National Historic Trails Interpretive Center, Casper
Near Casper, Wyoming
The ridge above Casper saw some of the heaviest emigrant traffic in American history. Between eighteen forty and eighteen ninety, roughly five hundred thousand people followed the North Platte River through this spot on their way west, with Oregon, California, or Salt Lake City as their destination and the wagon ruts of the preceding season as their guide. The National Historic Trails Interpretive Center opened here in August of two thousand two to tell that story.
It was built through a partnership between the Bureau of Land Management, the City of Casper, and a local nonprofit. The city donated the land, state and federal funds covered construction, and voters even passed a one-cent sales tax to help outfit the exhibits. The center interprets four great trails that crossed through Casper: the Oregon, California, Mormon Pioneer, and Pony Express routes, placing Casper at the literal crossroads of the American westward migration.
