Wyoming

“…They are colored people, but…”

In February 1908, the Custer County Chief (NE) reported a reluctant farewell to Charles Speese and his family (see article above). Six weeks later, the Torrington Telegram (WY) “warned” its readers that “colored people” were buying the “old Snyder ranch.” 

The article on the left appeared in the Torrington Telegram on Thursday, April 16, 1908. This is the community the Speese, Shores, and Taylor families migrated to upon leaving Nebraska. These black homesteaders dreamed of building an empire for themselves and future generations.

The dream of a home called Empire lasted little more than a decade. By late summer 1920, the Empire post office closed. There were many contributing factors to the failure of Empire, but some believe that the death of Baseman Taylor in 1913 was a contributing factor.

When Mr. Taylor’s behavior became unstable, his family asked authorities to declare him incompetent. He went peacefully when the Goshen County sheriff came for him. Before taking him to a hospital, officers shackled Mr. Taylor’s hands and feet to a bed and tortured him for three days. Baseman Taylor died at the hands of the sheriff on November 6, 1913. His death foreshadowed the death of a dream.

Learn more about the community these related families formed in the Nebraska State Historical Society’s article by Todd Guenther, “The Empire Builders, An African American Odyssey in Nebraska and Wyoming,” Nebraska History 89 (2008): 176-200, found at:

https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/doc_publications_NH2008Empire_Builders.pdf