Hot Springs County Hall of Fame inductees

he Hot Springs County Hall of Fame committee is gearing up for the upcoming 2016 banquet on Saturday, Jan. 16 at 5 p.m. at the Days Inn.

Inductees in the HSC Hall of Fame are members of the community, past and present, who have been a pioneer in our community or a figure head and have made Hot Springs County a better place. This year's inductees are Dorothy Milek, Bill Smith, Doctor C. Dana Carter, John Herrin, Sr. and Dora McGarth.

Dorothy Buchanan Milek

Dorothy Milek has no peers when it comes to researching and writing the history of Hot Springs County. She has two books published in her own name and has contributed to many more. She is a charter member of the HSC Historical Society and has chaired the Pioneer Association for 50 years. She was twice honored by the Thermopolis Chamber of Commerce as Citizen of the Year.

The mother of five, she was a 4-H leader for 20 years, a school board member and head county librarian. The modest Milek has let her books and articles speak for her. In line with her abiding interest in the area, she was instrumental in placing both the iconic Halone Stone house and the Kirby Jail on the National Historic Register.

She has also served on the board of the HSC Museum and Cultural Center for several terms. Now retired, she still keeps her finger on the pulse of Thermopolis and Hot Springs County.

"Cody Bill" Smith

Giving credit where credit is due, Bill has said, "Everything I got, I owe to rodeo." He graduated from Cody High School in 1958 and almost immediately found his calling by riding roughstock in the Cody Night Rodeo where he earned the nickname "Cody Bill."

He began his professional rodeo career in 1961 by riding broncs, winning the RCA World Champion Saddle Bronc Rider titles in 1969, '71 and '73.

Semi-retired, he moved to Hot Springs County in 1981 and busied himself by conducting horsemanship clinics and raising high-quality Quarter Horses. In 1983, a yearly tradition began with the broke gelding sale every May and a companion production sale in the fall. The Circle 7 brand has graced the right hip of many famous horses including one owned by the trainer of the 2015 Triple Crown Winner Bob Baffert.

In 2000, Smith was inducted into the Rodeo Historical Society and named the winner of the Ben Johnson award in 2010. In 2014, he was in the first class inducted into the Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame.

C. Dana Carter, M. D.

Dr. C. Dana Carter, proprietor of the Carter Sanitarium at Hot Springs, Thermopolis, Wyoming, ranked among the leading surgeons of the state. Constantly studying along the lines of modem scientific investigation and research and thus keeping in touch with the most advanced thought of the day, he continually broadened his powers and promoted his efficiency and the profession regards him as a peer of the ablest surgeons of Wyoming. He was born on May 24, 1874 in Iowa.

In 1896, Dr. Carter came to Wyoming, settling at Basin, being the first physician in the northern country. Dr. Carter was a pioneer physician of Wyoming. He was one of first to perform an appendectomy in log cabin on Greybull River without nurses or any assistance in 1897. He performed the first caesarean operation ever performed in the state, accomplishing this difficult task alone in a little log cabin in Basin in 1900.

In 1903 Dr. Carter married Mary A. Curry, of Omaha, Nebraska. They had a son, Lester W.

In 1912, he moved to Thermopolis and in 1916 built the Carter Sanitarium and Carter Hotel at the Hot Springs. He had a hospital in Thermopolis and practiced as a physician in HSC until his health forced him to retire after 32 years of practice.

John Herrin, Sr.

Thermopolis and Hot Springs County enjoyed the largess of Empire State Oil Company for many years thanks to the generosity of John Herrin. In addition, he served on nearly limitless town and county organizations including VP Budget Committee, Petroleum Association of America, Gottsche Rehabilitation Trustee, Chairman Board of Trustees Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital, member of the State Advisory Board Bureau of Land Management, board member Shoshone National Forest, member of the Governor's Education Council, Wyoming Oil Man of the Year, Pop Warner Service award for Youth Promotions, Walter Haynes Post 18 award for American Legion Baseball Fields, life member Town and County Golf Course and director of Little League.

It was often stated that a person could not stand flat-footed in Thermopolis and not see a community project that Herrin and Empire had not aided, assisted and/or abetted.

Dora McGrath

Dora McGrath, born in 1869, was a true pioneer in almost every sense of the word. She was elected from Hot Springs County as the first woman to serve in the Wyoming Senate in 1930 after a life time of service to Thermopolis and Hot Springs County. Her husband, Martin, was the first mayor of Thermopolis. McGrath led the county's Pioneer Association from inception to 1949.

At age 50, McGrath had her final child. She often remarked her ability to vote in an election in Wyoming in the early days influenced her interest in community service for the rest of her life. Her primary focus was welfare assisting those without political power or earthly goods to enjoy a more fruitful life. Her one public failure was an inability to convince state officials to place the veteran's hospital here in Thermopolis where patients could enjoy the healing force of the Big Springs mineral water. During the First World War she organized a War Mothers group here, published a newsletter for members and served as president for many years. McGrath died 1949.

The last day to purchase tickets to the Hall of Fame Banquet is Tuesday, Jan. 12. Tickets are $30 each. With limited tickets available, purchase yours early from the Storyteller, any committee member or Barb Vietti at 921-1551.