Wyoming
Little library lives again in Hudson, Wyoming
By Katie Klingsporn
HUDSON, Wyo. — The diminutive white building in this diminutive central Wyoming town might be mistaken for a home if not for the faded book drop outside and the large blue words adorning its front exterior wall: Yablonski Memorial Library.
Those letters, which are new, signify fresh life in a facility revived after a period of dormancy.
A group of volunteers called Hudson Community Heroes reopened the community library in late November after months of work. It will be open on Mondays from 2-6 p.m. for residents of this 435-person town near the Little Popo Agie River — and anyone else who wants to pop in.
In reviving the library, volunteers have also uncovered more about the former company town’s history of mining and labor.
Maralyne Middour and Susan Bronson launched the effort after realizing the library, which could be used as a community space for programs like the Girl Scouts, hadn’t been open for some time, Middour said. After asking around, they discovered the elderly woman who formerly managed it had been moved to a senior facility in Lander, leaving nobody at the helm.
“We were like, ‘this should be an asset for the community,’” Middour said. “‘This shouldn’t be something that’s shuttered.’”
Community libraries like Hudson’s aren’t typically government-funded and maintained, unlike their public counterparts. Instead, nonprofits or groups manage them.
The Hudson Community Heroes obtained permission from the town to run the library, but the task wasn’t as simple as opening the doors. The building had been neglected, Middour said, and a significant amount of decluttering, organizing and cleaning was in order.
“When we walked in here for the very first time, you couldn’t really tell what it was,” she said. “I mean, it looked so cluttered. It was so full of stuff. And there was definitely a spider and centipede infestation.”
Now, books, DVDs and puzzles line the shelves in orderly rows. The collection includes authors from CJ Box to Charles Dickens and the prolific Clive Cussler — whose books fill an entire shelf. Many items can be borrowed on the honor system.
Middour, who is a keen history buff, was also able to reconstruct some of the history of the town and its library. When the project started, she heard a couple different accounts of why it was called the Yablonski Library, she said. After some digging, she discovered the building was formerly the United Mine Workers of America Union Hall. “So that was the original intended purpose of this building.”
In 1974, a group of women called the Hudson Hudsonettes negotiated the union hall property’s transfer to the town of Hudson to be maintained in perpetuity as a library in memory of the Yablonski family, Middour said, “and that’s how it became the Yablonski Memorial Library.”
Joseph “Jock” Yablonski was a labor leader in the United Mine Workers in the 1950s and ‘60s known for demanding better working conditions. Along with his wife and adult daughter, Yablonski was brutally murdered on New Year’s Eve in 1969 in his Pennsylvania home by men hired by a union president he had challenged in an election. After his death, Jablonski became known as a hero for workers in union circles. Cillian Murphy is reportedly playing Yablonski in an upcoming film about the labor leader’s life.
When they began going through the library’s materials, Middour found a framed piece of children’s art. It was labeled on the back as “Portrait of Joseph Yablonski.” She opened the frame and found a photograph of the man behind the art.
The whole experience, Middour said, is a good example of how history can slip away.
“If a couple of generations go by and certain stories aren’t passed along, it’s like history’s just lost,” she said.
Middour and her husband moved to Fremont County from Natrona County in the ‘90s. As she’s driven through Hudson over the decades, she’s watched as businesses have closed and the town has grown quieter. She hopes the library helps in a way to keep the town — which at its peak was home to 1,500 people, including immigrants from many European countries — vibrant.
This article was originally published by WyoFile and is republished here with permission. WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.
CASPER, Wyo. — High school athletics in Wyoming could see some drastic changes in the coming years following legislative changes to the state’s education budget, the Wyoming High School Activities Association recently announced in a statement.
According to the WHSAA, Wyoming school districts are facing a projected $3.9 million shortfall in activities funding, forcing officials to consider significant cuts to high school sports and extracurricular programs.
The WHSAA shared details regarding a new “silo” funding model implemented by the Legislature, stating that the recalibrated block grant model reduced funding for student activities and extra-duty responsibilities from $46.3 million to $42.4 million, an approximately 8.4% decrease statewide.
WHSAA Commissioner Trevor Wilson said the restructuring also restricts district access to an additional $76.2 million in previously flexible funding.
“A significant portion of the [April 28 WHSAA Board of Directors] meeting was dedicated to discussing the projected funding shortfall,” Wilson wrote.
