So you wanna be a Cowboy'

FORT BENNING, GA. Aca,!" When Shayla Simpson was a young girl, she had no idea there was more than one type of barbed wire.

Aca,!A"To me barbed wire was barbed wire. It all hurt and I hated putting it up,Aca,!A? Simpson said of her childhood ranching years.

Now as the director of public relations and museum events at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, Simpson can show visitors the more than 1,400 types of barbed wire in its collection, not to mention the Oklahoma City museumAca,!a,,cs countless other displays of Western art, artifacts and cowboy culture.

Aca,!A"There are a lot of people who may not live the cowboy lifestyle and donAca,!a,,ct know a lot about this cowboy stuff,Aca,!A? Simpson said, Aca,!A"but they can believe in it through art, sculptures, and saddle work.Aca,!A?

Every effort has been made to make many of the museumAca,!a,,cs galleries interactive and family-friendly, Simpson said, Aca,!A"because by the time kids have gone through the art and sculpture galleries, they want to touch, they want to play, they donAca,!a,,ct want you to tell them to slow down and they donAca,!a,,ct want you to tell them to be quiet.Aca,!A?

In addition to touch-screens and movable displays thereAca,!a,,cs also a place in the museum where anything goes: the ChildrenAca,!a,,cs Cowboy Corral. Inside children can try on boots, spurs and chaps in the Buckaroo Bunkhouse, climb on saddles and crawl into a cowboy bedroll and tent at the Cowboy Camp. They can experience life in a child-size bunkhouse and pretend to be a frontier family sharing a meal around the campfire using pots and pans associated with the era, Simpson said.

Aca,!A"They can do all kinds of stuff,Aca,!A? Simpson said. Aca,!A"ItAca,!a,,cs something that they can hold on to and feel like they are a part of it all.Aca,!A?

Children and grown-ups alike can enjoy a visit to Prosperity Junction, a turn-of-the-century, cattle town where visitors can stroll along the boardwalk and hear conversations one might have heard in an early 20th century settlement complete with church, schoolhouse, hotel, livery stable, newspaper office, bank and train depot.

Aca,!A"ItAca,!a,,cs just like leaving the world as we know it for just a little bit,Aca,!A? Simpson said.

All these things and more can be experienced at the 220,000-square-foot facility, located in Oklahoma City, less than 75 miles northeast of Fort Sill, Okla. Aca,!A"From fine art, pop culture and firearms to Native American objects, historical cowboy gear, shopping and dining, the museum tells AmericaAca,!a,,cs story as it unfolds across the West,Aca,!A? according to its Web site. ItAca,!a,,cs a story, Simpson said, that is vital to preserve.

Aca,!A"You live in town because somebody in that picture crossed that frontier, set up a town, built it, started (living there),Aca,!A? said Simpson, who lives in Guthrie, Okla., where the 1889 land run began.

Aca,!A"We have to continue to educate our children on everything from yesterdayAca,!a,,cs past Aca,!" and the past of 50 years ago and 100 years ago, 200 years ago Aca,!" so they can understand our heritage and where we came from and why weAca,!a,,cre here.Aca,!A?

For more information, or a list of upcoming events, visit www.nationalcowboymuseum.org.