High Iron
- 11 minutes ago
- 4 min read
This past July 4th, on the 250th birthday of the United States, Cheyenne hosted a big party at the Capitol Complex. Also on this day, was the opening of High Iron, a traveling box car gallery that has come from Laramie to Cheyenne for the summer. It features the stories, artifacts, and artwork from descendants of the immigrants who built the railroad and in turn, built Wyoming. It will remain in Cheyenne until September 26th and then move on to Rock Springs. Please pay a visit to this special public art exhibit. It is open every Saturday from 2 - 7pm. Visit highiron.org for additional open hours with special programming. Free admission.
During High Iron's stay in Cheyenne, I was given the privilege and the space to communicate the story of my Greek ancestry and its relationship to the mighty railroad that built the West. In my corner of the boxcar, I tell the story of my family and The Albany Restaurant. The Albany was under the stewardship of my family for nearly 80 years before it was sold in 2021. Greeks played a prominent role in the hospitality industry in many parts of the U.S. and especially in Cheyenne. Many artifacts in the exhibit call back to that time.
Visit www.highiron.org for more info Very few photographs exist of the immigrants who built the railroad. 250th Celebration at the Capitol. High Iron exhibit located east of the capitol building until September 26th. Celebrating the immigrant labor that built the West. Working with the High Iron creative team: Aubrey and Conor. Organizing and securing the artifacts and memories. Telling the story of my ancestors. High Iron box car gallery interior.
In addition to providing artifacts and memories about The Albany, I contributed an original painting. In it, I honored the immigrant Greek women who also worked in the hospitality industry that serviced travelers and locals alike.
Per my style, I chose to work on a reclaimed surface: a decorative painting that once hung in the living room of my grandmother's best friend, Tasia Karamigios. She was a longtime childcare provider for a generation of Cheyenne kids--including my sister and I. Her husband, John Karamigios, was a cook at The Albany for many years. The abandoned decorative statement piece, that was typical of many Yia Yia (Greek for grandmother) living rooms, was the perfect format for me to explore what it meant to be an immigrant woman from Greece making a life for herself in cold and windy Wyoming.
I am her descendant.
Tasia and John Karamigios wedding. Tasia's abandoned living room art. Repairing the missing head and feet. Rehabbed and ready for paint. Overall composition and Cheyenne airport fountain. Details emerging of downtown Capitol Ave. In process at my studio. She even lights up! Her new life.
I wrote an Artist Statement to accompany my contribution to the High Iron exhibit:
Xenia and the Yia Yias
The railroad that built the Magic City of Cheyenne brought with it the Greek people, and their cultural custom of Xenia. Xenia is a reverence for hospitality that has been embedded in Greek culture for millennia. It is a concept of guest-friendship that obligates a host to provide shelter, food, and rest to a stranger before even learning their name. It acted as a social contract that not only protected travelers, but bound future generations across the Mediterranean in friendship. This social custom was fundamental to the Greek way of life and is perhaps why the Greeks working for the railroad eventually transitioned their livelihood to the hospitality industry.
The Greeks in Cheyenne were known for owning confectionaries and restaurants—places where travelers could have a meal, and friends could meet and feel at home. Often these establishments were owned by brothers and cousins—partnerships forged by blood, and a life dedicated to service work. The income from these establishments was often sent back home to relatives still living in the “old country.” The business of selling hot sandwiches and ice cream was also a way to secure a bride back in Greece.
Enter the Greek women. Almost as ancient as the custom of Xenia is the tradition of Troika, also known as a dowry. It is a form of financial protection that a family provides for their daughter should the groom turn out to be negligent or leave her a widow. It is meant to be a protection, but it is also a burden—particularly for families with multiple daughters. The Greek Civil War and World Wars of the 1920s and 40s had left many families very poor, and thus many daughters without financial security.
My grandmother, Magdilin (Kay), was one such example of a woman without a dowry in war-torn Greece. She worked in the fields, cooked every meal for her family, and raised her infant brother. My grandfather, James (Blackie) Kallas, owned The New Albany Café and wanted a family. He came to her village and offered her a safe and secure life in the United States without the exchange of a dowry.
She left the sea-view and fertile climate of the Mediterranean for the windswept high plains of Cheyenne, Wyoming. She was not alone in her culture shock, for there were many Greek women that had been brought over after the war who did not know the language or the customs. She made fast friends with these women. They were her sisters and a source of strength from which to draw upon through the bitter winters. This sisterhood was the backbone of the Greek community. Not only did they raise a new generation, many worked in the hospitality industry alongside their husbands, brothers, and sons.
The livelihood of the Greeks in Wyoming began with building the railroad, and then transitioned into guest-friendship with its passengers. As travelers arrived at their destination or had a layover between trains, you can be sure they made their way to a diner for a quick hot meal or a confectionary for a sweet treat. These establishments were very likely owned and operated by a Greek family. In the long tradition of Xenia, guests would have been greeted kindly and treated with respect before continuing along their journey.
-MK
Magdilin on her wedding day in Greece. Wedding photo in the U.S. Blackie behind the counter. Koula and Kay working the hotel lobby desk. The Albany Cafe counter. Serving Sunday dinner.
