Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson is pleased that an exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) will be on display in rural Idaho. Simpson is the Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Environment that oversees funding for the Smithsonian Institution. 

“Between Fences,” an exhibition from the Museum on Main Street, a partnership of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Federation of State Humanities Councils, examines the history and meaning of fences in America. Included in the exhibition are tools, photographs, journals, postcards and posters relating to the history of fences. Fences are an integral part of the fabric of the communities in the United States; so too is their rich history.

“The ability for traveling exhibits of this stature to come to Idaho is extraordinary,” said Simpson. “I’m even more thrilled that we have the opportunity to bring them to some of Idaho’s more remote locations so that citizens of all ages have this unique opportunity to view and learn from them.”

The exhibition opens on April 3, 2009 in Salmon, Idaho, at the Salmon Arts Council and will remain on view through May 16, 2009.  The exhibit will then travel to Ketchum, Idaho at the Community Library and will be on display from May 22 – July 4, 2009. The exhibition then will tour additional states during its five-year run.

“The Smithsonian is delighted that ‘Between Fences’ is featured at the Salmon Arts Council,” said Wayne Clough, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. “The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service is the largest of its kind in the world and it reaches millions of people, including residents of the great state of Idaho, as well as people who can’t come visit our nation’s capital.”

Fences are icons of the American landscape. They can be used to create a welcoming picture of home or a wall of privacy and security. Fences have pitted rancher against rancher in the battle for scarce resources; back fences serve as meeting places where neighbors share recipes, local gossip or a friendly joke. Americans live between fences.

“Between Fences” focuses on a range of fence materials and how they have varied over time and by region. Colonial America’s first fences were made of wood or stone. But as settlement moved westward, forests dwindled. Farmers needing to protect their crops from free-ranging cattle came to rely on the steel wire industry to create strong, inexpensive fence material. Using fences to establish boundaries led to the fence wars of the late 19th century. These conflicts turned neighbor against neighbor, sometimes with deadly consequences. More than two centuries later, the question is posed: What is the intent of fences?

SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for more than 50 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. For more information, including exhibition descriptions and tour schedules, visit www.sites.si.edu.