Wool Train, Casper, approx. 1900.

With the arrival of the railroad, Casper also became a prime shipping point for wool. Nevertheless, the town grew but slowly. In 1890, it had a population of 544. Ten years later it had grown to 883. Nevertheless, the little had a Congregational Church, two newspapers, and an assortment of saloons.

Wool Warehouse, Casper, approx. 1900.

The year following the arrival of the railroad, Natrona County was formed with Casper competing with Bessimer Bend to be the seat. Bessimer Bend is now a ghost town. But like a number of other end-of-the-track towns, Casper tended to be a bit rough. Hence, newly elected sheriff, William W. Jaycox, had his hands full. During the Indian Wars, Jaycox had served as a packer in Gen. George Crook's campaign in northern Wyoming and Dakota Territory. Two popular establishments in the newly-formed city were Louella Polk's dance hall and sporting establishment and "Black Dogue" Lee's saloon. For a while, Dogue acted as Louella's paramour, but her eyes turned to John C. Conway, one of her bartenders in her sporting facility. In a moment of jealous rage, Dogue kidnapped Louella. An impromptude posse of Louella's customers was organized to give chase. As the posse neared, Dogue forced Louella to dismount from the horse and threw her on the ground. If he could not have her, he determined that no one else would want her. Dogue then proceeded to conduct surgery on Louella's nose with a pen knife. Dogue then departed, not to be seen again, leaving Louella to be returned to Casper by the posse. Efforts by a physician to sew the nose back on proved to be unsuccessful. As a form of recompense for her disfigurement, Louella took over operation of Lee's saloon. Conway served as one of the bartenders.

To prevent things from getting completely out-of-hand in the saloon, house rules required the customers to check-in their hardware when they entered. For the protection of the bartenders, however, Louella had a suitable firearm beneath the bar. One night, an F L Cattle Company cowboy named A. J. "Red Jack" Tidwell and the bartender Conway got into a merry little fistfight. Conway, seeking to end the melee, perhaps unfairly, reached for the gun below the bar. When the firing started, all the customers, including Tidwell, rushed for the doorway. Unfortunately in the stampede, Tidwell accidently stumbled, tripped, and fell into the path of one of Conway's bullets from the effects of which Tidwell expired.

With Jack Tidwell lying dead in Louella's new saloon, things began to get a little heated. The cowboys began to organize a festivity featuring a rope in Conway's honor. Sheriff Jaycox was able to spirit Conway away. The Sheriff returned Conway to town only after things cooled down. Nevertheless, Conway was indicted for the first degree murder of Tidwell. He pled not guilty. His lawyer for some unexplained reason suddenly and without notice then vanished. In order to avoid a possible death penalty, Conway's new lawyer was able to convince Conway to plead to second degree murder. When asked whether he agreed to withdraw his not guilty plea, he was loudly sobbing, in tears and wailing. All agreed, however, that he had nodded his head yes. When sentenced to twenty-five years in the State Penitentiary in Laramie City, Conway demurred and indicated that he had not agreed to withdraw his not guilty plea. The recantation of the plea was denied by the judge. On appeal, the Wyoming Supreme Court held that if there is no record, the remembrance of the trial judge must be upheld. Since the nodding of the head was not verbally expressed, there was no record upon which to overturn the sentence. Accordingly, the sentence and prior law relating to the necessity of a court record was sustained. See State ex rel. Conway v. Blake, 5 Wyo. 107, 38 P. 354, (Wyo. 1894). The law in mysterious ways its wonders work. After a slight but decent interval, Conway was pardoned.

While Conway's adventures were pending, Sheriff Jaycox, in the word of the Board of County Commissionrs, "fled" town for Montana* without bidding his friends "goodbye" or, for that matter, even having the courtesy to telegraph back a resignation. In Montana, Jaycox was employed as a foreman for the American Cattle and Loan Company in Valley County, Montana. Casper historian A. J. Mokler indicates that the reason for Jaycox's hasty departure was unspecified "domestic troubles."

[*Writer's note: Mokler does not indicate to where the Sheriff fled. BLM land patents indicate that William W. Jaycox homesteaded land near Glasgow, Montana. See also American Live Stock & Loan [sic] Co. v. Great Northern Ry. Co., 48 Mont. 495, 138 P. 1102 (1914). "Dogue" is usually defined as a type of mastiff.] Additionally, there was at least one shootout in the public streets. One such shootout on Center Street involving the mayor and a cowboy in Center Street resulted in a two bullets entering the Pioneer Drug Store. The mayor was the better shot.

Congregational Tabernacle.

The Tabernacle was constructed in 1889 at the Southeast corner of Wolcott and present-day 1st Street. The building was also used as a school house and town hall. Upon the construction of a new town hall the following year, the use of the building as a church was abandoned and services were conducted in the town hall. The building was then sold and used as a private residence.

Casper Fire Department, July 4, 1891. The building with the bell tower is the new Town Hall.

The fire Department's equipment all on display consisted of the hose cart with 150 feet of hose, a nozzle, and a trumpet for the chief. The uniforms conssted of blue shirts with red collars and red belts for the tousers. Casper historian Alfred Mokler, History of Natrona county, Wyoming, 1888-1922, Lakeside Press, Chicago, 1923, p. 159, questioned the use of the hose cart, hose, and nozzle, since at the time there was no force fed water system. The firemen relied upon bucket brigades which received water from four polluted wells on Center Street. Drinking water was brought in from Elkhorn and Garden Creeks. Later, F. E. Seeley sold drinking water from Garden Creek by either the barrel or half barrel lots at thirty-five cents a barrel.

Natrona Tribune Building, Casper.

The first editor of the Tribune was J. Enos Waite who had previously edited the Bessemer Journal. The Tribune was a Republican paper. Its competitor, the Wyoming Derrick was Democratic.

Residential Sections, Casper, 1894

Casper, undated

Casper Photos continued on next page.