Natrona County, Wyoming - The whole text, 1923 (part 2 of 15)

In the summer of 1906 some of the county's enterprising citizens conceived the idea that there should be a public library building in the city of Casper, not that there was at that time any particular need or demand for such a building or a library, but if some outside philanthropist would furnish the money it would give to the town a building to which we could point with pride. Accordingly Andrew Carnegie was appealed to for the money, and he agreed to give $10,000 toward the erection of a building, provided the town of Casper would agree to make an annual appropriation of $1,000 for its maintenance. The agreement was entered into between the town of Casper and Mr. Carnegie. C. A. Randall was then Casper's only architect, and he drew the plans and specifications for the building, which were approved by the town council and were then forwarded to Mr. Carnegie for his approval. They were returned with Mr. Carnegie's approval, and on September 30, 1906, Charles Galusha was awarded the contract for the erection of the building, the price being $10,375. Work was commenced upon the building at once, but on account of the many changes that were necessarily made in the plans and specifications there was considerable additional expense to the original contract and much delay in completing the building. For more than two years the contractor was hampered by changes and additional expense, and by this time the appropriation of $10,000 was exhausted and the building far from being finished. An appeal was made to Mr. Carnegie for more funds, and under certain conditions he agreed to donate $3,000 more with which to complete the building, and at a meeting of the Casper town council, held January 23, 1909, a resolution was adopted to the effect that "Andrew Carnegie has offered to donate to the town of Casper,

Wyoming, an additional sum of three thousand dollars for the purpose of completing the Carnegie library, upon condition that the town annually raise three hundred dollars, in addition to that already pledged, for the support and maintenance of the said library, therefore, we do hereby pledge the said town of Casper to raise three hundred dollars, in addition to the amount already pledged, for the support and maintenance of the said public library, to be raised annually, and expended for that purpose." Work on the building was resumed and there were encouraging prospects that it would be completed without delay.

On April 8, 1909, the board of county commissioners appointed C. H. Townsend, C. C. P. Webel and J. E. Schulte as the board of directors of the Natrona County Library association, giving them charge of the library fund, and directing them to purchase furniture, fix the salary for the librarian and hire a librarian. This board was organized July i, 1909, with J. E. Schulte, chairman; C. H. Townsend, treasurer; C. C. P. Webel, secretary. In August Mr. Webel resigned as secretary and member of the board, and Harold Banner was appointed to fill the vacancy.

It was discovered by this time that the town of Casper could not fulfill its part of the agreement in raising funds for the maintenance of the institution, and on the first of November, 1909, the town of Casper, by a resolution adopted by the town council, presented to Natrona county the Carnegie library building, which even at that time was still far from being completed and ready for occupancy. Natrona county, through its board of county commissioners, accepted the gift from the town, and on the third of November the members of the board of directors of the library were instructed to furnish the building and have it in condition for occupancy as soon as possible and appoint a librarian.

To some people living in Casper this did not appear to be legal, nor did they deem it just to Mr. Carnegie, and the matter of finishing, furnishing and occupying the building was in status quo until February 2, 1910, when a resolution was adopted by the board of county commissioners "authorizing the Natrona County Public Library association to take charge of and assume control of the Carnegie Public Library building, situated in the town of Casper, and to open and manage the same as provided by law," and it was further ordered that the "Natrona County Public Library association, as soon as practicable, take charge of, open and maintain the said Carnegie Public Library building as the free public library of Natrona county, Wyoming, and that said association cause to be placed in said library building all library property and books belonging to Natrona county."

The thirteen thousand dollars donated by Mr. Carnegie for the building had by this time been expended, and the building was yet a long way from being completed, and of course could not be opened for public use.

Complaint had been made by Casper's "Trouble Makers' Club," of which the membership consisted of about a half a dozen men who on numerous occasions had previously attempted to thwart movements that would add to the progress and upbuilding of the town, and one of the men even appealed to Mr. Carnegie to "send an attorney here and enforce your contract, and cause the library to be opened." Mr. Carnegie paid no attention to the complaint.

The library board could not, under the Wyoming statutes, expend tax funds to complete the building, but the attorney general of Wyoming advised the trustees that they could legally expend such funds as were at their command for repairs on the building, but, he advised, "If the sentiment of the community is in favor of using the tax funds for completing the building, I would not suppose there would be any serious objections."

The work of "repairing" the building was then commenced, under the supervision of the county library trustees, but it was not in condition to be occupied until the middle of May. On the evening of May 20, 1910, the trustees of the association and the ladies of the Casper Civic Club were hosts and hostesses at the formal opening of the building, the reception to the public being held from 8:30 until 9:30, after which there was dancing until midnight. The next day, Saturday, May 21, the library was opened to the public, with Mrs. Sarah Place as librarian. There were but a few books on the shelves, and there were but few calls for those on hand. Many fixtures were to be added to the interior of the building and a heating plant had not yet been installed; there was no sidewalk in front of the building and the grounds had not yet been cleared of the rubbish, but with the aid of the Civic Club, the town council, the library trustees and some of the public-spirited citizens, all these things were accomplished before the cold weather in the fall approached.

During the six months ending December 31, 1910, the trustees expended $776 for furniture; ^300 for plumbing; $309 for books, and $500 for a heating plant. During the same period the librarian had let out 2,805 books, and $16.45 i" fines had been collected. During the year 191 5, 16,218 books were loaned, and the receipts from all sources were $2,657.88, with $2,192.76 expended. In 1918, 18,632 books were loaned, and 1,180 new books were purchased. The fines amounted to $75.25. During 1921, there were 63,331 books loaned and 2,338 new books purchased. The daily average attendance at the library, including active borrowers of books and reading room visitors, was 396. Books were sent to the schools of Salt Creek, Kasoming, Ohio Camp, Poison Spider, Alcova, and other schools in the county, which were not included in the number reported loaned during the year. A children's room has been established in the library where there are many carefully selected books and pictures, with stereopticon views. The children's story hour is made most interesting and instructive by well-trained story tellers. The hours have been extended to the public and an assistant and an apprentice are required in addition to the librarian. It is noted with satisfaction that no changes have been made either in the personnel of the board of trustees or the librarian except in cases of death or their departure from the county. On January i, 1922, the trustees were C. H. Townsend, J. W. Johnson and Miss May Hamilton. Mrs. Effie C. Rogers was appointed librarian June i, 1919, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Mrs. Place. Mrs. Rogers is assisted in her work by Clara C. Douds, assistant librarian; Frances Giblin, children's librarian; Floyd Mann, page; Cathryn Cole, apprentice.

In his report to the board of county commissioners in January, 1922, Mr. Townsend, the treasurer of the library board, said: "When the library was accepted from the town of Casper by Natrona county, there was scarcely an armful of books, and the building was unfinished. At the present time this library has very comfortable quarters, although it is somewhat limited in space for the rapidly growing community. The number of books has been increased from almost nothing to nearly 12,000 volumes. During the past twelve years the library association has had an average of $3,000 per annum to meet the expenses, but the expenses have always been kept within the limit of the receipts. With the coming year we hope the funds v/ill be increased which will enable us to increase our service by giving the public longer hours and the purchase of a greater number of books than we have heretofore been able to buy. The trustees have always conducted the library on an economical basis and have spent only the money that seemed necessary. On account of the increased patronage of the library, it will be but a short time until the building must be enlarged which will be in keeping with the rapidly growing community."

During the year 1922 new steel bookcases were installed, which allowed a much closer classification of the books and better arrangement on the shelves. On January i, 1923, the library had 14,413 books accessioned, an increase of 3,785 during the year. The daily attendance at the library, including active borrowers and reading vote the bill passed the house and the senate, and with the governor's i approval it was enacted into law. A provision in the bill specified

Industrial Club, after making a thorough survey of the town, all , agreed that block 32, in Park addition, would be an ideal location for the hospital. J. M. Carey & Brother had donated this piece hospital, he would not, either directly or indirectly, donate a site to the town of Casper, the county of Natrona, or the state of Wyoming. The reason he would not give a site for the hospital was that he thought he had been unjustly treated in the matter of taxation, and until that was righted no favors might be expected from him."

Past experiences with Mr. Carey convinced the people of Casper that an attempt to buy the ground, or to appeal for a reconsideration in the withdrawal of the block for a hospital site would be useless, and arrangements were made between the town of Casper and Henry L. White for a tract of land 300x420 feet on East Second street, between Washington and Conwell streets. A deed for this tract was given to the state; the plans and specifications were finished, but there was a misunderstanding between the state board of Charities and Reform as to whether the state or the town of Casper would furnish and maintain the institution, and on December 4, 1909, Governor B. B. Brooks, State Auditor LeRoy Grant and State Superintendent A. D, Cook, three members of the state board of Charities and Reform, came to Casper and conferred with the members of the Casper Industrial Club regarding the construction of the building. The governor, who acted as spokesman for the state board, said that the people of Casper had done all they agreed to do in regard to selecting the site and giving to the state a deed for the land, but he understood that the people of Casper were willing to furnish and maintain the institution. If this were true, the state could spend the full amount, ^22,500, appropriated for the construction of a building, but if the state were to furnish and maintain the institution, only about ^16,000 could be used for the building. Spokesmen for the Casper Industrial Club said that many people objected to the institution being equipped and maintained by the town of Casper or Natrona county; that they felt that because they had always been liberal in such matters was no reason that they should be imposed upon, and it was their opinion that the state should furnish the building and maintain the institution the same as it did the hospitals at Rock Springs and Sheridan. After considerable discussion, it was finally decided to use the full amount appropriated for the building and take a chance on the next legislature making an additional appropriation for the furnishing and maintenance of the institution.

