Let's Talk Wyoming - Honoring Heroes and the Historic Quest to Save Yellowstone
May 23, 2024Season 2Episode 95
Mark Hamilton
Today, we don't just recount history; we honor the poignant sacrifices that have shaped our nation's legacy. The voice of Travis Detai, chairman of the Wyoming Veterans Commission, resonates through our episode as we reflect on Memorial Day's true essence. Wyoming's cool breeze carries the weight of freedom's cost, a reminder to cherish unity and aspire toward a nation worthy of the sacrifices made by our fallen heroes. As whispers of the upcoming tourist season hint at warmth and renewal, we, too, look forward to brighter days while acknowledging our solemn past.
Our journey through time reveals an adventurous tale of fortitude and foresight that saved Yellowstone National Park from the clutches of commercial exploitation. President Chester A. Arthur's legendary 1883 fishing expedition, led by General Philip Sheridan and accompanied by prominent figures like Robert Lincoln and George Graham Vest, becomes the cornerstone of our narrative. We celebrate the seeds of conservation sown by those who first donned the mantle of Yellowstone's protectors, tracing the indelible mark they left on what we now know as the National Park Service. It's a story that intertwines the struggles for land preservation with the dignity of indigenous rights, all under the vast Wyoming sky that continues to inspire and awe.
Today, we don't just recount history; we honor the poignant sacrifices that have shaped our nation's legacy. The voice of Travis Detai, chairman of the Wyoming Veterans Commission, resonates through our episode as we reflect on Memorial Day's true essence. Wyoming's cool breeze carries the weight of freedom's cost, a reminder to cherish unity and aspire toward a nation worthy of the sacrifices made by our fallen heroes. As whispers of the upcoming tourist season hint at warmth and renewal, we, too, look forward to brighter days while acknowledging our solemn past.
Our journey through time reveals an adventurous tale of fortitude and foresight that saved Yellowstone National Park from the clutches of commercial exploitation. President Chester A. Arthur's legendary 1883 fishing expedition, led by General Philip Sheridan and accompanied by prominent figures like Robert Lincoln and George Graham Vest, becomes the cornerstone of our narrative. We celebrate the seeds of conservation sown by those who first donned the mantle of Yellowstone's protectors, tracing the indelible mark they left on what we now know as the National Park Service. It's a story that intertwines the struggles for land preservation with the dignity of indigenous rights, all under the vast Wyoming sky that continues to inspire and awe.
B Emily Beynon. The President's wreath symbolizes the memorial tribute of a nation at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Later, in the amphitheater, overlooking 44,000 graves of soldier dead, mr Roosevelt is to be listener rather than spokesman, the orator's privilege being given to the AEF commander, general Pershing.
Speaker 2:
It does seem amazing that civilized nations should continue to adhere to war as an element of national policy. A people who complacently submit to unreasonable demands of a clamorous minority will certainly become the prey of a dictator. This nation, as one of the great powers, can do no less in the fulfillment of its manifest duty to less in the fulfillment of its manifest duty to humanity than to make the most earnest and devoted effort in the state of Wyoming and across the US.
Speaker 1:
And it's a time that I guess, as you get older and you really start to think of the sacrifices that were made, that how important it is that we remember the observance of Memorial Day, those people that have made the ultimate sacrifice, and I want to read some parts of a story that came from Travis Detai. Travis is the state of Wyoming, chairman of the Wyoming Veterans Commission, and this was written back in 2020, may 23rd of 2020. And so I'm going to skip through parts of it, because it relates to COVID, and go really to the heart of the message that he wrote. Regardless, we will still pay homage to those who laid down their lives in our great country. Throughout the course of history, from our war of independence to the Civil War and World War I, from World War II to Vietnam, from Korea to Iraq and Afghanistan, time and again, americans have found themselves standing against the evil forces of oppression and tyranny, and time and again, they have risen to the challenge because the freedom we have and hold so dear is worth fighting for and worth dying for.
