One of the showpieces of Trinidad Museum is the dramatic mural painted by Susan Morton. This beautiful panorama provides the backdrop to the Axel Lindgren, Jr. redwood canoe. Susan painted the panels in the late 1980s as a backdrop for Axel’s canoe featured in Eureka’s Rhododendron Parade. The panels and the canoe were presented on a flatbed truck for the parade, after which the museum installed them in the first museum.

When the new museum was opened, Susan disassembled the paintings and re-mounted them for the new exhibit. It was quite something to watch as she whacked away at the paintings and patched with Bondo where needed. No one but the artist would have dared to attempt this. She added more details for the new exhibit including the bull whip seaweed at the bottom and the flying sea birds.