Murie Ranch Historic District

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Murie Ranch Historic District
Murie Ranch, Estes Cabin.jpg
Estes Cabin, Murie Ranch
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Location Grand Teton National Park, Teton County, Wyoming, USA
Nearest city Moose, Wyoming
Coordinates 43°39′2″N110°43′37″W / 43.65056°N 110.72694°W / 43.65056; -110.72694 Coordinates: 43°39′2″N110°43′37″W / 43.65056°N 110.72694°W / 43.65056; -110.72694
Built1951
ArchitectEstes, Buster
MPS Grand Teton National Park MPS
NRHP reference No. 98001039
Significant dates
Added to NRHPAugust 24, 1998 [1]
Designated NHLDFebruary 17, 2006 [2]

The Murie Ranch Historic District, also known as the STS Dude Ranch and Stella Woodbury Summer Home is an inholding in Grand Teton National Park near Moose, Wyoming. The district is chiefly significant for its association with the conservationists Olaus Murie, his wife Margaret (Mardy) Murie and scientist Adolph Murie and his wife Louise. Olaus and Adolph Murie were influential in the establishment of an ecological approach to wildlife management, while Mardy Murie was influential because of her huge conservation victories such as passing the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 and being awarded with the highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, for her lifetime works in conservation. Olaus Murie was a prominent early field biologist in the U.S. Biological Survey and subsequent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service before retiring and becoming the president of the Wilderness Society, He was a prominent advocate for the preservation of wild lands in America.

Contents

The Murie Residence, home of Olaus and Mardy, and itself listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990, adjoins the former STS Dude Ranch. Both the Murie Residence and the STS Ranch provided accommodation for meetings of the Wilderness Society in 1953, and provided a base for writers and activists in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. [3]

The Muries

Olaus Murie was responsible for landmark studies on caribou and their relationship to the environment in Alaska during the 1920s while working for the U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey. Along with Aldo Leopold and others, he was a prominent early voice for ecological thought in the United States. He was joined by his younger brother Adolph in 1922, and met his future wife, Margaret "Mardy" Thomas in Fairbanks in 1924. Adolph later married Mardy's half sister Louise. Olaus undertook a study of the elk population in Jackson Hole in 1927, controversially concluding that the artificially-managed elk herd exceeded the carrying capacity of the range because of the managed feeding. The study was a landmark in the development of a holistic view of ecosystems and their inhabitants. From 1937 to 1940, Adolph studied coyotes in Yellowstone National Park, publishing a report that contradicted the existing policies on predator control, leading to reversal of National Park Service policies that encouraged the elimination of coyotes in the park. Adolph continued his studies of predators, publishing The Wolves of Mount McKinley in 1944, which resulted in a similar reversal of Park Service wolf control policies in Alaska. [4]

Olaus and Mardy Murie moved to Jackson in 1927, living in a now-vanished house that they called "Pumpkin House." Adolph and Louise moved to Jackson in 1939. At the time of the park's expansion with the creation of Jackson Hole National Monument, Olaus was at the time on the board of directors of the Wilderness Society. Olaus was also on the board of Jackson Hole Preserve, Inc., which administered the properties purchased by the Snake River Land Company for eventual incorporation into an expanded Grand Teton National Park. When the Preserve acted on a proposal to create a fenced wildlife park in Jackson Hole, Murie resigned, prompting the National Park Service to disassociate itself from the venture, which proved short-lived. In 1945, Olaus Murie left government employment and became president of the Wilderness Society, at the same time moving to the STS property. The ranch was the venue for the 1948 Wilderness Society Council. The ranch also hosted a number of prominent visitors, including grizzly bear biologists John and Frank Craighead during their early careers; John Turner, who would become Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and U.S. Supreme Court justice William O. Douglas. Olaus' publications written at the ranch include The Elk of North America and A Field Guide to Animal Tracks. Adolph wrote The Grizzlies of North America, The Wolves of Mount McKinley and A Naturalist in Alaska. Mardy Murie wrote Two in the Far North and with her husband Olaus wrote Wapiti Wilderness, essays on Jackson Hole and life at the ranch. Olaus Murie was also a fine artist. Olaus and Margaret Murie's expedition in 1956 to the Sheenjek River, on the south slope of the Brooks Range, was a key event in the eventual protection of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Wilderness Act was passed a year after Olaus Murie's death which preserved 10 million acres of land in Alaska and today has preserved 100 million acres of land in Alaska as well as impacting other parts of the United States. After the death of Olaus in 1963, Mardy Murie joined the Society's governing council and continued Olaus' work, still living at the ranch. [4]

