https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/5460f7a7936d30b067b508ad44dd849a.pdf 4fb57b5f6ac6fb8d5fe01920348accfe PDF Text Text WYOMING , �N. Weis SOUTH PASS CITY, WYOMING Gold seekers settled on Willow Greek In 1867. The camp soon became a town, and the town became the largest in the State. Named South Pass Within eighteen months, its City, it grew quickly. What should have population exceeded two thousand. been a curly-haired, short-tempered saloon town, became^instead, a family community. Those miners with wives and children, seeking a safe home, chose this town rather than Atlantic City, located five miles east. The women were quick to organize and preserve this precious quality. Some say organiza­ tion was haistened by the several long meetings held during the Indian raids. Hostiles frequently threataned the town, driving off the stock and stealing whatever was left unguarded. During the raids, the women and children were locked in a cave/llke recess behind the wine celler owned by a local merchant. iron door. The celler was protected by a stout Many a decision was made in the darkness of this hideaway. Under less frightening circumstances, the women organized a club, held numerous meetings^and discussed women’s rights. Mrs. Esther Hobart Morris, -8- South Pass City, Wyoming �N. Weis who came to South Pass in 1869, was a strong advocate of women’s right to vote. That year, encouraged by the women club members, Mr. William Bright drafted a bill giving equal suffrage to women. was introduced and passed! The bill Shortly after, Mrs. Esther Hobart Morris was appointed j^ustice of the ^eace. Many heated cases were accorded a decision by the good lady. None of them w^e overruled by a higher court. However quiet. South Pass City was still a mining town. Its Main Street was crowded with false—fronted buildings, nearly every other one a saloon. Main Street was nearly a half mile long. The town had the first bank in the area, a well-* organized school system, a newspaper, and a regular stage service. The Carissa Lode, the richest deposit in the area, poured forth its wealth, and the town prospered. A few other mines in the area were producing, like the Franklin, the Shields, and the Jim Crow Hoosier Boy, but the Carissa was the big one, and when its vein pinched out, the life of the town began to flicker. By 1880, South Pass City Many buildings were moved has away, but each of those remaining ^laase a story to tell. was nearly deserted. -9- South Pass City, Wyoming �N. Weis The jail Is still in fine shape,the cell doors swinging freely. It is clearly evident why it was later called "the cooler." Even the town dog likes to sleep here on hot summer days. Next to the jail is the old hat shop, later converted to a saloon. The Smith Sherlock store has been recently converted to a museum. The town is undergoing a continuing process of restoration. South Pass City is a quiet place in the summer, and completely deserted each winter. A lonely graveyard overlooks < the town from the south. On the northern hill, the Carissa Mine patiently waits reactivation, A single caretaker watches over the massive investment. Perhaps a new and cheaper way to extract the gold will be found, and the giant will stir to life again. -10- South Pass City, Wyoming i-- �N. Weis THE DUNCAN, WYOMING Prom Atlantic City, an excellent gravel road winds steeply up Mill Hill, levels off and heads southeast. At the crest, one mile south of town, a dirt road branches to the right. Traveling this road westward, the Mary Ellen sine comes quickly into view. Then, within a mile of the turnoff, "The Duncan" becomes visible. Both mines are on the right side of the road, and are on the Atlantic City, Wyoming, 7| minute topographic map. The first rich strike was made here in 1911. In three years, forty thousand dollars'^worth of ore was removed. During those three years, fifteen hundred feet of underground tunnels and shafts were completed, and a Nissen stamp mill and amalgamator were installed. The outfit was capable of extracting o ■sfcsEty per^^ent of the gold. In 191^ the operation ran into financial trouble, and the mine closed down. Thirty-two years later, new owners gave it another try. A new ball mill, classifier, and several agitator tanks were obtained. Eight floatation cells and a concentrator, or shaker table, were installed. Just twelve tons of ore were processed that year. valued at a total of about two thousand dollars. -19- The Duncan, Wyoming �N, Weis In 1956, the mine underwent another hopeful spurt of activity, with three thousand tons shipped at about During its busiest years, twelve dollars per ton. "The Duncan" rivaled in size the towns of Atlantic City and Miners Delight. Several dozen cabins, a small store, and a two-story/dormitory occupied most of the level area at the top of the hill. The mine buildings cover the hillside for hundreds of feet, ending in another smattering of buildings. Now everything is shuttered and.locked, awaiting a rise in the price of gold. are vacant. The houses The dormitory, with its outside stairs, is quiet, and heavy boots no longer threaten the quick nap of the man on the "off shift." -20- The Duncan, Wyoming �N. Weis LSWISTON, WYOMING "Lewiston? Never heard of It I" What Lewiston? In Wyoming? But the