Rawlins sits at the southeastern edge of the Great Divide Basin, a unique expanse of high desert where the Continental Divide splits in two. Water that falls into the Great Basin does not flow to the ocean, but remains within its bounds. While it may appear desolate, the Basin is in fact an extraordinary desert ecosystem teeming with wildlife and diverse flora, and is home to wild horses, sand dunes, archeological relics, and the world’s largest herd of desert elk. The area has supported humans for at least 12,000 years, and by the time European settlers arrived 200 years ago, nomadic Plains tribes like the Ute, Crow, Arapaho, Cheyenne, Lakota, and, most predominantly, the Shoshone, traversed the area.

Rawlins’ beginnings, like those of many western towns, are closely tied to the railroad. While surveying for the transcontinental railroad’s route with a Union Pacific Railroad survey crew in 1867, Army General John Rawlins became thirsty and a spring was found nearby. Gen. Rawlins thought the water from the spring was particularly refreshing, and said, “If anything is ever named after me, I hope it will be a spring of water.” A small community, initially known as Rawlins’ Spring, arose around the railroad and eventually became known as Rawlins.