During your visit to this Casper, Wyoming attraction, explore central Wyoming’s regional history through the Museum’s indoor and outdoor exhibits on prehistoric peoples, Plains Indians, ranching, the energy industry, and the City of Casper as well as the western emigrant trails and frontier army. The Museum Store carries gifts and keepsakes related to Wyoming.
Indoor Exhibits
Prehistoric Central Wyoming
Learn about the Paleoindians, the native peoples of central Wyoming in Prehisotric Central Wyoming. The exhibit explores mammoth and bison hunts, lithic production and cultural chronology from Paleoindian to Protohistoric.
Trail Features
Emigrants following the Oregon, Mormon and California Trails passed through Casper during the Westward Expansion. See features of the trail like the Mormon Ferry and Guinard and Richard Bridges in the Museum’s Trail Features.
Community Development
Discover 100 years of Natrona County history in Community Development. Objects from the Museum’s collection and interactive videos interpret the history of Casper and the other communities in Natrona County.
Oil and Gas Industry
Learn about Natrona County’s oil and gas industry, an integral part of Natrona County’s growth and economy, presented in displays that explore refineries and oil field development.
Central Wyoming Agriculture
Explore Central Wyoming Agriculture. This exhibit, centered around a 1901 Schulte Hardware Sheep Wagon, highlights the development of the sheep and cattle industry in central Wyoming.
Native American Exhibit
Learn about the history of the Plains Indians in the Museum’s Native American exhibit. Objects on display include clothing, tools used for hunting and war, and ceremonial pipes.
Outdoor Exhibits
Outdoors, buildings reflect the original structures built on the grounds of Fort Caspar. Buildings were reconstructed close to their original locations using a floor plan drawn by Lieutenant Caspar Collins.
Mormon Ferry
Established by the Mormon pioneers, the Museum’s Mormon Ferry was part of the first commercial ferry operation at the Upper Crossing of the North Platte River in 1847.
Guinard Bridge
The reconstructed section of the Guinard Bridge was added to the Museum’s grounds in the 1980s. Learn about the original tool bridge and trading post established by trader Louis Guinard between 1859 and 1860.
Telegraph Office
The Museum’s Telegraph Office replicates the original that stood on the transcontinental telegraph line linking the East and West Coasts. During the 1860s, troops were sent by the U.S. government to such stations to guard the transcontinental telegraph.
Calvary Barracks
Learn about the Calvary troops who established Fort Caspar in 1862 in the Calvary Barracks. Soldiers of Company G of the 11th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry manned Platte Bridge Station from 1863 through the spring of 1865.
Infantry Barracks
Soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Volunteer Infantry were the first to arrive at the post in 1865. Discover more about the Infantry soldiers in Caspar’s Infantry Barracks.
Lieutenant, Captain and Major’s Quarters
See where Lieutenant, Captain and Majors lived during Fort Caspar’s days of operation in the Museum’s three replicas of Lieutenant, Captain and Major’s Quarters. Displays within explore the lives of Lieutenant Henry C. Bretney of Company G, 11th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry and Major Rudolph Martin Anderson of the 11th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry.
Mess Hall
A replica mess hall represents the original which served as a kitchen and dining room for soldiers at Fort Caspar.
Commissary
Commissaries, like the one displayed at Fort Caspar Museum, provided soldiers with basic food rations, uniforms and equipment.
Blacksmith Shop
Visit the blacksmith shop. During the 1800s, the blacksmith served the needs of the troops at the military post, along with the emigrants and others traveling along the Oregon, Mormon and California Trails.
Sulter’s Store
Sulter’s Store was a trader authorized by the army to set up a store on Fort Caspar’s grounds. It served as the social center for soldiers and offered goods not normally available from the army’s commissary.
Carriage Shed
Within the Carriage Shed you can discover the Museum’s collection of wagons and other transportation vehicles from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Centennial Park
Centennial Park was constructed in 1990 in honor of the Wyoming State Centennial. Stroll through the park and discover a series of signs, detailing the history of central Wyoming and the Museum’s Signature Cabin, featuring photographs and student signatures from all Natrona County schools in 1990.
Shop the Museum Store
Be sure to stop by Fort Caspar Museum Store. Gifts and keepsakes including handmade Native American crafts, antique beads, assorted glassware, Wyoming t-shirts, jewelry, posters, toys and novelties as well as a wide selection of books related to the history of the American West are available to purchase.
- The Fort Caspar Museum is ADA compliant.
- Make the most out of your visit to the Museum. Information on Fort Caspar Museum, Casper and Wyoming is available in the Museum’s lobby.
- Don’t miss the penny pincher machine, located in Fort Caspar Museum’s lobby. Choose from designs including Fort Caspar, the Mormon Ferry and the Museum’s logo.