entire population of Atlantic City knew about the town — all four of them. In fact, one of them used to live there I Good old Sam Vjestlc — and he promptly volunteered to ride along on .a visit to the town~slte. Was there anything left, as the map Indicated — or was It all gone, as some historians claimed? "Veil, dere’s a store, und a llffery, und some mines dere," volunteered Sam. We drove south out of Atlantic City, up Mill Hill, past The Duncan turnoff, and headed east on a good gravel road. About eight miles out of town, Sam called for an abrupt turn to the right. Here on the banks of Rock Creek, rested a monument - a bronze slab cemented to a mound of rock. Inscribed on the plaque Is a story of nearly unequaled tragedy. ^WILLIE'S HANDCART COMPANY Captain James C. Willie’s Handcart Company of Mormon Emigrants on the way to Utah, greatly exhausted by the deep snows of an early winter and suffering from lack of food and clothing had assembled here for -21- Lewiston, Wyoming �N. Weis reorganization by relief parties from Utah about the end of October 1865. Thirteen persons were frozen to death during a single night and were burled here in one grave. Two otAers died the next day and were buried nearby. Of the company of 40^ persons 77 perished before help arrived. The survivors reached Salt Lake November 9 1856.X The South Pass was indeed treacherous I It was quite clear,^w why Pacific Springs was called "Celebration City." About four miles fj|lrther east we took a fork to the left, forded Strawberry Creek, and drove into the town of Lewiston, The Radium Springs, Wyoming, 7i minute topographic map shows most of the important sites in fine detail. Part of this map is reproduced in the introduction. Lewiston isn’t very big — just two buildings with a street between. false front and all. On the left was the old store, On the right was the llver^’, its interlocking logs holding it firmly plumb with the world. The Store had five rooms and showed signs of frequent haphazard expansion. Its sod roof, supported by large split logs, had collapsed in a -22- Lewiston, Wyoming �N. Weis number of places. The most recent occupants had been sheep and cattle. Gattie enjoy scratching themselves by rubbing against door jambs, and once the door is knocked off, a building comes down quickly. The Lewiston Store will not stand for long. The livery looked like it would photograph best from the rear. The view through the finder showed that I was a bit too close. few feet and stopped. I b^ed up a Not far enough yet. I backed up a few feet more, focused the camera, and took the picture. Behind me I could hear the clatter of pebbles falling, bouncing, and fading into faint echoes. I had basked up to the very brink of a deep vertical mine shaft. I circled back another dozen feet and photographed the livery, with the site of my stupidity in the foreground. This town once had more than twenty-five buildings, including four saloons, which is a pretty low "sin percentage," as mining towns go. It had several mines right in town, the most famous of which was the Bullion Shaft. Pounded in 1879, Lewiston was the center of the "new discovery." Much salting and selling was carried out. -23- Each Lewiston, Wyoming �N. Weis "sucker" salted in turn, and made money selling to the next huyer. One-half mile south of town are the remains of the Hidden Hand mine. is the Iron Duke Shaft. Forty feet away I speculated that two shafts this close had to lead to the same vein. Sam Vjestic added "dey haf to lead to a good fight when da tunnels meet, toot Sam knew what he was talking about, for he spent several years hogging out the rock in order to form those shafts I One-half mile to the north is the Good Hope Mine. This building is in a most artistic state of disrepair. As its lower side walls collapsed, its stout inner structure guided the outer portions downward to rest sedately, with a dignified list to port. Like a crippled queen of the oceans, it rides the windswept plains, valiantly resisting the inevitable. A family of wildcats lives in the old relic. They have been seen standing on the peak of the gallows frame, and no doubt have found some o crevi/Se suitable for a den. More hazardous than the wildcats)^ is the horizontal tunnel running out from the building. In places the tunnel is within a foot or two of the surface. -24- Your weight Lewiston, Wyoming �N. Weis might collapse It, Your car most certainly would break through. It had been a long day, and we were tired. The return trip was hot, dryland dusty. As we neared Atlantic City, I suggested we stop for a cooling drink at Glessler's Saloon. lit up. "Yah, I haf a coke." Sam’s eyes Realizing a coke might be pretty tame stuff for a tough old miner like Sam, I suggested something with more substance. "Naw," replied Sam. "I swear off dat hard stuff ever since I get mad back In ^thirty-eight," -25Lewlston, Wyoming �N. Weis WYOMING A3BA 2 Thi-3-Uni-^ ■ft4Dntiq1'ns a.pproximately 3^^00-wmtg-^ WYOMING Union pacific was driving its rails west. The mountains of eastern Wyoming had been breached. West of Laramie, the land leveled out to plains and high desert, permitting more rapid progress, but the flat land was Indian land, and the Indians resented the intrusion. Port Steele was established in 1868 to protect the