Town of Mills marker.

 

A marker placed in 1990 that notes the origins of the then Town of Mills.  Mills is now classified as a city.

The following plaque is in the same park, along with the monument dedicated to Lt. Caspar Collins and another to the Mormon Ferry.

Mormon Ferry Marker, Mills Wyoming.

 

August 4

1778  The Wyoming Independent Company establishes Camp Westmoreland near Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, in the Wyoming Valley.

1876  Frank E. Lucas, the13th Governor of Wyoming upon the death of Governor William B. Ross in 1924, born in Grant City, Missouri.  Upon his defeat by Nellie Tayloe Ross, he returned to his adopted town of Buffalo and became the editor of the Buffalo Bulletin.  His term as governor was a mere matter of months in length.

1886  Doc Holliday, doing well living on an income from gambling, was arrested in Denver Colorado for not having a legal means of making a living.  This was part of a city wide crackdown on gambling.

1916   Cheyenne State Leader for August 4, 1916. The Wyoming National Guard still short of recruits.
 

The August 4, 1916 details the continued efforts to bring the Wyoming National Guard up to strength, this time with an appeal from the Governor for five recruits from every county.

2020  Mills became a city under Wyoming law.

The proclamation by Governor Gordon reflected the municipality having achieved a population in excess of 4,000 residents.  This by extension meant that Natrona County became the only county in Wyoming to have two first class cities within its boundaries.

July 5

1840  Father Pierre De Smet celebrated the first Catholic Mass observed in Wyoming.

 First Catholic Mass in Wyoming
 

1858 Gold discovered at what would now be Denver, Colorado.

1909  August Malchow, the "Wisconsin Kid", defeated Tom Edmonds at Lander's Armory.  Malchow became the world welterweight champion.  See September 25 for more on Malchow.  This was Edmonds only recorded professional fight.

1913  Big Piney incorporated.

1916   The Crisis Passed. July 5, 1916
 

The news, reported in various fashions, was in fact correct. While the Guard continued to be mobilized, the danger that war would break out with Mexico had passed.

Having said that, the European crisis clearly was ongoing.

1920  The Daughters of the American Revolution dedicated an Oregon Trail marker in Mills.

The marker today:

Mills Memorial Park, Mills Wyoming

The Mills Memorial Park commemorates Lt. Caspar Collins, who was killed in the 1865 Battle of Platte Bridge Station, and the bridge and Mormon ferry that was located about 1.5 miles from the park.

1925  Gov. Nellie Tayloe Ross spoke at the dedication of the Snowy Range Road.

1934   524 tons of grasshopper bait distributed at Wheatland in an effort to combat a grasshopper infestation.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1935 Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the National Labor Relations Act, which allowed labor to organize for the purpose of collective bargaining.

1937  Ft. Laramie officially declared to be public property to be turned over by the State to the Federal government.

1937  A Rock Springs youth believed he heard a radio distress call from lost aviatrix Amelia Earhart, as reported in the Casper Paper:

CASPER TRIBUNE-HERALD, 1937
Pacific waves — Three days after the disappearance of Amelia Earhart, the July 5 edition reported on page 1: “Rock Springs Boy Picks Up Message from Flier ...
“A 12-year-old colored boy, Charles Randolph, had the thrill today of having done his share in the search for Amelia Earhart and her globe encircling companion, Capt. Frederick Noonan.
“Randolph twirled the dial of his small and inexpensive short wave radio set Sunday morning [July 4] about 8 o’clock. Suddenly he was startled when he heard what he described as a faint but distinct voice saying ‘Amelia Earhart calling.’ Over and over again, he said he heard the call but could distinguish no call letters such as the missing aviatrix would have for her radio station.
“The lad called his father, Dana Randolph who rushed to the telephone office where he contacted the wire chief, who in turn notified a department of commerce bureau of aviation official who happened to be visiting Rock Springs.
“The three rushed to the Randolph home where the lad told his story.
“The signals, he said, came in for 25 minutes before they faded out.
“He said he could hear something about a ‘ship being on a reef south of the equator,’ and added that some unintelligible figures also were given which may have been latitude and longitude, but he was unable to copy them down.
“The department of commerce official and amateur radio operators here said it was possible that Randolph may have received a radio call from the missing flier.
“The youth is not a licensed operator.
“His report was forwarded to San Francisco by the aviation official for what it was worth.”

Read more: http://trib.com/news/local/casper/a-look-back-in-time-into-the-depths/article_bc835e25-ee8e-59ad-a2cd-774ecb12c3c6.html#ixzz1zTEdZGGJ

This is from the Casper Star Tribune's A Look Back In Time column.

1971 The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 years, is formally certified by President Richard Nixon.

June 12

1847  Mormon emigrants in Brigham Young's wagon train reached the Platte River near the present location of Casper.  Attribution:  On This Day.

1863  First newspaper in Wyoming published in Ft. Bridger.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1867  The 2nd Cavalry sustains a loss when a trooper is killed by Indians at Ft. Phil Kearny.

1867  Negotiations with Man Afraid of His Horses at Ft. Laramie break down over his request for ammunition.

1880  The remaining portions of Crow territory in Wyoming were ceded to the United States.

1890  The brewery in Laramie sold its first beer.  Up until Prohibition, small local breweries were extremely common in the United States.  Attribution:  Wyoming State Historical Society.

1918  The Wyoming State Tribune: A dread occurrence in headgear. June 12, 2018.

The war raged on and the Army had authorized the "rabbit cap".

I've never heard it called that, but I know what they meant.  They meant the Garrison Cap, or Overseas Cap.  That useless piece of headgear which every soldier was afflicted with in varying degrees for decades, and which is still worn by Veterans Organizations.

World War One soldier wearing the complete assortment of wartime gear, including the garrison cap, puttees, and wartime roughout "Pershing boots".  He is carrying the M1917 Enfield Rifle, rather than the M1903.

They'll be more on this in an upcoming thread.  Probably more than one.  Suffice it to say, the cap had no real virtues other than that its flat and doesn't take up any room if you aren't wearing it.  Based on a French pattern, it sufficed for some sort of hat for men who were wearing helmets in combat, and therefore had to keep their campaign hats somewhere while at the front, which was a pain.

But it was around forever.

1920  The 1st Reg, Wyoming Cavalry, National Guard, organized.  It would become the 115th Cavalry Rgt in 1922.

Contrary to what many may expect, cavalry units in the National Guard were greatly expanded following World War One, as the National Guard became more closely aligned with the overall needs of the U.S. Army.

1921   President Harding urged every young man to attend military training camp.

1930  An earthquake collapsed a building in Grover.

2021  Mills Wyoming celebrated 100 years as a municipality in its annual Summerfest event. The anniversary was marked by speeches from the Wyoming Secretary of State, Senator Barasso, and Mayor Coleman.