10 10 9760 https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/5959f5303f0a34af077345323d6aea95.png 6a5f3fc719851a6204c8a128ff7e2782 https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/c6cdce751ae6d7900e2db0fd272853fb.png 06b703f3e9b1a1f9bc0f5ca5a3584514 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Digital Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>The Yellow Wallpaper</em> at CC Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <p><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a></p> </div> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 2020-03-01 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text/Image Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Maddey Strayer Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Chinook Student Newspaper, CCA 08.i.2023.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Mar_TheYellowWallpaper_01 Mar_TheYellowWallpaper_02 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PNG Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Casper College https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/16ea4aae35d4b17e898c9af19780c09b.pdf dad6a098559376aef4742d06b8ecd412 PDF Text Text PHOTO DESCRIPTION FOR "TWO'STORY OUTHOUSE, etc. by: Norm Weis Explanation of Gode: A means absolutely necessary to story; B means better use it, it supports story; C cautionary - would like to see it used; D Delete if you need to. Also: L Keep it large; M Medium S Small is preferred will do; None of the rules are unbreakable, except pictures designated "A" SHOULD be used. Elevated ^thouse built on a log crib in Dillon, V^oming The outhouse collapsed about 1960. Photo courtesy Encampment Museum. 2. B,L The remains of the Ferris'^Haggarty Mine just north of Dillon, Wyoming. The small stream at the base of the building flows over chunks of copper ore, bringing out its bright blue color. hno/ui �Photo Norm Weis Remains of a two'story outhouse that was once connected to the second floor of the largest hotel in Dillon, Wyo­ ming. The roo^^ike structure at mid'height is actually the collapsed portion of the catwalk that gave access to the hotel's second floor. Both levels of the outhouse functioned. Note the single outhouse on a log crib to the right. Photo courtesy Encampment Museum. Grant Jones, the short=live<J^hard=drinking ^ditor of the B. M, ^^^llon Doublejack.Photo courtesy Encampment Museum. Part of the Ferris-Haggarty to Encampment Tramway, the longest in the world at the time of its construction. ^^All the modern conveniences. M or S Notice the "S" added to a later improvement. The reconstructed two-story outhouse built on the Museum grounds in Encampment^about twenty miles east of its original location at Dillon, Wyoming. Things are quiet now in Encampment, Wyoming. At the ’’Three Mile Hog Ranch, had its own door. each crib, or small room. Inside there was room for bed and walkway. Calamity Jane is documented as having been one of the gals ________ at ’’^ree Mile.’’^________________________ __ _______________ / ^Id wood building next to the grout crib house at Three V L or mJ Mile**^as probably the saloon that attracted the soldiers from the dry grounds of Fort Laramie. �Photo Description Norm Wei Hot lead on a two»story outhouse cooled rapidly when the lx tall, but single floor outhouse was found to have been made from an old potato vent. The Wolf Mine at Kirwin, Wyoming has been out of use for nearly one hundred years. Note the coarse slab siding, and the wooden rain gutter. Tumlum or Tumalum Mine had its gallows wheel structure enclosed a tribute to the severe winters in the area. ______________ n___________________________ _____________________________ Construction on Amelia Earh^^rt’s cabin was stopped abruptly when word of her disappearance arrived. Note the propeller windvane, a small tribute to her profession. The quicksand ford leading to Bonneville, Wyoming. Caboose in the clutches of the quicksand of Bad Water Creek. Photo courtesy of J. T. Border. Typical residence in Bonneville is built of old ties and trestle timbers. 18 Deleted A two story outhouse? Right in the middle of the deserted town of Rock Creek? No, it's not an outhouse -- it's a combination water tower/ ice house. Tall structure photographed in Jardine about 196^ was not investigated at the time. In 1984 it was gone. the wood crib on top of the log crib. Note �'23. \ K7 M ) One of several deserted mills in Jardine. It is visited by horses more often than by humans. (EDITOR; Use only one, 22 or 23.) Chinese store and other places of business front by well worn boardwalks lit by old gas lamps now converted to electricity in the town of Virginia City, Montana. Elevated outhouse behind the Dry Goods Store has lost L or M f f contact with the store’s rear entrance. Colo/ Note the second outhouse to the left for ground level use. Reconstructed non functional two story outhouse of Nevada ( L or -My City, Montana, has been a problem to hotel owners. Visitors insist on using it. ’’Nevada City Hotel” was once the Salisbury Stage Station I or SJ of Ruby, Montana. Robbers Roost, originally Pete Daly’s roadhouse, became the ( 7 { “ 7 hangout for outlaws working the Virginia City to Bannack road. Built in 1^62, Bannack’s first jail offered max^um security and minimum ventilation. ( ) Bannack’s second jail had bars made from straightened wagon wheel rims(^ (^TOR; use just one of 29 and 30, if you wis]^ Bannack, Montana’s Meade Hotel had high ceilings and spiral staircases. �■Oto Description^ orm Weis Broadwater, Montana was big and beautiful, and was to have attracted the elite from around the world. Only the rock waterfalls remain at the Natatorium at I ] A Im or sj Broadwater, where Johnny Weismuller learned to swim. One of the many deserted residences that stand in Ring­ ling, Montana, once the home of the famous Ringling Circus folk. ( A, L j Catholic Church of Ringling, Montana now offers shelter for the resident flock of pigeons. A Only a portion of the many buildings that fronted Main Streeiy\of Castle, Montana have survived the hostile winters. J ( A few remnants of the Cumberland Mine, biggest producer in Castle, Montana. f K? M J An overview of Zortman, Montana business district, with saloon at right, and salvation on the hill. Zortman’s jail has seen better times but they still keep the door padlocked! (T^r^ The Ruby Mine stretches over a considerable distance. Waste material was simply dumped in the ravine. Ore cars are still lined up at the entrance to the Ruby Mine at Ruby Gulch, Montana. �Extensive trestle made a level connection between Mine © adit and Mill at Ruby Gulch, Montana. The "old" frames the ''not so old" in Landusky, MontanaQ This old chair, made with loving care, and often repaired, rocks gently in the wind, on a porch in Landusky. Pearl, Colorado, a town that grew on speculation, then like a faulty firecracker, fissled rather than boomed. One of the mines near Pearl that was mostly stock sales and promotion rather than sweat and pay dirt. Only the stoutest structures can withstand the high winds in Caribou, Colorado. 48. Caribou Mine was the richest of the half dozen profitable L or M silver mines that took $2OfOOfiUlQO in precious metal 11/ from the ground. Snows were deep in Caribou. Roomers in the two rock hotels of Caribou often had to enter and leave by way of second floor windows. Note late July snowbanks in distance. This two story outhouse, connected to the Masonic Hall in Crested Butte, Colorado, was the first such structure to be found functional and still in regular use. Enclosed walkways to outhouses were common in Crested Butte, sometimes extending one hundred feet. �1 Photo Description 52. A L, M or Norm Weis City Hall had classy architecture at the front and -----see next photo for rearview I TOR - 53 must follow 52 -- do not use just one) At the rear of the City Hall we find a two story A L, M, or S. "inside outhouse." 54. One of our first astronauts built this summer home below the ski slopes of Crested Butte, Colorado. Note the re- semblance to a re=entry vehicle. 5. L or A three-way outhouse attached to a little used saloon and dance hall offered inside access from both floors, and outside ground level access to the addendum. 56. Second look at Masonic Hall masterpiece shows upper level L or of the bi-level outhouse can be reached by covered stair. 57. A L or A last look at the Masonic Hall two story outhouse in Crested Butte, Colorado. posted at the upper floor: That's the one with a sign "ANYTHING OVER EIGHT POUNDS MUST BE LOWERED BY ROPE." Near the Slum^ullion mud slide south of Lake City, Colorado lie the graves of five meny^killed and cannibalized by one Alfred E. Packer. Marker at grave site listsy^the edible victims of Alfred E. Packer. kvno �Description Norm Weis f —\ The students showed their opinion of the c^ow at the \ L oir 1*1 f J Memorial Union Grill at the University of Colorado by Voting in an appropriate name. f ) Surface works of the Sunrise Mine of Sunrise, Wyoming make up only a part of the equipment needed for subsi­ dence mining, 7^6 ;---------- sixty-five f A“ “*M \----------/ longest garage in the world claims to hold cars, but has only fortycodd doors. I I Street of Cascade Springs, South Dakota holds the } Allen Bank, Mercantile, and, hidden under the trees, a saloon^bowling alley combination. N f S7*M 1 J k Bowling alley added to rear of saloon utilized small pins and grapefruit sized balls — one of the first duck pin alleys in the area. Bathhouse-Hotel combination was built beside small hot W spring that town builder Allen hoped would outdo the larger hot springs to the north. Tarpaper covered shaft head building was headquarters and first stage concentrator for the Rusty Mine. /^7r / A, M View through well shaded town of Tinton, South Dakota, �brm Weis Community Hall had most windows boarded over, but one window, covered with chicken.wire, had been broken through, giving access to the town's only resident -a mountain lion. Home of Anna B. Tailant, early visitor to the Black Hills and long time teacher and postmistress. Old jail in Rochford, South Dakota, was lined with steel plate, with brick inside and rock outside. Standby Mine and Mill at east edge of Rochford, is now so rotted that snooping about is hazardous, especially on the trestles and stairways. Alta Lodi Mine and Mill near Myersville, South Dakota(^ A long deserted miner's cabin in Myersville, South Dakota. A view down the main drag of Myersville. Myersville's finest home, where the 1884 book "Things Worth Knowing" was found in the attic. The two story outhouse that the author drove 800 miles to see turned out to be a deserted skeet house. ■ I Adobe outhouse served the local school kids. Building in background was the mansion of Howard E. Perry, prime mover of Terlingua, Texas. �Norm Weis 79. M or Sy Head frame of Mine No. 245 just east of Terlingua, is framed by doorway of miner's cabin. Rock from which miner's cabin was constructed was more substantial than the deposit of mercury^^in the mine nearby. Well worn photo of a two story outhouse that hung in the hotel at Oatman, Arizona. The photo carried no label or information, and no one knew where the outhouse originally existed. The only unusual outhouse in Oatman, Arizona. The rock crib was unique. The wild burros visit Oatman every afternoon for a hand^ out of popcorn and candy. Ove review of Oatman, Arizona, showing quartz outcrop above town. Such outcrops meant mineralization, and acted as a magnet to prospectors. EDITOR; please crop to lines, and you may place this photo anywhere on pages 91, 92, 93.1"—— > Powder house outhouse of Gold Point, Nevada, source of a variety of stories. Although Goldfield, Nevada is not entirely deserted, a number of very substantial buildings like this four story brick and stone hotel, have been long vacant. �Photo Description Norm Wei Santa Fe Club of Goldfield, Nevada has catered to miners for eighty years. Business was good when miners could trade chunks of'^igh graded for drinks. I 88 A S7*M I Charlie Cecchini, the ranking old timer of Goldfield, and story teller extra ordinary. 89 (Z X7*M 1 -- y Mill ruins on the left, mess hall and kitchen on the right, with old brick schoolhouse at mid distance, make up the remains of Grantsville, Nevada. Stout adobe outhouse manages an upright stance in spite of losing two walls. Note tall vent for odor-free operation. V 31. J W. T. (Bill) James, and T. H. (Tom) James, guardians of Humbolt, Nevada history. f ( 92. J Somewhere among these ruins of Humbolt was the saloon where a shootout left no survivors. 93.' M ( 1 The open door of this Humbolt outhouse invites, the sign denies. Use this facility with mixed feelings. /^94. ( \ Mohawk Mill lies to the east of Johnsville, California. 1 L or M 1 Sixty stamps of 600 pounds lifted eight inches and dropped in turn, crushing 150 tons of ore per day. Hotel and firehouse in the town of Johnsville. \ Town was L or M J ' named after William Johns, superintendent of combined mining operations. �(2^ Norm Wei Photo Description The longest single-span wooden covered bridge in the United States, and probably the world. Structure was recently declared a California Historical Landmark. Photo from ''Helldorados, Ghosts and Camps of the Old Southwest." J. R. Meeks combination grocery, cafe, bar and justice court served the public for seventy-five years in Camptonville, California. Small version of the Pelton wheel displayed on monument in Camptonville. Monument was erected by the hell=rais­ ing E. Clampus Vitus Brotherhood. Tiny jail seldom saw service. HasjZ^ apparently used a nut and bolt locking system. Classy little miner's house of Cornucopia, Oregon, now an even classier vacation home, sported a diamond window and outside stairway to upper floor. Mine structures adjacent to the Coulter Tunnel, where ice cold air and ice cok/ water pour forth. Large schoolhouse of Homestead, Oregon, evidences the great number of families that once lived in the now deserted company town. Dining halls, pastimes, and probably bunkhouses for single miners of the Homestead Mine Company. kV^O/LSL �Norm Weis Looking upstream along Canyon Creek (see text for a more descriptive name) in the town of Burke, Idaho. Peaked roof is schoolhouse. X^O5.A. f k, M A Typical creek-drop attached outhouse common to most homes along the waterway. The residents’ regularity was public knowledge, of course. Z , A, L 1 I crofoi< Also} The George Gulch outhouse-bridge combination of Burke, N Idaho. It may be the only such structure in existence. K \ L or M J Rear view of bridge-outhouse implies a community use by f I Z108. , The bridge portion of the combo is wide enough and stout k L or My/ /<109. [ A, M residents of several homes. ) enough to handle cars and light trucks. This creek drop, self-flushing outhouse required a small diversion dam to course water under the drop zone. ^10. \ f kt M j The ’’Sneaky Pete” model is guaranteed to provide the ultimate in privacy. Just where the back door once led is a mystery. A I And where is the exit? L or Photo from ’’Ghost Towns of the Nor thwe st.” ______ _____ _ 1 Masonic Hall of Silver City, Idaho, straddles Jordan Creek. \L or Note the attached outhouses that drop into the creek. 1 Overview of Silver City, Idaho, looking north. The Idaho ( L or M y Hotel is at center left, butcher shop, Leonard’s Store and Barber Shop line up on the near right. �Photo Description 11^ Norm Weis \ j Idaho Hotel is still '*in business," catering to tourists, L or M / Qffgj-ing guided tours and refreshments. 115. Fanciest residence in Silver City was the Stoddard M or S So house. Stoddard was a mine investor, sawmill owner , and rancher. Colo/ \ M or S/ / 117. Baling wire holds the splayed bottom of this tall out- house together. Walkway to outhouse may have been wider at one time. M or S it gives [onlyja one doooption. EDITOR; 117 should follow 116 - same outhous^ 118. L or M Now This walk-through style tall house is behind the tin shop and newspaper office. Proximity to the creek, which runs under the Masonic Hall just behind, made the annual spring cleanout a cinch. 119. Well kept, and still used outhouse, has been patched and repatched with whatever material was at hand. There’a message here somewhere. 121. L or M Fancy paint job on the water tank was meant to lure buyers of lots in the proposed town of Teapot, Wyoming. Teapot never amounted to much -- a house or two, a number of oil wells, and some basic refining equipment. �Photo descripti 123. A L or Norm Weis Old wooden oil pumping rig is one of the last in exis- Note the hefty'talking beamV^that pivots on tance. the top of the vertical timber. —H.-UUIW- I—- ■ J nui IIHIlW!■ HWJ.. JII. ■ iri T.'- — - ■ Iron slowly replaced the wooden rig parts. / 1 V M or S j Here the wheels iron, but have the same design used in older wooden _ variety. f ’ X Pimping station hastened oil from the well to the refinery. /Long deserted, this old pimp stands in Ferris, Wyoming, k a town that was once called Sinclair Station 3. Photograph was taken from a partially stabilized sand dune that once approached town on a southwest wind. It will move again, and the houses of Ferris, Wyoming, will be buried. \ Headquarters of the ^Little Ilan MineV^as it became known f \ L or M J discovery of a mummified Indian baby in a nearby cave. f I —* \ Rock Cavalry bam of Fort Washakie, now a garage for the M or S / state Highway Department, still harbors a ghost that walks the wood floors in cavalry boots, according to some of the men that work there. Little remains of Jim Bridge?^s original fortified store, ( IM or SI — many buildings, like this officers'^ quarters built when the Army took over, can be found reconstructed at the site. �Photo descriptions^ (5^rm Vfeis View of distant elk as seen through ’’Old Gabe’s” Crystal Mountain. The pure diamond had a tendency to magnify the elk’s image. walked up to bleed it. After shooting the elk, Bridger ”Thet dum elk was twenty-five miles away!” 1^.11 ini»w fill II ■111Mil .■!.irni»wwi—i*i——WWW.IO—wwjw—iw*gn.ii». ii ~ I I ti*— I ‘^~.B‘wn~-r in - f —* \ Central Pacific and Union Pacific tracks met at Promontory by negotiation, but ^r«o/es ran past each other without joining for hundred of miles. ’ \ ’’White Water Bert” lives alone amid the vast remains of \L or deserted mine and mill in Re’tallack, British Columbia. /^33 f —* I Frequent floods on Carpenter Creek wiped out the boardwalks f IL or M / dock-like streets of Sandon, B.C. Fires took most of the remainder. Fort Steele’s central attraction is the Musetim built to duplicate the original Wasa Hotel. The ’’long hair and the hard hat” work well together, re­ constructing the 1887 Royal Canadian Mounted Police barracks, using only the tools of the time. Finished portion of the post is in background. Broad axe falls and chips fly as another log is squared for fitting. No chain saws were allowed, and all holes were drilled by hand without benefit of electricity. Fort Steele’s water tower can be seen in the background. EDITOR: Both 135 and 136 may be used, or just 135. �^Norm Weis (^oto Description^ /137 Z \ Perry Creek water wheel was freighted twenty-five miles \M or S pqj.|. Steele as an example of early utilization of water power in the mining effort. 138. A, M Oddly roofed outhouse in Fort Steele, B. C. is securely anchored by four posts. Old shops along Main Street are in the background. ZTsg. f A, M \ It was only a tiny sapling a few years after the child was buried. Now the tree occupies the complete grave site in iVild Horse, B.C. /140?^ \ ( A, L Owner of the Long Him Store in Lundbreck, Alberta, bemoaned the loss of the two story outhouse he purchased as a sales gimmick. He found it had been donated earlier to the Heritage Park in Calgary. In Lundbreck, Alberta, this gas station and store con­ stitute a "shopping center." ...................................................................... ■i.w » . i- Wainwright Hotel of Heritage Park in Calgary, Alberta, was said to have the old Lundbreck two story outhouse attached to the rear. World's finest two story outhouse, a two door four-holer over a four door eight-holer, with a cupola on top. And everything works! Everything functions in Heritage Park, including ste>-n wheelers and steam engines. You can even j2?/3!^/e fresh d baked brea^ from the old bakery. �Wei^^ (^^^Photo Description^ A Exact replica of the Hudson Bay Company’s Rocky Moun- \M or Sj House h^s been built on the grounds of Heritage —* J -- "'*'>* f 146 5^^ Park. ............... . — '' "* *... . —.. ... ...... ........ .... — '1 j Outside of the rebuilt Banff barracks of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, - a constable from years past answers questions and spins a few yams. X 1^7 / X7”L \v \ / Timmerman rebuilt the original Windsor Hotel two story outhouse quite faithfully. It stands in its original location, minus, of course, the hotel it originally served. Now it serves the public, and brings a few customers into the Long Him Store No. 7. ——. ��LIBRARY OF CONGRESS Library of Congress CatalogIng-in-PublIcatlon Data Weis, Norm. 1923A lighthearted tour of the West on a search for the two-story outhouse / by Norman D. Weis ; photographs by the author. p. cm. ISBN 0-87004-326-9 : (^9.95> 1. Cities and towns. Ruined, extinct, etc.—West (U.S.) 2. Cities and towns. Ruined, etc.—Canada, Western. 3. West (U.S.)-Descrlptlon and travel —1981- 4. Canada. Western—DescriptIon and travel. 5. Weis, Norm, 1923—Journeys—West (U.S.) 6. Weis, Norm, 1923—Journeys—Canada, Western. I. Title. F595.3.W45 198^ 917.8—dc19 87-35425 CIP ��Weis, TwosStox7 Guthouse. [ Outhouses have not been Norm Weid<4 only interest* After World War 11, he decided he valued time more than money, so he fell back on his gWWiWSTfc- physics degree and became a high school science teacher. This gave him his summers off plus a job that he thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the year. ( DuringRummer vacations. Hr. Weis explored other interests., Be writing in the late'{>$ds and discovered that he loved it. He has published several picture books on wildlife -- one the result of an intensive four^year study of grizzly bears. towns were another of his fascinations. Twelve years of wandering in and out of ghost towns provided the groundwork for two more books: Ghost Towns of the Northwest and Helldorados. Ghosts and Camps of the Old Southwest. Then his love of flying returned and he flew his hand^built tiny red and white biplane from coast to coast and into the world of air racing and aerobatics. Of course, there was a book there too, called. The Starduster. zlfr. Weis is a retired physics instructor from Casper College, Wyoming. He resides in Wyoming, fishing, traveling and photographing, and wx*iting of his experiences. �Weis, Two=Story Outhouse I Laughter, lies and lambency J- travel with these and tbs"SMM»r as I—* you cover eleven states and four Canadian provinces looking for tvos story outhouses -- the ultimate in yesterdaj^ feats of sanitary n, engineex*ing. [foii/ll find outhouses on hi^ trestles, outhouses hanging over river banks, creek straddlers, leaners, open=air jobs, outhousesbridge combos, and one superlative specimen in Alberta a two=:door fours holer on top of a four=door eij^ht=holer^ topped with a cupola. [where you don\/fc find tall outhouses, you will find tall stories. --Jim Bridger, legendary mountainy^ clear up there you claim^ the air bo ai. see for three days. --The crooked sheriff of Bannack, Montana, M ni^t and \>bha6e<i<X himself during the day. led hie gang at --The trial and conviction of Alfred E. Packer, in Lake City, M I Colorado, for cannibalism and murder. Packer ate five men — all M democrats. I^er 100 photographs show the outhouses as they were and as they now exist. Some of the old=timers, always good for a measure of history mixed with a goodly number of downrii^t lies, are pictured. [^yone who enjoys the unusual, or a good story, or has ever had the dubious pleasure of usingVthe little house out bac^ will find this book delightful. