Rock Springs, Wyoming, United States

🇺🇸 Rock Springs is a city in Sweetwater County, Wyoming, United States. It is the fifth most populous city in the state of Wyoming, and the most populous city in Sweetwater County. Rock Springs is the principal city of the Rock Springs micropolitan statistical area. Rock Springs is known as the Home of 56 Nationalities because of the influx of immigrants from all over the world who came to work in the coal mines that supplied the fuel to power the steam engines of the Union Pacific Railroad. The city's rich cultural heritage is celebrated each summer on International Day, a festival where the foods, costumes, and traditions of residents' ancestors are recreated and enjoyed at Bunning Park in downtown Rock Springs.

Rock Springs is the site of Western Wyoming Community College and Wyoming's Big Show, a yearly event with a carnival and concerts which is held at the Sweetwater County Events Complex.

Rock Springs is located in an energy-rich region with many oil and natural gas wells.

History Rock Springs derives its name from a rock spring which flowed in the Number 6 district in the northern part of town. An erroneous story had indicated that the spring was found by a lost Pony Express rider, but the spring station was known to Jim Bridger before 1860; the Overland Stage station was located nearby. The spring disappeared when the coal mine operations interrupted the underground flow. Later an 'S' was added to the name making it "Rock Springs".

Through the years, water supplies have been a problem to Rock Springs. In the early days, Ed Cleg hauled domestic water from the sulfur spring north of Rock Springs and charged $.25 a barrel. With the mining operations, the water flow was interrupted and water was hauled from Green River and Point of Rocks. Beginning in 1887, a water main was started from the Green River and completed in 1888 to bring a continuous supply of water to Rock Springs.

Rock Springs has a multi-ethnic heritage; locals called it the 57 Variety Town. The first immigrants were brought in by the railroad and coal mining companies. The Welsh and British people were initially most populous. Later, Irish, Blacks and refugees from the Southern part of the United States also came. The Scandinavian people were represented with a heavy Mormon recruitment.

One of the worst incidents of anti-immigrant violence in American history, known as the Rock Springs Massacre, occurred on September 2, 1885, whereby White miners slaughtered their Chinese counterparts due to anti-Chinese sentiment. There are still remains of the old coal mining towns outside of Rock Springs.

On June 10, 1892, Rock Springs National Bank opened on 515 S Main St, across from the Union Pacific depot. The original sandstone building was designed by Mayor H.H. Edgar who chose an Italianate style. In 1907, when John Hay Sr. assumed control of the business, the location moved to C Street. RSNB owned the original building until 1921 when it was sold to Anton Mengoni. Hay Sr. navigated the bank through the Great Depression and World War II, before retiring in 1947. John Hay Jr., his son, then took control of the bank, having to control wild growth during Wyoming's massive energy boom in the 1970s. Another of Hay Sr.'s sons was Archibald (Archie) Hay. Archibald was killed in France by a German plane in 1918. In his memory, Post 24 of the American Legion, chartered in 1919, was named Archie Hay Post.

Rock Springs was featured on 60 Minutes in 1977 due to corruption within the Police Department and City Government. A grand jury was called into session. The Sheriff of Sweetwater County, James Stark, testified and no wrongdoing was ever found. A follow-up was filmed 20 years later for the show City Confidential. The episode was named "Rock Springs: Deadly Draw in the Wild West".

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.34 square miles (50.09 km²), all land.

Arts and culture Rock Springs hosts the International Festival, the Blues and Brews Festival, the Wyoming Chocolate Festival and the Rod and Rails Festival. In July, August, and September, the city holds a county fair called Wyoming's Big Show.

Rock Springs has two public libraries, Rock Springs Library and White Mountain Library, both of which are branches of the Sweetwater County Library System. The Rock Springs Library is also an original Carnegie Library, and has since been expanded to include an art gallery that is home to an original Norman Rockwell painting.

Education Public education in the city of Rock Springs is provided by Sweetwater County School District #1. Schools serving the city include: Desert View Elementary, Lincoln Elementary, Northpark Elementary, Overland Elementary, Pilot Butte Elementary, Sage Elementary, Stagecoach Elementary, Walnut Elementary, Westridge Elementary, Eastside Elementary, Rock Springs Junior High School, and Rock Springs High School. There are also two alternative campuses – Black Butte High School, and Roosevelt Learning Center.

Western Wyoming Community College is a community college in Rock Springs.

Media Hyperlocal websites Rock Springs is served by two hyperlocal news websites, SweetwaterNOW.com and Wyo4news.com

Media: Print Rock Springs is served by two print publications: Rock Springs Daily Rocket-Miner and the Green River Star (a weekly newspaper published in Green River).

Media: Radio Rock Springs is served by a number of radio stations including KRKK, KSIT, KQSW, KMRZ-FM, KYCS, KZWB, KFRZ and KUGR.

Media: Television All television stations in Rock Springs are translators or satellites of stations located elsewhere: 13, KGWR-TV, CBS /ABC, Satellite of KGWC-TV, Casper, Wyoming; 28, K28JU-D, PBS, relay of Wyoming PBS

Transport: Road • I-80 • US 30 (Dewar Drive) • US 191 • WYO 370 (Baxter Road/Airport Road) • WYO 376 (Circumferential Highway/Rock Springs Beltway) • WYO 430 (Hampshire Street Parkway)

Transport: Air Rock Springs is served by Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport.

Railroads Union Pacific serves Rock Springs.

Transport: Public STAR Transit provides local bus service in Rock Springs, with limited service to Reliance and Green River.