Near Sinclair in Carbon County, Wyoming — The American West (Mountains)
Town of Ft. Steele
Boom and Bust
— 1889 to 1940's —
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, September 9, 2015
1. Town of Ft. Steele Marker
Captions: (top & center right) When the military abandoned the fort in 1889 and cautioned off the buildings and property in 1892 some of the local businessmen and ranchers hoped that Ft. Steele would remain a town. The earliest plat for the township is shown here. We believe it is from 1896 since some of the buildings sold in 1892 are not indicated on the plat.; (bottom right) Aero Filling Station, Fort Steele, Wyoming.
Inscription.
Town of Ft. Steele. Boom and Bust. In 1901, the Fireman's Fund Insurance Company included a plat of Ft. Steel in its insurance rating of the town. The town had not grown as planned, probably due to the closeness of Rawlins and that the timber industry had started building its own town on the opposite side of the river so that its workers did not have to cross the river in order to get to work, shop, etc. In the mid 1900's the Vivion Sheep Companies moved most of their sheep operations east to the Wolcott area. The U.P.R.R. then moved the section crews out of the Ft. Steele Community a few years later. However, the Ft. Steele township got a boost in survival when the Great Lincoln Highway was constructed in the late 1920's as it followed the railroad line in from Wolcott on the north side of the tracks and crossed the North Platte just below Ft. Steele and then came up through the old Fort Area proceeding west into Greenville or Parco (present day Sinclair. , Some of the old barracks and other buildings at Ft. Steele were used as gasoline stations, cafes, motels and the like until U.S. 30 was re-routed and paved a few years later at its present location near I-80. The largest hotel at Ft. Steele burnt down in November 1923; it had been established in 1868 as a military barracks. The hotel had 22 rooms and the last known owner was E.J. Bower who had tried to sell it to J.S. Hugus in 1882 and it does not appear on either the 1886 nor the 1901 plats of Ft. Steele. With the beginning of World War II and the end of the timber industry the town was deal its final death blow and the end of the "boom." It has been mostly "bust" ever since.
In 1901, the Fireman's Fund Insurance Company included a plat of Ft. Steel in its insurance rating of the town. The town had not grown as planned, probably due to the closeness of Rawlins and that the timber industry had started building its own town on the opposite side of the river so that its workers did not have to cross the river in order to get to work, shop, etc. In the mid 1900's the Vivion Sheep Companies moved most of their sheep operations east to the Wolcott area. The U.P.R.R. then moved the section crews out of the Ft. Steele Community a few years later. However, the Ft. Steele township got a boost in survival when the Great Lincoln Highway was constructed in the late 1920's as it followed the railroad line in from Wolcott on the north side of the tracks and crossed the North Platte just below Ft. Steele and then came up through the old Fort Area proceeding west into Greenville or Parco (present day Sinclair.
Some of the old barracks and other buildings at Ft. Steele were used as gasoline stations, cafes, motels and the like until U.S. 30 was re-routed and paved a few years later at its present location near I-80. The largest hotel at Ft. Steele burnt down in November 1923; it had been established in 1868 as a military barracks. The hotel had 22 rooms and the last known owner was E.J. Bower who had tried to sell it
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to J.S. Hugus in 1882 and it does not appear on either the 1886 nor the 1901 plats of Ft. Steele. With the beginning of World War II and the end of the timber industry the town was deal its final death blow and the end of the "boom." It has been mostly "bust" ever since.
Location. 41° 46.621′ N, 106° 56.737′ W. Marker is near Sinclair, Wyoming, in Carbon County. Marker can be reached from County Route 374 near Interstate 80. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sinclair WY 82334, United States of America. Touch for directions.
More about this marker. This marker, among a grouping of a half-dozen other
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, September 9, 2015
2. Town of Ft. Steele Marker
markers, is located at Fort Fred Steele State Park on County Road 347, north of the Interstate 80 Exit 228 and on the south side of the railroad tracks near where County Road 347 passes beneath the railroad bridge.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 21, 2015, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 366 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on October 21, 2015, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.
