National Register of Historic Places

Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch

Laramie, Albany County, Wyoming
Listed
March 5, 1992
Type
District
Period
Civil War
Ref No.
92000122

About this property

Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch is a complex of seven ranch buildings at the crossing of the Big Laramie River by the Overland Trail. The ranch's main residence was built as a stage station for the trail in 1862, the Big Laramie Stage Station. The Big Laramie Stage Station was a home station, where stage drivers rested, passengers were served meals and horses were changed. A corduroy road was built at the same time. By 1864 ranching became established around the stage station, primarily by Tom Alsop, Edward Creighton and Charlie Hutton. With Creighton's death in 1874 the land was divided between Alsop on the west side of the river and Hutton on the east side. The ranch on the west side became known as the Heart or Hart Ranch. The ranches at the river crossing became part of the larger Riverside Livestock Company. At the beginning of the twentieth century the stage station at the Hart Ranch was sold to D.C. Buntin and James Caldwell, who started a polo pony breeding operation and added buildings. Caldwell committed suicide in the wake of the Teapot Dome Scandal and the ranch was sold. Otto Clausen initially operated the ranch as a dude ranch from 1929, but the Great Depression reduced operations to subsistence farming. Clausen sold to T.H. and Ella Therkkildsen in 1944, who managed the ranch until they passed it on to their daughter Marge and her husband T.H. Richardson in 1974.

Location

111 Hart Rd.
Laramie, Albany County, Wyoming
41.24161, -105.70235

Categories

AGRICULTURETRANSPORTATIONEXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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The Land
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Conflict & War
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The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
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Settlement
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Nearby Historic Sites

Fort Sanders Guardhouse
Early Republic
5.8 mi
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Wyoming Territorial Penitentiary
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6.8 mi
Snow Train Rolling Stock
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7.1 mi
Lincoln School
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7.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Wyoming Territorial Prison Riot, Laramie WY
1893Frontier
7.5 mi
Laramie City Vigilante Lynchings — Five Men, WY
1868Frontier
7.5 mi

Questions about this property

When was Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch listed on the National Register?

Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 5, 1992.

What type of historic resource is Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch?

Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch?

The period of significance for Richardson's Overland Trail Ranch is recorded as the civil_war era, specifically around 1862.

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