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Just a Little Off the Top
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

Wright At Home
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

I think of images like this one and the others I took at South Pass City as Wright Morris photos, named after the writer and photographer who excelled in producing this type of work, not because he spent time going through historical sites like I do, but because he spent his childhood and early creative life living in similar environments.

Well Past It’s Prime
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

Although places in a wheelwright’s shop along with some repair tools, this wheel look far too aged to be repaired successfully, or even used for spare parts for that matter. But it does give an idea of the work that went on there, and of course makes for a good photo composition.

Banging Out the News
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

Some miscellaneous typesetter’s tools and equipment. The amount of work it took to put together a couple of paragraphs for a newspaper with this kind of equipment suggests there was an incentive to be parsimonious with one’s words back in those days.

Elbow Room
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

I believed this was billed as a typical miner’s cabin, but at least in the heyday of mining in this area, I have a hard time believing that a single miner would have such spacious digs.

Where They Kept the Good Stuff
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

A heavy steel door secures this storage area sunk into a hillside. Whiskey and other valuables were stored here.

Beans…
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

Upon seeing these shelves of canned goods with old-time labels, the Fashion Queen immediately started reading the labels out loud, starting with the single word “beans”. I immediately knew why she was doing this–it was a reference to one of my favorite movies. I won’t say what movie it was but here’s a (maybe) huge hint: it has something to do with Bob Dylan.

Postmark South Pass City
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

This still life recreation of the post office in South Pass City is interesting but doesn’t stand up well to close inspection. These two letters with return addresses from elsewhere are addressed to South Pass City residents, yet they bear no postmark from those other locations. To add to the confusion, there is the postmark stamp for South Pass City resting on top of the envelopes.

Drinking Game
South Pass City, Wyoming
2022

You can learn a lot about history at restored/recreated places like the South Pass City Historic Site. But quite frankly I enjoy visiting such places for the interesting still life scenes as much as anything else. The recreations provide teasing glimpses of what life in those times must have been like.

The Opposite of Open
Encampment, Wyoming
2022