MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS • SHERIDAN, WYOMING
LIVING IN
THE SHADOW
OF THE
BIGHORNS
THE SHADOW
OF THE
BIGHORNS
Stories of Sheridan County
From ancient peoples who hunted beneath these peaks to the ranchers, miners, and builders who shaped a community in their shadow — every story in this valley begins with the mountains.
Bighorn Mountains, Wyoming. Americana encyclopedia, 1920. Public domain.
SHERIDAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
01Living in the Shadow of the BighornsIntro • 36″×84″
OUR MOUNTAINS
PART ONE
OUR
MOUNTAINS
MOUNTAINS
The range that shaped a region
The Bighorn Mountains rise over 9,000 feet above the Powder River Basin — a wall of granite, forest, and alpine meadow. For thousands of years, the peoples of the Great Plains have lived, hunted, and fought in their shadow.
Bighorn Mountains along Medicine Wheel Passage, 2009. CC0.
SECTION ONE
02Our MountainsIntro • 36″×84″
HERITAGE
ANCIENT
PEOPLES
PEOPLES
For millennia, Indigenous peoples lived, hunted, and built sacred sites in the shadow of the Bighorns. Their traditions endure to this day.
APSÁALOOKE (CROW)
The Bighorns were the heart of Crow territory — “where the rivers begin.”
TSITSISTAS (CHEYENNE)
Hunted and warred across the Powder River country for generations.
LAKOTA SIOUX
Dominated the region by the 1800s, resisting the Bozeman Trail.
HINONO’EITEEN (ARAPAHO)
Seasonal camps along the creeks and rivers of the foothills.
INDIGENOUS NAMES USED WITH RESPECT
1.1
03Ancient PeoplesMontera • 23″×84″
CONFLICT
THE BOZEMAN
TRAIL
TRAIL
BOZEMAN TRAIL • 1863–1868 • ALL THREE FORTS ABANDONED BY TREATY
FORT PHIL KEARNY STATE HISTORIC SITE
1.2
04The Bozeman TrailMontera • 23″×84″
SACRED SITES
MEDICINE
WHEEL
WHEEL
High in the Bighorns, at nearly 10,000 feet, a stone circle has stood for centuries. The Bighorn Medicine Wheel is one of the best-preserved stone structures on the Great Plains — and one of the most sacred.
BIGHORN MEDICINE WHEEL
U.S. Forest Service
U.S. Forest Service
28
Spoke lines radiate from a central cairn, aligned to the summer solstice sunrise and key stars
80′
Diameter of the stone circle — built from limestone slabs carried to the mountaintop by hand
800+
Estimated years of use. Multiple tribes consider the site sacred; offerings are still left today
BIGHORN NATIONAL FOREST
1.3
18Medicine WheelMontera • 23″×84″
GOOSE CREEK VALLEY
PART TWO
GOOSE CREEK
VALLEY
VALLEY
Where the town took root
At the confluence of Big and Little Goose Creeks, a settlement grew from a handful of homesteads into the commercial heart of northern Wyoming. The railroad arrived in 1892, and Sheridan never looked back.
Sheridan Inn, Sheridan, Wyoming. Historic American Buildings Survey. Public domain.
SECTION TWO
05Goose Creek ValleyIntro • 36″×84″
RAILROAD
THE IRON
HORSE
HORSE
The Burlington and Missouri River Railroad reached Sheridan in 1892, transforming a frontier outpost into a proper town. With the rails came commerce, communication, and a permanent connection to the wider world.
1892
RAILROAD ARRIVES IN SHERIDAN
Before the railroad, goods traveled by wagon from the nearest railhead — a journey of weeks. After 1892, Sheridan’s population boomed, its cattle industry found Eastern markets, and coal from the surrounding hills could reach the wider economy.
Buffalo Bill Cody and Sitting Bull, c. 1885. Public domain.
BURLINGTON & MISSOURI RIVER RAILROAD
2.1
06The Iron HorseMontera • 23″×84″
DOWNTOWN
MAIN
STREET
STREET
Downtown Sheridan grew from a dusty crossroads into a thriving commercial district. The buildings that line Main Street tell the story of a town that built itself to last.
