Casper (
Lakota:
Pahášaša Otȟúŋwahe; "Red Hill City") is a city in and the
county seat of
Natrona County,
Wyoming,
United States. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming, according to the
2010 census, with a population of 55,316. Only
Cheyenne, the state capital, is larger. Casper is nicknamed "The Oil City" and has a long history of oil boomtown and cowboy culture, dating back to development of the nearby
Salt Creek Oil Field. In 2010, Casper was named the highest-ranked family-friendly small city in the West, and ranked eighth overall in the nation in
Forbes magazine's list of "the best small cities to raise a family".