Week of October 29, 2026
Week of October 29, 2026
Local photographer Barrie Lynn Bryant recently entered the Photography of Place juried exhibition at Central Wyoming College in Riverton and four of his five photographs accepted received Best of Show awards. Two of Bryant's winning photographs depict subjects in Hot Springs County, a portrait of Tim Two Hearts at the Arapaho Ranch west of Thermopolis and a lone lamb from Bryant's photo essay, The Load Out at Kirby Creek Ranch, owned and operated by Heather and Weston Jones and located along...
The Hot Springs County Commissioners held a short meeting on Tuesday, October 20. Road & Bridge Director Shane Rankin requested approval of a right-of-way permit, and an approach permit, for two separate properties. The ROW permit was requested by High Plains Power to burrow under Missouri Flats road to be able to provide power to a property owner on both sides of the road. The approach permit was for another property on County Road 25, where the property owner had agreed to provide the culvert under the new approach. Both requests were...
The Thermopolis Town Council held an executive session at their October 20 meeting to discuss staffing issues. Following the session, the council issued a press release outlining staffing issues the town and county are experiencing in the dispatch office at the Law Enforcement Center. “Recent departures from positions in dispatch have made our 24 hour model unsustainable in dispatch,” said Mayor Adam Estenson. “We’re just overworking our people in dispatch and that cannot continue. We need to intentionally re-group and re-evaluate how...
On November 3, the citizens of the State of Wyoming will be asked to either support or reject a citizen generated initiative intended to reduce property taxes in the state. Commonly known as “Prop 1,” the initiative proposes to reduce property taxes by instituting an exemption of 50% of the assessed value of a homeowner’s dwelling in Wyoming. Wyomingites enjoy some of the lowest tax rates of any state in the union. We have no corporate or individual income tax, and the sales tax rate is among the lowest of all the states. We pay no...
by Dustin Bleizeffer, WyoFile.com, via WNE Wyoming’s top energy shop wants to grant a total $48 million from the state’s new Energy Dominance Fund to three companies, and it’s asking the public to weigh in on the projects during a comment period that ends Nov. 16. The Wyoming Energy Authority, which administers the grant and loan program, will forward its recommendations, along with public comments, to Gov. Mark Gordon for his approval. The three recommended grants include: $20 million to Nucleon Fuel for its Fort Union Uranium...
The annual Moonlight Madness event will be held along with Trunk-and-Treat in downtown Thermopolis on Thursday, Oct. 29. Broadway St. will be closed between 4th and 6th Streets and 5th Street will be closed between Arapahoe and Warren for the event. There will also be a haunted house at The Learning Center, Mason Tacos will be available and there will be a pet costume contest following the regular costume contest. The trunk and treat runs from 5-7 p.m. north of Broadway on Fifth St. Hot Springs Dance will be performing downtown beginning at...
by Casper Star-Tribune staff, via Wyoming News Exchange Wyoming will receive $205 million in federal funding for rural healthcare, with the money directed toward emergency services, health care workforce training, technology and preventive care. The Trump administration announced the fiscal year 2026 award Friday through the Rural Health Transformation Program, a federal initiative aimed at improving access to care in rural communities. The state has allocated the full amount across four areas. The largest share, $91.8 million, will support...
From Wyoming News Exchange newspapers Wyoming gas prices fall 13.2 cents per gallon in the past week CHEYENNE (WNE) — Average gasoline prices in Wyoming have fallen 13.2 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $4.30 per gallon Monday, according to GasBuddy.com’s survey of 494 stations in Wyoming. Prices in Wyoming are 18.4 cents per gallon lower than a month ago, and stand $1.44 per gallon higher than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has increased 4 cents compared to a week ago, and stands at $6.34 per gallon....
Sign-ups for Christmas Food Baskets will be taken from Monday, Nov. 2 through December 3 at Public Heath in the County Annex, 864-3311 or The Learning Center at 124 N. 5th St., 864-3851. Basket pickup will be Saturday, Dec. 12 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Holy Trinity Parish Hall, 7th and Arapahoe. Non-perishable food donations can be left in Holy Trinity Episcopal Church marked Christmas Baskets. Monetary donations can be mailed to Christmas Baskets, PO Box 950, Thermopolis, WY 82443. For more information, call 864-3629 and leave a...
