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This is Wyoming!By A. Anthony MastracchioPulling my newly bought western hat a little lower onto my forehead, I walked slowly down Main Street in Sheridan, Wyo. Sheridan was plotted as a town by John D. Loucks in 1882 on the back of a sheet of wrapping paper and named after one of his Civil War officers, General Sheridan. Loucks also named several streets after his close friends such as Grinnell Street or Burkitt Street as well as Loucks Street, which he named after himself. Walking down Main Street I passed past the Sheridan County Courthouse, which is on the National Registry of Historic Places having been completed in 1905. There is an underground tunnel, which connects the courthouse to the jail. Next is the First National Bank, which opened for business in a log cabin in 1890. There were only 283 people living in Sheridan back then while today there are over 10,000. The original town hall was a combination fire station, town hall, police station and jail. Next came Don King’s Saddlery and I am told that Don King is of English, French Canadian and Indian decent. His friends say he has a full round face and his demeanor is cheerful. They also say he is a master saddlemaker and folk artist. He is credited as being among the West’s best leather carvers and is the creator of the Sheridan style of saddle, which is very popular among ranchers and cowboys. There is a museum on the upper level of his saddle store full of amazing old west artifacts.
William F. ‘Buffalo Bill” Cody was a cowboy, a wagon train driver, a fur trapper and a pony express rider. After the Civil War Cody scouted for the army and gained the nickname ‘Buffalo Bill.’ In 1873 Cody decided to enter show business and formed Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show using real cowboys and cowgirls recruited from the ranches in the west. By 1887 he was famous in both the United States and England. Cody made Sheridan his home from 1894 to 1902 splitting his time between Sheridan and his ranch in Cody, Wyo. While in Sheridan, Cody lived at the Sheridan Inn of which he was part owner. Legend tells of Cody sitting on the front porch of the Sheridan Inn auditioning acts for his Wild West show. The Sheridan Inn was built in 1893 when the railroad came to town and it was one of Wyoming’s grandest hotels. Because of its unique appearance the inn has been featured in Ripley’s Believe It or Not as the "house of 69 gables." The inn is also listed on the National Historic Registry, but it is closed to guests. It is said, however, to have a few ghosts living in the upstairs rooms. The main attraction of the Inn today is the Rib and Chop House Restaurant on the first floor. The restaurant features great salads and excellent baby back ribs. You can also get yourself a very good steak, B.B.Q. chicken or grilled shrimp. Every summer Sheridan hosts Buffalo Bill Days featuring the Sheridan Heritage Players. The Sheridan Inn plays an important role too, especially its own mahogany bar, constructed in England and ordered special by Cody specifically for Inn patrons.
Finally there was my experience with a Sheriff from the Johnson County Sheriff's Dept., but he was most helpful and courteous. I was lost and driving 20 miles over the posted speed limit when the Johnson County Deputy stopped me. Seeing that I was from out of town he let me off with a warning then gave me directions to my destination. That is Wyoming and a good experience all around. Photo Credits: Sheridan, Wyoming Tourist Office |
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Crossing
Main Street I came upon the Mint Bar, which opened in 1907. Entering slowly I
was struck by the long mahogany bar. The Mint has been a popular watering hole
for cowboys and ranchers all these years and during prohibition a ‘speakeasy’
was quietly operated out of the Mint’s back room. The Mint was also featured in
a Kenny Rogers movie.
For
a wonderful romantic dining experience may I suggest Oliver’s Bar and Grill on
Main Street, a wonderful Mediterranean style restaurant. Oliver’s menu ranges
from traditional Angus beef to the more eclectic wild boar. I also enjoyed the
wrapped shrimp with seafood serviche served with chile lime vinaigrette and
chipolte sauce and the pan roasted halibut filet with potatoes, horseradish and
watermelon relish. Both are wonderful dishes beautifully prepared and served
with tender loving care. For a starter you may like the puree of portobello
mushroom soup or the heirloom tomatoes tossed with champagne vinaigrette and
served with goat cheese. If it is meat you crave try the house specialty pan
fried elk tenderloin with roasted summer peaches, butter braised baby root
vegetables and fresh herbs. For dessert try the raspberry wine cream slice with
chocolate sorbet. The wine list at Oliver’s is also very diverse offering wines
from Napa, Sonoma, France, Italy, Chile and Austria. The bar also makes a
powerful apple martini.
Leaving
Sheridan I drove my 2005 GMC Envoy past Buffalo to the Klondike ranch where I
enjoyed a real cattle drive. The Klondike is a working cattle ranch that accepts
a few guests to ride horses and help with the branding, calfing and cattle
drives. Owned and operated by Richard Tass the ranch is a fun experience for
would-be cowboys, cowgirls and horse lovers. The cattle drive, however, is a
totally different experience. The cattle were located about 200 miles away from
the ranch in Butch Cassidy country. Butch Cassidy country, or Hole in the Wall
as it was called back then, is literally in the middle of nowhere. Surrounded by
mountains, the land is as pristine today as it was when Cassiday first rode it.
The terrain is rugged and if not for my GMC Envoy the cattle drive would have
been lost. There is absolutely no way to get there except for a four wheel drive
vehicle or horseback, the Envoy performed admirably. Once at the campsite I
slept in a tent, then saddled my horse and rode another five miles to where the
cattle were peacefully grazing in pastures, which has to be seen to be believed.
The land is exactly the way God made it. The ride is hard and not for beginners,
though there were a few anyway. Tass and his son John are great riders and
excellent cowboys so everyone on the ride learned a lot from both of them.