The WHSAA is weighing several strategies to address rising costs with fewer resources. Proposed changes include eliminating regional tournaments and reducing the number of teams qualifying for state events from eight to four; limiting wrestling to two classes and restricting track and field state participants to the top 16 marks; making cuts to soccer, indoor track and field, Nordic and Alpine skiing, swimming and diving, spring golf and tennis; and reducing in-person speech and debate events by half and centrally locating All-State Music events to minimize travel. The board also recommended increasing gate admission or implementing student participation fees to offset costs.
While the WHSAA release states that no plans have been finalized and the various changes are currently just possibilities, Natrona County School District 1 Board of Trustees member Mary Schmidt criticized the WHSAA’s handling of the news at Monday’s board meeting.
“I take some issues with this, [including] the sheer fact that we as Board of Trustees members have not talked about that at all,” Schmidt said. “It is not our intent and it has not been brought to us to cut our athletics or activities budget for the upcoming school year. … I take issue with them picking sports and getting the community upset and ginning them up to be upset that this is all going to be cut when that hasn’t been discussed.”
Later in the meeting, Superintendent Angela Hensley clarified that Natrona County School District 1’s athletics and activities budget saw a reduction of roughly $550,000 in the coming year’s budget, but said the local school district does not plan to cut any sports.
“Thank you, Trustee Schmidt, for saying this, because I think people are wondering — we are not planning to cut athletics and activities for next year,” Hensley said. “We do have to take a look at our entire budget as we have talked about, as we learn more about these new rules that come in.”
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Republished with permission from Wyoming News Now, a TV news outlet covering the Cheyenne and Casper areas.
Cheyenne City Council has introduced a temporary moratorium, or pause, on new data center construction.
“The end goal is to actually have regulations in place, to have really heavy public involvement with this with data centers,” said Councilman Mark Moody.
The proposed ordinance is not a permanent ban on data centers and would not affect data centers currently under construction.
Councilman Moody says this is a bipartisan issue.
“I just want to make this clear, I’m not against data centers. We do need them from a national security perspective,” he said.
He said there needs to be more public input and regulations regarding data centers in Cheyenne.
The ordinance would require city staff to study data center impacts such as electricity usage, electricity tariffs, closed-loop cooling systems, groundwater impacts, agricultural impacts, and land value.
Cheyenne LEADS, the economic development corporation for Cheyenne and Laramie County, reported in November 2025 that there are 12 operational data centers in Wyoming, five under construction and plans for 43 data centers announced across the state.
“There needs to be more public input with this, and also to see how many we can sustain here in this community, cause there are talks of 43, and then another day 70. How many can we sustain here?” said Councilman Moody.
The proposed moratorium will now go to the Public Services Committee on Monday, May 18 at noon in the Municipal Building.
Sheridan will play in the North Regional Tournament at Gillette, while the South Regional Tournament will be played at Rock Springs.
North Regional Tournament at Gillette:
Checking record vs. highest team in the quadrant not involved in the tie, Thunder Basin gets the #1 Northeast seed over Campbell County, because the Lady Bolts went 3-1 vs. Sheridan, whereas the Lady Camels went 2-2.
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 NE) Thunder Basin vs. (#4 NW) Jackson – 11am
(#2 NW) Natrona County vs. (#3 NE) Sheridan – 11am
(#2 NE) Campbell County vs. (#3 NW) Kelly Walsh – 1pm
(#1 NW) Cody vs. (#4 NE) Worland – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Thunder Basin/Jackson winner vs. Natrona County/Sheridan winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh winner vs. Cody/Worland winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Thunder Basin/Jackson loser vs. Natrona County/Sheridan loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh loser vs. Cody/Worland loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
South Regional Tournament at Rock Springs:
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 SW) Laramie vs. (#4 SE) Torrington – 11am
(#2 SE) Cheyenne East vs. (#3 SW) Green River – 11am
(#2 SW) Rock Springs vs. (#3 SE) Wheatland – 1pm
(#1 SE) Cheyenne Central vs. (#4 SW) Cheyenne South – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Laramie/Torrington winner vs. Cheyenne East/Green River winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Rock Springs/Wheatland winner vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Laramie/Torrington loser vs. Cheyenne East/Green River loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Rock Springs/Wheatland loser vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
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