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Norman Weis Manuscripts Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1971-1987 Description An account of the resource A collection of manuscripts by Casper College professor Norman Weis. <br /><br />This collection includes manuscripts of:<br /><em>Ghost Towns of the Northwest: Known and Unknown<br />The Starduster<br />Two-Story Outhouse<br />Helldorados<br /></em><br />Each manuscript contains written in edits by Norman Weis Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_Manuscripts Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Documents Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>Two-Story Outhouse</em> Book Information Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/">https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1987 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_TwoStoryOuthouse_BookInfo Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/de6d53b987d3dfc35af891d8b87945af.pdf e24efcb49997b407a569f5abb1ca1917 PDF Text Text Weis, TwosStory Outhouse FM p. 1 TWO=STORI ODTfiOUS^ �gram BOOKS BT AUTHOR All About Grizzly Bears All About the WhitesTailed Deer Ghost Towns of the Northwest Belldorados« Ghosts and Camps ^e Starbuster the Old Southwest �< - - ------------------x^'Weie, Two=Story Outhoosei FM p. 3 - A- Id^thearted Tour of the West 0n u Search for '7’k, << Two=story Outhouse^TV-— Norman D» Weis PHOTOGRAPHS BT THE AUTHOR The CAXTON PRINTERS, Ltd. Caldwell, Idaho, 83605 1987 �Weie, TwosStory Ottthousei ^1987 by­ Norman D. Weis Casper, Wyoming AU Righ^Reserved �Weis, Two=Story duthousei TO p. 5 To Mike Herbison Who thought this book should be entitled, Early American Evacuation With special thanks to Jon Brady and Len Brakke L �Weis, TwosStozy Outhouse^ �Weis, TwoaiStory Outhouse^ COMTBITS of Illustrations Introduction Part I ------------- ..................................... ................................. .................................................... Wyoming Dillon Bncampment Horse Shoe Springs . Fort Laramie Kirwin .................................................................. ............................................ Bonneville Lost Cabin .................................................... Dale City Part II pj- Montana Jardine Virginia City Ringling Castle ............................................... ............................................. Zortman, Landusky and Aahland The Good Old Days ^^Sid^Minnesota^ . ............... Part III Colorado ■■ - rl Pearl Caribou Crested Butte .................................... Lake City ■" ................................... Lost Springs . ............................................. Black Hills Area Myersville Part V X Tcms Terlingua ................................... ..................................................................................... �Weis, Two=«tory Outhouse, Part VI -7 Arizona Oatman .............................................. Part VII ~ Nevada ....................................... Gold Point Goldfield Ione, Berlin and Grantsville .......... Reno Part VIH;^ California Johnsville ■:<Jaffli6on^ ..................................... Camptonville Part^ ............................ Qregeg .............................................. Cornucopia Homestead Part_X J- 1^0 Wallace and Murray Burke Silver City ................................................... Wyoming Part XI ................................... Teapot Dome The Pedro Mountains Independence Rock .......................... ................................... Signor, Rongia Fort Bridger Part XII J- Utah •" *** rd Promontory Part XIII ................................................ «... ......................................................................... Canada British Columbia ---------- «-------------Biondel Betallack^ Port Steele Alberta Nordegg .................................................................. Lundbreck Manitoba Flin Flon Saskatchewan La Ronge Alberta Calgary INDEX ..................................... �LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS O 6 (3) Elevated oathouee in Dillon, Wyoming Remains of the Ferris=Raggarty Mine Remains of a two=story outhouse G) Grant Jones (S) Part of FerrissHaggarty to fiacaaqjment tramway © All the modem conveniences ...................................................... Reconstructed two=story outhouse, Encampment Things are quiet now Three Mile Hog Ranch ............................................... .............................................................................................................. <s> Old wood building at Three Mile (S) Outhouse made from an old potato vent Wolf Mine at Kirwin, Wyoming (S) ................................ ...................................................................................... Tumlum gallows wheel structure ................................... & Amelia EarhartJ^s cabin Quicksand ford leading to Bonneville, Wyoming ....................... Caboose in quicksand of Bad Water Creek Qny Typieal Residence in Boxineville .............................. ....................................... Outhouse in the middle of Rock Creek? . ............................ .. Combination water tower and ice house Tall structure in Jardine .................. Deserted mill in Jardine Chinese st^e in Virginia City, Montana Elevated outhouse behind dry goods store . .............. ......................... ........................................... Reconstructed nonfunctional outhouse in Nevada City, Montana Nevada,City Hotel �Weis* Tw^Story Guthouse^ List of 311ttstrations_^ Bobbers Roost Bannacl^ first jail ................................... BannacU^iZs second jail ........................................ The Meade Hotel in Bannack, Montana •••••••.••• Broadwa^ter, Montana .................... ......................................... .. Rock waterfalls from natatorium ..................................................................... Desertedk residence in Ringling, Montana . Catholic church in Ringling . .......................... Building fronting Main Street in Castle, Montana Remnant^ of the Cumberland Mine .................... ................... .................................... Overview of Zortman, Montana Zortmaidk/s jail has seen better times The Ruby Mine Ore cars lined up at Ruby Mine ....................................... Extensive trestle Old frames the not so old Old rocking chair in Landusky Pearly Coloradg^izzled ....................... ........................................................................................................... One of ^he mines near Pearl ..................................................................... Chlly stout structures can withstand hi^ winds in Caribou Caribou Mine ................................................................ . ................ Snows were deep in Caribou Twosstory outhouse in Crested Butte, Colorado ........... Ihclosed walkway in Crested Butte . City Hall had classy architecture ..................................... \jTnside puthous^^at the rear of City Hall ...................................................... �Weis* Two^^tory ^thoui^ List of illustrations Astronau'^s summer home in Crested Butte A three=wa7.outhouse Masonic hall masterpiece Masonic hall two=^story outhouse* Crested Butte ..................................... Graves of* five men said to be cannibalized Alfred Packeis/s victims .......................................... Memorials Union Grill* University of Colorado Surface works of the Sunrise Mine Longest garage in the world ............................................................. Main Street* Cascade Springs* South Dakota Bowling alley added to rear of saloon Bathhouse=Hotel combination ....................................... Tarpaper=covered shaft head building View •of Tinton* South Dakota ................................................................................... ......................................................................................................... Community hall is residence of a mountain lion ........................................................... Home of Anna B. Tailant ....................................... Old jail in Bochford* South Dakota ................................ ................................................ Standby mine and mill Alta* Lodi mine and mill ................................................. Deserted minei^ cabin in Myersville* South Dakota The main drag of Myersville Myersvill^s finest home A deserted skeet house Adobe outhouse in Terlingua* Texas Head frame of Mine No. 2^5 ............................................ .. ........................................... Bock fsom which mine]M4 cabin was constructed Well worn photo of two-story outhouse .................................................... �Vela, TwgaCtor7 ftttkMM pag. < The only unusual outhouse in Oatman, Arizona Wild burros visit Oatman . Overvlev of Oatman, Arizona Powder house outhouse in Gold Point, Nevada ........................................................... Substantial building in Goldfield, Nevada ^7) Ssmta Fe club of Goldfield, Nevada ........... ........... ......... Charlie Ceechini of Goldfield Bemains of Grantsville, Nevada ••..... . ....................... Stout adobe outhouse Bill and Tom James, of Numbolt, Nevada The ruins of Numbolt Open door of Numbolt outhouse Mohawk Mill, to the east of Johnsville, California Hotel aihd firehouse in Johnsville . . ............................... .. ............................ The longest singlexspan wooden covered bridge in the U.S. jTTb. Medk/s in Camptonville, California . ..................... .. Small version of the Pelton wheel ............................... Tiny jail seldom saw service Classy mine?</8 house in Cornucopia, Oregon . Nine structures adjacent to the Coulter Tunnel . Large schoolhouse in Homestead, Oregon ................................................................................. lousing for single miners of the looestead Mine Company I i6 �1^is, Two^^ory Outhousei List of illustrations I ® Looking upstream along Canyon Creek Typical creek*drop attached outhouse ...»...•• George Gulc^ outhousesbridge combination Rear Tiew'of bridge=outhouse Bridge portion of the combo A. creek drop, eelf=flushing outhouse .............................................................................. \jSneaky ,Pet^/ model And whene is the exit? •••..•• ............................................• Hasonicthall* Silver City, Idaho Overview, of Silver City, Idaho Idaho Botel is still\>ln busines^ fl£} Stoddard residence in Silver City //^ Baling «ire holds this outhouse together Walkway gives a oue=door option Walk=thz*pugh style tall house �Weis, Two=^ory Guthouse List of Illustrations Fpage 5’ Although patched* this outhouse is well kept and still used Therms a message here somewhere Vater tank in Teapot, Wyoming ....................................... Teapot never amounted to much Old wooden oil'pumping rig ................................................................... Iron replaced •the wooden zd.g parts Old oil pump in Ferris* Wyoming ..................................... .......................................... Sand dunes will bury Ferris Headquarters* of Little Maa Mine ................................................................................. Kock cavalry ham of Fort Washakie Reconstructed officer^ quarters ...................... View of elk through Crystal Mountain .................................................... Central Pacific and Union Pacific tracks met at Promontory White Water Bert lives in Ketallack, B. C .................. ................ ....... Floods wipe out streets of Sandon, Fort Steel^^s museum duplicates Wasa Hotel ........................................................... The'oiong hair and the hard hawork well together Another log is squared for fitting Perry Creek water wheel (j^ Oddly roofed outhouse in Fort Steel^B^f^. ..................................... �Weis, TwosStory fluthousel List of illustrations marker Fh in Wild Horse, B« C« ...................................................... Long Him store in Lundbreck, Alberta ................................................. A '€(^hopping centei^n LnndbreckAlberta ..................................... Wainwright Hotal'^, Heritage Park, in Calgary, Alberta Worl(}<4 finest two^story outhouse .......... ............................................ Ererything functions in Heritage Park Replica of Hudson Bay Compan;^ Rocky Mountain Bouse Constable of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Don Timmerman rebuilt the original Windsor Hotel ............... ........... ............................................... ^15' �IOI<I 5 . .4 Elevated ^thouse built on a log crib in Dillon, Wyoming, The outhouse collapsed about 1960. courtesy Encampment Museum The remains of the Ferris^Haggarty Mine just north of A Dillon, Vtyoming. The small stream at the base of the building flows over chunks of copper ore, bringing out its bright blue color. Ms', (o �I COO = Shti'ci <aXP S Remains of a two^story outhouse that was once connected to the second floor of the largest hotel in Dillon, Wyo­ ming. The roof^ike structure at mid=:height is actually A catwalk that gave access to (4. the collapsed portion of the hotelVs second floor. functioned. Both levels of the outhouse Note the single outhouse on a log crib to ^ourtesy Encampment Museunu^feZT 14 Grant Jones, the short=^lived<hard=drinking Editor of the --------- -—------------------------- -X Dillon Doublejack.Plagto^ourtesy Encampment Museum Part of the Ferris=Haggarty to Encampment Tramway, the A e- ' longest in the world at the time of its construction. All the modem conveniences. Notice the ’^^*^^ded to osekt’ Msp ; explain a later improvement. f>. 1^ f The reconstructed two=story outhouse built on the ^useum grounds in Encampment^about twenty miles east of its Ms|) f.fl original location at Dillon, Wyoming. Things are quiet now in Encampment, Wyoming. At the *^hree Mile Hog Ranch,’^ach crib, or small room, had its own door. ' Inside there was room for bed and walkway. I (>• Calamity Jane is documented as having been one of the gals at *4hree Mile.*^ 'Old wood building next to the grout crib house Mile”^as probably the saloon that attracted the soldiers from the dry grounds of Fort Laramie, -3a 5-4^ I f' �Hot lead on a two=story outhouse cooled rapidly when the tall, but single-floor outhouse was found to have been A made from an old potato vent. The Wolf Mine at Kirwin, WyomingAhas been out of use for Note the coarse slab siding, nearly Q^e—hund-red years. and the wooden rain gutter. Tumlum or Tumalum Mine had its gallows wheel structure enclosed -- a tribute to the severe winters in the area. - H Construction on Amelia Earh^^rt'^J^s cabin was stopped abruptly when word of her disappearance arrived. Note the propeller windvane, a small tribute to her profession. •^^~~The quicksand ford leading to Bonneville, Wyoming. Caboose in the clutches of the quicksand of Bad Water 'I Creek, ■^trnarfy^ourtesy e/jdT. Border.^— '“7 yg’----------- "------------- Typical residence in Bonneville is built of old ties C and trestle timbers. ---- /Deleted}^- A two-story outhouse? Right in the middle of the deserted town of Rock Creek? No, itVs not an outhouse -- itVA a combination water tower/— ice house. ' A r Tall structure photographed in Jardine about 196^ was not investigated at the time. In 1984 it was gone. the wood crib on top of the log crib. Note �€ne of several dtisertud mlllj in Jagdiiw.< One of several deserted mills in Jardine. It is visited by horses more often than by humans. ' A pl, ♦ J business fron.^ by well= worn hoar<:wai;k.'j)fR £7-rni-lan.pgaot!;'3o''^verted to (electrlcity in the town of Virginia City, Montana. Elevated outhouse behind the tore has lost contact with the stord^/s rear entrance. Note the second outhouse to the left for ground level use. Reconstructed non^functional twoastoay outhouse Nevada City. Montana, has been a problem to hotel owners. I Visitors insist on using it. Nevada City Hotel was once the Salisbury Stage ^tation of Ruby, Montana. ^9. p-3^ Robbers Roost, originally Pete DalyVs roadhouse, became the |angout for outlaws working the Virginia City to Bannack road. s, Built in 1^62, BannackO^ first jail offered maxjJLn security minimum ventilation. Bannack^ second jail had bars made from straightened wagon wheel rima^ Hotel^had high ceilings and �Broadwater, Montana^-was big and beautiful, and attract-^ the elite from around the world. Only the rock waterfalls remain the ^^atatorium at Broadwater, where Johnny Weismuller learned to swim. One of the many deserted residences that stand in Ring^ Montana, once the home of the famous Ringling Circus folk. CathoJ^ic ^hurch ■_for Ringling, Montan^now offers shelter resident flock of pigeons. Only a portion of the many buildings that fronted Main Castle, Montan^have survived the hostile winters. J A few remnants of the Cumberland Mine, biggest producer l^in Castle, Montana. overview of Zortman, Montan^business district, with [^aloon at right, and salvation on the hill. ZortmarfYs jail has seen better times — but they still [keep the door padlocked! The Ruby Mine stretches over a considerable distance. V^ste material was simply dumped in the ravine. Ore cars are still lined up at the entrance to the Ruby Mine at Ruby Gulch, Montana. �CiU Extensive trestle made a level connection between^ine ^dit and Mill at Ruby Gulch, Montana. frames the not so old in Landusky, Montan^^) This old chair, made with loving care, and often repaired, ^ocks gently in the wind/^n a porch in Landusky, Pearl, Colorado, a town that grew on speculation, then TV r , oJr (jj-ke a faulty firecracker, fi«led,rather than boomed. One of the mines near Pear was mostly stock sales and promotion rather than sweat and pay dirt. Only the stoutest structures can withstand the high winds *—in Caribou, Colorado. Caribou Mine was the richest of the half-dozen profitable ►V't 11/ a rq Sliver mines that took $20in precious metal from the ground. ^^^Snows were deep in Caribou. Roomers in the two rock hotels of Caribou often had to enter and leave by way of second= A floor windows. Note late July snowbanks in distance. This two^story outhouse, connected to the Masonic Mall in ^0 H'S. p- Crested Butte, Colorado, was the first such structure to be found functional and still in regular use. Enclosed walkway^ to outhouses were common in Crested Butte Hs, e- (0(3 sometimes ex^nding one hundred feet7)' �City Hall had classy architecture at the front and next -photo f43r rca-rvinsw— : the rear of the City Hall we find a two^story ns ide outhouse.'^ Oiie of our first astronauts built this summer home below the ski slopes of Crested Butte, Colorado. semblance to a re^^try vehicle. Note the re­ a little used saloon and dance hal^offered inside access from both floors, and outside ground level access to the addendum. look at Masonic Mall masterpiece shows upper level of: the bi-level outhouse can be reached by covered stair. K last look at the Masonic ^all two^tory outhouse in 7^ Crested Butte, Colorado. posted at the upper floor: That'^s the one with a sign ’^STyTHING OVER EIGHT POUNDS IjMUST BE LOWERED BY ROPE. ^Near the Slumgullion mud slide south of Lake City, Colora one Alfred E. Packer. 3 Marker at grave site listSkthe edible victims of Alfred E Packer. �A 3J (@- students showed their opinion of the cAow at the Memorial Union ^rill at the University of Colorado by Hating in an appropriate name. 15, J’. '^5 Surface works of the Sunrise MineSunrise, WyomingA make up only a part of the equipment needed for subsi- j^nce mining. The longest garage in the world claims to hold sixty-five Cars, but has only forty—odd doors. Main Street of Cascade Springs, South Dakota^hoIds the h_ Allen Bank,^Mercantile, and/hidden under the trees, a ^loon=bowling alley combination. Bowling alley added to rear of saloon utilized small pins and grapefruit^sized balls one of the first duck pin otel combination was built beside small hot A town builder Allen hoped would outdo the larger hot springs to the north. Ms, p r^overed shaft head building was headquarters and first stage concentrator for the Rusty Mine. Ns. p' view t^Bseeigh well shaded town of Tinton, South Dakot^ shows most residences to be covered with red tarpaper. �Community ^all had most windows boarded over, but one window, covered with chicken wire, had been broken through, giving access to the towi4^ only resident -a mountain lion. Home of Anna B. Tailant, early visitor to the Black Hills and long-time teacher and postmistress. ^3 is. Old jail in Rochford, South DakotaA was lined with steel plate'^with brick inside and rock outside. /. I. Standby ^line and ^ill at^east edge of Rochford, is now so rotted that snooping about is hazardous, especially on the trestles and stairways. ^^-Qlta Lodi ^ine and ^ill near Myersville, South Dakota(^ A long deserted mine^<Zs cabin in Myersvill^/f\^ South Dakota. A view down the main drag of Myersville. Myersville'^ finest home, where the 1884 book, ^Things Worth Knowing was found in the attic. The two=story outhouse that the author drove miles to see turned out to be a deserted skeet house. Adobe outhouse served the local school kids. Building in background was the mansion of Howard E. Perry, prime mover of Terlingua, Texas. �1 (jja Head frame of Mine No. 24^ust east of Terlingua, is Ms. framed by doorway of minei?</s cabin. Rock from which mine^\ys cabin was constructed was more than the deposit of mercuryy|in the mine Well worn photo of a two^story outhouse that hung in the VI hotel at Oatman, Arizona. The photo carried no label or information, and no one knew where the outhouse originally existed. The only unusual outhouse in Oatman The rock crib was unique. . f’- The wild burros visit Oatman every afternoon for a hand^ out of popcorn and candy. Ove review of Oatman, Arizona, showing quartz outcrop above town. Such outcrops meant mineralization, and acted as a magnet to prospectors. Powder house outhouse of Gold Point, Nevada, source of [a variety of stories. Although Goldfield, Nevad^is not entirely deserted, a number of very substantial building^like this fourcstory brick and stone hotel, have been long vacant. �Ct S>< I lDo - Santa Fe Club of Goldfield, Nevad^has catered to miners for eighty years. Business was good when miners could trade chunks of'^igh graded for drinks. ie Cecchini, the ranking old-timer " of Goldfield, and story teller extraordinary. Mill ruins on the left, mess hall and kitchen on the right with old brick schoolhouse at mid=distance, make up the /I remains of Grantsville, Nevada. outhouse manages an upright stance in spite of losing two walls. Note tall vent for odor-free operation. Bill^James, and T. H. 4Tom)^ James, guardians of Humbolt, Nevad^history. Somewhere among these ruins of Humbolt was the saloon where a shoot but left no survivors. The open door of this Humbolt outhouse invites, the sign denies. & Use this facility with mixed feelings. Mohawk Mill lies to the east of Johnsville, California. Sixty stamps of 600 pounds lifted eight inches and dropped in turn, crushing 150 tons of ore per day. /^otel and firehouse in the town of Johnsville. Town was named after William Johns, superintendent of combined mining operations. �The longest single-span wooden covered bridge in the United States, and probably the world. Structure was lared a California Historical Landmark. ''C" {TbiTn rom -^lldorados, Gho^s ^d Camp.s 'TO Southwest. O.’