grasses and trees. Learn to geo-cache and much more. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center.
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