Writer

Jackie Dorothy

Jackie Dorothy is a reporter for Cowboy State Daily based in central Wyoming.

Over the past 20 years, Jackie has worked in television, radio and print across Wyoming. In this role, she has won numerous writing and history awards including the Wyoming Governor’s Journalist of the Year and SBA Journalist of the Year.

Jackie is also the podcast host of ‘Pioneers of Outlaw Country’ that explores little known historical stories of Wyoming with entertaining narrative.

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Latest from Jackie Dorothy

Team Last Call Heroes smoke ribs at the 2022 Wyoming State BBQ Championship and Bluegrass Festival.

Summer Of ’Cue: Worland’s State Championship The Ultimate Goal For Serious Smokers

For those serious about smoking meat, Memorial Day weekend is the start of barbecue season. In Wyoming, that means a summer of tweaking and attention to details to earn a spot at the Wyoming State BBQ Championship in Worland in August.

Jackie DorothyMay 26, 2025

Margo Keller, the daughter of a Navy veteran, placed flags this Memorial Day on the graves of soldiers, including those that were not on her original list such as George Odde who served in the Navy during World War II.

Thousands Of Flags Planted At Graves Of Veterans In Thermopolis And Across Wyoming

In cities and towns across Wyoming, volunteers have placed thousands of American flags at the graves of military veterans. In Thermopolis, the exercise is personal for veterans who remember comrades who paid the ultimate price for America’s freedom.

Jackie DorothyMay 26, 2025

Archaeologist Lawrence Loendorf and his team pioneered a new technique of tracing petroglyphs. When they learned that the tape they had been using would damage the rock surface, they engineered this set up using light tripods and tennis balls to hold their tracing paper in place. Loendorf published a book last month explaining the new technique.

New Discovery At Ancient Petroglyph Site Changes Timeline Of Early Wyoming Tribes

An archaeologist has found new evidence that changes the story behind ancient Wyoming petroglyphs found at Castle Gardens in remote Fremont County, Wyoming. That they were made by tribes previously thought to show up centuries later is “a very unexpected find."

Jackie DorothyMay 24, 2025

Norm Pape, 94, has been moving cattle on the family farm since he was a little kid in the 1930s. He has stepped back from many of his daily duties but still stays active on the family ranch in Daniel, Wyoming.

Sublette County Cowboy Norm Pape Is 94 And Still Active On The Family Ranch

It’s branding season and 94-year-old Norm Pape is still working the Sublette County ranch that’s been in his family for over 120 years. Cowboys don’t quit, Pape says, and they certainly don’t retire. "Our ranch is a working ranch," he said.

Jackie DorothyMay 24, 2025

A Leadership Wyoming visit to a coal mine.

25 Years And More Than 1,000 Graduates For Leadership Wyoming

For 25 years, Leadership Wyoming has promoted communities and the state through hands-on training and networking. From coal and trona mines to legacy ranches, more than 1,000 program graduates have gone on to become better bosses, workers and neighbors.

Jackie DorothyMay 20, 2025

For bird enthusiasts, the best part of spring in Wyoming is watching all the birds return. Spotting bald eagles is always a thrill, like these in Yellowstone National Park.

Wyoming Birders Live For Spring, And Spotting Something Rare Or Spectacular

For bird enthusiasts, the best part of spring is watching all the birds return. Wyoming is home to more than 400 species of birds and the migration peak is in May.

Jackie DorothyMay 18, 2025

Mail call for the Rocky Mountain Honor Flight will include drawings from the kindergarteners at the Ralph Witter Elementary School in Thermopolis, Wyoming. The students drew the pictures based on examples presented to them from their teachers, their own imaginations and stories from their families about their own experiences serving in the United States military.

For Many Vets, Their First ‘Thank You’ Comes Decades Later From Wyoming Kids

Wyoming veterans on Honor Flights to visit their memorials in Washington, D.C., also received special “thank you” notes from school kids in Thermopolis. Most of the veterans receiving the surprise mail had served during Vietnam and many had never received a thank you for their service until now.

Jackie DorothyMay 17, 2025

ARCHIVE PHOTO: The freeze/thaw of early spring is one of the major causes of rock falls in the Wind River Canyon.

Motorists Play Frogger With Falling Rocks In Wyoming’s Wind River Canyon In Spring

Spring means Wyoming’s Wind River Canyon Scenic Byway is at its most spectacular. It’s also the peak time for rockslides, meaning motorists on U.S. 20 play Frogger with falling rocks and mud.

Jackie DorothyMay 13, 2025

Horse racing in Gillette, Wyoming, is growing more popular as horses from around the nation are being entered and the Wyoming races are becoming known for their safety.

Wyoming’s Home-Grown Live Horse Racing Sparks Resurgence Of Industry

Jack Greer grew up on the racetrack, and the Gillette resident is now part of a home-grown movement that’s sparking a resurgence of live horse racing in Wyoming. That’s partly because he and others in the Cowboy State are racing their own horses.

Jackie DorothyMay 05, 2025

Patsy Dorman poses in front of her line of clear glass insulators. Her passion for collecting the glass relics began on a camping trip to Tough Creek. Lineman had tossed the insulators aside and she thought they were too pretty to abandon.

