Wyoming was welcomed into the Union in 1890 as the 44th state and stands out as the tenth largest by area, yet it holds the title for the smallest population. This region has been a cradle for diverse Native American tribes for millennia, including the Arapaho, Crow, Shoshone, and Lakota, each leaving a lasting imprint on its cultural and historical fabric. The first European explorations were conducted by French-Canadian trappers in the late 18th century, marking the beginning of documented exploration.
In 1807, the landscape of what is now Wyoming was immortalized in written records by John Colter, a veteran of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Contrary to earlier accounts, it’s important to clarify that Colter explored the area independently without Sacagawea, who was known for her integral role as a guide and interpreter during the Lewis and Clark expedition. Colter’s accounts, especially those detailing the Yellowstone region’s extraordinary features, were initially met with skepticism and dismissed by many as fabrications.
It wasn’t until 1824 that Jim Bridger, another iconic figure of the American West, discovered what is now known as Bridger Pass and later provided his own accounts of the Yellowstone area. Like Colter’s experiences, Bridger’s reports were largely treated as fables by those in the eastern United States.
The trajectory of Wyoming’s recognition and the broader acknowledgment of Yellowstone’s marvels shifted with the establishment of key transportation routes: the Oregon Trail, the Union Pacific Railroad, and, in contemporary times, Interstate 80. These developments not only enhanced accessibility but also played a crucial role in validating the once-doubted wonders of Yellowstone to the public.
Wyoming’s nomenclature was formalized in 1865 during Congressional efforts to establish a temporary government for the territory, drawing inspiration from the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania, celebrated for its historical significance in the Revolutionary War. The state’s name is derived from the Munsee word “xwe’wamank,” meaning “at the big river flat,” reflecting the landscape’s defining characteristics.
Amidst its vast terrains, significant historical landmarks, and sparse population, Wyoming harbors a rich tapestry of folklore, embodying the essence and adventure of the American West. These elements, interwoven with the state’s unique geographical and cultural identity, underscore the enduring allure and mystique of Wyoming.
The Ghosts of Fort Laramie
This place was a trading post and military fort and is a place that is noted for its hauntings. There are a number of ghosts there, the most famous of which is the Lady in Green. This ghost was once the daughter of the fort’s leader when it was a trading post. The legend says she rode away on a black horse and never returned to the fort. She is supposed to appear at Fort Laramie every seven years, always wearing a green riding dress and a riding hat with a veil, carrying a jeweled whip, and still on the back of her black stallion.
This is the most famous of Fort Laramie’s ghosts, but not the only one. There is a ghost named George, supposedly located in the Captain’s Quarters, who makes bright lights flash in the windows there, even though the building is not wired for electric power. In the Old Bedlam part of the building, which is the oldest part of the fort, the ghost of a military officer makes the rounds, patrolling the building and sometimes demanding that visitors be quiet. In addition to these ghosts, a headless man, a blood-covered surgeon, and a Civil War soldier have also been seen at Fort Laramie.
The Crazy Posthumous Adventures of George Parrot
George Parrot was an outlaw in the Old West who participated in a number of robberies and murders. He and his friends usually robbed traveling wagons and shipments coming from the east on stagecoaches and trains. Parrot was eventually captured when circumstances caused his outlaw group to have to disperse. He was brought from Montana to Wyoming to stand trial, escaped from prison there, and was hunted down and killed by a mob of more than two hundred people.
Doctors Thomas Maghee and John Osborne believed there might be differences between criminal brains and “normal” ones, so they took Parrot’s body to experiment on it. When they found no obvious difference between his brain and that of a non-criminal, they did other bizarre experiments on his body. While most of the things the two doctors did to Parrot’s body would be considered atrocities in any century, one of the strangest things either of them did was when John Osborne ordered the skin be removed from Parrot’s chest, sent to a tannery, and made into a medical bag and a pair of shoes. The skin from Parrot’s scalp was used to make an ashtray.
The two odd doctors kept Parrot’s body in a barrel of whiskey for about a year so they could do more experiments on it. Their activities were forgotten until the 1950s when the barrel that contained what was left of George Parrot was found buried behind the building that used to be Maghee and Osborne’s office.
The Odd and Mysterious Devils Tower
The Devils Tower is a natural wonder in Wyoming, a 1,267 column of granite with deep grooves along its sides. Scientists don’t agree on exactly how this rock column got its shape, though there are a lot of theories. Legends about its origins go back even further to the Native American tribes, although even they can’t agree on what, exactly, this tower is or how it came to be. Most of the Native American legends, though, involve children and bears.
The typical Native American story about the tower is that a group of girls came across a group of bears while they were playing, and the bears chased them to the base of the tower. As the bears surrounded them, the girls began to pray, asking the Great Spirit to save them. The Great Spirit heard their prayers and raised the ground on which they stood, leaving the bears to slide down the sides. The claws of the bears left the grooves as they slid down. The girls were taken to the top of the newly raised tower, where they became the stars in the Pleiades constellation.
The Jackalope
While it may seem obvious that this half-rabbit, half-deer creature is made up, not everyone agrees. Some believe it is real, being a species of a rare antlered rabbit weighing between three and five pounds and the ability to move at up to about ninety miles per hour. They can also perfectly mimic human sounds. Their unique skills make them almost impossible to trap.
There have been reported sightings of the Jackalope all over the American West, usually in Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, and Nevada, with claims of antlered rabbits going back to the 1500s with Native Americans and early Spanish explorers. A taxidermist in Wyoming named Douglas Herrick made a Jackalope in the 1930s by putting a pair of antlers on the head of a rabbit, and this became a popular seller in his shop. Herrick made more of them. Real or not, Herrick’s home of Douglas, Wyoming, has dubbed itself the Jackalope capital of the world, in honor of Herrick’s creation.