PIPE SPRING Cultures at a Crossroads: An Administrative History

The "Neglect" of Pipe Spring National Monument

During May 1955, Heaton received a performance rating of "satisfactory" from Superintendent Franke. Heaton was disappointed, writing later in his journal, "He gave a satisfactory rating without seeing what I am doing at the monument for about a year. I wish they would come out more often." [1563] In late May 1955, Sherwin Heaton wrote to Superintendent John M. Davis, Southwestern Monuments, to request that the administration of Pipe Spring National Monument be transferred from Zion National Park back to Southwestern Monuments. On June 17, Davis responded to Heaton's letter. Judging from the response, it appears that Sherwin Heaton either insinuated or stated in his letter that the career of Custodian Leonard Heaton was not advancing as it should under Zion's administration. Davis replied that Leonard Heaton's advancement "is dependent entirely upon his capacities and his performance on the job" and that it made no difference who was overseeing his work. Davis added that he saw no need for the monument's supervision to be returned to Southwestern Monuments and would in fact advise against it, if it were proposed. [1564]

Judging by later events, Davis must have copied the correspondence to the regional office. At the time of this correspondence, Hugh M. Miller was serving as acting regional director in Santa Fe. Miller was concerned about what had led to Sherwin Heaton's letter. He copied it to Assistant Superintendent Art Thomas at Zion with a memo that stated,

I am, of course, convinced that Leonard Heaton knew nothing of this and I do not know who Sherwin is. Also I do not want to make any fuss about this matter, but I should like to have your comment and any information you can give us, particularly as to the sources of dissatisfaction of the administration of the monument by the Zion staff. [1565]

Thomas responded to Miller by memorandum to July 12, 1955:

I agree with you that Leonard had nothing to do directly with the correspondence of which you sent me copies.... There is, however, a growing feeling in the communities surrounding certain areas which we administer from this office that the areas are neglected. It is a problem with which we seem powerless to cope. The sad part of it is that there is considerable truth in the charges that the areas are neglected.... Inquiries reveal that the citizens of Kanab and Fredonia are dissatisfied with the treatment that Pipe Spring is receiving; Mr. Sherwin Heaton is a relative of Leonard's and [is] acting as spokesman for citizens of that area. [1566]

Thomas went on to say that Pipe Spring area residents knew that Capitol Reef National Monument had gone from no appropriation and an unpaid custodian in 1951 to having a GS-9 superintendent, seasonal ranger, and appropriation of $14,860 in 1955. Pipe Spring, on the other hand, had an annual appropriation of only $5,857, no seasonal help, and an ungraded employee as custodian. Moreover, Thomas said, Director Stephen T. Mather had promised Leonard Heaton at the time Heaton took over the monument that he would make every effort to get funding for a custodian's residence. "Ever since that time Leonard has been hoping to see that house," Thomas wrote. "Persistent justifications" by Zion officials for increased appropriations for Pipe Spring, Cedar Breaks, and Bryce Canyon parks "got nowhere," Thomas stated, inferring the problem was at the regional office level. Thomas made the recommendation that Pipe Spring be given a GS-7 superintendent, that funds for a six-month ranger historian and for seasonal laborers be provided, and that a residence or two and an administration building be built. "That would be a beginning," Thomas wrote. [1567]

All correspondence was copied to Superintendent Franke, a man with considerable historical perspective on the problem. Franke prepared an eight-page handwritten letter to Hugh Miller, which adds historical perspective to the problem. Most of it is quoted below:

I have read Art Thomas' reply to your inquiry as to what is wrong with the administration exercised by Zion over Pipe Spring National Monument. Frankly, there is nothing wrong that sensible personnel management and a little money couldn't cure readily. I heartily agree with Art in his recital of the difficulty of trying to pull constantly on our own bootstraps to get a little somewhere. In addition [to] the general picture which has been presented, I would like for you to get a little of the more intimate phases of the problem.

It develops into two distinct problems, each of which is an irritant of the other. Long festering, we have been unable to do anything about it.

The first problem is the Heatons. Some quarter of a century ago the NPS encouraged and took pride in the participation of family members of custodians in interpretive and protective activities. We bragged about the Honorable Custodians ___ and ___. Soon it was frowned upon and changes made everywhere (except Pipe Spring). Here through penury doling out of funds for management, we must continue through the years to demand from the employee the annual tribute of the pound of flesh. True, it is bloodless and paid to the government by family members (women and children) in the form of uncompensated services. Do you for one minute believe that such services are forever given willingly in the Spirit of everything for the National Park Service, but nothing for this family? All around them, progress has taken care of similar situations and loyal hard-working employees are reclassified or given a chance at more remunerative employment. Not so at Pipe Spring. The funds allotted don't even keep pace with wage board increases.

