Douglas, Wyoming: Momentous moments in time

We’re getting ready to head up to Casper for the College National Finals Rodeo after a stop in Douglas. Mike and I are putting together a series of interview clips and video about the history of Douglas and are finding the town worthy of a lot of little known attributes. When it comes to Douglas and Converse County, Wyoming:

Did you know?

Sir Barton, the first Triple Crown Winner, was purchased by a Douglas doctor. The horse was put out to stud on a ranch near town and sired enough young ones that the bloodline remains active today. The tall, red, horse is immortalized by statue in a town park where his bones are interred. The local Jaycees could not get enough cash together for the statue for some time after Sir Barton’s passing and during that ten-year stretch the horse’s bones were kept in the basement of the town bakery. By the way their dinner rolls are superb. Ask for George and he’ll tell you all about Sir Barton. The service is really fast there. George calls the place Home Bakery and he and his wife have operated there for more than forty years. Me thinks “Homestretch” would be more in tune with its history.

You are most likely aware of our holding of Japanese Americans in camps around the country during WWII. We also had a number of POW camps for Europeans. German and Italian military captives were kept at a facility in Douglas where the men spent daylight hours doing ranch chores and other agricultural endeavors around the area. At night, three of the Italians painted their visions of the American West on several wall panels and in large murals. It’s clear the men were very talented artists but their views were built from Tim McCoy movies much more than their days toiling on Wyoming ranchlands. Preservation money is a little thin these days but a group of locals are trying to find a way to get the building spruced up and better suited for public tours. I didn’t even know European POWs of WWII were kept in this country let alone Wyoming. Douglas folks are pretty sure the building is the only one its kind left standing and functional. A community club uses it as a meeting spot.

Experts in Douglas describe it as a “going through” place because of the rich western heritage involving trails carrying freight and human cargo in the 1800s. You can learn all about those days at the Pioneer Museum on the grounds of the Wyoming State Fair. Some might also call Douglas a “getting caught” place. The notorious Charlie Starkweather and his girlfriend were captured there in the late 1950s after leaving a murderous trail across Nebraska and eastern Wyoming. The cold-blooded couple served as inspiration for a pair of motion pictures – Natural Born Killers and Badlands. All that they inspire in Douglas is disgust.

The Colorado Cannibal, Alfred Packer, was brought in from the range outside of Douglas. You can look up Packer on Google for details about his eating habits. Suffice it to say he grew to like his fellow man a bit too much – pass the Tabasco please. The canyon where Packer was caught was later named “Man Eater.”