This month, we feature a significant watercraft, a criminal of many stripes and a podcast  about the history of education in the Meeteetse area.

First boat on Yellowstone Lake

One fine summer morning in 1871, the sailboat Annie launched from the north shore of Yellowstone Lake—the first known boat to traverse its waters. Read more about this exciting chapter of the epic Hayden Geological Survey in Jett B. Conner’s article, “The Annie.”

An invader of Johnson County

Before Frank Canton became notorious in Wyoming in connection with the Johnson County War, he lived an outlaw’s life as Joe Horner in Texas. Discover more about Canton’s reputation as a sheriff, his time as a stock detective for the Wyoming Stock Growers Association and his role in the invasion of Johnson County. Read more in Nancy Tabb’s article, “Outlaw Turned Lawman: Frank Canton in Wyoming 1880-1894.”

Meeteetse Stories

The Meeteetse Museums podcast, “Meeteetse Stories” now offers two seasons exploring Meeteetse-area history through its people, places, and events. Developed in-house by the Meeteetse Museums staff, each season combines local history with interviews and oral histories to bring the events to life.

Season 1 features the research of Kathleen Holtzer. Beginning with the Civil War and ending with World War II, we explore national and international conflicts through Meeteetse veterans in interviews with scholars, authors and museum professionals from Wyoming and around the nation.

Season 2 approaches Meeteetse through the story of the United States’ national mammal, the bison, beginning with the ancestors of modern bison and working through time to present day. 

Latest from the Blog

Wyoming Poets Laureate
Barbara Smith of Rock Springs, Wyoming’s current poet laureate, a longtime teacher and writer of poems, essays and stories, has held the laureate position—poet lariat, people sometimes call it in Wyoming—only since last fall.

Wyoming Flyboys in “Masters of the Air”
Wyoming fans of Masters of the Air, a new television series on Apple TV+ about U.S. Army Air Force combat over Europe in World War II, may have been surprised in the first episode to hear Austin Butler’s character, Gale Cleven, introduce himself as being from Casper. He points to Casper on a map. In a later episode, a second Wyoming character shows up, George Niethammer, played by Josh Dylan. Both men in fact were students at the University of Wyoming and college friends before the war.

Upcoming Events around Wyoming

For May calendar events, visit the Wyoming Historical Society’s website. If you know of upcoming history-related events in Wyoming, send a note to editor@wyohistory.org.

View the Calendar