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North Fork of the Platte, A. Bierstadt
As indicated in the discussion of Lander and the Wind River Basin,
Albert Beirstadt accompanied the 1859 Lander Expedition along the North Platte River and into
the Wind River Basin. Wyoming is unique that it has a triple continental divide; that is
snow falling in Wyoming may ultimately end up in the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf of California, or the
North Pacific. Three great river systems of North America find their headwaters in the State. The Little
Missouri, Powder River, the Big Horn and the Shoshone all find their way into the
Missouri-Mississippi River System. The Snake feeds the Mighty Columbia and the Green River, changing its name to the
Colorado, ends in wet years in the Gulf of California. In dryer years it has all the water
sucked out for irrigation and to provide water for the golf courses of Las Vegas and Palm
Springs. But of the various rivers of America one of the most important from an
historical viewpoint is the North Platte. Three of the great western trails followed its
banks, the Oregon, the Mormon, and for a short distance the Cherokee. The North Platte
arises in North Park, Colorado and proceeds northward past Riverside and Saratoga. The Cherokee Trail
followed the North Platte southward from Colorado until the present location of Saratoga before it turned
westward.
Map of Cherokee Trail and Oregon Trail
As illustrated by the map, the Cherokee Trail was actually
two trails, the Northern laid out in 1849 by Capt. Lewis Evans. Four companies from Arkansas and
Oklahoma followed the trail to Fort Bridger and then west to the California
gold fields.
From their days in North Carolina and
North Georgia, the Cherokee were familiar with placer mining of gold and, thus, as did the Whites, joined the 1849
gold rush.
The Trail proceeded from Arkansas westward to Bent's Fort, Colorado. From there the trail proceeded westward
to the Front Range where it followed the old Ute Trail from Manitou Springs northward crossing the South Platte near present day Denver.
From there it continued northward near what is now U.S. Highway 287 to near present day
Fort Collins. From there it followed the Cache LaPoudre ultimately coming to the North Platte. It then followed
the North Platte northward to the area of present day Saratoga where it crossed the
river and proceeded westward north of present day Baggs and Dixon across the Red Desert and continued on to Fort Bridger where it picked up
the California Trail.
N. Platte at Saratoga, undated.
As suggested by the logs in the river, the North Platte was early important in the tiber industry.
With the coming of the Union Pacific Railroad further to the north, tie hacks spread across the Midicine
Bows. In the spring with high water, the ties would be floated down the North Platte to
Fort Fred Steele. The lumber timber industry has until recently remained important to Saratoga. As of this writing, 2007,
the former Louisiana-Pacific lumber mill is now closed. The Town has undertaken a
study on the feasibility of rejuvenating the timber industry.
The Southern Cherokee Trail established in 1850 followed the same route to
Fort Collins but turned northward at Laporte to the area of present day Tie Sidings and
then westwardly to Saratoga. Prior to the Civil War, the Cherokee Trail provided a major route from
Arkansas, East Texas, and southern Missouri to northern California. Additionally, it was used during the
Mormon War. In 1862 as discussed with regard to the
Overland Stage, Indian problems forced the Overland Stage further south and the main Emigrant's Road
along the North Platte was abandoned. The Overland Trail joined with the Cherokee
Trail at Cache LaPoudre and separated west of Tie Siding. The two trails rejoined near Fort Bridger. Thus, portions were extensively used. Indeed,
the Cherokee Trail served as a main stage road from Denver City to the
Overland Trail. Other portions of the trail in the area of the Red Desert,
particularly after the coming of the Railroad, were used primarily by adventurers, trappers and Brown's Hole outlaws such as
the Wild Bunch. A third trail
later used Bridger's Pass.
Bridge Near Riverside, Carbon County, Wyo.
Photo courtesy Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
The above bridge built about 1930 replaced an
earlier timber bridge built in 1905. For additional photos of the Saratoga area, see Encampment.
Saratoga, approx 1910
The Wolf Hotel on the left in the photo, was constructed
by Frederick G. Wolf in 1893 and opened in January 1894. Wolf was a native of Wurttemberg in
preent-day Germany and came to this country in 1869. He was a foreman for the
Union Pacific in Rawlins and came to the Saratoga area in 1887 seeking relief from
rheumatism in the warm spring. The hotel was a stop on the Walcott, Saratoga and Encampment stageline
operated by Charles M. Scribner (1841-1919). Scribner came to the valley as a wood contractor.
Wolf Hotel, 1909.
The hotel has been restored and is till in operation. It is on the National Register.
Bar in the Wolf Hotel, 1900.
The caption on the photograph is not in error. For a period of time, the hotel was known as
the Sisson Hotel. Note the roulette wheel. As alluded to, Saratoga has a warm spring which appealed to
early trappers and tie hacks. Early settlers in the area included brothers William H. Cadwell and
Willard Cadwell. William came to the area in 1872 and proved up his homestead in 1880. Others included stockbreeder
William G. Forney and John Henry Mullison (1842-1912). Mullison came to the area from Meeker, Colorado, about
1870 and worked as prospector, tie camp boss, and later as a forest ranger in the Medicine Bow National
Forest. Each are remembered in the names of local landmarks, the Cadwells in the name of
Cadwell Slough to the west of Saratoga, Forney in the name of an irrigation ditch, and Mullison in the name of
Mullison Creek and Peak in the Medicine Bows.
Saratoga photos continued on next page.
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