Exploring Cheyenne: History, Culture, & Our Experience as Black Travelers - TWB Across America Vol 1

[@VisitCheyenne]

Thanks for coming to visit us! We are glad that despite the high winds and being in the off-season that you enjoyed it. Let's get you back for Cheyenne Frontier Days at some point!

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Yes we definitely enjoyed our time in Cheyenne and we absolutely have to come back for Frontier Days!

[@Ucerrrzcb939]

Thank you for this!!!!! You truly have no idea how important this is for Black travelers who want to visit places like Wyoming.

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Yes you are right! And not only Cheyenne but other smaller cities (and larger) that don’t normally have a large Black population or isn’t on the radar for most Black travelers. The reason we stated our show was because we couldn’t find any information for Black travelers on the cities and places in the Pacific Northwest because of those reasons. Thank you for watching!

[@mountain0382]

Being from Lovelland Colorado fifty miles south of Cheyenne, there are two main reasons to go to Cheyenne and face the wind, 1. Wyoming liquor stores are open on Sunday, and fireworks are legal to buy. Also the snow doesn't melt in Wyoming, it wears out.

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

😂😂😂

[@MrSmith888]

I want to visit all 50 states, and this is a great video for that because I had no idea of what to do in Cheyenne

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Awesome! We hope you enjoy your visit when you go. 😊

[@CYBInnovations]

Yess thank so much this video has broadened my wife's and My perspective as we are aspiring to live or have property in the rocky mountain region as" Cultural " people.

[@AyeshaTheGreat]

Glad you were able to do some things in Cheyenne. Not sure I have ever thought about visiting but this video does give me some ideas. Great work.

[@christinaglahn8036]

Such a high-quality channel!

[@johnhenry9162]

Y'all completely missed one of the larger facets of Black history in Cheyenne , the ir0ny being that you filmed it and no doubt walked right by it. Look past the Wrangler in your opening shot , the grey concrete building across the street is the Hynds Building.........but what was there originally? The Inter-Ocean Hotel until it burned in 1916 , once the best hotel between St Louis and San Francisco. Built in 1875 by Barney Ford , who was an escaped slave who came to Wyoming , ended up rich , was a very early Civil Rights pioneer. Built the Inter-Ocean in Denver and subsequently built one in Cheyenne. It became the center of Cheyenne upper crust night life in that era , and was the first hotel in the entire nation to have electric lights. Burned in 1916 , likely due to faulty wiring. You also might wish to explore the saga of Jim Beckwourth , who of course ran with the early French fur trappers who opened the region allegedly all the way back to Jacques La Remy the namesake of Laramie county and the city of Laramie. Beckwourth was emancipated and came west , he's the man that Beckworth Pass in the Sierras is named after.

[@jsanders9975]

Have you guys came across sundown towns?

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Early on in Episode 50 we encountered a town here in Washington that treated us like we were a sundown town (apparently they are ignorant sun up to sun down). Other than that, we haven’t come to up on any sundown town during our journeys. We did cover a county where one of the cities use to be a sundown town, we spoke about its history in the episode (Episode 137 Our Honest Thoughts on Tri-Cities). Thanks for watching!

[@datdudeDLove]

Is the heavy wind year round or just during a specific time of year?

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

We thought we heard it was common all year. Which would make sense since the mountains and differences in air pressure. We definitely want to check it out in the Summer. But can’t imagine what their WINTERS are like and don’t care to find out 😂

[@sl3863]

You need to enjoy the abundant wildlife in Wyoming. Antelope, Deer, Elk, Buffalo, Coyote, Wolves, Redtailed Hawks, Eagles, Bats, and Owls.

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

@sl3863 yes we know! Originally that’s what we were looking forward to in coming here. But unfortunately the wind put a wrench in that. Like we said in the episode, our first thing scheduled to do was go to the Bison farm. Next time for sure.

[@Bigrod8673]

wind is pretty common year round, but our winters are not to bad. Maybe two really cold weeks.

[@OpulentLightBeing]

@@TravelingWhileBlack1 Winter is brutal and happens from October to May. It's always cold, but weirdly, you get used to it.

