Today In Wyoming's History: The grave of Alvah H. Unthank

Today In Wyoming's History: The grave of Alvah H. Unthank: 

The grave of Alvah H. Unthank

Alvah H. Unthank was a 19-year-old pioneer travelling the Oregon who died of Cholera at a spot near the Dave Johnson Power Plant outside Glendrock in July, 1850.  

One of many such tragic deaths on the trails.

 

Some Gave All: Mills Memorial Park, Mills Wyoming Rededicated.

This memorial, as I've noted on our companion Wyoming history blog, was dedicated on July 5, 1920. 

It was rededicated by the Daughters of the American Revolution yesterday, on the centennial of the original dedication.

Some Gave All: Mills Memorial Park, Mills Wyoming:

Mills Memorial Park, Mills Wyoming

The Mills Memorial Park commemorates Lt. Caspar Collins, who was killed in the 1865 Battle of Platte Bridge Station, and the bridge and Mormon ferry that was located about 1.5 miles from the park.

The Lander Cut Off, Oregon Trail. Sublette County Wyoming

Monument for the Lander Cut Off of the Oregon Trail, an early road project on the part of the Federal Government.  This is located just outside of Marbleton, Wyoming.

South Pass, Wyoming

Ice Slough, Fremont County, Wyoming

The Ice Slough, or what I used to always hear people around here refer it by, the "Icey Slough".

Little Sandy Crossing, Sweetwater County, Wyoming.

This is a State of Wyoming monument to the Little Sandy Crossing in Sweetwater County, near Farson.   

Sweetwater Station, Freemont County Wyoming.

There's a highway rest station on top of Beaver Rim at Sweetwater Station that I've stopped in a million times, but I've never photographed it before.  Probably because there's always been a lot of people there and I felt self conscious about it.  Anyhow, the other day I went through and it was just me, so I took these photos with my Iphone.

The photos here will be left large so that the details on the signs can be read.  I didn't do a very good job of photographing them while there, but it was relatively early in the day and light conditions were not idea.

This is a converging location on the trail and a lot of different things are significant about the spot.  It's a significant Oregon Trial spot in and of itself.  It was also the location of an Army post, protecting the trail, during the 1860s.  Lt. Caspar Collins, who lost his life famously leading a mixed company at the Battle of Platte Bridge Station, was stationed at Sweetwater Station.

Mormon Pioneer Memorial, Lyman Wyoming.

This is a Mormon Pioneer Memorial at the rest stop in Lyman, Wyoming.  It was obviously originally a private memorial and was likely moved to its current location after the rest stop was built and Interstate 80 altered the original path of the Lincoln Highway.

The Overland Trail, Albany County Wyoming

These are two markers noting the location, in Albany County, where the Overland Trail passed by the current town of Laramie.

The Overland Trail was a southern bypass, basically, on the Oregon Trail, taking immigrants and travelers considerably further south and therefore also out of the more active areas on the Platte that saw a lot of Indian activity.  The Overland Trail was not safe, but it was less likely to see Indian hostilities.

We tend to think, today, only of the Oregon Trail, but this markers serves to remind us that pioneers took a variety of routes.  This one later was exploited, roughly, by the Union Pacific railroad which took a somewhat analogous route for much of its course. 

This location interestingly features at least three, and maybe four, generations of Wyoming highway historical markers. The large wooden sign is a common one still used by Wyoming today.  A new paper sign with a bar code has been added to this and several other monuments in Albany County, suggesting that the state has some sort of new program going on. 

This area, however, also features an older cement marker.  I'm not terribly familiar with this type, so if anyone can add details about it, I'd appreciate it.  Note the circled K on the monument. 

This cement markers is just off the highway easement and I suspect that it is also associated with the trail.  In much of Wyoming the Oregon Trail is marked with cement markers in its course, and I suspect that this is something similar, but older, for the Overland Trail.

Split Rock, Wyoming

The Parting of the Ways

These monuments, within about 100 yards of each other, commemorate the Oregon Trail and the Parting of the Ways, that spot where the Oregon and California Trails diverged.  Unfortunately, as the informational sign makes clear, the monument is in the wrong place.  The actual Parting of the Ways is about ten miles to the west.

Pioneer Plaza, Casper Wyoming

This is Pioneer Plaza, in Casper Wyoming. The small park is dedicated to the memory of pioneers.  The park is across the street from both the old and new Natrona County courthouses, although the obelisk itself was once in front of the county's first courthouse, which was removed long ago. 

 While the oldest feature of the small park dates from 1911, the park itself was dedicated in 1967.

The sheep commemorate the sheep ranching industry that was once so prominent in Natrona County, Wyoming.