THE SHERIDAN INN
1893
Designed with 69 rooms and a grand veranda. Buffalo Bill Cody auditioned acts for his Wild West Show from its front porch.
THE WOOLWORTH BUILDING
1888
Once a five-and-dime, now the museum’s new home. Its walls have witnessed over a century of Main Street life.
TRAIL END
1913
John B. Kendrick — cattle rancher, governor, U.S. senator — built this Flemish Revival mansion above the town.
SHERIDAN MAIN STREET HISTORIC DISTRICT
2.2
07Main StreetMontera • 23″×84″
COMMUNITY
A TOWN
CALLED
SHERIDAN
CALLED
SHERIDAN
Named for Civil War General Philip Sheridan, the town was platted in 1882. Within a decade it had a railroad, a newspaper, and ambitions to match any city east of the Mississippi.
1882
John Loucks files the town plat at the forks of Goose Creek
1884
Sheridan is incorporated; population reaches 200
1892
The Burlington railroad arrives; the Sheridan Inn opens its doors
1909
Coal boom makes Sheridan County one of Wyoming’s wealthiest
1913
Trail End mansion completed; J.B. Kendrick elected governor
SHERIDAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
2.3
19A Town Called SheridanMontera • 23″×84″
NOT MY FIRST RODEO
PART THREE
NOT MY
FIRST
RODEO
FIRST
RODEO
Ranch culture & the arena
Ranching defined the Bighorn foothills long before anyone thought to put the skills on display. But when they did, Sheridan became rodeo country — and the arena became the place where cowboy, rancher, and Native rider met as equals.
Roundup scenes, Belle Fourche, 1887. John C.H. Grabill. Public domain.
SECTION THREE
08Not My First RodeoIntro • 36″×84″
RANCHING
THE PK
RANCH
RANCH
On Soldier Creek, in the shadow of the Bighorns, the PK Ranch embodied the ambitions of the early cattle industry. British investors brought capital, Hereford bloodlines, and polo ponies to the Goose Creek valley.
“The valley was perfect for horses. The grass was thick, the water clean, and the mountains broke the worst of the winter wind.”
EARLY RANCHER, GOOSE CREEK VALLEY
BRITISH INFLUENCE
Wealthy British families invested heavily in Wyoming ranches during the 1880s, importing cattle breeds and the traditions of English country estates.
POLO ON THE PLAINS
Sheridan became an unlikely polo capital. The Big Horn Polo Club, founded in 1898, attracted players from across the country.
PK RANCH COLLECTION, MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS
3.1
09The PK RanchMontera • 23″×84″
RODEO
RIDE
& ROPE
& ROPE
What began as informal ranch competitions became organized spectacle. The rodeo arena was one of the few places in the West where skill alone determined a person’s worth.
WYO RODEO
Sheridan’s signature event, drawing competitors and audiences from across the West for over a century.
ALL AMERICAN INDIAN DAYS
Launched in 1944 when a Native woman entered the Sheridan rodeo queen competition. It became a celebrated multi-tribal gathering of dance, rodeo, and ceremony.
THE DON KING LEGACY
Master saddlemaker Don King built saddles that became the standard for working cowboys. His shop is now a museum of cowboy craft and culture.
RODEO ARTIFACTS, MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS
3.2
10Ride & RopeMontera • 23″×84″
CELEBRATION
ALL
AMERICAN
INDIAN DAYS
AMERICAN
INDIAN DAYS
In 1944, a young Native woman entered the Sheridan rodeo queen competition — and sparked a tradition. All American Indian Days became one of the West’s great multi-tribal gatherings, drawing nations from across the Plains.
DANCE COMPETITIONS
Traditional, fancy, grass, and jingle dancers competed in categories that honored the distinct styles of each nation.
INDIAN RELAY RACING
Bareback riders sprinted between horses in a breathtaking display of horsemanship rooted in Plains warrior traditions.
PARADE & PAGEANTRY
Floats, regalia, and marching bands filled Main Street as Sheridan celebrated the living cultures of its Native neighbors.
Three Crow horsemen. Edward S. Curtis, 1908. Public domain.
SHERIDAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
3.3
20All American Indian DaysMontera • 23″×84″
DEEP TIME
PART FOUR
DEEP
TIME
TIME
Before the mountains rose
Long before humans walked these hills, the Bighorn region was a shallow sea, a coastal swamp, and a dinosaur hunting ground. The fossils locked in these rocks tell a story measured not in centuries but in hundreds of millions of years.
300M
YEARS OF
GEOLOGY
GEOLOGY
13,167′
CLOUD PEAK
ELEVATION
ELEVATION
SECTION FOUR
11Deep TimeIntro • 36″×84″
GEOLOGY
BEFORE THE
MOUNTAINS
MOUNTAINS
541 million years of history, layer by layer
TOPSOIL
Prairie grassland
NOW
GLACIAL
Ice age gravel & till
2.6 MYA
TERTIARY
Coal beds, subtropical forests
66 MYA
▲ LARAMIDE OROGENY — MOUNTAINS RISE ▲
CRETACEOUS
Dinosaurs, inland seas
145 MYA
JURASSIC
Morrison Fm. — sauropods
201 MYA
TRIASSIC
Red beds, arid desert
252 MYA
PERMIAN
Phosphoria sea, reefs
299 MYA
CARBONIFEROUS
Madison Limestone, corals
359 MYA
PRECAMBRIAN
Granite core — 2.9 billion years
2,900 MYA
COAL
LIMESTONE
SANDSTONE
GRANITE
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF WYOMING
4.1
12Before the MountainsMontera • 23″×84″
PALEONTOLOGY
FOSSIL
HUNTERS
HUNTERS
The rocks of Sheridan County are a paleontologist’s dream. From the ancient seabeds of the Paleozoic to the dinosaur-bearing formations of the Cretaceous, every canyon cut reveals another chapter.
HADROSAURS
LATE CRETACEOUS • 68 MILLION YEARS AGO
Duck-billed dinosaurs browsed the coastal forests that once covered northern Wyoming.
CERATOPSIANS
LATE CRETACEOUS • 66 MILLION YEARS AGO
Horned dinosaurs including Triceratops roamed the floodplains in the last days before the extinction event.
MARINE FOSSILS
PALEOZOIC • 350 MILLION YEARS AGO
Crinoids, brachiopods, and corals from the shallow seas that covered the region hundreds of millions of years ago.
FOSSIL DIG SITE, BIGHORN BASIN
Natural History Museum of Wyoming
Natural History Museum of Wyoming
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF WYOMING AT SHERIDAN COLLEGE
4.2
21Fossil HuntersMontera • 23″×84″
WAY OF LIFE
PART FIVE
WAY OF
LIFE
LIFE
Industry, agriculture & community
The mountains gave Sheridan County its beauty. But it was coal, cattle, and crops that built its economy — and the people who worked those industries who built its character.
Cowboy on horseback with buffalo herd. NARA. Public domain.
SECTION FIVE
13Way of LifeIntro • 36″×84″
MINING
BLACK
DIAMOND
DIAMOND
By 1909, Sheridan County was said to hold more coal than any field west of the Mississippi. Mining towns sprang up overnight — and when the mines closed, they vanished just as fast.
DIETZ
The largest coal camp in the county, with company houses, a school, and its own baseball team.
MONARCH
Operated until 1953, when locomotives shifted from steam to diesel. The mine’s closure ended an era.
ACME
A company town on Tongue River. Miners came from across Europe — Italians, Slavs, Greeks — building a polyglot community in the hills.
CARNEYVILLE • KOOI
Smaller camps that rose and fell with coal prices. Little remains today but foundations and memory.
COAL CAMP COLLECTION, MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS
5.1
14Black DiamondMontera • 23″×84″
AGRICULTURE
HARVEST
The irrigated benchlands around Sheridan proved ideal for crops that few expected to find in northern Wyoming. Sugar beets, alfalfa, and grain transformed the valley from open range to a patchwork of cultivated fields.
“People thought we were crazy, growing sugar beets this far north. But the soil was rich, the water was cold, and the beets grew sweet.”
SHERIDAN COUNTY FARMER, c. 1920
SUGAR BEET INDUSTRY
The Holly Sugar factory processed beets from across the county. Entire families worked the harvest, including immigrant laborers from Germany, Russia, and Mexico.
