It’s the state capital and the largest city in Wyoming. Looking at Cheyenne, it’s hard to imagine it as anything other than the bustling, modern metropolis that it is, but the truth of its beginnings is a far cry from what it is today.
Founded before Wyoming was officially a state, Cheyenne was the quintessential Wild West town, filled with bandits, gamblers, and other folks from the seedier side of society. Even once it was incorporated, it took more than 20 years to tame this rowdy town down and turn it into a domesticated economic hub worthy of being the capital of the Cowboy State.
Cheyenne is the largest city in Wyoming, with over 64,000 residents.
Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr
It’s been the state’s capital since 1890 when Wyoming was signed into statehood.
J Donohoe/Flickr
Back in the 1860s, however, it’s likely that no one guessed it would one day become the success it is today.
Marion Doss/Flickr
When Cheyenne was barely an officially recognized town, it attracted a dubious element. A missionary sent to open a church there less than a year after it was founded reported that it was “Hell on Wheels,” and that he was appalled by the unimaginable wickedness he found there.
C.S. Fly - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Public Domain/Wikipedia The right reverend noted that the majority of the businesses were gambling houses, saloons, and other “bawdy” establishments.
A diverse population frequented the many bars, casinos, and other ill-reputed businesses in town. Tappers and mountain men came into Cheyenne to do business and cut loose.
Unknown, Public Domain/Wikipedia
Gamblers and gunslingers visited Cheyenne in those days, too. Bat Masterson was one of the more famous gun-toting gamblers to spend time in the town…
WRIGHT, Robert Marr (1840-1915) - Flickr stream Internet Archive, Open Library, Collections of the University of California Libraries], Public Domain/Wikipedia
…along with Calamity Jane, Doc Holliday, and Wild Bill Hickock, to name a few.
unattributed - Heritage Auctions, Public Domain/Wikipedia Author Bill O’Neill reports in his book “Cheyenne: A Biography of the ‘Magic City’ of the Plains, 1867-1903” that Wild Bill was pretty much a fixture in the town in the 1870s. According to records in the Wyoming State Archives, Bill was even married in Cheyenne, though the minister noted on the marriage record that he didn’t think Bill “meant it.”
And, of course, there were plenty of saloon girls.
Faith Goble
Railroad construction brought with it the beginnings of some semblance of peace. The railroad workers and their families started to outnumber the not-so-law-abiding citizens.
Andrew J. Russell, Public Domain/Wikipedia
Ranches and mining brought a more “respectable” air to the community.
Jackson Hole Traveler/Flickr
Today, Cheyenne is a beautiful modern city, proud of its western roots but hiding the secret of its rough-and-tumble beginnings.
Tony Webster/Flickr
What do you love about Cheyenne?
Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr
J Donohoe/Flickr
Marion Doss/Flickr
C.S. Fly - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Public Domain/Wikipedia
The right reverend noted that the majority of the businesses were gambling houses, saloons, and other “bawdy” establishments.
Unknown, Public Domain/Wikipedia
WRIGHT, Robert Marr (1840-1915) - Flickr stream Internet Archive, Open Library, Collections of the University of California Libraries], Public Domain/Wikipedia
unattributed - Heritage Auctions, Public Domain/Wikipedia
Author Bill O’Neill reports in his book “Cheyenne: A Biography of the ‘Magic City’ of the Plains, 1867-1903” that Wild Bill was pretty much a fixture in the town in the 1870s. According to records in the Wyoming State Archives, Bill was even married in Cheyenne, though the minister noted on the marriage record that he didn’t think Bill “meant it.”
Faith Goble
Andrew J. Russell, Public Domain/Wikipedia
Jackson Hole Traveler/Flickr
Tony Webster/Flickr
What other Wyoming towns have a reputation for being more Wild West than Old West back in the day?
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