^^ee^ combination grocery, cafe, bar and court served the public for seventy^five years in Ms. Camptonville, California. Small version of the Pelton wheel displayed on monument Monument was erected by the hell-raisA ing EJ Clampus Vitus Brotherhood. in Camptonville. Is. J)« JO? Hasp 4s. f- ’o') and bolt locking system. ___ M lassy littlel ^inei</^ house Is. apparently used a nut even classier 1^0 vacation home, Cornucopia, Oregon, now an sported a diamond window _and outside stairway to upper floor. j^^ine structures adjacent to the Coulter Tunnel, where ice^^ Icold air and ice=cold water pour forth. \s. J) Large schoolhouse )'ln5'CA,’ 45. 11^ |o Homestead, Oregon, evidences the great number of families that once lived in the now deserted company town. fining halls. pastlmeJ^^and probably bunkhouses for single Iminers of the Homestead Mine Company. �= ) Looking upstream along Canyon Creek<4see text for^a more Ms. descriptive name^ in the town of Burke, Idaho. Peaked roof is schoolhouse. Typical creek-drop attached outhouse common to most homes Ms. 1)^ along the waterway, The resident ^regularity was public knowledge, of course. The George Gulch outhouse-bridge combination of Burke Idaho. It may be the only such structure in existance. Rear view of bridge-outhouse implies a community use by esidents of several homes. The bridge portion of the combo is wide enough and stout enough to handle cars and light trucks. □o. self-flushing outhouse required a small p, lAc diversion dam to course water under the drop zone. no ts. p, 1^1 TheVl^neaky PetdC/model is guaranteed to provide the ultimate in privacy. Just where the back door once led is a mystery. And where is the exit? Ms Ghost Towns of the Northwest. Masonic all of Silver City, Idaho, straddles Jordan Creek. Note the attached outhouses that drop into the creek. , 1^3 Overview of Silver City, Idaho, looking north. The Idaho Hotel is at center left, butcher shop, LeonarcK/s Store and Barber Shop line up on the near right. �I uJd - Idaho Hotel is still H3. offering guided tours and refreshments. P' Fanciest residence in Silver City was the Stoddard house. Stoddard was a mine investor, sawmill owner , and rancher. Baling wire holds the splayed bottom of this tall ou^ Ms . house together. Ms > Walkway to outhouse may have been wider at one time. it gives 1^4 Now pThis walk-through style tall house is behind the tin shop and newspaper office. Proximity to the ereek, which runs under the Masonic Mall just behind, made the annual spring ^leanout a cinch. Well kept ^nd still usec^^uthouse / has been patched and nJ . /2d. ^epatched with whatever material was at hand. I3.C s a message here somewhere. paint job on the water tank was meant to lure ^uyers of lots in the proposed town of Teapot, Wyoming. leapot never amounted to much — a house or two, a number of oil wells, and some basic refining equipment. �s<?/ aJ2i as Old wooden oil pumping rig is one of the last in exis Ms r |3. t^nce. Note the hefty''talking beatn^that pivots on _the top of the vertical timber. Here the wheels Ms, |s’. are of iron, but have the same design used in older wooden variety. Pumping station hastened oil from the well to the refine Long deserted, this old pump stands in Ferris, Wyomin^z^ a town that was once called Sinclair Station 3. Photograph was taken from a partially stabilized sand dune that once approached town on a southwest wind. It will move again, and the houses of Ferri^ Wyomin^/fy will be buried. Headquarters of the'^Little Man Minev as it became known Ms. p. after the discovery of a mummified Indian baby in a nearby cave. Rock Cavalry bam of Fort Washakie, now a garage for the still harbors a ghost that walks the wood floors in cavalry boots, according to some of the men that work there. but many buildings, like this officersV quarters built when the ^rmy took over, can be found reconstructed at Hs. !>■ the site kVjO/tJSt �5 , View of distant elk as seen Crystal Mountain. The pure diamond had a tendency to Iftagnify the ell^ image., walked up to bleed it. After shooting the elk, Bridger X^fhet dum elk was twenty=five miles awayt/ Central Pacific and Union Pacific tracks met at Promontory Hs. jx 14^ by negotiation, but ^rao/es ran past each other without joining for hundrec^ of miles. 'white Water Bert" lives alone amid the vast remains of a deserted mine and mill in Retailack, British Columbia. Frequent floods on Carpenter Creek wiped out the boardwalks Ms. f/ /S'd and dock-like streets of Bandon, B^. A the remainder. Fires took most of Fort Steel^J^ central attraction is [useum built to duplicate the original Wasa Hotel. hair and the hard ha^work well together, re­ constructing the 1887 Royal Canadian Mounted Police barracks, using only the tools of the time. Finished ortion of the post is in background. Broad axi for fitting. No chain saws were allowed, and all holes were drilled by hand without benefit of electricity. Fort Steeles water tower can be seen in the background. Oax �twenty-five miles to Fort Steele as an example of early utilization of ... n 1^^ water power in the mining effort. Oddly roofed outhouse in Fort Steele, B.^ C^is securely anchored by four posts. Old shops along Main Street are in the background. It was only a tiny sapling a few years after the child was buried. Now the tree occupies the complete grave site In k/ild Horse, BX. Owner of the Long Him Store in Lundbreck, Alberta, bemoaned Hs. /SV the loss of the two=story outhouse he purchased as a sales gimmick. He found it had been donated earlier to the Heritage Park in Calgary. In Lundbreck, Alberta, this gas station and store con­ stitute a'^hopping center. Wainwright Hotel of Heritage Park in Calgary, Alberta, was said to have the old Lundbreck two=^story outhouse attached to-the rear. Ms. 1^=0 two-story outhouse, a two=door four^holer A A A over a four~door eight-holer, with a cupola on top. And A A eve^thing works! Everything functions in Heritage Park, including stern wheelers and steam engines. You can even d baked breast from the old bakery. fresh �Replica of the Hudson Bay Company'^ Rocky Moun- tain House has been built on the grounds of Heritage ^Park. Outside of the rebuilt Banff barracks of the Royal Canadian Mounted Policy ^'^^onstable from years ^st answers questions and spins a few yams. Don Timmerman rebuilt the original Windsor Hotel two= story outhouse quite faithfully. It stands in its original location, minus, of course, the hotel it originally served. Now it serves the public, and brings a few customers into the Long Him Store No. 7. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Norman Weis Manuscripts Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1971-1987 Description An account of the resource A collection of manuscripts by Casper College professor Norman Weis. <br /><br />This collection includes manuscripts of:<br /><em>Ghost Towns of the Northwest: Known and Unknown<br />The Starduster<br />Two-Story Outhouse<br />Helldorados<br /></em><br />Each manuscript contains written in edits by Norman Weis Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_Manuscripts Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Manuscript Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>Two-Story Outhouse</em> Contents Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <p><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a></p> </div> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1987 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_TwoStoryOuthouse_Contents Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/589a2716c7bc5d47f96608f091057546.pdf 8f04325eb5e3d962b8aa3909e1489ba3 PDF Text Text Norm Weis INTRODUCTION . ------ —Several conversations were bouncing about the fac­ ulty lounge at a small college in ^entral Wyoming, When the physics professor mentioned having seen a ^WO-STORY OUTHOUSE, a sudden silence fell over the group. The phrase seemed to hang in the air as a dozen instructors tried to rationalize what seemed to be a conflict of terms. Finally someone weakened. (vbkay, I' 11 bite. How can an outhouse be two- storied^ Wo we r a all -ea’i oy sics prof told about (to e, uo ____ his visit to the old town of Dillon, Wybmin^,'Vexpecting punch line to crop out somewhere. was completely serious^. His explanation, however. �Norm Weis here wasn'^t much left in the town except a few tumbled-down log walls, an old safe, and the remains of a number of privies, some built on platforms above ground. elevated well I climbed the dozen or so steps on one that looked solid, and found what remained of an old two-holer. ^JWe bombarded the man with questions: Why was it elevated? Was there a door leading to the lower floor? it really two-^stori^? Was The professor fielded most of the questions, explaining that some outhouses in the town were merely elevated, but looked like the remains of honest= to=goodness two^story outhouses. Lrhat quieted the group down once more while everyone set to figuring just how such a structure might be designed. g-looLcf; , I wondered whabe the fate of some poor soul xdin CI occupy a seat on the main floor while another made use of the facilities above. we concluded, the two levels were offset. But the advantages of the two-story config­ uration remained a mystery. curiosity ■was? aroused, I determined to travel to Dillon at the first opportunity and have a look for myself. Little did I suspect that this would be the start of a twelve= year search fch.at -weiaid tak^ me to provinces. -2- states and four Canadian �TWO'STORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis (^ld-=timers at or near each site I visited always suggested new places to observe unusual outhouses. Many leads were false, perhaps to faulty memories, but sometimes I was led down the garden path by reports I now know to be 100 per^^ent fictitious. reports About one in ten accurate, leading me to grand examples of yes­ terday s feats of sanitary engineering. ^_Along with these reports came a multitude of stories^ y^ome of -fehcoo otori-os had'^little to do with out^^^^-^ door plumbing ^ut^were as unforgettable as the best double= deckeyj\ the engineer ran his train through a house; the quicksand ford located smack across the middle of the road to town; or the sign mounted on the top level of one two- story outhouse that read: VA^ything over eight pounds must be lowered by rope took many trips to cover all the leads. Upon returning fromzr7<?J^ of these trips, I would find more sugges­ tions in the mail, many of them for sites near the towns just visited. Eventually I found dozens of elevated outhouses, and a number of honest-to-goodness two-story outhouses, some of which were still in operation. There were outhouses on high trestles, outhouses hanging over river banks, creek straddlers leaners, open air-jobs, outhouse=bridge combos, and one fantastic du-thouce in Calgary, Alberta, -fe^^dasd a two-door four= holer on top of a four=door eight=holer, the whole thing �TWO STORY OUTHOUSE orm topped with a cupola, capped in turn with a Canadian flag blowing stiffly in the breeze. Qlow, after a dozen years, thousands of miles of travel, and one hundred rolls of film, here is the of my search for the two-story outhouse. �Norm Weis j ^-CHAPTER j *V--- ---- The small ghost town named Dillon lies miles west of Encampment, deep in the Sierra Madre IlLii.iirtZLlii-l^^r ^outh Central Wyoming. The black=topped road changed to gi^avel twenty miles short of Dillon, then degenerated to muddy ruts covered with occasional snowbanks. At ■9jji5OD feet above sea level, access to town is possible for just two months each year, and then only by means of four-wheel drive vehicles. A local sheepherder calls the last three mile stretch the Alternate routeand explains, Vit alternates between mud a foot deep and boulders a foot high.'^ It began to rain as I drove along the deserted main street. A search of the town^/s remains revealed only collapsed log walls, a few cril^ike structures that looked like the re­ mains of elevated outhouses, and an old rusty safe blown open by some hopeful treasumpunter. -5- �I Thoroughly soaked, and muddy to the knees, I headed back to the pickup. Before I could reach my_ -chiol^^ a jeep pulled up alongside. The driver asked if I needed help. I had to holler to be heard over the sound of the rain. \/^es, -•-^'^^ould you tell me if there is an outhouse around here^</ ^outh agape, the driver quxmlSy cranked up the window of the jeep and drove off. I slipped and bumped my way downhill. back to Encampment, hoping to gamer some information from the local old=timers. |_Vera Oldman, the leading historian of the town, had for some years undertaken the job of preserving feii^artifacts U13.4 of the mining era that^brought life to the towns in that area. She was a prime mover in the establishment of the local museum. 5h6 hoped to reconstruct one of Dillon’s two;story outhouses and perhaps restore one of the many towers that made up the --- ----- longest tramway in the worl<j^tfest ore miles from the mine just north of Dillon/^o the ore smelter in Encampment. I The literature already assembled at the small museum revealed a number of interesting characters, and offered an explanation or two concerning the two-story outhouses. Ed Haggarty found the blue rock in 1897 while herding sheep on the high slopes. copper meant money. He knew that blue meant copper, and His sheep herding days were over. -6- He �T^^S^ORY OljjTHOUSE Norm Weis took a partner named Ferris/and developed the deposit. two others bought into the operation. Later, The town that grew nearby was named Rudefeha/ wdtQi two letters from each manys name, Ferris and Haggarty bringing up the rear. When the four mine owners barred saloons from the town that blossomed around the copper mine, the drinking faction, which comprised the major faction, moved one mile south and established their own town^iajad-'named it Dillon. after the leading saloon man, Malachi Dillon. town T- no one ever called it ordinary. It was a strange At its peak it had several dozen log homes/ and eight buildings on Main Street, six of them saloons. Malachi's had a sign over the bai;^ V't^ree meals if you drink enough / The buildings along Main Street were fronted with \II7 . . boarc^walks elevated above the roacj^—' built^igh as a marevs back\/^o one ever shoveled snow off the streets -q- they just tramped the snow down under foot and hoped that it never came above the board walks. The heavy snows also brought about the ultimate refinement of one of marK/s most basic necessities. the outhouse. In Dillon, the elevated outhouse, and indeed the two-story outhouse came into its own. timers claim the outhouse began its spurt to new heights when a father of four got fed up with shoveling the path to the outhouse. It seems the thundermugs were -7- �Norm Weis filled from the previous night, and the emergency call was being sounded by two of the young ones. Dad was clearing the path through two feet of snow in a valiant race with the call of nature. For the third time month. Poona lost the race and suffered the abuses of an irate spouse faced with another foul mess. With the conviction of a man driven by anger, but possessed of a solution, the father went straight S to the local carpenter and gave explicit instructioi^; [ \J3uild me another outhouse, and put the damned thing on top of the snowbank! If we get another heavy snow. I’ll have you buil^ another one^v one knows how many he had built, but he most definitely started a new architectural trend in Dillon. By the next fall, nearly everyone had elevated his outhouse and had built ''^i^mmer stepsSome built log cribs 3jor(j^feet high and placed their outhouses on top. Most dug pits and built outhouses on enclosed stilts, but those few relied on the crib as the waste receptacle got a surprise the night of the first hard freeze. As the residue froze and expanded, the cribs split open with a resounding These structures remained solid until spring, when severe listing made their use hazardous. Many folk built new outhouses that matched heights with the second stoncj of their homes. The sanitary house was reached simply by going upstairs and walking out the connect-, �Norm Weis Some outhouses were twenty feet tall. There was no use made of the^d ower floorV^on most of these structures. The free-fall distance was nearlyf12 J feet. On a quiet day there was little privacy. A few outhouses reportedly utilized both floors. full-length dividing partition separated the two. A Given the choice, an old hand would prefer to use the upper floor. It 1 was quieter and di^er, tnough aromatic. Back in Encampment, the local madam solved the snow problem a different way. She built an enclosed walkway to the e privy to eliminate snow shoveling and to ^nsure the privacy of her customers. Business boomed. In 1901,Grant Jones, already saddled Lj a severe drinking problem, but possessed of a magic pen, started a newspaper called ’^he Dillon Doublejack.The first issue carried the following; To the most distinctive brotherhood in y\0 the world, the boys of the drill and the pan, whose members see the word welcome on fewer doormats, and know more about hospi­ tality, travel over more miles of land. and see fewer railroad tracks, eat more bacon and see fewer hogs, drink more milk. condensed, and see fewer cows, worship -9- �Tjtfo^S'/’ORY oy?THOUSE~^ Q^orm Weis nature more and see fewer churches, regard women with more chivalry and see fewer of them, judge men better, and wear fewer starched shirts, undergo more hardships and make fewer complaints, meet more dis­ appointments and retain more hopes than any class of men in the whole wide world ” to the brotherhood of quartz and placer I prospectors and miners I dedicate the _. DILLON DOUBLEJACK!**-^ Jones, who apparently never bought a meal/since his drinking always qualified him for the free eats, had a grand way with words. His wild stories of rare animals, which he called his Alco-Colic stories, were published in many nation­ ally circulated dailies. Half the country read of his Cooly Woo, that could dig itself to safety in solid rock, and the Bockaboar that had short legs on one side for traversing slopes at high speed, but often got dizzy from rotating ever clockwise. There was also the One'^Eyed Screaming Emu that could disappear by swallowing itself in one huge gulp. - j^ditor Jones had a great future, but he died suddenly, just six months after his arrival. It seems that he drank himself into a mild fit, and when he began to see strange creatures, his pals administered a'^ho^^of morphine. Morphine was available over the counter then, f -lQ-1 dosages �Norm Weis were a bit vague. He died, they say, from\^n advanced case of sociability, complicated by good intentionsXz He became one of the first to disprove his own oft-made statement: '^In Dillon there are no morgues, no graveyards, and no dead visited Encampment a number of times, checking the progress of the museum and the reconstruction of the two^^story outhouse. Eventually both reached completion. On thdse occasions when weather permitted, I would travel o Dillon, past the old deserted towns of Rambler, Copperton and Battle. Placed almost equidistant Q coU'lg i>^ “thgfrom these towns, a bronze plaque claims that^Thomas Edison got the idea of using a carbon filament in his as yet un­ successful light bul^^^^^ilo-fiching—in the arc-a. ( I searched Dillon several times. Nothing in the bu-t', way of outhouses remained worthy of a photography^ /ne mile north, the remains of the Ferris-Haggarty Mine were quite spectacular. The main structure still stood astraddle the shaft. At its foundation flowed a small stream, tumbling over the same blue rock that signaled "l^^aggarty’s original discovery. Haggarty and his partners did well by selling the operation for million in 1902. In 1908, the price of copper dropped and the operation ceased. -11- Five �Norm Weis thousand people left the area. Now you would have trouble rounding up five folk in the deserted towns sprinkled about the mine. ^ncampment survived and became a quaint village in the foothills, populated by ranchers, a few storekeepers, and nature lovers escaping the city. Part of its charm IS its slow acceptance of the niceties of modern civiliza- tion. Each time I entered Encampment, I w. sign in front of the gas station; ^Indoor Toilet.v It -Hzie seemed to proper I On my last visit to Encampment I was directed to the tiny cabin of an old duffer who had /recently/returned^ from a visit to old folksv home^ IfeTived a frugal life, mainly with the help of friends and neighbors. He filled in many of the missing details, and added a new chap- ter to the art- of growing old. ^im was leading a happy life, living in his little cabin. sponging a bit here, making a buck there, when we 11'= meaning folk decided he belonged in old folks’ home a few miles fe^^Sl^^north. They left Jim no choice he was packed (or his own good?'/' Jim found his up and moved new home quite unsatisfactory, but he had a plan to rectify the problem. He invested his /osrf:. (I 1 and got the entire population of -tils old- fol4^^ home roaring dtunk. cabin'^. They kicked him out, afld he returned to his little broke, hungover and happy. -12- �Norm Weis " SaBjword got around the college, the town, and eventually the state, that some strange character at the college was looking for two=istory outhouses and other odd structures, which many residents interpreted to mean nog ranchesranch,seemed, was a term given to any house of ill fame^ whorehouse, that is^ tlwrt wac located near a military installation. / As to why they were called ranches, ”^^ere were several explanation^?)--' pn^suchsta 1^ishnent was operated by a man named ^Hog^**aBsd'''since many of these houses specialized in good food, as well as close company, perhaps the name came from the offering of pork on the ment^ most likely, the name came from the physical makeup of the usual crib ladies. L Whatever the background of the term, my curiosity was again piqued, and I^includeji-^a few hog ranches in my alotnc cj rftn next tour of the area^ Thio tgip would iuulLid'e forts, -hog ranches^ an old mining town or two, and any other sight-S that might have an outstanding outhouse or unusual story. I stopped at Horse Shoe Springs a few miles south of Glendo, Wyoming, mainly because it was on my route. was once the home of Bad Man Slade, who at the age of began his evil career by killing a man with a rock. -13- His It �TI)lrO=sfoRY orm Weis father promptly sent him West from his home in Illinois, but he continued with the killing habit, finally reaching the lower end of a tai^t rope in Montana. [_The site of the old stage station is presently azouvod occupied by the Lancaster Ranch. The owners showed me about the—proudly pointing out the bullet=proo:^triple =■ walled structure of the ranch house that replaced the stage station. They told me of the Indian fight that occurred there in 1868. Frequently referred to as the ^*^loody Trail Massacre, it is one of the best documented fights involving Chief Crazy Horse. It was,one of the very few times that Indians attacked at night and in midwinter. (captain Smith and four troopers were at the old station/ whenQGT) Indians, led by Chief Crazy Horse, accosted them. The Indians soon retired behind a butte yards away Two scouts sent out by the ^aptain were promptly chased back. Portholes were opened, the door barred, and the fight was on. Two Indians were killed. ^In mid^morning, two other troopers, chased by Indians, managed managed to break through and arrive at the 2ta tation. It was now seven against sixty-five. The men in the Station had nothing to drink but Red Jacket Bitters, which did much for mora]^ but little to improve accuracy with a rifle. Two men were sent out to get - 14- �T^=S/ORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis water, but quickly returned with a report that the Indians had gathered at the well. I lo'.oo , (At fe«a-jp.g. , the Indians set fire to the building, 1O/Ci 1/1 C| " causing the troopers to crawl through the (l^=foot tunnel that led to a sod dugout, filling/the tunnej/i^behind them. The ^tation burned, and while the Indians celebrated, the men dug out and escaped with their belongings, including gallon keg of whiskey. ^J^e Indians found the troopers the next morning a few miles south, on the trail to Fort Laramie. One trooper took an arrow in the eye, but promptly yanked it out, eye and all, and went on fighting. Another soldier was hit above the eye, loosening a flap he had to hold up with one hand. He was killed as the group ran for better cover. Another trooper was killed/^nd mutilated. The troopers were now down to five men, three of them wounded. �Norm Weis, —One badly wounded man had to be left behind as the group took new positions. He committed suicide. It was now four troopers against forty Indians. rounds of ammunition left called for talks. the troopers Chief Crazy Horse, who spoke English, was willing, and promptly commended the men for their valiant fight. '^ou four very brave we kill only three of you.