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.
Latest from Jackie Dorothy

How To Outsmart The Bighorn Basin Climate When Planting Your Garden
The Bighorn Basin has a long growing season, but it's very cool in the spring and very hot in the summer. If you pick the wrong seeds, you're doomed. A soil scientist in Worland says she has cracked the code and can un-doom your garden.
Jackie DorothyMarch 23, 2025

The American West: Wyoming’s First Woman Senator Brought Back The Saloons
When Thermopolis pioneer, businesswoman and advocate Dora McGrath decided to run for the Wyoming senate in 1930 it was to give soldiers all the freedoms for which they risked their lives -- including the freedom to drink alcohol.
Jackie DorothyMarch 23, 2025

Wyoming Man's Obsession Helped Preserve And Promote Sheep Wagons
Jim O'Rourke spend years crisscrossing Wyoming to find, preserve and promote the state's unique ranching invention — the sheep wagon. A year after his unexpected death, his wife continues that momentum of preserving and promoting sheep wagons.
Jackie DorothyMarch 23, 2025

Digital Timeline Map Lets Anyone Track Dinosaurs When They Inhabited Wyoming’s Bighorn Basin
A new digital map called the “Bighorn Basin WY Land Mammal Age Map” allows users to track dinosaurs, prehistoric animals and ancient plants that once thrived in and ruled the Bighorn Basin in central Wyoming.
Jackie DorothyMarch 23, 2025

How A Dog Lost In The Wyoming Wilderness Inspired Park Ranger Turned Author
A former park ranger was inspired to write her first novel by Wyoming’s wilderness and a lost dog’s journey home. The result was “The Scent of Distant Family,” which has just been nominated for a national award.
Jackie DorothyMarch 21, 2025

Wyoming Cowboy Rapper, aka Jiggy Buckaroo, Takes His Outlaw Flow To Nashville
Growing up in Buffalo, Wyoming, once called the most lawless town in America, with a love of all things Western and rap music, it was inevitable Ryan Charles Kinzer would become the Jiggy Buckaroo cowboy rapper. He's taken his outlaw flow to Nashville.
Jackie DorothyMarch 21, 2025

Casper Duo Casey Rislov And Zak Pullen To Release New Children's Book On Wyoming's Famed Steamboat
Casper children’s book author Casey Rislov and illustrator Zak Pullen are at it again. This time, they're telling the story about the iconic bucking horse on Wyoming’s license plate, Steamboat. The new book will be released in April.
Jackie DorothyMarch 15, 2025

Moorcroft's Chancey Williams Looking Forward To Fifth Time Playing Cheyenne Frontier Days
This year will mark the fifth time Moorcroft's Chancey Williams will be playing at Cheyenne Frontier Days. He has opened for legends Merle Haggard, Dwight Yoakam, Gary Allen, Dierks Bentley and now Brooks and Dunn.
Jackie DorothyMarch 15, 2025

Wyoming Teacher Rode Same 1,900-Mile Bicycle Route Buffalo Soldiers Did In 1897
The story of Buffalo Soldiers riding bicycles 1,900 miles from Montana to Missouri in a post-Civil War military experiment had been nearly forgotten. Then a Deaver, Wyoming, teacher biked it himself. "It was one of the most meaningful things I've ever done in my life,” he said.
Jackie DorothyMarch 09, 2025

American West: The Kidnapped Doctor And Wounded Outlaw
In 1904, two masked men kidnapped a Thermopolis doctor to save the life of an outlaw at their remote ranch. The horse thief had been shot in a shoot-out with lawmen and his true identity remains a mystery to this day.
Jackie DorothyMarch 09, 2025

Wyoming Woman On Mission To Not Let Shoshone Language And Culture Die
Lynette St. Clair of Fort Washakie grew up listening to the language of her Shoshone people. She realized 30 years ago that the language and culture could die. So she made it her mission to share the language, culture and history with the next generation.
Jackie DorothyMarch 08, 2025

Started When Cheyenne Frontier Days Was Canceled, Popular Hell On Wheels Rodeo Still Going Strong
In 2020, when Cheyenne Frontier Days was canceled because of COVID-19, Cindy DeLancey and her family launched the Hell on Wheels rodeo. Five summers later, their open rodeos are still being held beginning June 6, leading up to Cheyenne Frontier Days.
Jackie DorothyMarch 08, 2025