Early in January, 1910, the contract for the building of the hospital was awarded to Archie Allison of Cheyenne, and W. F. Henning of Casper was given the contract for the installation of the plumbing and heating apparatus. Construction work was commenced in March, 1910, and the building was completed and accepted

Governor Brooks, as well as the other members of the state ; board of Charities and Reform, retired on the first of January, 191 1, by reason of the expiration of their terms in office, and Joseph M.

made to the building, buy the furniture, appoint a superintendent : and put the hospital in operation, but the governor's time was so completely taken up with other affairs of state that he could not come to Casper with the other members of the board, and the building remained unoccupied, except for the presence of the watchman, county paid to the state of Wyoming the purchase price of one dollar, and the title was changed from the Casper Branch of the Wyoming General Hospital to the Natrona County Hospital, since which time it has been under the direction of the board of county commissioners.

During the summer of 1922 a contract was let by the board of county commissioners for the erection of a nurses' home, to be the property of the county, in connection with the county hospital. The new building consists of nine rooms and two baths and is sufficient to accommodate eighteen nurses. Work was commenced on the building the latter part of September and was finished in November. The building cost about $14,000, and is located about fifty feet south of the hospital building. With the completion of this building Natrona county affords hospital accommodations equal to any county in the sate of Wyoming.

The first railroad passenger train that came into Natrona county according to schedule arrived in Casper on June 15, 1888. The end of the road at that time was about a mile east from where the present passenger station is located. The "old town," or temporary location of Casper, was a short distance to the northwest from where the railroad track ended. A big celebration was had that day and night by the citizens of Casper and the passengers who remained over. How they celebrated can be imagmed from the fact that Casper was then a typical frontier "cow town." A regular passenger train service was established after a short time, but this service was abandoned in 1892, and after that the passengers reached here on an "accommodation," or combination train.

After about ten years, passenger train service was, on May 11, 1903, re-established between Chadron and Casper on the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railway, which is now the Chicago & Northwestern Railway. The train was due to arrive in town at i o'clock, and there were gathered at the depot to welcome it the mayor and members of the town council, the president and executive committee of the Chamber of Commerce, the Casper Gun Club (all of whom had their guns with them), and about three hundred citizens. The greater portion of the male population had six-shooters in their belts. The whistle at the electric light plant gave the signal when the passenger train arrived within the town limits and immediately ten anvils were fired, which caused a vibration sufficient to break the windows in several of the business houses of the town. When the train arrived at the depot more than a hundred shots were fired from shot guns, rifles and six-shooters, and one or two of the tenderfoot passengers became frightened and refused to come from the coach until they were assured by the conductor that the citizens would do them no harm, but that this was the manner in which they wished to show their appreciation of the improved train service into a western frontier town at the end of the road. The train consisted of three passenger coaches and a combination baggage and mail car. When it departed from Chadron at 5 o'clock in the morning there were thirty-eight passengers on board and when it arrived in Casper at I o'clock in the afternoon there were twelve passengers. In ] commenting upon the improved train service the local newspaper j said: ;

"What a joyful awakening there was in Casper Monday, May 11, 1903, when the toot of the first passenger train was heard. As it flew into the station whistles blew, anvils were fired and the din from hundreds of guns, adding to the noise, must have ' convinced the incoming passengers that something out of the ordinary was transpiring. The train was on time too, which was something comparatively new in railroad annals | at Casper. The mayor and town council were there, county officials, members of the , Chamber of Commerce and citizens of the town and county in general had gathered for 1 the event. The Northwestern could not but be impressed with the welcome accorded the new service. For years the people of Central Wyoming have begged, entreated, ' argued with, cajoled, threatened, fought, cursed and raved; have leveled shafts of j advice, irony, venom and vitriol, at the mis-managers of the road - tons of ink and , bushels of gray matter have been used to show the officials the error of their ways, but all to no avail, but at last our dreams and hopes have come true."

Many tales have been told concerning the train service before the passenger train was put on, some true and some exaggerated, but it is a fact that the train was often stopped between stations while the train crew went out on the plains and hunted sage chickens, and the passengers, anxious to reach their destination, remained in the coach and slept or cursed, as best suited their fancy. In the j winter time when there were heavy snow storms, train service was I abandoned sometimes for three and four days, but whenever the | train did arrive there were always a great many people at the station ' to meet and welcome it and the few passengers aboard were always j thankful to arrive, even though they were always far behind the 1 schedule. '

Casper was the terminus of this road until the spring of 1905, j when work was commenced in May on the extension to Lander. ; Many were of the opinion that the building of the road farther west would cripple Casper in a business way and some of the business ; men followed the road to Shoshoni, Riverton, and some of the other ' newly-established towns, but it was not long before those who left us i realized their error. Casper commenced to grow in a business way

Construction work on the extension of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway from Casper to Lander was commenced on Monday, May 2, 1905. The end of the track from 1888 until this time was several hundred yards west from where the roundhouse is located. Train service was established to Casper from the west whenever the rails were laid into one of the new stations. Cadoma, 12.1 miles from Casper, was the first station, which was established in August, 1905; this station, which has but few dwelling houses, and no business houses, but has large sheep shearing pens, has the convenience of two railroads, and it is burdened with two names; it is Cadoma on the Northwestern, and Bishop on the Burlington. Rails were laid into Seminole, the name afterwards being changed to Bucknum, 22.4 miles west, on November 13, and on that date a daily passenger train service was established between this point and Casper. Natrona, 32.1 miles from Casper; Powder River, 41. i miles; Mokoma, afterwards changed to Waltman, 53.2 miles; Wolton, 62.8 miles; Richards, 73.2 miles; Moneta, 82.5 miles; Ocla, 93 miles, and Shoshoni, 103. i miles west from Casper, required more than a year in the building of the line. Passenger train service between Casper and Shoshoni was established on Monday, July 3, 1906. The train consisted of three passenger coaches, one mail and baggage car, and all the freight cars that were required to haul the freight that was consigned to any of the stations along the route. This train left Casper daily, except Sunday, at 4 o'clock in the afternoon and arrived at noon. Passenger train service was established between Casper and Lander, a distance of 148. i miles, on Wednesday, October 17, 1906.

A great many of the people living at Lander had never seen a train of cars until this train came into the station. Some of the citizens came into the country before there were any railroads in the central part of the state, and as they had no occasion to make a trip to Casper or Rawlins, which were their nearest railroad points, the distance to each point being about the same, they were content to do their traveling in a buckboard or on horseback. Others were born there and never had occasion to go out of the confines of the county. One old fellow, when he learned that the train was to come into Lander that day, immediately went to the station, and when informed that the train would not arrive for several hours, remarked that he had been waiting sixty-five years to see a train of railroad cars, and he guessed he could wait now with patience for several hours.

When the train arrived it was immediately surrounded with a i throng of curious, excited men, women and children who looked i upon the engine especially with awe and admiration. When the ' people were the most interested and were listening to an explanation and description of the mechanism of the locomotive, by a man who ; had seen a railroad train several times before, the engineer put his ' head out of the cab window and called out: "Stand back, for I am j now going to turn this train around." There was immediately a j great scattering, and it did not dawn upon them for some time that \ the train could not be turned around on a single track. In a beautiful ' description of how the people felt about the railroad invading the i confines of Lander, Cora V. Wesley, editor of the Mountaineer, the j weekly newspaper of that town, said: "Tears trickled down our cheeks and sadness crept over the household because the rural beauties of the western life were to sink into the great abyss of the j past. Real, genuine tears of grief and joy chasing each other in mad , confusion, trying to gain the victory."

