PIPE SPRING Cultures at a Crossroads: An Administrative History

Monument Administration (continued)

1959

Some of the most extensive restoration and repair work on the fort was conducted during the first six months of 1959. (See "Historic Buildings, The Fort" section for details.) The fort's windows and south door were rocked up so that the fort would appear as it did shortly after construction. A great deal of interior work was done as well, including replacement of the wood floors in the parlor and kitchen. In addition to fort restoration work, in February and March work was done to try to locate the spring source and redirect its flow into the spring room. (See "Ponds, Fish, Fowl, and Springs" section.) Repair work on the rock walls flanking the fort and surrounding the fort ponds was also completed during the summer of 1959. The closing up of the windows required the later installation of a lighting system. Funds were also used to have fort furnishings repaired and to start purchasing additional pieces for the collection, an effort that continued into the early 1960s.

In January 1959 Arthur Woodward completed his research on Pipe Spring and period furnishings and submitted his 28-page report entitled "Details for Furnishing House Museum at Pipe Spring National Monument." The report provided a room-by-room inventory of the museum collection on display in the fort. At the time, the east room of the lower building's second floor was described as a "catch-all" for a display of Indian materials (basketry and a small assortment of archeological artifacts). Woodward recommended that the majority of these materials be removed to the east cabin, with a few left as "curios" on corner whatnot shelves in the house. One of the rooms in the east cabin contained a loom which Woodward thought should be disposed of (the Hopkins blacksmith tool collection was displayed in the other room of the cabin). Woodward made no reference to the west cabin, suggesting that it may not have been used at the time for displays of any kind. Woodward suggested that "Mrs. Heaton" (probably Leonard's mother, Maggie Heaton) and some of the other local Mormon women should be allowed to arrange some of the furniture in the rooms. [1697] Except for the spring room and telegraph room where Woodward was more specific about furnishings, the report provided general suggestions for furnishing the rooms in a manner that would have been typical for the period and place. It argued most strongly for the removal of "extraneous material, tools, broken objects, minerals, etc." and for the purchase of other objects more appropriate as furnishings.

100. Panoramic view of Pipe Spring National Monument, February 5, 1959
(Pipe Spring National Monument, negs. 2780- A and 2780- B).

In March 1959 Charlie Steen visited the monument and critiqued the monument's use of self-guided leaflets. In a memorandum to Regional Chief of Interpretation Erik Reed, he wrote, "The monument staff is currently experimenting with a self-guiding leaflet for visitors. The nature of the exhibits is such that I believe we should stay away from the self-guiding business at Pipe Spring.... I wish to urge that if it is decided to continue with any form of self-guidance that the leaflet be rewritten. It now consists principally of a series of descriptions of objects which are on display and has too little concerning the building or its history." [1698] The leaflet was revised and reprinted in 1960. While self-guided tours posed a security risk for museum objects, they were often seen as necessary by monument staff due to a shortage of personnel.

In the spring of 1959, both Zion and Pipe Spring staff began a concerted effort to locate and purchase some additional historic furnishings for the fort exhibit. On May 4, 1959, Superintendent Franke, Leonard Heaton, and Charlie Steen went to Salt Lake City to tour the Daughters of Utah Pioneers' Museum and Pioneer Village to see what types of furnishings should be purchased for the fort. During the summer and fall, Lloyd Sandberg and Carl Jepson purchased additional furnishings. [1699] The pieces were placed in the fort as soon as they were delivered. In October the coal oil lamps were converted to electric, for the first time running on power from the monument's diesel plant.

After the fort's windows were infilled in January 1959, Heaton's office space was so dark he remarked in his journal that he needed lights in order to see his work. [1700] He was soon to have his office relocated away from the fort, however. Zion officials thought it would be three or four years before the new visitor center was built. On March 12 Zion maintenance worker Ward Axtel brought in what Heaton described as "an old beat up trailer house" from Zion to be used as the new monument office. [1701] An estimated $300 was needed to fix it up. It took several months of repairs before the trailer could be occupied.