Mardy decided to honor her husband by working to preserve the nature which they both loved. In 1980, sixteen years after her husband Olaus died at 73 years old, Mardy Murie helped pass the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act which saved one hundred million acres in Alaska. Mardy was a very passionate woman who was also very emotional. This helped her unite everybody that she talked to as she tried to conserve nature. She had the ability and the humility to reach across generations, careers, power levels and positions. Mardy lived to be 101 years old and in the course of her life was recognized by four presidents. John Denver wrote a song about her entitled, 'A Song for All Lovers' about Mardy Murie and Olaus Murie waltzing in the Arctic wilderness.

STS Ranch

The STS was established by Buster and Frances Estes (née Mears) near Menor's Ferry in 1921 as a dude ranch. Buster was a local, while Frances first came to Jackson Hole from Philadelphia to visit the Bar B C Dude Ranch in 1914. Mears and Estes fell in love, marrying over the objections of Mears' family. In 1922 the Estes heard from Holiday Menor that 76 acres (31 ha) were available just down the river from Menor's Ferry on the west side of the river. The Estes built a cabin and moved in in January, 1923. The dude ranch started small, with a single guest cabin and one tent. By 1927 the STS featured a log cabin, two frame cabins, a barn, a garage, and the five-room main house. The Estes gradually expanded to a capacity of 24 dudes, charging $55 per week, less than the $70 or more charged by the White Grass or Bar B C. The ranch flourished for a while, but was badly affected by the Great Depression. Rates went down, and a portion of the property was leased to the Nelson brothers, who built what is now the Murie residence. Buster and Frances built a new log house in 1940, but closed the ranch during World War II and worked in war production in Salt Lake City. The STS was purchased by the Muries (Adolph and Louise, and Olaus and Mardy) in 1946, with Adolph and Louise living in the original ranch buildings, Olaus and Mardie living in the Nelson house after 1950. The sale to the Muries was contingent on the Muries never operating the place as a dude ranch. [5] [6]

Murie Ranch

The Murie property amounted to 77 acres (31 ha) next to the village of Moose. Olaus immediately removed the property's fences. The Nelson house was purchased in 1950 and occupied by Olaus and Mardy. The Muries partially dammed an offshoot of the Snake to use as a swimming hole, the work completed by beavers. Olaus wrote about the ranch and its wildlife in his book Jackson Hole with a Naturalist. [4]

Principal structures include:

Most of the cabins have an associated outhouse. The complex also includes a number of garages, sheds and utility buildings. A barn and storage shed were removed from the site and taken elsewhere in the 1970s. [4]

The properties were declared a National Historic Landmark in 2006. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

Margaret Murie American naturalist and author

Margaret Thomas "Mardy" Murie was a naturalist, writer, adventurer, and conservationist. Dubbed the "Grandmother of the Conservation Movement" by both the Sierra Club and the Wilderness Society, she helped in the passage of the Wilderness Act, and was instrumental in creating the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She was the recipient of the Audubon Medal, the John Muir Award, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom—the highest civilian honor awarded by the United States.

Murie is the name of a famed American family of naturalists, brothers Olaus (1889–1963) and Adolph (1899–1974), and their wives Margaret "Mardy" (1902–2003) and Louise "Weezy" (1912-2012).

Moose, Wyoming Unincorporated community in Wyoming, United States

Moose is an unincorporated community in Teton County, Wyoming, in the Jackson Hole valley. It has a US Post Office, with the zip code of 83012. The town is located within Grand Teton National Park along the banks of the Snake River. It is populated mostly by families with inholdings within the borders of the park.

Olaus Murie American naturalist and author

Olaus Johan Murie, called the "father of modern elk management", was a naturalist, author, and wildlife biologist who did groundbreaking field research on a variety of large northern mammals. Rather than conducting empirical experiments, Murie practiced a more observational-based science.

Adolph Murie American naturalist and author

Adolph Murie, the first scientist to study wolves in their natural habitat, was a naturalist, author, and wildlife biologist who pioneered field research on wolves, bears, and other mammals and birds in Arctic and sub-Arctic Alaska. He was also instrumental in protecting wolves from eradication and in preserving the biological integrity of the Denali National Park and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In 1989 Professor John A. Murray of the English Department at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks received an NEH grant to inventory the extensive Adolph Murie written and slide archives at Rasmusson Library in the Arctic and Polar Collection. He wrote a forty-page report and biographical narrative of Adolph Murie, which remains unpublished but which is in his papers.