^ This prompted an attempt to barter whiskey for lives, and both sides agreed to walk back to the whiskey cache. ) C^he whis^ was turned over, with the tap open and the suggestion that the Indians take it back to their camp and drink it there. Indians. There was no stopping the They set to drinking right thpny^*^ -thow^ and the troopers took off down a ravine. A few shots were fired at them, but pursuit was forgone lest a turn at the keg be lost. The four troopers eventually got to Fort Laramie and safety. They had lost all their belongings, but others had lost more. ^ort Laramie, like most of the forts in the West, had no stockade. This fact contributed to the port’s most embarrassing moment during the summer of 1864. For three days a large detachment had been scouting the area for Indians, splitting into Sitpa/f for sign. groups to search They met back at the /ort, unsaddle<^bh&-ir horocc and adjourned to the barracks while the horses rolled on the �T^O=S^ORY OJ^THOUSE Norm Weis Thirty Indians suddenly materialized and ex /•rd chased off the horses! It took an hour for soldiers to parade ground. begin their fruitless pursuit. The Indians, constantly changing horses, had little trouble outdistancing the troopers, who were stuck with one horse Apiece. [Today, much of the Fort rsrefurbished to show ^xacrtXy the way it was. One can almost see the soldiers on parade, the cheers and horse^play on pa^^ay, or imagine Jim Bridger outside the Sutjers Store smashing lice in the seams of his clothing, using two flat rocks, while regaling off=duty soldiers with tall stories. ^^ohn Hunton, a prominent hay rancher in the late 1800’s, was a friend to many of the famous men and women that visited the Fort Laramie are^ Men like Hi Kelly, Bat Gamier, Heck Reel, Wild Bill HickroeW, Portugee Phillips, Jim Bridger, Slippery Sam Slaymaker, Calamity Jane, and the famous stage driver, Thomas C. Todd, champion drinker who claimecK^^'^ / Hunton’s diairy, released some years after his demise, carried a Jiumber of fascinating entries. One iiHiji'ntii the solution to a -^^i^OQ^robbery; Tom Wilson's money recovered from Pat Corbliss after hanging him a little. —\ Nice Day. �Norm Weis As to Calamity Jane; ^er achievements have been very greatly magnified by every writer I have ever read, for she was among the commonest of her class. She seldom ever carried a rifle when riding horseback from place to place, and I do not think I ever saw her with both rifle and pistol. Her one redeeming trait was that she seldom spoke of what she had done or could do with gun and pi '*! first saw her in about My ranch was a general road ranch and place 1875. of entertainment for the traveling public Jane often stopped at my place, especially 1876, 77, 78. She worked often at hog ranches at Fort Fetterman and Fort Laramie until General CrookX*^ army organized in May when she and three other women of same character were smuggled out with the command and remained with it until found out and ordered back\/"^r Later in his diary. Hunton states that Calamity Jane worked as one of the girls at a house of ill fame, and that \7she wasn’t one of the better ones.'^ , [ And about another famous* character -^whose name Hunton spelled his own way: -18- �Norm Weis I will now refer to J I knew fairly well in 1874 and late in the year 1875...,During that time I do not think he knew VXlalamity Jan^^ or had ever seen her....X In less than a month I heard of Biliks death. He was assas- inated at Deadwood by a stage drive3^ Jack McCaul, who was lynched for the deed, by a mob reputedly led by Calamity, but at that time Calamity was in the hands of the Militairy authorities ?^Crooks Army)^.' As to John Hunton^s expertise at judging women, he left no question that he had plenty of experience. For many years before his demise, he lived with a woman and kept secret from his wife. He had no hesitation to tell all about the second woman in his diary. Wyoming had two famous hog ranches, on^just north of Fort Fetterman near DouglasS\-feCTsitig fon’’the~Bozeman"Ro^the other, called **Three Mile' west of Fort Laramie on the Cheyenne-Deadwood Stage Road. Since liquor and loose women were barred from the military forts, these houses had to exist outside the(^^ile radius of prohibition imposed by the y6miy. The girls were referred to as painted ladies, fallen women, crib women, tenderloin ladies, and generally were the lowest of the lot. The food and booze were good, and change was often given in brass tokens good for a -19- �Norm Weis at the bar, or for service in one of the small rooms or cribs. ion-Xwith houses of ill fame reportedly came from the^habityrai 1 road~~men^hwi of leaving their lanterns outside the door. around the hog ranches That term was seldom used since the nearest railroad was ’3® '' miles south. IS now a respectable ranch. first visited the site, the new owner (?£■ th When I ±i had just discovered the questionable histoiry of his aquisition. He had recently tom up the floor boards of the saloon and crib areas the old grout building that made up the original hog He found a few coins, some tokens, and evidence that -t-InCct' someone had gone over the same ground earlier. It seems^at ranch. least two people figured that change tends to fall out of pockets easily when the clothing deviates from the vertical. -20- �man on the telephone was positive, and the fact that he had made a toll call lent considerable credence to his story. have found a perfect two^story outhouse for you. left immediately, stopping by his office in Douglas, Wyoming, to obtain directions. He seemed a bit less sure of himself after our discussion revealed that his ’^ind had only one door. an hour later, and(13 miles south, I located the structure, which turned out to be unusual in that it was indeed very tall, perhaps fifteen feet. A single door opened to a roomy space, only partially occupied by the necessary facilities. The upper portion was composed of slatted vents, making this the sweetest smelling privy it had been my privilege to visit. Those living nearby explained that the building was once the air vent for a underground potato storage area. -21- One gentleman was sorry �brm Weis that I had not found an honest two story privy, and suggested I look into the old deserted town of Kirwin, across the state. where he personally had seen the real thing. ^^irwin was another false lead, but as always, something interesting happened on the way to the site. sign at the turnoff to a ranch a few miles from the town site read; I ^**N0 HUNTING NO FISHING NO NOTHING DOl^ ASK**^ L- no I drove in and asked. ing The rancher got a kick out of my ask­ said he had met a lot of fine but stubborn people be- cause of that sign. [on an earlier trip, I had noted a sign of a different nature that was even more effective; Hunters, Fishermen And Trespassers Welcome $200 Per Day Tre^p^ss Fee^ Pay At Hdqtrs. 2 mi East."** The welcome sign wasn'^t out at Kirwin either. First there was a locked gate on a public road, which upon close inspection revealed a big padlock on a heavy chain, but with one open link hidden behind the gate^^ost. A sneaky way to discourage travel on the road, even though it led to a forest ^ervice campground, as well as the deserted town site of Kirwin. 7-22- �I entered and drove ahead only to be stopped by a man with a gun. I asked entrance " he denied same, explaining he was hired by a mining company. I claimed public road, he chuckled. I got out a six=pack of beer. He put away the gun. Half an hour later, I drove on up to Kirwin, waving back at my new friend who made me promise to stop by on the way out. ^orty miles west of Meeteetse in ^est ^entral tityoming, Kirwin sits in a narrow valley, 9200 feet above sea level, surrounded by steep slopes leading to the high It was beautiful -- almost like a H Old mining equipment, long idle, lay peaks of the Absarokas. bit of Switzerland. scattered about, covered with a deep layer of red dust, no longer capable of probing the earth for copper and molybdenum. Mine shafts penetrated the ground in a dozen places. A barrel-type hoist bucket rested on the ground next to the Wolf Mine. A large building nearby had to have been a board- in^^house. Upstream on the north bank of the tumbling stream stood the tall remains of the Tumlum Tumalum^ Mine. It I seemed to be just the right situation for a tall privy or two — H high altitude, steep slopes, and most likely subject to heavy winter snow accumulations. There were no doubt a few tall ones in town at one time, but none remained -- not even short H one s. In 1935, long after the mines had shut down, Amelia Earhart filed claim on a beautiful high bench above the �OjShOuS Txam'^a^'lum Mine. Norm Weis She ordered a cabin built shortly before one of her long ever'ocoqr flights. Work on the cabin was suspended when word arrived that Amelia was missing over the Pacific. ( Walls 'three, logs high, a door jambzand a small wooden airplane on a pole^propeller spinning in the wind, ■ stand as a small tribute. 0 tv N ^Bonnevilie, and a number of other small nearly deserted towns lay on my route home. None of the settlements had sewer systems, and were prime prospects for tall privies. /a sign on the main highway points north to Bonne­ ville. It’s an official highway sign,(^feet byfeet, big enough to cause one to believe that indeed town can be reached via the gravel road that lies adjacent. I had driven north a scant three miles when I was confronted with an oldfashioned ford. It was perhapfeet to the far side where the road took up again and became the main street of Bonneville. In the center of the broad sandy expanse was a small creek. perhaps an inch or two deep and twenty feet across. I was about to drive across when I noticed several faces pressed to the window of the railroad station across the creek. When two fellows ran outside the building to watch, I chickened out and walked over to the railroad bridge and picked my way across the ties. 24- �Railroad, waiting for the train to arrive in order to relieve ( On . J the on baaiff^cre^^I came along just in time to offer a bit of entertainment. /jhe ford, I was told, was pure quicksand. They explained that it was used only in the winter when the creek was frozen. The alternate route to town from the highway to the west was used at all other times. ^^According to one of the crew, several old cars lie deep within the quicksand. One case, he said, was spectacular. Some years ago, in early spring, the driver of a late model car got a run for it and almost made it across. He was stuck up to the running boards but was able to scramble to solid ground and hike to the nearest'^il^ig^town for help. A few hours later, after the car had sunk to the roof, a caterpillar tractor rumbled up, and a cable was dug down to the windows. The *^^t”'''^ulled and pulled, and finally the car slowly re­ sponded but only the body of the car came free, leaving the frame and wheels to join the ever-growing crop of relics deep beneath treacherous Bad Water Creek. I^n 1919, a trestle upstream washed out and spilled a freight train into the creek. to sink out of sight. Half the train threatened It took weeks to rebuild the trestle and recover the engine and some of the cars. -25- The caboose �Norm Weis parts of some flat cars washed downstream to sink into quicksand. ^^ut the most spectacular event to hit Bonneville the big explosion that blasted the little town in 1921. A truck driver, delivering 750 quarts of nitroglycerin to -R II the Birdseye Mine, hit a ditch/ and.KA-BLOOOEEE, -- blew a f\ H hole in the ground big enough to bury a house. The biggest piece left of the truck was the armature from the generator. Most of the houses of the town were built stoutly of used ties spiked together, and consequently weathered the blast with only a loss of window panes. Those houses still stand. some s-tir±~l occupied as vacation homes. The windows in town blew out a second time when a miner walked into the local bar with a stick of dynamite jammed in his hip pocket. A two-foot fuse extended from one Someone lit it! Cfii (3i t\i Qpst Cabin was a few miles east. There might be a tall outhouse, or at least a tall story there. latter ~ a tall story It was the but true, of course. (_l^st Cabin, like Bonneville, is located on Bad Water Creek, and the only store in town, Oki^ Store, sits in the middle of town. According to Mary Helen Hendry, a ^26- �local ^tyoming historian, a gang of bullies blew into town one day, and one of them promptly proceeded to intimidate store proprietor, Okie. The roughie pulled a gun, shot into the ceiling and shoutecj^J) a bad man from Stinking Creek. Fast thinking Okie snatched up a rifle and replied^^^ ^^Well, the stinking man from~Bad Water Creek^^ and backed the bad n^n out at gun point. ——CiTy r^me weeks later I set out for Dale City, Wyoming, where reliable information led me to believe a buthouse^sed to stand. twoc-story Dale City sounded like a good bet. since all the structures in town were said to be built of rock. Outhouses and jails are both strong/ and tend to outlast larger buildings. My chances looked good! (rhe jail stood, but the outhouse either never existed, or had been dismantled in order to improve some other structure. But as usual a memorable story emerged to fill the void. A few miles to the northeast, the Union Pacific, in 1938, built a trestle across a deep ravine. Indeed, the construction of Dale City was a result of the work crew^^ extended residence while constructing the 200-foot^^high. 650=="foot-?lon2 masterpiece. It was the tallest and largest ioi<i I on the but it was doomed to cause trouble. No allow- -27- �Norm Weis ance had been made for the gale force winds that plague that part of the country, particularly at the change of seasons. [_Soon the trestle joints loosened, making passage dangerous. A dozen long guy wires designed to eliminate the sway were bolted to the tracks, extending to deeply embedded anchors. In one season, the wires were stretched, and the sway was back. The crews of trains were so frighten­ ed of the trestle, that they made it a practice to stop short. pile out, and flip a coin to see who walked across alone. Then the engineer would set the throttle on dead -^low, and the crew would watch the train cross the trestle "^appeLLa. ” After the train was caught and stopped, the rest of the crew would walk across resume the trip. Crews of passenger trains had to gut. it out in order to foster '’^p^senger confi­ dence. On the way home from that trip, I took a back road, hoping to stumble across a truly unusual outhouse. As if I had willed it, a tall structure appeared ahead/ next to an old deserted house. It was twenty feet tall, had a door below and a door on top, accessed by a built-in ladder. heart leaped and I grabbed for the cameras. I shot two rolls of film of the exterior, then opened the lower door. was empty except for a big rusty pipe running from floor to ceiling. The floor was covered with sawdust, several feet deep in the comers. -28- �Norm Weis (jhe upper door opened to reveal a large insulated metal tank. The pieces began to fit together. elevated water supply and ice house combination. This was an Water in the top and ice below offered ice cold water on tap all SLimmer long. ^_W^t a corns'^own. In all my travels about the state, I had found remains of just one tall privy, the one in Dillon. The reconstruction of the privy was under way, ■but the fact was I had searched most of my home state and photographed not one two=story outhouse. / It was time to branch out. be more productive. -29- Perhaps Montana would �Ttfo-SfORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis » ! -•• -"1 , ----- I TaPDinE' Occasionally the obvious seems to elude a person, especially when he gets deeply involved in a subject -- sort of like failing feo se^xhe trees for the forest. It finally became evident to me that tall outhouses were to be found at northern latitudes/^r high altitudes. The mountain state of Montana should therefore be a prime source for two^story outhouses. (^knew there were tall outhouses of a sort in Virginia City, Montana. I had photographed a few of them some years be­ fore, and had taken somewhat suspicious note of the reconstructed tall outhouse in nearby Nevada City. ^oth towns deserved a second look, and this time I would not be distracted by the usual sights -- old mines, saloons, dredges, and the like. �O^iTHOUSE^Z (Norm Weis I laid out a tjour of Montana^^^tarting just north of Yellowstone Park at the old mining town of Jardine,* working west to Virginia City* then north, following the Rocky Mountains* then east*^then (againJnortt^ to the Little Rockies near the Canadian border. As leads developed, I could plan a zig^ zag return to Wyoming. It looked like a three week trip of about miles. 11 packed sleeping bag, cookstove, food and cameras^ Ced figuring on camping out a lot, staying at a motel every four or five days to maintain a taste for civilization, and deCI'inc . velo^'^a few rolls of film as proof of my cameraVs integrity. I Jardine was a quiet place when I tscd visited a few years before, but now had been during the mining days. was almost as busy a€ it The nearby slopes were vJa5 beii^ groomed as ski runs, construction of several lifts ^Mse underway, and new cabins and lodges were sprouting up all over the place. The suspiciously tall thin structures viewec/ on an earlier trip seemed to have vanished. look. There would be no second The old outhouse behind the mill was still intact, and was still only one story high. It was, however, an outstanding structure, well engineered for its purpose. It looked from the outside to be about one outhouse deep and four wide. The inside was bare except for two long poles. You could walk the length of the outhouse on the narrow floor, and take your �Norm Weis ease an37where on the lower of the two horizontal poles, then I lean your back against the upper pole -- sort of a two-point H suspension, mid^thigh and mid^^back. No doubt it was designed for minimal comfort to discourage loafers. polished by the hundreds mill workers The logs were well labored at the site from 1917 to 1948. Jardine might have been a disappointment, but an incident that occurred on the road to Virginia City brought my sense of humor back to normal. [j-t was a long straight stretch of highway, and far ahead I noticed a man walking along the center line. drove closer, I could see he was staggering. worsened as I coasted toward him. As I His stagger I came to a stop as he spun around a full 360^and collapsed dead in the middle of the black I had a strong urge to hop out and lend a hand, but some- top. His collapse was too perfect -- just like n the kind John Wayne did as a green actor, and kids everywhere thing looked fishy. imitated for the next twenty years. I held my place behind the wheel and studied the man. His clothes were tattered and dirty. creased with wrinkles. His face was tanned and He looked like a circus clown without As I watched, an eyelid flickered, and in the instant. makeup. I could see his eye was trained on me quite precisely. • J • That ' did it -- I backed up and drove around him, pulling o£ to the �Norm Weis -side of the road a few hundred yards beyond. (The noise of an approaching car brought about a most spectacular recovery. The bum was instantly on his feet, wob­ bling along the center line, cocking a careful but fleeting eye on the approaching car, letting the stagger increase to another full turn, ending with complete collapse on the center line. ^^his man was quite an actor, and it turned out, a talented panhandler. When offered assistance, he would slowly recover, stagger a bit, refuse a ride, but put the bite on for a bit of the green stuff. / I watched him operate for nearly an hour. He batted a bit over 500, netting folding money from each successful ploy, and recovering instantly from each failure. [When he noticed that I was watching, he put on an even better show. He was up to a three-turn dying spiral, going for an Oscar when I finally left the scene, -n-,. K the KJ --- [Virginia City was much same as I had remembered it; quite commercialized, but thoroughly fascinating and essen­ tially genuine. Although most of the buildings in town were burned as firewood in the postfboom years, a rich core of buildings remain on the dozen or so square blocks that make up the business district of this town that once claimed more than -WrOOO citizens. �Tjfcs^^ORY Ol^THOUSE Norm Weis The site would have remained pristine prairie had not Bill Fairweather and six friends camped at the head of the gulch a few hundred yards to the south. When Bill unlimbered his gold pan and washed a load of gravel, he uncovered the richest placer deposit in the world, and started a gold rush that would eventually move 4OO million in gold from the ground into the miners’ pockets. The discovery was in 1863, and within a year the gulch was named Wlder,^and a town called Virginia c( City exploded into existence at a rate of almost per week! —-- - , , buildings �/JtV/Q DA : W;/<. G/TV Aa\JI> ]_In 1864 Montana Terri-^^djr was established, with One yearyZater, Virginia City Bannack declared as its capital took over as capital by virtue of its overwhelming population, only to lose it to Helena in 1875. The boom years of 1863 to 1868 brought about some strange incidents involving the towns of Virginia City, its suburb to the west called Nevada City, and its rival, Bannack, just eighty miles west. The road connecting these towns became the playground for a bunch of dry land pirates robbed, plundered and murdered. held up, From June to December of 1863, the gang robbed and killed more than 190 men. When a particularly brutal and bloody murder was committed just prior to Christmas, the citizens rose up in anger and organized a vigilante committee of ^5^. Within six weeks, twenty men had been hanged. Frank Parish, George Lane, Haze Lyons, Jack Gallagher, Boon Helm, yi a) and Club-Foot George Lane stretched te±tB±x ropes from the exposed �17^0= SjZoRY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis beams of a half:ifinished building in Virginia City. A club­ footed man should have known he would be recognized, mask or no mask. If this begins to sound like a silent movie plot, then hang tight -- it gets better. ( The ^heriff of Bannack, elected in spite of his recent prison record at San Quentin, offered to cooperate fully with the 2^gilantes. But on the sly, he met with his cronies and planned the very robberies the^igilantes were sworn to stop. The gang held secret meetings over the livery in Vir­ ginia City, in the roadhouse later to be called^^llobber^ Roost,\/just west of Nevada City, and of course in the ^herifJ^s office in Bannack. The ^heriff, it seems, robbed the public at night/^nd chased after himself during the day. [ The double life of Sheriff Henry Plummer was re­ vealed when a robbery victim spotted scars on the back of one of the robbeiX>^ hands. Foolishly, the robber^sheriff had re­ moved his glove in order to unlock a strong box. The alert ob­ server later saw those same scars on a hand attached to Sheriff Plummer. They hanged Plummer and his two deputies in Bannack. ^Llwo other suspected gang members, Captain Jack Slade and John)\ythe HatJ^ Dolan, were hanged at Nevada City. Slade was notorious as the winner of a number of Xj^air fights,v one of which involved shooting with a gun hidden under his coat. Slade was apprehended for being drunk and disorderly, �TWO=StORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis and apparently hanged as a public service. Both Slade and Dolan asked for clemency, their excuse being that they were drunk at the time of the crime. Some folk in the crowd suggested that they each be given a few drinks so they could drunk, all in the interests of justice. be / The Chinese moved into Virginia City when the original placer miners moved out. At one time, six^^ompanie^v 5’(x I of Chinese, about men, worked the diggings near town. A serious rift came about over boundary lines, and the six com- panies split into two factions. The argument escalated to tZiACi fight Sy. xA all=out war. They fought for two days /\ 4 and shot up all their ammunition without killing a soul on either side. they resorted to hand^tosfhand fighting with A A pick and shovel, two men were fatally injured. Eleven Chinese were tried for the killings. positive identification. Chinese looked alike. All were released for lack of White witnesses claimed all the Chinese witnesses, with great wisdom, agreed/ filled with a strong sense of history, I drove to Ir the Cornucopia Mine fei»t overlook^ Virginia City. I could glass the buildings in town. From there I spotted the old brewery, the saloon, the livery, and Sauerbuer’s Smithy, where -36- j �T)6Ss^0RY OlJrTHOUSE Norm Weis oxen were slinged and trussed for shoeing. And back there, behind the di^^oods store, and also behind the old Richard Cook residence, were two tall outhouses! ^__Behind Hanna and Mary McGoveriii4 Dry Goods =(toys a speciality?