"Whereas certain public lands in the State of Utah contain narrow canyons displaying evidence of ancient sand dune deposits of unusual scientific value, and have situated thereon various other objects of geological and scientific interest; and Whereas it appears that it would be in the public interest to reserve such lands as a national monument, to be known as the Capitol Reef National Monument..."
-Proclamation No. 2246 on August 2, 1937, Page 136 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Just like many other places we visit, Capitol Reef National Park was once someone's homeland where they lived, hunted, and explored with their people. Archeologists believe that Paleo-Indians lived in that area during the Pleistocene era. They most likely lived in caves and rock shelters they found as they roamed around. Since this is about 12,000 years ago there is a lot of speculation as there are not many paleo artifacts found that have survived that long. Pictographs have been found in the area that somewhat tell a story of what their lives could have been like so many years ago. A little more is known about the people that inhabited the area around 2,000 years ago. The Ancestral-Puebloan people created many petroglyphs found in the park that tell their story still today. Historians and archeologists have named these people the Fremont people for the Fremont river that runs through the park itself. While these people also mainly lived in cave dwellings, they also built some of their own homes. They would dig a pit in the ground and then erect some sort of low wall and cover the top with brush to create a roof. They usually stuck to small groups that would consist of a few different families. They would live the hunter-gatherer lifestyle and would be very self-sufficient and live off what they found around them. Archeologists have found artifacts that have been left by them and so they have been able to piece together a more accurate picture of what life would have been like. The petroglyphs they left behind showed a somewhat affluent society as their people look to be adorned by clothing and necklaces to name a few. Over time these smaller groups would move and split off and eventually Paiute Indians would settle in the area.
Fast forward a little to when Spanish explorers would travel through the area looking to trade with the Indians as they moved around discovering many different trails. Then in 1842, Thomas Hart Benson became a leading proponent of Manifest Destiny and he sent his son-in-law, Charles C. Fremont, to survey a route to the Pacific coast. He climbed what he perceived to be the highest peak in the Rockies and he placed an American flag to demonstrate their ability to explore and eventually settle all of the United States. Years later in the winter of 1853, Fremont passed through Utah and Colorado, attempting to find a northern railroad route to the Pacific Ocean. (Explorers and surveyors 2023) He had already traveled through Utah many times on other journeys and had mapped a lot of the different ways to cross Utah. The large river that runs in Southeastern Utah is named after him. Fremont was trained as a topographical engineer and he possessed an expertise unprecedented in western exploration. (Alexander pg 71) He had already and would continue to explore many parts of Utah and much of the Western United States.
Around 1810 a lot of people started to migrate West in the United States because of Manifest Destiny and the held beliefs that they needed to occupy the entire country. In 1846 a large group of Mormon pioneers decided to move West as well to find a place where they could freely live their religion without interference from outsiders. They arrived in what is now known as Utah in 1847 and quickly started to build a society that would spread all over the territory. Brigham Young, the leader at the time, would send several families on missions to settle the rest of Utah. Brigham Young had noticed that there were many isolated pockets of non-Mormons in the mining towns near Zion and that became a considerable concern to the Church. Apparently, the leadership encouraged Mormon occupation in every nook and cranny of the Utah territory to forestall too many gentile inroads. (Davidson pg 13) In the 1870s, Mormon settlers moved South and started to settle in the St. George area and create several towns. They ventured further away and went East towards the Waterpocket fold. There they had the Fremont River running alongside them and so it was easy to establish new communities. It was very dry which made planting crops harder and so a lot of the settlers would be in the sheep and cattle business instead. With the large amounts of water they had from the immediate river and the sun that would hit and heat up the canyon walls, Nels Johnson, the first settler in what he named Junction, decided to plant orchards. He planted apples, peaches, pears, plums, cherries, grapes, walnuts, and almonds. He built a nice little cabin and soon a few other families would join him there. In an affidavit, Johnson stated that he constructed a house in 1886 at the junction of 2 watercourses, taking up residence at the site in 1887. In 1888, he began to cultivate 17 acres, 7 of which were orchards. In 1886 he stated his property included 3 one-room houses, a granary, a corral, and 100 rods (1,650 feet) of fencing. He also noted his property was most valuable for the production of fruit. (Gilbert and McKoy pg 11)They would later build a small one room schoolhouse which would also be their gathering place for meetings and such. A small road was constructed from Junction to Hanksville that would be used by many. Anyone who would pass through would stop in Junction and would barter for fresh and dried fruit, vegetables, wine, and moonshine. (Davidson pg 20) It soon would be known as the “Eden of Wayne County” with all the fruit trees and growing flora and fauna and so they renamed the city in 1902 to Fruita. Many families in the area would make a trip to Fruita during harvest season.
