307 Area Code 🌍☎️

Cheyenne is the capital and most populous city of Wyoming, with a 2020 population of 65,132 and a metropolitan area of approximately 102,000 residents in Laramie County. Founded on July 5, 1867, as a Union Pacific Railroad junction in Dakota Territory and incorporated on August 8, 1867, the city was named after the Cheyenne people and earned the nickname "Magic City of the Plains" for its rapid growth. The economy is anchored by government services, Francis E. Warren Air Force Base (established as Fort D. A. Russell in 1867 and renamed in 1930 and 1949), transportation, and emerging sectors including data centers and renewable energy. Cheyenne became Wyoming's territorial capital on May 7, 1869, and has remained the state's only capital since Wyoming's statehood on July 10, 1890; notably, the territorial legislature granted women's suffrage here on December 10, 1869, making Wyoming the first U.S. state or territory to do so. The city is known for the annual Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo and cultural event, and features cultural institutions including the Wyoming State Museum and Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum. Casper is the second-most populous city in Wyoming with 59,038 residents as of the 2020 census and serves as the county seat of Natrona County in east central Wyoming on the North Platte River. Nicknamed "The Oil City," Casper developed from a mid-19th century settlement near Fort Caspar - established to protect telegraph and mail service - and was officially named after Lieutenant Caspar W. Collins, who was killed by Native American warriors in 1865, though the spelling "Casper" resulted from a typo during official registration. The city was settled in 1887 and incorporated in 1888 as a planned stopping point for the Wyoming Central Railway and Chicago and North Western Railway expansion, giving it a crucial commercial advantage over rival towns like Bessemer. Casper's economy has long been shaped by oil development, particularly the nearby Salt Creek Oil Field, combined with its historical cowboy culture and role in events like the Johnson County War. The city experienced a significant tourism surge during the solar eclipse of August 21, 2017, due to its position along the path of totality. Gillette is the county seat of Campbell County, Wyoming, and the state's third-largest city with a population of 33,496 as of July 2023, having grown 48% since the 2000 census of 19,646 residents. Founded in 1891 as a major railway terminus on the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad and incorporated on January 6, 1892, the city was named after railroad surveyor Edward Gillette. Located in the Powder River Basin between the Bighorn Mountains and Black Hills, Gillette is the economic center of Wyoming's vast coal, oil, and coalbed methane industries and markets itself as the "Energy Capital of the Nation" due to Wyoming's nearly 35% share of U.S. coal production. The city has experienced multiple waves of rapid population growth driven by energy development, including a doubling during the 1960s that led psychologist ElDean Kohrs to coin the term "Gillette syndrome" in 1974 to describe social disruption from fast expansion. Today, Gillette serves as a regional hub for media, education, health, and arts, though it faces economic challenges from declining coal use in the early 21st century.