- was a single-seat outhouse ■thab=£a2e more than C0CL3 /V fifteen feet in the aiy^^wxfeh its floor^seven feet above ground level, the loftiness of the structure made necessary by the downward slope of the ground at the rear of the store. A small deck led from the store'^s rear entrance to the door of the outhouse -- almost an inside outhouse. /I The Richard Cook residence was built on ground that was comparatively level. The outhouse that looked tall from afar was actually floored a modest four feet above ground -M hardly worthy of a photograph. [^J^sauntered about town, enjoying authentic items, ignoring the commercial. Finally I entered the Bale of Hay Saloon and had a drink for old time^sake, then stepped out^ side and put the spurs to my trusty steed. had a coke and climbed into my pickup.^ Nevada City was just a mile and a half to the west of Virginia City. I had to stop and see how the reconstructed two-story outhouse had fared. The first time I visited the site, I was amazed to see that the outhouse was not a working, functioning relief -37- ■ft'O �T^O=S^ORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis -y station, although it certainly looked like it was us'^ble. / had fooled a number of tourists. It Instead of being built with a free=fall chute from upper seat to the pit below, it simply ! had an enclosed bench with a cut out seat. And of course the tourists used it. ;&iid jifter one season it was full. [rhe second time I visited the site, they had j placed a pot under the seat. Of course the pot would have to be emptied frequently. ^Ihis was my third visit, and this time the upper door was boarded shut. There is a lesson there somewhere, having to do with reconstructing faithfully or not reconstruct­ ing at all. [jMost of the items in Nevada City were either moved in or recently built, not so much as an historical effort, but more as a matter of free enterprise. The old hotel in Nevada City was originally the Salisbury Stage Station, once lo­ cated near Ruby, Montana. It is worth a look, but it would have been better i:^had stayed in Ruby. ^Fifteen miles west of Nevada City on the south side of a road set back in a cozy grove of trees, is the marvelous old roadhouse once called'C^aley^s Place.\/ Pete Paly ^Daley)^ built it and ran the establishment as a stopping place for travelers on the Virginia City Bannack road. C-38- For several �T^0=st0RY O0THOUSE Norm Weis months he offered bed and meals plus entertainment. Rooms on J [3icJ the first floor were labeled ^achus^and Lady Luck^^dining and gambling^, and the second floor was termed the V^terps?I chore -- Ardent Swains and Seductive SirensJ^T^entertainment M areas. (^V^ithin six months the roadhouse became one of the secret hideouts for the Plummer gang, and that stretch of road east and west became the bloodiest, most dangerous(^^8^)^miles in the territory. Later, Pete Daly's Tavern became known as **i^bbers'^ Roost e^trlferZ If you look closely you will see the symbol(5 scratched in the logs of the building. Perhaps it was a code or a password, but like ZorroV/s always shoved up after the Vigilantes caught up with and dispatched an outlaw or two. That same symbol appeared in other towns at other times, per­ haps as a warning to local crooks that the ^igilantes were watching. frhe town of Bannack is now a ^tate j/ark and a Ration­ al Ristoric landmark. Among the buildings now preserved are Hs I two old jails, Masonic Mall built in 1874, a school that dates from 1871, and a classic frame church constructed in 1879 But the crowning glory is the beautiful brick building known as the Meade Hotel. Built with class, and intended to last, it cg-' sported two stories, each with ceilings, a spiral stair£I«— case six feet wide, double-decker porticos and vaulted windows at the front. �T^S'/’ORY Oj^THOUSE Norm Weis (At the south edge of town, a five=ton mill was still in operation. Fiv^ton^ means it can crush five tons of ore each hour. They were extracting concentrated ores of silver, lead and zinc, with a few traces of gold. The mill is a bit of an antique, but it runs and pays a profit. It^ a frugal operation, and no money has been wasted on paint. Off to the side are two outhouses, and in keeping with the operatoi\ys economic policy, only one has a sign on it, and that sign read^^IMMIN J_Gold was found on nearby Grasshopper Creek in 1862, one year before the Virginia City strike. Bannack'^ boom was less spectacular, but longer lasting than its rival to the east. -tt^OULSgtndj It grew to a population of than by 1863, and spurted to more afewyears later when the hand dug ditches brought badly needed water to the local placers. ^ny diligent ghost town buff is bound to note that the last buildings to collapse and disappear are the jails and outhouses, no doubt because they are both strong. Although the latter may be strong in more than one sense, it remains a fact that the shorter the dimensions, the stouter the structure, [ Bannack has two jails, both Hwre years old. One, the smallest and oldest, has two tiny barred windows. -40- Th �Norm Weis larger jail has a guard room and two cells. One cell is dark, iloree Lu the other has a 3 foot picture window barred with straight­ ened wagon wheel rims bolted to the logs. The nuts are on the inside, but much to a prisoner’s disappointment, the bolts are peened over. The doors are doubly layered and three inches thick. I V'ben Sheriff Plummer and his two crooked deputies. 'C'otv* Buck Stinson^and ,Ned Ray., were some time in their own jail. Igl- History is a bit unclear at this point, but it is probable that the three crooks were spared the night in jail and were hustled immediately to the gallows at the edge of town. When the sheriff's turn arrived, he begged for his life, but finally settled for one last request, '^^ive me a good drop,'^ said Sheriff Henry Plummer, and the Vigilantes obliged. And the number 3-7-77 mysteriously appeared on several buildings in town. ^olonel Charles A. Broadwater made his first fortune in Bannack in 1862. Later, he invested in other profitable ventures, including mines, stocks and short line railroads. / The Volonel had a dream, and in 1888 he had more --- "fli6u5Q.OCl than the $500W®) it would take to make that dream a fact. He envisioned a large sprawling two=story hotel, a largo covered -41- �ro-STORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis and a placid lake with boats floating serenely about. It would be a spa the size of a small city, and people from all over the country, perhaps the world, would vacation at ”Broadwater,**^4H / (^Jlis business advisers told him that the population in the area could not possibly support the endeavor. It would be a loser unless the J^olonel could bring a railroad into Helena, Montana. That should be easy, the /olonel figured, for he was a railroad man. ^JTbe complex was finished in 1899, complete with a two-story, two-block long hotel with two tall turrets, and hundreds of rooms. The entire length was fronted with second story balconies. The trim was oak, and the carpets were velvet plush. fatatorium was 100 300 feet, with circular win­ dows and^Moorish exterior, accessed through a vaulted doorway bracketed by two tall towers, each one topped with a thirty=xfoot A c I lightning rod. Inside, two waterfalls tumbled over rocky pre^ b ^ipices, one offering pure cold water, the other, warm mineral \ water. Steam radiators lined the sides, and potted plants gave atmosphere. Johnny Weismuller learned to swim in that pool, and his later fame would add to BroadwaterVs name, /olonel saw his dream completed, right down to the lake, the He died at the -42- �Norm Weis of fifty-two of influenza, three years af ter'\7America' s most famous health resor6^was completed. The trailt^ovd ■bb -ths s were kind^ for the spa caliea Ca(c}k}C.I Toadwater'^was to suffer many ills in the years that followed. ^_Floods wiped out the lake, the boats, and the trolley in 1925, and an earthquake caused severe damage to the ^otel and plunge in 1935. The plunge was tom down in 1946. { The undamaged portion of the hotel served as a gambling casino for a tim^ ^ther^after lying vacant for a number of years, it was auctioned off piece by piece, a window here, a cupola there, and an entire porch somewhere else. Remnants of its majesty now can be found sprinkled about the country as conversation pieces, playground structures, or front lawn gazebos. �Tlfo=S'^ORY OljjTHOUSE| ' Norm Weis I N G L~l IThe ^^seum at Helena, Montana was rich with in­ formation concerning old towns and deserted mining camps. The ^seum staff helped me make a list of those places that might have heavy snowfall and be candidates for two-story An old-timer overheard our conversation and outhouses. volunteered that I should check on Castle and Ashland. I added them to my list and revised the balance of my tour of the ^tate. (_My loop to the north of Helena was fruitless. I did, however, stumble upon an interesting example of the local humor. was under construction that would ^rtake a straight line where the old road took an curve �T^-sfoRY Ol/fTHOUSE^^ around a Norm Weis foot=high rocky promontory. The new grade aimed the middle of the promontory. Obviously a deep cut would be required. Some waj no mountain climbing experienc^had painted a broad dashed line from ground to top, then laboriously printed along side, the word \76uT ON DOTTED LINE.V stopped to photograph the scene, but found the light was wrong. My plan to take a shot on the way back was somehow foiled. I have often kicked myself for not camping on :^e spot and taking a photo in morning light. [ The route to Castle in West Central Montana took me through the nearly deserted town of Ringling. The name itself was enough to cause me to stop and inquire, but the two marvelous old churches had me scrambling for the cameras. Of the dozen or so ramshackle buildings in town, only two showed any sign of life the post office and the bar. The door to the bar was fully screened, but was six inches too short, leaving a wide gap at the top. of door and frame as I entered. I studied the mismatch The bartender looked up and said,\ykeeps the dogs and cats outSl^^ was his only customer, which made conversation easy. He knew a lot about the town and told me where to find old-timers thirt could fill in any gaps. �OpTHOUSE Norm Wei When the town moved a few miles to intercept the Milwaukee Railroad, it was called Dorsey.’’"^n 1900, when Mr. I 'thoa-S^LndJ ' Ringling, of circus fame, bougTrfSt^pOO ac res nearby / and hinted that he might make the town his headquarters, the town folk fell in line and renamed the place ^^Ringling. The population in town and the immediate vicinity at that time toppedsouls, many of them homesteaders from Iowa. [_^parently no one realized that a circus was on the road all summer, and would most logically make their winter quarters in some warm place like Sarasota, Florida. The circus did set up at the edge of town, most likely as a 6t -ho sort of dress reh^salj geL'Ljng ready for the summer tour. That happened twice, and each time the town grew a bit, ex­ pecting something permanent. There was the Ringling Market, with a Sir foot ramp to the second floor dance hall, a cement jail, a huge community hall, and two grand churches. I When the circus folk moved out, the town slowly died. Two fires in the thirties wiped out most of the homes Now the old decrepit bar is the bright spot in town. The sign behind the bar seemS e/ninently appropriate^—‘ \J^ECOMMENDED BY DRUNKEN HEINZ .V Llhe bank was torn down in 1969 because the owner '^^^st felt like it// and was tired of paying taxes on an empty building. �T^^stORY OUTHOUSE Norm Wei ^J^en the town forgot to pay ^ounty taxes on the Community ^all, some'^tranger^ sneaked in, bought the ^all for back taxes, and tried to take over the town. No one objected. (^The old Catholic j!?hurch has lost most of its shingles, right down to bare roofing boards in some places, The two chapels at the front are still used, but the main portion of the church, minus its windows, has become a spacious home for the resident flock of pigeons. l^e Congregational (j!hurch served as a school for a while, but for the past twenty years it has been unused and untended. the bartender knew little about the town of Castle, up the mountain, but he did point me toward an old-timer named Berg in another small town along the way. It was time t to leave ^Sf^naiy -- a second customer had wandered in/ and H the place was getting crowded. ^wald Berg, of Lennepe, Montana, was bom in 1891 in the town of Castle. He was two years old when the town folded, but it has been his hobby to gather infni-mat- ion on the now deserted town. When asked about a twC^story outhouse, he lit up and leaned forward to tell me about it. It was attached to the Castle Hotela catwalk from . second floor to the upper floor of the outhouse. �Norm Weis told of seeing the old hotel register, and jas' taken with the large flowery signatures/^nd the fact that everyone registered for each night in residence. He implied that the outhouses were seldom usedT^ wlt.t^'^he patrons preferrj^ chamber pots, known affectionately as ^<^hundermugsin their bedrooms. The rooms were heated, and the outhouses were not. ^^ologetically, Oswald told me that the out£^ house was gone, and probably the hotel with it. (J_drove on up to Castle, hoping that Oswald might be mistaken about the outhouse. He wasn’t. But the town itself still held an impressive number of old buildings, including an old brothel or two, recognizable by the small cribs made by dividing ordinary upstairs bedrooms. The town had a rather boring history, with only a few high spots to hold the reader's interest. The first silver and lead claims were filed in 1884, the most promising being the Cumberland. The town that sprang up was named for the rocky outcrops that stood like castle towers above the treeline i town reached a population of in the area. Shelby Dillard published '’’^e Whole Truth*^n ‘which he exaggerated the value of the claims, the profits of the mines, and the ebullient quality of the citizenry. �Norm Weis [It was a high^lass town, although it had seven brothels, which were never called by their baser names. of spending profits The Cumberland hauling ore to Helena, built their own smelter, only to find that it cost almost as much to haul charcoal in as it did to haul ore out. The Jawbone Railroad took a lot of talking to get it built)^ reached the outskirts of town in 1891, but k3 frequently suspended operations in the winter heavy drifts over the tracks. smelter exploded in 1892, and a year later the town collapsed when the silver market fell the repeal of the Sherman Act. [rhe population dwindled rapidly, but ^ditor Dillard, apparently believing all the great claims he had printed, hung on until his readership deserted him. finally, only two men remained in town. One winter, with heavy snow limiting their travels, they found themselves short of food. One of th^i^aa managed to walk off the mountain, returning a few days later laden with food, but in a state of exhaustion. His friend welcomed the gro­ ceries and offered him a cup of coffee. Soon the exhausted man left for his own cabin, a short distance away. He died before reaching it, and the population of the town was now �T^O*sfoS 01 Norm Weis ✓'ctn one. A newspaper in the area cscm the headline, of the Population of Castle Dies in Snowstorm.^/ My travels tbinngh Mi-miiL^-nn to rc^CLiiblb the ■wandp-ritigo o 1n.f- ORf the sites vie-itod} the lueiictoii uf su • ^"uet'eecea uiiiy CTlUyt5 '•CtiWLis that uffeied' unusual -ouLhuiig'gs^ .-.u- ♦-K-i __»- -..u-pu ■ ■__ 1____L uiic uuacr rravc ueeii LUinJuiued' �L^MDastV /^/^D ~*M»CO one euim>ji^i ^he Little Rocky Mountains of ^orth Central Mor tana spawned three mining towns in the 1880*^ and 18902^ Zortman is presently the most active, with about fifty souls, one bar, a cafe, an old jail, and a church. \!^What more would you want,'<!/remarked the bartender. Under slight urging, he continued with the recent highlights of life in Zortman. [2^^ few years ago,'A/the barman related, Xj^ne of the heavier drinkers fell asleep in an old Essex parked outside. His buddies painted all the windows black, and the poor guy^slept three days.W^ -50- �P=sfORY Oi/tHOUSE^S^ Norm Wei VH/hy, just last winter when I was tossing out the late drinkers, fixing on closing up for the night, in comes a bunch of guys lugging a Couldn’t hardly close up with that thing sticking out the door had to M stay open all night .\I/ / The late drinkers formed a tight group. In some ways they reminded me of Charlie RusseHS/s statement about drinkin'^ buddies: If you want to know^man, get him drunk and he'^1 tip his hand. If I like a man when I^ sober, I kin hardly keep from Wssing him when I'^ drunk. ways. when This goes both If I don'^t like a man sober, I don'^t want him in the same town when T^m drunk. (jJust west of Zortman a few miles, are the con­ siderable remains of the old Ruby Gulch Mine and town. More thanyi^25 million in gold was taken out of the ^ine, and old Swede, the caretaker, and also one of the men who painted the windows of the Essex black, claims that he took .4 million out by himself, but lost it all in the bar. [a massive trestle was required to reach the rich vein that outcropped high on a steep slope. The trestle �Norm Weis curves in to the mill and smelter, then becomes a road that is. in turn, the main street of the small town. ^The ^ine shut down in 1942 and the school closed its doors in 1949, but all the seats, the blackboards, even the ^J^ust outside of town on a sharp curve to the right, there is a sign reading,^0 foot drop to the left -- np cushion.5y^ It looked like some of SweddvXs handiwork ^andusky, a dozen miles or so southwest of Zortman, was a he11=raising sort of a town. It was the home of miners who illegally mined gold in the nearby Indian andusky, for whom the town was named, arrived in the area'in the 188Oj^s in the company of two hard cases on the run. Pike was immediately involved in a brawl with ordinarily friendly Indians. After shooting a squawXJl^y accident,'^ he suffered a gunshot wound to the body and one to the jaw, removing four teeth and part of the jaw­ bone. The recovery was slow and painful, causing a lifetime rage to set in,.finally causing his death a dozen years later. rothers came to the Little Rockies sometime later as homesteaders, and it wasriVt long before Pike had trouble with them. Pike returned a borrowed plow in a broken condition, claiming it was fractured before he �<T^sfcRY OI/tHOUSE borrowed it. Bad feelings developed, and ,later, when the Curry boys were suspected of rustling, now a lheriff, volunteered to escort them in chains to the near- est judge. On the way, he took the opportunity to get even by beating the boys rather badly. s were found innocent and returned with vengeance in mind. The Curry brother with the baby-face, now called^^id Curry,\/and possessing the hottest temper, led his gang to Jake Harri^^ Saloon in Landusky, looking to have it out with Pike. ^ike was tipping a drj^nk when the Kid slammed him on the back, then planted a fist on Pikd^ bad jaw when he turned. The Kid proceeded to beat Pike to a pulp, while his brothers held the audience at gui^point. Tiring, the Kid stepped back, and Pike, flat on the floor, drew his forty=five. It misfired. Kid Curry shot him dead. I The Kid skipped the country and joined up with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Kid came back in 1966. friends. They claim that the Some say he wanted to visit old Others claim he had money stashed nearby. That same rumor^is voiced in a dozen old towns throughout the dozen olds-timers had told me of a genuine two^»story outhouse in Ashland, Montana. One of them even �Norm Weis f o had a post-card picture^proof . Montana, was on my way home. **f^ last.”^ was gone! Ashland, in Southeastern I was saving the frosting Tom down just a few years before! My disappointment was tempered, however, for there was a marvelous old solid brick outhouse just a block away. It was a small version of the palatial two story brick house that stood in front. Both had fancy cornices, inlaid cross br/ck patterns, and identical roofs. I had often heard of a '■’^ick outhouse^^^^t in somewhat baser terms. I studied it, and indeed, faho»a <naf j|imii^■ i4y iwii .... ; . ? / .... K �ir^sjoRY OI^THOUSE Norm Weis :M'Wwe3oTA'y The difference between an antique and a piece of junk is often a matter of judgement, and our judgement depends upon our age and the age of the item in question. Let those miserable heaps of broken equipment -- tractors, combines. furniture/ and cars.reach an age of we consider them OT SO, and valuable. ^It seems that each generation looks back to an earlier time for reminders of a pleasant past. Il^^s a human trait, I guess, to remember the best and forget the rest. The OLD days, properly aged, become the GOOD OLD days, perhaps that explains my interest in outhouses. In my early years I helped my father build an outhouse behind a cabin on a small lake in ^orthern Minnesota. a particular sort and-we^ finicky about Dad was the design and placement of what he called the ’^athXJ^ He referred to our home^^de cabin as a ^Vwildemess r-- > �T^- S'/orF OI^THOUSE Norm Weis home with five rooms and a path.'v [ The little house had to match the construction of the cabin, right down to the miniature hip roof and log slabs that laced through each other at the corners, like a/ a "tht cfeep (^he outhouse had to open to the _east, and had to be placed so that the door would not face the cabin. The door had to swing in, which seriously limited the space inside, but Dad had his reasons. The lane from cabin to outhouse was nearly straight, with gentle curves to add class. Trees were planted on either side of the door to create a ^!