West of Cheyenne, just past Sapp Brothers Cafe and Apple Barrel, and just a little beyond the Cheyenne I-80 Port Of Entry for truckers, on the old I80 service road is a cluster of big metal turning wigs and whirlygigs.

Besides the yard filled with spinning and whirling art, there are several garages and other various out buildings on the property owned by 87-year-old Melvin Gould. He is an artist, inventor, and mad genius.

"I'm a thinker, I'm a packrat," says Melvin.

He has worked with the likes of artist Christo, when Christo stretched large canvas across landscapes. Such a feat would not have been possible without Melvin's engineering expertise.

Melvin has invented three and 8-wheel cars, an indoor elevator for his wife that goes from the kitchen to the cellar. Underneath their home and stretching off away from it, he sunk several school buses and large tanks to make an underground workshop that looks like a cross between a bomb shelter and museum.

Several of his odd looking riding machines were featured in magazines like Mechanix Illustrated, in the 1960s. That might have been a long time ago. But those machines are still running today.

There is a documentary on Mel that you can watch produced by Dan Wiering. There is also a short video below about some of the fascinating this you can find at old Melvin's place.

Here is to Melvin Gould- Genius of the Wyoming Prairie. May we remember him and pass on his example, long after he is gone.

 

 

More From KGAB