There is a chance that you may never see the great pyramid's in Egypt, Mexico, the Luxor in Las Vegas or the Bass Pro Shop Pyramid in Memphis, but you can still see a pyramid without leaving Wyoming.

The Ames Monument is located east of Laramie at Sherman Summit and is Wyoming's great Pyramid. The pyramid stands 60 feet and is 60 feet square at the base. At one time you were able to enter a passage on the inside, but has since been sealed.

Ames Monument
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The monument was designed and erected to honor the two men that were the most responsible for helping to get the transcontinental railroad completed.

Oakes and Oliver Ames were brothers, business men, and politicians that used their business sense to get the Union Pacific railroad completed in 1869. The railroad was a major project for President Abraham Lincoln, and after only 12 miles of track was laid, he requested the brothers take over and get the job done.

Following the completion of the railroad, one of the brothers, Oakes, was part of a financing scandal in 1872 and was referred, by some, as 'Hoax Ames'. It wasn't long after that he passed away in Massachusetts. Even still, the town of Ames, Iowa was named after him.

His brother Oliver was a member of the Massachusetts State Senate and served as President of the Union Pacific Railroad.

The monument was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson, who also was the designer of the Trinity Church in Boston. This particular monument was one of at least 6, that was done for the Ames family.

Where the monument stands is a few miles from where the original railroad tracks ran. In 1901, the tracks were rerouted to the south. Even though the tracks were moved, the monument can still be accessed and the history of the brothers lives on in Wyoming.

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