^fetching entrance.'^ (^^nside, we built a multi-sided stool” instead of a simple plank seat. and on the ”stool”^we placed a genuine toilet seat and lid. A vent connected the stool assembly to the outside through an enclosedchutz that led to the roof. A sack of lime took up residence in the comer, with a long^ handled dipper hanging nearby ready to neutralize each deposit. Two small screened windows high on opposiji^ walls provided cross ventilation. The shape of those vents was the topic of family discussion. Moons? Stars? along with the family name of Perhaps an owl cut out to go Weis I have forgotten just what shape was finally used, since the discussion mired dexm when the difficulty of cutting intricate �Tlfo=sfoRY OlfTHOU Norm Weis patterns in the log siding became evident. ^^t’s not likely that my father ever read the little eighteen-page booklet written by Chic Sales/^ntitledj 'C4’he Speclalist.Xj/ This charming little essay, in bound form, sold over a million copies in dozens of countries. It de- tailed the thoughts of a man who specialized in building out­ houses. Although he makes no mention of the twO^story variety, he does present some very good ideas, most of which my father incorporated in his masterpiece as a matter of common sense. ^_For example, the ^ast facing door let one view the sunrise during the morning^s constitutional where the inward opening door was essential. and that's One could hold the door open with a foot, but quickly shut the door and hold it shut, should another customer arrive. with an out^swinging door. It would be awkward A person could find himself ex­ posed while leaning out the door, feeling for the handle. (jThe straight path was a matter of efficiency, es­ pecially for nocturnal use. As Chic put it, ^that ain't no time to be stumbling around on some winding path.X/ [jlhere were five youngsters in our family, and I was right in the middle, age wisj^-^^a spot reserved for the family idea man, often referred to as the black sheep or the hell^aiser. One of my milder ideas was to photograph family -57- �T}&O=S/ORY Oj^THOUSE Norm Weis members going to the outhouse, with a movie camera set on slow speed, then catching their exit on high speed setting. When projected, this showed everyone running to the outhouse ’ and sauntering back, which sort of proved Chic^ concerning the straightness of the path. idea We could have had a curved return path, and it would have been a great idea to run that path the woodpile, so two jobs could be done one trip. Q^he Specialist,'^ I learned many years later, had suggested this ploy, even to placing the woodpile beside the outhouse, claiming that a hired girl would bring in ten loads of kindling in one day more if she was the shy sort. It helped to put a return spring on the door so that the out­ house always appeared to be occupied. . I The only thing my father neglected/ that'^^he Specialist^J^recommended, was to ^^aint her two color and contrasty, since dark airi^t no time to be scouting around.X/ l^e always carried flashlights at night, but that was primarily to avoid skunks which abounded in the area. especially late in the summer, when garbage pits attracted the little varmints from miles around. ^^ne morning my younger sister, Jessica, returned from a quick visit to the little house out back/^n a rather agitated state. She claimed there were'^unny noises out -58- �T$0=sf0RY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis the re (^y brothers and I offered comfort and explanations. MZf^ow you've got to figure on funny noises in outhouses, Jess. It\^ one of the little entertainments provided by nature Jess huffed and gave us an imitation of the mysterious sound that was between a cough and a snort. \^ha6^4 normal,'^ we told her, and explained that it could be even louder if she altered her diet. When Jess got down to foot^stomping, we figured she was serious, and decided maybe we should have a look. Jess was right, for down in the pit, standing on a small mountain surrounded by a moat, was a very disconsolate skunk sneezing on the lime that covered his head and back, mak­ ing that strange sound just like Jess had imitated. We could see we had a problem that needed discussing. After long debate, we decided to shoot the skunk and make a I took careful aim while quick getaway in case of gas attack. holding the lid up with one hand and the door open with a foot. Jess stood in the doorway with the lime sack. dumped the lin^and ran out the door. I shot, Jess I dropped the lid, slammed the door and ran for cover. ^here wasn'^t a bit of stink. Word of my success spread along cabin row, and my services were sought out. I dis­ patched dozens of skunks from garbage pits and crawl spaces. fame spread throughout the county. I considered it a public My �Norm Wei ervice/ since some of the skunks were suspected of being rabid, ^J^en a store owner in the nearby town of Park Rapids asked me to take care of a skunk trapped in his window well, I quickly accepted the challenge, proud to demonstrate my talents. I promised the owner an odorless solution. I asked for a shovel, dug a hole out in the alley in which to bury the skunk, then placed the shovel handy in the window well. My client was impressed. I took careful aim at the spot that experience had shown would result in an instan­ taneous, no smell demise. A careful squeeze, and bang! The job was done, except that the ^ead^ skunkVs tail slowly rose, and he sprayed and sprayed and stunk and stunk! The proprietor gave me a dirty look that plainly reduced me to amateur status. I buried the skunk, and left the shovel too, buried to the handle, hoping my reputation might recover as the smell wore out and his customers returned. weeks. The smell was gone in two My reputation was gone forever. ^n uncle of mine used to brag of tipping ten crappers over during one Halloween night. My uncle, and most other folk, liked to use the term“^rapper^^but I always considered it a ctnc word with a blue tinge, ^acceptable in polite conversation. Such is not really the case. ^^_^ir Thomas Crapper was the inventor of a revolutionary valve that permitted a permanently installed bed^ot to allow its holdings to be washed down a sewer pipe. -60- His valve involved �T^o=sfo^ oiJthouse Norm Weis <5TIaJC a trap, or "S’? curve in the bowl to prevent odors from backing up the pipe, and another valve to shut the flow of flush water, and permit a refill of an overhead tank. called '^rappers These toilets were and it was as nice a word as'^an Dyke,'^ meaning a beard. ^ut '^c rapper^ had a naughty ring to it, and soon one of other variations of the word became common. those rare words that got smutty with use. Most words take on a milder everjT^day application with the passage of time. A word that would curl your hair forty years ago is now commonly on the tongue of the young and innocent. When the crapper came into common use, many older homes and hotels retrofitted their facilities. Usually an upstairs room was selected, and part of the floor elevated to allow room for the plumbing to be placed under the stool. This was much easier than tearing up the ceiling of the room below. That platform gave rise to the term ^throne,Xl/and the room became the\%hrone room,\y^a noble place to situate a crapper. -61- �Norm Weis. C dJL'cJEA DO Some of my best tips on two story outhouses came from skiers. It made sense. Where there was heavy snow, there should also be tall back houses. Several friends had suggested I visit Crested Butte, Colorado, insisting that a number of unusual outhouses were still in use in the town proper. The nearby ski resort was quite modem, but the re­ tired coal miners still living in Crested Butte still held to their old value^—^^uthouses included, according to on my helpful friends. ^^had high hopes of success as I drove south in- to the neighboring State of Colorado. My map study of the ^tate indicated a number of possibilities. Caribou, at an elevation of 9,905 feet^must certainly have had enough snow to spawn a double'^decker. Crested Butte had to be investi- gated, as did Lake City, where a strange case -62- �Tj^S'f’ORY OUTHOUSE 'Norm Wei of cannibalism had occurred. And there were other towns with lesser reputations worth a look, like Pearl, Colorado, just across the Wyoming border. resident remained in the little\>^host towAv^ of Pearl, the daughter of one of the earliest settlers, Nina wasn’t given to exaggeration, by the name of Nina Rhea. being more inclined to tell it the way it was. Het father. Cooke, was the leading hunting guide in the area spanning the times that Pearl grew and died. He was always suspicious of the mining that was supposedly done near town, considering it mo and blue=sk*5^ not much ore,being moved. A ^ina told of a money changs® pockets, aod to fancy steam engine that was hauled to one of the mines by a sixteenxhorse team, and how stock in the place rose abruptly, wheelsaid Nina. X/fiut the engine never tuned a ''yPearl was a boom-town that never even popped Supposedly copper, silver and gold were mined from the Zirkle and Wolverine Mines, and indeed, in 1900, prospects folk sprang up. looked so good that a town of There were two saloons, three hotels, and forty or so hoWes, but no tall outhouses. names of various creeks and mountains in the area carried the humorous stamp of old Cooke Rhea. -63- When a �Ty^=s;foRY Norm Weis ■r government cartographer asked Cooke the name of a certain creek, he ireplied, VDamfino,X/and so it was'<5<)amfino Creek'’^ officially. Whiskey Mountain was the name he gave to a nearby peak for its abundance of empty booze bottles left by a wealthy English hunter. And a creek of indefinite source became V^Conundrum Creek,a name certain to puzzle -—the greenhorn. �cJo ~ road to Caribou was steep, and three miles short of town the wind began to blow. By the time I reached 9,900 feet, the breeze had become a gale. The vehicle rocked and the trees whipped like grain. The old wooden buildings of town had taken on a list, and any tree with guts enough to grow in the open had a built-in lean. Rock wall remains of the old hotels were still vertical, but badly blasted by windbome sand and gravel. If any two-story outhouses had ever existed, they would have long since been battered and probably blown away. (_It was a hostile place, and no one in his right mind would live there, unless, that is, he had a heavy in­ terest in a mine that pumped out ore rich in silver. [Conger found the outcrop in 1869. With a partner named Martin, he explored the vein, and turned up ore that quickly attracted ^86 people to the little town. They named It ’carlbou,*^^or the big game ^probably elk^ that could be harvested nearby. -64- �(t^=S'/0RY Olfej Norm Weis ^eavy snows with the high winds caused such a hazard that school was held only in spring, summer, and fall. There was a three^month winter vacation. five foot drifts were common. Twenty= Miners returning from a short visit down the hill sometimes had to probe for their cabins with long cane poles. Hotel residents entered and exited through second floor windows. (in the summer there was lightning. Vicious bolts that slammed into th® town seeking the heavy iron deposits that rested just beneath the surface. (But it was a moral town. In 1881, the whores and gamblers were voted out of town, and Cardinal, the next town down the mountain, inherited them. [Two bad fires removed many of the wooden struc'tures of Caribou, and epidemics of diptheria and scarlet fever decimated the populations. in 1944. The last resident died �I <2-P Qa^tlaau.^ [Two hundred miles wes^/^at an altitude of 8,885 feet, lie the town and adjacent ski area of Crested Butte. S It is a place of contras^, town, retired coalminers live on minimal funds, wniie the slopes, ski buffs dine on gourmet food. Lear jets wheel overhead. while oldstimers tread the boardwalks. A 0^ Tired skiers loll in hot tubs at the ^is^resort, but in town �TwO=STORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis most homes lack sewer systems. Below the ski slope, an astronaut has built a fancy cabin with all the conveniences, while in town, a two^story outhouse is still in use at the Masonic ^all. ^_^fter I had a good look at the Masonic ^all masterpiece, I wandered leisurely about town, looking for other examples of early plumbing, The town hall, a beauti- ful structure from the front, had .a two^story outhouse attached to the bac^^—nearby , an old two=story saloon with twelve^foot ceilings, had a most unusual three-way outhouse accessible from the upper floor, main floor, and ground level. (Numerous houses had covered walkways leading from warm kitchens to cold outhouses -- far enough to prevent a H mix of odors, yet freely accessed in spite of heavy snows. ^ight or nine feet of snow on the level was common in Crested Butte, and one record year it exceeded twenty feet. Avalanches were common on the slopes above town, one wiping out the boarding house, superintendent’s house, and two sheds of an active coal mine. Several died, but one man rode the avalanche all the way down unharmed. (The Elk Mountain House, an early way station. had the ultimate outhouse. It is no longer standing, but -66- �fO^sfoRY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis the memory of the building is fresh in the minds of the longs: term residents. Each of the three floors had walkways lead­ ing to outhouses that dropped into a common pit. The seat of the upper outhouse was sixteen feet above ground level, and the pit was twelve feet deep for a clear ^and no doubt noisy^ drop of twenty—eight feetlX' Each outhouse also had storage space for stove wood, so that customers could do two jobs at once. The designer must have read'^he '**S^c list^by Chic Sales. (^The many covered walkways from house to outhouse fascinated me. I found one that seemed to be deserted. There was no paint on the house, the curtains were tattered, and the lawn untended. I entered an open doorway at the house end of the walkway and sauntered the dim length of the tunnel- like outhouse access. The outhouse was surprisingly clean, and still had a partial roll of paper standing by the seat. I returned to the house, considered trying the door, then decided in favor of photographing the exterior. ^On the third exposure, a shadow fell over the lens. I looked up, then looked up quite a bit higher to see a giant of a man glaring down at me with great hostility. He said '^ah/^/^nd walked into me, bumping me back while I racked my memory for a Swedish word or two. I tried "•*^nya tussen tuckwhich is Norsky for thanks much. He stopped, 4vo(vi 7 f �Norm Wei apparently unwilling to take advantage of a foreigner. I left quickly, thankful that I hadn't tried the back door of the house I had foolishly assumed deserted. (jThe town was presently being invaded by large numbers of free-living young people. late generation hippies. over this incursion. They might be called The town folk were split badly The young folk were moving into old buildings, occupying old mines, and were a general nuisance to most merchants, except those found they could make a buck off the newcomers. ^igns proclaiming '^o Shoes, No Shirts, No Service^were everywhere. And so were the dogs. It seemed that every newcomer had at least two dogs. One old=timer, A ’ when asked his opinion of hippies, said simply, VJt^ogs, dirt, town was polarized and the marshall could not please both groups. One of the towiiys two newspapers complained of -fen the new leash law; the other claimed the dog tags should be priced When criticized, he quit. hif^er. One irate woman said she would give any dog coming into her backyard a dose of buckshot and another to the doowner, given the chance. stock A local rancher claimed he was shooting two dogs a day to protect the �■fte old t-owCT of ^Crested Butte didn% deserve such controversy. It had always been a quiet place tucked away in the mountains, existing only to serve the mining industry. Originally it was a gold camp. Soon a smelter was built, and coal deposits were found nearby to fuel the smelter. The gold petered out, but the coal seams were thick, and soon the gold camp became a coal town. By 1880 there were 250 people in town, and two years later, the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company took over the mining operation, developing three anthracite and three bituminous mines. /a huge blast in the Jokerville Mine shaft killed fifty-eight miners in 1884, shortly after new^^safety venti­ lators^ had been installed. The Jokerville closed down, but remaining mines continued to serve the Fuel and Iron Company and the Denver and Rio Grande Railway until 1952, when the railroad switched to diesel“powered locomotives. (JThe population dropped abruptly; vR-th many cofl^miners retir^^^ on the spot. The town began to look like a ghost town " old, unpainted, ramshackle. [ But then the ski craze hit Colorado, and Crested Butte was one of the first sites selected by developers. The new business w^ welcome, and the town began to perk up and Thence long-haired element arrived, and threw the6L ' into controversy that only time UJi/f heal. 4 clean up. �Norm Weis a fascinating place to visit. -litriguing. feet up The Old gentlemen prop their pot-bellied stoves, while nearby, long-haired young folk speak of the advantages of singing to one'^ self and the therapy of X^hollering under your breath stopped by for one last visit to the two=story outhouse behind the Masonic ^all. It looked like it was built by a committee, with roof lines at odd angles, and a second floor door with no stairway. I took photos from all angles, finding that no single view could reveal its true function. (in the upper portion of the twoxstory outhouse there was a sigi]^-^'**^THING OVER EIGHT POUNDS MUST BE LOWERED BY ROPE.'**"'^^ ^/^lushed with success, I set out for a site that held little promise of tall outhouses, but promised a unique tale �LAre ci'ry southwestern Colorado,') a few miles north of the Slum^ullion Mud Slide. It’s a modest town of several hundred year-round QjT bootvi-S residents^ LliSt hnwc ^ach summer^with trout fishermen and each winter with snowmobilers. The town grew aly^ut a few gold and silver mines in 1874, but one year earlier, an event cjccuk/ccI that put Lake City on the map/before it/evan^existed. 7 �^_Alfred Packer was serving a sentence in a Salt:. Lake City jail on a charge of counterfeiting. He had voiced his knowledge of prospecting, and offered his services as guide to a number of Word got around, and soon five men pooled a kitty and bailed him out with the under­ standing that Packer would guide them into the Ouray area. It would cost the five men their lives, but they would become famous in the process. / Israel Swan, George Noon, Frank Miller, James n? / X — Humpha^^i®*, and Wilson Bell, led by Alfred Packer, wandered through what is now southwestern Colorado, looking for gold. In January, they visited Chief Ouray, a friendly Ute, who advised them not to head east. Snow deep, and traveling would be treacherous, but their intrepid guide^illf<?i' Packer was sure they could make it. ^n April, 4iS^^Packer showed up at an Indian ^ency seventy-five miles away. He told of losing contact with his charges in a blizzard, and nearly starving to death in the process of finding his way back to civilization. He bought drinks with money from several wallets. I / Hre looked suspiciously well-fed for a man who claimed to have been short of food. and backtracked his trail. The Indians were They found strips of flesh beside his tracks -- flesh that bore little resemblance �Cr^^SyORY O/^THOUSE^r^ Norm Weis -to wild game. Shortly, prospectors reported finding the bodies of five men,/with fractured skulls and great quan titles of flesh stripped from their bones. A search was mounted, but Packer had left the country. ^ine years later. Packer was apprehended in Wyoming. He had lived quite a normal life -- even served on the bench in Montana for a time. Lake City for trial. He was hustled to Lake City by this time had become ■FiOC, ( T'dg a bustling town of almost j and all^^^^S&O^ were anxious to see justice done to Colorado'^ only cannibal. ''id^rni {packer was tried for canr^balism and murder. He was found guilty and sentenced to hang by the neck until dead. The judge's exact words are lost in the legend that grew about the case, but they were no doubt similar to the many renditions, some poetic, that have sur­ vived. A poem by Stella Pavich states that the judge claimed 'Vlhere were seven democrats in the county, and you, you voracious son-of =a=bitch, you A^^®i^acker five of themlV^ claimed that Wilson Bell had killed the others after they had all lost their way and run out of food. He had no choice, he explained, and when Bell tried to kill and eat him, he only reacted in self=defense. A This argument brought him a new trial. He was found innocent and released, to become a recluse until his death in 1907. �T^S'/ORY O^THOUSE^7 Q Norm Weis [just south of Lake City, near Slumgullion Slide, at an elevation of 11,400 feet, there is a fenced-in grave^ site, and a plaque **cocmemorating’’^^the event. / (L> / At the University of Colorado, Boulder, students voted on a new nane for the grill in their Memorial Union building. With great humor. and by a large majority, they elected to call it the^J \i/alfred e. packer grill.xz' Of course, the sign over the door, either by mistake or by design, spells Packez^^s first name, ^i^ferd^ thus piling more confusion on a SB story already overloaded with discrepancies �ORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis {\J —------ -Losr -------- The route to the Black Hills passed close to several old Wyoming tovTns -th^^ I had always wanted to visit. None of them held great stories, but each had some sma11 claim to fame. , ^^ost Springs, aboutmiles east of Casper, has been nearly deserted for dozens of years. varies between two and seven. The population The country store still operates, catering to ranch folk in the area. The brick bank that occupied one comer of the only intersection in town has become famous throughout the ^tate. People would drive miles out of their way to be served through the teller’s window and observe the vault being used for liquor storage pj- sort of a secure back bar. (rhe deserted gym, at what is now called the Town Hall, was a classic. The ceilings were just slightly higher �<:^T^==S'j0RY O0THOUSe£^ Norm Weis •han the rims on the bang^boards/ and hanging lights limited the clearance even more. The lights were of the pressurized gas and mantle varietj^similar to Coleman lanterns. Basket^ bailers at Lost Springs were noted for their line drive shots, and the strange dodge to the side before shooting, in order to clear the chandeliers. An old story told of another small town basketball player not so far away would be appropriate to Lost Springs, since they played outside whenever possible, hlgher^ei 1 ings After winning a tournament in a fancy big city gym, the ace player of the team was being interviewed and was asked how he explained his phenomenal percentage of shots from beyond the free throw circle. He replied, VJ^ell, heck, there ain’t no wind in hereX/ / About