University of Wyoming
Tom Bohnsack was a Wyoming historian and writer. He worked for the Wyoming secretary of state and as a staff member of the Wyoming House of Representatives, where he served as sergeant-at-arms of the 37th and 39th regular legislative sessions and the 41st special session.
The collection primarily consists of Bohnsack's research materials, photographs, articles, and manuscripts pertaining to the Great Seal of Wyoming. Also included are materials on other topics—such as Wyoming statehood and the outlaw Big Nose George Parrott—that Bohnsack researched.
There are no access restrictions on the materials for research purposes, and the collection is open to the public.
The researcher assumes full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply.
As of the date of processing, there are no known other archival collections created by Tom Bohnsack.
Materials were donated by Tom Bohnsack, 1977.
Processed by Roger Simon, December 2017.
Item Description, Box Number, Folder Number, Collection Name, Collection Number, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes, a copy of the first territorial seal, a photocopy of Governor J.A. Campbell’s handwritten description of the seal, and a photocopy of his Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1869, which includes the seal, as well drafts of three chapters that Bohnsack wrote on the history of the seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes, photocopies, and a photo of the cast of the seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes, photocopies, a draft of a third chapter on the seal, with a photo of the seal as used on Governor Thomas Moonlight’s stationery and a photo of the cast of the seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes, photocopies of clippings, and photos and negatives of different designs for the first state seal, which originally included a nude female figure.
Originally in 3-ring notebook. Includes notes and photocopies of clippings and letters from Wyoming Secretary of State Thyra Thomson to several government officials regarding the location of the original Great Seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes and photocopies of clippings regarding John E. Osborne’s controversial election as governor of Wyoming. Also includes a clipping of an article about Osborne that Bohnsack wrote for the Sunday, March 30, 1975, edition of the
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes and photocopies.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes and correspondence to and from Bohnsack regarding the designs of the Wyoming State Flag and the Great Seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes notes, correspondence regarding permissible uses of the seal in the 1960s and 1970s, and different cuts, photos, and impressions of the seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Includes research notes, a timeline (1890-1893, 1921) of legislation and other events regarding the evolution of the seal, a purchase order from the Wyoming secretary of state for an electric State Seal, cuts and impressions of the seal, a photograph of the electric Seal, and typewritten text that refers to the electric seal as “short-lived” and says that it lasted less than two weeks, accompanied by a photograph of Secretary of State Thyra Thomson with the electric seal.
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Research materials on John A. Campbell, Amos W. Barber, A.C. Beckwith, F. Chatterton, John W Meldrum, Asa S. Mercer, and John E. Osborne.
Includes plastic transparencies, photos, photocopies, and cut-outs.
Includes clippings and manuscripts of three articles that Bohnsack published in 1975: (1) “Who Stripped Robes Off Wyoming’s Goddess of Liberty,” published in the July 20, 1975, edition of the
Includes two copies of a letter that Bohnsack wrote to Tom Hough at the
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Research materials on the outlaw, including notes and photocopies of clippings and an article from the May 1969 issue of “The West.” Also includes plastic transparencies.
Notes and photocopies of pages from books (mostly
Originally in a 3-ring notebook. Research materials, including photocopies of chapters from several books and a copy of the nomination form for the placement of the Wyoming State Capitol Building and Grounds in the National Register of Historic Places.
Two copies of the program for the conference “Wyoming’s Second Equality Congress.”
Includes “Guide for Contributors” from the bimonthly magazine “The American West,” a photocopy of “Introductions for Joint Sessions” of the Wyoming Legislature, Jan. 16, 1975, and a copy of the book