The most disastrous and death-dealing accident that ever oc- ' curred on the Chicago & Northwestern Railway system in Wyoming ! was the wreck that took place on Sunday night, shortly after 9 1 o'clock, March 19, 1906, about twenty-six miles northwest of Casper, I which resulted in the death of ten men and the injury of sixteen. The wrecked train was an extra which left Powder River station about 8 o'clock in the evening, and consisted of a new model heavy . engine, two large water cars, a tool car, and two way cars. The I twenty-six men who were either killed or injured were in the front j way car. The scene of the accident was where the railroad crossed the old channel of Casper creek, where a four-foot culvert had been , placed under the track, and this had been washed out in the afternoon of that day, leaving only the rails and ties over a chasm about twelve ' feet wide and eighteen feet deep. The train was being run at a mod- ' erate rate of speed when this point was reached and the engineer could not see that the earth had been washed away. The engine, : tender and two water cars passed over the unsupported rails in safety, ' but the way car in which the workmen were riding broke through, the front end of the car tipping into the channel, and as the car went down the men and everything in the car were thrown in a heap to the front end. The tool car, which was at the rear of the way car, broke in the middle at the edge of the channel, half of the car, with ' its contents, piling on top of the way car. The engine, after passing . over the chasm, broke loose from its tender, straddled the rails and went ahead a short distance, but the two heavy water cars had broken '. loose and came back on the track and fell in the channel on top of ' the way car where the men were pinioned. These water cars, as they fell into the channel, broke through the way car and no doubt were the cause of the death and injury of most of the men. The trainmen who were in the rear way car, which did not leave the track, were powerless at first to render assistance to the unfortunate men who were pinned beneath tons of heavy wreckage and were in the midst of the muddy, roaring, rushing stream. The awful cries of the poor unfortunate men caused some of the men who were looking on to faint, while others were so shocked and bewildered that they were speechless and dumb for the first few minutes, and then, to add to the horror of the situation, the wreckage caught fire. The horror-stricken men who were on the bank lighted torches and, assisted by the light of a few lanterns, succeeded in getting down to the edge of the water among the wreckage, and by dipping water in their hats and soaking their coats and throwing them on the flames, in a short time succeeded in extinguishing the blaze.

A heavy, wet snow was falling and the weather was intensely cold, and this added to the suflTering of the injured men and the discomfiture of the rescuers. Holes were chopped through the floor of the car in which the men were fastened and the timbers were cleared away as much as possible, but the cold and stormy weather, and the pitch-dark night handicapped the rescuers. Twice more the wreckage caught on fire during the night, but through the heroic efforts of the men the flames were extinguished, and when daylight came all the injured men had been rescued and four of the men who had been killed had been removed from the wreckage.

The news of the disaster was received in Casper at about lo o'clock that night, less than an hour after it occurred, and at ii o'clock a train was made up with about forty men on board, consisting of all the available doctors in town, railroad officials and workmen, but on account of the weakened condition of the bridge across the Platte river, a mile west from town, the train could not cross. A number of hand cars were then secured and most of the men started for the scene of the wreck by this means of transportation. At I o'clock in the morning they had traveled but twelve miles through the heavy, blinding snowstorm, and the hand cars were abandoned and the men started to walk the balance of the distance, sixteen miles, through snow, slush and mud. Many fell by the wayside and others had to be assisted along the route. After traveling all night Father Bryant was the first to arrive at the scene of the wreck at about 7:30 in the morning. He at once baptised the injured men who desired it and he gave words of cheer and comfort to all the sufferers. Superintendent J. P. Cantillon and Drs. Dean and

Gillam were not far behind and they dressed and cared for the wounded as best they could, until Dr. Keith and Dr. Morgan and two doctors from Douglas, who came to Casper on a special train, arrived in a buggy at about 9 o'clock, and they assisted in the care of the injured men.

The Platte River bridge was repaired as soon as possible, and at 10 o'clock in the morning a relief train left Casper, but on account of the bad condition of the track very slow time was made and it did not arrive at the scene of the wreck until about i o'clock in the afternoon. The injured men were taken into this train and placed on cots and the men who had worked all night and half of the day without food or drink were provided with hot coffee, meat and bread. The relief train returned to Casper at about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, and the bodies of the men were taken to the undertakers' and the injured men were taken to the annex of the Episcopal church were an emergency hospital had been established.

Among the killed was Charles Moll, who had been an employee of the railroad company for about ten years. J. W. Price, who was assistant to Mr. Moll, was also killed. D. B. Blue, section foreman at Cadoma, was also among the killed, and the other seven who were killed and all the injured were Servians who had come to Casper a few months before to work on the railroad extension from Casper to Lander. The railroad company paid all the expense of having the injured men cared for and in addition gave each man ^100. To the relatives of the Servians ^1,000 was given for each man killed, and to the families of Charles Moll, D. B. Blue and J. W. Price $3,500 was given.

The burning of a bridge two and one-half miles east from Wolton until there were only a few charred embers remaining of the structure was the cause of another wreck at about 2:15 Sunday afternoon, September 9, 1917, and E. R. Anderson, engineer, and Frank Cross, fireman, were killed. When the train approached the bridge there was no visible indication from the engine cab that the framework of the structure had been destroyed and the engine plunged down a seventeen-foot embankment and the sixty-foot span immediately gave way. Seven freight cars came over the embankment on top of the engine and the chasm was completely covered with wreckage. The trainmen made an effort to rescue the engine men but their efforts were unsuccessful, and one of them walked back to Wolton and had word sent to Casper to have the wrecking and construction crews come out and clear the debris and build a temporary bridge, while the others remained at the scene of the wreck to extinguish a fire of the wreckage should one be started from the coals in the fire box of the engine. The bodies of the engineer and fireman were brought to Casper and the railroad company made every effort to find the parties who caused the fire, but they were never apprehended. It was thought that tramps built a fire under the bridge in order to keep warm, and then went away and left it, and the upright timbers were burned unknown to anyone.

Early in October, 1897, Thomas S. Moffat, of Chicago, superintendent of construction of the Wyoming & Northwestern Railroad, wrote a letter to the publisher of the Wyoming Derrick, published at Casper, saying, "I am pleased to tell you that the building of the Wyoming & Northwestern Railroad west from Casper is a fixed fact, and operations will be begun just as soon as the detail of getting material together can be arranged." This was the company which filed articles of incorporation with the county clerk in Casper in the spring of 1897, defining the route from Casper to the western boundary of Natrona county, or, more particularly, to Ervay, at the foot of the Rattlesnake mountains. "It is strange, indeed," commented the local newspaper, "that the Rattlesnake oil basin has not long since been opened to the world, and would have been, had not the financial stringency of the past five years through which the country has been passing hindered. Regarding the Rattlesnake petroleum, and its high standard of value, needs but a reference to Professor Taylor, the celebrated Standard Oil company's chemist; to Professor Aughey, the distinguished Wyoming oil chemist; Wyner and Harland, public assayists, London, England, and scores of other reliable chemists of the United States, Germany, Holland, France, and Canada." The proposed railroad was to have extended sixty miles from Casper, its main purpose being to transport the oil from the Rattlesnake oil fields to Casper. The people of Casper, however, did not become very enthusiastic or excited over the proposed new railroad, and like many of the numerous other railroads, its construction was wholly on paper.

For twenty-five years there was but one railroad in Natrona county. The Chicago & Northwestern Railroad company hauled all the freight, mail, express and passengers in and out of Casper from June 15, 1888, until October 20, 191 3, then the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy railway service was established, and Casper was considered the largest railroad center in Wyoming.

A temporary survey was made by the Burlington company for its line through Natrona county in the fall of 1909, but the question of building the road was not definitely settled until December of that year, when the real estate agent for the company bought eighty acres of land in the extreme northern part of the town from W. F.

Dunn, Eugene McCarthy and Patrick Sullivan, forty acres northeast of town from J. F. Stanley and twenty acres northeast of town from W. A. Blackmore and John Cosgrove. The land north of town was considered at that time worth ^250 per acre, but the land agent of the railroad company declared that he would pay but ^100 per acre for it, and if he could not purchase it at that price the railroad company would build its station a mile east from town. The owners of the land finally reduced the price to $150 per acre, and the citizens of the town subscribed enough money so the railroad company got the land for ^100 per acre and the owners received $150 per acre. After the agreement for the sale of the land had been made it was announced by the railroad officials that Casper would be a general division station; that the machine shops would be located here, and that ''the people of Casper would have no regrets that the Burlington system was going to become a part of the community,"

This was considered the greatest addition the town had had since the Chicago & Northwestern had been built into Casper, and the people were greatly encouraged, and it was predicted that the town would increase from a population of less than 3,000 to at least 7,000 inside of one year after the road was in operation; that many new lines of business would be established here and that a second railroad was all we required to make this the great metropolis of Wyoming. There was then scarcely a house on the land purchased by the Burlington company, and now there are more than a thousand dwelling houses on the land north of the track, in addition to the many stores, shops and buildings of other kinds, among which are ; two fine school buildings which accommodate more than six hundred pupils.

The contract was awarded by the Burlington for the building of its grade from Powder River station to a point sixteen miles east from Casper on February 25, 1910, but construction work was discontinued during the month of December, 1910, when the rails were laid through the canyon east from Thermopolis to a point | near the Boysen dam, and work was not resumed until the spring I of 1913. A contract was let on February 10, 1913, for the building of 140 miles of track, from Powder River to Orin Junction. After this contract was let the work was pushed as rapidly as possible, and on September 23, 1913, at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, the first ; rail within the limits of Casper on this road was spiked to the ties. The laying of this rail in the limits of the town was witnessed by about fifty citizens, and after that most important event they came uptown and celebrated the occasion as such events were usually celebrated in those days.