thirty miles to the south of Lost Springs lies the long deserted company town of Sunrise, -So named be- cause the sun rose late each morning the east. the tall hills to Like many things, ^unrise seemed more precious the longer one had to wait for it. ^Copper was mined here first, but the veins ran out just as deposits of high grade iron ore ’^hematitejp were Shortly after the turn of the century, the (^600 Colorado Fuel and Iron Corporation was taking'SSShfS&O Lons discovered. per year out of the open pit mines. The iron ore, and the coal mined at Crested Butte, were mated in Pueblo, Colorado, structural atpeWinn.. the rpsiilifc— -75- �Norm Weis Z '' 1941, open pit mining was suspended in favor subsidence mining, where the lode is removed at the bottom I and the overburden permitted to collapse downward. mining was suspended and most of the residents moved to other towns to take other jobs. As a company policy, many of the buildings have been burned to eliminate liability problems and tax assessments. / That means the long sixty-five car garage will soon go. More than^©- feet long so long it has to bend to match the curve of the road fronting it -- it is truly one building under one long, leaky roof. garage in the world. Ripley called it the longest Even more unusual is its location in Wyoming, one of the least populated states in the Union. Just north of Newcastle, at the eastern border of Vtyoming, the remains of a large, long-deserted coal town are 4 sprinkled along a narrow carbon-stained valley. It was named Cambria and it was quite a going concern. But now there is hardly enough left to make a picture. wanted to visit the town and its suburb just west on the high flats, for an odd reason. The suburb was called Antelope City, and they had a baseball team named the ViNeversweats I had always thought that gamesmanship was a recent innovation, but the name'^I’^Jeversweats'^ won^^ indicat^ that the coal-miners of 1900 knew all about it. <- -76- �ST^ORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis With a name like V/f^eversweats ,\I/ the opposition is intimidated even before the game starts without working up a sweat. / a/aric'ecJ ^f> L_had you ahearen tee sweat! and even if you lose, you lost Think what you could have done �C_ 1 co6> llLACiC /^/?Ez» ^^etailed maps of the Black Hills area revealed '' /a number of small towns worth looking into. Some were well / known, like Keystone and Rockford, others seemed to /juf, known even to the natives. ^Cascade Springs is a most unusual place. Only ten miles south of Hot Springs on what was once a main high­ way, it now stands completely deserted. Four buildings still remain on what was once the main thoroughfare. On the north side, a^T^^ld/beautifthree-story rock hotel standstall brush. On the south side of the road, all in a row, are the two-story ^io/7^ bank, the brick Fargo Office, and a ramshackle old wooden building leaning against a prop. And built on to the back of that building is a bowling alley! A bowling alley in a ghost town! haps I have lived too long/ Per­ The town dates from 1888, when a promoter named Allen heard that a railroad was to pass by his favorite spring. He gathered investors and built a small version of the hot springs spas to the north. But alas, the rail- road bypassed Cascade Springs, gracing the town of Edgemont instead. �Norm Weis ^_A^the extreme wes^y edge of the Black Hills, < amid dense stands of tall pines, lies a relatively modem \^arpape:^v^ghost town called Tinton. Traveling west from Lead, South Dakota, following a topographic map, I was sur­ prised at the lack of any kind of road signs at the many dirt road intersections. I stopped at a cabin to check my route. and was informed that Tinton was yet a dozen miles away, and was indeed deserted, but had lately become the hangout for a full grown mountain lion. an old mine shack appeared, then a head frame house clinging to a hillside above a small lake. A badly bent sign held the log^^-'-^'^^ansteele Met^urgical Co.\/ Shortly, I passed by the edge of town, but continued to explore the buildings beyond. Two ball mills stood with flapping rusted metal sheeting. vertical beam. One had stamped in a There was a sign on another mine building— 'Dakota Tin and Gold Co and the number ^8^1939 which I assumed meant that August, 1939 was the date of construction. Back in town, I noticed an old deserted car of unfamiliar contour. a DeSoto, causing tion. The name plate showed it to speculate on the date of its deser­ It probably gave up the ghost some two dozen years ear//er, putting the lif^ of Tinton somewhere in the vicinity of 1939 to 1950. -78- �T^0-S2?0RY OUTHOUSE Norm Wei I followed the two - lane roadAtfaat wanderjrf buildings standing in good order p-the through -aaWl and surprisingly intact. Most of the residences were covered with red tarpaper, but underneath they were much more sub­ stantial than mere shacks. The large community hall was of standard wood construction, but many of its windows were broken out, boarded over, or replaced with chicken wire. In one place, the wire had been breached, and I crawled though. It was one big room, with a stage at one end, and a ban^oard made from an old bam door. In the comer was a pile of news3 papers, twigs and old clothing. Then I remembered the warning about the mountain mouse nest. lion. It looked like a king-size With all deliberate haste I returned to the opening in the window. The sudden screech that accelerated my passage through the chicken wire turned out to be a metal sign blowing against a steel post! 1 There were tracks, however -- big pug marks that I traced and later identified as those of a puma, or mountain lion. I nosed about the remainder of the town with great care, peering into each building before entering. Nine of the residences were identical, indicating that this was pro­ bably a company town. Several more imposing homes no doubt went to the owners and bosses. ^There were more pug marks around the little white schoolhouse. I settled for a photo of the exterior. -79t �sa means ^^eautifuh^ little town at the eastern edge of the Black Hills is indeed that. At one time more than a thousand folk lived in the quiet tree-shaded town. Now there had to be a party to one hundred. I^Once called the Battle River Stage later became a rough-and-tumble gambling town, Station During its C wilder period, it is reported that a foreigner with ^larly annoying personality frequently visited the local bar. After one long evening of suffering under the manVs constant bragging, the locals plotted a rebuttal. I The next morning, the pestiferous one stepped out of his boarding house and walked to the outhouse. With care, loyal residents of Hermosa estimated the time it would take the man to declothe and settle into position. Then, CL a lariat was thrown around the outhouse and tied to the pommel of a With a whoop, the horse took off. He was t^Aveling full tilt when the slack took up and jerked the outhouse clean off its underpinnings, leaving one surprised foreigner caught with his pants down. ^ochford, buried deep in the middle of the Black Hills, is typical of matafcsasHfefae old towns that suddenly grew around precious metal deposits wban the area was y^^^opei^d to the whitman. 80 �Norm Weis Anna D. Tailant journeyed to the Black Hills in 1874 with a party of thirty men, when it was still ites pass on the sacred Indian land. They built a stockade and prospected until the ^rmy kicked themz— out Anna returned in 1877 and helped establish■the little town of Rochford. She was schoolteacher and post- mistress until the town faded, less than ten years later. I Although there are no fascinating outhouses, i’t there are a number of classic^ worth a visit. The old jail. low-ceilinged and windowless, remains as originally built. lined with quarter^inch steel plate. A number of boardwalks front buildings on Main Street, some with trap doors leading to basements under th«e stores and shops. The Standby Mine and Mill stands by at the east edge of town, an imposing structure of uncertain strength. as it weathers. It gathers character �lle few miles to the south, next to the old Alta l.odi Mine, stand the remains of the little town of Myersville, sometimes called Myers City. The town is of little note, and would not be mentioned here if I hadn'^t stumbled upon a fascinating old book in the attic of e’zt 3 h6rne> It was .titled; — /> I EVERYBODY^'/S GUIDE; ox THINGS WORTH KNOWING by: R. Moore �THOUSE and was &opywrited in New York in 1884. Norm Weis I spent the entire afternoon reading that book, amazed at what was known in 1884, and even more amazed at what was claimed to be fact concerning r//// not: u>A. ^The book starts with recipes, including a dandy for a bread claimed to cure indigestion; PE PS IA BREAD.-*- The following receipt for making bread has proved nighly salutary to persons afflicted with dyspepsia, vis;-j^3 quarts unbolted wheat meal; 1 quart soft water, warm but not hot; 1 gill of fresh yeaS"^; 1 gill molasses, or not, as may suit the taste; 1 teaspoonful of saleratus.”—*— ---------- In the farmer^ receipts chapter, this little g save a favorite horse: TO CURE BROKEN LEGS.77-Instead of summarily shooting the horse, in the greyer number of fSctures it is only nece of a broad piece of sail, or other strong cloth placed under the animal’s belly, furnished with 2 breechings and 2 breast girths, and by means of ropes and pulleys attached to a cross beam above, he is elevated, or lowered, as may be required. By the adoption of this plan every facility is allowed for -There was much more, including a method of curing a balky horse by spinning him about, and a method of doubling the quantity of manure from a given animal! ~/ln the 2^edical Apartment, we have: '^LES FOR ACTION, VERY SHORT BUT VERY SAFE. In health and disease endeavor always to live on the sunny ---- side. Sir James Wylie, late physician to the EmpCror of Russia, remarked during long observation in the hospitals of that country, that the cases of death occurring in rooms averted from the light of the sun, were four times more numerous than the fatal cases 7 �C^T^S^ORY O0THOUSE^ in the rooms exposed to the direct action of the solar rays. When poison is swallowed, a good off-hand remedy is to mix salt and mustard, 1 heaped teaspoonful of each, in a glass of water and drink immediately. It is quick in its operation. Then give the whites of 2 eggs in a cup of coffee, or the eggs alone if coffee cannot be had. For acid poisons give acids. In cases of opium poisoning, give strong coffee and keep moving. For light burns or scalds, dip the part in cold water or in flour, if the skin is destroyed, cover with varnish. If you fall into the water, float on the back, with the nose and mouth project­ ing. For apoplexy, raise the head and body; for fainting, lay the person flat. Suck poisoned wounds, unless your mouth is sore. Enlarge the wound, or better cut out the part without delay, cauterize it with caustic, the end of a vein is cut, compress below. If choked, get upon all fours and cough. Before passing through smoke take a full breath, stoop low, then go ahead; but if you fear carbonic acid gas, walk erect and be careS ful. Smother a fire with blankets or carpets; water tends to spread burning oil and increase the danger. Remove dust from the eyes by dashing water into them, and avoid rubbing. Remove cinders, with a softj smooth wooden point. Preserve health and avoid catch­ ing^ cold by regular diet, healthy food and cleanliness. ^CURE FOR DRUNKENNESS.yi-U^rranted a certain Remedy. Confine the patient to nis room, furnish him with his favorite liquor of discretion, diluted with 2/3 of water, as much wine, beer, coffee and tea as he desires^ but containing 1/8 of .spirit; all the food-^the bread, meat and vegetables steeped in spirit anci water. On the fifth day of this treat­ ment he has an extreme disgust for spirit, being continually drunk. Keep up this treatment till he no longer desires to eat or drink, and the cure is certain. ^URE FOR LOCK JAW, SAID TO BE POSITIVE-jj-Let any one who has an attack of lock jaw take a sma^ll all quantity of ^irits of turpentine, warm it, and pour it on the wound no matter where the wound is, or what its nature is and relief will follow in less than one minute. Turpentine is also a sovereign remedy /d /O0S �O^HOUSE^ for croup. Saturate a piece of flannel with it, and place the flannel on the throat and chestj^and in very severe cases three to five drops on a lump of sugar may be taken internally.” ~ ------ And fcfej dandy cure that -io po Retails on the method of unstated. T-fcg Qotiian. s are Obviously one must follow the goose about with an empty tin and wait for a propitious moment. CERTAIN CURE FOR CROUP.^Goose oil and urine equal parts. Dose 1 teaspoonful. A certain cure if taken £aTso, _t^s about speech impediments and sleep: Stammering.-jjjimpediments in the speech may be cured, where there is no malformation of the organs of arti­ culation, by p^^everance, for three or four months, in the simple remedy of reading aloud, with the teeth closed, for at least 2 hours each day.”— ^^^^^cessary Rules FOR SLEEP, There is no fact more clearly established in the ^ysiology of man than this, that the brain expends its energies and it­ self during the hours of wakefulness and that these are recuperated during sleep. If the recuperation does not equal the expenditure, the brain withers; this is insanity.... .**•—— .n the ^hapter on Mjseful Hints to Grocers CHEAP VINEGAR.-^Mix 25 gals, of warm rain water, with 4 gal., molasses and 1 gal. yeast, and let it ferment; you will soon have the best of vine­ gar; keep adding these articles in these propor­ tions as the stock is sold.**— *^HERKINS.--Take small cucumbers 4not young)^ steep for a week in very strong brine; it is then poured off, heated to the boiling point and again pour on the fruit. The next day the // �fO^sfoRY O^HOUSE Norm Weis ■gherkins are strained on a sieve, wiped dry, put into bottles or jars, with some spice, gin^^>7 pepper, or cayenne, and at once covered with strong [we are also told hofo* to make butter and place it in a tub or firkin. It occurred to me that if one stores his pickles in a butter tub, he would have a firkin of gherkins! ^here w^s more, a great deal mor^in that book. Hints oh curing damp walls, keeping meat fresh by soaking in buttermilk, how to stain glass, sharpen saws, lay rock, make paint, and repair watches. a better man for having read it! �Norm Weis p£xi''f' V/ "Tessas Pat Day used to be a good and trusted friend, right Up until he gave me the champion of all bum steers. ^^t frequently drove from Midland, Texas to Casper, Wyoming as a representative of an explosives firm. , On each trip, he drove past a strange old building that he felt certain was a genuine two=^story outhouse. His cer­ tainty was no doubt colored by his desire to have my wife and me visit his family in brand new home. A few years ago, shortly after Christmas, we weakened, and set out by car for the vast wasteland called Texas. It took two days,/ and W^^iles of driving to reach Dalhart, Texas, near the site of the oft-mentioned two-story outhouse. -rd- �Norm Weis to the right amid a solid blanket of foot-deep snow. A small staircase led to a substandard size^/^^oor. My hopes evaporated as I stooped to enter. The place was bare except for a shoulder-high rectangular opening and a sheet of one-eighth-inch=thick steel against one wall. Pat Day’s two=-story outhouse was an old deserted skeet house! jcourse I photographed it, figuring on using it as ammunition to tone down Patrick should he wax too eloquently in the future. He was properly embarrassed, apologetic, and full of southern hospitality during our brief stay with the Day family. ^n an attempt to salvage the effort of traveling the considerable distance, we traveled on to the Big Bend ^untry of Texas, in search of a bit of history perhaps an interesting outhouse or two. ^Eighty miles or so east of Presidio, near on the small settlement of Lajitas, the edge of a relatively flat plain, stand the remains of the adobe and tin town of Terlingua. Some history buffs claim means three forks;^ —‘Others lean toward'^hree languages^?feng 1 ish7~SpQi^ ish, and probably a local Indian tongu^. �Norm Weis Til'IiltfXy Indians^ found a strange orange rock that turned almost red when moistened, and occasionally.^sasfe' dripped a silvery liquid. It was considered of little value until 1884, when Juan Acosta had it assayed and found it was a very high grade mercury ore called cinnabar. / A number of small operations started up, but remained relatively unimportant until Howard E. Perry entered the picture. Start. Perry was greatly disliked from the He paid workers $14.50 per week, deducted $12.50 prT'^^^k for store accounts and medical expenses. Jltercury vapor, present in huge quantities from the roasting of cinnabar, was breathed freely, causing heavy salivation and loss of teeth. would be learned that it also caused Fifty years later it brain damage, particularly in the young. I^rry built a company town, then rented homes, store space, and even the school to the citizens of Ter­ lingua. Of the seventy-five adobe buildings, the store brought the best fe^jJthe school c^MMAg in second at per year. l_ln 1906 he built a mansion in Terlingua, and lived the life of a king. he ran with a heavy hand. -fiUe King of the mercury mines which During the 1920’^his production -fUouScod peaked at 5^000 flasks a year at $4(7-QO a flas^ but his kingdom evaporated in 1944 when his tax problems and —-> �Norm Weis bookkeeping irregularities caught up with him. He died dur­ ing his trial that year, and the various mines and buildings in town were auctioned off at a bankruptcy sale. ^o Texans, Terlingua might look quite ordinary, but adobe schools, adobe houses, and especially adobe outC houses fascinated me. The one near the school was a classic, with double^stall sections each for boys and for girls. [Mine No. 245, a few miles east of Terlingua, held a number of old buildings with two-=-foot-thick r<?c^ £da.fls /I K J f: ana a head frame shaft. stoodJ over a deep, unprotected A rocl^Adropped from the top, bottomed in eight seconds, indicating a depth of nearly ^J^he Rio Grande Swi^r'^ound feet. serpentine course a scant twenty miles to the south. It was surprisingly narrow, shallow, and easily waded. We saw no indication of massive immigration. in spite of the total lack of fences or warning signs. Two mule pack trains approached us from the Mexican side, then detoured at the sight of our cameras, giving us pause to think, and to click with care. ^{_Oyer eggs ranchero the next morning, I read in the paper of Senator Proxmire's latest Golden Fleece Award. The United States Department of Energy received ue. do y distinction for spending to build a du outhouse with a southern exposure. dubious It was designed, the 'om �Norm Weis department said, '^to put you in the mood for meditation^/ and in proper '^govemmenteze/^it was officially described as an\?^bove Ground Aerobic and Solar Assisted Composting ToiletX/ Of the 257 proposals, this was the winner! 6 �ro*! , Norm Weis VI ------ -Some years ago, I made a old ^otel ^ar in Oatman, Arizona, fooj of myself in the The place was full of signs designed to amuse the reader or to embarrass the unwary. One sigr^^^?^eading \^or Sale Cheap, One Henway looked a bit fishy, so I sipped my beer and waited. Finally another outsider weakened and asked,'^What’s a Henwayand the bar£ tender replied, ^J^bout two pounds. ^^eeling smug, I inquired about another sign that said VAsR about a free ring.Xj/ Next to the sign was a box of rings. The bartender asked if I wanted a free ring, and I replied in the affirmative, only to have him reach over and yank a loud bell, advertising the baptism of yet another greenhorn! |_^0n that same trip, I had noted a large photograph of a twocLStory outhouse, and now that such structures had '—* �Norm Weis become my speciality, another trip to the old town of Oat- And while I was in the area, there were some other sites in Arizona and Nevada that might prove interesting. In 1918, Oatman had dozens of active mines, and a population neat~133fflSr The Americana Mine became the largest producer of gold and silver, and when it shut down in 1942, disaster struck the little town. Americana tore the. down its mill, its hotel,^Honolulu Club, and dance hall. [ Anna Eder, who owned much of the remaining town, could no longer find prospectors willing to go shares for a Her stores went unrented, and her whorehouses grubstrake. were in little demand. She died penniless. y 1 [ Now the town has few year-^ound residents, and caters to tourists, especially in the winter. with a flair. But this is a town One store claims it isS^X)^^ S|5n H / A cafe advertises 'CRagged Ass. Miners Steakwith the period after the '^as^'^ making it perfectly clear that it is an association rather than a portion of the anatomy. Wild burros enter town each afternoon. One year^ round resident claimed the number of burros rivals the population at times, then added, '^up, the jackasses pert near out-_^ number the jackassesXX �OjfrHOUSE^^ Norm Weis /The burros are relatively tame, inclined only to fingers when the handouts slacken, or to Imperil life and limb during the not infrequent fights. BlaclQ?ack and Whitey are in a constant battle for herd leadership, and frequently scatter tourists right and left as one chases the other down Main Street and off into the hills. On one such occasion. Blackjack wandered back with a cut under one eye, and half an hour later. Whitey sneaked in from the other direction, with a chunk taken out of his rump. [rhe photograph of the : two-story outhouse was still hanging in the old hotel. its frame to see side. I studied it, even removed it from a location mighu bt written on the flip The owner of the building had no idea where the outhouse might have been built, or even where the photograph had come from. There was nothing to do but buy a sack of popcorn and feed the burros and think about traveling on. �+ V u rJE'\/AOz^ Cold l^old Point, population eight, stands on a slight rise surrounded by dusty flats in ^outh ^entral Nevada. Once a silver mining community, it now sees only the odd visitor. j By the old gas station, a sign reads 'filtered Gasoleneand behind one residence was an outhouse that made the trip worthwhile. At first it seemed to be made of con­ crete blocks, but on close approach, these blocks turned out to be empty explosive boxes that once held dynamite. Quite �T^O-S'^'ORY ofaHOUS^ Norm Weis appropriate, I thought, and so did the operator of a nearby country store. He told me the old story, with new gestures, about the returning serviceman came back to his small town with a pocketful^^of back pay and a few souvenirs, like a live hand grenade or two. He was determined to rid the old home of the unsightly outhouse, but failed to realize grampa was in the outhouse when he pulled the pin and dropped the grenade through the crescent-shaped ventilator. went in a thousand pieces and a cloud of dust. Up she But there, staggering out of the dust and debris, came grampa. He stopped, looked back, scratched his head, and drawled,'^oy, I'm sure glad I didn't do that in the houseiV" �Goldfield, forty miles north of Gold Point, was a wild place in the early 1900*s. The town held ^,0^0 people, do| had five newspapers, three railroads, <^6 whorehouses, and saloons ’ twenty-five to the block. Gold was pouring from the ground, and high-grading paid better than wages. / ^^igh-grading became a way of life, or at least a way to the ^^g^d life.