Silo Square

For well over 10,000 years, indigenous groups have braved the windswept plains of present-day Sweetwater County, building rich and complex societies rooted in a deep appreciation and understanding of the land.

With the arrival of the horse on the Great Plains in the late 1600’s to early 1700’s, native tribes ushered in a transformation to their way of life. The Shoshone and their offshoot the Comanche integrated the horse into everyday activities. Journeys that once took days could now be completed in hours, and trade networks expanded.

The horse reshaped daily life. Herds demanded open space, movement, and renewed relationships with the land. Evidence of this connection can be seen at the White Mountain Petroglyphs, where horses and their riders are depicted in the cliff’s carvings. This site is sacred to this day for the Shoshone, Ute, and Bannock peoples.

In 1887, a 22-year-old named Joseph Crookston set out to make a life on the rugged banks of Nitchie Creek, in what is now Sweetwater County. After arriving from Illinois, Crookston worked in Rock Springs before staking his claim on a patch of land surrounded by the windswept hills and shifting sands of the Killpecker Sand Dunes.

Using materials at hand like sandstone, milled lumber, logs, and adobe, he built a small homestead: a home, barns, corrals, and a water well to sustain his livestock. It was an act of courage in a place where water was scarce, the winds relentless, and neighbors miles away. Crookston lived and worked his land for nearly 30 years until his death in 1915. His homestead stands today as a quiet monument to the grit and self-reliance of Wyoming’s early ranchers.

Now managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Crookston Ranch remains one of Sweetwater County’s enduring links to its homesteading past. Its weathered walls and corrals tell the story of transition, from open range to settled ranching, and of one man’s determination to make a living in a demanding land.

The Blair & Hay Sheep Company played a defining role in the early history of Rock Springs, a story of ambition, enterprise, and enduring legacy. The Blair brothers, among Rock Springs’ early entrepreneurs, first sought their fortune in mining. Archibald Blair later partnered with his son-in-law, John Hay Sr., to form Blair & Hay Land and Livestock, turning their determination toward the open range, where sheep ranching offered new promise.

As their flocks and fortunes grew, the company diversified, investing in new businesses that strengthened Rock Springs. Their descendants, the Hay family, continued that entrepreneurial tradition, founding one of the town’s first and most successful banks.

The rise of the Blair & Hay operation mirrored Wyoming’s sheep boom of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when wool was king and massive outfits like the Cosgriff Brothers ran flocks numbering in the tens of thousands. Ranchers like the Blairs built more than herds, they built towns, banks, and opportunities.

Nestled along the Big Sandy River near Farson, this remarkable ranch has remained under the same family ownership for more than a century, making it one of the oldest continuously operated family ranches in Sweetwater County. Established in 1905, the Big Sandy River Ranch stands as a living testament to Wyoming’s enduring ranching tradition and the unyielding spirit of those who shaped the American West.

Set against the breathtaking Wind River Mountains, the ranch lies near the historic Oregon, Mormon, and Pony Express Trails, routes once traveled by thousands of pioneers seeking new beginnings. Where wagon wheels once carved paths across the sagebrush, generations of ranchers have cultivated a legacy of stewardship and harmony with the land.

For more than a century, the ranch has raised Rambouillet sheep and Hereford cattle, maintaining a sustainable operation across nearly 150 miles of range, from the mountain foothills to the Red Desert winter country. Though modest in its improvements, the Big Sandy River Ranch endures as a rare and irreplaceable blend of productive agriculture, natural beauty, and historical significance, a lasting monument to the families, livestock, and landscapes that define the spirit of Sweetwater County.

Along the Green River in Sweetwater County, the Thoman Ranch stands as a living symbol of Wyoming’s ranching heritage. Founded around 1900, it traces its roots to Mickey Thoman’s grandparents, who homesteaded near Kemmerer more than a century ago. Bill and Mickey Thoman purchased the then Barnhart homestead, laying the foundation for what would become a thriving family operation. Sheep was and continues to be the Thomans’ primary trade, with cattle and horses rounding out a life deeply rooted in Wyoming’s ranching tradition.

Today, the ranch remains a family affair, operated by Mickey Thoman and her daughters: Mary, Kristy, and Laurie. Their story is one of endurance and legacy, echoing across Wyoming’s wide landscape. Through flood and fire, loss and renewal, the Thomans have carried forward the spirit of those who broke this land, a reminder that in Sweetwater County, the strength of a family is as enduring as the range itself.

Across the county, the legacy of sheep ranching lives on through family operations like the Thoman Ranch. Sheep herders and their camps can still be seen with their small wagons tucked against the hills, smoke curling from stovepipes as herders ride out on horseback with their working dogs at their sides. Much as they have for generations, these men and women continue the life on the range, keeping alive one of the state’s oldest and most iconic traditions.

Agriculture has always been more than an industry in Sweetwater County, it is the heart of its identity. From the earliest homesteads to the great ranches that span the plains, the land has shaped the people just as surely as they have shaped it.

Though mining and energy have long powered the economy, it is ranching and farming that give Sweetwater its enduring character. The sight of grazing cattle and sheep, the sweep of hay fields, and the rhythm of branding season tell a story deeper than profit, they speak of heritage, hard work, and connection to the land.

Today, Sweetwater County remains a landscape of open ranges and working farms. The county is home to more than 183 farms, encompassing over 1.3 million acres, with an average size of nearly 7,500 acres. Behind every acre lies a story of persistence, family, and adaptation to the challenges of Wyoming’s high desert.

Through booms and busts, agriculture has remained the steady heartbeat of Sweetwater County, a living reminder that while industries may rise and fall, the bond between people and the land endures.