Speaker 1:
On the lawns of the Wyoming State Museum. In the shadow of the Wyoming State Capitol in Cheyenne stands the Wyoming Fallen Warrior Memorial. The inscription reads Wyoming remembers, dedicated to the many soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen and coast guardsmen, and their families, from Wyoming, who made the ultimate sacrifice on the service of our state and nation. Flags will be flying on residential streets, glasses will be raised and some chairs will be shed. We must always remember that our freedom is not free. Freedom carries a very high price and it is worth paying, as Rudyard Kipling wrote so eloquently. All we have of freedom, all we use or know this our fathers brought us long and long ago. There is no doubt we have our trouble today, but I for one feel blessed to live in this wonderful country and am thankful for the glorious freedoms and rights that every American is guaranteed life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And I'm thankful to the countless men and women who have given so much many, that last full measure of devotion, to the countless men and women who have given so much many, that last full measure of devotion to pay for the freedom we all enjoy. In the book of John, jesus said greater love has no man than this that he lays his life down for his friends, it is the right that we, as free people, pause to take stock of the price of Memorial Day and we all know someone in our past that has been affected by service and has paid the ultimate price and always remember that. We do have a Veterans Day where we salute all those that have served, and today is that day for Memorial Day that we recognize those people that made the ultimate sacrifice and the families that have lived through that. And you think back. There's a lot of people that have given their life for our country, and so I think here we are in 2023.
Speaker 1:
It definitely is a troubled time in our country right now. We have a lot of things going on, a lot of issues that divide us. It really breaks my heart sometimes to think about the people that fought for our country. What is taking place in our country, I think, about the people that fought for our country. What is taking place in our country? I think we've lost this respect for our country a lot of people. With what is taking place, I still get back to that point. We have to remember about what Memorial Day means and honor those people that made that ultimate sacrifice, knowing that this country was worth giving their life for, and that we have a lot to do and we continue to remember and work on improving our country so that these people that made this sacrifice didn't do it in vain. Again, make sure that you remember Memorial Day here in the United States. God bless all those people that gave their life.
Speaker 1:
Taking a look at the Wyoming weather here on the 22nd day of May, boy, I'll tell you what. I don't know what happened this spring. I think we've reverted back into a late winter. We've had nothing but cool weather, rain, cool weather, wind, cool weather, rain and snow in some places. It has been unbelievable. The month of May. It has provided a lot of green up of the state. It's gorgeous out there for all of the people traveling, but the grass is growing up around my home here in Hot Springs County. I can't keep up with keeping the grasses in the yard and out in the pasture down. Just unbelievable. The weather I saw next week after Memorial Day. I saw temperatures in the 80s on Wednesday, which will feel like 180 with the temperature we've had. So right now, great time to come to the state. During these cool temperatures. It's really a little bit more enjoyable, I think, to travel around the state. But weather in Wyoming unpredictable as always, heading into the month of June and we'll see what June has in store for us, because one of these days it's going to warm up and then we're going to be really not happy. Well, here we are at the end of May getting ready to start into June.
Speaker 1:
Of course that's tourist season here in Wyoming, it's vacation when people hit the roads and it's been a little strange so far. I have not seen the doesn't seem the normal traffic of people on the highways so far and I don't know if that is because of the current weather conditions. I'm really waiting to see if it's going to start to slow down a little bit. With kind of the crunch out there with money, with prices where they are and some of the tough times. I wonder will we have any type of effects here in the state? Of course Yellowstone is going strong. I did see that there's been some animal incidents around the state. We did have somebody run into a couple of grizzlies had some issues. So it's that time of year but I'll tell you, great time to vacation in the state, right here in our again northwest part of the state.
Speaker 1:
A lot of great sights to go see this time of year and I always like to tell people stop by Hot Springs County, go to the Hot Springs State Park. It's a beautiful place to visit. If you're a fly fisherman, come here and you can fly fish on the Bighorn River going through Thermopolis. Just some blue ribbon trout fishing here. A lot of things to do in the little town of Thermopolis and you're going to be up at Cody fishing here. A lot of things to do in the little town of Thermopolis and you're going to be up at Cody, up into Yellowstone Park. The Bighorn Mountains supply a lot of activity and a lot of great places to go see, whether you're going up from Tensleep over to Buffalo or from the other side, from Sheridan and across over to Shell or to Lovell, depending on if you go on 14 or 14A. I always talk about those trips. They're second to none. The scenery you'll have and this year is going to be no difference as you have this great weather that's out there and this greenery just paints the beauty of our state, and I know the rest of the state is the same way with the moisture. So you just about throw a dart at the map and go visit it. You're going to see some great sites here in the state of Wyoming.
Speaker 1:
Also, talking about Hot Springs State Park, earlier we had a lot of stuff happen here in the state park, a lot of changes coming forward. We had some local businesses that have been there in the park, a couple swimming pools. There's also a hotel that their leases are starting to run out and the state of Wyoming has decided that they had looked at some different concessionaires to come in and take over the park and change the park a little bit more of a water park and develop the park. And it's got some local people that have been in business for a while. They knew when they got these leases that this could happen Eventually. They've been there for a long time and so they're a little bit of a lot of hurt people, a lot of hurt feelings, a lot of people disappointed. But I think that in my opinion that we're going to have a change in the park. I'm thinking that they're going to upgrade the park and put some money in there that maybe not had been done previously. So I just hope for our community it can bring some positive results, bring more people to the community, improve our businesses and just improve the overall Hot Springs County. So that's a big change coming up.