Passenger train service between Billings and Casper was established on October 20, 1913, the first train coming in from the west at 7 o'clock in the evening. The service was tri-weekly, and the train departed from Casper on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 7 o'clock in the morning and arrived on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7 o'clock in the evening. Two boxcars were fitted up and used as a passenger, freight and express depot at that time.

The work of laying the rails from Casper to Origin Junction, a distance of sixty-eight miles, was commenced on June 26, 1914, the connection being made the middle of October, and through passenger train service from Billings, Montana, to Denver, Colorado, was established October 19, 1914. By this time a frame building had been erected in Casper which was later used as a freight office, but was then used as a passenger depot. Work was commenced on the excavation for the foundation of the $100,000 passenger depot May 27, 1915, and the building was formally opened on the evening of February 3, 1916. The Casper band furnished the music, refreshments were served and it was estimated that more than four thousand people went through the building during the evening. The hopes and anticipations of the people at that time of Casper becoming the chief city of the state have more than come true and the citizens surely can have "no regrets that the Burlington railway system has become a part of the community."

The railroad mileage in Natrona county is 170.18, with the Chicago & Northwestern covering 85.35, ^n^ the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy covering 84.83 miles.

For twenty years after Natrona county had been organized, from 1890 to 1910, there was always a bitter contest between the republicans and democrats during election time. During the heat of battle, political lines were closely drawn and the forces on either side left nothing undone to gain favor for their candidates. Every precinct in the county was visited by the candidates on each side and every voter in every precinct received a friendly call. The campaign always wound up in a blaze of glory with a big torchlight procession on the streets of Casper and speaking and singing in the town hall. After the speaking there was always a dance at which the candidates and workers on both sides participated. As an example of how they did things in those days, herewith is a brief description of the demonstration at the close of the campaign in 1896:

Saturday night before election, after the arrival of the train a parade formed at the wool warehouse. It was headed by Grand Marshal W. H. Duhling, followed by the Do uglas Military band. Then came a procession of beautiful floats, ladies in carriages and men carrying transparencies, banners, torches and discharging fireworks. Among the many attractive floats was that of "The Good Ship Protection, Captain McKinley," being a large ship under full sail, designed by H. A. Lilly. Another by Kenneth McDonald was "The Campaign of '96, " showing McKinley in the large end and Bryan crawling out of the little end. Another float showed two ladies operating spinning wheels, using Wyoming wool; another float by F. W. Okie showed his shearers at work. One, the McKinley shearer, was well-dressed; the other, a Bryan shearer, poorly clad. Wm. Clark's coach and four was covered with appropriate mottoes, and on the top stood a protected sheepman and a free wool sheepman, each suitably dressed. The "Goddess of Liberty" float was the handsomest feature of the parade. The Goddess was appropriately attired with a shield and scales, and surrounded by fifty little girls in white.

An imposing feature of the parade was fifty-two decorated carriages, each containing from three to six ladies. After them came the flambeau club, 100 strong. They were armed with Roman candles, and a stream of fire constantly shot heavenward. Here and there red tableau fire burned, making the parade look the more imposing. The last of the procession was "Butler's Brigade" of 100 boys carrying torches and blowing tin horns. Dwight Seely and Jack Titler made the anvils roar, while JefF Crawford fired seven-inch cannon crackers continually. Among the amusing features was Jay Wilcox and his bear, John Ambruster and his dog, and Charles Hevves representing a hayseed. Then there were Uncle Sams, kings and queens, gold men and silver men, and an endless variety of characters. There were not less than 500 people in the parade, and over 2co horses were used to haul the floats and wagons. Over 500 twentyball Roman candles, ico pounds of tableau fire and 500 seven-inch cannon crackers were burned during the parade.

Only a small part of the procession could gain admission to the hall, so great was the crowd. Those who did were entertained by the McKinley quartette with "Wyoming Will Be in Line," Chairman Bradley introduced Judge Carey and the judge made a most convincing argument. The quartette then sang a song on local candidates. When the meeting was over the dancers enjoyed themselves until nearly morning.

The democratic candidates and their workers were by no means idle, and among other things, they issued circulars and distributed them throughout the several precincts of the county. In these circulars the republican candidates and many of the republican workers of the county were arraigned in a rather caustic manner, which caused them considerable embarrassment, but the criticism was the means of the republicans putting forth a more determined effort for success, and there were very few successful democratic candidates at the polls that election.

At the time the republicans made their nominations of candidates for the several county offices there was not always unanimity among the brethren. There were two factions, generally, and the county convention in the fall of 1898 went down in history as the most bitter and hardest-fought political battle ever held in any county in the state between two factions of the same political faith. In those days the Australian ballot system was not in vogue for the nomination of candidates, but primary elections were held in each precinct where delegates were elected. These delegates later attended a regular nominating convention. In numbers the factions were about equally divided and, therefore, generalship was necessarily the winning factor. In each precinct throughout the county two sets of delegates came up for election, and every available vote was gotten to the polls. After this contest was over, each faction put forth its supreme effort in an attempt to get a majority of the delegates lined up in its favor. In Casper nine delegates were to be elected, and every team and buggy available was gotten out to carry the voters to the polls. Five o'clock was the time set for the closing of the polls and two minutes after five a buggy drove up in front of the polling place with four voters, but they were not allowed to cast a ballot on account of being two minutes late. Had they been allowed to cast their ballots, the whole republican ticket would have been changed.

One hundred eleven voters had exercised their franchise in the Casper precinct and five delegates favoring one faction were elected, while four for the opposite side received a majority. So close was the contest that fifty-nine votes were cast for the delegate receiving the highest number, and fifty-one votes were given to the candidate receiving the lowest number.

At the nominating convention every precinct in the county had its full quota of delegates present. As soon as the convention was called to order every point was contested for supremacy, even to the election of a chairman and secretary and the appointment of committees. After the organization of the convention was accomplished, the work of nominating candidates for the several county offices was begun. The candidate for sheriff was the first to be nominated. D. E. Fitger, O. M. Rice and W. E. Tubbs were the three candidates. On the first ballot each candidate received about an equal number of votes. On the second, third, fourth, and up to the thirty-seventh ballot there was a deadlock. Neither faction would give in to the other. There were twenty-six delegates present and each of the three candidates had received from five to thirteen votes. On the thirty-seventh ballot, Oscar Hiestand received twelve votes and with the next ballot the deadlock was broken and Mr. Hiestand was favored with the nomination by twenty-two votes. Pandemonium then broke loose and both factions claimed a victory.

But another conflict came up in the nomination of a candidate for county clerk. Pledges had been made by all the delegates and when the first ballot was counted M. P. Wheeler was credited with thirteen votes and J. A. Sheffner had the same number. It looked like another deadlock, and a recess of ten minutes was taken. One of the delegates confidentially declared he had pledged himself to vote for one of the candidates on the first ballot only, and he was unwilling to carry the fight any further. After this declaration was made every effort was put forth to keep the opposition from learning of this delegate's intention, and under no circumstances was he allowed to mingle or communicate with the other side. When the convention was re-convened, the second ballot was immediately ordered and the count gave Mr. Wheeler fourteen and Mr. ShefFner tw^elve, and this ended the contest. The balance of the ticket was nominated without a contest and thus ended the bitter struggle for supremacy. Both Mr. Hiestand and Mr. Wheeler were elected at the general election. Some of the men on each side who took the most prominent part in the fight, in a few years became the closest friends and many times afterwards took the greatest of pleasure in extending to each other a helping hand either in politics or in personal affairs.

The census returns for the precincts of Muddy, Bessemer, Freeland, Johnstown, Ervay, Lone Bear and Powder River cannot be given for 1920 on account of the fact that many new precincts were established between the years 1910 and 1920, thereby reducing the territory embraced in the original precincts, and for the further reason that the enumeration districts in 1920 were considerably changed from the previous years, but it will be observed that the population of the county, outside the city of Casper, has shown a substantial increase, for in 1890 the population of the county, exclusive of Casper, was 550; in 1900, the outside precincts had a population of 902; in 1910, the same territory was increased to 2,127, snd in 1920, all the precincts in the county, exclusive of Casper, returned a population of 3,188, or a total, including the city of Casper, of 14,635.

The membership of the Natrona County Pioneer association is composed mostly of the men and women who gave up the comforts of established homes and friendships and came to a "new country." Transportation was difficult in the early days and the pioneers were without many of those things which we nowadays consider absolute necessities. Many of the pioneer women of Natrona county had been reared in comfortable homes, but they bravely endured hardships and sometimes privations without losing any of their womanly charm, or their refinement or their culture.

