Grand Teton National Park (Wyo.); Jackson Hole (Wyo.)
And he apparently knew what the “outsider” thought of a Jackson Holer.
In 1915 he made a trip to the World’s Fair with his neighbors, Jim and
Mary Budge. When they had boarded a San Francisco-bound train, after a
strenuous trek out of Jackson Hole, both Jim and Bill felt in need of a
long drink of whiskey. Entering the smoker with their concealed bottle,
they found one other man there. They did not like his looks and they
felt no need of him. Bill walked up and looked down at him with his
eagle stare. “Do you know where we’re from?” he said. “JACKSON HOLE!”
The man made a quick escape.
Though Holiday was more jovial than Brother Bill, his neighbors steered
clear of him when he was in the process of making lime. He made and sold
lime to neighboring ranchers. Some of them, like Bill, whitewashed their
houses inside and out with it. Holiday chinked his houses with it. He
also used it as a cure-all for man and beast. When he made lime he had
to keep a steady fire going for thirty-odd hours in the kiln just behind
the house in the bank. During these hours he was not fit company for man
or beast. But his neighbors accepted his limy disposition as a necessary
part of the process. Holy Savior, yes. What of it?
When late fall brought bitter winds, heavy fogs, and snow, the ferry was
beached for the winter. From then on all teams had to ford the river. A
little platform was hung from the river cable to accommodate foot
passengers. It would hold 3 or 4 at one time. The passengers mounted the
platform from a ladder and sat down. Bill released the car; with a quick
swoosh it ran down the slack in the cable where it dipped within 10 feet
of the river. Then the frightened passengers would laboriously haul
themselves up the relaxed cable to the opposite shore.
In later years, when travel became heavier, a winter bridge was flung
across the main channel. Putting in the winter bridge was the
responsibility of everyone, friend and enemy alike. When the time was
ripe, word was sent to nearby ranchers. On this day of days all cars and
wagons were stopped and the occupants asked to help with the
construction. If they protested, Holiday would say, “Do you want to use
the winter bridge? Well, then help put it in!”
Giving a hot meal to the crew that laid the winter bridge became
traditional with Mrs. Dornan. While they carried logs and hammered, she
baked and fried and boiled.
To find a crew to lay the winter bridge was never very difficult, but to
find a few who were willing to help remove it in the spring was a very
different matter. The ferry was running full blast. No one needed the
bridge. No one was enthusiastic. This was spring; time to plant and
build and plan. No time to tear down. To get men to the river for this
seemingly useless task was worse than trying to get a fresh cow on the
ferry without her calf.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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