Wyoming’s Last Drive-In Theater, Powell’s American Dream, Open For 78th Season

 

Wyoming’s Last Drive-In Theater, Powell’s American Dream, Open For 78th Season

 

PHOTOS: New elevator parts lifted to roof of historic Con Roy building in downtown Casper

Outlaw Mustang, Gillette Wyoming.

 

Donkey, Gillette Wyoming.

This donkey statute is along Donkey Creek.  Gillette was originally called Donkey Town.

 

Jackrabbit, Gillette Wyoming.

 

Family Ties, Cheyenne Wyoming.

 

In Good Hands, Cheyenne Wyoming.

 

George Rainsford statute, Cheyenne Wyoming.

 

Aviator statue. Cheyenne, Wyoming.

 

J. E. Stimson statue, Cheyenne Wyoming.

 Stimson was a significant pioneer photographer in Wyoming, working in Wyoming and the west from 1889 to 1952, when he passed away.  His record of early Wyoming is, literally, priceless.

Mural. Kemmerer, Wyoming.

 

Stormwater drain, Casper Wyoming.

 

This stormwater drain is outside of the Townsend Justice Center in Casper, Wyoming.

Frankly, I really don't think that this send the best message . . . 

Blog Mirror: Wyoming’s Iconic The Virginian Hotel Has New Out-Of-State Owners

Wyoming’s Iconic The Virginian Hotel Has New Out-Of-State Owners

The Virginian, Medince Bow, Wyoming.

 

Don Juan's Mexican Restaurant, Casper Wyoming

Casper has seen some murals enter its downtown space recently and this is a nice example.  Don Juan's Mexican Restaurant, which has been in this location now long enough to be regarded as a Casper staple, had this very nice mural depicting scenes of Mexican rural life painted.

This mural is just across the street from the Women of Wyoming mural added last yeaer, which depicts a contemporary Native American woman, and just down the block from Jacob Reeb mural, so some of the diversity of Wyoming is being added through these depictions.

 

Railhead: Rail Features. Thyra Thompson Building, Casper Wyoming

Railhead: Rail Features. Thyra Thompson Building, Casper Wyo...:

Rail Features. Thyra Thompson Building, Casper Wyoming.

The State of Wyoming recently completed the construction of a massive new state office building, the Thyra Thompson Building, in Casper.  All of the state's administrative bodies, except for the district and circuit courts, are housed there.

The building does house, however, the Chancery Court for the entire state, a new court that's only recently been established.

The building is built right over what had been the Great Northwest rail yard in Casper, which was still an active, although not too active, rail yard into my teens.  I can't really recall when they abandoned the line, but it was abandoned.

In putting the building in, and extending the Platte River Parkway through it, the State did a nice job of incorporating some rail features so that there's a memory of what the location had been.

They also put in some historical plaques, which are nice. The curved arch at this location, moreover, is the location of the old turntable.  It was a small one, which I hate to admit that I crossed over when I was a teenager, a dangerous thing to do.

Lex Anteinternet: The 2023 Wyoming Legislative Session. Mining Mural Appropriation

Lex Anteinternet: The 2023 Wyoming Legislative Session. End of the f...: HB 264 would appropriate funds to memorialize the mining industry:

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0264

Mining mural.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Conrad, Berger, Larson, JT and Sommers

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to the legislature; authorizing the painting of a mural in the state capitol house chamber; providing an appropriation; providing requirements; creating a selection committee; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.  

(a)  Five hundred twenty thousand dollars ($520,000.00) is appropriated from the general fund to the legislative service office. These funds shall be used only for the purpose of the planning, design and painting of a mural in the house chamber at the Wyoming state capitol building. The mural shall depict the history of mining in Wyoming and shall match historically and artistically with the Allen True murals that are currently in the house chamber.

(b)  The legislative service office, with assistance from the Wyoming arts council, shall issue a request for qualifications to commission an artist or artists to paint the mural specified in subsection (a) of this section.

(c)  A selection committee consisting of the five (5) members of the management council who belong to the house of representatives and three (3) other non-legislative members as determined by the speaker of the house, with assistance from the legislative service office, shall select an artist or artists to paint the mural using criteria established by the selection committee. Members of the selection committee who are not members of the legislature shall receive the same per diem and mileage as members of the legislature traveling to and from meetings or while in actual attendance of meetings of the selection committee and during the performance of their duties relative thereto. The state building commission shall approve of the process to affix the mural required under subsection (a) of this section to the house chamber wall, pursuant to W.S. 9-5-106(e), before any alteration is made to the house chamber under this section.

(d)  The funds appropriated in subsection (a) of this section shall not be transferred or expended for any purpose other than for the planning, design and painting of the mural required by subsection (a) of this section. Notwithstanding W.S. 9-2-1008, 9-2-1012(e), 9-4-207(a) or any other provision of law, the funds appropriated in subsection (a) of this section shall not lapse or revert until the mural required by subsection (a) of this section is complete.

Section 2.  This act is effective July 1, 2023.

Slavic Apothecary, Sheridan Wyoming.

 

Some sort of Slavic apothecary in Sheridan, Wyoming.  As I'm not otherwise familiar with it, and as the green in such shops tends to indicate products I'd just as soon avoid, that's all I know.

It is, I'd note, very unusual in this part of the country to see anything in a Slavic language outside of Rock Springs, which traditionally had an Eastern European population.  Sheridan, on the other hand, has traditionally had a much more English population and is a ranching center.

The Aerodrome: Medicine Bow Aiport (Site 32 SL-O (Salt Lake-Omaha) Intermediate Field Historic District).

The Aerodrome: Medicine Bow Aiport (Site 32 SL-O (Salt Lake-Omaha...: 

Medicine Bow Aiport (Site 32 SL-O (Salt Lake-Omaha) Intermediate Field Historic District).

Teletype hut and beacon tower.

I didn't know that Medicine Bow had an airfield at all until MKTH photographed it.  I've never been to it myself.

But it does, as these photos show.

As these photos show, not only is a strip still there, but one of the big concrete arrows (which I've never seen in person myself either) is on the strip, indicating that it was once part of the Transcontinental Air Mail system.  It must have been part of a connection between Cheyenne and points further west, but what the next western airfield was, I don't know.  My guess would be Rawlins, but that would be just a guess.  According to the submitting material for its placement on the National Register of Historic Places, it was an emergency field on "Route T".  This was "Site 32" on the route.

Today the strip is owned by the Town of Medicine Bow, and is little used, apparently.  It's still there, however, including the noted remnants of the near century old teletype hut and its beacon tower.

Nolan Chevrolet, Casper Wyoming

Nolan Chevrolet was an early Chevrolet dealership in Casper, Wyoming, probably the town's first.  It opened in this building, which was built for it, in 1924.  The company originally operated in this location on South David Street until it outgrew it, becoming Schulte Chevrolet in 1965 and then being bought out by the Schellerbargers in 1966.

In 1969 the Chevrolet dealership moved out of this downtown location into a new facility on East Yellowstone, where it is today.  While this facility was still in use when I was a kid, I don't ever recall it being a Chevrolet dealership and until this recent work was done on it, I didn't know that it had been.

In 1973 this building and a neighboring one became Plains Furniture, which I do recall. A childhood friend of mine's father worked there.  It was completely redone at that time.  Plains closed some time ago and these buildings have changed hands again and are part of a restoration process which is restoring the look of the block to its 1920s appearance.  The area here, which was once a display yard for the dealership, had been enclosed by the Plains remodeling but has been re exposed, along with the Nolan sign and a Schellabarger sign as well.