The English Westerner Society: Brits Obsessed with Wyoming, Outlaws And All Things Cowboy
The English Westerner Society started in the 1950s to give American West enthusiasts in England a place to talk about their favorite topic. Mike Bell is one of those British enthusiasts. He has written several books on Butch Cassidy and Wyoming outlaws.
Jackie DorothyMarch 02, 2025

Wyoming History: When The Waltzing Mouse Was The Most Popular Pet In America
More than a century ago, the waltzing mouse exploded as the most popular pet in America. Now we know these spazzed-out tiny rodents have a neurological disorder, but then they were beloved for their “dancing.”
Jackie DorothyMarch 02, 2025

Where Are The Six Bodies Missing From Wyoming’s Smoky Row Cemetery?
As many as nine people were long believed to have been buried in the historic 1890 Smoky Row Cemetery in Hot Springs State Park in Wyoming. Now ground-penetrating radar shows six of them aren’t there, so where are the missing Smoky Row bodies?
Jackie DorothyMarch 01, 2025

The American West: How A Wyoming Outlaw Won A Gunfight With A Coffee Mug
When outlaw Tom O’Day was ambushed in a Thermopolis café back in 1903, a coffee cup was his only defense. Although O'Day was injured, he was declared the winner of the gunfight by newspapers all across Wyoming. The media lampooned the gunman for losing to a coffee cup.
Jackie DorothyMarch 01, 2025

The American West: The Doomed Gold Rush Of Wyoming’s Wind River Canyon
In 1906, a gold rush erupted in Wyoming’s Copper Mountains above the Wind River Canyon. Asmus Boysen’s dream to build a dam and power for these mines was destined for ruin.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 28, 2025

Meet Jerry Kintzler: 55 Years Of Designing Flower Arrangements — And Saving Lives
Jerry Kintzler has been designing flower arrangements for 55 years in Riverton and has even saved lives with his flower knowledge. At least twice, he warned people that premature dead flowers were a sign they had gas leaks in their homes.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 23, 2025

He Lost A Leg In Combat, Now Wyoming Vet Teaches Others To Adapt And Overcome
Karl Milner lost a leg in combat, but the Gillette veteran used his military training to adapt and overcome to map out a new mission in life. Now he treats others facing mental and physical challenges to ski. He's a better teacher, he says, because "he's been there."
Jackie DorothyFebruary 23, 2025

Award-Winning Wyoming Author Debuts First Crime Thriller That Took 10 Years To Write
Maria Kelson was already an award-winning Wyoming poet when she decided to tackle something totally different — a crime thriller. The result is “Not The Killing Kind,” a gripping whodunit that took 10 years to write.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 23, 2025

Chancey Williams’ Ode To His Wyoming Cowboy Uncle Hits No. 1 On CMT Music
Inspired by his uncle Don Williams and the joy of bronc riding, Chancey Williams’ new hit song “The Ballad of Uncle Don” has hit No. 1 on the CMT Music charts. Chancey said the song came about over cup of coffee with his uncle in Moorcroft, Wyoming.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 22, 2025

The American West: Butch Cassidy’s Banker, Eugene Amoretti Sr.
Eugene Amoretti Sr. was the founder of Lander, Wyoming, and known friend of both outlaw Butch Cassidy and Fremont County Sheriff Charles Stough, who pursued the outlaws. Amoretti came to America to seek his fortune and died a millionaire.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 21, 2025

Wildfires Help Push 40,000 Head Drop To Wyoming’s 2024 Cattle Production
Despite a 3% decrease in cattle production in 2024, Wyoming ranchers expect 2025 will bring back a strong cattle market. The Wyoming Stock Growers Association says part of the reason for the 40,000-head decrease was the severe wildfire season.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 18, 2025

Wyoming History: Valentine’s Day Used To Be As Much For Haters As Lovers
In the 1800s and early 1900s in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Valentine’s Day was not just for lovers, it was also for haters and just for fun. It was popular to share your anonymous feelings with humorous and derogatory Valentine’s Day cards.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 13, 2025

Don’t Crowd The Snowplow During Wyoming’s Whiteouts
So far there have been nine incidents of motorists running into snowplows this year. With big winter storms converging on Wyoming this week, WYDOT is asking drivers to slow down and steer clear of snowplows.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 10, 2025

