Buford, Wyoming

Buford is an unincorporated ghost town in Albany County, Wyoming, United States. It is located between Laramie and Cheyenne on Interstate 80. Its last resident, who had been the lone resident for nearly two decades, left in 2012.[1]

Buford, Wyoming
Unincorporated community
Town sign for Buford as of April 2020
Town sign for Buford as of April 2020
Buford, Wyoming is located in Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming
Location within the state of Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming is located in the United States
Buford, Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming (the United States)
Buford, Wyoming is located in North America
Buford, Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming
Buford, Wyoming (North America)
Coordinates: 41°7′25″N 105°18′9″W
CountryUnited States
StateWyoming
CountyAlbany
Founded1866
Government
 • MayorN/A
Population
 (2019)[1]
 • Total0
Time zoneUTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-6 (MDT)
ZIP codes
82052
GNIS feature ID1586078

Location

Buford is located in the Laramie Mountains, between the towns of Laramie and Cheyenne.[2] The town is along the eastern approach to Sherman Hill Summit, the highest point along all of the transcontinental Interstate 80, Lincoln Highway and the Overland Route.[3] Buford is also an access to reach the Ames Monument, which marks the highest point along the original routing of the First transcontinental railroad.[4]

History

The original town was founded in 1866.[5] A Chicago Tribune article from 2012 stated that the locale began as a military outpost during the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad, but shrank when the fort moved to Laramie.[6] The town once boasted a population of 2,000.[7]

The Buford post office was established in August 1900, originally attributed as being in Laramie County but attributed to Albany County beginning in 1901. The post office suspended service on February 1, 1999, and the post office itself was discontinued on July 24, 2004, with mail service given to the post office at Cheyenne.[8] There was a school operating in Buford from 1905 to 1962. The railroad sold the Buford site to a private buyer in 1970.

Don Sammons moved to Buford from California in 1980 with his wife and son.[6][9] In 1992, he bought the parcel of land, of around 10 acres (4.0 ha), that comprises Buford, including the Buford Trading Post and its gas station.[6][10] Sammons was the officer-in-charge of the post office beginning in 1993, and postmaster from April 1994 until the post office closed.[8] Around 1995, Sammons' wife died, and around 2008, his son moved away.[9] When Sammons decided to move to be closer to his adult son, he auctioned off the site in April 2012.[6][10]

Promotional sign related to the years 2011 to 2017. The sign still exists as of 2020.

The town was put up for auction on April 5, 2012, with the highest bid of $900,000 having been made by two then-unidentified Vietnamese men.[10][11][12] Later, it was revealed that one of them was Pham Dinh Nguyen.[13] The new owners sold "PhinDeli" brand coffee, imported from Vietnam, in the convenience store.[14] In 2013, the new Vietnamese owner re-branded the site as "PhinDeli Town Buford".[15][16] Nguyen never lived in the town and only visited it occasionally. Sammons managed the store for months and then Albany County native Jason Hirsh took over management while his son and nephew maintained the property and lived on site. In September 2017, Hirsh resigned and the store was boarded up;[1] however, the Buford, Wyoming page on GasBuddy.com's website indicates the PhinDeli fuel station/mini-market is running and has been since at least August of 2021.[17]

See also

References
  1. Roddam, Rick (September 4, 2018). "Wyoming's Smallest Town Has Been Completely Abandoned". 101.9 KING FM. Cheyenne, Wyoming. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  2. Orr, Jimmy (December 30, 2022). "Buford, Wyoming, Population Zero Is About To See A Major Expansion (And Maybe A Resident)". Cowboy State Daily. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  3. Michael E. Grass (June 20, 2013). "Lincoln at the Lincoln Highway's Highest Point". Michael E. Grass. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  4. "Ames Monument Historic Site". Wyoming State Parks. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  5. Rosenfeld, Everett (July 20, 2011). "Meet the Only Resident of America's Smallest Town". Time. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  6. Zuckerman, Laura (April 5, 2012). "UPDATE 1-Wyoming town - population 1 - sells for $900,000 to Vietnamese buyer". Chicago Tribune. Reuters. Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  7. "An oasis on long stretch of highway". Quad-City Times. October 24, 2004. p. 94. Retrieved November 8, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Postmaster Finder". about.usps.com. United States Postal Service. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  9. Chodak, Adam (January 2011). "Buford, Wyoming on 9 News". 9 News. Denver: KUSA. Archived as "Buford, Wyoming on 9 News". BufordTradingPost.com. August Moon Publishing. January 26, 2011. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  10. Vecsey, Laura. "America's tiniest town commands a big price". Zillow. Archived from the original on April 10, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  11. Spellman, Jim (April 5, 2012). "Vietnamese businessmen scoop up smallest U.S. town for $900,000". CNN. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  12. Doanh gia Việt Nam qua Mỹ mua trọn thị trấn giá $900,000 Archived 2012-04-09 at the Wayback Machine(in Vietnamese)
  13. (in Vietnamese) Lộ danh tánh người Việt mua thị trấn Mỹ $900,000 Archived 2012-04-11 at the Wayback Machine
  14. "Buford, Wyoming getting a new name - KGWN –Cheyenne, WY– Scottsbluff,…". archive.is. September 3, 2013. Archived from the original on September 3, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  15. Chilton, James (September 4, 2013). "PhinDeli Town Buford: Open for business". Wyoming Tribune Eagle. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  16. Strochlic, Nina (October 17, 2013). "America's Tiniest Town Is Sold And Renamed PhinDeli Town Buford, Wyoming". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on January 29, 2017. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  17. "GasBuddy indicates Buford, Wyoming PhinDeli fuel station/mini mart is open and in business as of August of 2021". Retrieved May 15, 2023.
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