TUESDAY, May 12, 2026 |
Photo – Nancy Anderson in front of Lora Webb-Nichols house – Courtesy Alliance for Historic Wyoming
The Alliance for Historic Wyoming presented the Mary Humstone Excellence in Historic Preservation Lifetime Achievement Award to Encampment archivist Nancy Anderson.
Founded in 2005, the Alliance for Historic Wyoming is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving culturally important buildings and sites across the state. Since 2023, the Alliance for Historic Wyoming has presented the Mary Humstone Awards for Excellence in Historic Preservation to individuals and organizations whose work has made a lasting impact on the preservation of Wyoming’s historic places and cultural heritage.
Speaking to Bigfoot99 last year, Alliance for Historic Wyoming Executive Director Megan Stanfill explained that Mary Humstone helped found the historic‑preservation group. Last year, the Alliance honored Humstone for her 19 years of service on its Board of Directors by naming the award after her.
This year, the Alliance for Historic Wyoming presented the Mary Humstone Lifetime Achievement Award to Nancy Anderson.
Anderson is the well-known owner of the Lora Webb-Nichols house in Encampment. She also maintains Nichols’ collection of thousands of photographs, diaries, and artifacts.
Not only did Anderson know the famous photographer personally, but she also wrote a book about Nichols, including her work documenting life in early Encampment. In 2023, Anderson began the process of having the Lora Webb-Nichols house listed on the National Register of Historic Places. At the time, she said the home deserves to be preserved for future use.
Later that year, the house was added to the National Register of Historic Places, joining other Encampment listings such as the Willis House and the Boston Wyoming Smelter Site.
Anderson also helped establish the Elk Mountain, Hanna, and Grand Encampment Museums. At the Hanna Museum, a detached exhibit space is dedicated to Anderson’s late husband, Victor.
Alliance for Historic Wyoming Executive Director Megan Stanfill is quoted as saying, “Nancy Anderson has dedicated her life to preservation in Carbon County. […] Her work has been to tell the whole story, and the Alliance for Historic Wyoming is honored to celebrate her success.”
The Alliance for Historic Wyoming will present Anderson with her Mary Humstone Lifetime Achievement Award at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 19th, at the Grand Encampment Museum. The event is free and open to the public.
