Wyoming Admitted to the Union
Wyoming was admitted to the Union on July 10, 1890, becoming the 44th state. The history leading to its statehood is marked by significant exploration and settlement, beginning with early explorers like John Colter in the early 1800s, who was among the first non-natives to traverse the region. The area saw a surge of fur trappers, followed by waves of settlers, particularly during the mid-19th century with the Oregon Trail, which became a major route for over 300,000 migrants heading west. Wyoming's landscape and resources attracted cattle ranchers and miners, leading to a rapid population increase and the establishment of Cheyenne as a significant town and later the territorial capital.
In a notable advance for women's rights, Wyoming's 1869 territorial legislature granted women the right to vote, making it the first place in the United States to do so. The journey to statehood involved the growth of communities and a flourishing economy, culminating in celebrations that marked Wyoming's entrance into the Union. These events reflected a deep sense of pride and unity among its residents, highlighting their contributions to the broader narrative of American expansion and development.
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Wyoming Admitted to the Union
Wyoming Admitted to the Union
On July 10, 1890, Wyoming became the state 44th to join the Union.
The first nonnative to enter Wyoming was probably the explorer John Colter in 1806. He had been a member of the Lewis and Clark expedition. However, when that party began its return journey east in 1806, Colter decided to remain in the Pacific Northwest. Throughout 1806 he trapped in the area south and east of what is now Yellowstone National Park, and in 1807 his search for pelts took him into the park area itself.
During the early decades of the 19th century the Pacific Northwest attracted many fur trappers, and these woodsmen explored much of Wyoming. In 1811 a party of 50 trappers sponsored by John Jacob Astor's Pacific Fur Company and led by Wilson Price Hunt crossed Wyoming on its way from St. Louis to the mouth of the Columbia River, where they built Fort Astoria. This expedition proved the feasibility of a central overland route to the Pacific Ocean. The following year, members of the 1811 group returning to St. Louis under the leadership of Robert Stuart again traveled through Wyoming, using a more southerly route than on their outward journey.
Even after the expeditions of Hunt and Stuart, fur trappers confined their activities to eastern Wyoming until 1824, when a party led by Thomas Fitzpatrick crossed the Continental Divide at South Pass. Fitzpatrick (or Broken Hand, chief of the Mountain Men, as he was known to the native tribes) is often credited with the discovery of this important pass. However, even if he was not actually the first nonnative to come upon the crossing point, it was because of his efforts that the South Pass was publicized.
The Wyoming wilderness remained the domain of native tribes and fur trappers during the 1820s and 1830s. Every year trappers and natives met with representatives of eastern fur companies at the annual “fur trade rendezvous” and exchanged their pelts for supplies and trade goods. The first permanent trading post in Wyoming was established near the junction of the Laramie and North Platte rivers in 1834. Initially known as Fort William, then as Fort John, and finally as Fort Laramie, this settlement quickly became the center of the Wyoming fur trade. In 1849 the federal government purchased the fort, and until 1890 it served as a garrison for army troops.
In 1841 settlers started to flock to Oregon, and a new era in the history of Wyoming began. One of the most popular routes to the Pacific was the 2,000-mile Oregon Trail, which extended from Independence, Missouri, to Fort Vancouver in the Oregon country. Much of the trail adhered closely to the route that the trappers Robert Stuart and Thomas Fitzpatrick had blazed decades earlier. It proceeded from Independence to the Platte River and followed that waterway's north branch from the western part of what is now Nebraska. After continuing to Fort Laramie in southeastern Wyoming, the trail continued west across the southern part of Wyoming and through the famous South Pass in the Rocky Mountains. After reaching Fort Bridger in the southwestern section of Wyoming, the trail continued northwest to the Snake River Valley, which it followed to Fort Boise. From there the route continued via the Grande Ronde Valley and across the Blue Mountains to the Columbia River, and along that river until it eventually ended at Fort Vancouver.
Between 1841 and 1869 more than 300,000 people went west along the Oregon Trail, and in so doing passed through Wyoming. Some went to the Oregon country. Others, after the discovery of gold in California in 1849, branched southwest in what is now Idaho and found their fortune in the California gold fields. Only a handful of this vast number decided to remain in Wyoming. However, the westward migration had a lasting effect on the area, for Wyoming became a vital link between the Pacific Northwest and the central and eastern United States. Early in the 1850s, stagecoaches provided monthly service across Wyoming. By 1860 the Pony Express served the area, and in 1861 a telegraph system was established with stations at such places as Fort Laramie, South Pass, and Fort Bridger.
In 1861 the Civil War began. The war effort necessitated the removal of large numbers of federal troops from garrison duty in the Pacific Northwest, and as the soldiers left Wyoming clashes between settlers and the native tribes increased. There were many skirmishes from 1862 to 1864. In 1865 the hostilities became so serious that the year was known as the Bloody Year on the Plains. At the end of the Civil War several United States Army expeditions were sent out to quell the troubles, and they established a precarious peace with the Sioux in 1868. However, the skirmishes did not end until 1876, when the army decisively defeated the native tribes.
In 1867 a major gold discovery was made in South Pass, and within a short time 15 mining camps had opened in the area. At about the same time the Union Pacific Railroad started to push across southern Wyoming. The town of Cheyenne was established in southeastern Wyoming in 1867, and a number of smaller settlements along the route of the railroad followed in quick succession.
As early as 1865, a proposal had been made to establish a separate government for Wyoming, and the area's substantial population increase following the gold strike of 1867 and the advance of the railroad spurred action on this proposition. On July 25, 1868, the Wyoming Organic Act, which created the Territory of Wyoming out of parts of the territories of Utah, Dakota, and Idaho, was approved. Cheyenne was selected to be the territorial capital. Wyoming's first legislature convened there on October 12, 1869, and it was during this session that the women of the territory were given the right to vote. It was a historic first for women's rights .
Wyoming prospered as a territory. Shortly after the Civil War, Texas cattlemen began to move their stock north to graze on Wyoming's great open ranges, and by 1884 approximately 800,000 head of cattle had journeyed along the Long Trail from Texas to Wyoming. In the 1880s settlers also began to establish homesteads in the territory. In only two years, more than three million acres that had previously been owned by the government or the railroads passed into private hands. In only ten years, the territory's population increased by roughly three hundred percent.
On July 10, 1890, Wyoming was admitted to the Union. When news of its statehood reached Wyoming, there was great rejoicing. In Cheyenne most buildings were draped with red, white, and blue bunting, and on July 23, 1890, a parade took place. After the parade official ceremonies took place at the capitol building. Theresa A. Jenkins was the principal speaker at these exercises, and Esther Morris, who had largely been responsible for gaining the passage of the woman's suffrage bill in 1869, presented a flag to the state government. Morris said:
On behalf of the women of Wyoming, and in grateful recognition of the high privilege of citizenship that has been conferred upon us, I have the honor to present to the State of Wyoming this beautiful flag. May it always remain the emblem of our liberties, and the flag of the Union forever.