Laramie, Wyoming
Laramie is the county seat of Albany County in the U.S. state of Wyoming. According to the 2000 U.S. census, the city population was 27,204. Laramie, located in southeast Wyoming, on the Laramie River, is northwest of Cheyenne, on the junction of Interstate 80 and US 287. It was first settled in 1868 with the coming of the Union Pacific Railroad, which crosses the Laramie River at Laramie. It is home to the University of Wyoming, Wyoming Technical Institute, and a branch of Laramie County Community College. Laramie Regional Airport serves Laramie. The ruins of Fort Sanders, an Army fort predating Laramie, lie just south of the city along route 287. Laramie is known as the Gem City of the Plains. The city is located near the Medicine Bow Mountains, and so the city draws outdoor enthusiasts because of its abundance of outdoor activities.
History
Laramie was an important stop on the Overland Trail and transcontinental railroad in the late 19th century. It now lies along U.S. Highway 30 and Interstate 80, and remains an important junction on the Union Pacific Railroad line.
The city gained worldwide notoriety in 1998 after the murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay student at the University of Wyoming. Shepard was robbed, severely beaten, tied to a fence and left to die by Aaron James McKinney and Russell Arthur Henderson. His murder caused an international outcry and was the subject of the award-winning play and movie The Laramie Project.
In 2004, Laramie became the first city in Wyoming to prohibit smoking in enclosed workplaces, including bars, restaurants and private clubs. Opponents of the clean indoor air ordinance, funded in part by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, immediately petitioned to have the ordinance repealed. However, the voters upheld the ordinance in a citywide referendum which was conducted concurrently with the 2004 general election. The opponents then challenged the validity of the election in court, claiming various irregularities. However, the judge ruled that the opponents had failed to meet their burden of showing significant problems with the election, and the ordinance — which had become effective in April 2005 — remained in effect. In August 2005, Laramie's City Council defeated an attempt to amend the ordinance to allow smoking in bars and private clubs.
Culture
Laramie has a reputation as being a wild west town. The town today is slightly different, with Wyoming's only university, it enjoys a college culture atmosphere during the school season, and a quiet quaint ghost-like town in the summer. The downtown area is full of historic buildings housing small shops and cafés. The town has a highly educated population not only because of the presence of the University of Wyoming, but also because of Wyoming Technical Institute (WyoTech) and the Laramie County Community College.
Media
The Laramie Boomerang is Laramie's main newspaper. There is also the Branding Iron, a student run newspaper for the University of Wyoming.
Geography
Laramie is located at 41°18′47″N 105°35′14″W / 41.31306°N 105.58722°WInvalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (41.312927, -105.587251)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 28.9 km² (11.2 mi²). 28.9 km² (11.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.18%) is water.
Laramie is situated on a high plain between two mountain ranges: The Medicine Bow Range (known locally as the Snowy Range) 30 miles to the west, and the Laramie Range five miles to the east. The city is approximately 7,200 feet (2200 m) above sea level.
Due to the altitude, winters are long, and summers are short and relatively cool. There is no month of the year during which snow hasn't fallen in Laramie.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 27,204 people, 11,336 households, and 5,611 families residing in the city. The population density was 942.9/km² (2,442.5/mi²). There were 11,994 housing units at an average density of 415.7/km² (1,076.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.81% White, 1.24% African American, 0.89% Native American, 1.92% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 2.89% from other races, and 2.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.94% of the population.
Like the rest of Wyoming, Laramie has a generally conservative and traditional reputation. However, the presence of the University of Wyoming gives the city a more eclectic and diverse population than many other cities in the region. There were 11,336 households out of which 23.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.3% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.5% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the city the population was spread out with 17.5% under the age of 18, 31.8% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25 years. For every 100 females there were 107.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,319, and the median income for a family was $43,395. Males had a median income of $30,888 versus $22,009 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,036. About 11.1% of families and 22.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.7% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.
Schools in Laramie include:
- University of Wyoming
- Laramie High School
- Whiting High School
- Snowy Range Academy
- Wyoming Technical Institute (WyoTech)
- Laramie County Community College
Trivia
- The Laramie Cigarettes brand from The Simpsons is named after this Rocky Mountain town due to its wild west image. The above-mentioned smoking ban makes this cigarette brand name somewhat ironic.
- The play and later HBO film, The Laramie Project, is about this town and the Matthew Shepherd incident.
- The character of Spenser in the detective novels of Robert B. Parker was born in Laramie, Wyoming.
- Famed attorney Gerry Spence and actor Jim Beaver were born in Laramie, Wyoming.
- Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino has a vacation home in Laramie, Wyoming.
- Award-winning poet and academic H.L. (Harvey) Hix lives in Laramie.
- Laramie was ranked in the top ten places to live by Bizjournals, in the top 40 outdoor college towns by Outside Magazine, and third for the best places for outdoor activities by MSN.
