With today's temperature hanging around the century mark - I wondered. How hot is too hot in Wyoming? Where we live in Guernsey, an east central town with a population of a bit over 1,100  and at an altitude of 4368 feet, it gets hot. We average 41 days above 90 each year. The good news is that we are also much warmer in winter than most of the state. Basin, located in north central Wyoming, holds the record for the hottest day in the Cowboy state - 115 on August 8, 1983. We, old-timers, refer to temperatures like that as warmish.  We lived in Laramie for many years - t ..read more

    Wyoming Fact & Fiction January 31, 2022 Wyoming in the movies – I spend some time each week looking at the on-screen guides for TV shows that I might want to record. Mostly I'm looking for old black & white movies. I specifically look for anything about, set in, or titled something about Wyoming. This weekend I watched a B-western I found on TCM, Storm Over Wyoming. I have watched quite a few Tim Holt and Richard Martin movies. Although, at times a bit too goofy for my taste, they are generally entertaining. Storm Over Wyoming is set in the fictional city of Sundown, Wyom ..read more

 January 17, 2022 Wyoming Fact & Fiction We are back from a quick trip to visit family in southeast Nebraska. My two hometowns, where I grew up in Fairbury, Nebraska, and now in Guernsey, Wyoming, are Oregon Trail towns. Traveling the Oregon Trail - Every time we go back to visit, I think about those Prairie Schooners rumbling along at 10 to 15 miles per day. My, growing up, home town, sits near one of the first difficult river crossings – the Little Blue. The crossing was treacherous if the wagons got there early in the year. Little Blue looked peaceful when I snapped this last ..read more

December 27, 2021 Christmas is in the books. Now it is onward toward the New Year, and we all wish and hope for a good one.  The Narrows at Guernsey State Park A few years ago, while waiting for a concert to start in Branson, Missouri, we explained we were from east-central Wyoming to a couple from New York. He said, "Oh, not the pretty part." He then explained they had been in Wyoming twice before and loved it. Each time they flew into Jackson, they spent some time and flew out. I wish I would have had the time to explain that Wyoming is quite stunning everywhere. Don't get me ..read more

 Dec 20, 2021 Laramie  La Ramie, as in the man who has more things named after him than any other person in Wyoming. His name (maybe) was Jacques LaRamie. In Wyoming, we have the Laramie Range, Laramie Peak, Fort Laramie, the city of Laramie, the Laramie River, many Laramie streets, and probably other things I cannot think of right now. Why the (maybe) when I mentioned his first name was Jacques? Some historians tell us that Jacques was a popular French-Canadian name, and someone writing history tagged him with it. Some believe his name was Baptiste. Others are convinced his first n ..read more

 Few people even know the true definition of the term “West”; and where is its location? – phantom-like it flies before us as we travel.  George Catlin We often see mention of the West, the Old West, and the Wild West. Are they the same? Well, yes and no. I know a great answer.   The West - Many historians, including myself, like to use the 98th Meridian as the beginning of the west. This line would be drawn from San Antonio, Texas north through Fort Worth and Oklahoma City. From there, it cuts through the middle of  Kansas and Nebraska, passes Pierre, South Dakota, and t ..read more

 It has been nearly a year since I posted on this site.  Not too long ago, it seemed that more and more blogs with Wyoming history seemed to be popping up. Since many were funded, I decided they could do the job much better than I could from my easy chair.  After more than 300 posts (all are still up) I bowed out. A few months ago, a student said, “Oh, you write the Wyoming stuff. We use it all the time when we are writing papers in class.” That was enough to, at least, get me thinking about kick-starting the old blog. I think I will. Not sure how often, probably not weekly ..read more

I have been writing about Wyoming and the west for more than a quarter of a century. I thought you might be interested in my newest writing blog post. You can see it here by clicking the link.  http://confessionsofawriterofwesterns.blogspot.com/ Thanks  Neil ..read more

I let this site become inactive, or mostly so, almost a year ago. After a year of mothballs, I have decided to make a post, at least this will keep the site alive for a bit. If one post per year counts.  To me and many others, there is nothing more enjoyable than reading about the past. When I started this blog, I was still an active Wyoming History teacher - now retired seven years; it seems I do not have as much to say. I have continued writing and am currently working on book 13, but my books fall into multiple genres.   Did You Know? Speaking of being retired. Wyoming is still r ..read more