Cunningham Cabin Historic house in Wyoming, United States

The Cunningham Cabin is a double-pen log cabin in Grand Teton National Park in the US state of Wyoming. It was built as a homestead in Jackson Hole and represents an adaptation of an Appalachian building form to the West. The cabin was built just south of Spread Creek by John Pierce Cunningham, who arrived in Jackson Hole in 1885 and subsisted as a trapper until he established the Bar Flying U Ranch in 1888. The Cunninghams left the valley for Idaho in 1928, when land was being acquired for the future Grand Teton National Park.

Menors Ferry United States historic place

Menor's Ferry was a river ferry that crossed the Snake River near the present-day Moose, Wyoming, United States. The site was homesteaded by Bill Menor in 1892-94, choosing a location where the river flowed in a single channel, rather than the braided stream that characterizes its course in most of Jackson Hole. During the 1890s it was the only homestead west of the river. Menor's homestead included a five-room cabin, a barn, a store, sheds and an icehouse on 148 acres (60 ha), irrigated by a ditch from Cottonwood Creek and at times supplemented by water raised from the Snake River by a waterwheel. Menor operated the ferry until 1918, selling to Maude Noble, who continued operations until 1927, when a bridge was built at Moose.

4 Lazy F Dude Ranch United States historic place

The 4 Lazy F Ranch, also known as the Sun Star Ranch, is a dude ranch and summer residence in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, built by the William Frew family of Pittsburgh in 1927. The existing property was built as a family retreat, not as a cattle ranch, in a rustic style of construction using logs and board-and-batten techniques. The historic district includes seven cabins, a lodge, barn corral and smaller buildings on the west bank of the Snake River north of Moose, Wyoming. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

Murie Residence Historic house in Wyoming, United States

The Murie Residence was the home of naturalists and conservationists Olaus and Mardie Murie. Located near Moose, Wyoming in the southern end of Grand Teton National Park, the house and adjoining studio are now part of the Murie Ranch Historic District, a National Historic Landmark encompassing the Murie residence and the former STS Ranch, home to Olaus' brother Adolph.

Bar B C Dude Ranch United States historic place

The Bar B C Dude Ranch was established near Moose, Wyoming in 1912 as a dude ranch by Struthers Burt and Dr. Horace Carncross, using their initials as the brand. Rather than converting a working ranch, Burt and Carncross built a tourist-oriented dude ranch from the ground up, using a style called "Dude Ranch Vernacular", which featured log construction and rustic detailing. As one of the first dude ranches in Jackson Hole, the Bar B C was a strong influence on other dude ranches in the area, and employed a number of people who went on to establish their own operations. It was acquired by the National Park Service and incorporated into Grand Teton National Park upon the expiration of a life estate. The ranch was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

Double Diamond Dude Ranch Dining Hall United States historic place

The Double Diamond Dude Ranch Dining Hall was built in 1945 as the centerpiece of a dude ranch operated by Frank Williams and Joseph S. Clark, Jr. in Grand Teton National Park. The ranch was opened in 1924 with a dozen tent cabins and log buildings for a kitchen and dining hall, lounge and commissary. In 1943 Williams built log tourist cabins, followed by the larger dining hall in 1945. The 1985 Taggart Lake Fire destroyed much of the ranch, sparing only the dining hall and five cabins. The dining hall is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an example of rustic architecture. Since 1970 the Double Diamond property has been a hostel for mountain climbers in the Teton Range, and is known as the Climbers' Ranch.

Manges Cabin Historic house in Wyoming, United States

The Manges Cabin in Grand Teton National Park, also known as the Old Elbo Ranch Homestead Cabin, Mangus Cabin and the Taggart Creek Barn, was built in 1911 by James Manges. Manges was the second settler on the west side of the Snake River after Bill Menor, setting up a homestead near Taggart Creek. James Manges arrived in Jackson Hole in 1910, where he cut wood for Charles or William Wort. Manges' cabin is stated to have been the first two-story structure in the northern part of the valley. A root cellar was excavated beneath. The log and frame structure features wide eaves to keep the winter snow away from the walls. It was heated in winter by a single stove, with one room on each level.