IRRIGATION
Diversion ditches from Big Goose Creek turned sagebrush flats into productive farmland, reshaping the landscape.
AGRICULTURAL COLLECTION, MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS
5.2
15HarvestMontera • 23″×84″
TIMBER
THE TIE
FLUME
FLUME
To feed the railroad’s appetite for timber, loggers built wooden flumes that carried railroad ties down from the Bighorns at terrifying speed. Men sometimes rode the flumes themselves — a journey that was equal parts thrill ride and death wish.
TIE FLUME IN THE BIGHORN NATIONAL FOREST
U.S. Forest Service Collection
U.S. Forest Service Collection
“The ties shot down that flume like bullets. Water spraying, wood cracking — you could hear it a mile away. And some fool would always want to ride it.”
BIGHORN NATIONAL FOREST LOGGER, c. 1910
The Bighorn National Forest was established in 1897, making it one of the oldest in the system. The tie flume industry peaked in the early 1900s, supplying millions of railroad ties to the Burlington line.
BIGHORN NATIONAL FOREST HERITAGE COLLECTION
5.3
22The Tie FlumeMontera • 23″×84″
BACKDROPS
THE BIGHORN RANGE
IN THE
SHADOW
OF THE
PEAKS
SHADOW
OF THE
PEAKS
A landscape that shaped every story
The Bighorn Mountains stretch 200 miles along the spine of northern Wyoming. Cloud Peak, at 13,167 feet, stands as the highest point — visible from Sheridan on a clear day, a constant reminder that the land is older and larger than anything built upon it.
CLOUD PEAK • 13,167′
BLACK TOOTH • 13,005′
BOMBER MTN • 12,941′
16Mountain PanoramaBackdrop • 120″×89″
FT. C.F. SMITH
FT. PHIL KEARNY
FT. RENO
FETTERMAN FIGHT, 1866
WAGON BOX FIGHT, 1867
THE BOZEMAN TRAIL • 1863–1868
THE
FRONTIER
FRONTIER
Where trails crossed and worlds collided
The Bozeman Trail cut through the heart of Lakota and Cheyenne territory, connecting the Oregon Trail to the Montana gold fields. Three forts were built to protect it; all three were eventually abandoned. Red Cloud’s War proved that the road could not be held — the only Indian War the U.S. government formally lost.
81
SOLDIERS KILLED
FETTERMAN FIGHT
FETTERMAN FIGHT
3
FORTS BUILT
AND ABANDONED
AND ABANDONED
1868
TREATY OF
FT. LARAMIE
FT. LARAMIE
17The FrontierBackdrop • 120″×89″
FAMILY DISCOVERY PANELS
WILDLIFE
ANIMAL
NEIGHBORS
NEIGHBORS
Who lives in the Bighorn Mountains?
BLACK BEAR
🐻
Black bears eat berries, insects, and fish. They sleep all winter in dens dug into hillsides.
Up to 400 lbs • Can run 30 mph • Excellent climber
ELK
🦌
Male elk grow antlers up to 4 feet long every year — then shed them and grow new ones!
Up to 1,100 lbs • Antler span: 4 ft • Herds of 200+
GOLDEN EAGLE
🦅
With a wingspan of 7 feet, golden eagles hunt rabbits, ground squirrels, and even young deer from the sky.
Wingspan: 7 ft • Dive speed: 150 mph • Vision: 8× human
Can you spot them?
Look for elk in the meadows at dawn, bears near berry patches in late summer, and eagles soaring above the ridgeline.
OUR MOUNTAINS GALLERY
F1
F1Animal NeighborsMontera • 23″×84″
ADVENTURE AWAITS
EXPLORER’S
GUIDE TO
SHERIDAN
GUIDE TO
SHERIDAN
Your downtown scavenger hunt
Sheridan’s Main Street is full of stories hiding in plain sight. How many of these can you find on your walk through town?
Find the Sheridan Inn — Buffalo Bill’s favorite hotel. Count the windows on the front!
Spot the buffalo head above a Main Street doorway
Stand where the Woolworth’s lunch counter used to be (hint: you’re in the museum!)
Find a building with a date carved in stone older than 1900
Look for the railroad tracks — which direction do they go?
Explorer’s Tip!
Bring a pencil and check off each discovery. Return to the front desk with a completed list for a special museum badge!
GOOSE CREEK VALLEY GALLERY
F2Explorer’s Guide to SheridanIntro • 36″×84″
SKILLS
COWBOY
SCHOOL
SCHOOL
Think you could be a cowboy?
ROPING 💫
A good roper can lasso a running calf in under 8 seconds. Cowboys practice for years to build this skill, spinning the loop overhead before releasing.
BRONC RIDING 🐎
Hold on for 8 seconds with one hand while a 1,200-pound horse tries to throw you off. That’s the challenge — and the thrill — of bronc riding.
BARREL RACING 🏇
Horse and rider sprint a cloverleaf pattern around three barrels. The fastest time wins — and a knocked barrel adds 5 seconds!
BRANDING 🔥
Every ranch has its own brand — a symbol burned into cattle hides so everyone knows whose cow is whose. Can you design your own brand?
BRAND DESIGN ACTIVITY STATION
NOT MY FIRST RODEO GALLERY
F3
F3Cowboy SchoolMontera • 23″×84″
DISCOVERY
DINO
DETECTIVES
DETECTIVES
What lived here millions of years ago?
Triceratops
🦥
Three-horned plant eater the size of a dump truck. Its bony frill may have been brightly colored to attract mates.
Length: 30 ft (as long as a school bus!) • Weight: 12,000 lbs
Edmontosaurus
🦕
A duck-billed dinosaur that traveled in huge herds. It had up to 1,000 teeth packed together for grinding plants!
Length: 40 ft • Teeth: 1,000+ • Speed: 28 mph
Tyrannosaurus rex
🦖
The king of dinosaurs lived right here in Wyoming. Its teeth were as long as bananas and its bite could crush bone.
Length: 40 ft • Bite force: 12,800 lbs • Tooth: 9 inches
Be a fossil hunter!
Visit the dig box activity station to practice brushing and identifying real fossils from the Bighorn region.
DEEP TIME GALLERY • NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF WYOMING
F4
F4Dino DetectivesMontera • 23″×84″
INDUSTRY
MINE
TO MILL
TO MILL
How did coal get from underground to your house?
Follow a lump of coal on its journey from deep underground to the trains that carried it across America.
1
DIG — Miners used picks and dynamite to break coal loose hundreds of feet underground. It was dark, dusty, and dangerous.
2
HAUL — Mules pulled coal carts through tunnels to the surface. Later, electric rail cars did the heavy lifting.
3
SORT — At the tipple, coal was washed, sorted by size, and loaded into railroad cars.
4
SHIP — Steam locomotives (powered by coal!) carried it to cities, factories, and homes across the country.
5
BURN — Coal heated homes, powered factories, and made the steel for bridges, rails, and buildings.
Miner’s lunchbox
Miners carried tin lunch pails underground. A typical lunch: bread, cold meat, a hard-boiled egg, and coffee kept warm against a lantern.
WAY OF LIFE GALLERY
F5
F5Mine to MillMontera • 23″×84″
MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS
BIGHORN
FIELD GUIDE
FIELD GUIDE
Spot these species in the wild!
🐻 ILLUSTRATION: BLACK BEAR
BLACK BEAR
Ursus americanus
Eats berries, bugs, and fish. Hibernates all winter. Not always black — can be brown or cinnamon!
🦌 ILLUSTRATION: ELK
ELK
Cervus canadensis
Males bugle in autumn — a haunting call that echoes through the mountains. Antlers grow up to 4 ft long.
🐺 ILLUSTRATION: GRAY WOLF
GRAY WOLF
Canis lupus
Travels in packs of 6–10. Wolves can cover 30 miles in a single day while hunting.
🦅 ILLUSTRATION: GOLDEN EAGLE
GOLDEN EAGLE
Aquila chrysaetos
Dives at 150 mph to catch prey. Sacred to many Native peoples. Wingspan up to 7 ft.
🐎 ILLUSTRATION: WILD HORSE
WILD HORSE
Equus caballus
Feral horses roam the Bighorn foothills. Descended from ranch horses released generations ago.
🌲 ILLUSTRATION: PONDEROSA PINE
PONDEROSA PINE
Pinus ponderosa
Smells like vanilla or butterscotch! Thick bark protects it from wildfire. Can live over 500 years.
