Pioneers of Outlaw Country

Join us for Season One! A historical 12-part series featuring stories from the outlaw country of Wyoming; Hot Springs County. Hot Springs County was a remote land, lawless and home to the Hole-in-the-Wall gang. In the late 1800’s, there were no jails, many saloons and wide-spread homesteads. There were many opportunities for the daring and enterprising businessmen – the cattlemen, horse traders, store owners, saloon operators, farmers, coal miners and oil men who dared make this country their home. From the ground, healing hot mineral water bubbled up that attracted the attention of far-off visitors. Early tourists and patients braved the rugged stagecoach routes to visit the sanitariums and hospitals that were built in this distant land. As civilization slowly moved in, families survived the harsh winters in canvas tents and dugouts. Small ranchers and farmers carved out a living in the unforgiving landscape. Out of necessity, numerous families made friends with the outlaws of the region. Many of these men, branded as rustlers, were known to build their own herds from the maverick cows that had strayed from the land barons and large cattlemen associations. These are their stories. This podcast series, season one, has been supported in part by the Hot Springs County Pioneer Association and by a grant from the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, a program of the Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources.