FORT CASPAR ON THE PLATT RIVER

First of all I have a disclaimer. My proofreader has been drinking Mojitos and this post may not be up to my usual standards.

It was a quiet morning spent doing housekeeping chores. First thing, Jim got up and washed the bugs off the windshield while Kathe gave me a bath in the kitchen sink.  All this blowing dust had done a number on my hairdo.  Next, it was off to Walmart for supplies and by the time they got back it was time for lunch and a trip to the dog park.

The hot winds started blowing in the early afternoon and the temperature was in the nineties. It was a good afternoon to stay home in the air conditioning and try to remember where I hid those dog biscuits yesterday.

Kathe and Jim went sight seeing with Warren and Kathy to explore Fort Caspar and the museum.  In 1859 Louis Guinard built a bridge across the Platt River here in Caspar which replaced the Mormon Ferry on the Oregon Trail. He built a trading post which  became an overnight stage stop, a Pony Express relay station and a telegraph office.
From 1861 to 1865 it became a military post when Plains Indians increased their raids along the trails.


 Today the Fort has been reconstructed by the citizens of Caspar on the original foundations using sketches made by Lt. Caspar Collins in 1863.  He sent very detailed drawings in his letters to his mother which are also on display in the museum.  All of the reconstructed buildings are furnished like they might have been when this was a working Army Fort and Trading Post.

Well, everyone has turned in for the night, guess I will too. Tomorrow we leave for Buffalo, Wyoming.