🐍 ILLUSTRATION: PRAIRIE RATTLESNAKE
PRAIRIE RATTLESNAKE
Crotalus viridis
Shakes its rattle to warn you away. Not aggressive — just wants to be left alone!
🌻 ILLUSTRATION: INDIAN PAINTBRUSH
INDIAN PAINTBRUSH
Castilleja miniata
Wyoming’s state flower! The bright red “petals” are actually leaves — the real flowers are tiny and green.
F6Bighorn Field GuideBackdrop • 120″×89″
THE RANGE & THE REGION
ECOLOGY
ELEVATION
PROFILE
PROFILE
13,167′
CLOUD PEAK • HIGHEST IN THE BIGHORNS
The Bighorns rise nearly 10,000 feet from the Powder River Basin, creating five distinct ecological zones in just 30 miles.
BIGHORN NATIONAL FOREST
R.1
R1Elevation ProfileMontera • 23″×84″
THE RANCH YEAR
SEASONS
OF THE
VALLEY
OF THE
VALLEY
Life in the shadow of the Bighorns follows the rhythm of the seasons. Each brings its own work, its own beauty, and its own challenges.
SPRING
MARCH – MAY
Snowmelt floods the creeks. Calving season begins. Ranchers work round the clock as new life arrives. Wildflowers paint the foothills.
AVG HIGH: 58°F • CALVING SEASON
SUMMER
JUNE – AUGUST
Cattle move to mountain pastures. Rodeo season peaks with the WYO Rodeo. Long days, thunderstorms rolling off the peaks.
AVG HIGH: 85°F • RODEO & HAYING
AUTUMN
SEPTEMBER – NOVEMBER
Cattle come down from the mountains. Aspens blaze gold across the slopes. Elk bugle in the high meadows. Hunting season opens.
AVG HIGH: 55°F • ROUNDUP & HARVEST
WINTER
DECEMBER – FEBRUARY
Snow blankets the range. Ranchers feed cattle daily. Chinook winds can raise temperatures 40° in hours. Silence settles over the land.
AVG LOW: 10°F • 45″ SNOWFALL
SHERIDAN COUNTY AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION
R2Seasons of the ValleyIntro • 36″×84″
INFOGRAPHIC
SHERIDAN
BY THE
NUMBERS
BY THE
NUMBERS
3,745′
ELEVATION
18,500
POPULATION
1882
FOUNDED
2,527
SQ MILES
Sheridan County
ANNUAL CLIMATE
45″
SNOWFALL
14″
RAINFALL
85°
JULY HIGH
5°
JAN LOW
LAND USE
250+
WORKING
RANCHES
RANCHES
1.1M
ACRES
NATIONAL FOREST
NATIONAL FOREST
300
DAYS OF
SUNSHINE
SUNSHINE
U.S. CENSUS • NOAA • USDA
R.2
R3Sheridan by the NumbersMontera • 23″×84″
WATERSHED
WATERS
OF THE
BIGHORNS
OF THE
BIGHORNS
SNOWPACK SOURCE
Mountain snowmelt feeds every creek in the county. Peak runoff arrives in May and June.
BLUE-RIBBON TROUT
Big Goose Creek is one of Wyoming’s finest trout streams — clear, cold, and full of browns and rainbows.
IRRIGATION LEGACY
Diversion ditches built in the 1890s still water the valley’s farms and ranches today.
SHERIDAN COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT
R.3
R4Waters of the BighornsMontera • 23″×84″
TIMELINE
12,000
YEARS
YEARS
Human presence in the Bighorn region
10,000 BCE
Paleo-Indians hunt mammoth and bison along glacial meltwater streams. Clovis points found across the basin.
6,000 BCE
Archaic peoples build seasonal camps. The Medicine Wheel may date to this era.
500 CE
Late Prehistoric. Bow and arrow replaces the atlatl. Buffalo jumps in use along the foothills.
1700s
Horse culture transforms the Plains. Crow, Cheyenne, Lakota, Arapaho compete for territory.
1807
John Colter is the first known white man to cross the Bighorns.