The Art Of Turning Manure To Compost
Manure management is one of the biggest problems faced by feedlots. One soil scientist is helping a feedlot in Worland make better use of their manure by creating more compost for local farmers and gardeners.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 09, 2025

A Rock Found In Worland Could Be Magic Or An Ancient Tool
When LeAnn Baker found a rock with a smooth hole in the middle, she was told it was a magic hag stone. However, archaeologist Mike Beis said it was most likely a spindle whorl, a simple tool used by Indian tribes for centuries.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 09, 2025

What's In A Name: Dubois, Wyoming
You can always spot a tourist in Dubois, Wyoming, by how they pronounce the name of the town. In Wyoming, it's called Doo-boys, not the French pronunciation of Deh-bwah. How it got called that is shrouded in myth and mystery.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 09, 2025

Learning Trades Isn’t Just Landing Wyoming Youth Good Jobs, It’s Saving Lives
The teens and young adults in the Wind River Job Corps in Riverton usually get there out of desperation. But the trades there can lead to great-paying jobs. Plus, it's the only job corps in America that offers training for petroleum technicians.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 02, 2025

Kiddos On Skis: How Wyoming's Antelope Butte Ski Resort Teaches Littles How To Ski
At Antelope Butte, the youngest students are just three years old and when they are first put on the skis. But it doesn’t take long for them to start grasping the basic concepts and take off in controlled chaos.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 02, 2025

Want To Donate Your Body To Science? It’s A Challenge In Wyoming
Want to donate your body to science? Although there’s a shortage of human cadavers for students to learn on, donating your body after you die can be a challenge, especially in a rural state like Wyoming.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 01, 2025

The American West: Mountain Man Joe Meek Arrived In Wyoming in 1829 As Greenhorn Teenager
The roar of the grizzly, war cries of the Blackfeet, and the lonesome song of the wind ushered 18-year-old Joe Meek to a world of the mountain men. Death was a constant companion and if you weren’t at the Rendezvous, it was assumed you had met the grim reaper along the way either by beast, enemy, or harsh weather.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 01, 2025
Wyoming Twin Teens Grew Up In The Middle Of Nowhere, But Have Huge Music Dreams
Liam and Layne Jordon, 14, have grown up in the middle of nowhere in Wyoming’s Bighorn Basin. That hasn’t stopped the young musicians from pursing some big dreams of writing and performing their music for the masses.
Jackie DorothyFebruary 01, 2025

Race On To Save Lou Taubert Neon Sign, Last Remnant Of Casper’s “Little Las Vegas”
The Lou Taubert neon sign that towers over Center Street in Casper, Wyoming, is in desperate need of repair. It’s the last remnant of Casper's historic street of neon that earned it the nickname “Little Las Vegas.”
Jackie DorothyFebruary 01, 2025

The 10 Young Men Who Died Giving Wyoming's Bomber Mountain Its Name
Bomber Mountain in Wyoming’s Big Horn Mountains paid dearly to earn its name when a B-17 Flying Fortress crashed into it in 1943, killing all 10 on board. The oldest was 25, and what happened to the plane was a mystery for two years.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 26, 2025

Wyoming Sleuths Help Return WWI Dog Tags Buried In France For A Century
A French field infamously known as the “mud camp” is still giving up World War I relics lost there more than a century ago, including dog tags. A Wyoming author and investigator are helping them get back to their families.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 26, 2025

Wyoming Radio Voice For More Than 50 Years Steps Away From The Mic
Radio is in Larry Proietti’s blood, and has been waking up his Cheyenne audience for decades. He recently retired after more than 50 years in radio, but is still working behind the scenes.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 26, 2025

The Cadaver Lab At Central Wyoming College Is A Rarity In Today's Academic World
Most cadaver labs are limited to big public universities. To have one at the community college level is a rarity and makes Central Wyoming College in Riverton stand out. "It is definitely not for the weak," one student told Cowboy State Daily.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 25, 2025

Albert “Slick” Nard: The Outlaw & Deputy Despised By The Wild Bunch
Albert “Slick” Nard was both an outlaw and deputy during the late 1800s in Wyoming. He was scorned by the members of the Hole-in-the-Wall Gang as a despicable outlaw and informant.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 24, 2025

