Shepherds, often of Mexican, Basque, Greek or Irish descent, have long spent summer months high in Wyoming’s mountains, their only company the animals they are tasked to steward. 

In the 19th and 20th centuries, many left their marks on the bark of aspen trees as they traveled through, and camped in, groves accompanied by herds of hundreds or thousands of sheep. Their etchings, often depicting women, hometowns, religious symbols and loved ones’ names, are known as arborglyphs. 

Arborglyphs are important archaeological features for their insights and records into the sheep industry, immigration and land use, according to Wyoming Archaeology, which featured an image of one such glyph in its 2023 annual poster. The etching of a woman with a scarf tied around her neck was found in the Sierra Madre Range. 

While Basque shepherds were common elsewhere in Wyoming, the aspen stands of the Sierra Madres tell stories of Mexican-American sheepherders who migrated primarily from the San Luis Valley of south-central Colorado and northern New Mexico, according to Wyoming Archaeology. Some of the oldest arborglyphs in the region date to the early 1900s.  

Wyoming’s poster is currently a contestant in the annual Society for American Archaeology State Archaeology Celebration Poster contest. Wyoming has participated in the contest since its inception in 1996 and has been a formidable contender. Of the state’s 27 submissions, 12 have received first prize, eight have received second prize, and five have received third prize. 

Wyoming Archaeology’s 2023 poster is vying in a national poster contest. (Wyoming Archaeology)

There are a couple reasons why the state has done so well, according to archaeologist Gwendolyn Kristy with the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office. The first is longstanding financial support for the poster program, she said. The second stems from the state’s abundance of intact or well-preserved sites. 

“Wyoming has really incredible archaeological resources,” Kristy said. 

People can vote for the poster until April 19. It’s also available for free from the historic preservation office. 

Katie Klingsporn reports on outdoor recreation, public lands, education and general news for WyoFile. She’s been a journalist and editor covering the American West for 20 years. Her freelance work has...

Join the Conversation

6 Comments

WyoFile's goal is to provide readers with information and ideas that foster constructive conversations about the issues and opportunities our communities face. One small piece of how we do that is by offering a space below each story for readers to share perspectives, experiences and insights. For this to work, we need your help.

What we're looking for: 

  • Your real name — first and last. 
  • Direct responses to the article. Tell us how your experience relates to the story.
  • The truth. Share factual information that adds context to the reporting.
  • Thoughtful answers to questions raised by the reporting or other commenters.
  • Tips that could advance our reporting on the topic.
  • No more than three comments per story, including replies. 

What we block from our comments section, when we see it:

  • Pseudonyms. WyoFile stands behind everything we publish, and we expect commenters to do the same by using their real name.
  • Comments that are not directly relevant to the article. 
  • Demonstrably false claims, what-about-isms, references to debunked lines of rhetoric, professional political talking points or links to sites trafficking in misinformation.
  • Personal attacks, profanity, discriminatory language or threats.
  • Arguments with other commenters.

Other important things to know: 

  • Appearing in WyoFile’s comments section is a privilege, not a right or entitlement. 
  • We’re a small team and our first priority is reporting. Depending on what’s going on, comments may be moderated 24 to 48 hours from when they’re submitted — or even later. If you comment in the evening or on the weekend, please be patient. We’ll get to it when we’re back in the office.
  • We’re not interested in managing squeaky wheels, and even if we wanted to, we don't have time to address every single commenter’s grievance. 
  • Try as we might, we will make mistakes. We’ll fail to catch aliases, mistakenly allow folks to exceed the comment limit and occasionally miss false statements. If that’s going to upset you, it’s probably best to just stick with our journalism and avoid the comments section.
  • We don’t mediate disputes between commenters. If you have concerns about another commenter, please don’t bring them to us.

The bottom line:

If you repeatedly push the boundaries, make unreasonable demands, get caught lying or generally cause trouble, we will stop approving your comments — maybe forever. Such moderation decisions are not negotiable or subject to explanation. If civil and constructive conversation is not your goal, then our comments section is not for you. 

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  1. May grandfather Manuel de Atocha Quintana, his brother Eliu Quintnana and nephew Alfares Quintana from Llano de San Juan, Taos County, New Mexico, USA were sheepherders near Green River, Wyoming around 1938.

    Reply
  2. Reply
  3. Reply

  4. The herders from southern Colorado and northern New Mexico were not Mexican, they were from old Hispanic settlements in the region. A subtle but important difference. Many people from those communities also came to Wyoming to work on railroads and in the sugar beet industry, and their descendants still live here.

    Reply
    1. Reply
  5. Reply