For Wyoming Collectors, Vintage Glass Power Line Insulators Are Prized Finds

Those funky glass blobs that used to hang on and around power lines are highly prized by Wyoming collectors. These vintage glass insulators are prized finds for those with a passion for them.

Jackie DorothyMay 04, 2025

Mark Jenkins of Laramie, Wyoming, credits his upbringing in the Cowboy State with his adventuring spirit. He has climbed peaks worldwide successfully but has failed to summit many times over. Five times, he attempted to climb Hkakabo Raz in Myanmar and failed each time but embraces the lessons he learned along the way.

Laramie Climber Wants Sixth Shot To Summit Highest Peak In Myanmar

Laramie's Mark Jenkins has tried five times to reach the highest peak in Myanmar. Although a successful summit has been elusive, if the political climate changes, the 66-year-old elite climber said he would try a sixth time “in a heartbeat.”

Jackie DorothyMay 03, 2025

Bill Dafoe was diagnosed with a fatal brain cancer and died last September, but his legacy continues. He had always encouraged and coached his sons, and now his oldest son Logan (center top) is heading to West Point. He was accepted just months after Bill passed away.

Thermopolis Teen Gets Into West Point Months After Dad Dies From Brain Tumor

Logan Dafoe’s dream of attending West Point came true this month. But it wasn’t complete, because the Thermopolis teen’s father, Bill, wasn’t there to see that dream come true. Bill died from a brain tumor months before his son’s acceptance came through.

Jackie DorothyApril 28, 2025

Other Authors

Isabel Jewell: Shoshoni, Wyoming’s Hard-Boiled, Tough-Talking Actress

Shoshoni, Wyoming's Isabel Jewell was usually typecast as a hard-boiled, tough-talking broad, gangster's moll, dumb blonde, prostitute, and is known for her poor "white trash" role as Emmy Slattery in “Gone with the Wind.”

Jackie DorothyApril 27, 2025

More Drawings By George Ostrom Found, Famous For Creating Wyoming’s Bucking Horse

Pioneer Artist George Ostrom sketched the scenes around him, including battles in World War I and wildlife in Wyoming. He’s famous for creating Wyoming’s bucking horse logo, and now his family is releasing Ostrom drawings discovered well after his death.

Jackie DorothyApril 27, 2025

Monte Bush believes it is a miracle that no one died the night he blacked out after drinking and ran head-on into another vehicle. He was charged with a DUI and is now nearly six years sober. He shares his story with the hope that he can save at least one life and prevent someone else from drinking and driving.

Extreme DUI Program Has 90% Success Rate For Those Who Have Destroyed Lives By Driving Drunk

Monte Bush woke up in the hospital, disoriented. He had been drinking and had no memory of getting in his truck and leaving the town of Greybull. He was horrified to learn that he had been in a head on collision at 55 mph and hurt four people badly in the wreck.

Jackie DorothyApril 26, 2025

The Sprout’s Greenhouse was founded in 1978 and is now owned and operated by son, Griff Sprout. He literally grew into the business and horticulture.

For Wyoming Greenhouse Operators, Spring Starts When The Snow Is Deep

Spring started in January for the Sprout family in Lander. They planted their seeds while snow was still deep now are climatizing their perennials to the Wyoming weather.

Jackie DorothyApril 25, 2025

The practice is for both rider and bull. Dalton Willis rides Stev, one of the family’s rodeo bulls that will compete at the Hell on Wheel Rodeo in Cheyenne and other rodeos across the season this year.

Wyoming Ranch Family Learns Raising Rodeo Bulls Nearly As Tough As Riding Them

Dallas Willis grew up in Wyoming around rodeo and was a bull rider through college. Now his family raises bulls for rodeo, and he’s learned that’s nearly as tough as riding them. And the best bulls don’t like people.

Jackie DorothyApril 20, 2025

There’s Something In Wyoming That Makes It Perfect To Grow Coors’ Special Barley

A special blend of barley has been grown by hundreds of farmers in Wyoming and three other Western states exclusively to brew Coors beer. That includes Jim Miller’s family near Worland, who thinks the crop is going to be “tremendous” this year.

Jackie DorothyApril 19, 2025

Visit To War Memorials Emotional For Casper Vet, 96, Who Served In WWII, Korea

It’s been decades since Casper resident Bob Cook served in the Army during World War II and Korean War. Now 96, he finally got to visit his memorials in Washington, D.C., a trip that was extremely emotional and meaningful.

Jackie DorothyApril 19, 2025

Wyoming’s Huge Fossil Finds Inspire Artist To Recreate Its Ancient Landscapes

Wyoming has been giving up huge fossil finds for well over a century. Those discoveries have inspired an artist to recreate Wyoming’s ancient landscapes, which in many ways are nothing like they are today.

Jackie DorothyApril 18, 2025

The First National Bank of Meeteetse is listed on the National Historic Register and was once the richest bank in the Big Horn Basin. It's now a museum.

That Time Robbers Only Got Away With $40 From Richest Bank In The Bighorn Basin

The First National Bank of Meeteetse, Wyoming, was never hit by the infamous Wild Bunch. It was the richest bank in the Bighorn Basin and a tempting target in 1958 when robbers used a crowbar to break into the vault. They only get away with $40.

Jackie DorothyApril 13, 2025