Taming the Powder River: The First Bridge

In spring the Powder River became a raging wall of water and in fall a mud wallow that could halt a wagon train for days. The first effort to tame it came when the post trader constructed a wooden toll bridge, but spring floods quickly washed it out. In March 1877, the military began a new bridge, supervised by a master mechanic from Cantonment Reno and completed on April 6, 1877. On the east side of the bridge, the community of Powder River grew up, consisting of a store, stage stop, and post office. The bridge lasted until the river's meandering course stranded it in 1884.

Kaycee, Wyoming · United States