Wyoming - Wikipedia 6/20/17, 540 PM Coordinates: 43°N 107.5°W Wyoming From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Wyoming i/waɪˈoʊmɪŋ/ is a state in the mountain region of the western United States. The state is the tenth largest by area, the least populous and the second least densely populated state in the country. Wyoming is State of Wyoming bordered on the north by Montana, on the east by South Dakota and Nebraska, on the south by Colorado, on the southwest by Utah, and on the west by Idaho. Cheyenne is the capital and the most populous city in Wyoming, with a population estimate of 63,335 in 2015.[7] The state population was estimated at 586,107 in 2015, which is less than the population of 31 of the largest U.S. cities.[2] The western two-thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the Rocky Flag Seal Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High Plains. Almost half of Nickname(s): Equality State (official); the land in Wyoming is owned by the U.S. government, leading Wyoming to rank sixth in the United States in Cowboy State; Big Wyoming[1] total acres and fifth in percentage of a state's land owned by the federal government.[8] The federal lands include Motto(s): Equal Rights two national parks—Grand Teton and Yellowstone—two national recreation areas and two national monuments, as well as several national forests, historic sites, fish hatcheries, and wildlife refuges. The Crow, Arapaho, Lakota, and Shoshone were some of the original inhabitants of the region. Southwestern Wyoming was included in the Spanish Empire and then Mexican territory until it was ceded to the United States in 1848 at the end of the Mexican–American War. The region acquired the name Wyoming when a bill was introduced to Congress in 1865 to provide a "temporary government for the territory of Wyoming." The territory was named after the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania, with the name ultimately being derived from the Munsee word xwé:wamənk, meaning "at the big river flat."[9][10] The mineral-extraction industry—especially coal, oil, natural gas, and trona—along with the travel and tourism Official English sector, are the main drivers behind Wyoming's economy. Agriculture has historically been an important language component of the state economy with the main commodities being livestock (beef), hay, sugar beets, grain (wheat Demonym Wyomingite and barley), and wool. The climate is generally semi-arid and continental, being drier and windier in comparison Capital Cheyenne to the rest of the United States, with greater temperature extremes. (and largest city) Largest metro Cheyenne Metro Area Except for the 1964 election, Wyoming has been a politically conservative state since the 1950s, with the Area Ranked 10th [11] Republican party winning every presidential election. • Total 97,914[1] sq mi (253,600 km2) • Width 372.8 miles (600 km) Contents • Length 280 miles (452 km) • % water 0.7 • Latitude 41°N to 45°N 1 Geography • Longitude 104°3'W to 111°3'W 1.1 Location and size 1.2 Mountain ranges Population Ranked 50th 1.3 Islands • Total 586,107 (2015 estimate); 1.4 Public lands 563,626 (2010 census)[2] 2 Climate • Density 5.97/sq mi (2.31/km2) 3 History Ranked 49th 4 Demographics • Median $60,925[3] (15th) 4.1 Population household 4.2 Birth data income 4.3 Languages 4.4 Religion Elevation 5 Economy • Highest point Gannett Peak[4][5][6] 5.1 Mineral and energy production 13,809 ft (4209.1 m) 5.2 Taxes • Mean 6,700 ft (2040 m) 6 Transportation • Lowest point Belle Fourche River at 7 Wind River Indian Reservation South Dakota border[5][6] 8 State law and government 3,101 ft (945 m) 8.1 Judicial system Before Wyoming Territory 8.2 Politics statehood 9 Counties Admission to July 10, 1890 (44th) 10 Cities and towns Union 11 Metropolitan areas 12 Education Governor Matt Mead (R) 12.1 Higher education Secretary of Ed Murray (R) 13 Sports State 14 State symbols Legislature Wyoming Legislature 15 See also • Upper house Senate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming Page 1 of 14 Wyoming - Wikipedia 6/20/17, 540 PM 16 References • Lower house House of Representatives 17 External links U.S. Senators Mike Enzi (R) John Barrasso (R) U.S. House Liz Cheney (R) (list) Geography delegation Time zone Mountain: UTC -7/-6 Location and size ISO 3166 US-WY Abbreviations WY, Wyo. As specified in the designating legislation for the Territory of Wyoming, Wyoming's borders are lines of latitude, 41°N and 45°N, and longitude, 104°3'W and 111°3'W (27° W and 34° W of the Washington Meridian), making Website wyoming.gov (http://wyoming. gov) the shape of the state a latitude-longitude quadrangle.