The work of the early settlers was to organize a town and county and bring in those things necessary to the solid foundation of a prosperous, progressive community. Because of the hardships and privations so courageously faced by these pioneers, it is but proper that they should have an exclusive organization which meets annually, or oftener if desired, and thus strengthen the bonds of friendship.

With this idea in view, the Natrona County Pioneer association was organized on November 12, 1901, with Mrs. W. S. Kimball, president; Mrs. R. L. Carpenter, vice president; Mrs. W. D. Rhoades, secretary; Mrs. P. A. Demorest, treasurer. Those present at the time the association was organized were Mrs. W. S. Kimball, Mrs. W. A. Denecke, Mrs. J. J. Svendsen, Mrs. C. H. Townsend, Mrs. N. S. Bristol, Mrs. Hannah McClure, Mrs. C. C. P. Webel, Mrs. Northington, Mrs. H. L. Patton, Mrs. Lew Seely, Mrs. Wm. Jones, Mrs. David Graham, Mrs. C. E. Hewes, Mrs. P. A. Demorest, Mrs. H. A. Lilly, Mrs. John McGrath, Mrs. A. T. Butler, Mrs. Sarah Stroud, Mrs. C. H. King, Mrs. W. D. Rhoades, Miss Grace Demorest and Miss Etta Butler. Many new members have been added since the association was organized, but the membership was limited to those who came to the county previous to 1895. However, in recent years the by-laws were changed so as to include those who came to the county previous to 1900.

The first annual reunion of the association was held on November 14, 1902, and about 300 men, women, and children were present. Mr. Charles K. Bucknum acted as chairman of this meeting and among the speakers was Hon. Bryant B. Brooks, who said:

"A pioneer is one who goes before and prepares the way for others coming after. Who knows what the future has in store for us? Who would dare lift the veil of futurity? Who can foretell the treasure that may yet pour forth from these surrounding hills ? Who knows the secret locked deep beneath the surface of these oil-stai ned plains ? Who guesses at the result to follow the spreading of yonder on-rushing river over thousands upon thousands of acres of deep alluvial soil? Who is sagacious enough to predict the price of live stock, of beef and mutton, when yonder ribbons of steel span the continent ? When six hundred million people in the Orient, and in all the islands of the sea cry to us for food? When our stock trains face west, instead of east. God alone knows, and to God-like souls he gives the larger hope. Standing now in the presence of a miraculous achievement history looks out upon the future and stands dumb.

"Look about you, and see what has been accomplished in fourteen years. Then tell me, oh, ye prophets, what will it be like, when the first half of this new century is history? What sort of people will then inhabit this oasis, in the Great American Desert? I will tell you.

"Women so surpassing fair, that all the world pays homage. Men of vigorous strength, with an unheard of power for effective action, capable of solving the deepest riddles of the ages. Giants, physically, intellectually and morally. Made so by their natural environment. Made so by an omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent force. Steadily uplifting every fibre of their bodies, every atom of their souls. Made so by the spirit of these rugged mountains, by the voiceless influence of these matchless plains, by the intoxicating ozone of this high, dry, perfect atmosphere. Made so by Nature's quick and lavish returns for honest toil.

"If there be any here present, who are not Natrona pioneers, to all such. I say: Welcome, thrice welcome, to the best climate, the best state, the best county, the best city, and the best society on earth."

Governor DeForest Richards, Alex T. Butler, William (" Missou") Hines, Patrick Sullivan and others made short addresses, songs were sung by Miss Savilla King and Mrs. B. B. Brooks, and then the following letter from Charles W. Eads was read:

"I will tell you that I was the second man that came to Casper. I located there on June 7th, 1888, and when I landed there was just one man there, and that was John Merritt. He was on the bank of the river, and was getting his supper. He was frying his meat on a bent stick and making his coffee in an oyster can. I went up to him and asked if he had any idea where Casper was, and he said he could hardly say, that he had been looking for it about a week.

" I told him to come over and help me put up my tent and he could camp with me. I had a tent and stove and a little grub and he said he would just put in with me. So the next morning we talked over the location, and we set up the first tent of the old Casper, and after that I was familiar with all the transactions of Casper for ten years.

With Mr. Eads when he first came to Casper were his daughter Fannie Eads, his son, Kise Eads, and Abe Nelson and John Johnson. Mr. Eads went to Bessemer to make his home within a year after coming to Casper and later moved to Casper mountain, where he established a mining camp and called it Eadsville. John Johnson was drowned near Douglas in 1897 and Abe Nelson has spent many years on Casper mountain prospecting and is still a resident of this county. Mr. Merritt remained in Casper more than ten years, and then moved to Joplin, Missouri, but returns to Casper occasionally to visit among his old-time friends.

After the reading of this letter an old-time dance was enjoyed; a round-up supper was served at midnight, after which dancing was resumed and continued until an early hour in the morning.

" Pioneering held a certain fascination for the men, which was almost entirely lacking with the women. Pioneering, with the latter, meant hardship, privation and even isolation, and it undoubtedly required greater courage, even greater devotion, and yet greater staying qualities upon the part of the \voman than the man. We can never bestow too much praise, too much honor, on the pioneer women, and we rejoice today that most of them are prosperous in the enjoyment of comfortable homes and giving their children every advantage that is given young people elsewhere.

" Show me a pioneer, man or woman, and you have shown me one who possesses qualities which command your respect; one, too, who appears equally well in a log cabin or a gilded mansion; who can in a rough and ready manner meet any danger or emergency that may arise, or in evening gown or in dress suit grace any drawmg room."

Annual reunions have been held each year since and occasionally picnics are held in the summer time. With each annual meeting it is observed that some of the members have been called to that "bourne from whence no traveler returns," but as each member goes hence, it is pointed out with satisfaction that he played a part in the building of one of the best towns and most prosperous counties in the west, and although his taking off is regretted, it is but the way of the world; it is God's way.

In his message to congress April 11, 1898, among other things President William McKinley said, "In the name of humanity, in the name of civilization, in behalf of endangered American interests, which give us the right and duty to speak and act, the war in Cuba must stop. In view of these facts and these considerations, I ask congress to authorize and empower the president to take measures to secure a full and final termination of hostilities between the government of Spain and the people of Cuba."

"2. That it is the duty of the United States to demand, and the Government of the United States does demand, that the Government of Spain at once relinquish its authority and government in the Island of Cuba, and withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters.

"3. That the president of the United States be, and he hereby is, directed and empowered to use the entire land and naval forces of the United States, and to call into the actual service of the United States the militia of the several states to such an extent as may be necessary to carry these resolutions into effect.

"4. That the United States hereby disclaims any disposition or intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction or control over said island, except for the pacification thereof, and asserts its determination when that is accomplished to leave the government and control of the island to its people."

On April 20, Spain was given its ultimatum by the United States to relinquish its authority and withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba before noon on April 23, 1898. Spain refused to comply with this demand, and the president issued a proclamation calHng for 125,000 volunteers, "the same to be proportioned, as far as practicable, among the several states and territories and the District of Columbia, according to population and to serve for two years, unless sooner discharged."

On April 25, congress declared that "war had existed since the 2ist day of April, 1898, including said day, between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain."

The secretary of war on the 25th notified Governor W. A. Richards that Wyoming's allotment of troops was one battalion of four companies of infantry and that the National Guard should be used as far as their numbers would permit. Companies C of Buffalo, G of Sheridan, F of Douglas, H of Evanston, and a portion of A of Laramie were accepted. These companies assembled in Cheyenne and on May 10 they were mustered into the United States service. On May 18, the battalion left Cheyenne for San Francisco. On June 27 they embarked at San Francisco and arrived at the mouth of Manila Bay July 31. August 6 they were disembarked and went into camp at Paranaque. This battahon participated in the battle of Manila August 13, and was the first to raise its battalion flag over the captured city. Afterwards the Wyoming boys were engaged in numerous battles. July 6, 1899, orders were received to return to the United States and on August 29 the Steamer GrarU arrived in San Francisco with the battalion. Governor DeForest Richards and his staff, and many prominent citizens of the state went to San Francisco to welcome the boys home.

In the battalion were the following named men from Natrona county: E. A. Cunningham, B. F. Cunningham, C. W. Anderson, W. J. Evans, O. S. Lucas, J. H. Marsh, G. R. Moyer, R. J. White, and Pat McDermott. G. R. Moyer was the only soldier of Natrona

Spanish-American War Veterans 63

W. F. Dunn received a commission ranking as captain on July 6, 1898, and was ordered to report for duty at Tampa, Florida, for duty in the commissary department. He was in the service about two years, the first year being spent at different camps in the south and the last year he spent in Cuba, most of the time in Santiago and Havana and on board the transport Ingalls, where he assisted in the work of paying off the Cuban soldiers. Mr, Dunn received his discharge in the summer of 1901 and returned to his home in Casper.

