In the 1860s, Wyoming’s tiny town of South Pass became one of the territory’s busiest cities, thanks to mines that struck gold in the mountains. However, not every visitor had a pleasant time in the hospitable city, thanks to the deadly work of Wyoming’s first-ever serial killer: a young woman by the name of Polly Bartlett. Few folks know that Wyoming’s ever even had a serial killer of its own, let alone known that the killer was female.
Most people know South Pass City as one of Wyoming’s most famous ghost towns - but did you know about its sinister history?
Graham Styles/Flickr It turns out that South Pass was the home of Wyoming’s very first serial killer - a young lady by the name of Polly Bartlett.
Back in the 1860s, gold was discovered in this mountain pass town, and people flooded the place looking to get rich quick.
W.H. Jackson/Wikimedia The Bartlett Family, originally from Ohio, settled down in this bustling, upcoming place, and opened an inn. They were new to the hospitality industry and were almost certainly in it just to make a quick buck.
Young Polly was an opportunistic woman, and she realized that these transient miners and prospectors had what she was looking for: money and, unfortunately, no way to get ahold of folks all the way back home.
Jay White/Flickr The Bartletts saw the miners as easy targets. With no families and in a region that was very much lawless, men disappeared all the time. Big deal - nobody would come looking, after all.
Polly hatched a plan to rob the miners by poisoning them. She would welcome them into the inn, and then poison them with arsenic-laced steak.
Don Barrett/Flickr In total, more than 20 men disappeared, but it was the disappearance of Barney Fortunes that finally did the Bartlett clan in.
Fortunes was the son of a wealthy mine owner, who quickly set Pinkertons on the case.
m01229/Flickr Detectives tracked Fortunes to the inn, and the Bartletts quickly skipped town. A reward was subsequently offered for their capture.
Polly was arrested and held in an Atlantic City Jail, and her father was gunned down by a rogue lawman.
me_tobster/Flickr While Polly awaited trial, Fortune’s former boss tracked her down and shot her, thus ending the story of Wyoming’s first serial killer in a truly wild west style.
Today, South Pass City is preserved as a historic site, and you can still visit the ghost town. It’s worth the detour from Lander – just be sure not to run into an overly friendly innkeeper, would ya? For more creepy Wyoming ghost tales, read 8 Horribly Creepy Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do In Wyoming.
Graham Styles/Flickr
It turns out that South Pass was the home of Wyoming’s very first serial killer - a young lady by the name of Polly Bartlett.
W.H. Jackson/Wikimedia
The Bartlett Family, originally from Ohio, settled down in this bustling, upcoming place, and opened an inn. They were new to the hospitality industry and were almost certainly in it just to make a quick buck.
Jay White/Flickr
The Bartletts saw the miners as easy targets. With no families and in a region that was very much lawless, men disappeared all the time. Big deal - nobody would come looking, after all.
Don Barrett/Flickr
In total, more than 20 men disappeared, but it was the disappearance of Barney Fortunes that finally did the Bartlett clan in.
m01229/Flickr
Detectives tracked Fortunes to the inn, and the Bartletts quickly skipped town. A reward was subsequently offered for their capture.
me_tobster/Flickr
While Polly awaited trial, Fortune’s former boss tracked her down and shot her, thus ending the story of Wyoming’s first serial killer in a truly wild west style.
