Pursuing Employment In Wyoming

I moved here for a job… There are so many reasons people move in and out of Wyoming. In this podcast we explore the Boom and Bust in the coal industry as well as hear stories of “why” people have moved to Wyoming and stayed. Wyoming has been mining coal for quite some time. “This isn't a new industry. It's been what's been happening ever since the turn of the century, and even before then. 1880s is when some of the first records have been identified, but that's only those that have been identified. There are no doubt Native Peoples have used coal for some purposes as well.” Lukas Fralick, our resident historian for Wyoming Humanities, shares history and his personal experience in the Boom & Bust cycle in Campbell County.

In 1973 the United States was seeing a lot of environmentalist movements; coal powered power plants were being built everywhere. The air was being terribly polluted. President Richard Nixon supported Congress' efforts to create the Environmental Protection Agency and signed, and totally approved, the Clean Air Acts and all their various amendments in the early '70s that basically regulated the high sulfur coal that the Eastern states produced making them less profitable. They still made money. This didn't kill the industry, but it did hurt it. But it allowed for Wyoming coal, which was low sulfur, to suddenly become a highly profitable endeavor.

Learn more on Wyohistory.org

The stories you hear on this podcast are all centered on the theme “I moved here for a job, and I stayed because… Lisa Scroggins from Casper, Dan Lee from Sheridan and Cathy Ringler from Clark talk about their journey to Wyoming and finding community.

Remember to email me at emy@thinkwy.org to bring your voice, perspective, and stories. We want to share them everywhere. Wyoming Humanities is committed to stories!

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