Local award-winning Truckee photographer Elizabeth Carmel has been selected to produce images for the Donner Memorial State Park Museum.

She will photograph a series of panoramic murals to convey the beauty and power of the Sierra Mountain Range, which will serve as backdrops for exhibits about the people and events that have taken place near the site. Carmel will employ aerial photography with the use of a helicopter to acquire optimum views of the mountain peaks and landscapes during sunrise and early morning time frames to capitalize on the best available light for the museum project.

Included in the new museum will be displays and information about one of the earliest pioneer wagon trains, the Donner Party. Also to be featured will be native American history of the region, natural resource history through time, the history of the railroad development through the Donner Pass, and the construction of Interstate 80 and how transportation played a role in the development of California.

Funding for the new visitor center at Donner Memorial State Park is separate from the current State budget crisis in California and cannot be used for things other than the kind of project proposed for the new museum. Funding is provided by the federal Highway Administration. Funds will also be provided by the 2002 State Park Bond.