Fish Plants total 1,200,000

An article in the local weekly newspaper dated Oct. 21, 1938 reads:

“Fish plants from federal fisheries stationed near Saratoga have totaled over 1,200,000 trout since the start of the season July 1, according to an announcement this week by Supt. S. M. Ainsworth.

“The plants included the four species of trout raised here, the superintendent said, and remarked further that at least 90 percent of the plants were made outside this territory, in the forest reserves and in response to comparatively private or personal applications for the little fish. Due to few applications, only about 500,000 fish have been placed in Platte Valley waters this season.

“Mr. Ainsworth said plants since July 1 included 518,267 brook trout, 400,636 natives, 242,236 rainbow and 53,800 loch laven. Out of these totals, 293,411 brooks, 91,174 native, 78,794 rainbow and 40,984 loch laven trout were placed in local waters.

“Possibly 42,000 more will be planted in the Valley out of a total of 117,000 still in the hatchery to be placed in streams before the end of the present planning season.”

State and private fish hatcheries were in existence as early as 1906 in the Upper North Platte River Valley of south central Wyoming. The first National Fish Hatchery in the area was established four miles north of Saratoga in 1915. The first production of 181,256 brook trout were released in 1916 to various Wyoming streams.

The hatchery exists today and releases millions of trout throughout the world, but that’s another fish tail – or is it tale?