Visions: Guernsey State Park, WY

In the eastern part of Platte County Wyoming, is the railroad and military town of Guernsey Wyoming. Guernsey sits on the banks of the North Platte River on one of the greatest immigrations routes in American history, the Oregon Trail. Later the railroads came and then a highway. Just north and west of the town is Guernsey State park.

The area where the town of Guernsey is now located was known as ìmigrantís wash tubî or the immigrant’s wash tub because of its location on the North Platte River where the immigrants would wash their clothes and take baths after their long trip from points east and before they continued on west.[1] In 1880 a man from New York named Charles A. Guernsey bought land where the town is now located. He became a legislator, rancher and mine promoter in Wyoming and was instrumental in the building of the dam in Guernsey State Park.[2] The town was incorporated in 1902 when the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroads came to the area. It became known as the “hub of the Oregon Trail.[3]

But long before there was a town, park and reservoir there were indigenous people living there. In fact the area houses evidence of some of the oldest know inhabitants of Platte and Goshen counties from about 12,000 years ago. Evidence of Clovis, Folsom and Eden Valley cultures have been found. Remains of these cultures have been unearthed at the Hell’s Gap dig by University of Wyoming archaeologists. The site is special because it has been relatively undisturbed and is highly stratified so scientists have been able to accurately date many of the artifacts that were found there.[4] The Indians of historic times found in the area were the Arapaho, Arikara, Bannock, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Crow, Gros Ventre, Kiowa, Nez Perce, Sheep Eater, Sioux, Shoshone and Ute tribes. [5]

The first Europeans to explore the area were Francés Francois and Louis La Verendrye in 1743. Then in 1820’s-40’s trappers, fur traders and other assorted mountain men came. They would travel along the North Platte River on their way to their annual rendezvous and trade fairs on the Green River. [6] But over trapping brought about a decline in the fur trade, especially the beaver trade and the mountain men began to disappear. A few remained and turned to ranching and farming. People began to move west along the Oregon Trail and soon forts were built. The flood of immigrants brought more and more people especially with the discovery of gold in California and Oregon in the late 1840’s. In the early 1800’s copper was found and the towns of Sunrise and Hartville were founded as mining camps. The Hartville mine still exists today but is an iron mine. The town of Sunrise is a ghost town but its remains are still visible.[7]

As settlements began to grow in the region there became a demand for goods and services found in the eastern United States prompting the building of the railroad in 1868. White settlers began to stay and as they did the Indian peoples were moved off the land and on to reservations in northwestern Wyoming and northwestern Nebraska. The land that had abundantly provided for the Indian tribes of the Great Plains began to provide for its white settlers. Farms grew up in Platte County, most of them to the southwest and to the east where soils were less rocky and the area flatter. Railroads and mining provided the bulk of the economic success directly around Guernsey.

With agriculture in dry, windy Wyoming there came a need for a reliable supply of water as well as electric power. In 1924 Congress gave its approval to a dam and what was to become the centerpiece of Guernsey State Park. Work began on the project in May of 1925 by the Utah Construction Company of Salt Lake, the only company to bid on the project. It was completed on July 13, 1927.[8] Today the Platte River provides over 335,000 acres of farmland with water for the growing of alfalfa, corn, potatoes, sugar beets, and dry beans.[9]

But the story of Guernsey State Park doesn’t end with the finishing of the dam. In 1929 the stock market fell signaling the beginning of the Great Depression. Many people were out of work and President Franklin D. Roosevelt was charged with finding a way to put people back to work and bring the country back to economic health. In March of 1933 the Civilian Conservation Corps was founded, the first of the New Deal Programs to be signed into being.[10]

Guernsey State Park has some of the finest examples of projects done by the CCC in the region. Brimmer Point Castle (pictured) and the Guernsey State Park Museum[11] are two of the 14 building on 3 sites. There are a total of 43 structures in the Park.[12] The CCC also constructed roads, bridges and trails.[13] Guernsey State Park consists of 8,602 acres of scenic views, historic areas, wildlife viewing and recreational uses.[14] The historic parts of the park have been left in their original, unmodified condition.[15]

Today if you visit the park you can fish, hike watch wildlife, camp and visit the beautiful CCC structures. Guernsey State Park has seven campgrounds, five are found around the lake. This beautiful area is a very popular spot for both Wyomingites and tourists so it is a good idea to call the Park since camping areas need to be reserved in advance. However, a day trip is a great way to see the historic buildings and landmarks and to enjoy a meal at a restaurant in Guernsey, a town of about 1150 people.[16] The park and town are located off highway 26 with an exit off of I25.

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