Leonard is a man with a pretty fair education, which includes several years at B.Y.U. Married early, he starts a big family early, in a locality where transportation, communication, and wages are probably the nation's worst. An injury cripples his hand so only one and part of another's fingers are usable. [1568] The 'Boss' [Pinkley] employs Leonard when Pipe Spring is removed from the Zion-Bryce-Grand Canyon travel route. The salary offered at the time is excellent when compared to what local cowboys and Indians were making. There is promise of a house, of help, and other improvements.

The employee is entered on duty and attacks his work with all the spirit we had in those days. He must do everything: build roads, ditches, irrigate, keep the pit toilets clean, dole out the water to the stockmen and Indians, clean campgrounds, maintain the buildings, and above all, interpret the historic fort and guide visitors. When in the midst of a messy job, his wife or one of the children took care of the interpretive and guide work. He only gets paid for 40 hours a week, yet his daily toils cover 12 hours and Saturdays and Sundays he stays on the job or assigns a member of the family. If by chance the food supply is so low that the head of the family must go to town for supplies, he must leave someone behind to watch the fort. He is still looking for that house, for some help, and the 40-hour week.

Amongst his duties is the monthly report. An ordeal, as he pounds away on the typewriter and the crippled hand misses the proper letters on the keyboard. The report passed around is considered 'cute,' 'unique,' and 'amusing.' He must continue to write it for the Brass in the National Park Service must be amused. The job, the man, the duties, become more demanding but the NPS each year in its allotments doles the edict: Pipe Springs National Monument shall not grow for we must keep the Heatons 'status quo.'

In spite of the great desire of our people to keep this area and its people as it was 25 years ago, the Heaton Family has grown, not only in numbers, but in stature. I doubt there is an employee in the National Parks like Leonard Heaton and family who have, without complaint, put up with poorer living conditions, yet have through the years contributed as much uncompensated time. The children have grown, attended school, graduated from high school, contributed their time and blood to the world conflicts and our Armed Services. Today the older ones have graduated from college, some are on missions, some are teaching, others in business, all fine members of their respective community. Dad continues to be a maintenance man doing the same chores, trying to blanket with his 40 paid hours the protection needs [which] are about 70 hours a week. He prepares the same report over which we smirk and laugh. Cute?

One can only surmise what the grown-up, educated children think of this Dad and the opportunities he passed up to join the higher paid laborers so much in demand in the growing communities of Fredonia and Kanab. Perhaps we get a look into the family thinking. Not a single youngster expressed a desire to go to work for the National Park Service. Why? True, we have occasionally found a few dollars by which we could hire for a few days one of the boys for laborer. Recently there is a more definite action. Some time ago the family negotiated for a large ranch up near Alton, Utah. This is just under Bryce Canyon. The family now goes there on Leonard's days off. No longer is a CWOP [Civilian Without Pay?] left to guard Pipe Springs and provide interpretive services to visitors. Perhaps the Region and Washington office will consider this as neglect on the part of the Heatons or this office.

You folks may ask what is wrong with Zion's supervision over Pipe Springs National Monument. My reply: I believe the Secretary's office could well take the Heaton case as a fine example of 'Personnel Mismanagement.'

Now what's wrong with the People of Fredonia? They have been waiting for us to do something for a long, long time. It's easy to jump at conclusions that Superintendents don't know what's going on. This one does, for with Leonard, I every once in a while attend meetings at Fredonia's Booster Club. I may sound optimistic to them at first, but they soon grow tired of the do-nothing attitude. We talked of signs. There is not one identification on the monument that this is a National Monument. The old sign at Fredonia, designed by Chuck Richey, is in ruins. I told the Fredonia people I would try and get some signs. We dragged the bottom of the purse and made them here at Zion. Fredonia donated a piece of ground to erect a sizable marker along U.S. 89. This [was] about two years ago, yet we haven't been able to finance their erection to this date. Meantime, some Washington officials come in [and] find living conditions so deplorable that they immediately allot a power plant and powerhouse. The original estimate and allotment was OK and we could have put the plant and supply lines in. However, as you recall, Region cut the Pipe Springs money, telling us we should be able to put this in at less cost than at Cedar Breaks. So last year and this year we use what little road money there is [to] try and complete this installation. The signs must wait and eyebrows raise among the Fredonia Boosters.

