They are mothers and daughters, sisters and aunts, nieces and wives, grandmothers and friends. Diverse in ethnicity, background and age, they share a commonality — each experienced and shaped the American West through roles far more complex than stereotypes suggest. With strength and resolve, these women built homes, families, businesses, careers and powerful legacies. They found their West.

The Find Her West exhibit is now on display at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. It features photos and other archival items from the museum’s Dickinson Research Center.