Due West

Wyoming history is the focus of two books recently acquired by the Rock Springs Library. One is a comprehensive collection of maps, the other a photographic exploration of things left behind. Both would interest anyone with an interest in Wyoming that was.

The Rock Springs Library has been designated by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality/Abandoned Mine Land Division as a depository for their published materials concerning the various subsidence projects now underway. We currently have a city wide mine subsidence risk map with accompanying documentation and a map of mines in tract H (AML 6A-X Phase 1). A map is also provided online by the city of Rock Springs. Also online are the latest new releases from the WY DEQ/AML. Contact the reference department at the Rock Springs Library for more information  – 352-6668.

The Massacre of the Chinese at Rock Springs, Wyoming

Drawn by T. de Thulstrup

‘On the morning of September 2, 1885, a conflict between White and Chinese miners over work assignments at No. 6 mine apparently was the catalyst precipitating the mob action that has come to be known as the ‘Chinese Massacre’. About 2 p.m., a mob of some 150 White miners armed with rifles opened fire on the Chinese section of town and then set it afire. All the residents not killed or wounded fled into the surrounding hills. The Whites killed 28 Chinese, either by gun otr fire, severely wounded fifteen and forced some 500 to leave town…’  – Annals of Wyoming vol. 59, no. 2 – Fall 1987 – p.17

The Sweetwater County Library System has the following titles available.

Check our catalog.

‘Chinese Massacre’ (DVD) – Main Street Wyoming

‘Incident at Bitter Creek: The Story of the Rock Springs Chinese Massacre’ – Storti, Craig

‘Rock Springs Massacre, 1885′ – Isham, Dell

‘The Rock Springs, Wyoming Chinese Massacre, 1885′ – Wilson, Arlen Ray

The Reference Desk at the Rock Springs Library also has a collection of magazine and newspaper articles titled ‘Compiled Information on the Chinese Massacre of 1885 in Rock Springs, WY’ prepared by Michelle Maser, Reference Librarian at the White Mountain Library. Ask the Reference Staff for assistance.

The Digital Sanborn Maps, provided by the Wyoming State Library, allow the user access to Sanborn fire insurance maps circa 1867 – 1970. The viewer can chart the growth of Rock Springs over the years and locate structures, streets, place names, and those mines our area was so noted for in the past. Users can access the maps from home or in any library in the Sweetwater County Sytem. Contact SCLS for more details. Watch out for areas of high subsidence…
 

Jon Lane, Curator of Public Programs at South Pass City State Historic Site, will give a presentation on gold mining in South Pass City & the Sweetwater Mining District.

Tuesday, July 24, 3:30 pm – Rock Springs Library

‘Sweetwater Gold: Wyoming’s Gold Rush 1867-1871′

by: Marion Mcmillan Huseas

“The story of Wyoming’s gold rush in the Sweetwater mining district begins with the first evidence of gold found by a Georgian returning home in 1842…” – Huseas 1991

Photograph: The Cave, South Pass Avenue, South Pass City, Fremont County, WY

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division

Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

‘A Quick History of South Pass City & Atlantic City: Wyoming Ghost Towns’By Joyce Spita

“Wyoming’s first and wildest gold camps, South Pass City and Atlantic City, began in a peculiar series of fits and starts lasting a quarter of a century before a full-scale rush broke out. The Pass itself, for which the town was named, had been known and used by white men at least as early as 1812, and by the Indians long before then”

Spita 1980

Photograph: South Pass City, Fremont County, WY

Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division
Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Detroit Publishing Company Collection

‘South Pass and its Tales’ – James L. Sherlock

“A true account of the birth of a western town in the 1860s and its difficult development from a few shacks into a thriving mining and ranching community. James Sherlock writes from his own childhood memories and from the firsthand stories of friends and relatives. The harrowing tales of South Pass are more fascinating than any novel could be”

J Sherlock 1978