Time and again Fredonia people complain that visitors are directed out to the monument and no one is there or someone comes out of a deep ditch, plastered with mud, and volunteers to show them and explain the area. It's not an encouraging picture for Fredonia. What do we have? You look at the appropriation. We used to have some rehabilitation funds, which enabled us to meet Leonard's salary. Damned little rehabilitation was done and you all know it. With reorganization, the rehabilitation money is out and very little is added to the 200 accounts. The light plant costs more to run, supplies are increasing, and the margin between Leonard's salary and the necessary transportation, supplies, and repairs shrinks yearly, leaving constantly less for relief employment. The squeeze has continued for a quarter of a century.

We no longer have the CWOP outside the 40-hour week. We have by word, letter, and estimates urged that something be done. Promises galore, but negative results. We urged the control of tunnel traffic through Zion to divert more attention to fixing the Fredonia-Hurricane Road.

Enthusiastically endorsed by folks in the 'Strip' they worked to prove the need of this highway. However, the project died in birth. More and more huge trucks through Zion and less need of going via the Pipe Springs road. I wrote Senator Hayden that $700 annually would enable us to establish interpretive services at Pipe Spring and do much for increasing the travel and improve the economy of the community. 'It would also permit us to put on the payroll a young man recommended to him for employment.'

However, we caught no fish. What is wrong with the Service when it fails to give just a few dollars to small areas badly in need and then jumps on the Superintendent when someone pops off about the condition of the area? 'We in practice continue to give to him who has and take from him who has not.'

If S.W. Monuments can do something for Pipe Springs, for goodness sakes, let them do it... [1569]

Before he had received Franke's letter, Miller drafted a response to Art Thomas' letter of July 12, acknowledging the assistant superintendent's "good straight talk relative to the alleged neglect of maintenance and development of Pipe Spring." [1570] Miller, however, encouraged an attitude of looking toward future solutions rather than hand wringing over past omissions. While Miller knew it would be no consolation to local monument boosters, the logical explanation for the neglect of Pipe Spring was that other park areas simply had commanded preference. Visitation was always a factor when funds were being applied for and the very low visitation to Pipe Spring "can scarcely be overlooked as a factor," Miller pointed out. Where visitation was greatest, demands for funds were more urgent and more likely to be accorded attention first. Zion officials, of course, could increase the likelihood that Pipe Spring construction projects would be funded if they placed them higher up on their priority list (the Pipe Spring residence, for example, was listed as priority 40 on a list of 96 projects for the fiscal year 1957 construction program). The monument's preliminary estimates for that year included full-time positions for a superintendent and maintenance man. If a superintendent was hired, wrote Miller, he should be picked "as much for his manual dexterity as for this administrative ability." [1571]

Apparently Miller never sent this memorandum, for just after he drafted it he received Franke's letter of July 18. Taken aback by its condemnatory tone, Miller had the draft filed away and responded instead somewhat curtly,

I have read your longhand letter of July 18 with some dismay. My memorandum of June 28 about administration of Pipe Spring was intended to be merely a casual request for comment, which I could use in replying to the letter from Sherwin Heaton to John Davis.

I hope to talk the whole situation over with you to see just [what] we can should do now regardless of what the failures were or whose failures they were in the past. In the meantime, you might be getting your own ideas together, as to whether we are in fact ready to develop Pipe Spring; just how far we should go; and how we should staff it. Somehow I had failed to realize that Leonard Heaton is bitter or that we have neglected or imposed upon him. [1572]

Hugh Miller soon made an inspection visit to Pipe Spring with Art Thomas on August 31, 1955. He noted the need for lightning protection for the fort, a campground comfort station, and a custodian's residence. He inspected and approved the new utility shed, power plant, and fire pumper. With regard to personnel issues, Miller agreed to a three to four-month seasonal ranger historian position to help out with guide service during the busy summer months and to conduct historical research for use in an interpretive program. Miller also agreed that an effort should be made to create a GS-7 position and have Heaton put in it as acting superintendent. [1573] Zion and regional office officials set about trying to find a way to fund the two new positions. (An additional $950 was needed to hire a seasonal ranger historian and $220 more per year was required by Heaton's promotion. It appears that the regional office eventually "coughed up" the $1,170 so that the personnel changes could take effect in fiscal year 1957. [1574] ) Franke later pointed out to Miller that the ranger historian was needed not only to provide guide service and to conduct research, but also to provide security for the site when Heaton was not on duty. Since the highway passed through the monument, Franke thought Pipe Spring was particularly vulnerable to vandalism. [1575]

On December 15, 1955, after almost 30 years of service at Pipe Spring National Monument, Heaton received a promotion from maintenance man, ungraded, to acting superintendent, GS-7. Six months later, the monument hired its first seasonal ranger historian. During the next period of the monument's history - Mission 66 - Pipe Spring advocates would have much less cause to accuse the Park Service of neglecting the site.