A series where we take a #lookback at the stories and history of our community, brought to you by Mick Pryor, Financial Advisor with Edward Jones.
On October 11, 1919, Riverton had its first visitors come in by airplane. Due to the fact that there was no airport, or even a landing strip, over one hundred citizens took matters into their own hands. With a horse-drawn grader, forks, and many others joining with their hands, the town of Riverton spent their early morning clearing the sagebrush off a strip of land to the west of town. By 11am, the work was finished, and the hill was “dotted with autos and people afoot” who had arrived to view the arrival of the plane. At 12:02, the aircraft pulled into view over the hills to the east. When it landed, before it had even stopped its propellers, the crowd rushed to greet the passengers and pilot.
Following the first landing, the people of Riverton planned to locate a permanent spot to establish an air field. Among the plans for the landing strip, they planned the construction of a hangar that would be 55 x 80 feet and could hold four of the largest airplanes that would be likely to land in Riverton. Additional airfields were set up around Fremont County and the Big Horn basin towns as well. On May 19, 1938, Ed. T. Mileski established an Air Mail week for the Big Horn basin towns. He made his official departure at around noon, leaving from the Lander port before heading to Cody, Powell, Lovell, Greybull, Basin, Worland, Thermopolis, Shoshoni, Riverton, and back to Lander. From there, he traveled on towards Casper to transfer their mail to the Wyoming Airways ship which would fly to Cheyenne before being flown to either Los Angeles, San Francisco, or New York, where they would then be distributed further. It would end up being the first experience for many of these towns to experience the convenience of airmail.
In 1947, the Challenger Airline began to operate daily out of Riverton as part of a Salt Lake to Billings flight. The plane, referred to as the big “Sunliner,” landed at the Riverton airport for the first time on June 10, 10:43am on its flight north towards Billings. The flight served as a combination of passengers and mail, with 14 pouches of air mail being sent to Riverton and Lander, the Big Horn Basin towns, and for Billings. The pilot also reported that 15 residents of Powell flew to Billings and then returned as part of the inaugural flight. J. J. Jewett, a local merchant of Riverton, praised it by saying “There’s nothing like it for speed, comfort, and cleanliness.” Jewett had left from Washington, D.C. and flew to Denver before arriving in Riverton, only 20 hours total of flying with a six-hour layover.
Author: Kevin Scannell
Next up for the Fremont County Museum
December 7, 11am at the Dubois Museum, “Christmas Open House”
December 7, 11am at the Dubois Museum, “Kids Corner: DIY Christmas Ornament” Bailey Tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
December 7, 2-4pm at the Riverton Museum, “Santa’s Workshop” Bailey Tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
December 7, 10-4pm at the Riverton Museum, “Christmas Open House”
December 14, 6-8pm at the Pioneer Museum, “Old Fashioned Christmas” Bailey Tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
December 21, 6-8pm at the Riverton Museum, “Ghosts of Christmas Past: Alma Law” Bailey Tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
Call the Dubois Museum 1-307-455-2284, the Pioneer Museum 1-307-332-3339 or the Riverton Museum 1-307-856-2665 for detail regarding their programs.
The Dubois Museum, the Pioneer Museum in Lander and the Riverton Museum need your financial support. In the current economic environment, the museums are more reliant than ever on donations from the private sector to continue to provide the quality programs, collections management, exhibits and services that have become their hallmark over the last four years. Please make your tax deductible contribution to be used specifically for the benefit of the museum of your choosing by sending a check to Fremont County Museums 450 N 2nd Rm 320 or taking it directly to the museum you choose to support.