What Wyoming Was Before You Got Here [VIDEO]

Once upon a time, “Gas Stations” were “Service Stations.” Above you see The Bison Service Station at Durbin and Second Street in 1940s era Casper, Wyoming.

We think of it a simpler time when Wyoming itself was younger, with people settling in and building up our state and the west. I wish we could see our rich history from long ago, even before the whites came, to see their progress in being the first to scratch out a living in the wilds of Wyoming. For that, you would need a time machine. But Mr. Peabody isn’t returning my calls.

The roots of the camera date back to the 5^th century BC in an understanding of the principals of the lens and camera, but first image wasn’t captured until 1814 by Joeph Niepce with his Camera Obscura. The first motion pictures were taken around 1889.

Fast forward and locate to Wyoming and Casper in particular, Dull Kit’s father had an 8mm camera and he shot black & white and some color movie film between 1938 and 1941. They share a window into the lives of Wyomingites at work and play and they show some of what you may recognize today with our valleys, hills and mountains and some buildings and locations that still stand today.

Now, it’s being shared online and you can see how those before us lived, worked and played. Enjoy.