Murie Ranch Historic District
Encyclopedia
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 (Mardie) 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, carrying out research on predators as participants in an ecology rather than as isolated organisms. Olaus Murie was president of the Wilderness Society, and was an advocate for the preservation of wild lands in America.
The Murie Residence
, home of Olaus and Mardie, and itself listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1990, adjoins the former STS Dude Ranch, home of Adolph. 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.
in 1924. Adolph 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, despite 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 coyote
s 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.
Olaus and Mardy Murie had lived in Jackson from 1927, living in a now-vanished house that they called "Pumpkin House." Adolph and Louise lived in Jackson from 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, whose publication had argued against the expansion on the grounds that Jackson Hole was not wilderness. 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 Wilderness Society director, 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, 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. Together the Murie brothers wrote Wapiti Wilderness, essays on Jackson Hole and life at the ranch. After the death of Olaus in 1963, Mardy Murie joined the Society's governing council and continued Olaus' work, still living at the ranch.
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 (30.8 ha) were available just down the river from Menor's Ferry on the west side of the river. They 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.
. Olaus immediately removed the property's fences. The Nelson house was purchased in 1950 and occupied by Olaus and Mardie. The Muries partially dammed an offshoot of the Snake to use as a swimming hole, the work completed by beaver
s. Olaus wrote about the ranch and its wildlife in his book Jackson Hole with a Naturalist.
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.
The properties were declared a National Historic Landmark
in 2006.
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park is a United States National Park located in northwestern Wyoming, U.S. The Park consists of approximately and includes the major peaks of the long Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. Only south of Yellowstone...
near Moose, Wyoming
Moose, Wyoming
Moose is an unincorporated community in Teton County, Wyoming, United States, 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...
. The district is chiefly significant for its association with the conservationists Olaus Murie
Olaus Murie
Olaus 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. He also served as president of The Wilderness Society, The Wildlife Society, and as director of the Izaak Walton...
, his wife Margaret (Mardie) Murie
Margaret Murie
Margaret Thomas "Mardy" Murie was a naturalist, author, 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...
and scientist Adolph Murie
Adolph Murie
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...
and his wife Louise. Olaus and Adolph Murie were influential in the establishment of an ecological approach to wildlife management, carrying out research on predators as participants in an ecology rather than as isolated organisms. Olaus Murie was president of the Wilderness Society, and was an advocate for the preservation of wild lands in America.
The Murie Residence
Murie Residence
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...
, home of Olaus and Mardie, and itself listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1990, adjoins the former STS Dude Ranch, home of Adolph. 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.
The Muries
Olaus Murie was responsible for landmark studies on caribou and their relationship to the environment in Alaska during the 1920s. He was joined by his younger brother Adolph in 1922, and met his future wife, Margaret "Mardy" Thomas in FairbanksFairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...
in 1924. Adolph married Mardy's half sister Louise. Olaus undertook a study of the elk
Elk
The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...
population in Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole, originally called Jackson's Hole, is a valley located in the U.S. state of Wyoming, near the western border with Idaho. The name "hole" derives from language used by early trappers or mountain men, who primarily entered the valley from the north and east and had to descend along...
in 1927, controversially concluding that the artificially-managed elk herd exceeded the carrying capacity of the range, despite 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 coyote
Coyote
The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...
s in Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
, publishing a report that contradicted the existing policies on predator control, leading to reversal of National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
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.
Olaus and Mardy Murie had lived in Jackson from 1927, living in a now-vanished house that they called "Pumpkin House." Adolph and Louise lived in Jackson from 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, whose publication had argued against the expansion on the grounds that Jackson Hole was not wilderness. Olaus was also on the board of Jackson Hole Preserve, Inc., which administered the properties purchased by the Snake River Land Company
Snake River Land Company
The Snake River Land Company was a land purchasing company established in 1927 by philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, Jr.. The company acted as a front so Rockefeller could buy land in the Jackson Hole valley in Wyoming without people knowing of his involvement or his intentions for the property,...
