Bridger Valley a Guide to the Past

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Cover has some light edge and corner wear. ; Because the railroad bypassed the Bridger Valley in 1867 and stayed to the north, a freighting point was developed to serve the Fort and eventually the surrounding areas. Perhaps as a peace offering to Judge Carter, or in recognition of his being the most influential citizen for hundreds of miles, the railroad station just 10 miles north of Urie was christened "Carter. The R. Carter family also felt the station was named in honor of their father who ran it for a period. (1) William Bocker, an employee of Carters stated: In the winter of 1869, I hauled Dick Carters family and furniture to Carter Station, and there being no suitable residence in that vicinity, the family had to move in one end of the station house.The first buildings were built in 1868. The freight, express and telegraph buildings and passenger room were all under one roof. The next built were the section foremans and the section workers building, also homes for the agent and operator. These buildings were painted an ugly red from a red mineral found east of Point of Rocks.Carter served not only the Military at the Fort, but also ranchers and merchandisers in the area. The famous Carter Handbill (see below) advertised huge stockyards put in at Hampton about 1872, to serve the needs of ranchers in the intermountain area. Judge Carter also put in a hotel for the stockmen to the west at the Carter Station.A personal letter from a railroad official in Laramie in the mid 1870s to Judge Carter states: Your letter in regard to your brothers house at Carter has been duly received and such arrangements have been made as will give him opportunity to give breakfast to passengers going West.As time went on, Carter became the drop point for Valley residents, some later settlers even arriving on chartered freight cars with their wagons, equipment and livestock, to start farming.Good water was scarce around Carter, even with the Muddy at its doorstep. The railroad solved that problem by laying an underground line from Piedmont, where there was plenty of good water, to a large water tank on the hill just north of the track and buildings. During its peak business, freighting and stock shipping made Carter the commercial hub for the area. Everyone went by train. Carter eventually grew to support two stores, two hotels (one burned), a post office, and bar.In 1905 before trucks were competing against the railroad, Carter did an enormous business. Car loads of salt, flour, sugar and mixed groceries, machinery, wagons, barbwire and coal were shipped in. It kept at least two freight wagons going continuously. Carloads of sheep, cattle and horses were shipped out. It was said that Carter did the largest business of any station its size on the Union Pacific RailroadDouble tracking in 1905 helped give Carter a large business.According to local accounts, during one period, alfalfa was planted on the slope south of the Muddy. The area between the tracks and the Muddy served as a huge storage yard for shipments going and coming on the railroad. ; 5.75" x 8.75"; 584 pages. N° de ref. del artículo 57509

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