Dalton was founded circa 1900 when the Nebraska, Wyoming and Western Railroad was extended to that point. The railroad was certified in 1899 and railroad crews began surveying potential routes in Cheyenne County. In January 1900, the railroad purchased 150 acres of land from the Union Pacific Railroad, which had received the land in a land grant in 1867. The newly purchased land became a transportation hub for the Nebraska, Wyoming and Western Railroad, and the small town of Dalton that developed on the land became one of the work stations for the railroad. By September 1900, the railroad offered daily freight and passenger transportation north to Deadwood, South Dakota and south to Denver, Colorado from Dalton.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (5), the Library of Congress (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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