Wyoming History

In January of 1890, the final session of the Wyoming Territorial Legislature debated a controversial idea to impose a tax on single men. The so-called "bachelor tax" would have levied a $2.50 against all unmarried men in the state. Although the proposal did have some support across the state, including an editorial in the Rawlins Daily Times, it was eventually tabled...

Today marks an interesting anniversary in Wyoming history. 134 years ago, on January 5, 1883, Cheyenne became the first town in the west to install electric lights. Wyoming's facination with electricity began five years earlier when Thomas Edison and a group of scientists conducted an experiment near Rawlins...

It’s already been a cold, snowy winter here in the Cowboy State and we’re just getting started. As Wyoming residents bundle up and brace for frigid temperatures this week, here’s a look back at five of the worst winter storms in the state’s history...

123 years ago this week, one of Wyoming's most beloved landmarks opened for business. On New Year's Eve, 1893, Frederick G. Wolf hosted a masquarade ball, welcoming the public inside his grand, victorian style Hotel Wolf in Saratoga. Guests from all over the region attended the affair, which lasted into the wee hours of the morning...

When the railroad first arrived in Wyoming in the late 1860s, the most popular spectator sport in America was watching people walk. As new cities like Cheyenne and Laramie sprung up along the western frontier, onlookers would gather to witness "professional pedestrians" and gamble on the outcome of their races...

December 25, 1866, the soldiers at Fort Laramie gathered in the "Bedlam Building" for their annual Christmas party. By night's end, it would be the saddest holiday celebration in Wyoming history. Unbeknownst to the merrymakers, just three days earlier, 81 of their former colleagues had been ambushed and killed at Fort Phil Kearney, near present-day Buffalo, Wyoming...

In December of 1856, Thomas Dobson worked for a stagecoach line that transported travellers from South Pass, Wyoming, to the Salt Lake Valley in Utah. After his shoes had worn out that winter, the 19 year-old Dobson pressed on barefoot, often pushing the handcart in snow and ice...

Did you know that Christmas was not a federally recognized holiday until 1870? Here in Wyoming, Christmas has been officially observed since the territory was first granted statehood in 1890. But a lot has changed since then. How you celebrated Christmas often depended on how close you lived to the railroad...

This weekend, thousands of Wyoming families will gather around the Christmas tree. Of all the trees in Wyoming history, only one has represented the Cowboy State at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. In 2010, a 67-feet-tall Engleman Spruce harvested from the Bridger-Teton National Forest was chosen by the United States Forest Service to represent Wyoming on the west lawn of the United S

Wyoming is one of the most patriotic places in the country. Here in the Cowboy State, we love our country, support our soldiers and respect our veterans. In fact, there's an entire town in Wyoming that was founded specifically for veterans...

To celebrate the season, here's a look back at 10 historic holiday photos from the Wyoming State Archives.

This weekend, thousands of Wyoming football fans will follow the 'Cowboy Caravan' on Interstate 80 from Cheyenne to the Mountain West Conference Championship in Laramie. Unfortunately, most of them will never experience a proud Pokes tradition called the "Treagle Train"...