A History of Southern Utah and Its National Parks (Revised)Woodbury, Angus M. (Angus Munn)
History
A History of Southern Utah and Its National Parks (Revised)
Woodbury, Angus M. (Angus Munn)
National parks and reserves -- Utah -- History; Utah -- History
Travel into Zion was slowly increasing. The number of people entering in
1920 nearly doubled that of the previous year (from 1914 to 3692). By
1930 it had increased to more than 55,000 and for a decade thereafter
registered proportionate gains. Governor Bamberger in 1920 sent Randall
Jones to Denver as Utah’s delegate to the Park-to-Park Highway
conference, where plans were laid to coordinate the local movements for
good roads into a park-to park system.
Among the interesting parties that came in 1921 was a tour sponsored by
the _Brooklyn Eagle_, which took in the scenic loop to Bryce Canyon as a
side trip. Mather came again, bringing with him Emerson Hough, eminent
novelist, and Edmund Heller, naturalist. During that year a road
passable for autos was built from Cedar City up Cedar Canyon to the
Breaks, but it was excessively steep and dangerous.
In response to pressure from Utah to undertake development of the scenic
south, in 1921 Carl R. Gray, president of the Union Pacific Railroad
Company, determined to investigate personally the agricultural
possibilities of contributing areas. His party left Lund and examined
the farming areas around Cedar, Parowan and Fillmore and interviewed
farmers and livestock men. Mr. Gray was favorably impressed with the
stability of the communities and the quality of the people. As a result,
a railroad spur was built to Fillmore a year later.
The following summer Gray and his party made the rounds of the scenic
areas. The Union Pacific was preparing to take over the Salt Lake Route
and was further investigating the resources of the area. According to
Randall Jones, Gray offered to buy the El Escalante Hotel in Cedar City
and the next year a spur of the railroad was run from Lund to Cedar
City, justified on the basis of anticipated traffic from livestock,
agriculture, iron ore and tourist travel.
With a rail-head at Cedar City, June 27, 1923, the Union Pacific
organized a subsidiary Utah Parks Company, took over the El Escalante
Hotel, set up a large bus station at Cedar City, purchased the Wylie
tourist camp interests in Zion Canyon and the Parry transportation route
from Cedar City to Zion. In 1917 under National Park permit to the
National Park Transportation and Camping Company, W. W. Wylie, who
formerly operated in Yellowstone Park, had set up a tent camp in Zion
Canyon and North Rim in cooperation with two of the Parry Brothers,
Gronway and Chauncey, who had undertaken to provide transportation for
visitors. The Parry Brothers closed in 1918 at the time of World War I,
resumed business in 1920 and worked out a ten-day round trip for
visitors from Cedar City via Zion, Kaibab, North Rim, Bryce and
Panguitch back to Cedar City. This round trip with variations was
maintained until 1923, when the Utah Parks Company acquired part, and in
1927, all of the Parry and Wylie interests.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account