Speaker 1:
And finally just wanted a couple of other updates. My Luke I've talked about in previous podcasts. He's just almost two years old, belgian Malinois. He had broke his right rear leg in early February. He had some surgery done up in Billings by Dr Brown up there. Hats off to the staff. It was a slow recovery process, rather trying process, dealing with that active of a dog, trying to keep him not to overuse his leg. But he's back to 100 right now. Well, I'll tell you what he's just like. He hasn't slowed down. So the wonders of medicine and I'm just thankful that they were able to do the work that they did with luke is the run and mate meal or doberman pincher. She is absolutely excited about having her play buddy back. So good times ahead for the summer for those two. They're going to have some great times. And finally, last weekend here in Wyoming was graduation weekend and got to take in the graduation ceremony up at Riverside High School, that's up in Bighorn County in Basin Wyoming. Fifteen graduates in the class of 2024, and it was good to see well attended A great ceremony for these graduates and you kind of wonder what's ahead for them with everything that's going on in our world. But I know that they are prepared, and good luck to all the graduates out there across the state of Wyoming. May their future be bright.
Speaker 1:
Today in our history section, a story from wowhistoryorg the President Arthur Expedition the Fishing Trip that Helped Save Yellowstone by Dick Bluss Jr. A presidential fishing trip that began in Green River Wyoming territory late in the 1880s, helped save Yellowstone National Park. By 1883, 11 years after Yellowstone was created as the world's first national park, the US Department of Interior was set to grant a private enterprise more than 4,000 acres of parkland for sale and commercial development Plans of the Yellowstone National Park Improvement Company, including allowing private business control of the park's premier locations, building a railroad into the park and permitting logging, cattle ranching and even mining. The company was already cutting park forests for wood for a 250-room hotel at Mammoth Hot Springs and hiring local hunters to poach elk and other big game to feed its work crew. The company officially reported that workers already had cut 1,600 board feet of timber. Yellowstone was on track to become another Niagara Falls of the time.
Speaker 1:
Lieutenant General Philip Sherman, by this time commanding general of the US Army, was a fierce advocate preserving the park for the incomparable national wonders that it was. Other prominent figures such as General George Graham Vest of Missouri and Conservatist George Byrd Grinnell, editor of Forest and Stream magazine, supported Sheridan's proposition. In a campaign to preserve the park, a strategy was conceived to enlist the support of President Chester A. Arthur Sheridan had risen to national fame as a Union cavalry general in the Civil war when his troops laid waste to the shenandoah valley of virginia. After the war he commanded all the troops between the mississippi and the rocky mountains where he used similar tactics encouraging food supply to subdue them. Arthur was born in Vermont and by 1870 was well-connected politically in New York. He was elected vice president in 1880 and ascended to the presidency after James A Garfield was assassinated in 1881. He would not run for re-election in 1884. Arthur was an avid angler.
Speaker 1:
Sheridan proposed a three-week horseback fishing expedition to Yellowstone. The president agreed Sheridan, who had visited the park twice before, would himself lead the party, which included a 75-man cavalry escort, 175 pack animals. In addition to Sheridan and President Arthur, members of the expedition included Secretary of War Robert D Lincoln, the son of Abraham Lincoln, senator Vess and his son George Vess Jr. Lieutenant Colonel Michael F Sheridan, sheridan's brother, montana Territorial Governor John S Crosby, daniel G Rawlings, surrogate of New York, a kind of probate judge, an old friend of Arthur's Brigadier General Anson Stager, lieutenant Colonel F Gregory, us Army Surgeon Major WH Forewood, captain Phil Lowe Clark of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment and Frank J Haynes, the expedition's photographer.
Speaker 1:
Sheridan took charge of the trip's comprehensive planning. He made recommendations to members of the party concerning clothing and gear and provided Arthur with the following list of items to bring Four sets of winter clothing, four sets of summer underclothing, four outer woven shirts with pockets, two suits of rough clothes, one heavy one, ordinarily white. One heavy winter coat ulster preferable. One rubber coat. One pair of riding boots or shoes with leggings, one dozen pair of socks. In addition, arthur purchased $50 worth of new fishing gear for the excursion.
