Wyoming

The most important federal officeholder from Wyoming was Willis Van Devanter (b.Indiana, 1859–1941), who served on the US Supreme Court from 1910 to 1937. Many of Wyoming's better-known individuals are associated with the frontier: John Colter (b.Virginia, 1775?–1813), a fur trader, was the first white man to explore northwestern Wyoming; and Jim Bridger (b.Virginia, 1804–81), perhaps the most famous fur trapper in the West, centered his activities in Wyoming. Late in life, William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody (b.Iowa, 1846–1917) settled in the Big Horn Basin and established the town of Cody. A number of outlaws made their headquarters in Wyoming. The most famous were "Butch Cassidy" (George Leroy Parker, b.Utah, 1866–1908) and the "Sundance Kid" (Harry Longabaugh, birthplace in dispute, 1863?–1908), who, as members of the Wild Bunch, could often be found there.

Two Wyoming women, Esther Morris (b.New York, 1814–1902) and Nellie Taylor Ross (b.Missouri, 1880–1979), are recognized as the first woman judge and the first woman governor, respectively, in the US; Ross also was the first woman to serve as director of the US Mint. Few Wyoming politicians have received national recognition, but Francis E. Warren (b.Massachusetts, 1844–1929), the state's first governor, served 37 years in the US Senate and came to wield considerable influence and power.

Without question, Wyoming's most famous businessman was James Cash Penney (b.Missouri, 1875–1971). Penney established his first "Golden Rule" store in Kemmerer and eventually built a chain of department stores nationwide. The water-reclamation accomplishments of Elwood Mead (b.Indiana, 1858–1936) and the botanical work in the Rocky Mountains of Aven Nelson (b.Iowa, 1859–1952) were highly significant. Jackson Pollock (1912–56), born in Cody, was a leading painter in the abstract expressionist movement.