About this campground
Crookston Ranch is an 1880s homestead, located on the banks of Nitchie Creek. The ranch was homesteaded by Joseph Crookston, who came to Sweetwater County from Illinois as a young boy. After spending a few years as a laborer in Rock Springs, he started the ranch in 1887 at 22 years old. Joseph lived and worked at Crookston Ranch for 28 years until his death in 1915. He never married but lived and worked with his ranch hand, Frank Baker. History claims Butch Cassidy would use the Crookston Ranch to rest and re-horse when on the run from the Federal Marshals. The site is located on publicly managed land due to an error in the filing of homestead papers. The associated spring is fed by ice cells in the adjacent sand dunes.
Getting there
Take State Highway 191 north to mile marker 10. Head East on County Road 4-17 22 miles to BLM 4115. Go West on BLM 4115 two miles to the Crookston Ranch Access route. Keep east at the fork, 1 mile to the site.
Activities
- HISTORIC & CULTURAL SITE
- HISTORIC SITES
Nearby federal campgrounds
- North Table Rock Camping AreaGreater Sand Dunes SRMA3 mi
- Cedar Canyon Petroglyphs Interpretive SiteGreater Sand Dunes SRMA4 mi
- Continental Divide National ScBureau of Land Management5 mi
- Continental Divide SnowmachineBureau of Land Management5 mi
- Boar's TuskGreater Sand Dunes SRMA6 mi
- Sand Dunes WSABureau of Land Management8 mi
Explore more Wyoming camping
Crookston Ranch Cultural Site doesn't take campsite reservations — but plenty of nearby Wyoming campgrounds do, and we'll alert you the moment a sold-out site opens up.
Browse Wyoming camping →Details from Recreation.gov's official RIDB catalog. Conditions change — confirm with the managing office before you go. Not affiliated with Recreation.gov or any federal agency.