“In the summertime we often went to Fruita, about twenty miles away for peaches and grapes. Teasdale was higher and colder than Fruita and we couldn’t grow these fruits. We would go in the afternoon, camp overnight, pick the fruit in the morning and come home again. Sometimes three or four cousins would go and stay about two weeks. They would pick, cut and dry fruit for the owner of the orchard. As pay for this work the owner would give them as much fruit as they had picked and dried for him.” (Oral transcript in the archives of the COJCoLDS, SLC, Ut) (Davidson pg 22 )
The town stayed small and never got bigger than about 10 families. The community stayed rather isolated from the rest of the world as it was difficult to get to them. When the great depression hit it never really affected the settlers in Fruita as they mainly bartered and were very self sufficient.
Fruita had mostly remained out of the eye of the general population until about 1914, Ephraim Portman Pectol and Joseph S. Hickman decided they wanted to keep the beauty of the area intact and so they worked hard to make the area a State Park or National Monument. They figured doing so would increase tourism which would boost the local economy around it. Other such parks had already been established in Utah and they could see those benefited the areas around them. In 1932, the National Park Service sent Yellowstone National Park Superintendent Roger Toll to visit Wayne County, and he reported that “the area seems worthy of future investigation.” In 1937, all the promotional photographs, stories, and determination paid off, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt set aside 37,711 acres as Capitol Reef National Monument. This comprised an area extending about two miles north of present Utah Highway 24 and about ten miles south, just past Capitol Gorge. (Park Founders 2023) With the increase of automobiles on the road tourism started to pick up as well. Local farmers upped their production and tried to introduce more variety since they could now drive them to nearby towns to sell as well. After World War II many more visitors would come to Fruita and the road from Richfield to Torrey was finally paved in 1940.
Historian Charles Kelly became the new monument’s unpaid custodian in the early 1940s and later its first ranger and superintendent. (Davidson pg 61) He and his wife had wanted to move to the area and buy a ranch, but the prices were so high that he took the unpaid job instead that provided him with a small home and some acreage to take care of. He would explore the entire park and was able to name a lot of the giant attractions that draw many visitors there still today. He created a campground since more and more visitors wanted to come and stay a few days. He had a hard time getting along with the neighbors who still lived in Fruita and they would clash sometimes. He wrote: “I belong to no organization of any kind whatever, never go out socially, not interested in politics, and hate radios. I really ought to move to California, but if I did the Mormons would say they ran me out of Utah – so I stay just to spite them.” (Kelly 1937, 1976) As more visitors came the Fruita residents were able to supplement their income by serving the many tourists. In the 1950s the National Park Service began to buy up all the property surrounding the monument and wanted to buy all of Fruita as well. By 1971 they had accomplished this task and were able to create a new National Park. President Nixon would sign the bill that would make Capitol Reef Monument a National Park in 1971 and the 5th National Park in Utah. In 1919 Woodrow Wilson had already created Zion National Park and then in 1928 Bryce Canyon National Park was added. President Johnson created Canyonlands National Park in 1964 and ultimately President Nixon would add Arches National Park in November of 1971 and then Capitol Reef National Park the next month in December. Today Utah is home to 5 National Parks, 6 National Monuments, 1 National Recreation Area, 1 National Historic Park, and 4 National Historic Trails run through the State as well. On top of that there are countless State Parks that you can also visit. Hiking became a favorite pastime of many after World War I. Americans were able to take vacations with new labor reforms at that time and so many would hit the road to take in the beautiful scenery in the country.