[@ericblair3009]

This was interesting! It just popped up in my feed, so I watched it. HUmmmm I am not sure about the light breeze you experienced here BUT it DOES keep the mosquitoes away :} . OK I will have to admit the we often DO have hurricane force winds around here- I have seen reports of wind speeds over 114 mph and I have known a few people who went airborne for several feet before they hit the wall and stopped. When you were at the depot did you happen to stop in at the Majestic Building? I used to work in the Majestic. Last I heard they have the last human operator required elevator in Wyoming and it is real neat! The[very haunted] Majestic is north from the Depot and visible from the depot. On the left going north is the Albany which serves good food, then the RED building Wrangler. Keep going north and you end up at the capitol building. East of the Majestic is the plains hotel which is also visible from the Depot. reference Cheyenne Frontier Days, IF you really want to come back for that the Plains Hotel is most likely the best place to stay. The Plains is centrally located and right down in the middle of most of the excitement for the several parades [4 of them which comes right in front of the Plains] and the FREE pancake breakfast [3 days of that week] This year I think they only served between 5-6,000 people in 2 hours. Back in the 90s they served almost 14,000 people one day in that couple of hours! Hotel space, book your room AT LEAST a year prior to Cheyenne Frontier Days as the population really booms during that 2 weeks. Crash space even is expensive -- I have heard a few $hundred a night for floor space. One of the many things we like about Wyoming is that most folks are friendly and as long a person is not a jerk people get along well here. There IS a LOT of history here

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Wow! Thanks a lot for that insight! Looks like we better start booking our plans for Frontier Days NOW. Hopefully you see us out there and thanks for watching!

[@MsJackieGaines]

I had my first Buffalo Burger in Wyoming...thanks for sharing!! ❤

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Same!! Glad you enjoyed our episode 😊!

[@jamesstrickland517]

I grew up halfway between Denver and Cheyenne, (Denver 52 miles to the South, and Cheyenne 47 miles to the North) So I spent a lot of time in both. Cheyenne Frontier Days is the largest Rodeo in the world and as weird as it sounds My home Town of Greeley, Colorado is the third largest with it's 4th of July Independence Stampede. I have lived in Cheyenne for the last 6 years, it is where I came to retire mostly because of it's great Veterans Hospital and the Small town atmosphere. Of course the fact that Wyoming has no income tax is an added bonus.

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

Right on! Wow never would have thought Greeley, CO had the third largest rodeo in world. We really do want to check out frontier days. Thanks for watching!

[@jamesstrickland517]

@@TravelingWhileBlack1 Cheyenne, WY #1, Calgary, Ontario #2, Greeley, CO #3, and Ruidoso, NM #4.

[@johnhenry9162]

Frontier Days is NOT the largest rodeo in the world , nor was it the first. Both of those commonly spouted items are myths. It's also a LOT smaller than it was in the '60s and '70s , downtown is a shell of itself by comparison and all the big hotels from that era are gone , The Hitching Post , The Frontier ( building is apartments now)..the last vestiges are The Plains and The City Plaza and both are just slowly crumbling. It doesn't draw the crowds it used to for a variety of reasons , some of those relating to greed within Cheyenne's political and business structures.

[@jamesstrickland517]

@@johnhenry9162 I agree and the pro-rodeo circuit did not help. I grew up in Greeley throughout the 60'-70's and between the Stapede, Frontier Days, and the National Western Stock Show in Denver we had a lot of fun.

[@OpulentLightBeing]

I live here and yes... that wind is hella abusive!

[@TravelingWhileBlack1]

😂😂😂

[@alfamale33]

I live in Casper Wyoming the wind in our state is no joke! Come visit Casper if you like history and museums fort Casper is cool and fort Laramie is just up the road its between Cheyenne and Casper i visited it as a kid if any place is haunted ft. Laramie is definitely haunted!

[@LawMedLegal]

Why do you need separate history? Making Race an issue is not cool. My wonderful Boss happens to be Black but he doesn’t talk about it all day long. We just go about our lives here in Harmony. Making this an issue causes problems in *other cities please don’t bring that here. 🙏🏼