History of Casper, Wyoming
Casper is the only city in Natrona County, Wyoming|Natrona County, Wyoming, United States, although the county is home to a number of small towns and Casper suburbs. With a population of 49,644, Casper is the second largest city in Wyoming, after the capital city of Cheyenne, Wyoming|Cheyenne with 53,011 inhabitants, according to the United States Census 2000|2000 census. The medium-sized city is located in east-central Wyoming off Interstate 25, and is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming|Natrona County{{GR|6}}.
The city is located at the foot of Casper Mountain, the north end of the Laramie Mountain Range, along the North Platte River. The city was established east of the site of Fort Caspar, which was built during the mid-19th century mass migration of land seekers along the Oregon Trail|Oregon, California Trail|California and Mormon Trail|Mormon trails. Emigrant tracks are still visible along the North Platte River north of town. Although relatively small by national standards, its location within the region makes Casper a center of banking and commerce. Since the discovery of crude oil in the region during the 1890s, Casper became the regional petroleum industry center. Oil was first discovered in the infamous Salt Creek Oil Field in 1889, approximately 40 miles (64 km) north of Casper, and the first refinery in Casper was built in 1895. The city has scheduled air service at Natrona County International Airport, a former army air base built during World War II.
With the development of the Wyoming coal and uranium fields in recent decades, the city has continued its role as an important center for the energy industry. Casper and the rest of Wyoming is served by the Casper Star-Tribune, a newspaper with statewide circulation. Casper is also the site of Casper College. The city is home to the Casper Troopers, a drum and bugle corps in Drum Corps International.
Casper was the hometown of Matthew Shepard, a University of Wyoming student who was murdered in Laramie during October 1998 in an apparent anti-gay hate crime that received international media attention. In January 2005 Shepard's former high school classmate Guy Padgett|Guy V. Padgett III was elected mayor of Casper, having earlier become the first openly gay elected official in Wyoming history when he'd been elected to the City Council in 2003. NBC newsman Pete Williams has also been a member of the Casper gay community, serving as news director for KTWO-TV|K2 News before moving on to national broadcasting.
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