1863
Bozeman Trail opens through Crow and Lakota lands. Red Cloud’s War follows.
1868
Ft. Laramie Treaty. Forts abandoned. The trail is closed.
1882
Sheridan platted by John Loucks at the forks of Goose Creek.
1892
Railroad arrives. Population booms. Cattle industry links to Eastern markets.
1897
Bighorn National Forest created — one of the first in the system.
1909
Coal boom. Mining towns spring up across the county. Immigrant workers arrive.
1944
All American Indian Days begins — a celebration of living Native culture.
1953
Last coal mine closes. Diesel replaces steam. The mining era ends.
TODAY
Ranching, tourism & heritage define a community that still lives in the shadow of the mountains.
SHERIDAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
R.4
R512,000 YearsMontera • 23″×84″
RANCHING HERITAGE
RANCH
BRANDS
BRANDS
Every ranch tells its story through its brand — a symbol burned into cattle hides so every hand in the valley knows whose stock is whose. These marks are registered with the state and passed down through generations.
PK
PK RANCH
Est. 1879
◇S
DIAMOND S
Est. 1885
HF
HF BAR
Est. 1902
―K
BAR K
Est. 1888
OW
OW RANCH
Est. 1893
T△
TRIANGLE T
Est. 1891
∩P
HORSESHOE P
Est. 1896
2B
TWO BAR
Est. 1900
☆L
STAR L
Est. 1883
JK
KENDRICK
Est. 1887
WC
WOLF CREEK
Est. 1905
――
DOUBLE BAR
Est. 1894
Brands shown are representative of Sheridan County ranching heritage. Many remain in use today.
WYOMING LIVESTOCK BOARD • BRAND REGISTRY
R.5
R6Ranch BrandsMontera • 23″×84″
FROM PRAIRIE TO SUMMIT
LIFE
ZONES
ZONES
Five worlds stacked on one mountain
The Bighorn Mountains rise so steeply from the plains that a drive from Sheridan to the summit crosses the ecological equivalent of traveling from Wyoming to the Arctic. Each life zone brings different trees, different animals, and different weather.
13,000′+
ALPINE TUNDRA
Lichen, moss campion, pika, ptarmigan. Wind-scoured and treeless.
10,000′
SUBALPINE
Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, snowshoe hare, Clark’s nutcracker.
8,500′
MONTANE FOREST
Ponderosa pine, lodgepole, elk, black bear, mountain lion.
6,500′
FOOTHILLS
Juniper, sagebrush, mule deer, pronghorn, rattlesnake.
3,700′
PRAIRIE
Buffalo grass, prairie dog, golden eagle, coyote, swift fox.
R7Life ZonesBackdrop • 120″×89″
LANGUAGE & PLACE
NAMES FOR
THE MOUNTAINS
THE MOUNTAINS
Long before European names appeared on maps, the peoples of the Great Plains had their own words for these mountains — names that carried meaning, history, and reverence.
THE BIGHORN MOUNTAINS
Basawaxaawuúa
APSÁALOOKE (CROW)
“Where the rivers begin.” The Crow considered the Bighorns the sacred heart of their homeland — the source of the waters that sustained their people.
CLOUD PEAK
Awáxaawakuússhe
APSÁALOOKE (CROW)
“The high one that is always covered.” At 13,167 feet, the summit is often veiled in cloud and snow year-round.
BIGHORN RANGE
He Sapa
LAKOTA SIOUX
“The dark mountains.” Seen from the Powder River Basin, the timbered slopes appear as a dark wall on the western horizon.
MEDICINE WHEEL
Noó’xúsee
HINONO’EITEEN (ARAPAHO)
“Place of the stone wheel.” A site of ceremony and prayer for many nations, visited for centuries.
TONGUE RIVER
Ché’shééhé’e
TSITSISTAS (CHEYENNE)
“The river that looks like a tongue.” Named for the long, flat shape of the valley through which it flows.
Spellings are approximate transliterations. Indigenous languages are oral traditions with varied written forms.
INDIGENOUS NAMES USED WITH RESPECT
R.8
R8Names for the MountainsMontera • 23″×84″
LANGUAGE & LANDSCAPE
TWO NAMES
ONE RANGE
ONE RANGE
Every peak, river, and valley in the Bighorns carries two names — one from the people who mapped them on paper, and one from the people who knew them for millennia.