Locals Remember Thermopolis Woman Killed In Hit-And-Run As "Remarkable"
Bernie Blacketer was a "remarkable" woman whose death is a blow to the town of Thermopolis, Wyoming, the town's mayor said Friday after Blacketer was killed in a hit-and-run. Blacketer would be "preaching forgiveness" over the incident, the mayor said.
Clair McFarland & Jackie DorothyJanuary 24, 2025

Thermopolis Police Say They Found Driver In Hit-And-Run That Killed Pedestrian
A pedestrian was struck and killed Friday morning by a driver in Thermopolis, Wyoming, who didn’t stop to help after the collision, authorities say. Authorities announced Friday morning they'd found the driver.
Clair McFarland & Jackie DorothyJanuary 24, 2025

It’s Never Too Cold For Chores On Wyoming’s Family Ranches
As a blast of Arctic cold has plunged Wyoming into a double-digit deep freeze, most stay indoors as much as possible. Not so for the state’s family ranchers. It’s never too cold for feeding the animals and outdoor chores.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 20, 2025

Joe Kenney’s Been A Fixture On Wyoming Radio For 60 Years
You may not know Joe Kenney to look at him, but chances are you know his voice. Kenney’s been a fixture on Lander and Wyoming radio for going on 60 years.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 19, 2025

Wyoming Towns Used To Have Their Own Money, Which Is Now Worth Big Bucks
For 70 years, National Banks in Wyoming could have their own money printed, complete with their names and towns on it. Now these $10 and $20 bills are still legal tender, and worth big bucks to collectors.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 18, 2025

Did You Know The Presidents On Mount Rushmore Were Supposed To Have Bodies, Too?
It took more than 400 workers 14 years to carve the heads of Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln into Mount Rushmore. Did you know the original plan was for them to have bodies, too?
Jackie DorothyJanuary 18, 2025

Michael And Kathleen Gear: Wyoming’s First Couple Of Writing Have Published 88 Books
Every book New York Times best-seller Michael and Kathleen Gear write is influenced by Wyoming. After 88 published books, the Gears are scratching a new itch to write short stories.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 12, 2025

Officials Say Flu, Other Viruses Spike In Wyoming, Even As Tests Come Up Negative
Doctors in Wyoming reporting a sharp increase in illnesses like flu, COVID-19 and other unknown viruses. Even so, people testing for flu are coming up negative, indicating the virus is changing, health officials say.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 07, 2025

Lost Home Videos From 1940s, ’50s And ’60s Coming Home To Wyoming
After a woman in Hayward, California, discovered a cache of old home videos in the attic of her newly purchased home, she's been on a mission to find family members connected to them. The videos were filmed in Cheyenne in the 40s, 50s, and 60s.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 05, 2025

Wyoming History: Nellie Tayloe Ross Sworn In As First Woman Gov. 100 Years Ago
It’s been 100 since a series of tragedies and unexpected twists changed history for one Wyoming woman, the Cowboy State and politics in the United States. Nellie Tayloe Ross was sworn in Jan. 5, 1925, as Wyoming’s — and America’s — first woman governor.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 04, 2025
Wyoming Rodeo Legend Kenny Clabaugh Remembered As A Cowboy’s Cowboy
Wyoming hall-of-fame rodeo pick-up man Kenny Clabaugh, 78, died New Year’s Eve. The rodeo legend is being remembered as one of the best in the business and a cowboy’s cowboy.
Jackie DorothyJanuary 04, 2025

Wyoming History: Before There Were Bridges, Crossing Rivers Was Dangerous And Deadly
To early pioneers, Wyoming rivers could be the most dangerous adversary they faced. Fording high waters claimed many lives in the early years of the Cowboy State and cut off entire towns from the rest of the world.
Jackie DorothyDecember 25, 2024

Podcast Is All About Stuff That’s Wacky, Wild Or Weird In Wyoming
What do cattle mutilations, a grave robber and a good Samaritan have in common? They are all featured on Dean Petersen’s Wyoming-based podcast, “That Doesn’t Happen Everyday.”
Jackie DorothyDecember 25, 2024

The WRANGLER Magazine: A Couple's Nearly 40-Year Love Affair With Wyoming And Cowboy Life
You may not know Jim and Paulette Moss, but chances are you know their work. As publishers of The WRANGLER magazine, they shared their love affair with Wyoming and cowboy life for nearly 40 years.
Jackie DorothyDecember 25, 2024

