Sublette Centennial kicks off Feb. 15th
by Sublette County Centennial Committee
February 10, 2021
The 100th anniversary of the formation of Sublette County is a major milestone in our history, and a great time to collectively look back and celebrate our rich heritage. The Sublette County Centennial Committee is excited to kick off our look at the past 100 years of history on Monday, February 15, 2021!
The creation of Lincoln County in 1911 alerted the residents of the upper Green River Valley that they needed to act soon to form their own county, or risk the valley being permanently split. These efforts resulted in legislative proposals in 1913 and 1915 to create a new county, sometimes called Lake County and sometimes called Meadow County, encompassing the upper Green River and upper Hoback River. These ultimately failed mainly due to disagreements between the Lincoln County (Big Piney & Marbleton) and Fremont County (Pinedale) residents in the valley. Looking forward at the decision on a new county seat, most Big Piney & Marbleton residents wanted LaBarge and Fontenelle Creeks included in the new county, and most Pinedale residents did not.
By 1921, Perry W. Jenkins of Pinedale sponsored a bill backed by Oscar Beck and L. D. Tanner of Big Piney to form the new county of Sublette consisting of 2000 square miles taken from Lincoln County (west half of upper Green River Valley and upper Hoback River) and 2400 square miles taken from Fremont County (east half of Green River Valley. After some objections from representatives from Kemmerer in committee, House Bill 17 passed unanimously on January 28th. The bill was unanimously approved by the Senate on February 7th.
Governor Robert D. Carey signed the bill on February 15th officially forming the unorganized County of Sublette. On the same day, he also appointed Oscar Beck of Big Piney, William E. Enos of Daniel, and Lou H. Hennick of Pinedale as commissioners to make arrangements to organize the new county. They would serve for almost two years with no compensation.
Perry W. Jenkins was called the "Father of Sublette County" at the time and even now for his efforts to bring the representatives together and unanimously pass legislation that had failed for ten years.
The Sublette County Centennial Committee will be meeting next on Wednesday, February 17 at 5:15pm in the Commissioners Meeting Room at the Sublette County Courthouse. The public is welcome. Social distancing will be practiced.
Committee members include Mary Lankford, Clint Gilchrist, Tim Thompson, Debbee Woyciesjes, Todd Brown, Janet Montgomery, and Betty Fear. Coordinator is Mindi Crabb. If you have questions, ideas, or would like to be notified of future meetings, please email subcocentennial@gmail.com. Follow the "Sublette Centennial" Facebook and Instagram pages for regular updates.
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