Douglas

Douglas, city, seat (1887) of Converse county, east-central Wyoming, U.S., on the North Platte River, 52 miles (84 km) east of Casper. Founded in 1886 with the arrival of the railroad, it was first called Tent Town but was renamed to honour Stephen A. Douglas, Lincoln’s political opponent. It is a trade centre for a livestock, grain, poultry, and petroleum region and the home of the annual Wyoming State Fair, as well as the site of the Wyoming Law Enforcement Academy. Nearby are the restored site of Fort Fetterman, built in 1867 during the Sioux wars, and Ayres Natural Bridge, a 100-foot (30-metre) arch spanning La Prele Creek. A division of the Medicine Bow National Forest is across the river to the south, and the Thunder Basin National Grassland lies to the north. Inc. 1886. Pop. (2000) 5,288; (2010) 6,120.