Dr. J. F. Leeper, although not enlisted in the Spanish-American war, served in the Philippine Islands as army physician, with the rank of captain, from February, 1910, until 1913. Returning to the United States he was army physician in Fort DuShane, Utah, Fort Bayard, New Mexico, and at the Presidio, San Francisco, until October, 191 2, when he returned to Casper and resumed his practice among his many old-time friends.

The Second United States Volunteer cavalry which was known as "Torrey's Rough Riders," was raised by Colonel Jay L. Torrey. This regiment was composed mostly of Wyoming men. The troopers left Cheyenne on June 22, 1898, for Camp Cuba Libre, Jacksonville, Florida. At Tupelo, Mississippi, on the 26th, the second section of the troop train ran into the first section, which resulted in the immediate death of three troopers. Three others died later, and eleven others were more or less injured. Among the injured was Colonel Torrey. The enlisted men in this regiment from Natrona county were: Hugh L. Patton, first lieutenant; Edward S. White, first sergeant; Robert McAdams, R. W. Wanlace, and George C. Thompson, sergeants; Robert J. Allen, David A. Williams, and Charles E. Nichols, corporals; Charles H. Lilly, trumpeter; Horace Evans, Gillman A. Hackett, George Lobmeier, Eugene H. O'Brien, Charles F. Padden, Lewis D. Scott, troopers. Before leaving for Camp Cuba Libre, the friends of Lieutenant Patton in Natrona county presented to him a sword bearing the following inscription: "Presented to Lieutenant Hugh L. Patton, Second Regiment Volunteer Cavalry, U. S. A., Torrey's Rough Riders, by the citizens of Natrona county, Wyoming."

John Clark was among the Natrona county "boys" who rendered excellent service to the government during the Spanish- American war, having served as packmaster with Colonel Torrey's regiment, and is entitled to as much credit as were the enlisted men.

pany street. One of the troopers described it to the officer-of-the-day in this wise, "It didn't amount to anything, sir. One of the boys in the Leadville troop got a Httle too much hquor. He came over to our troop looking for something, and he found it. I handed it to him."

These troopers never got into action with the Spaniards. The war ended too soon; but they proved fully the quality of western manhood. The struggle made by Colonel Torrey to get his regiment into action was energetic and persistent, but futile. The regiment arrived in Jacksonville June 28, after the fighting had begun at Santiago. An urgent appeal was made and re-made to be included in the Porto Rican expedition, but cavalry was not needed there, and disappointment followed. All the friends of the command were sought to make sure of the regiment's being included in the force destined to make the attack on Havana, and there is no doubt but that if such an attack had been made the Torrey Rough Riders would have occupied a conspicuous place.

The regiment remained at Camp Cuba Libre until October, when it mustered out. In the battahon, the battery and the Second United States Volunteer cavalry, the state of Wyoming furnished a number of men aggregating four and a half times her proper quota, as apportioned by the war department - more in proportion to population than any other state in the Union.

In his message to the legislature in January, 1899, Governor DeForest Richards said, "The Wyoming Volunteer Aid association, composed of the patriotic women of the state, has inaugurated a movement for the erection of a monument to the memory of the volunteers from this state who sacrificed their lives in maintaining the honor of their country. It is desired that permission be given for the erection of this monument within the grounds of the capitol and that a suitable contribution to the fund be made by the state." February 20, 1899, the act was passed and the requested permission given. The sum of $1,500 was set apart as a "Heroes' Monument Fund," to be delivered to the Volunteer Aid association when so ordered by the governor. The monument was erected in 1900 and was at first located immediately east of the walk leading to the main entrance of the capitol. In 1917, it was removed to its present location at the southeast corner of the capitol grounds.

The membership of the Spanish-American war veterans of Natrona county includes the "boys" who volunteered from Natrona county and who are yet living here, as well as those who responded to their country's call from other places and are now making their home here. On May 21, 1919, Lieutenant Caspar Collins camp. No. 15, United Spanish War veterans, Department of Colorado and

On each Memorial day the members of Caspar Collins Camp decorate with flowers the graves of the soldiers who are interred in Highland cemetery, and they march out to the burial ground in a body where taps are sounded and a salute is fired over the graves of the departed veterans, a list of whom is herewith given: S. Sanchez, C. L. Rounds, James Fitzgerald, Don Miller, Jack Lehee, J. Anderson, Dr. J. F. Leeper, W. Sanders, W. F. Smith, J. H. Chapman, W. Tobin, N. B. Carlysle, Charles Ricker, Erick Anderson, Harry Lyttle, Ed. S. White, H. A. Lilly, Charles L. Dutton, J. R. Miller, Wm. Kropp, W. Santell, W. W. Bahmer, R. T. Kemp. The above were Spanish-American War veterans and the following is a list of the departed Civil War veterans: Henry Shank, Luke Wentworth, Isaac Collins, Matt Campfield, John Karion, Dr. Joe Benson, Wm. J. Emery, James Dickie, Martin Oliver, Peter Heagney, James Dougherty, Joseph Donnelly, Sam Desbron, Charles K. Bucknum, John K. Wood, Hiram Lewis, Nathan Savage, Gillespie, Chauncey Ishbull.

No county in the state of Wyoming and but few counties In any of the states in the Union, population and wealth considered, responded more liberally than Natrona county with men and money to our country's call in the great world war. The inspiring and patriotic words of our congressman, Frank Wheeler Mondell, on the floor of the house, in the discussion as to the advisability of the United States declaring war against the Imperial German government are herewith reprinted, which are worthy of going into history:

" For two years and more the spectre of the European war has spread its pall of terror over the earth - to us a nightmare of frightfulness, to the nations engaged, a reality of unspeakable horror. As the titanic conflict on and under and over land and sea has extended its area of destruction, we have fervently hoped and devoutly prayed that we might escape its devouring flame. Our patience and forbearance, as our rights have been ignored and denied, as our honor and power have been mocked, our citizens subjected to humiliation, to fearful suffering and to awful death, have been the outward and visible signs of our profound and sincere longing for honorable peace. But there is no peace! Arrogance and despotic power has decreed suffering and death to all who venture the sea lanes where all have the right under the laws of God and man to pass unharmed. Our flag has been fired upon, our power contemptuously ignored, our citizens wickedly slain. Amid conditions such as these, continued patience and forbearance cease to be a virtue; they come to be accepted as signs of cowardice and weakness, the evidence of supine submission to insult and outrage; they no longer express the attitude of a brave and free people. And so, regretfully, but with firm determination, the Republic draws the sword, firm in the conviction that we fight the battle of human rights against the excesses of despotic power."

And then on April 2, 1917, at 8 o'clock in the evening, President Woodrow Wilson called the congress in extraordinary assembly and delivered his "war" message, advocating co-operation and counsel in action with the Allied governments then at war with Germany and the extension of liberal credits to them, and it was realized that we were in fact at the very entrance of war. The president's message was as follows:

"I advise that this congress declare the course of the Imperial German government to be in fact a belligerent of the United States, and that it formally accepts this status of the belligerent which has thus been thrust upon it and employ all of its resources to bring the government to terms and to end the war.

"Vessels of every kind, whatever their flag, their character, their cargo, their destination, their errand, have been ruthlessly sent to the bottom without warning, and without the thought of help or mercy for those on board; even hospital ships, ships carrying relief to the sorely bereaved and stricken people of Belgium. Though the latter were provided with safe conduct through the prescribed areas by the German government itself and were distinguished by unmistakable marks of identity, they have been sunk with the same reckless lack of compassion or principle."

This message, while the American flag was being waved from the mezzanine in the Henning hotel, was read to several thousand people by ex-Governor B. B. Brooks, only a few minutes after it was delivered before congress by the president. When the governor finished reading, all was quiet for a second and then someone started to sing "America," and the thousand men and women sang the national anthem with more meaning and more enthusiasm then they ever sung it before.

After the president's message had been read to congress Chairman Flood of the house committee on mihtary affairs introduced a resolution as follows:

"Whereas, The recent course of the Imperial German government is in fact nothing less than a war against the government and the people of the United States, Therefore, be it

Resolved, By the senate and the house of representatives of the United States of America, in congress assembled, that a state of belligerency which thus has been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally declared, and that the president be authorized to immediately take steps not only to put this country in a state of defense, but to exert all power and employ all the resources of this country to carry on war and bring the conflict to a successful conclusion."

This resolution was passed by the house of congress at 3 :o8 in the morning of April 6, 191 7, by a vote of 373 to 50, after a debate lasting seventeen hours, during which twenty-five members spoke. And thus, on Good Friday, the day on which Christ died for humanity, America went to war against the Imperial German government for humanity.

