An Environmental History of the Bear River Range, 1860-1910
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Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 5-2013 An Environmental History of the Bear River Range, 1860-1910 Bradley Paul Hansen Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd Part of the Biology Commons Recommended Citation Hansen, Bradley Paul, "An Environmental History of the Bear River Range, 1860-1910" (2013). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 1724. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/1724 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. AN ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY OF THE BEAR RIVER RANGE, 18601910 by Bradley P. Hansen A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE in History Approved: Christopher Conte, Ph D David Rich Lewis, PhD Major Professor Committee Member Robert Parson Mark McLellan, PhD Committee Member Vice President for Research and Dean of the School of Graduate Studies UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY Logan, Utah 2013 ii Copyright © Bradley P. Hansen 2013 All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT An Environmental History of the Bear River Range, 18601910 by Bradley P. Hansen, Master of Science Utah State University, 2013 Major Professor: Dr. Chris Conte Department: History The study of environmental history suggests that nature and culture change all the time, but that the rate and scale of such change can vary enormously.1 During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Anglo settlement in the American West transformed landscapes and ecologies, creating new and complex environmental problems. This transformation was particularly impressive in Cache Valley, Utah’s Bear River Range. From 1860 to 1910, Mormon settlers overused or misused the Bear River Range’s lumber, grazing forage, wild game, and water resources and introduced invasive plant and animal species throughout the area. By the turn of the 20th century, broad overuse of natural resources caused rivers originating in the Bear River Range to decline. To address the water shortage, a small group of conservation-minded intellectuals and businessmen in Cache Valley persuaded local stockmen and farmers to support the creation of the Logan Forest Reserve in 1903. 1 William Cronan, “The Uses of Environmental History,” Environmental History Review 17 (Autumn 1993): 14. iv From 19031910, forest managers and forest users attempted to restore the utility of the landscape (i.e., bring back forage and improve watershed conditions) however, they quickly discovered that the landscape had changed too much; nature would not cooperate with their human-imposed restoration timelines and desires for greater profit margins.2 Keeping in mind the impressive rate and scale of environmental decline, this thesis tells the heretofore untold environmental history of the Bear River Range from 1860 to 1910. It engages this history from an ecological and social perspective by (1) exploring how Mormon settlers altered the landscape ecology of the Bear River Range and (2) discussing the reasons why forest managers and forest users failed to quickly restore profitability to the mountain landscape from 1903-1910. As its value, a study of the Bear River Range offers an intimate case study of environmental decline and attempted restoration in the western United States, and is a reminder of how sensitive our mountain ranges really are. (117 Pages) 2 “Cache National Forest Historical Documents, 19031950,” located in the Scott Bushman Collection, Special Collections and Archives, Merrill-Cazier Library, Utah State University, Logan. v PUBLIC ABSTRACT An Environmental History of the Bear River Range, 18601910 by Bradley P. Hansen, Master of Science Utah State University, 2013 Major Professor: Dr. Chris Conte Department: History The study of environmental history suggests that nature and culture change all the time, but that the rate and scale of such change can vary enormously.3 During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Anglo settlement in the American West transformed landscapes and ecologies, creating new and complex environmental problems. This transformation was particularly impressive in Cache Valley, Utah’s Bear River Range. From 1860 to 1910, Mormon settlers overused or misused the Bear River Range’s lumber, grazing forage, wild game, and water resources and introduced invasive plant and animal species throughout the area. By the turn of the 20th century, broad overuse of natural resources caused rivers originating in the Bear River Range to decline. To address the water shortage, a small group of conservation-minded intellectuals and businessmen in Cache Valley persuaded local stockmen and farmers to support the creation of the Logan Forest Reserve in 1903. 3 William Cronan, “The Uses of Environmental History,” Environmental History Review 17 (Autumn 1993): 14. vi From 19031910, forest managers and forest users attempted to restore the utility of the landscape (i.e., bring back forage and improve watershed conditions) however, they quickly discovered that the landscape had changed too much; nature would not cooperate with their human-imposed restoration timelines and desires for greater profit margins.4 Keeping in mind the impressive rate and scale of environmental decline, this thesis tells the heretofore untold environmental history of the Bear River Range from 1860 to 1910. It engages this history from an ecological and social perspective by (1) exploring how Mormon settlers altered the landscape ecology of the Bear River Range and (2) discussing the reasons why forest managers and forest users failed to quickly restore profitability to the mountain landscape from 1903-1910. As its value, a study of the Bear River Range offers an intimate case study of environmental decline and attempted restoration in the western United States, and is a reminder of how sensitive our mountain ranges really are. 4 “Cache National Forest Historical Documents, 19031950,” located in the Scott Bushman Collection, Special Collections and Archives, Merrill-Cazier Library, Utah State University, Logan. vii To Janelle viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis would not have happened without the help of many. Foremost, my wife, Janelle, has supported me throughout the entire process. An editor by profession, she has (ruthlessly at times) helped me improve my abilities as a writer and critical thinker. I will forever appreciate her friendship and advice. I must also recognize the help of my advisor, Chris Conte, who loves the Bear River Range probably more than me. He has encouraged me to spend time in the mountains reading the landscape. His advice to get to know the trees, the rocks of the canyons, and the paths of the streams has led me to ask important questions about change over time. To Brad Cole, Ann Buttars, Bob Parson, and the rest of the Special Collections and Archives staff at Utah State University, I owe a debt of thanks. Brad Cole provided an internship in which much of the research for this thesis was conducted. Over the past 2 years Ann Buttars has been a mentor and friend, directing me to dozens of Mormon diaries and local sources dealing with early Cache Valley history. And Bob Parson, who also sits on my committee, has been an invaluable help in tracking down unique primary sources hidden in the Archives. I would also like to thank David Rich Lewis (committee member), Norm Jones, and Phil Barlow for their encouragement and good advice along the way. Bradley Paul Hansen ix CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iii PUBLIC ABSTRACT .........................................................................................................v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................................x CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................1 2 THE BEAR RIVER RANGE LANDSCAPE .................................................................10 3 MULTIPLYING AND REPLENISHING THE EARTH OR FAMILIARIZING A FOREIGN LANDSCAPE ............................................20 4 A MOUNTAIN RANGE IN CRISIS .............................................................................43 5 ATTEMPTED RESTORATION ....................................................................................68 6 CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................95 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................100 x LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Map of the Bear River Range near Cache Valley, Utah. ................................................9 2. “Franklin Butte and the Northern End of Cache Valley ca. 1877.” Camp of A.C. Peale and party, geologists with the U.S. Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories. ..................................................................................................................15 3. Early settlement scene in Logan Canyon, Bear River Range. ......................................22 4.