The earliest histories of Wyoming contain chapters on foreign influences, among which the French figure prominently, whereas recent histories of Wyoming, like the de facto standard History of Wyoming by T. A. Larson, contain only pages. Moreover, recent histories of Wyoming tend to focus on ranches and railroads which only arrived in the state in the late-nineteenth century, and remain mostly quiet on the decades and centuries of history that preceded these industries. French place names in Wyoming like Laramie, Fremont, and the Tetons serve as reminders of earlier French influences, the collective significance of which has not been analyzed until this work. This thesis argues that French influences are significant in the history of Wyoming from the late-seventeenth century to statehood in 1890, but they have nearly disappeared in favor of modern historical accounts which focus on ranches and railroads. In other words: Wyoming has forgotten its French history.