Overland Stage Line and the Union Pacific -1- Port Steele, Wyoming �railroad. The presence of four companies (about three hundred men) encouraged construction and safe^ guarded travelers. Located at the Overland Trail crossing of the North Platte River, the fort was ideally placed to carry out its protective function. Within forty­ eight hours of the arrival of troops, ruffians and crooks had set up shop a half mile to ^e south at a place called Brownsville. A typical railhead town, stores, eating houses, saloons^ and gambling joints fronted the street, and sporting houses were placed ^hind. The population of Brownsville reached fifteen hund^red within a week. The Army, claiming it was a bad influence, kicked the town off Government land. Brownsville, only weeks old, promptly moved three miles to the western boundary of the fort, and renamed itself "Benton," It became "the/one bad town on the U.f." Fort Steele was built around a small parade ground. There was no stockade^and none was needed. Records indicate that the soldiers never met the enemy in battle. Gravel walks surrounded the parade ground and fronted the buildings. officers,* row. The west side was Four two-story buildings each housed �N. Weis about twenty officers. The central building was the residence of the commanding officer. On the east side were enlisted men’s barracks, laundries, and a sawmill. The railroad passed by the south side, separating the fort from the ^ut^ler’s post and saloon. In 1886 the fort was abandoned. Eight years later the property was purchased by the Cosgriff Brothers for one hundred dollars. They converted the buildings to stores and residences. One of the officers’ quarters became a hotel and the powder house a granary. The saloon remained a saloon. much of the town. Later, fire destroyed The remaining buildings became the property of the Leo Sheep Company. The site of Fort Fred Steele (later the /Town of Fort Steele), is reached by traveling twelve miles east of Rawlins on Highway 80, then north two miles along the west bank of the Platte River. The fort, its parade ground still prominent, is just across the Union Pacific tracks. The Walcott, Wyoming, 15 minute topographic map is of notable help. Dated 1912, it shows much of the fort as it used to be. Many of the buildings Indicated on the map are now merely foundations or depressions in the ground. -3- Fort Steele, Wyoming �N. Weis Much of the old glory has faded — the enlisted men’s barracks are filled with barbed wire, salt, wool, and old sheep hides. The gable end of the building nearest the railroad tracks carries evidence of a number of uses. Several signs have been lettered on its frenteThe most prominent and probably the last:-/^ "Pt. Steele General Store." a sign; Below is "WATER TOUR AUTO HERS." One building stands on ^fflcei^*^row. In remarkably good shape, it is like two houses glued together — each the exact mirror Image of the other. A single partition separates the two stairways as they lead side by side to the bedrooms on the upper level. Behind the building are two "hallway" exten­ sions. Each leads to its own Indoor outhouse. The "privilege of rank" was particularly appreciated on frosty mornings, but the price paid was the ever­ present odor. privilege." Perhaps a better term would be "rank As the cesspools filled, the hallways were extended to reach freshly dug pits. Some old forts had hallways up to sixty feet long. The life of Port Steele was short — and so were its outhouse extensions. On the hill, just southwest of the old "fort become town," are the remains of acting Governor -im­ port Steele, Wyoming �N. Weis Chatterton’s home. inches thick. The poured walls are eighteen J Old-fashioned concrete, called grout, was made with burned lime and unwashed gravel. The joists and rafters were poured in place. The Richard's Toll Bridge, located near Port Steele, was in operation during the years of emigration. Built for ^55000, it took $^0,000 in toll the first season. Fording the North Platte River was often dangerous. The graveyard just south of the fort gives evidence of such hazard on several headstones. Glassing the riverbank, trying to spot the old bridge abutments, I noticed a timbered trestle, perhaps the remnant of a bridge approach. The caretaker at the nearby waterworks (for the town of Rawlins) supplied some brief answers. "No, it's not a bridge." Pressed for more information, the caretaker added, "Bunch of buildings over there. We call it "Timber Town." That was exciting news. My topographic map showed some buildings there, but I had been given to understand they had all been demolished. The remains of the old Jj^own ( of Benton were nearby, and on the Fort Steele side of the river. A hurried visit to that site, then the "bunch of buildings" would have to be looked into carefully. ---------------------5- Fort Steele, Wyoming K �N. Weis BSMTON, WYOMING Called T<^Tjnf’’ and ’’Outlaw To-vm,” preceded generally by unprintable expletiveJ; Benton was likely the wildest town ever to exist In Wyoming. There Is nothing left of the town, just one hell of a story and millions of broken bits of glass from bottles emptied and thrown, Benton was the Illegitimate child of the Union Pacific. Three miles west of the fort, It was beyond military control, yet close enough