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Resounds: Yellowstone County Museum

Jennifer Corning
From left: Zach Garhart, Charlie Yegen, and Christian Coppedge outside the YPR studios

The Yellowstone County Museum was founded in 1953 by the Yellowstone Historical Society, Parmly Billings Library, the Pioneers of Eastern Montana, Yellowstone County, and the City of Billings, and has been open to the public since 1956. The museum’s mission is to collect, preserve, and share the history of Montana’s Yellowstone River Basin through a range of dynamic educational programs and storytelling exhibitions.

Charles Yegen was born and raised in Billings and south-central Montana. He attended Billings Public Schools and the University of Montana. He is involved with Peter Yegen Jr., Inc., a now fourth generation property casualty insurance and real estate business firm, Peter Yegen Jr., Inc, which turned 105 years, June 1, 2024. He’s also active in the beef cattle business with his family and his brother Peter Yegen IV’s family.

Zach Garhart has had the pleasure of working for the Yellowstone County Museum since 2018 and became Director in 2024. He has an M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Wyoming and a passion for sharing local history as a way to explore what it means to be human.

Christian Coppedge has served as the Curator of Collections of the Yellowstone County Museum since 2018. He attended Montana State University - Billings, where he studied History and Native American Studies. Christian believes that museums play an integral role in public education by offering quality place-based and life-long learning opportunities to people of all ages and means.

Jennifer Corning is the co-host of <i>Resounds: Arts and Culture on the High Plains</i>
Corby Skinner is an independent marketing professional with an enormous capacity for assessing issues and creating positive, effective messages.