CLOUD PEAK • 13,167′
Awáxaawakuússhe
CROW
BLACK TOOTH • 13,005′
Hé Sápa Íyotake
LAKOTA
DARTON PEAK • 12,275′
Iiáxaashíite
CROW
APSÁALOOKE (CROW)
Basawaxaawuúa
“Where the rivers begin.” The Crow homeland centered on the Bighorns. Their name speaks to the mountains as a source of life — every creek that watered their camps flowed from these peaks.
LAKOTA SIOUX
He Sapa
“The dark mountains.” The timber-covered slopes appear as a dark silhouette from the plains. The Lakota arrived in the 1700s and fought to control this territory.
TSITSISTAS (CHEYENNE)
Mo’óhtavetó’e
“Big mountains.” A direct, practical name from a people who hunted and camped in the foothills for generations.
ENGLISH (COLONIAL)
Bighorn Mountains
Named by Euro-American trappers for the bighorn sheep they found in the high country. First recorded on maps in the early 1800s.
SPELLINGS ARE APPROXIMATE • INDIGENOUS NAMES USED WITH RESPECT
R9Two Names, One RangeIntro • 36″×84″
TIMBER INDUSTRY
HOW THE
TIE FLUME
WORKED
TIE FLUME
WORKED
HOW IT WORKED
1
FELL THE TIMBER
Tie hacks felled lodgepole pine high in the Bighorns using crosscut saws and axes, then hand-hewed each log into a 7×9-inch railroad tie.
2
BUILD THE FLUME
A V-shaped wooden trough was built down the mountainside on trestles, dropping as much as 5,000 feet over 10–15 miles. Creek water was diverted in.
3
SEND THEM DOWN
Ties were dropped into the water-filled flume and shot downhill at terrifying speed. At curves, “flume herders” kept jams from forming.
4
CATCH & STACK
At the bottom, ties were pulled from a catch pond and stacked for the Burlington railroad. Millions of ties came down the flumes between 1893 and 1920.
BIGHORN NATIONAL FOREST HERITAGE COLLECTION
R.10
R10How the Tie Flume WorkedMontera • 23″×84″
TOOLS OF THE TRADE
TIE HACK
TOOLS
TOOLS
A “tie hack” was a lumberjack who hand-hewed railroad ties in the Bighorn forests. With simple tools and brutal labor, these men shaped the timber that built the West’s railroads.
BROADAXE
The tie hack’s primary tool. A wide, flat-bladed axe with a beveled edge on one side only, designed to hew a flat face on a round log. Swung with terrifying precision inches from the user’s foot.
BLADE: 12″ WIDE • WEIGHT: 5–7 LBS • OFFSET HANDLE
CROSSCUT SAW
A two-man saw, 5 to 7 feet long, used to fell standing timber and buck logs to tie length (8 feet). One man at each end, pulling in rhythm.
LENGTH: 5–7 FT • TWO-MAN OPERATION • 500+ TIES PER WEEK
SCORING AXE
A lighter axe used to “score” vertical cuts along the log before the broadaxe hewed the flat surface. Cuts were spaced 3–4 inches apart to control the depth of the hew.
BLADE: 6″ • WEIGHT: 3–4 LBS • FIRST STEP IN HEWING
PEAVEY
A cant hook with a sharp spike at the tip, used to roll and maneuver heavy logs. Essential for positioning ties at the flume entrance and breaking log jams.
LENGTH: 4–5 FT • SPIKE + SWINGING HOOK • LOG HANDLING
BARK SPUD
A flat, chisel-like blade on a long handle, used to strip bark from logs before hewing. Clean wood produced a better tie and dried faster.
BLADE: 4″ WIDE • CHISEL EDGE • BARK REMOVAL
CHALK LINE
A string coated in chalk dust, snapped against the log to mark the hewing line. Each tie had to be hewn within a quarter inch of spec or the railroad rejected it.
TOLERANCE: ¼″ • TIE SPEC: 7″ × 9″ × 8′
MUSEUM AT THE BIGHORNS • TIMBER COLLECTION
R.11
R11Tie Hack ToolsMontera • 23″×84″