The Kelly Cemetery is located northeast of the town of Kelly. Located on a forgotten 40-acre tract of land that ended up in between two other 160-acre homesteads, the neighbors agreed it should be set aside for use as a cemetery. It was used sporadically from until May of 1927 when a massive flood flattened […]
Very little information remains on the early homesteading history of the Teton Science Schools’ Kelly Campus. It is known that Ransom Adams filed on a 160-acre homestead that is thought to have been first settled by Grant Shinkle. While Adams’ claim remains in the patent issued by the General Land Office, Shinkle’s claim is undocumented. […]
Kelly, Wyoming was initially a modest but thriving rural town located on the banks of the Gros Ventre River. Around 1925 the town had many amenities: mercantile, Riverside Hotel, blacksmith, flour mill (1917-1921, burned), dance hall and sawmill (removed 1918). In 1904 the first school opened on the Warren Henry homestead. By 1909, families from […]
In 1895 William “Billy” Bierer arrived in Jackson Hole to prospect for gold. He chose a site near what is now called Slide Lake, along the Gros Ventre River. After prospecting proved to be fruitless, he turned to homesteading, receiving a patent for his land in 1915. In the preceding years Bierer had spent a […]
In 1910, John Erwin first arrived in Jackson Hole and filed for 160 acres on the eastern side of the valley, just north of the community of Kelly. Located on the Gros Ventre Road, the property is a popular tourist destination today for its association with the western movie Shane. Known more often as the […]
James Williams moved into the valley at 27 years old in 1908, and filed on his homestead north of Ditch Creek. He constructed a square log home with a hipped roof, and showed surprising skill in homebuilding for a younger man. By the time he received his patent in 1915, Williams had cultivated 100 acres […]
