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Outlaws & Crime

Outlaws & Crime

Lincoln County, Wyoming

Created in 1911 and named for President Abraham Lincoln, Lincoln County is perhaps best known for its extraordinary geological history, showcased at Fossil Butte National Monument. The county seat, Kemmerer, Wyo., is the site of the first store opened by James Cash Penney, founder of J. C. Penney & Co., a business that still operates nationally today. Agriculture, mining and oil and gas industries continue to spur the county’s economy.

Crook County, Wyoming

What’s now Crook County, Wyo., was crossed by Custer in 1874 on his expedition to the Black Hills, the spark that led to the final struggles of the Indian wars on the northern plains. Ranchers a few years later brought in cattle and later, sheep, and the county was organized in 1885, with its county seat at Sundance. Harry Longabaugh, a.k.a. the Sundance Kid, spent 18 months in jail there. Coal deposits were exploited in the 1890s and shipped by rail to gold smelters in nearby Lead and Deadwood, So. Dak. Devils Tower National Monument, established in 1906 as the first national monument in the United States and still a sacred place for the Sioux, is located in Crook County. Agriculture, mining and timbering still play significant roles in its economy.

The Teapot Dome Scandal

Although the Teapot Dome Scandal of the 1920s was named for a Wyoming rock formation resembling a teapot, the wrongdoers were not from the state. During the administration of President Warren G. Harding, oilmen Harry Sinclair and Edward Doheny bribed Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall to gain access to the naval petroleum reserves located at Teapot Dome in the Salt Creek field north of Casper in northern Natrona County. Fall was the first Cabinet official to be imprisoned for crimes committed during his time in office. Sinclair also served a jail sentence.

Carbon, Wyoming

Founded in 1868, the short-lived town of Carbon provided crucial coal supplies for the Union Pacific Railroad. Its rough reputation was boosted in 1881, when a mob of miners pulled Dutch Charley Burris, accused of the murder of a popular lawman, from a train and hanged him from a telegraph pole. Many Finnish men worked in the coal mines until 1902, when the mines closed. Today, there are only a few ruins to mark the site, but the Carbon Cemetery has been recently refurbished and is still being used.

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Oral Histories | LeaKae Roberts was a fourth-grader who was absent from class at Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyo., on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took 154 other people hostage at the school, and detonated a bomb inside. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived.
Oral Histories | Public Works Director and Fireman Kevin Walker is the father of three young children who attended Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyo., on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took his children and 151 other people hostage at the school, and detonated a bomb inside. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived.
Oral Histories | Janel Dayton was teaching first grade at Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyo., on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took her and 153 other people hostage at the school, and detonated a bomb inside the school. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived.
Oral Histories | Certified Bomb Technician Rich Haskell was attending a basketball game in Rock Springs, Wyo., on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took 154 people hostage at Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyo., and detonated a bomb inside. Haskell raced to the scene, driving so fast that he ruined his car’s engine. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived.
Oral Histories | Kliss Sparks was teaching fourth grade at Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyo. on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took her and 153 other people hostage at the school, and detonated a bomb inside. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived.
Oral Histories | Kathy Davison was the emergency management coordinator for Lincoln County, Wyo., on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took 154 people hostage at Cokeville Elementary School and detonated a bomb inside. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived. This was the first emergency Davison encountered in her position.
Oral Histories | Emergency Medical Technician Glenna Walker is also the mother of three children who attended Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyo., on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took her and 153 other people hostage at the school, and detonated a bomb inside. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived. At the time of the incident, Mrs. Walker had just received her EMT certification. This was the first time she was called out for an emergency situation.
Oral Histories | Ron Hartley was the lead investigator for the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office in Cokeville, Wyo. on May 16, 1986, when David and Doris Young took 154 people hostage at Cokeville Elementary School, and detonated a bomb inside. Hartley is the father of four student survivors of the incident. The Youngs both died that day. Everyone else survived.

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