By Chad Willett
Editor’s note: The following is the last in a series of eight guest op-eds from leaders of the Forward Greater Cheyenne initiative that have been published each Tuesday in the WTE since Jan. 22.
Public drinking, gambling and prostitution; shootings, stabbings and thefts. Does this sound like Cheyenne? Nah, not today, but it certainly was how things were around here in the 1800s.
Populated by characters that will be revered for generations, this city rose out of the ground as one of those shady “Hell on Wheels” railroad towns. There’s a mystique and unapologetic truth to those roots.
But what about the other story that's often overlooked? The story in which Cheyenne appeared so fast, we were dubbed the “Magic City of the Plains”? The story of a rough and rowdy city that, over time, gradually shifted its shape into a social and cultural hub for the area?
That’s the story I dig: The story of the everyday magicians who bettered our community because they were motivated to make a better life for themselves and others.
Back in the day, people viewed Cheyenne, Wyoming, as this magical place to go for entertainment, opportunity and the chance at a better life.
Editor’s note: The following is the last in a series of eight guest op-eds from leaders of the Forward Greater Cheyenne initiative that have been published each Tuesday in the WTE since Jan. 22.
Public drinking, gambling and prostitution; shootings, stabbings and thefts. Does this sound like Cheyenne? Nah, not today, but it certainly was how things were around here in the 1800s.
Populated by characters that will be revered for generations, this city rose out of the ground as one of those shady “Hell on Wheels” railroad towns. There’s a mystique and unapologetic truth to those roots.
But what about the other story that's often overlooked? The story in which Cheyenne appeared so fast, we were dubbed the “Magic City of the Plains”? The story of a rough and rowdy city that, over time, gradually shifted its shape into a social and cultural hub for the area?
That’s the story I dig: The story of the everyday magicians who bettered our community because they were motivated to make a better life for themselves and others.
Back in the day, people viewed Cheyenne, Wyoming, as this magical place to go for entertainment, opportunity and the chance at a better life.