Located in Klamath Falls, Ore., the Favell Museum is a place of learning and exploration dedicated to the people and history of the West. The museum houses more than 100,000 items—some dating back 12,000 years—that illustrate the artistry and ingenuity of cultures from the west coasts of North and South America. With its combination of Native American artifacts, contemporary Western art, a sales gallery, and banquet space, the Favell is an important source of education and entertainment in the Klamath River Basin. It tells the story of the West in a unique and engaging way.
In the spring 2025 grant round, the Klamath River Fund awarded the Favell Museum a Community Impact grant for Voices of the Klamath River Watershed, a new permanent exhibit.
The exhibit will explore the values that have shaped the watershed—from the original Indigenous peoples who have lived here since time immemorial to the settlers, farmers, and loggers who came to the Basin.
According to Karl Wenner, a Klamath Falls resident and member of the exhibit’s steering committee, the exhibit aims to present a broad and unbiased range of perspectives on the river, its uses, the conflicts that have arisen, and the ongoing work to find common ground. “We can help address the conflicts in the Basin by telling the stories and having everyone’s point of view represented in a fair, just‑the‑facts way,” said Wenner.
“Supporting storytelling is one of the goals of the Klamath River Fund,” says Holly Hensher, senior program officer. “We were impressed with the Favell Museum’s dedication to having balanced representation of the history of the Basin. We saw potential for the planning process and exhibit to be cathartic, giving voice to those that feel their history and stories have gone unheard.”
With the historic removal of the dams on the Klamath River, the museum sought to represent the expansive history of the Basin as a means of mending past divisions and highlighting the realities of life in an over‑allocated watershed. “A physical and metaphorical division of our basin is gone, and now we’re one watershed. The thread that binds it all together is water. That’s our element to tell the story. We’re all connected by water, and every aspect of the Basin is connected by water,” Wenner added.
Planning an ambitious exhibit like this is a long‑term undertaking. Since 2024, museum staff and volunteers have been gathering content, iterating on designs, working with design partners, applying for grants, and setting milestones and fundraising goals. “I’m quite excited about developing a 3D map of the entire watershed that you can tell the stories on. In that setting, it’s like you’ll be there. You can see what’s happening and engage with artifacts that are relevant to whatever part of the story we’re telling. It becomes a very experiential thing,” Wenner said.
The museum plans to open the exhibit—housed in a new addition to its building—in mid‑2027.
The Favell Museum is located at 125 W. Main Street in Klamath Falls, Oregon. Learn more about supporting the museum or planning your visit at FavellMuseum.org.