PIPE SPRING Cultures at a Crossroads: An Administrative History

Ponds, Fish, Fowl, and Farm Animals

The Fort Ponds

During the summer of 1979, Herr reported a leakage problem with the stone walls of the fort pond. A maintenance expert from the regional office inspected the ponds in August and promised to send product information on a material that would stop the leaks. (There are no reports that a sealant was applied.) At year's end, the pond was still seeping water at the bottom of its walls. The seepage problem continued through the summer of 1980. No repair work could be done over the growing season as the two ponds served as the reservoir for the monument's irrigation water. In 1981 the pond was drained and cleaned out, walls grouted, bentonite berms put in around the wall-pond interface and, as Herr reported, "prayers said." The result, he stated at year's end, was that it seemed to leak even worse than before the work! [2379] While underwater cement sealed the leaks where they were located, water would just come out elsewhere on the wall. The worst leakage problem seems to have been in the "lower" (presumably west) pond. In May 1982, another section of wall was built up around the existing outer wall where leaks were located. This held the water back and raised the level of the ponds back up to past levels. [2380]

Fish

The only mention made of pond fish was in January 1988 when Herr reported a shipment of goldfish requested by him had come in to one of the local businesses. No details were provided.

Fowl

Throughout the 1980s, the monument continued to have ducks, geese, and chickens as part of the historic scene. As in the past, fowl were obtained from a variety of sources. In March 1980, Fred Banks picked up five ducks and three geese from Burton Rust of Glendale, Utah. Ducks and geese were also obtained from Cedar City, although the exact source is unknown. Newly-hatched ducklings and their mothers were placed immediately in cages for protection. (Even older ones were locked up until the garden crops grew tall enough for them to hide in.) In July that year, Herr reported 14 ducks were lost to a predator, thought to be dogs rather than coyotes. In 1981 one or more vandals turned over the duck cages and released the 17 little ducklings. In 1983 Herr picked up 19 ducks donated by Mr. and Mrs. Hans of Rockville, Utah. In March 1984, visitors and staff witnessed a coyote dashing across the horse pasture and capturing a goose for its dinner. That left a count of seven geese and 24 ducks, down from the monument high of 10 geese and 36 ducks, Herr reported. [2381] In 1986 someone from Kaibab National Forest delivered three ducks for the fort ponds. While Herr does not specifically mention chickens in any of his reports, he does once mention buying a large quantity of chicken feed, and they were in fact still kept. Two of the monument's chickens were killed under rather bizarre conditions on August 18, 1989, when they were struck and killed by hail during a particularly severe storm.

145. Live monument geese were plucked to make goose down pillows, 1980
(Pipe Spring National Monument).

Farm Animals

In March 1982, the draft horse named Molly died, apparently of natural causes. [2382] Tribal maintenance worker Steve Turner used the Tribe's tractor to dig a grave for the remains just outside the west boundary on a burn site. Herr wryly reported, "She was duly planted with no ceremony to mark the occasion on March 18 before noon." [2383] In addition to Molly's old wagon partner Mick, Zion National Park often wintered two patrol horses at the monument, named Rabbit and Copper. Grand Canyon National Park wintered two of its horses at Pipe Spring as well, named Blazer and Alex. Blazer arrived with health problems and died at the monument in January 1985. A backhoe was borrowed from Zion, a hole dug next to Molly, and the horse buried there. With his usual tongue-in-cheek, Herr reported, "Suitable epitaphs were spoken. Markers will be erected this next summer with guests [Regional Director] Lorraine Mintzmyer and [NPS Director] Russ Dickenson to eulogize the departed." [2384] In late 1986, the monument acquired a new saddle horse named "Coco." In March 1988, one of Zion's horses, Rabbit, became ill with colic and was subsequently "put down" at the monument by a Zion ranger. The horse was buried alongside Molly and Blazer in what by then could rightly be described as a horse graveyard.

During Leonard Heaton's era of administration, he actively worked to rid the monument of all cats that wandered in, often killing them. By contrast, when a "stray, well-mannered, domestic cat" found its way to Pipe Spring in 1981, it was quickly escorted to the fort and given the assignment of mice and rat control! [2385] The cat was named "Loretta." Herr was far less inclined to welcome dogs that wandered into the area, however, shooting them when he got the chance. [2386] The problem was that, at least on one occasion, a dog shot and killed by Herr belonged to a Kaibab Paiute neighbor, which did nothing to enhance his relations with the Tribe.