to dtract the fort’s several hundred troopers. It was the tent town railhead at the seven hundred mile marker, measured west from Omaha, It was born on July 1, 1868, when the Army kicked the town of Brownsville off their reservation. It died In September, 1868, at the age of three months. But what a summerI One hundred people were killed In three wild months. There were no trees, the ground was bare, and the alkali was six Inches deep underfoot. Stolen locomotive headlights Illuminated seductively decorated billboards. The North Star Saloon and the Desert Hotel were prominent Institutions of doubtful character. Other business houses carried signs bordered In red, and needed no explanation, for the street was their -6- Benton, Wyoming �N. Weis front parlor. Twenty-three saloons dispensed, beer, bitters^and bourbon. Five dance halls offered the same fare — but with added attractions. Three thousand people lived in Benton, and on weekends it neared five thousand. Lots sold for ($100(j|, and^main street was sold out. Water was scarce. Hauled from the Platte River, it sold for a dollar a barrel. One former resident recorded an "irregularity" concerning the delivery of water. A mule skinner had just hauled the water jin on a skidL Being thirsty, he adjourned to the nearest bar and tipped a few. He came out in time to see the mules •backed up to the first row of barrels, one animal responding to the call of nature. He sold the barrel and explained, "Hell, it was so damned muddy you couldn’t see the bottom anyway." -7- Benton, Wyoming �N. Weis WALCOTT, WYOMING Prom 1890 to 1910, Walcott was the busiest railroad loading point between Omaha, Nebraska, and Ogden, Utah. Mining machinery and building materials were hauled in — copper ore and cattle were sent out. There was a hotel on the north side of the tracks next to the depot. Two livery stables and a number of stores and saloons flanked the dirt road entering from the south. Several hundred people lived here during the mining boom, but as time passed, unfortunate things happened to Walcott, The copper mines and smelters of Encampment, to the south, went broke. town. A highway was built, bypassing the As a final insult, the Union Pacific depot was removed in 19^0. There are two Walcotts now. The "new highway' Walcott*'is seven miles east of the Port Steele turnoff. north. The "railroad Walcott" is one mile Both are shown on the Walcott, Wyoming, 15 minute topographic map. There are two fascinating points of Interest at the site of the railroad town. One is the old saloon, and the other is its caretaker, Slim Parkko. The saloon has a sign on its false front -18- Walcott, Wyoming �N. Weis that is a work of art. In fancy scroll and block letters it states: THE GLUB Saloon JOHN H. LEWIS The "S" is backwards in "saloon," but correct in "Lewis!" Perhaps it was intended to be the "Club Saloon," with a scrolly "C", but it looked like a "G" — and "Glub" had an appropriate sound — so "Glub" it became. If it brought in customers, Proprietor Lewis wasn’t about to change it. An old rusted tin sign on the saloon states: Gornone Cigar Company’s DRY CLIMATE A Cigar Built for the Altitude Across the tracks are a number of the old cabins of Walcott. Sheep Company. Now they are used by the Vivian Old wooden wagon wheels lean everywhere. Removed from sheep wagons, they have been replaced with rubber-tired wheels. On my way out of town I stopped to visit with one of the few surviving residents of Walcott. He lives in a well<*kept little house just behind the "Glub Saloon." A veteran sheep'^ms.n, he Introduced himself as "Slinf Parkko, and — like the saloon — he was most descriptively named. -1§- Walcott, Wyoming �N. Weis "Does that sign really read the "Glub**' ' Saloon," I asked^ Slim replied, "Yup." "How many people are living here now?" Slim looked across the tracks. "Them two and just me." "Is that little building up on the hill an old water tank?" "Yup," said Slim, looking a little tired from such continued effort. *• As I left" town, I looked back at the meager remains of this*onc.e busy freighting junction. The town was well suited to its leading citizen. Walcott— like Slim’s conversation— was "real sparse." -20Walcott, Wyoming � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Norman Weis Manuscripts Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1971-1987 Description An account of the resource A collection of manuscripts by Casper College professor Norman Weis. <br /><br />This collection includes manuscripts of:<br /><em>Ghost Towns of the Northwest: Known and Unknown<br />The Starduster<br />Two-Story Outhouse<br />Helldorados<br /></em><br />Each manuscript contains written in edits by Norman Weis Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_Manuscripts Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Manuscript Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <p><em>Ghost Towns of the Northwest: Known and Unknown&nbsp;</em>Wyoming Draft</p> </div> Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <p><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a></p> </div> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1971 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_GhostTowns_DraftManuscript_Wyo Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF