Nothing Left To See Of Battle Wyoming

There was a battle in the tiny town of Battle, Wyoming, and it cost the entire town. The place was never that big to begin with, so it was not hard to wipe out. Today, you can visit Battle Wyoming to see what is left. It isn't much. But then again, it never was much.

Battle Wyoming is a historic, abandoned mining ghost town located at an elevation of nearly 10,000 feet in the Sierra Madre Mountains of Carbon County. It was an old mining town. There are no records of its peak population. Though we can now say that its current population is ZERO.

You might be wondering how it got the name BATTLE!. It came from local conflicts between miners and sheepherders. There were conflicts with indian tribes in the area, but that was before the tiny town was established.

Around the area, which is beautiful, are Battle Lake and Battle Pass. They were named after a bloody 1841 battle at Bastion Mountain between French-Canadian fur trappers led by Henry Fraeb and a large force of Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors.

The settlement was established in 1898 during the height of the Encampment District mining boom. At its peak, it was a rugged, high-altitude community driven by nearby copper claims like the Rudefeha mine.

There was a natural decline in the town. Between the loss of ore teams and the general decline of the district, the town was largely abandoned by 1905. A post office operated here from 1898 to 1905.

Here is an interesting side note about the area that was an unexpected find. Two miles west of the Continental Divide near Battle, a monument marks where Thomas A. Edison vacationed in 1878 and reportedly conceived the idea for his incandescent light bulb filament after tossing a frayed bamboo fishing pole into a campfire.

Sometimes the most beautiful drives are in unknown areas, the last place that you might expect to find them. Let's take a look at a route in southern Wyoming that is both of those.

Have a look at Highway 70, from Baggs, Wyoming, to Encampment. For the sake of this article, I'll describe it as I drove it with friends from Baggs on the west side, heading east to Encampment.

Battle Pass Scenic Byway is a 57-mile paved drive along Wyoming Highway 70 that climbs over the crest of the Sierra Madre Mountains in the Medicine Bow National Forest.

BAGGS - This little town is full of history and mostly not the sad-looking place that you have been told. Look for the cabin of Butch Cassidy and his wife, which is now a museum, and have a look at what once was their downtown. Not much of it is left, and there are stories of Old West shootouts and ghosts.

The drive east was rolling hills, beautiful, well-kept farms below, and rolling green mountains in the distance. The passengers loved it, and as the driver, I was having a great time.

DIXON -  is a small, historic incorporated town located in the Little Snake River Valley of southwest Carbon County, Wyoming, with a population of about 74 people. Cute homes and marvelous landscaping.

SAVERY - is a small, scenic unincorporated ranching community in southeastern Carbon County, Wyoming, sitting at an elevation of 6,473 feet along the upper Little Snake River. YOU MUST STOP AT THE MUSEUM! Walk from one old restored house and schoolhouse to another, including country stores. You'll probably spend a couple of hours there.

The drive becomes more rolling hills and turns as the landscape changes from farms to ranches. You'll twist and turn your way up into the Medicine Bow National Forest. Amongst the endless stretch of pines, you'll see long aspen groves, making this a perfect place for a fall drive.

BATTLE WYOMING - was a little community that ended in violence. You'll want to stop at the overlook and read the markers.

ENCAMPMENT - is down below. More twisty-turny through groves of pines and aspens. Then, off in the distance, you'll see the grand mountain of the SNOWY RANGE.

This drive is BEAUTIFUL, and I'll be back to do it again and again.