"Dean of Western Artists" was the title given to Wieghorst by his admirers. His time in art has been found to be an important link between the old and the new West.

By the 50’s, he had a significant following among major collectors of Western art. Among them was C.R. Smith who, along with friends and business associates Sid Richardson and Amon Carter, assembled major collections of Western art. The Richardson and Carter collection are in museums of the same names in Fort Worth, Texas, and the C.R. Smith Collection is in the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas Library in Austin, Texas.

Wieghorst was honored with exhibitions at numerous museums, including the National Cowboy Hall of Fame, Gilcrease Museum, San Diego Museum of Art and Tucson Museum of Art. His studio has been re-created for permanent display at the Gilcrease.