High Iron is a moving piece of public art and public history—a transformed train car—currently engaging with communities in Laramie, Wyoming through spring 2026.

On a snowy May Day in 2024, our boxcar arrived by semi and crane from a field in Rigby, Idaho to its new home in a city parking lot in Laramie. Over five months, our collaborative team transformed the car, culminating in its public debut on September 27, 2024.

Inside and out, the car features work by seven public artists, whose installations explore labor, memory, and place. It also houses an interactive labor exhibit, an oral history recording station, and serves as the hub for community programming in each city it visits. High Iron carries the stories of ancestors who built the transcontinental railroad, multigenerational laborers who shaped Wyoming’s economy, and contemporary rail workers and their unions. It shines a light on often-overlooked narratives—of essential labor, immigrant contributions, a culture of care, and the incredible diversity woven through the state’s history.

Before embarking westward to connect former rail towns along the I-80 corridor, High Iron will anchor in Cheyenne for a residency from spring through fall 2026.