101. Leonard Heaton in front of the office trailer, August 20, 1959
(Pipe Spring National Monument, neg. 15,299).

Jim McKown was away from the monument from February 1 until May 5, 1959, attending the Park Service's Training Center in Yosemite National Park. Kelly Heaton filled in for McKown on Heaton's two days off while the ranger was in training. McKown returned just in time to help Heaton get the monument ready for Establishment Day, held again on May 30. (Shortly after his return, Kelly Heaton died. See "Accidents, Deaths, Missing Persons, and Heaton Family Matters" section.) A week prior to the event, McKown washed all the windows of the fort and cabins; Mose cleaned all the furnishings and floors; Clair Ford and Harvey L. ("Harry") Judd finished renovating the trailer office; and Heaton completed restoring the old telegraph line. The trailer was moved to a location south of the old parking area (below the fort and monument road), facing north. On May 29 McKown and Heaton moved all the equipment, books, and papers that would fit from the fort to the new office. What wouldn't fit was stored in the garage. The small trailer served as office space for both Heaton and McKown. Heaton's old office had been in the fort for 33 years.

On Establishment Day in 1959, there was more than the usual activity on the monument. The program included Superintendent Franke, Jim McKown, Carl Jepson, Kumen Jones, and Charles C. Heaton. A crowd of 250 attended the event, with numbers considerably boosted by the Kanab Stake Beehive girls - between 75 and 100 in number - who were holding their "award and swarm day" in the picnic area that day. The speakers delivered the program in front of the newly restored fort. Jepson spoke about monument's efforts to restore the fort's interior rooms to the 1870s period. Franke described fort restoration activities undertaken as part of Mission 66 and talked about future development plans. He showed the crowd the 1940 Historic American Building Survey drawings and photographs of the fort upon which restoration work was based, thereby generating a great deal of interest and promises of furnishing donations. Once the event was over, McKown used his spare time to research and write the monument's historical handbook, a project initiated by Lloyd Sandberg. He continued working on this project the following year.

In early June 1959, a reporter from the Salt Lake Tribune visited the monument to write a story on the recent restoration activity. Heaton later noted that the man took a lot of pictures of the fort and ongoing restoration activities (both movie and still photography). The reporter told Heaton his article would be published in several magazines during that summer and fall. On June 17 Heaton attended staff meeting in Zion, where he learned that McKown's transfer application was in the regional office for action. That day, he reluctantly turned back to Zion about $2,000 of unexpended rehabilitation funds, vowing later in his journal to spend it faster the next time!

By the end of June, all the interior fort work had been completed. Heaton terminated Harry Judd's employment, but kept Ray Mose and Clair Ford on as laborers. He also hired Allen Drye, a Kaibab Paiute man, in July. During July construction of the two new residences began (see "Planning and Development" section). Carl Jepson brought more furnishings for the fort as well as a tape recording of the first telegraph message sent over the line from Pipe Spring. The recording was to be used in the telegraph exhibit. Mose and Drye worked on laying a new sidewalk from the fort to the office trailer. McKown continued work on the historical handbook and on museum cataloguing, projects he did whenever he could find the time. On July 12 Landscape Architect Al Kuehl, (WODC) came by the monument for the first time since 1940. Kuehl was heavily involved with Pipe Spring development during the 1930s. Heaton expressed pleasure in seeing Kuehl again after 19 years. The two men discussed the landscaping of residence area, roads, walks around the fort, and future developments. From time to time (according to Heaton's journals), Camp DG-44 veterans would also stop by the monument to reminisce.

On July 21, 1959, at 10:40 a.m., a strong earthquake shook the area. The quake was felt and heard over a wide area in northern Arizona and southern Utah. Heaton later reported, "Ray Mose, Allen Drye, and myself were just outside the fort, southeast corner, and felt the quaking of the ground.... On investigation we found some 30 or more new cracks in walls and ceiling [of the fort] both inside and out. Some plaster knocked off walls. The spring ran dirty water for five to seven hours." [1702]

In the last few days of July 1959, Clair Ford restored an old flour bin for the fort's kitchen and built racks to hold garbage cans; Ray Mose and Allen Drye completed the walkway to the office. On July 28 Drye was arrested and taken by the sheriff for burglary, abruptly ending his employment at the monument. On the same day, Assistant Regional Director H. L. Bill made an inspection of Pipe Spring National Monument. In his report to Regional Director Miller, he stated, "The appearance [of the monument] is now better than I have ever seen it. I would think those visiting the fort would gain a great deal more from a visit now than would have been the case several years ago. Of the various areas visited on this trip, the greatest improvement has taken place at Pipe Spring." [1703]

102. Excavation of Whitmore-McIntyre dugout, undated; probably August 1959 (Courtesy NPS Intermountain Region, Denver).

In August 1959 Heaton made several trips to the sawmill to pick up lumber for use in the east and west cabins. All restoration and furnishing efforts up to this time in the year were focused on the fort. Now the east cabin was to be furnished as a stable, blacksmith and carpenter shop, and the west cabin as a barracks or "bunkhouse," as it came to be known. During August Clair Ford built a carpenter's workbench, tables, and chairs for the east cabin, then worked on furnishings for the bunkhouse. In September Heaton began to set up the east cabin display. That month Ford made three bunk beds that were placed in the west cabin. He also made a new water trough to replace the old one at the fort. [1704] In October Ford and Mose installed the new trough as well as a fireplace hearth in the west cabin. In late November and December, Ford built a blacksmith forge, workbench, and box for the east cabin.

