Open Spaces Sustained by Agriculture - Dwyer Junction, WY
N 42° 14.008 W 105° 01.230
13T E 498308 N 4675697
A Wyoming's Agriculture marker stands along the sidewalk leading to the scenic overlook at the Dwyer Junction Rest Area, well north of Wheatland, providing some background about the agriculture that sustains this area.
Waymark Code: WM12MQF
Location: Wyoming, United States
Date Posted: 06/16/2020
Views: 4
The marker reads:
Welcome to Platte County Wyoming. Laramie Peak frames the western backdrop of a landscape that includes the Oregon Trail and Register Cliff where thousands of Pioneers left their mark. Today these open spaces are sustained by agricultural production of livestock and crops, providing habitat for diverse wildlife and a foundation for the communities that exist in the county.
Settlement of this land began in the early 1880s with the Swan Land and Cattle Company. This ranch held more acreage than the state of Connecticut. Agriculture paved the way for construction of the area reservoirs providing water storage for irrigation, wildlife habitat, fisheries, and recreation. South of this point lies the Wheatland Irrigation District which delivers irrigation water to 55,000 acres of formerly dry unproductive landscape, making it the largest and only privately held irrigation district in the United States. Many crops including corn, sugar beets, wheat and barley are raised on this land.
Even with Platte County’s relatively small population, agricultural producers raise food for thousands of Americans. Cattle raised in Platte County provide a year’s supply of beef for 850,000 people. Agriculture serves as the backbone of the area’s rural communities and sustains the open vistas you are enjoying today.
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"Our Heritage. Our Future" is a common slogan in the agricultural/farming community, and besides the bucking horse emblem of the State of Wyoming, an emblem for "Our Heritage. Our Future" is at the bottom of the sign, with livestock separated by grain.
Marker Name: Open Spaces Sustained by Agriculture
Marker Type: City
Group Responsible for Placement: Wyoming's Agriculture
Addtional Information: Not listed
Date Dedicated: Not listed
Marker Number: Not listed
Web link(s) for additional information: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Please post a photo of you OR your GPS at the marker location. Also if you know of any additional links not already mentioned about this bit of Wyoming history please include that in your log.