We hope you enjoyed the beginning of Greg Rasanen’s adventure crossing the Wyoming Lincoln Highway, we sure did! We especially like the part about Frontier Days, it’s always a great event that brings communities and families from all over the country together. Our next stop on this journey is Buford, Wyoming, let’s find out what Greg has to say about this small “town.”
This week we get to hear about the first stop on Greg’s tour of the Lincoln Highway. And what better place to start the trip than to stop in the state capital, Cheyenne. If you missed last week’s post, we are excited to be highlighting Greg Rasanen’s Blog about his trip across the Lincoln Highway for the next month.
The Silver Star Camp located in Thayne, Wyoming was built in 1909 was built by the Ladies LDS Relief Society. In 2017, the DUP was awarded a Historic Architecture Assistance Fund grant which matched them with Dubbe-Moulder to create a rehabilitation plan for the property.
The Old Johnson school, which is currently being occupied by Destiny Church and Academy, was built on the South Side of Cheyenne in 1923. Following an unfortunate accident in 2016 which compromised a load bearing wall on the west side of the school, Destiny Church and Academy was awarded a Historic Architecture Assistance Fund grant in 2016, which connected them to TDSi in Cheyenne.
Rock Springs’ Slovenski Dom has served as the social and cultural heart of Rock Springs’ Slovenian community for over 100 years. This building is a great representation of the preservation of immigrant history within the state, and an important example of repurposing and using old buildings not leaving them dormant.
Located in West Laramie off of Highway 130 stands the 1910 wood frame Corthell Dairy Barn. Owner Candace Pisciotti was awarded a Historic Architecture Assistance Fund grant in 2016 to assess the barn’s condition. She hopes to develop a plan to preserve the building for future use.
In September 1940 the new Skyline Theater opened in Pinedale, Wyoming and operated as a theater until the 1980s. The Skyline Theater is located in Pinedale’s locally designated historic district, and was awarded a Historic Architecture Assistance Fund grant in 2017.
The Historic Dayton Mercantile is an amazing look into the rich history of Sheridan County and the beginning of the town of Dayton. The majestic old west look of the two-story building beckons people to look inside and is the subject of thousands of tourists’ photographs each year.
Evanston’s Union Pacific Depot was built in 1900 thanks to the steady flow of passenger train traffic across Wyoming and the rest of the west.
While the Alliance for Historic Wyoming name will be kept, Tracks Across Wyoming’s identity will live on as a new AHW preservation initiative that will feature a series of transportation-themed stories and other programs. Because Tracks served as the Wyoming chapter of the Lincoln Highway Association, the Alliance for Historic Wyoming will now take on that role.
The Crookston Ranch was homesteaded by Joe Crookston around 1887 at the ever-shifting foot of the Killpecker Sand Dune Field. His family had moved to Rock Springs area from Illinois around 1870 and he had worked as a laborer as a teenager
Noted Wyoming architect William Dubois designed the building, and the library was dedicated on Independence Day in 1907, with 500 citizens attending the ceremonies.
The “new” Reliance Tipple was built in 1936 to replace an earlier wooden tipple originally constructed in 1910.
The Hallville and nearby Black Butte Mines were both opened in 1869, the year after the Union Pacific was completed in the area. At its peak, 100 coal cars per week were loaded and brought out of the Hallville Mine.
The Point of Rocks Stage Station, also known as Almond Station, was built in 1862 for Ben Holladay’s Overland Stage after Holladay moved his stage route from the popular Oregon Trail-South Pass route to the southern Overland Route.
While many Wyoming towns only have one train depot, Rock Springs has two historic depots, reflecting the importance of the railroad for the community and the surrounding area.
Old Bedlam was built in 1849, making it the oldest standing military building in Wyoming. Fort Laramie was established when the military came to the state to protect emigrants traveling on the Mormon, Oregon, and the Overland trail.
The Wyoming National Bank in downtown Casper celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1964 with a modern building complex unlike any in Wyoming. The bank was designed by Denver architect Charles Deaton, who also designed the so-called “Jetson House” west of Denver, which was featured in Woody Allen’s 1973 movie Sleeper.
Castle Gardens gets its name from the outcropping of sandstone that the wind has eroded into fanciful shapes resembling the turrets and towers of castles. This unusual formation has been luring visitors for thousands of years, and many of them left their mark in the soft sandstone.
The first owner of the building was Charles Henry King, one of the earliest settlers to arrive in the area. He arrived in Shoshoni from Omaha in 1905. Upon arrival King bought three lots that would become in the following year the first lumber company in town. During this period, the lumber company’s main business came from homesteaders who had headed out west to claim the land that was promised by the Homestead Act.
“Wyoming’s sense of preservation is unmatched. Without this Trail, we would find life today far different. I cannot convey how strongly I feel when I see the Trail in Wyoming. And not just that Trail, but the assorted stage routes and the Overland Trail, an Indian trail across Weston County, the Lander Road, etc.” – Cori Clements, Wyoming resident who hiked the Oregon Trail all the way across the state over 10 years. Read her inspiring story here!