The Cheyenne Police Department is "Protecting the Legend" of Cheyenne by working in cooperation with citizens to lead the charge in preventing crime and defending the rights of the community.
Cheyenne sprang up in the path of the transcontinental railroad in 1867 as it crossed the great plains. Nicknamed "Hell on Wheels,"the rowdy town of railroad workers and soldiers from nearby Fort D.A. Russell was teeming with numerous saloons and burlesque theaters. Cheyenne did not remain a wild town for long, as a booming livestock industry attracted investment from eastern and foreign cattle barons. With this new wealth, Cheyenne developed fine hotels, theaters and the first opera house west of the Mississippi. In the 1880s, Cheyenne was the wealthiest per capita city in the world. The state Capitol's dome was even covered in gold leaf. Folks came from all over to "Live the Legend" that Cheyenne was known for.