Lost Springs is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Converse County Converse County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 13,751. Its county seat is Douglas. History Converse County was created in 1888 by the legislature of the Wyoming Territ ...

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6, making it the least populated municipality in Wyoming.

History

Lost Springs was first inhabited in the 1880s, when it received its name from railroad workers who could not find the springs shown on survey maps of the area. The town was incorporated in 1911, and it originally had 200 residents, most of whom worked at the nearby Rosin coal mine. After the coal mine closed around 1930, the population of Lost Springs steadily declined. Edward John Sanmann of

York, Nebraska York is a city in and the county seat of York County, Nebraska, United States. At the 2010 census, the city population was 7,766. It is the home of York University and the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women. History York was platted in ...

, and his wife, Lauretta Mae (Rogers) of

Bloomington, Nebraska Bloomington is a village in Franklin County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 103 at the 2010 census. History Bloomington was established in 1872 when it was certain that the railroad would be extended to that point. It was likely n ...

, moved to Lost Springs in 1948 where they lived and worked in the general store and assisted with running the town's post office. Sanmann was a member of the American Sunday School Union and Bible Class at Shawnee. The couple had a daughter who died in infancy, Virginia Arlene, and an adopted daughter, Louise Marie. Sanmann and his wife died 17 days apart in September 1967. By 1960, the population of the town had dropped to five. In 1976, both the state of Wyoming and the U.S. Bicentennial Commission designated Lost Springs as the smallest incorporated town in America; its population was then eleven. In 1983, Lost Springs became involved in a court battle with the

Chicago and North Western Transportation Company The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...

. The railroad, which ran adjacent to the town, attempted to seize of land to build a railway embankment. Lost Springs Mayor Leda Price alleged that the embankment, which would lie between the town and U.S. Highways 18 and 20, would separate the town from traffic on the highway. A Wyoming district judge ruled in the town's favor, and the railroad ultimately agreed to build an unobstructing track bed and use its own land for track.

Geography

Lost Springs is located on the High Plains. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , all land.

Climate

Lost Springs has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

under the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

. The town experiences cold, dry winters and warm, slightly wet summers.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 4 people, 3 households, and 0 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 3 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 100.0%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

. There were 3 households, of which 100.0% were non-families. 66.7% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 1.33. The median age in the town was 59.5 years. 100% of residents were between the ages of 45 and 64. The gender makeup of the town was 50.0% male and 50.0% female.

2000 census

For the 2000 census, only one person resided in Lost Springs, Wyoming. According to the

, the town is one of only four places in the United States to have a population of one person. Since 2000, the population of

Monowi, Nebraska Monowi ( ) is the smallest incorporated Village (United States), village in the United States by population. It is in Boyd County, Nebraska, United States, and received national and international attention after the 2010 United States census rec ...

, also fell to one. However, Lost Springs mayor Leda Price claims the census was inaccurate and that Lost Springs had four residents in 2000. By 2009, the population had dropped to three. According to the 2010 census, the population was four.

Education

There is no public education in Lost Springs because there are no children in Lost Springs. If the need arose for public education it would be provided by Converse County School District #1.
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References

{{Authority control Towns in Converse County, Wyoming