Fun Facts of Wyoming

So I thought it would be a good idea to learn more about Casper and Wyoming so I did a little research, so if you are interested read ahead.

History of Casper:

Casper was one of the trails for Oregon Trail travelers. They had to cross the North Platte River in order to follow the Sweetwater River for the next portion of their trek.

The fort was named after Caspar Collin a Lieutenant who helped protect them from the surrounding area Indians. The settlers called it Fort Caspar since there was already a Fort Collins in northern Colorado.

The city of Casper was established in 1888, eleven years after Fort Caspar was abandoned. Some obscure person misspelled Caspar as Casper, the reason for the different spelling.

State Facts:

Wyoming's official flag was adopted in 1917. The flag has a deep blue field surrounded by white and red borders. A white bison dominates the flag; it has the state seal in the center.

State Mammal: Buffalo

State Bird: Western Meadowlark

State Flower: Indian paintbrush

State Tree: Plains Cottonwood

State Nickname: Equality State

State Motto: "Equal Rights"

Area: 97,818 square miles [Wyoming is the 10th biggest state in the USA]

Interesting Facts:

· Wyoming was the first state to have a county public library.

· The popular Columbia Pictures film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, was filmed on location at Devil's Tower.

· In, 1872, Yellowstone was designated as the first National Park in the nation. Not only is Yellowstone National Park the first in the nation, but also the first in the world.· Yellowstone National Park has more geysers than any other geyser field in the world.

The Jackalope, thought by many to be a mystical creature, is actually said to exist in Wyoming. One of the rarest animals in the world, it is a cross between a now extinct pygmy-deer and a species of killer-rabbit.

· The largest coal mine in the USA is Black Thunder located near Wright.

· The first Dude Ranch in Wyoming was the Eaton Ranch, near Wolf. The Eaton's also came up with the term "dude".

· The horse on the Wyoming license plate has a name, "Old Steamboat." It is named after a bronco that could not be ridden in the early 1900’s.

· Devils Tower was designated as the first National Monument in 1906.

· Wyoming has the lowest population of all 50 United States.

· The state name came from the Delaware Indian word, meaning "mountains and valleys alternating.

· When the Wyoming Territory was organized in 1869, Wyoming women became the first in the nation to obtain the right to vote.

Hope you learned something about Wyoming today :)