Farthing, Wyoming
Encyclopedia
Farthing was a railroad station and post office in the U.S. state
of Wyoming
. Farthing is located southwest of Chugwater
in the Chugwater Creek valley. The region was originally named Iron Mountain due to iron deposits discovered on a nearby ridge in 1850 and briefly mined in 1870. The railroad was extended north from Cheyenne in anticipation of heavy mining development which never occurred.
Homesteading in the area began in the 1870s, and numerous ranches were established along the various spring creeks that flowed into Chugwater Creek. Among the homesteaders in the 1880s were William E. "Bill" Lewis and Frederick "Fred" Powell. Both men were suspected of rustling cattle from the larger ranchers. In July 1895 Bill Lewis was found dead with three shots in his chest at his ranch, and Fred Powell was shot dead a month later. Notorious range "detective" Tom Horn
, who often spent time in the upper Chugwater valley as a "bronc buster", was suspected for both murders but never indicted. In 1905, 14 year old Willie Nickell, son of the only sheepherder in the Iron Mountain region, was shot and killed while riding his father's horse in search for a herd of sheep that went missing nearby. Suspicion fell again on Tom Horn, a confession was procured from him while intoxicated and he was prosecuted and executed for the murder in Cheyenne, Wyoming
.
The railroad station was named Farthing after Charles Farthing who donated the land for the station in the early 1900s .
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. Farthing is located southwest of Chugwater
Chugwater, Wyoming
Chugwater is a town in Platte County, Wyoming, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 244.-History:In a 2005 promotion to attract new people to the town, building lots were offered for $100 provided the new owner built a house within a year and lived in it for at least...
in the Chugwater Creek valley. The region was originally named Iron Mountain due to iron deposits discovered on a nearby ridge in 1850 and briefly mined in 1870. The railroad was extended north from Cheyenne in anticipation of heavy mining development which never occurred.
Homesteading in the area began in the 1870s, and numerous ranches were established along the various spring creeks that flowed into Chugwater Creek. Among the homesteaders in the 1880s were William E. "Bill" Lewis and Frederick "Fred" Powell. Both men were suspected of rustling cattle from the larger ranchers. In July 1895 Bill Lewis was found dead with three shots in his chest at his ranch, and Fred Powell was shot dead a month later. Notorious range "detective" Tom Horn
Tom Horn
Thomas "Tom" Horn, Jr. was an American Old West lawman, scout, soldier, hired gunman, detective, outlaw and assassin. On the day before his 43rd birthday, he was hanged in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for the murder of Willie Nickell.-Early life:Born to Thomas S. Horn, Sr...
, who often spent time in the upper Chugwater valley as a "bronc buster", was suspected for both murders but never indicted. In 1905, 14 year old Willie Nickell, son of the only sheepherder in the Iron Mountain region, was shot and killed while riding his father's horse in search for a herd of sheep that went missing nearby. Suspicion fell again on Tom Horn, a confession was procured from him while intoxicated and he was prosecuted and executed for the murder in Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Laramie County. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Laramie County. The population is 59,466 at the 2010 census. Cheyenne is the...
.
The railroad station was named Farthing after Charles Farthing who donated the land for the station in the early 1900s .