Sheep wagon gets “mountain gear”

In previous post cards we’ve outlined the history of the sheep wagon, also known as the original “home on wheels,” invented in Wyoming in 1884. Here’s more of the story.
    In an article written by Agnes Wright Spring in the December 1940 issue of Wyoming Stockman-Farmer and Wyoming Industrial Journal, touted as “Wyoming’s only Agricultural Publication,” it was reported:
    “About 18 years after the first Candlish sheep wagon was put into use, the Schulte Hardware Company of Casper employed Marshall Buxton to make sheep wagons. Buxton had for some time been a buffalo and wild game hunter.
    “The special ‘mountain gear’ manufactured by the Bayne Wagon Company of Kenosha, Wisc. was used for mounting the Schulte bodies. These wagons had seat boxes, a stove, a table and cupboards for supplies. The box was held together by double doors that were strong enough to support the weight of a man. The top was a combination of linoleum, blankets and canvas. When a wagon was first completed the new canvas bagged over the top and looked like a terrible job, but after a rain it drew up ‘tight as a fiddle string.’
    The original Schulte wagon cost $248 plus the cost of the Bayne running gear, which varied from $65 to $195. A wagon with hardwood finish, good for a lifetime, could be furnished for around $1,200.”
    The 1940 feature item noted, “The Schulte Company has continued to make sheep wagons for 40 years and is now turning out, on order, a new type for around $600 – an all metal, flat bottomed wagon which is streamlined in every detail and is insulated with cellatex. It is mounted on rubber tires….”
    But, then, that’s more sheep manure for our next post card.