Things You Should Know About Casper-Tee Roy’s Top 5
When I was told to do this story, my first response was "cool, I'll learn some neat stuff about my town!" After doing the research, I learned most of the stuff is common knowledge to anyone who has lived here for any amount of time...
1. Casper Has It's Fair Share of Sports Legends
Ok, so "Legend" may be too strong of a word, but us Casperite's are proud of our home town hero's. Here's a list of some of the biggest names to come out of the windy city:
Tom Browning-Cincinnati Reds Pitcher.
Born in Casper on April 28th, 1960, Tom was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 1982 draft. Playing 11 years in Cincy, and one in Kansas City (1995, his final season) Tom made over $16M in his 12 year Big League career
Mike Lansing-Major League Infielder
Actually born in Rawlins on April 3rd, 1968, Mike Lansing played his little league baseball in Casper. Drafted by Miami in 1990, Mike went on to enjoy a stellar career with Montreal, Colorado, and Boston from 1993-2001. The Casper Ghosts, a Colorado Rockies affiliate, currently play on Mike Lansing Field here in Casper.
Joe Alexander (AKA "Alexander The Great")-Professional Bucking Bronc Rider
Joe was born in Cora Wyoming on November 4th, 1943. At seventeen, Joe rode his first bucking horse in a ranch meadow and he never looked back. He excelled in high school rodeo, riding broncs and bulls, wrestling steers, and honing his team-roping skills. In 1964, he left Cora for Casper (WYO) College, where he won the Intercollegiate Rodeo Association’s Bareback Riding Championship. This 5’ 8” 155-pound cowboy soon joined the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). He later graduated from the University of Wyoming (Laramie), with a B.S. in Animal Husbandry. Joe is a member of the PRCA and University of Wyoming Hall of Fame's
Before you get too hot and heavy about the lack of Kelly Timberman's name, he's from Mills, so there.
2. We Build Big Things
Pathfinder Damn, named after General John Charles Fremont who had explored the area in 1842 and was nicknamed the "Pathfinder of the West", provides water storage for 226,000 acres of irrigation in Wyoming and Nebraska. When completed in 1909, Pathfinder was the largest manmade reservoir in the U.S.
3. Our Politician's Don't Take No Crap
What happens when you flunk out of Yale twice, receive two DUI's within a year, have 5 heart attacks, have been involved in a CIA Leak Scandal, and have been known to shoot a "friend" during a hunting trip, mistaking him for a quail? You become Vice President!
Born in Lincoln, Nebraska on January 30th, 1941, ex Vice President Dick Cheney attended Natrona County High School in Casper, Wyoming. After two failed stints at Yale, this local bad ass went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in political science from the University of Wyoming, became the White House Chief Of Staff, Secretary Of Defense, Chairman Of The Board and CEO for Haliburton, and wore many more hats before becoming the 46th Vice President under George W. Bush (he was even President for a few hours on two separate occasions)
4. We're Home To A "White Man First"!
Don't let the title deceive you...this is not a racist fact. Just a proud fact that the first cabin built by a non-Indian in Wyoming is located near Bessemer Bend. But, while we're on the subject, here's a tally of races that live in Wyoming as of the 2010 Census (population 55,316):
Geography | Not Hispanic | Hispanic** | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | Black* | Indian* | Asian | Islander* | Other* | Two* | ||||||||||
| Casper city | 88.4 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.7 | 7.4 | ||||||||
| United States | 63.7 | 12.2 | 0.7 | 4.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 1.9 | 16.3 | ||||||||
| *The complete Census race descriptions are as follows: White; Black or African American; American Indian and Alaska Native; Asian; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander; Some other race; and Two or more races. **Hispanics may be of any race. See 2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary file for additional information about race and ethnicity here: http://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/pl94-171.pdf. Origin can be viewed as the heritage, nationality group, lineage, or country of birth of the person or the person’s parents or ancestors before their arrival in the United States. People who identify their origin as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish may be of any race. | ||||||||||||||||
5. We Have A Few Minor Facts That May Interest You
As I was researching this story, I came across some little facts that, while not entirely deserving of their own section, build up into one decent little story:
A. Casper is the home of Sharon Brondos, one of the few writers for Harlequin Novels who is published under her own name. Sharon currently has 18 books out.
B. Casper is where Dean Conger, photo chief for National Geographic Magazine, began his photo journalism career.
C. In 1924, more oil was shipped by rail from Casper than any other place in the world
D. 2/3s of the world's pronghorn antelope live within a 200 mile radius of Casper, WY. By the way, antelope is only good as jerky, and only if it's spiced correctly
Did I miss something? Let me know by e-mailing me at troy@rock967online.com
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