Category Archives: Transportation history

From Dust to Pavement: The Good Roads Movement in Wyoming

Posted on October 13, 2025 by lwaggen2

In the late 19th and early 20th century, progressive political movements grew in popularity and in the public consciousness. Causes such as women’s suffrage, the temperance movement, and unionization became forefront political issues, and the impacts of these movements are … Continue reading →

Posted in Transportation history, Uncategorized, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Logbook of a Legend: Jack Knight and the Birth of All-Weather Airmail

Posted on August 4, 2025 by ahcadmin

Aviation in the 1920s was unpredictable. Pilots flew routes that few had successfully flown before, with untested technologies and in all weather conditions. These risks went hand in hand with being a pilot for the airmail service. None embody this … Continue reading →

Posted in 1920s America, aviation history, Postal Service History, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Video Series Brings Union Pacific Railroad Stories to Life

Posted on March 24, 2025 by ahcadmin

When you think of the Union Pacific Railroad, you might picture massive locomotives or endless stretches of track crossing the plains. But for a recent American Heritage Center oral history project, it’s the people and their stories that take center … Continue reading →

Posted in American Heritage Center, American history, Community Stories, Labor History, Oral history, Railroad History, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Union Pacific Railroad, women's history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Railroad Romance and Reality: Unpacking the Legacy of Railways in America

Posted on June 5, 2023 by ahcadmin

Documents and photographs found in the American Heritage Center’s collections can be used to explore the ways in which railways have been and are perceived in American society. Examples of these are in an AHC virtual exhibit titled “The Art … Continue reading →

Posted in Economic History, exhibits, Railroad History, Toppan Rare Books Library, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Western history | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

65 Years Ago: Ellis Armstrong and America’s Interstate Highway System

Posted on June 21, 2021 by ahcadmin

Described as the largest public works project in the history of the world, the monumental Federal-Aid Highway Act that finally made possible the building of a planned super highway system was signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on June 29, … Continue reading →

Posted in Infrastructure, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Western history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Mail Must Go Through!

Posted on April 5, 2021 by ahcadmin

A rider and his horse thunder into view over the desert horizon, barreling towards the way-station where water and a fresh horse await. As the rider leaps off his horse and onto another, his mail bag swinging from his hand, … Continue reading →

Posted in 19th century, American history, American West, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Western history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On the Road Again: Laramie’s Highways Through the Years

Posted on August 18, 2018 by ahcadmin

The railroad is what most of Laramie’s early history is focused on as it allowed new peoples and industries to grow the burgeoning city. Even so, a few decades after the railroad first came to Laramie, a new form of … Continue reading →

Posted in found in the archive, Laramie 150th Anniversary, Lincoln Highway, Local history, Oregon trail, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Western history, Westward migration, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tracing Tracks: Laramie’s Railroad History

Posted on April 30, 2018 by ahcadmin

On May 4, 1868, the Union Pacific Railroad reached Laramie, bringing with it new people, and within a few days, regular train service to Laramie. A “Hell on Wheels” tent town soon became a bustling city with permanent structures. Over … Continue reading →

Posted in announcements, Current events, Digital collections, exhibits, found in the archive, Local history, Railroad History, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Western history, Westward migration, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

“Wild Bill” Carlisle: Last Train Robber of the American West

Posted on February 9, 2018 by ahcadmin

Train passengers leaving Green River, Wyoming, on February 9, 1916 riding the Union Pacific Railroad’s Portland Rose found themselves confronted by a young man hiding his face with a white kerchief who demanded their money at gunpoint. But the youngster … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography and profiles, Digital collections, found in the archive, Local history, oral histories, Outlaws--West (U.S.), Railroad History, Transportation history, Uncategorized, Western history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Hell on Wheels

Posted on November 5, 2011 by ahcadmin

The AHC houses several collections related to the  construction of the transcontinental railroad, westward migration, and even “hell on wheels,” which is the term used to describe the transient collection of unsavory businesses (gambling houses, saloons, brothels) and people that … Continue reading →

Posted in Railroad History, Transportation history, Wyoming history | Tagged , , | Leave a comment