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The Medicine Bows: Wyoming's Mountain Country
The Medicine Bows Wyoming's Mountain Country Author:Scott Thybony, Robert G. Rosenberg, Elizabeth Mullett Rosenberg The publication of "The Medicine Bows" adds a new dimension to the enjoyment of the high country of southeastern Wyoming. "The Medicine Bows" tells the 8500-year story of a mountainous region rich in the history of Plains Indians, mountain men, tie hacks, and early forest rangers. The Medicine Bow Mountains and surrounding area w... more »as an important fur trade center and one of the last refuges of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Sioux Indians. Individuals like William Ashley, Jim Bridger, and John Fremont were instrumental in the early explorations of the region, while men like Francis Parkman and Owen Wister did their part to memorialize this land and its people. With the arrival of overwhelming numbers of settlers, the region played an important role in the development of the Overland Stage and Emigrant Route and the first transcontinental railroad and telegraph. The significance of the Medicine Bow region in the history of Wyoming and western America lay in its abundant natural resources in close proximity to major 19th century migration routes. Although logging, grazing, and limited mining are still conducted on the Medicine Bow National Forest, emphasis has shifted in recent times to its recreational value. The high mountain lakes and streams, rugged rocky peaks and endless vistas of forest and plain provide a last refuge - a physical and psychological release from 20th century pressures. The Medicine bow region now provides an escape to a place the early explorers and the mountain men might still recognize, a repository of silence, natural beauty, and history.« less