"Fort Hat Creek," Niobrara County
This week's
featured items from the pages of Wyoming Almanac.....
Many of the worst fires in Wyoming history occurred in the
early weeks of January. For instance, on Jan. 11, 1870, most of the wooden
buildings making up the two main blocks of downtown Cheyenne went up in smoke. A
total of 80 buildings burned that cold night. A bit less than five years later,
the officer’s quarters at nearby Fort D. A. Russell burned. But the most
spectacular fire in Cheyenne’s history occurred on New Year’s Eve, 1916, when
the grand old Interocean Hotel was destroyed by fire in downtown Cheyenne.
On January 14, 1915, the Sheridan Commercial Company burned to the ground in Sheridan. In late January, 1922, Evanston’s original “joss house” was destroyed by fire. (The structure was reconstructed in recent years and opened as a museum).
Other
bad January fires have occurred in Riverton (the Golden Rule store fire of
1927), St. Stephens (the mission burned to the ground in 1928), and Hulett (much
of the town went up in flames on Jan. 4, 1925. Hot stoves, wood sparks were
frequently cited causes....
* * *
While it might have been unnaturally “hot” in some Wyoming
towns at various times in January, the month has the lowest “maximum”
temperature for in any month. Even Februarys have had warmer days.
The highest temperature ever recorded during any January was just 72 degrees, recorded in Casper (Jan. 24, 1892), Recluse (Jan. 23, 1981), and Torrington (Jan. 26, 1982). The February “maximum” was a balmy 79 degrees at LaGrange and Yoder on Feb. 11, 1962. But February can be cold, too. The lowest all-time temperature recorded in Wyoming was -63 below at Moran on Feb. 9, 1933. (Will someone please turn up the heat?)
