Big Hollow Natural Foods, The Second Story Bookstore, Laramie Wyoming

This is a mural I was sure I'd posted before, but apparently have not.  One of a collection of murals in downtown Laramie, Wyoming.

Indeed, these photographs show two separate murals, as there is the tree mural, apparently a nocturne, behind the one that is principally featured here.

Fish Mural, Laramie Wyoming

Trees and Hills Mural, Downtown Laramie, Wyoming.

There has been an extensive mural project in downtown Laramie Wyoming in recent years.  Indeed, I thought that I'd posted a set of photographs on Laramie murals before, and I'm pretty sure that I've taken a collection of them, but I can't see that I posted them.

This mural is a fanciful landscape featuring animated trees.

Natrona County Mural, Natrona County International Airport

A very nice mural, obviously put up before terrorist attacks made extra security necessary.

At one time the observation deck, from which the top photographs were taken, was a jet bridge for boarding large jets.  We don't have large jets at our airport anymore, so presumably that capability isn't needed at the present time.

Flour Mills Mural, Wheatland Wyoming

These photographs depict a Flour Mills mural on the main street of Wheatland Wyoming.  As can be seen from the photograph above, the building with the mural is directly across the street from the Platte County Courthouse in Wheatland, Wyoming.

Platte County was founded in 1911 by way of an irrigation project that brought farming into the region, so the mural is quite appropriate for the history of the town.

License Plate Mural, Wheatland Wyoming.

This is an outbuilding on the property of Platte County which features a mural of one of Wyoming's prior license plates.  I don't know what the use of the building is, but everything on the block belongs to the county so it must have some governmental use.

Hotel Crescent, Sheridan Wyoming

This is a photograph of the Hotel Crescent sign on what was formerly that hotel, in Sheridan Wyoming.

Sheridan has one of the best preserved old downtown's in Wyoming.  It never really fell into a state of disrepair and the old buildings largely remain in use, if not in their original uses.  For that reason, if this blog was done correctly, there's be a large number of Sheridan photographs here.  For whatever reason, however, whenever I'm in Sheridan I tend to be a bit pressed for time, so I've never taken the time to photograph the numerous old buildings that deserve to be here on this site.  I've done better, in regard to Sheridan, with our Churches of the West blog.

Sign of the Times

Holscher's Hub: Echos of Parco. Sinclair Wyoming.

From our companion blog; Holscher's Hub: Echos of Parco. Sinclair Wyoming.:

This is linked over here as it fits in quite well with the theme of the blog.  Parco was a company town, as noted below, built by a refining company in 1924-25.  The luxury hotel  was built by the company on the then fairly new Lincoln Highway, and the town no doubt benefited as it was also a stop on the Union Pacific.  Only seven miles away from the larger and older town of Rawlins, the Interstate Highway bypasses it and its a remnant of its former self.

Not too many people stop at Sinclair who are just passing through.  But at one time that wasn't true.  And that's why the town has what was once a luxury hotel (now a Baptist church), a spacious park, really nice tennis courts, and the like.  Only the sign on the hotel remains, as well as a historical monument, to remind us that Sinclair is the town's second name.  It was originally Parco, a company town founded by the founder of what is now the Sinclair Refinery, the Producers & Refiners Corporation.

Shoshoni Lumber Company, Shoshoni Wyoming.

One of the numerous buildings in Shoshoni that have seen better days.

Geronimo Mural, Shoshoni Wyoming

To say that the small Wyoming town of Shoshoni has seen better days would be to be exaggerating to the positive.  While the town hangs on, the old downtown district is a mess.

I don't know the vintage of these declining and fading murals, but they're well known to Wyomingites. They're flaking off and the buildings are collapsing, truly existing in a highly dangerous state, so these scenes will undoubtedly disappear soon.

Paws

The Gaslight Social Club, Casper Wyoming, at night.

One of several new eating and drinking establishments in Casper Wyoming, the Gaslight Social Club occupies what had originally been the American Nuclear building, and thereafter part of the Houston Plumbing Supply Company, at which time its upper floor was converted into an apartment, one of the very first older buildings in Casper to see such a conversion.

The interior of the building features Prohibition Era speakeasy murals.

Slightly out of focus. . . the egg beater

Hmmm. . . .a not very good photo of one of the purported "Seven Wonders of Casper", the dysfunctional Wells Fargo Bank "egg beater".

Built by what was then Wyoming National Bank, it originally, and indeed up until fairly recently, held a time and temperature sign.  Structural problems lead to that being removed, which were followed by howls of protests when it appeared the odd shaped structure itself would come down.

It hasn't, but it sort of serves as a sad reminder of a different time.

Bicycle Path, Casper Wyoming

I know what it means. . . but for all the world it looks like an insignia for Corporal of Bicycles.

Rotary Sidewalk Clock, Casper Wyoming

This is a newly installed Rotary Club sidewalk clock in Casper, Wyoming.  This was photographed during Casper's Eclipse Festival which drew a large crowed.  The clock is located at the town's new downtown plaza.

Clocks like this are sponsored by Rotary Clubs all over the country, but this is the first such clock in Casper Wyoming, and only the second sidewalk clock in Caspser of which I'm aware.  I'd never seen an actual example prior to this and was surprised by how large they are.  Very nice attractive clock.

Toyota Body Shop, Casper Wyoming

This photo is proof that not all "ghost signs" are from before World War Two.  The old Toyota body shop in downtown Casper Wyoming, which had this sign painted on it during the 1970s.

Utility Box, Casper Wyoming

This utility box has been on this site before from when it featured downtown historic Casper buildings.  Now it features native fish.

Sonic Rainbow, Casper Wyoming: Independent Record Store Day, 2017

This store has featured here before. This is the Sonic Rainbow record store in Casper Wyoming.  Every year it features new original window art for Independent Record Store Day.  On this occasion, its patrons were lined up early in the morning waiting for it to open for that event.

The crowd would grow larger on this rainy morning. These people were there early.

Alley mural, Casper Wyoming.

Alley mural in Casper, Wyoming