White Grass Dude Ranch United States historic place

The White Grass Dude Ranch is located in the White Grass Valley of Grand Teton National Park. The rustic log lodge, dining hall service building and ten cabins were built when a working ranch was converted to a dude ranch, and represented one of the first dude ranch operations in Jackson Hole. The White Grass was established in 1913 by Harold Hammond and George Tucker Bispham, who combined two adjacent ranches or 160 acres (65 ha) each, and was converted to a dude ranch in 1919. Bispham had worked at the Bar B C before moving out on his own. The dude ranch operation continued to 1985, when the ranch was acquired by the National Park Service.

Jenny Lake Ranger Station Historic District United States historic place in Grand Teton National Park

The Jenny Lake Ranger Station Historic District comprises an area that was the main point of visitor contact in Grand Teton National Park from the 1930s to 1960. Located near Jenny Lake, the buildings are a mixture of purpose-built structures and existing buildings that were adapted for use by the National Park Service. The ranger station was built as a cabin by Lee Mangus north of Moose, Wyoming about 1925 and was moved and rebuilt around 1930 for Park Service use. A store was built by a concessioner, and comfort stations were built to Park Service standard plans. All buildings were planned to the prevailing National Park Service Rustic style, although the ranger station and the photo shop were built from parts of buildings located elsewhere in the park.

Hunter Hereford Ranch Historic District Historic district in Wyoming, United States

The Hunter Hereford Ranch was first homesteaded in 1909 by James Williams in the eastern portion of Jackson Hole, in what would become Grand Teton National Park. By the 1940s it was developed as a hobby ranch by William and Eileen Hunter and their foreman John Anderson. With its rustic log buildings it was used as the shooting location for the movie The Wild Country, while one structure with a stone fireplace was used in the 1963 movie Spencer's Mountain. The ranch is located on the extreme eastern edge of Jackson Hole under Shadow Mountain. It is unusual in having some areas of sagebrush-free pasture.

Snake River Land Company Residence and Office Historic house in Wyoming, United States

The Snake River Land Company Residence and Office are structures associated with John D. Rockefeller, Jr.'s acquisition of land in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, United States. Under the guise of the Snake River Land Company, Rockefeller bought much of the land that he eventually donated to the National Park Service, first as Jackson Hole National Monument and a year later as Grand Teton National Park. The buildings are located in the park, in the community of Moran. They served as the residence and office for SRLC vice president Harold Fabian and foreman J. Allan from 1930 to 1945. The buildings are still used by the National Park Service. The property was owned from 1926 to 1930 by John Hogan, a retired politician from the eastern United States. The Snake River Land Company bought the property in 1930.

Teton Science Schools

Teton Science Schools (TSS) is an educational organization located in northwest Wyoming and Idaho. TSS runs programs in field education, classroom education, and educator development. Founded in 1967, TSS began through teaching about the natural world and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem together through the study of nature and place-based education. Teton Science Schools serves students from across Wyoming, the Intermountain West, the nation and around the world.

Historical buildings and structures of Grand Teton National Park United States historic place

The historical buildings and structures of Grand Teton National Park include a variety of buildings and built remains that pre-date the establishment of Grand Teton National Park, together with facilities built by the National Park Service to serve park visitors. Many of these places and structures have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The pre-Park Service structures include homestead cabins from the earliest settlement of Jackson Hole, working ranches that once covered the valley floor, and dude ranches or guest ranches that catered to the tourist trade that grew up in the 1920s and 1930s, before the park was expanded to encompass nearly all of Jackson Hole. Many of these were incorporated into the park to serve as Park Service personnel housing, or were razed to restore the landscape to a natural appearance. Others continued to function as inholdings under a life estate in which their former owners could continue to use and occupy the property until their death. Other buildings, built in the mountains after the initial establishment of the park in 1929, or in the valley after the park was expanded in 1950, were built by the Park Service to serve park visitors, frequently employing the National Park Service Rustic style of design.

Murie may refer to:

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. 1 2 "Murie Ranch Historic District". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2012-10-09. Retrieved 2008-02-29.
  3. "Murie Ranch". National Register of Historic Places. Wyoming State Preservation Office. 2008-08-12.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Michael Cassity (October 15, 2003). "National Historic Landmark Nomination: Murie Ranch Historic District / STS Dude Ranch; Stella Woodbury Summer Home / Smithsonian#48TE1143" (pdf). National Park Service.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. Dougherty, John (1999). "A Place Called Jackson Hole". Chapter 14: The Dude Wranglers. Grand Teton Natural History Association. Retrieved 2009-03-11.
  6. "History of the Murie Ranch". The Murie Center. Retrieved September 14, 2013.