Facts about Wyoming
The State of Wyoming is a state in the western region of the United States of America.
According to the 2005 U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis report, Wyoming’s gross state product was $27.4 billion.
During World War II Wyoming was one of several states where Japanese Americans were incarcerated in internment camps.
Three interstate highways and seven U.S. highways pass through Wyoming.
The Snake River in northwest Wyoming eventually drains into the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean, as does the Green River through the Colorado River Basin.
Summers in Wyoming are warm with July high temperatures averaging between 85 °F (29°C) and 95 °F (35°C) in most of the state.
The mineral extraction industry and the travel and tourism sector are the main drivers behind Wyoming’s economy.
Historically, agriculture has been an important component of Wyoming’s economic identity.
Wyoming law establishes three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
The name Wyoming is derived from the Delaware (Munsee) name xwй:wam?nk, meaning at the big river flat, originally applied to the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania.
Wyoming is unique in that it does not have an intermediate appellate court, like most states.
Wyoming women were the first in the nation to vote, serve on juries and hold public office, long before other states followed suit.
Wyoming became the first state in the Union to elect a female governor, Nellie Tayloe Ross, who was elected in 1924 and took office in January 1925.
Wyoming is the least populous of any state (or the District of Columbia) and has the lowest population density of the 48 states.
Wyoming is an arid state with much of the land receiving less than 10 inches (25 cm) of rainfall per year.
After the Union Pacific Railroad reached the town of Cheyenne, which later became the state capital, in 1867, the population began to grow steadily in the Wyoming Territory, which was established on July 25, 1868.
Appeals from the state district courts go directly to the Wyoming Supreme Court.
Components of Wyoming's economy differ significantly from those of other states.
Wyoming’s unemployment rate for 2006 was approximately 3.3 percent, which is lower than the national average of 4.6 percent.
Bush's Vice President, Dick Cheney, is a Wyoming resident and represented the state in Congress from 1979 to 1989.
Heart Mountain Relocation Center in Wyoming was located between the towns of Cody and Powell.
The climate of any area in Wyoming is largely determined by its latitude, altitude and local topography.
Wyoming also has state circuit courts (formerly county courts), of limited jurisdiction, which handle certain types of cases, such as civil claims with lower dollar amounts, misdemeanor criminal offenses, and felony arraignments.
Wyoming is also notable as being the only state in the U.S to have only one four-year college, the University of Wyoming until the Wyoming Catholic College was founded in 2007 in Lander.
Today Wyoming is known for its scenic locations which attract millions of tourists each year.
Instead, because of the overall aridity of Wyoming, water in the Great Divide Basin simply sinks into the soil or evaporates.
Weather and topography in Wyoming both have more contrast than in most other states.
Wyoming was the location of the Johnson County War of 1892 which was fought between large cattle operators and new homesteaders.
Most of the territory that comprises Yellowstone National Park is located in Wyoming.
Severe weather is not uncommon in Wyoming, with the state being one of the leading states for hail damage in the United States.
The story of boom and bust has gone on in the energy and mining industries in Wyoming for much of the twentieth century.
Wyoming is bordered on the north by Montana, on the east by South Dakota and Nebraska, on the south by Colorado, on the southwest by Utah, and on the west by Idaho.
In 2002, over six million people visited Wyoming’s National Parks and monuments.
Despite Wyoming's clear preference for Republicans in national offices, Democrats have held the governorship for all but eight years since 1975.
Wyoming has had a rather quiet profile since its colorful and exciting past of its former frontier days.
Wyoming has the distinction of being a state that provided several firsts for the advancement of American women, and is known as the "Equality State" because of it.
Total taxable values of mining production in Wyoming for 2001 was over $6.7 billion.
East to west, Interstate 80 passes through the cities of Cheyenne, Laramie, Rawlins, Rock Springs, Green River and Evanston before it exits Wyoming toward Salt Lake City, Utah.
The climate in Wyoming is generally a semi-arid continental climate (Koppen climate classification BSk) which is drier and windier in comparison to most of the United States with temperature extremes.
The Wyoming School for the Deaf in Casper, operated by the State Department of Education, serves approximately 44 students either at the Deaf School or in public schools of the state.
Wyoming had the first female court bailiff (Mary Atkinson, Laramie, in 1870) and the first female justice of the peace in the country (Esther Hobart Morris, South Pass City, in 1870).
The main agricultural commodities produced in Wyoming include livestock (beef), hay, sugar beets, grain (wheat and barley), and wool.
The key tourist attractions in Wyoming include Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Devil’s Tower National Monument, and Fossil Butte National Monument.
The region now known as Nunavut has supported a continuous population for approximately 4,000 years.
The name Wyoming is derived from the Delaware (Munsee) name xwй:wam?nk, meaning at the big river flat, originally applied to the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania.
Wyoming is nicknamed the "cowboy state" because of its pre-statehood economy which consisted mainly of cattle and sheep ranching.
Governor Dave Freudenthal was elected in 2002 and has one of the highest approval ratings of any governor in the U.S. Wyoming in 2006 reelected incumbent Republican Congresswoman Barbara Cubin by just over 1,200 votes.
All state court judges in Wyoming are nominated by the Judicial Nominating Commission and appointed by the Governor.
The state collects a use tax of 5 percent on items purchased elsewhere and brought into Wyoming.
Wyoming is bordered on the north by Montana, on the east by South Dakota and Nebraska, on the south by Colorado, on the southwest by Utah, and on the west by Idaho.
Wyoming’s mineral commodities include coal, natural gas, coalbed methane, crude oil, uranium, and trona.
Wyoming was nicknamed the "Equality State" because of its historical role in establishing equal voting rights for women. Wyoming was the first territory to grant "female suffrage" and became the first state in the Nation to allow women to vote, serve on juries and hold public office.Jan 4, 2018
Yellowstone National Park has more geysers than any other geyser field in the world. Devils Tower was designated as the first National Monument in 1906. Wyoming was the first state to give women the right to vote. In 1925 Nellie Tayloe Ross was elected governor of Wyoming, becoming the nation's first woman governor.
Depending on who you talk with, the word “Wyoming” in Delaware Indian language means either "large plains" or “mountains and valleys alternating;” in Munsee language "at the big river flat;” or in Algonquin “a large prairie place.”
Wyoming State Flag. A bison on a blue field bordered in white and red. The state seal branded on the bison. The woman represents the state motto "Equal Rights" and the two men represent cattle ranchers and miners.
The flag of the state of Wyoming consists of the silhouette of an American bison. The red symbolizes the Native Americans and the blood of pioneers who gave their lives. The white is a symbol of purity and uprightness.