State History
Learn about the history of Wyoming and find fun and interesting things to do and see all across Wyoming. We've also found the best books, guides, websites, and other resources to make your study of Wyoming fun and educational.
Things to See & Do in Wyoming
Poor Richard's Books & Gifts

320-324 1/2 N Tejon St
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Phone: 719-578-5549

This downtown Colorado Springs landmark specializes in good-condition, used books, including current books in 150 categories and classics in every field. They also stock a large variety of new books. Book collectors will find a selection of rare, first-edition and collectible titles. They also carry Colorado trail guides, local and state maps, wildlife/flora books and artistic, funny and quirky postcards.

Cheyenne Frontier Days™ Old West Museum
Since the early days of the cattle industry and the advent of the Union Pacific Railroad, Cheyenne and Wyoming have played an integral part in the development of the West. The Old West Museum gives residents and visitors to Wyoming an opportunity to discover and experience our heritage through exhibits, educational programs and research opportunities.
Mormon Handcart Historic Site at Martin's Cove
South of Riverton, Wyoming, the Mormon Handcart Companies has a Visitor's Center at Martin's Cove. You can get handcarts to trek into the cove both summer and winter.
Wyoming Frontier Prison
While outlaws roamed the windswept high plains, canyons and mountains of post Civil War Wyoming, the territorial legislature was planning a state-of-the-art penitentiary at Rawlins in anticipation of statehood. This new Wyoming State Penitentiary, which would serve from 1901 until 1981 would send a strong message to freewheeling desperadoes... Wyoming would no longer be a haven for the lawless. The Old Pen, as the Wyoming Frontier Prison is affectionately called today, is “haunted by history” around every corner. Tales of great train robbers, wily escapes and of women driven to crimes of passion are told on the scheduled guided tours offered from April through October. Group tours and off-season tours are also available.
Pony Express National Historic Trail
The Pony Express National Historic Trail was used by young men on fast paced horses to carry the nation's mail across the country, from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California, in the unprecedented time of only ten days. Organized by private entrepreneurs, the horse-and-rider relay system became the nation's most direct and practical means of east-west communications before the telegraph. Though only in operation for 18 months, between April 1860 and October 1861, the trail proved the feasibility of a central overland transportation route, and played a vital role in aligning California with the Union in the years just before the Civil War. Most of the original trail has been obliterated either by time or human activities. Along many segments, the trail's actual route and exact length are matters of conjecture. However, approximately 120 historic sites may eventually be available to the public, including 50 existing Pony Express stations or station ruins.
Uinta County Museum
The Uinta County Museum is located in the historic Carnegie building, completed in 1906. A lovely example of Classical Revival architecture, the building was designed by New York architect Albert Randolph Ross (who also designed a Carnegie Library in Washington, D.C.). In 2008, an expansion of the building was completed. Designed by Jackson architect Kurt Dubbe, the new building echoes the historic features of the original structure. Their mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret the history of Uinta County and the surrounding region, and to make our collections available to the public.
Campbell County Rockpile Museum
The museum's exhibits focus primarily on general history with an emphasis upon Campbell County, Wyoming.
Crook County Museum & Art Gallery
The Museum reflects the history of Crook County. Permanent exhibits include Indian artifacts, cowboy artifacts and pioneer artifacts dating from 1875. Also included is furniture from original Courthouse, 1888, the Sundance Kid was on trial here; a Vore Buffalo Jump Diorama and display; a Custer Trail diorama showing the route taken by Custer through Crook County and the Black Hills; and Crook County photographs, brands, and local artifacts. The Museum has a complete microfilm collection of Crook County newspapers.
Fort Laramie National Historic Site
This unique historic place preserves and interprets one of America's most important locations in the history of westward expansion and Indian resistance. Established in 1834, Fort Laramie began as a fur trading post. By the 1840s, wagon trains rested and resupplied here, bound for Oregon, California and Utah. In 1849 as the Gold Rush of California drew more westward, Fort Laramie became a military post, and in 1876, Fort Laramie served as an anchor for military operations, communication, supply and logistics during the "Great Sioux War." Fort Laramie closed in 1890.
Oregon National Historic Trail
As the harbinger of America's westward expansion, the Oregon Trail was the pathway to the Pacific for fur traders, gold seekers, missionaries and others. Beginning in 1841 and continuing for more than 20 years, an estimated 300,000 emigrants followed this route from Independence, Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon on a trip that took five months to complete. The 2,170 mile long trail passes through Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho and Oregon.
Western History Center
The center's exhibits cover historic, prehistoric, and paleontological subjects. Exhibit topics include archaeology, the Cheyenne-Deadwood Stage Route, mining, the Texas Trail, emigrant trails, Spanish Diggings, and paleontology. Collections include regional materials ranging from Cretaceous fossils, Pleistocene mammoths, and Paleoindian artifacts to a variety of historical objects, records, and oral histories.
Fossil Country Museum
Fossil Country Frontier Museum collects, preserves, researches, exhibits, and interprets materials related to the natural and cultural history of South Lincoln County and southwestern Wyoming, for the education and enjoyment of the public.
Carbon County Museum
The Museum's exhibits cover Carbon County history. The first collection the museum acquired was that of rancher A.A. Harper, who had passed away on November 16, 1938. Harper’s daughter had two large, locked cases custom-made to display his smaller items. Rev. Fulton and County Librarian, Miss Margaret Goodrich, began the work of collecting artifacts through gifts and loans. As of January 2013, the museum collection includes 30,000 objects, which have been stored and exhibited in a former church since 1976. The museum has a full-time staff of seven, with two regular part-time and occasional seasonal/temporary employees. It is the only museum in the county to be open year-round. Admission has always been free.
Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
Led by Brigham Young, roughly 70,000 Mormons traveled along the Mormon Pioneer Trail from 1846 to 1869 in order to escape religious persecution. The general route is from Nauvoo, Illinois, to Salt Lake City, Utah, covering about 1,300 miles. The Mormon Pioneer Trail travels through five states over both public and private land.
Grand Encampment Museum
The Grand Encampment Museum, located in Encampment, Wyoming, preserves history with its collection of over a dozen historical buildings filled with artifacts representing the timber, mining, and agricultural history of the Encampment valley.
Old West Books

Phone: 719-260-6030
Email: info@oldwestbooks.com

Old West Books has been in business since 1997 and specializes in books on the American West, Custer, military, Civil War, Indian Wars, cowboys, cattle industry, fur trade, Lewis and Clark, travel and exploration. They stock a mix of rare out-of-print books and new titles. Books are shown by appointment only. Books may also be bought via the Internet, catalogs, and book shows. 

Fort Caspar Museum and Historic Site
Fort Caspar Museum and Historic Site, located in Casper, collects, preserves and exhibits artifacts concerning the social and natural history of Fort Caspar, the City of Casper and central Wyoming. Exhibits include Native American artifacts, western art, and exhibits relating to the history of the area.
Teaching Tips & Ideas
How I Teach a Large Family in a Relaxed, Classical Way: History
A look at teaching history across several grades using the classical method of education and a rotation of history every four years.
Knowledge Quest
Knowledge Quest offers historical outline maps and timelines designed for the interactive study of world history and geography.
Online Resources
Wyoming 4 Kids
Learn about Wyoming's past and present. Find out where to go to see fossils. Play online games, do crossword puzzles, and print out coloring pages. If you are doing a report on the state of Wyoming, you can use their Report Helper which has important facts about the state. There is also a detailed timeline of Wyoming's history with historic photographs.
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Featured Resources

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