Speaker 1:
The group would travel to southern Wyoming by train and proceed from there to Yellowstone first by wagon and then by horseback, at Sheridan's assistance. No reporters would be allowed to accompany the expedition. Instead, most of the expedition's press dispatches, subject to review and approval by Arthur, would be written by Sheridan and Gregory. They did not stop at least two reporters from trying, as reported in the Cheyenne Weekly Leader. The president and his party were much annoyed in Green River by two young men who asserted they were reporters of the Chicago Times and Tribune. The reporters had planned to take the stagecoach to Fort Washakie, the Indian agency for the Shoshone Reservation, and to schedule a stop on the expedition's route, but Sheridan sent them word that if they went on their journey they would be arrested. The moment they got to the reservation at Washakie, the leader noted, after they discovered the government's chartered the stage, they threw up the sponge. The reporters did not know what to do to carry out their assignment. They had never been to the West before and were at the end of their string. The leader article further explained that had they been fully competent, they would have gone all the way to Yellowstone on horseback to get the story.
Speaker 1:
However, two courier's relay lines were created to keep the expedition in contact with the outside world. The first ran from Fort Washgate to Shoshone Lake in the park and the second from Shoshone Lake north to Fort Ellis in the Montana Territories east of present-day Bozeman. Calvermen were stationed at 20-mile intervals along both routes. Until mid-August, telegraph and mail for President Arthur and the Secretary of War Lincoln would be sent to Fort Washakie and relayed up the line by mounted couriers. Afterward communications were directed to Fort Ellis, then carried south From Point of Rocks.
Speaker 1:
The expedition turned north for Fort Washakie and the Indian Reservation, where President Arthur and Senator Vest met with Chief Washakie of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe and Chief Black Cole of the Northern Arapaho. Vest discussed with the chiefs a proposal under consideration in the Senate that would basically do away with the reservation system. Instead of the current system of tribal ownership of reservation land, called tenure in common Indians would adopt private land ownership or tenure in servility. Proponents of tenure in servility proposed their briefs that private property ownership would encourage Indians to assimilate in what they called civilization of the tribes. The fact that tenure and servility would also open up huge swaths of land of Indian land for white settlement, mining, lumbering and other industries also was undoubtedly a factor in their thinking. The response Vess received that day was unequivocal All the Jews expressed themselves against tenure and civility. Hayes, a photographer, noted in his published account leaving the wagons behind.
Speaker 1:
The president's party continued on horseback northwest along the east slope of the Wind River Range, turning west to cross over the Continental Divide at Lincoln Pass, known today as Sheridan Pass. By that time the northern Arapaho tribe had also been living on the Shoshone Reservation for five years in an arrangement originally proposed as temporary that was becoming more permanent every year. The president's party enlisted an Arapaho guide, the sub-chief Sharpnose, to lead them through the mountains to the park. On that journey Sharpnose received word of the death the previous January of his son, little Chief, at the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania. Little Chief and a few dozen other northern Arapahos and eastern Shoshone children had been among the school's first students when it opened in 1881. Sharpnose, in his tent, cut off his long braids and the traditional sign of mourning, but he continued guiding the party. At the end of the trip the president gave him a fine horse, a saddle, some gold coins, a certificate of thanks for his service. The certificate, according to Sharpnose great-granddaughter, ufa Soldier Wolf, remains in the family.
Speaker 1:
From Sheridan Pass the president's party proceeded west down the valley of the Grosse Ventre River, then turned north past the Tetons and Jackson Lake and entered Yellowstone. On August 23rd, arthur was the first president to set foot in Yellowstone Park. The parties stopped as they continued north, including at Lewis Lake, the Upper Geyser Basin, old Faithful Yellowstone Lake, the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and the Mammoth Hot Springs. The president was enthralled with the park and he caught a lot of trout. The expedition emerged from the park on September 1st and continued on to Livingston in Montana Territory where the group boarded trains.
Speaker 1:
The president's trip and the publicity it generated helped Sheridan and other powerful supporters of protection for Yellowstone, particularly Senator Vest, make their case for conservation, wildlife preservation and strict control of commercial concessions inside the park. After a hard fight, fess was able to pass a resolution that required the Secretary of the Interior to submit concession proposals and contracts to the Senate for approval and oversight. Concessions were sharply curtailed. No railroad was ever built inside Yellowstone. The Yellowstone National Park Improvement Company went bankrupt in 1886. Yellowstone, the Yellowstone National Park Improvement Company, went bankrupt in 1886.
