4,500 pounds of steel – 307 First installs iconic art on Old Glenrock Highway

It’s a Western visual many already know: A covered wagon pulled by livestock. A cowboy riding a horse. A family trudging westward on foot with their belongings in the wagon or on their backs.

Now, this familiar iconography has gained new prominence, with a hulking metal art installation situated along the northern side of the Old Glenrock Highway, near Meadow Acres.

And, there might be many more popping up.

The silhouette installation is just one of hundreds – 307, to be precise – which the nonprofit 307 First hopes to build throughout the state, in a nod to Wyoming’s lone 307 area code.

Through the project, organizers hope to strengthen ties between local businesses, as well as provide new visual sights to drivers on the road which speak to the state’s heritage. 

So far, more than a dozen organizations and contractors throughout the state are partnering to provide funding, labor and support for the effort.

“It’s a way to get local business owners engaged in a project together, get to know each other and support their businesses,” Wyoming Financial Insurance CEO Bob Moberly said.

The company provided financial support for the Meadow Acres art installation. Moberly also developed the original idea for the metal art project.

“The project can also spark conversations in the car.”

The wagon train scene in Meadow Acres sits on Moberly’s property. Some 4,500 pounds of steel were used for the sculpture which was erected in late June.

Steel was used so the sculpture could withstand the elements and wind across the rolling plains.

“It will be there a long time,” Pepper Tank Project Manager Nick Ellis said. Pepper Tank is a steel contractor out of Casper. The company built the installation based on designs from 307 First.

Other partners involved in the larger project include Groathouse Construction, GW Mechanical, Bar-D Sign, Mobile Concrete and 71 Construction.

The Old Glenrock Highway sculpture is the second metal art creation spearheaded by 307 First, after an initial western scene was built in downtown Casper.

To support the development of the next artworks, the group is looking for local artists to submit designs, residents who have land  in a downtown area or along a highway or interstate for the structures, and sponsors.

More information can be found via their website at www.307first.com 

For now, the wagon train scene on the Old Glenrock Highway is a hard sight to miss, even if whizzing along at the posted speed limit of 70 miles an hour.