Hartville Labor Day picnic draws hundreds

Mark DeLap
Posted 9/22/21

Hartville Labor Day Picnic

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Hartville Labor Day picnic draws hundreds

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HARTVILLE – Considering the town of Hartville has a population of 64, the endless sea of humanity that came to the Labor Day Picnic at the old Sunrise school site was nothing short of amazing.

Kathy Troupe and her husband, Edward purchased the old Sunrise school property halfway between Hartville and Sunrise. Their idea was to keep the memory, the spirit and the history of Hartville and Sunrise alive and passed on to the next generations.

“I think this is the fourth year for the Labor Day picnic,” said Troupe. “This year it kind of morphed into a reunion type thing for Hartville/Sunrise. A lot of these people are from here who used to live and work here.”

A lot of people who visited grew up and went to school in Sunrise, and thus the tie-in to having the picnic on the old school grounds.

“The first couple of years we had it in Hartville,” she said. “And then last year we bought 15 acres right here. When we used to have a reunion, we’d have to ask the owner if we could go up on the “S” and whitewash it. And now, look at this. We own it.”

This is the second year that the Troupes have opened up their property for the picnic. Since they have been on the property, a shelter was built for tables and chairs so that people could eat undercover, away from the hot sun and pounding rains of summer.

The “S” up on the hill that the Troupes own was the iconic landmark made of rocks for the old Sunrise school which finally closed down in 1963 when Sunrise and Guernsey High Schools merged due to declining enrollment.

The picnic featured meat and beverages provided by the Troupes and most of the guests brought side dishes which created a forty-foot buffet table full of fresh food. There was also music provided by Guernsey DJ Vic Soto (who grew up in Sunrise/Hartville) as well as corn-hole activities and a lot of reminiscing.

The festivities began at 3 p.m. and lasted well after dark so that people could see the lighted “S” that stands out in the pitch black of the rural area.

Hartville is “Wyoming’s oldest incorporated town still in existence,” a sign at the west edge of town informs drivers of this as they enter. 

Hartville was established in 1884 as a mining town. Prospectors sought gold, silver, copper, onyx and iron, according to the Platte County Chamber of Commerce. 

Hartville was the hub of activity for the area, especially in the early days. Hartville had a general store, mercantile, bar and brothel. While Hartville was the hub of activity, the mine was just over a mile to the east, at the town of Sunrise. 

Sunrise had its beginnings as a company town, run by the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company. The company controlled all phases of the production of steel. It owned the iron ore mines, the coal companies, the foundry, the railroad that brought the coal and ore to the foundry. It owned the miners, the town they lived in, and the company store, the Colorado Supply Company, at which miners traded, according to wyomingtalesandtrails.com.