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Address: South Pass, Wyoming 82520, USA
The OIYS Visitor Center
South Pass City in Wyoming October 11, 2021 Tori Jane Are there any interesting ghost towns in Wyoming? Of course! Wyoming is one of those states where there just might be more ghost towns than living towns! Okay, maybe not literally, but figuratively speaking, this is a ghostly state. We’re big fans of ghost towns, and Wyoming is home to some of our favorites. Sure, there’s South Pass City (which you’ve just read about), but there are also amazing gems like Atlantic City, which isn’t terribly far from South Pass City and still has an operating restaurant. Piedmont is an interesting one, too, with several dilapidated old cabins falling to history there (read: photogenic!). There’s also the oldest town in Wyoming, Hartville, which was once a hideout for bank robbers (seriously). If you’d like to read more about these towns and a few others, check out this list of ten creepy ghost towns in Wyoming! It’s perfect for anyone feeling adventurous; get out and explore this gorgeous state! Have there been any Wyoming serial killers? Unfortunately, despite being darned remote and mostly forgotten about in favor of more infamous places, Wyoming has seen its fair share of terrifying serial killers and otherwise dangerous criminals. There’s the story you just read, about Polly Bartlett, but other than her, there was also Rodney Alcala - known more commonly as “The Dating Game Killer” thanks to his being on the show in the 70s. He was charged in 2016 with a 1977 cold case murder that took place in this beautiful state that seemed to leave a shadow lingering here for decades after. While the case went unsolved for decades, recent DNA evidence confirmed Alcala’s connection to the murder and, at the very least, some closure was finally brought to the victim’s family.
The OIYS Visitor Center
South Pass City in Wyoming
October 11, 2021
Tori Jane
Are there any interesting ghost towns in Wyoming? Of course! Wyoming is one of those states where there just might be more ghost towns than living towns! Okay, maybe not literally, but figuratively speaking, this is a ghostly state. We’re big fans of ghost towns, and Wyoming is home to some of our favorites. Sure, there’s South Pass City (which you’ve just read about), but there are also amazing gems like Atlantic City, which isn’t terribly far from South Pass City and still has an operating restaurant. Piedmont is an interesting one, too, with several dilapidated old cabins falling to history there (read: photogenic!). There’s also the oldest town in Wyoming, Hartville, which was once a hideout for bank robbers (seriously). If you’d like to read more about these towns and a few others, check out this list of ten creepy ghost towns in Wyoming! It’s perfect for anyone feeling adventurous; get out and explore this gorgeous state! Have there been any Wyoming serial killers? Unfortunately, despite being darned remote and mostly forgotten about in favor of more infamous places, Wyoming has seen its fair share of terrifying serial killers and otherwise dangerous criminals. There’s the story you just read, about Polly Bartlett, but other than her, there was also Rodney Alcala - known more commonly as “The Dating Game Killer” thanks to his being on the show in the 70s. He was charged in 2016 with a 1977 cold case murder that took place in this beautiful state that seemed to leave a shadow lingering here for decades after. While the case went unsolved for decades, recent DNA evidence confirmed Alcala’s connection to the murder and, at the very least, some closure was finally brought to the victim’s family.
The OIYS Visitor Center
The OIYS Visitor Center
Of course! Wyoming is one of those states where there just might be more ghost towns than living towns! Okay, maybe not literally, but figuratively speaking, this is a ghostly state. We’re big fans of ghost towns, and Wyoming is home to some of our favorites. Sure, there’s South Pass City (which you’ve just read about), but there are also amazing gems like Atlantic City, which isn’t terribly far from South Pass City and still has an operating restaurant. Piedmont is an interesting one, too, with several dilapidated old cabins falling to history there (read: photogenic!). There’s also the oldest town in Wyoming, Hartville, which was once a hideout for bank robbers (seriously). If you’d like to read more about these towns and a few others, check out this list of ten creepy ghost towns in Wyoming! It’s perfect for anyone feeling adventurous; get out and explore this gorgeous state!
Have there been any Wyoming serial killers?
Unfortunately, despite being darned remote and mostly forgotten about in favor of more infamous places, Wyoming has seen its fair share of terrifying serial killers and otherwise dangerous criminals. There’s the story you just read, about Polly Bartlett, but other than her, there was also Rodney Alcala - known more commonly as “The Dating Game Killer” thanks to his being on the show in the 70s. He was charged in 2016 with a 1977 cold case murder that took place in this beautiful state that seemed to leave a shadow lingering here for decades after. While the case went unsolved for decades, recent DNA evidence confirmed Alcala’s connection to the murder and, at the very least, some closure was finally brought to the victim’s family.