[12] Wyoming is one of only three states (along with Colorado and Utah) to have borders along only straight latitudinal and longitudinal lines, rather than being defined by natural landmarks. Due to surveying inaccuracies during the 19th century, Wyoming's legal border Wyoming state symbols deviates from the true latitude and longitude lines by up to half of a mile (0.8 km) in some spots, especially in the mountainous region along the 45th parallel.[13] Wyoming is bordered on the north by Montana, on the east by South Dakota and Nebraska, on the south by Colorado, on the southwest by Utah, and on the west by Idaho. It is the tenth largest state in the United States in total area, containing 97,814 square miles (253,340 km2) and is made up of 23 counties. From the north border to the south border it is 276 miles (444 km);[14] and from the east to the west border is 365 miles (587 km) at its south end and 342 miles (550 km) at the north end. Mountain ranges The Flag of Wyoming The Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming. The state is a great plateau broken by many mountain ranges. Surface elevations range from the summit of Gannett Peak in the Wind River Mountain Range, at 13,804 feet (4,207 m), to the Belle Fourche River valley in the state's northeast corner, at 3,125 feet (952 m). In the northwest are the Absaroka, Owl Creek, Gros Ventre, Wind River and the Teton ranges. In the north central are the Big Horn Mountains; in the northeast, the Black Hills; and in the southern region the Laramie, Snowy and Sierra Madre ranges. The Snowy Range in the south central part of the state is an extension of the Colorado Rockies in both geology and appearance. The Wind River Range in the west central part of the state is remote and includes more than 40 mountain peaks in excess of 13,000 ft (4,000 m) tall in addition to Gannett Peak, the highest peak in the state. The Seal of Wyoming The Big Horn Mountains in the north central portion are somewhat isolated from the bulk of the Rocky Living insignia Mountains. Bird Western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) The Teton Range in the northwest extends for 50 miles (80 km), part of which is included in Grand Teton Fish Cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki) National Park. The park includes the Grand Teton, the second highest peak in the state. Flower Wyoming Indian paintbrush (Castilleja The Continental Divide spans north-south across the central portion of the state. Rivers east of the divide drain linariifolia) into the Missouri River Basin and eventually the Gulf of Mexico. They are the North Platte, Wind, Big Horn and Grass Western wheatgrass (Pascopyrum the Yellowstone rivers. The Snake River in northwest Wyoming eventually drains into the Columbia River and smithii) the Pacific Ocean, as does the Green River through the Colorado River Basin. Mammal American bison (Bison bison) The Continental Divide forks in the south central part of the state in an area known as the Great Divide Basin Reptile Horned lizard (Phrynosoma douglassi where the waters that flow or precipitate into this area remain there and cannot flow to any ocean. Instead, brevirostre) because of the overall aridity of Wyoming, water in the Great Divide Basin simply sinks into the soil or evaporates. Tree Plains cottonwood (Populus sargentii) Inanimate insignia Several rivers begin in or flow through the state, including the Yellowstone River, Bighorn River, Green River, and the Snake River. Dinosaur Triceratops Fossil Knightia Islands Mineral Nephrite Wyoming has 32 named islands, the majority of which are located in Jackson Lake and Yellowstone Lake within Motto Equal Rights Yellowstone National Park in the northwest portion of the state. The Green River in the southwest also contains a Soil Forkwood (unofficial) number of islands. Song "Wyoming" by Charles E. Winter & George E. Knapp Public lands State route marker More than 48% of the land in Wyoming is owned by the U.S. government, leading Wyoming to rank sixth in the United States in total acres and fifth in percentage of a state's land owned by the federal government.[8] This amounts to about 30,099,430 acres (121,808.1 km2) owned and managed by the United States government. The state government owns an additional 6% of all Wyoming lands, or another 3,864,800 acres (15,640 km2).[8] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming Page 2 of 14 Wyoming - Wikipedia 6/20/17, 540 PM The vast majority of this government land is administered by the Bureau of Land Management and U.S.