Christmas Is Time For First Guns For Many Wyoming Kids
Like in the classic 1983 moving “A Christmas Story,” all many Wyoming kids want for Christmas is their first gun. For some, that’s the legendary Red Ryder BB gun.
Jackie DorothyDecember 24, 2024

Bird Flu Is Making Christmas Dinner More Expensive In Wyoming
While the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed that human infections of bird flu are rare, the most recent outbreak is affecting Wyoming’s grocery prices — and people’s holiday dinners.
Jackie DorothyDecember 23, 2024

What Is That Weird Boulder Dug Up On Historic Wyoming Ranch?
A Wyoming family was surprised to run into a gigantic boulder while digging a trench on the historic Hogg Ranch near Meeteetse. Despite pressure to cut it open, they'll keep the giant rock as a decorative piece.
Jackie DorothyDecember 22, 2024

Tourist Finds Out That Mustang Probably Not Best Choice To Explore Hole-In-The-Wall Wyoming
A tourist from Iowa was so fascinated by the stories of Butch Cassidy and the Hole-in-the-Wall gang that, despite warnings from locals in Thermopolis that he should take a four-wheel-drive, he went out to explore the area in his prized Mustang instead.
Jackie DorothyDecember 22, 2024

Wyoming History: That Time In 1929 When Santa Saved Greybull With Dynamite Bombs
History says Santa saved Greybull from a devastating flood when he tossed dynamite bombs out an airplane. That was George Scott, who bomb an ice jam that threatened to wash Greybull off the map. He would go on to be the town’s Santa for years.
Jackie DorothyDecember 21, 2024

Discovery In Wyoming Weed Field Started Vintage Collection Of Restored Gas Pumps
A Worland, Wyoming, man is obsessed with antique gas pumps, finding them and restoring them to their former glory — or better. The obsession began 15 years ago when he found a rusted old pump in a field of weeds.
Jackie DorothyDecember 15, 2024

Willie LeClair: Eastern Shoshone Spiritual Leader, Teacher And Storyteller
Eastern Shoshone tribe member Willie LeClair walked dual worlds as a cowboy and an American Indian in Wyoming. His legacy is as a spiritual leader, storyteller and teacher who also had a “wicked sense of humor.”
Jackie DorothyDecember 15, 2024

UW Fellowship Honors Phil Roberts, Who Taught Wyoming History To Thousands
Nobody knows Wyoming like Phil Roberts, the University of Wyoming professor emeritus who literally wrote the book on Cowboy State history. A new UW fellowship has been named for Roberts, who taught tens of thousands of students over the years.
Jackie DorothyDecember 15, 2024

Wyoming History: That Time In 1907 A Cow Ate 19 Sticks Of Dynamite And Exploded
It was 1907 when a cow wandered onto a mining claim in Birdseye, Wyoming, ate 19 sticks of dynamite and exploded. "What hurts is that we had to pay $45 for the cow," lamented the owner.
Jackie DorothyDecember 14, 2024

Wyoming Forest Rangers And Hotshots Spread Cheer With “Charlie Brown” Trees
U.S. Forest Service Rangers and Hotshot firefighters in Greybull, Wyoming, cut Christmas trees to donate around Big Horn County this past weekend. The “Charlie Brown” trees are lighting up homes and offices for the season.
Jackie DorothyDecember 09, 2024

Want To Buy A Wild Bison? Wyoming State Parks Is Selling 15
For the person who has everything, Wyoming State Parks is selling 15 wild bison. They’re huge, healthy and as close to genetically pure wild bison as is possible. They’re also available to the highest bidders.
Jackie DorothyDecember 07, 2024

Wyoming Raw Milk Producers Part Of New Federal Mandate To Test For Bird Flu
A new federal mandate to test raw, unpasteurized milk for possible bird flu contamination goes into effect in less than two weeks. That’s news to some Wyoming producers who say they haven’t heard from federal officials about the new rule.
Jackie DorothyDecember 06, 2024

60 Years Ago, Wyoming Vet Helped Eradicate Devastating Flesh-Eating Screwworm
Wyoming Veterinarian Larry Friedman helped eradicate a devastating flesh-eating cattle parasite called screwworm in the 1960s. Now it's again a potential threat to Wyoming and U.S. ranchers.
Jackie DorothyDecember 05, 2024