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From the early 1900's until the early 1980's Wyoming's only maximum security prison was just half a dozen blocks away from downtown. The site of murders, arson, many executions, and even a lynching, Mark Setright walks us through the creepy old building on Walnut Street and describes the brutal and surreal events that happened within its walls.  From an escape of almost 30 inmates that lead to locals shooting at prisoners trying to steal clothing from their clothes lines, a prison riot that lead one of Wyoming's governors to listen to the inmates demands, and an escape tunnel that had explosive results, Mark talks about the old pen and its impact on this tiny town along Interstate 80.

Visit The Old Pen
Listen to paranormal stories from the old pen Teenage Tours of an Old Prison
Lorenzo Paseo's attack on Harry Featherstone
The Lynching of Frank Wigfall by Robin Everett
Building a Gallows for Joseph Seng
The 1955 Prison Riot
The Prison Tunnel
Andrew Pixley & His Eyes
The Murder of Orville Ventilng (Come Visit The Pen!)

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In tiny Wheatland, Wyoming, Herschel "Tricky" Riggle had  a successful rodeo act involving a three legged horse and knife throwing. However, Wheatland's idyllic main street was rocked by violence in 1953 when Riggle shot two people to death in the town's small café. We hear what happened and how some people still believe Governor Milward Simpson's reaction to the event had an impact on his 1958 attempt at re-election.

Drawn to the Archives - And A Crime by Robin Everett (Story about Riggle) 
Milward Simpson & The Death Penalty by Robbin Everett

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In 1958, Charles Starkweather was captured near Douglas, Wyoming after killing eleven people. We learn about the police chase through Douglas that lead to his capture as well as give a new look at the involvement or possible abduction of his former girlfriend, Carol Ann Fugate.

The Killing Spree that Transfixed a Nation by Lesley Wischmann
Starkweather by Harry N Maclean
My Story by Elizabeth Smart
Caril Fugate on A Current Affair
Watch the trailer for Badlands
Listen to Nebraska by Bruce Springsteen

#CharlesStarkweather #CarilAnnFugate #StarkweatherKillings #Starkweathermurders #Murder #TrueCrime #DouglasWyoming #LincolnNebraska #Badlands #TerrenceMalick #SissySpacek #MartinSheen

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Douglas, Wyoming was home to a massive Prisoner of War Camp during World War Two. When the war ended the camp was closed leaving behind only a hospital and an old officers' club where it's rumored some people never left.

How Can I Visit The Old Officers' Club?
Haunted Cheyenne
Stumbling on Skeletons
A Trail of Human Skeletons
Odd Fellows Have Skeletons In Their Closets

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In 1943 several thousand Prisoners of War from Germany and Italy were taken across the US to the tiny farming and ranching town of Douglas, Wyoming. This episode shares oral histories from people who remembered the camp and what they learned about the people held inside.

Click here to see how you can arrange a visit to the remaining Officers' Club.

#WorldWarTwo #POWs #Wyoming #CampDouglas

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In 2017, Dallin Cooper left Riverton, Wyoming to live in China. While there, he ate strange things, slept on hard beds, and upon returning home, had an explanation about why so many toilets in Yellowstone get broken.

35 Chinese Translation Fails

When East Meets West, Toilet Seats Take a Beating - Mike Koshmrl

As Asian Tourism Soars, the Mystery of Broken Toilet Seats Has Been Solved - Tom Howard

What Diseases Can You Get From Sitting on a Toilet? - Dan Brennan MD

Why Do Chinese People Love Taking Photos with Western Tourists?

Book Dallin to Speak
Buy Dallin's Book
Dallin's Podcast
Dallin's YouTube

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In June of 1942, Japanese forces invaded two small Islands that are part of Alaska's Aleutian Islands.  We listen to two men who were there when the invasion started and one who fought to take it back.

Please check out:
The Battle of Attu
Even More About The Battle
Aleut Evacuation & Internment during World war II
Joseph Sasser's Full Interview
Charles House's Full Interview
Nurses' Camps
Attu Boy (Nick Golodoff's Story)
Last Letters From Attu (Etta Jones' Story)

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In 1980, George C Scott (Patton) stared in a horror movie about a haunted house called The Changeling.  Even though the film was set in Seattle, it was based on a story written by Russel Hunter who claimed to have paranormal experiences in his home near Cheesman Park in Denver, CO in 1969. (See Photo)

We talk with Katie Rudolph at the Denver Public Library about her research into Hunter's story and compare it with the movie while trying to see if there is any truth to his strange and freighting story.

Katie's Research: A Denver House That Inspired a Horror Film

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Bill Betenson is Butch Cassidy's great nephew and says that his great grandmother insisted that Cassidy came back to visit his family in Utah in 1925, seventeen years after his supposed death in a Bolivian shootout. While myths of outlaws surviving their supposed deaths are common, Bill and his great grandmother share a very convincing story and DNA evidence also makes the time and place of Cassidy's death highly questionable. If you enjoy this episode, you might like this one about Butch Cassidy meeting with his lawyer in Piedmont, Wyoming before the Montpelier Idaho Robbery.

Butch Cassidy, My Brother by Lula Parker Betenson
Butch Cassidy: The Wyoming Years by Bill Betenson
Butch Cassidy was described as "cheery and affable" on wanted posters
DNA Testing of Cassidy and Sundance's alleged remains
More on DNA and Cassidy/Sundance

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Lois Christiansen & Wendy Peterson still live within walking distance of the Ghost Town of Piedmont, Wyoming where Butch Cassidy met with his lawyer to help a friend facing a murder trial. In 1869, angry railroad workers forced dignitaries headed to the Golden Spike Ceremony in Utah off the tracks and held them there until they were paid.  We ask our interviewees what it's like living and growing up in this remote spot so close to a ghost town that played a big part in Western History.

By Bill Betenson's Book Butch Cassidy: The Wyoming Years here
Bub Meeks' Robbery of The Guild Store in Fort Bridger
Letters from Douglas Preston to Butch Cassidy
Website to visit The Charcoal Kilns

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