Then came the preparation for war. Recruiting stations were established in every town of any size in the United States; Red Cross organizations were perfected, food conservation was commenced and the people laid aside money for the purchase of Liberty bonds. Many young men volunteered for service at once and others declared they were ready, willing and anxious to go when their country should call them, and on the fifth of June, when the first register for military draft was finished, there were 1,276 names from Natrona county on the roll, while 960 were reported as absent, making a total of 2,236 available men to enter the war from this county, in addition to the 196 who had entered the service as volunteers. Natrona county was called upon July 20 to draw fifty-seven names for the first selective draft, and on August 7, 8 and 9, 102 draft men were ordered to report to the board.

By this time the people of the whole nation had their meatless days and their wheatless days; they wore their old clothes; they denied themselves the luxuries and pleasures they had been accustomed to having and saved their money to buy Liberty bonds. Women were knitting socks and sweaters and making dressings and bandages for our boys who had gone. Although the older men could not go to the front, like the younger men, they were nevertheless fully as patriotic, and gave up their time, their money and their pleasures, and made many sacrifices in order that this war might be brought to a "successful conclusion."

Bucknum, 15; Arminto, 60; Efell, 10; Big Muddy, 14; Freeland, 16; Waltman, 9; Miller, 4; Lone Bear, 14; Alcova, 17; Oil City, 7; Ervay, 7. At the recruiting station in Casper on July 20 there were 150 names on the roster of Company L, Wyoming National Guard. These men were encamped at the fair grounds south of town from July 20 until August 2, when they left for the Cheyenne temporary training camp, and a fund of ^1,000 was raised by the citizens of Casper as a "mess fund" for the boys.

The first Natrona county draft delegation to leave for training quarters was on September 5, 1917. Two men were called. They went to American Lake, Camp Lewis. The second increment, consisting of nineteen men, left on September 23, and the third, consisting of twenty men, left on October 7. For the fourth increment thirteen men were called on November 2. During this time more than 200 men had voluntarily enlisted and gone to their training camps.

The first death to occur on foreign soil among the soldiers of Natrona county was on January 17, 1918, at 8:55 in the evening, when George L. Vroman, a private in an ammunition train, died of pneumonia. He contracted a severe cold during a railroad trip from the port at which he landed in France to the first landing station. He was 31 years of age.

By the first of March, 1918, 422 men from Natrona county had enlisted as soldiers and more than 200 had enrolled in the pubhc service reserve.

The Standard and Midwest refineries had many extra guards at their plants, guards were stationed at the Pathfinder dam, railroad bridges were guarded and every precaution was taken against German spies, there being every reason to believe that quite a number were located in and around Casper.

Seventeen draft men left on April 27 for Camp Lewis, and on May 10 six men left for Camp Lewis and five for Fort McDowell, California, and a call was received on May 13 for 100 men from Natrona county to entrain for Fort Benjamin Harrison on May 20 and twenty to be sent to Fort Logan, Colorado, on May 29. Thirteen more left for Camp Logan, Utah, June 13, and a call was made for seventy-five men to go to Camp Lewis June 28. There were sixtynine men volunteered for the service during the month of June.

By this time not enough men were left on the range in this county to properly look after the stock; clerks were short in the stores and offices, there was a shortage of skilled mechanics at the refineries and there was a shortage of men ever)rwhere in the county, but the calls kept coming for more men, and on July 6 fifty-four men left for Fort Logan; twenty more left for the same place on the 19th, and on the 23rd 100 men were called to Fort Riley, Kansas. Seven selectives left for Camp Fremont, California, August 6, and seven more left for the same place the following day. Nineteen were called for Fort Riley on August 12, and twelve for Camp Lewis September 4, and on September 6, eight members of the Home Guard left for Camp Lewis. During the month of August three doctors, one lawyer and one minister enlisted. Word was received in August that Guy Burson had been killed in action on July 5. He was the first Natrona county soldier who had been killed in battle.

Fifty-nine men left for Camp Lewis October 10, and eleven men left for Fort McArthur, San Pedro, California, October 23. By this time it was estimated that more than 2,000 men from Natrona county were in the service.

On the morning of November 7, 191 8, telegraphic news was received in Casper, as it was in every town of any consequence in the whole of the United States, that the kaiser had abdicated, and Germany had indicated her surrender by the signing of an armistice, and that hostilities had ceased. Upon the receipt of these glad tidings every whistle in the city screeched, the bells in the churches rang forth the wonderful news, and men, women and even the little children knew the cause of all the noise and commotion without asking. Great crowds of people of all classes, sex, color, and age formed in the main thoroughfares of the city and cheered; an impromptu parade was formed, and the huge crowd marched to the court house; flags were unfurled, the band played, patriotic songs were sung and prayer was offered, and everybody went home with a light heart, but the next day word came over the wire that the news was not official; that the kaiser had not abdicated, that Germany had not indicated her surrender by asking for an armistice, and that hostilities had not ceased. The war spirit again permeated the air, and the people were ready and anxious to sacrifice not only their last dollar, but their last drop of blood to bring the foe to submission. Men far beyond the age limit were anxious to leave their homes and families and take up arms against the relentless foe, but on the morning of November 9 an official announcement was received that the kaiser had abdicated, and that the Imperial German government was ready to surrender, and at 2:40 on the morning of November 11, 1918, official news was received of the submission of Germany. It was announced that the armistice was signed at 5 o'clock in the morning, Paris time, which is some ten hours earlier than western time in the United States, and that hostilities had entirely ceased at 11 o'clock A.M. all along the lines.

Again the whistles shrieked forth and the bells in the city rang long and loud. But few people remained in bed, although the hour was early, and they determined to make this a big day as well as a long one. Arrangements were quickly made to fittingly celebrate the occasion, and all the business houses, offices and factories in the city were closed in the afternoon and a monster parade was formed; thousands of people were in line, the bands played, and the day was celebrated as only Americans can celebrate after such a grand victory.

Then the casualty lists commenced to come in. This was the sad, sad part of the war. As Natrona county's percentage of men in the war was large, the casualty list must necessarily be large. Twentysix men from this little county sacrificed their lives, a list of whom is herewith appended: Asimakopoulos, Demetrios; Bean, Frank L.; Buhr, John L.; Burson, Guy C; Butler, James; Cheadle, Albert K.; Cheney, WiUiam D.; Cummlngs, Cecil Fleming; Cutler, Frank D.; Devault, Charlie O.; Evans, Richard T.; Graves, Loren; Green, Archie B.; Humann, Herman; Lowery, Bond M.; Marston, WiUiam D.; Mobius, Frank; McClaflin, Arbie W.; Neil, Harry W.; Romero, Frank Bernal; Sanford, Albert B.; Scannell, Francis E.; Snyder, Orin I.; Speckbacker, John M.; Starks, Hugh L.; Stanley, Dewey M.; Vroman, George W.

In January, 1919, Adjutant General W. K. Weaver made a comprehensive report of the part that Wyoming took in the world war, and among other things he said: "It is worthy of note and pride that in this war, as in the Spanish-American war, Wyoming furnished more soldiers in proportion to population than any other state. Wyoming furnished 923 men for the draft in 1917 and over 7,000 for the 191 8 draft. All told the state sent more than 12,000 men to the army, and approximately one-half of these men were sent over seas."

About seven per cent of Wyoming's population served the nation on battlefields and in camps, while the average for the United States was about four per cent, and it will be noted with pride that Natrona county's percentage was far in advance of even the state's percentage. In 1920 the federal census showed that Natrona county had a population of 14,635, and allowing 1,365 that the census enumerators might have, and no doubt did overlook, that would have given us a population of 16,000. In 1917-18 the population surely was not more than it was in 1920, and in that case, with 2,000 men in the service, which was twelve and one-half per cent of our population, a percentage that very few counties in the whole nation equaled.

It was not long after the signing of the armistice until the soldiers commenced to return home from the numerous camps, and in order to give them a hearty welcome, a Mother's league was formed. On February 20, 1919, this league secured rooms on the ground floor of the Oil Exchange building, and on the 26th the rooms were thrown open to the soldiers and sailors who had returned. The rooms were furnished with tables and chairs, and there was an abundance of books and magazines and cards and games of diflPerent kinds, and it was surely a boon for many a young man who returned from camp and had no home, no position, and but little money to make a new start in life. The club was under the management of the Mother's league until June 12, when it was turned over to the Army and Navy club. On April 23, 1919, a temporary organization of the Natrona county chapter of the American Legion was perfected, with Edgar S. Moore as president; Edgar S. Bean, vice president; Kestler Long, secretary; R. H. Nichols, treasurer; and E. Hussey, C. P. Plummer and W. H. Fuller, committee on constitution and bylaws. On July 18, 1919, the Casper chapter asked for a charter membership in the American Legion, and it was granted August 26, and was given the name of George L. Vroman Post No. 2, in honor of the first Natrona county soldier who died over seas. There were thirty-five charter members, and Chiles P. Plummer was elected chairman, and C. R. Peterson secretary. R. H. Nichols was elected to represent the local post in the state legion. The Army and Navy club was then merged into the Legion, which has resulted in a strong and beneficial organization with a large and influential membership.