Capitol Reef would become a favorite park for many visitors as it has grand cliffs, goblin rocks, carved pinnacles, stone arches, great butte-forms, and deep gorges. It combines the fantasy of Bryce and the grandeur of Zion National Park, with more variety of color than either, and is larger than both combined. It also contains archaeological and historic resources. (Powell pg 214) There are so many different things to see and experience in the park. The park is known for its beautiful hikes and adventures during the day and its stargazing at night. Capitol Reef is different from most other places you hike at as the terrain is rough and there is not a lot of water to be found. Temperatures can get extremely high and with the difficult terrain the hikes are not for beginners. There are about 25 different hiking routes mapped out that all have spectacular views. Some are only a mile while others can be up to 27 miles long. You can backpack camp in the park with a permit as the terrain can be dangerous. A nice campground is built in Fruita and a lot of the shorter hikes start there. Most of the National Parks in Utah have a natural bridge or arch and Capitol Reef is no exception. The Hickman Bridge trail takes you to a spectacular bridge with amazing views and it has become one of the favorite hikes for many visitors. Another famous hike is the one that leads to Cassidy Arch. This is believed to have been a hideout for Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch when they were on the run. The hike is more strenuous and you need to bring a lot of water with you. It’s a longer hike that takes you up on top of the high cliffs above the grand wash and has amazing views. When flash floods occur they usually run down the grand wash and so sometimes the road in will be washed out and can only be traversed by foot. You gain about 1,000 feet in elevation on this hike and the view at the top is worth it. The arch itself was created due to wind erosion over many many years. Capitol Reef is also home to a lot of horseback and bike trails. Some of the old trails that were originally created by the settlers were paved over time and are now beautiful scenic drives around the park. Many of the original fruit trees are still there and you can pick your own fruit to eat for a small donation. There is also a park shop that makes delicious homemade pies from all the local fruit that you can purchase when you visit the park. You need to make sure to show up early as they run out of pies quickly since they are a huge tourist attraction and very delicious.
Bibliography
Alan Kent Powell. 2003. The Utah Guide. Fulcrum Publishing.
Alexander, Thomas G, and Utah State Historical Society. 2003. Utah, the Right Place : The Official Centennial History. Salt Lake City, Utah: Gibbs Smith Publishers.
Davidson, George E. and Capitol Reef Natural History Association. 1986. Red Rock Eden, The Story of Fruita. Salt Lake City, Utah: Lorraine Press
“Explorers and Surveyors - Capitol Reef National Park (U.S. National Park Service).” Www.nps.gov. Accessed June 19, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/care/learn/historyculture/explorers-and-surveyors.htm.
Gilbert, Cathy, and Kathleen L McKoy. 1997. Cultural Landscape Report.
Kelly, Charles. Quote contained in an autobiographical piece written for the Pony Express Courier in 1937. Cited in “Register of the Charles Kelly Collection,” Utah State Historical Society. Salt Lake City, UT, 1976.
“Park Founders - Capitol Reef National Park (U.S. National Park Service).” Www.nps.gov. Accessed June 19, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/care/learn/historyculture/park-founders.htm.
Alan Kent Powell. 2003. The Utah Guide. Fulcrum Publishing.
Alexander, Thomas G, and Utah State Historical Society. 2003. Utah, the Right Place : The Official Centennial History. Salt Lake City, Utah: Gibbs Smith Publishers.
Davidson, George E. and Capitol Reef Natural History Association. 1986. Red Rock Eden, The Story of Fruita. Salt Lake City, Utah: Lorraine Press
“Explorers and Surveyors - Capitol Reef National Park (U.S. National Park Service).” Www.nps.gov. Accessed June 19, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/care/learn/historyculture/explorers-and-surveyors.htm.
Gilbert, Cathy, and Kathleen L McKoy. 1997. Cultural Landscape Report.
Kelly, Charles. Quote contained in an autobiographical piece written for the Pony Express Courier in 1937. Cited in “Register of the Charles Kelly Collection,” Utah State Historical Society. Salt Lake City, UT, 1976.
“Park Founders - Capitol Reef National Park (U.S. National Park Service).” Www.nps.gov. Accessed June 19, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/care/learn/historyculture/park-founders.htm.
[Paper written for HIST 3260 class UVU Summer 2023]
Amy Brouwer . 2024 . All Right Reserved