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 Wilderness Society director, 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
Grizzly Bear
The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...
biologists John and Frank Craighead during their early careers, and U.S. Supreme Court justice William O. Douglas
William O. Douglas
William Orville Douglas was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. With a term lasting 36 years and 209 days, he is the longest-serving justice in the history of the Supreme Court...
. 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. Together the Murie brothers wrote Wapiti Wilderness, essays on Jackson Hole and life at the ranch. After the death of Olaus in 1963, Mardy Murie joined the Society's governing council and continued Olaus' work, still living at the ranch.
STS Ranch
The STS was established by Buster and Frances Estes near Menor's FerryMenor's Ferry
Menor's Ferry was a river ferry that crossed the Snake River near the present-day Moose, Wyoming. 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. ...
in 1921 as a dude ranch
Dude ranch
The guest ranch, also known as a dude ranch, is a type of ranch oriented towards visitors or tourism. It is considered a form of agritourism.-History:...
. Buster was a local, while Frances first came to Jackson Hole from Philadelphia to visit the Bar B C Dude Ranch
Bar B C Dude Ranch
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...
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 (30.8 ha) were available just down the river from Menor's Ferry on the west side of the river. They 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
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
.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.
Murie Ranch
The Murie property amounted to 77 acres (31.2 ha) next to the village of MooseMoose, Wyoming
Moose is an unincorporated community in Teton County, Wyoming, United States, 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...
. Olaus immediately removed the property's fences. The Nelson house was purchased in 1950 and occupied by Olaus and Mardie. The Muries partially dammed an offshoot of the Snake to use as a swimming hole, the work completed by beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
s. Olaus wrote about the ranch and its wildlife in his book Jackson Hole with a Naturalist.
Principal structures include:
- Olaus Murie Studio: A one story log building built in 1947 with one room and a front porch, used by Olaus Murie as a painting and drawing studio.
- Homestead Cabin/STS Lodge: The original Estes homestead, built in 1925, the Homestead Cabin was the principal building of the STS Ranch. It was expanded gradually, evolving from a square to a T-shaped plan with additions for a lounge, dining room and library. The homestead's doors are notably short, since Buster Estes was short and adapted the doors to his dimensions.
- Murie Residence: Formerly the Woodbury Residence, the one story log house was built in 1942 with views of Grand TetonGrand TetonGrand Teton is the highest mountain in Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park, and a classic destination in American mountaineering.- Geography :...
from within. The original house comprises eight rooms, with another room in a 1950s addition. - Chena Cabin: A one story log building with three rooms.
- Estes Cabin: The home of Buster and Frances Estes after they made their homestead cabin in to the STS Lodge, the Estes Cabin was moved to the site from an unknown location in Jackson. It was originally built about 1925. After the Muries purchased the ranch, it was occupied by Inger Koedt.
- Robin's Nest Cabin: Located next to the Estes Cabin, the single-room cabin was built about 1925. The Estes used it as a bedroom for their daughter, while Inger Koedt used it as a guesthouse.
- Moviewood Cabin: The wood frame cabinwas built about 1925, and was used as an office and cutting room for a documentary on Mardy Murie entitled Arctic Dance: The Mardy Murie Story. It is now an office for the Murie Foundation.
- Alatna Dulex Cabin: The Alatna was built about 1925 as a one-story, two-room log cabin with a communicating door between rooms, each of which has a separate exterior door.
- Cabin Belvedere: A one-room 1925 log cabin.
- Cabin Polaris: Similar to Belvedere, the cabin was once thought to be Adolph Murie's study, an idea now discredited.
- Montana Duplex Cabin: Divided into two equal rooms, the 1925 Montana cabin was used as to guest units, with no interior door.
- Wild Lone Cabin: Located at a distance from the main complex, the Wild Lone cabin was built about 1925 as a one-room log cabin.
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.
The properties were declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 2006.
External links
- The Murie Center
- Murie Ranch at Grand Teton National Park
- Murie Ranch Historic District, feature at the National Park Service
- Murie Ranch at the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office