The Denny O. Wyatt Post, No. 57, in honor of one of Natrona county's brave young soldiers, who served over seas, returned home and died from the eflPects of injuries received while he was in the service, received its national and state charter on the 12th day of March, 1922, with forty charter members. Excellent club rooms were secured where social entertainments and business sessions were held on regular occasions. The initial election of officers for this post was held on the evening of April 17, 1922, when T. J. McKeon was named as post commander; L. F. Thorne, vice commander; H. M. McDermott, finance officer; Fred Dralle, adjutant. It was reported at this meeting that the post had a membership numbering eighty.

A massive bronze tablet was unveiled at the capitol building in Cheyenne on November 11, 1921, the anniversary of Armistice day, upon which was this inscription: "Dedicated to the Memory of Those Men from Wyoming Who Made the Supreme Sacrifice." Beneath the inscription appear the names of approximately 350

Wyoming soldiers who are known to have died in the military service during the great World war. This memorial tablet is seven by four feet in dimensions, and is supported on either side by a female figure holding in her hand a palm branch. The legislature of 1921 appropriated $2,000 for the purchase of this tablet, which has been placed at the right-hand side of the capitol rotunda, near the main entrance, which is a fitting memorial to the young men who sacrificed their lives for their country.

Powder River Post, No. 291, Veterans of Foreign Wars, was organized in Casper in October, 1922, and the charter remained open until November 16, when the post was instituted and officers installed as follows: Commander, E. R. Purkiser; senior vice commander, E. A. Carrier; junior vice commander, Orin Theige; adjutant, Thuron R. Hughes; quartermaster, D. D. Murphy; chaplain, C. H. C. Scullion; trustees, Charles J. McNulty, Harold A. Park, W. H. Blott; membership committee, E. A. Carrier, Charles H. C. Sculhon, Noble Welch; post historian, M. T. Rice; patriotic instructor, N. E. Robinson.

Earthquakes in Wyoming have been of comparatively rare occurrence, so far as any extensive destruction of life and property has been involved. The first convulsive force felt in the central part of the state that could be termed an earthquake occurred at 3:15 on the morning of June 25, 1894. There were two distinct and violent shocks and nearly everybody in Casper was awakened by the vibrations and a general feeling of alarm prevailed. No great damage was done to any of the buildings and the convulsions were of short duration. On Casper mountain the disturbance was much more pronounced than in the valley. There the vibrations continued for fifteen seconds. Dishes were dashed to the floor from the cupboards and a number of people were thrown from their beds by the undulations. There was doubt, consternation and terror among the people, some of whom expressed the fear that the earth would open up and swallow them. Their fears were unfounded, of course, but when daylight came they made haste to come to Casper and remained here several days.

The water in the Platte river, which the day before had been fairly clear, changed to a reddish hue and became thick with mud thrown up from the bottom and caved in from the banks. Those who were near the river in the vicinity of Alcova said they could hear the rushing sounds and violent splashes into the stream, and in the morn-

Again on November 14, 1897, at 6:30 in the morning, this part of Wyoming was visited by another but more violent earthquake shock. Those who were awake at the time reported that for several minutes before the shock occurred they heard a rumbling noise from the southwest resembling that of a dozen trains of cars. Then came the rocking of the earth, which lasted for at least two seconds. George M. Rhoades, who was sitting on a chair lacing his shoes, was thrown to the floor. As soon as he could gain his equilibrium, he rushed out of doors, fearing that the roof of his house would fall in on him. Others hastened from their beds. The guests in the Grand Central hotel made a hasty exit, some of them not tarrying to dress. Men on the range who were sleeping on the ground said they could hear the rumbling sound several minutes before they felt the shock. The noise kept getting closer and closer until it became almost deafening and then occurred the sickening, shivering, rocking of the earth which caused consternation among the sheep and horses. The Grand Central hotel building was considerably damaged by the convulsion, the northeast corner of the building being rent with a crack from two to four inches wide, extending from the third to the first story. The ceiling in the lobby was cracked from the east to the west end and the structure was otherwise damaged to such extent that many bolts and braces were required to put it in a safe condition. This was the only building in Casper that was damaged to any great extent, as this and the Odd Fellows' building, were the only large brick buildings in the town at that time.

And again, on October 25, 1922, at 6:20 in the evening a slight shock of about one-half second duration was felt by some people in Casper. Some of those who were sick and in bed felt the shock more distinctly than those who were up and around in their homes or in their business houses or upon the streets. The tremor was very slight, and no damage of any kind was reported. At Salt Creek, fifty miles north, and at Bucknum, twenty-two miles west of Casper, the vibrations were much more pronounced, and they were from two to three seconds' duration. Some people in the vicinity of Bucknum reported that the disturbance continued for at least ten seconds, but it is evident that they judged the duration more by the length of time it seemed to them than the actual continuation of the undulations. Glass in the windows at the Box C ranch house, a few miles to the north of Bucknum station, were cracked and the frame buildings swayed and creaked as though they were about to be caved in. In Salt Creek dishes which had been placed on the dining tables and those that were in the china closets were badly shaken, and pictures that were hanging on the walls in some of the residences swayed to and fro, and many other indications of the seismic disturbance were in evidence. Many people rushed from their houses, thinking that a gas explosion had occurred in the vicinity, and it was some time before it dawned upon them that the shock they had felt had been caused by an earthquake.

The explosion of 400 quarts of nitro-glycerine at about 8 o'clock in the evening on May 26, 1919, at the storage house of the Wyoming Torpedo company, about two miles east from Casper, shook the town as if there w as an earthquake. Windows in many of the business houses were broken and the vibrations could be distinctly felt throughout the town. The storage house for the glycerine was a dug-out along the river bank and Mack McCoy and a companion had brought an auto truck load of the nitro-glycerine from the plant a couple of miles farther east, intending to put it in the storage house over night and take it toThermopolis the next day to be used in the oil fields near that town. It is supposed that the explosion was caused from the concussion of opening the storage house door or that one of the cans was dropped on the ground while the men were unloading it from the truck. Immediately after the report was heard in Casper a huge cloud of smoke and dust was seen to rise in the sky and its appearance resembled an immense balloon in the air. Fully three thousand people rushed to the scene of the accident. Where the storage house stood was now an immense hole in the ground, hundreds of bits of human flesh and bones were scattered within a radius of a quarter of a mile, the auto truck was blown into thousands of pieces and scattered about in all directions; the trees along the river bank were sheared of their branches and the destruction was complete. McCoy and his companion were seen driving the auto truck toward the storage house about ten minutes before the explosion occurred, but the identity of the other man was never established.

The Pathfinder dam was built under false pretenses and Wyoming was thereby deprived of reclaiming a vast amount of acreage which would have been irrigated had the plans been carried out as the people of Wyoming were led to believe and given to understand they would.

The Pathfinder Dam 75

General Manager Bidwell and Superintendent Hughes of the Chicago & Northwestern railway, who undoubtedly were secretly working under instructions from the Nebraska delegation in congress, came to Casper in their private car on June 14, 1904, and requested an audience with the representative business men of Casper. About twenty Casper business men were admitted inside Mr. Bidwell's private car, and Mr. Bidwell was the main and about the only speaker. He produced some maps, especially prepared to exhibit to the people of Wyoming which showed the lands proposed to be irrigated by the department under this project amounting to 1,380,000 acres in Wyoming, 207,000 of which were in Natrona county. Bidwell said there were to be three reservoirs, one eight miles above Alcova, the site of the now Pathfinder dam, one fifteen miles above Casper and another eight miles up the river.

When this information was presented to our people they readily approved the project, and then Messrs. Bidwell and Hughes went to Douglas, where the same procedure was taken to fool the people of that town and, as at Casper, the people there gave their hearty approval to the project. The result was that the appropriation of a million dollars was made by congress for the project, but only one dam and one reservoir was constructed, and Nebraska has thus far gotten the use of the greater portion of the water that was promised and rightfully belonged to Wyoming, and instead of 207,000 acres of land being reclaimed in Natrona county, about 25,000 acres were inundated and none reclaimed.

The scheme was thoroughly studied and investigated by the reclamation service for two years prior to the commencement of the dam's construction. The system was named "Pathfinder" in honor of General John C. Fremont, the great explorer, who made the Platte valley, in what is now Wyoming, the scene of his most interesting travels and investigations, and it was at about where the dam is located that Fremont's boats were capsized. The Astorians gave this canyon the name of the "Fiery Narrows."

This wonderful piece of masonry is built on a natural site in a solid granite formation, in the bed rock, and the walls on each side are also of this rock. The geology and topography of the location is remarkable. Here is a tremendous uplift of granite, rent in twain by the titanic forces of nature in the primeval days, creating a mighty chasm in depth and yet so narrow as to make hardly a streak in the landscape. In many places a rider approaching from either side would not see the canyon or know of the existence of the river until he was within a few rods of the perilous chasm with its almost perpendicular walls.