South to lasso cowgirl spirit
By Tiffant Davis, south news editor

     The old west will invade South Campus when Women in New Roles sponsors The Cowgirl Spirit Thursday, Sept. 21.
     Susan Fine of the National Cowgirl Museum will talk about the museum and Hall of Fame while relating stories of the courageous women who helped settle the west. The public presentation will be 11:20 a.m.-12:20 p.m. in the SUB living room.
     The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, in Fort Worth, is the only museum in the world dedicated to honoring and documenting the lives of legendary women who have distinguished themselves while exemplifying the pioneer spirit of the American West.
     The museum incorporates true stories of risk and romance, courage and conviction. The National Cowgirl Museum’s aim is to educate and entertain. The museum is designed to entertain not only women but also men, boys and girls, young and old, according to museum personnel.
     Currently, the museum has 149 honorees including artists and writers, tribal leaders, entertainers, humanitarians, businesswomen, educators, ranchers and rodeo cowgirls. New honorees are inducted into the museum’s Hall of Fame annually.
     One can find honorees such as painter Georgia O’ Keefe, Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of Little House on the Prairie, and many more legendary women.
     The museum’s increasing popularity and the need to make it more convenient led the board to move the museum from Hereford, Texas, to Fort Worth in 1993. The board is now seeking to raise $21 million so that it can build and open the museum in 2002.
     The city council unanimously approved a land-lease agreement for the site of the museum. The Cowgirl museum will be accessible by freeways and major streets and adjacent to existing public parking areas.
     The immediate area has already been named the Western Heritage Center. The Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Foundation will build a new facility for its Cattle Raisers Museum next door to the National Cowgirl Museum.
     The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, located across the street from the National Cowgirl Museum, will build an addition to house its western–oriented exhibits.
     “Finally, the three museums will share a common plaza and collaborate on exhibit and events, allowing visitors to fully experience the inspiring story of American West,” Fine said.