McKown took two week's annual leave in September, during which time Edna Heaton assisted with fort tours. (In the recent past Kelly Heaton had filled in during McKown's absences, if it was on one of Leonard Heaton's days off. Since Kelly's death, however, Heaton had found it "too much red tape" to hire someone else quickly.) During the month, work on the new residences progressed, but Heaton was none too happy with what would be his family's new home. Unlike in the 1930s and 1940s, when Heaton was encouraged to give input in the design process (and listened to), it appears that he wasn't shown plans for these residences until they had been finalized and approved. As his long-awaited residence took shape, Heaton complained in his journal, "Finding more things I don't like about the building. Too small [a] bathtub, hot water tank, and furnace; too cramped quarters. Bedroom windows too large and low down." [1705] Perhaps, after waiting for so many years, the Heatons were hoping for something nicer, but Zion officials were forced to keep costs below $20,000 per residence.

On August 5, 1959, Regional Archeologist Zorro Bradley and a crew of two excavated the Whitmore-McIntyre dugout, the site of the first structure built by white settlers at Pipe Spring, which was discovered in 1936 (see Part I for history). During the previous June, Assistant Superintendent Humberger had requested assistance from the regional office to excavate the dugout. Zion officials hoped that it might contain evidence that would be helpful in furnishing and interpreting the fort. Excavation work began on August 5 and ended on August 15, 1959. Ray Mose assisted Bradley in the work, doing much of the digging. Unfortunately, in Bradley's words, "very little artifactual material was recovered." [1706]

While a number of people wanted the dugout to be reconstructed (some of James Whitmore's descendants and Leonard Heaton, for example), the decision was made to backfill the site. Heaton had placed reconstruction of the dugout as his first priority for work in 1959. Erik Reed, however, recommended backfilling to afford the best protection to the dugout because, he said, "The dirt and clay walls, as well as the remaining crude masonry walls would be almost impossible to maintain." [1707] Reed suggested locating surface markers and an easel exhibit at the site. Superintendent Franke concurred with his recommendation, which must have been quite a disappointment to Heaton. Mose backfilled the dugout in December 1959. In September 1961 the grandson of James M. Whitmore, Junius L. Whitmore of Redlands, California, wrote Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall requesting the Department of the Interior restore the dugout and erect a monument marker there. [1708] Zion's Superintendent Francis R. Oberhansley turned down Heaton's request to restore the dugout again in August 1962. A plaque was eventually erected near the Whitmore-McIntyre dugout in April 1963.

Superintendent Franke and Historian Bob Utley visited the monument on September 18, 1959, to review construction and maintenance work. Utley sent a report to Erik Reed describing the visit and his impressions. He noted that "there is almost no documentary source material on which to base the approach to the problem [of furnishings]." [1709] While Woodward's report made recommendations on how a typical Utah or Arizona pioneer home of the period would be furnished, it provided no information specific to what the Pipe Spring fort actually had. Accounts by old-timers indicated early furnishings would have been very crude, but that later furnishings would have been more refined. Utley approved of a mixture of the two, "the crude and the civilized," which was the approach being taken at Pipe Spring. Utley did not think it feasible to represent Pipe Spring "in its earliest pioneer state," both because the artifacts could probably not be found and because the result would produce "severely bare and uninteresting rooms." The compromise reached was to furnish the fort as it probably appeared during the "transitional period" (ca. 1879-1882), when some refinements had been introduced yet the pioneer furnishings were still very much in evidence. Utley commended Heaton and McKown for the aged finishes on reproduction furnishings, some "worthy of a professional museum technician," he thought. (Such work was not done by either Heaton or McKown but most likely by Harry Judd, who seems to have been the local expert on finishing furniture to make it look old.) He ended his report by stating, "I believe Pipe Spring is making large strides in the right direction. The contrast between the appearance of the fort now and when I first visited it two years ago is very striking." [1710]

In the fall of 1959, McKown made several trips to St. George to continue research for the monument's historical handbook. In November Heaton worked on an article for publication in a book on Kane County entitled, "A Brief History of Moccasin."