Voices of the Past Cemetery Tour Wyoming Discovery Days is holding a fundraiser Voices of the Past Cemetery Living History Tour on the evening of Friday, Oct. 30 and Saturday, Oct. 31. Tickets are $65 each, $110 for a couple or $195 for a family of four. Ticket includes dinner, drinks, tour and s’mores around a campfire. For more information, contact Audra’s Copper Coo or visit wyomingdiscoverydays.org. First Responder Trunk or Treat Local first responders are hosting a trunk or treat event on Halloween night, Oct. 31, from 6-8 p.m. in...
The Hot Springs County High School cross country teams competed in the state championships on Saturday, October 24 in Cheyenne. It was the third year in a row the event was held at Little America. With the gain in familiarity with the course, together with a lot of hard work this year, the Bobcats and Lady Cats turned in some impressive times. In the girls division, Big Horn took home the team trophy with an average time of 21:35. Lyla Marney, a junior at Big Horn, finished at the top with a time of 18:41.30. For the Lady Cats, sophomore...
The Hot Springs County High School Bobcats traveled to Lyman on Friday, October 23 to match up with the Eagles in the last game of the regular season. The Eagles came in to the game sitting on the bubble - needing a win to have a chance at post-season play. The Cats, on the other hand, had already secured their place in the playoffs. “We were already locked in to the playoffs,” said Coach Boone Bowker, “and were a little complacent in the first half against Lyman.” In the first quarter, Lyman put up the only scoring on a field goal on...
The Hot Springs County High School Lady Cats volleyball team finished up conference play last week with a home match against Shoshoni on Thursday, October 22, and then an away match at Greybull on Friday, October 23. At home on Thursday, the Lady Cats played with determination but lost in three sets to the Lady Wranglers by scores of 25-23, 25-13, and 25-18. On Friday, the Lady Cats faced off with a very talented, #2 ranked team in Greybull. Again, the Lady Cats put in a dogged and consistent effort, but the Lady Buffs proved to be just too...
A beautiful sunrise fills the sky with color over Thermopolis on a crisp, fall...
No tricks or treats, just gobbles. A wild turkey makes an appearance among the Halloween decorations at The Safari Club in Hot Springs State...
Linda Cowger is served by members of the St. Francis Council of Catholic Women during the group's well-attended annual Harvest Dinner at St. Francis Catholic Church in Thermopolis on Sunday, Oct....
Pat Bears enjoys a bowl of soup during the Golden Age Club's annual soup supper at the Hot Springs County Senior Citizens Center on Friday, Oct....
Fred Harrison “The crime of taxation is not in the taking — it’s in the way that it’s spent.” — Will Rogers Did you vote to raise your property taxes? Nobody asked you. It happened anyway — automatically, silently, as inflation drove up the assessed value of your home and your government pocketed every dollar of the windfall. From 2021 to 2023, Wyoming’s total property tax collections surged by $912 million — a 71 percent increase in just two years. Not because the Legislature voted for it. Not because Wyoming voters...
The recent Candidate Forum & Debate last included a discussion surrounding Proposition 1, the ballot initiative to reduce residential property taxes by 50%. a representative of the Vote Yes group, asserted no less than four times that the County Commissioners would only have to reduce their budget by an additional $120,000 if Prop 1 were to pass. However, that’s only part of the story. In 2025, the Wyoming State Legislature passed the Homeowner’s Exemption, a 25% reduction for residential property taxes, up to the first $1 million in home...
This issue includes a candidate section with information on our local contested races in the in the 2026 General Election. There is also a story on Proposition 1 on page 7 of this section. On this page, two letters to the editor appear, one in support of Proposition 1 and one opposed. We don’t always allow letters to the editor in regard to voting, but we made an exception and allowed these. To be fair, we ran them both and on the same week just prior to the election. We hope you find the information in the candidate section helpful and we...
by John Bernhisel Questions: 1. How many bones are in an adult human skeleton? 2. What is a collection of witches called? 3. Which actor provided the sinister spoken narration in Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”? 4. Who were the parents of the British queen known as Bloody Mary? 5. Name the haunted San Jose, California, home with 160 rooms once owned by an eccentric rifle heiress. Fun Facts: Scaring audiences can be big business. The movie IT (2017), based on Stephen King’s novel, leads the horror box office with roughly $702 million....
On the Record policy It is the Thermopolis Independent Record’s policy that all people arrested or cited under the “Sheriff’s office” or “Police department” in the On the Record section are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. We print the names of all people upon their initial arrest. Names of minors are not printed. Sheriff’s office Monday, Oct. 19 12:55 a.m. Joseph Cavalli, 41, was arrested for alleged driving under the influence: alcohol 2nd offense; criminal entry; compulsory auto insurance and unable to...
