Lois Borland Collection: Series 3: Gunnison National Forest Records 1904-1960's

Collection 1, Series 3 1 records storage box, 1 document case, 3 card boxes, 21 atlases/ledgers (6.5 lin. ft.) Finding Aid Prepared By Abraham Clinger April 2005

By the late nineteenth century, the issue of forest conservation was coming to the forefront of domestic politics. In 1891, the National Forest system was started, but was under the administration of the General Land Office in the Department of the Interior. Some conservation minded legislation had been passed prior to this time but was mostly at the state level. Within a few years, President Theodore Roosevelt, among others, began pressuring Congress to transfer control of the forest reserves to the Department of Agriculture. This was done in an effort to uphold the principles of preservation and management rather than simply preventing forest use. This transfer became a reality in 1905. Forest management was now under one entity, which came to be known as the Forest Service.¹

The beginning of the Gunnison National Forest came in that same year. Originally known as the Cochetopa Forest Reserve, the Gunnison National Forest was set aside on June 13, 1905. Many citizens of the local area did not view this development with optimism. Public outcry was readily apparent as many misunderstood the aims of the new agency. Whether through grazing, timber or mining, many had come to depend on the land for their livelihood. William Kreutzer, the first Forest Ranger in the United States, was stationed in Gunnison and sought to reverse this negative image.²Although this transition must not have been easy, and may not be complete at present time, the Forest Service, to this day, abides by the ethos of Gifford Pinchot, the first Chief of the Forest Service. He sought to, “provide the greatest good for the greatest number for the longest time.”³

As the years pasted, the immediate strife associated with the Gunnison National Forest did not completely disappear. William Kreutzer was called to the area of Oh-Be-Joyful in 1918 after an incident in which several sheep died as they were run off a cliff and their shepherd was tied up and harassed. This is just one example of the ongoing conflict between sheep ranchers and cattle ranchers that seems to have plagued the area in the early days of the National Forest. While everyday Forest Service life may not have been as exciting as this, one can still imagine the challenges and conditions that faced those in charge of maintaining forest reserves.

The Great Depression was a hard time for most places in the U.S., but the Forest Service seems to have faired relatively well. The Civilian Conservation Corps was created in 1933 as part of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal. This program put thousands of men and boys to work completing tasks ranging from road and trail construction to building campgrounds and ranger stations.⁴ The Forest Service also cooperated with other New Deal programs such as the WPA Writer’s Project, which worked with Forest Service personnel in compiling local history. Evidence of this is clearly seen within the Gunnison National Forest Records as local Forest employees provided information on such projects as origin of stream and mountain names.

The Gunnison National Forest changed in shape and size over the years as other reserves were added to it or combined with different reserves in the general area. This expansion lasted through the mid 1950’s and brought the total amount of land to around 1.7 million acres. In 1973, the administration of Gunnison National Forest was joined with Grand Mesa National Forest and Uncompahgre National Forest. The vast conglomerate of public lands consisted within the Gunnison National Forest amount to more than three million acres and make up 55% of Gunnison County.⁵

Today the Forest Service includes more than 190 million acres of land in 600 ranger districts with approximately 30,000 employees. Management and conservation are still the main goals of the Forest Service. These goals must be made compatible with the various needs of the people, ranging from grazing to research to recreation.⁶

Footnotes:

¹Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, Highlights in the History of Forest Conservation(Washington, D.C.: 1948), 6-7.

²“Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests: A Brief History,” Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/gmug/about/history.shtml.

³Gunnison National Forest at 100 Years: Looking Back and Ahead – First and Second Centuries, Western State College of Colorado 9th Spring Environmental Symposium, April 2005.

⁴“Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests: A Brief History,” Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/gmug/about/history.shtml.

⁵Gunnison National Forest at 100 Years: Looking Back and Ahead – First and Second Centuries, Western State College of Colorado 9th Spring Environmental Symposium, April 2005.

⁶“About Us – Meet The Forest Service,” Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture,http://www.fs.fed.us/aboutus/meetfs.shtml.

While the Gunnison National Forest Records are considered part of the Lois Borland Collection, their origin is not definitely known. Lois Borland, previous professor of English at Western State College and notable author of local history, may have donated these records as part of a larger collection that bares her name. This is entirely possible as much of this larger collection deals with the Gunnison area. It is also possible that these records were grouped with other records of the Lois Borland Collection by happenstance or confusion. If this is the case, it is unclear when or how these records first came under the care of Leslie Savage Library.

The Gunnison National Forest Records consist of two linear feet, plus maps, and date from 1904 through the late 1960’s. The records range greatly in subject and form. Many of the records focus on the responsibilities and workings of the Forest Service itself. This includes correspondence and reports on grazing, timber, mining, tourism, Indians, fire and history, among other topics. Many of these reports and correspondence are written by William Kreutzer. Other items contained in this series include pictures, maps and pamphlets. Some of these were produced by the Forest Service, while some of them seem to relate more to local tourism. The collection is an assortment of documents and should not be viewed as a complete record. Many segments of the local area are covered in detail while others are covered briefly or not at all.

The collection includes 3 linear ft of 5” x 7” cards documenting timber sales, ca. 1909 – 1950’s.

On the surface, these records would only appeal to those interested specifically in the Forest Service. But this is not the case. It is true that many of the records and reports would likely take specific need or interest to be useful, but others could be used in more general research. The records contain an abundance of information relating to a sheep and cattle conflict near the Oh-Be-Joyful area. Some sources paint a picture of the old mining town of Tin Cup. Some of the records even detail the work of a WPA writer’s project that sought to gain information for writing local history. These are only a few examples.

These records would likely be a useful source for those researching local history, specifically for the first half of the twentieth century. They would be particularly useful when researching a topic that was likely under the jurisdiction of the Forest Service. In fact, a large segment of the records focus on the efforts of the Forest Service to compile a local history for their own use. With a small amount of effort and research, these records could produce information that is not likely found elsewhere.