The Image of the Jew in the Wyoming Frontier Press

Significant numbers of Jews and other ethnic and racial minorities were uncommon in the more remote regions of the frontier American West. And yet, this did not mean that the early settlers of the region lacked an interest in these groups, their behaviors, their cultures and their beliefs. Gaining a full understanding of communal attitudes and interests in minority groups after the fact is not an easy task. However, the press is an ideal source, having played a key role in both reflecting as well as creating social attitudes and ideals during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

This book analyzes newspaper articles, editorials, and jokes published in Wyoming's nascent press from 1867 through 1918. Nearly 30,000 pieces of information were studied, all relating to the manner in which minorities, most especially though not solely Jews, were imaged by editors, journalists, and other writers. The outcome reveals an amalgam of classic anti-Semitic and racist tropes alongside seemingly benign romanticizations that similarly served to stereotype these minority communities. The study highlights that these attitudes were not confined to Wyoming or the American frontier, but were part of broader societal trends that continue to persist in various forms today.