***^Miners had special pockets sewn into their co^ralls, and wore shoes with hollow heels and soles. Even pic^andles were hollowed out and cleverly plugged. Mine owners, figuring half of the best ore was walking out of the mines, insisted on building change houses so that no clothing -94- �T)fr0=sfaRY OUTHOUSE tools would leave the premises. The miners'^ union fought the move, and eventually Federal Troops were called in to cool things down. I By 1918, the veins were running thin, causing the big operator. Goldfield Consolidated, to close down. town lost half of its population. The Tex Rickard closed up his saloon and hung a sign on the door, 'Odod has gone to Rawhide.^ Zn 1923, a whiskey still blew up and much of the town burned, with the help of a fifty=mile=^per-hour wind. ^^harlie Cecchini was the ranking old-timer in Goldfield. He had lived there for sixty=bne years when we visited a few years ago. a great storyteller. and he^l crinkle He is a delightful old fellow, and Give him a chance to light his pipe, his eyes, take a breath, and tell it straight out. The fire in 1923 burned him out, and he had to buy another house. Things were cheapv since most of the popu- lation had moved out, so Charlie got his new house for down and $20-^60 a month until the entire purchase price of -Six d<5|le<ZS ■ $80;Q6 was paid off. He was earning a day mining for the Spearhead Mine. Later he worked for other mines, was constable, and for awhile worked as a railroad engineer. It was during that time that a fellow engineer drove his train through a house. �Norm Weis ^^is story called for a new fill of tobacco and three kitchen matches to get it fired properly. Talking through clenched teeth, and with an "old country*^accent, Charlie began his story. the engineer of a long train about miles outa here, near the town of Mina. on a sidetrack. Had about 150 cars Goldfield said they would send help, another engine, and two guys to help me out. 3:30 _A.M. wi They came puffing in at banging all Over the engine, and parts of a porch stuck on the headlight. It seems the two guys fell asleep on the way and didn^ wake up ^^il they ran through the house. The house had been moved to a spot by the tracks, ready to be loaded and relocated. Seems the wind blew the house onto the tracks, just in time for the engine to smack it dead center.W [c^rlie struck another match and continued. V%he engineer lost his leg when lumber flew through the cab. And lost his job when the boss caught up with him?^ ^Charlie Cecchini must be pushing eighty by now. I hope he is still puffing away and telling those grand S stories through clenched teeth. �GPaazTS ViLLfc XOAJE^ - (^mewhere north of Tonopah and east of the highway, an old road winds its way to three little ghost towns. Berlin, and Grantsville. Ione had an old log building Ione, with r-s �Txfo-stORY O/JTHOUSE^^ Norm Weis a fine sod roof that sprouted a tall crop of shady greenery. Just south, the remains of the old Berlin Mill were now sur­ rounded by the grounds of Ichthyosaur State Park. / Grantsville, the only town of the three that captured —5— S' my attention, was qiiifr^ obviously named after General,Grant. It A was located at the head of Grailsville Canyon, with Grantsville Ridge on one side and S^rman Hill on the other. The town’s sympathies were blatantin</ few rebel sympathizers ever ad­ mitted their preference. fAn old mill, a blown safe, a brick school, and a nui^er of shacks sat of town. the west sod- rooMrock house and ones half of an adobe outhouse made up I A the remainder of what was once the largest town in the area. .^he air rock residence had stood for more than -US o- years, to its stout construction. The roof ridge was a -i-bJeloe. timber, as was the rather unnecessary center pole. ' (2.3 The little adobe outhouse was of equal strength,^ evidenced by the fact that it still stood firm^P^-t despite the loss by vandalism of two of its walls. The roof was intact, extending outward in cantilever fashion, and extend- Ing three feet above the roof, the cesspool ventilator still delivered untoward odors to the passing breeze. UiSif. ^^ost towns when an oldrtimer still sits in residence. cinating. can be fas- when two bachelor brothers hold down the remains, it can be hilarious. J. , I Tfoeloe — bt -A �THOUSE Norm Weis ^uch was the case several hundred miles northeast of Reno, near the Rye Patch Reservoir, where Bill and Tom James guard the history of Humbolt Town and Humbolt House.) ■ ■ ■ -- —— ---were seventy and seventy-four years ^f mgr when I visited them a few years ago, but spry as fifty, and as full of the devil as a pair of teenagers. ^When I first asked their names, they answered 3^ and^'m 1%. - Tom James. in turn, T. Their formality belied their sincere hospitality. They loved history^ijaa^^njoyed recounting stories, and had pat answers for the most obvious questions. are no relation to the James boys -- Jesse and I--the gang, but our grandfather once provided a hideout for [ As to the old town of Humbolt, they had no first' hand information, but talked to Charlie Owens, the first resident of Humbolt, and could tell me what Charlie had said. Bill led off. ^sjbld Charlie was eighty in 1920. the town a highly tooted place. He always called They mined silver there -- began in 1860, when Charlie was sixteen, then got to be a real town in Tom listened carefully, and lent support with a nod of the head. ere was more than a hundred buildings up there long oner's still there -- the old Wells-^Fargo Bank -- but K -98- �T^=sf0RY OjStHOU^ Norm Weis harlie says fifteen of^/em was whorehouses, three saloons^ Said there was ( I asked if there were aMy churches or schools. Tom shook his head as Bill continued. V€harlie never ^/Course he was pretty old^^ mentioned any. ^Bill paused, thinking, then cracked a broad grin and told about the famous gunfight the way old Charlie had told it to him. (j^hree guys in the saloon was arguing, and they got kinda mad about it. They all had cap and ball Colts in their belts, and pretty soon their hands were edgi^ toward the handles. Everyone but the three angry guys hit the deck or ran outsideSZ Bilf^ eyes started sparkling as he recalled the good part of the story. harlie says one man went right over the top of d him, goddam sunabitch, he wasn'^t just a running, he was flyiniXk' / Now Bill'^ voice lias gone up a notch, and Tom is leaning forward as if he had never heard the story before. I^^lam, Blam, Blam ” and then it went awful quiet! The room was full of smoke from the black powder, but when it cleared, here come more bystanders, crawlin out, and inside, all three of those guys was deadiXy |The James boys keep a neat house and yard, although the yard is full of remnants of their considerable past. r �Norm weis ■ho An old grease rack was builtservice their 1915 Ford truck that they bought in 1938 for five bucks. When it broke down, they tore out the engine and the sawmill ax' that stands off to the side. They owned a ntamber of Modelpl'^s apparently storing the old ones as they bought new ones. , Recently, they sold the old wrecks off. VXSot . , for the last one^V^ says Bill. fAn old wooden propeller, bolted to one of the out buildings raised my curiosity. Bill was pleased I had noticed ^J^rom a Dehaviland J^il /lane. Used to come over ( here before we built the place -- started in 1919, always flew M two-wingers. Wouldn't trust those single'^v/ingersTom silently agreed, then pointed north as Bill continued. e a schoolhouse up north aways. Mail lavilands would come down and fly low right over the school. Kids would all flood out and wave. r. the pilots was killed in a crash, and another pilot/ — H I guess it was his friend, flew over to drop a wreath, and he crashed tocC!^^ A few years after my visit with the James boys. I flew my newly completed red and white biplane down the right * �side of the railroad track on my way to the Reno National Air Races. I roared over the James boys''^^place, then circled about and waved from the open cockpit. Down below, two figures stepped out of the house and waved back. _ ___________________________________ ___________ /( �Norm Weis If a twoxstory outhouse existed in California, it would probably be high up at the head waters of some gold- bearing creek. I traveled up the Trinity, down the Trinity, up the Klamath, the Salmon, and numerous small streams^where- There were countless small towns •^2 with neither spectacular outhouses memorable stories. I'm ever a road granted access. not even sure I could find the towns again. Places like Calahan and Cecilville fade into obscurity, but Johnsville was memo­ rable . /Once called Jamison, the town of Johnsville, now protected by the boundaries of Plumas Eureka State Park, lies ninety miles as the crow flies north. and a bit east of Sacrament<^ Cnlifornia to 1890, Johnsville was a �O0THOui^ CNorm wZia:; noted gold mining town, but as the ore pinched out, recrea­ tional skiing took its place. In fact, skiing, called snow' shoeing at the time, became popular in 1869, causing most historians to consider the slopes along Jamison Creek to be the birthplace of recreational skiing^ 1^ • J^acer gold was found in the creek in 1850, but soon after, prospectors found the hard rock mother lodes on the slopes above. During the next twenty years, numerous min­ ing operations were developed, capitalized, sold, and resold. None seem^i^ have been operated efficiently. In 1872, English interests bought up most of the mines and created an order^, money=making operation. The superintendent of operations was named William Johns, so the new town, built to replace .Tami snn Town, took~thc tibtie of Johnsville. f ^^t the peak of operations, the largest mill ran / sixty stamps, processing 150 tons of ore per day, from which / in bullion was claimed <V<rM r '---- - \ Also, three^hile^or'^hi 11/wheels ground lesser amounts of ore. Each **^eel”"^as a pair of nine-foot^iameter, two=footsthick granite rollers that wheeled about like two unicyclistsV arms locked, peddling in opposite directions. ^now fell seven months of the year, and to deliver ore, snow sheds were constructed over ore car tracks, or tramways were built to connect mine and mill. Perhaps it was the 2 �TWO=S Norm Weis resence of the tramways that brought about the popularity of snowshoeing. Miners could sling their twelve«-foot'^hoes^ . A over their shoulders and hitch a ride up the hill on one of the three tramways, then ski down and do it again. Two of Ti'ffeftO heuodwee# the tramways were more than feet long. ^^^_^creational enthusiasts once claimed fights were the most popular endeavor, followed by women, then fights over women, jumping, foot races, and snowshoeing. But after the tr^ms were built, the preference was reversed. /In 1869, flyers advertisedY'Four Days of Snowshoe Races, and a Grand Ball on St. Patricl^ Night" ^That was only the beginning. In 1871, a reporter described the races, as later published in the Plumas County Hi^orical SocietyV^\ytlumas Memories.V/ 2^2’77**!^ event was a snow-shoe race of three miles, for a purse of two hundred dollars, the contestants being four of our citizens, viz: Mr. Chris Kennan, wearing of the gree^ Mr. Frank Surratt, with scarlet colors, against Mr. Louis Christopher, with crimson, and Mr. Chase; Hanson, in blue, the citizens making a purse in addition,' of fifty dollars, to be given to the second man in,7^^^Ji_ -X..”At^he signal all started in fine style, Kennan and Surratt gaining rapidly for about a thousand yards, when Surratt, in passing a tree, broke a shoe and came down, Ke^an running upon him and also coming down, with a ^noe broken. Hanson added his body to the pyramid, but was soon on his shoes again, while Christopher steer­ ed c/e<ir, and for a moment had the race all to himself; but Hanson soon came up to him upon a steep pitch, and the two came between the poles, Christopher in ten and a half minutes, and Hanson fifteen seconds later, win­ ning both purses.*~-C_ �Norm Weis Experts, who were upon the ground, say that with shoes and snow both in excellent order, the distance could be made in seven minutes. The snow, yesterday, was too e^an and Surratt, Although defeated, are not di smayed, rfd challenge any parties living in the Jamison Mining District to a race over the same course for any sum’', from $250 to .^500 a side^r^T*—>— yirT 1872, the race course was shortened to 1676 feet, matching the length of one tramway. lonald led off, gaining forty feet on his competitor, but in crossing the flat Hanson came up finely, and at~~~~~~ forty feet from the outcome one of his shoes passed be­ tween those of McDonald, and of course it was all up with Hanson. Here Hanson made a pass with his pole at the shoes of his opponent, but punched the rider in the head instead, and Me, in return, threw his pole at Hanson who raised up on his shoes to grasp Me by the shoulder, losing his balance and going between the poles somewhat like a Catharine-wheel in a Fourth of July p — ^celebration, Mc^winning the purse. Time, 25 seconds. 1^77-- ?*Then came Keenan and John Penman. The start was a good ^ne, but on the turn of the long pitch. Penman inadvert■^ntly permitted the point of his pole to touch, which caused it to fly from his grasp, hitting him a hard blow on the back of his head, with force enough to send the pole flying twenty feet into the air. This stagger^^ him for an instant and caused him to run wide, and lose about forty feet, but recovering his position he came in splendidly, jjnly four feet behind his opponent. Time, 24 seconds.. q ^n the small museum near the old Moi>awk Mill, one can see some of the ten=^foot and twelvej=foot skis used by the old-time snowshoers, and read about the deeds of the most A n famous skier of the time, S^ow Shoe Tompson. For five years. Snow Shoe skied the mail from Placerville to Genoa and back, '— �-taking fifteen days for each round trip, a feat that would be hard to duplicate today. Rown_hill and southwest of Johnsville, in much gentler clime, one of the early settle?^ most spectacular after more than'^fi^ years ' of continuous use. It is^the world^s longest wooden covered bridge, with a free span of 230 feet. I had driven its length some years earlier, and being in the vicinity, I wished to drive within its shadowed timbers once more in celebration of man'^ engineering skills. alas, a new concrete bridge, shortly upstream, had replaced the old wooden structure, and the covered bridge was closed to traffic. Reinforcements and supporting pillars had been added, some of which seemed poorly designed, and almost guaranteed to wipe out the bridge should high water cause debris to gather. . VI clE’ --- ^_During my wanderings in the California 'putback, I stumbled upon a combination of enterprises quite new and unexpected. It was a small country store with a cafe in the back that served as a bar in the evenings. -106- �J^^S'/'ORY O^THOUSE^T" orm Weis few days later, I had breakfast in Bill -^Bull^ I Meek’s place in Camptonville, and it was an order of magnitude beyond. Beyond what? Well, beyond strangeness is the best way to put it -- and I guess you would have to understand the Clampers to really know the meaning of **s^ange.**^^Bill Meek was a Head Humbug of the E. Clampus Vitus organization. and his outlook on life could be seen in his unique store. The front of the large two=story building was mostly grocery store. A cubicle on the left enclosed the Justice Court, and was occupied by Meek's grandson, Acton Cleveland. In the back, a heavy-duty bar stretched across the width of the building. To the side were three refrig­ erators filled with beer, and in the corner leaned a base^^^^ ball bat and an axe-^andle. I was A.M. and the man cooking my breakfast alternated between sucking on a cigar and sipping a beer. Somewhere a juke box was ruling on low. Two unshaven characters entered on a zigzag course, bumped into me and apologized. The cook eyed them carefully, then checked the comer to see that the weapons were handy. arguing heavily. The two sat down, The cook reached under the cash register, grabbed a billy club and slammed it on the counter, eyed the two men and asked, V^ould you gentlemen care to order^'JX^ �Norm Wei^ was originally a gold mining town, catering to the needs of the placermen, and later the hydraulickers. Town was moved twice to permit sluicing the land for gold. At its peak, there were more than people, and thirty stores, hotels and saloons, stretched out on both sides of a mile=long plank road. Later, when the gold was gone, the town dwindled, but survived on the logging industry. [The old country store had been burned to the ground and rebuilt twice, the last time with concrete blocks. Even that building burned down recently, and its customers were taken over by the bar across the street. ^uch of the town's history is tied in with the strange group mentioned earlier -- the ^^'^?~Clampus Vitus H which in Latin means something like'^from darkness to light The Clampers, as described by one of their own members, were a bunch of horse^laying, jackass-braying men dedicated to the burlesque of all secret societies, and to the preservation of the belly laugh and heavy drinking. It was charitable on occasion, always claiming to help widows and orphans, mostly the former. They believed in exercising reverence for womanhood, even while in pursuit. -108- �o/jTHOUSE Norm Weis 9 ^^teetings were held anywhere, preferably in bars, if outside, the meeting p^Lace was called the **§^1 but of Comparative Oration.**'^^hey proved that men will be boys! I The society began in West Virginia as a hoax and a joke, and traveled^West, gathering mystique on the way. Joe Zumwalt carried the idea to California, and the garb he habitually wore became the ‘"uniform of future Clampers. Joe wore long red-flannel underwear, no shirt, a rope belt. dungarees, old boots. and a plug hat. Heading parades as the Grand Humbug, he also carried a ten=foot staff with a phallic symbol on top. t sometimes nightly -- or d whenever a few new conscripts could be conned into joining. The fee varied from nothing to X)half of what you have.\X Initiates were blindfolded, stripped to their long underwear. smeared with cream or butter, or whatever could be found, then paraded down the street. Once accepted, they had the honor of buying drinks for older members for the balance of the evening, and sometimes part of the next day. The ClaiBpere^caiTied out some worthwhile projects, such as designating the long covered bridge on the Tuba as a National Histoid.c Civil Engineering landmark. They also placed a plaque honoring Lester Allen Pelton, inventor of the Pelton ^i^eel. This wheel enabled water to be used efficiently to power such things as 8ta^> mills. �Norm Wei^ uii WiL ¥ CoPt "Forty miles east of Baker, Oregon, at the little town of Halfway, a road exits to the left and soon becomes a climbing windlp;gravel road reaching into the Wallowa Mountains, ending at the old mining town of Cornucopia. good prospect for a tall outhouse, It was a to its altitude, but a search of the town revealed no such structure. I would have crossed it off my list as a failure had I not been taken with the beautiful architecture and excellent workmanship evident in the construction of some of the buildings. Two old homes were particularly beautiful, with vaulted roof lines, fancy windows, arched balconies, and nicely angled staircases. , Even ^0^ l^f some of the old tumbled and tom wrecks seemed to take on a noble character as they leaned into the elements and fought the good fight against the inevitable tug of gravity. ^Jfeny of the buildings were built during the first boom in 1884, when the population peaked at ab^t All had high=peaked roofs to shed the heavy snowfall that often exceeded twenty=four feet. Roads became snowpacked to a depth of eight feet, and stage coaches ran on sled runners instead of wheels. It was a cold place in the winter, and cold all year round in some of the mines. (rhe names of some of the claims indicate the -—> 4 �:^j^O=--stORY O0THOUSE^^ Wej^ ■natui^e of the weather and the climate down the shafts and tunnels. V)41askaJ4i*^'^fcH(BSBil^®i^^^an Winkleand '^ruin^ were a few. Extensive remains of one of these mines can be found at the edge of town. Most of the buildings are intact, including a structure at the mine entranc^p On thi tracks exiting the mine are a dozen side-tipping ore cars, a personnel car, and an old rusty engine. Considerable water flows from the mine opening and becomes a good-sized creek that flows through town. Stepping into the mouth of the tunnel, one is met by a blast of cold air. ply A short distance from the tunnel, a large twox story building served as a bunkhouse for unmarried miners. It had six rooms upstairs and four down* with n. central htuH. recreation room a large stove in the middle, the building\j4 only source of heat. / A small building next door holds an old wagon bed equipped with ten-foot runners, making this a sled shed. A Next door is the old mine office, plastered with maps and complete with receipts from 1940, obviously the date of the last mining effort. I One of the rooms in the min© office had a door somewhat shorter than norma^^ ^rf^oh opened to a throne room complete with elevated floor and John. It was'Sir John -—- \D �Norm Wei Harrington that gave the yohn^its name, just as Sir Thomas Crapper provided us with XXcrappei^V' two inventors U"? .seldom given credit for their widely used creations. c STEA D I^^opping down out of the mountains, I took a left at Halfway and headed for the Snake River and the town of Homestead. My topographic maps and outdated maps of mining districts had revealed dozens of likely towns. Any town that looked like a going concern on an old map, and is barely indicated, or better yet, missing entirely on new maps, was the sort of place I wanted to have a look at. f ^ost such towns had kept up with the times, destroying old buildings and replacing them with new struck "tures which, of course, were built with no thought of outhouses or the preservation of history. / Homestead was an exception. Located on the con­ fluence of Pine Creek and the Snake River, at the lower end of Oxbow Lake, this mining remr^nt had two old but well kept homes, and dozens of old weathered buildings jjp just the type of installation that I enjoyed. Nosing about the buildings, 5 I could deduce their past rol£, perhaps gain an idea of what brought iX into exist^nc^/Xand what caused 3^ demise. [One old building looked like a school, and indeed dale still had slates on the walls. Checking the copyright on some old books indicated the school probably closed in the forties Me �C~Norni Weis ITHOUSE On a shelf in the coal house behind the school, I found a I stood there, with two cameras slung about 1931 reader. my neck, scanning the old book, when the elderly caretaker confronted me. ^The caretaker wasn’t sure what he should me. do with He looked me over, eyed the cameras, and told me not to take anything. I agreed, and we went our separate ways. ^n old road led up the hill a short distance to ne and mill. Bits of blue rock were scattered throughout the waste dump, indicating copper was mined at one time. The place was littered with old machineryy^ belt^ jit the mine opening, a number of ore cars sat on a short stretch of rails, resting on rotted ties. An old ledger showed the nameV^fron Dyke Mineand listed the assay on one shipment. The ore was heavy in copper and contained a small amount of gold. / I returned to the largest building in what must have been a company town. It was over feet long, perhaps half as wide, and had a broad covered porch running its full length. Peeking through the windows, I could see dining halls. pastime rooms, and a large kitchen. Reaching the end of the large building'^, I was surprised to find it was joined to another building of similar size and construction. me where nearby I could hear voices voices, raised to overcome impaired hearing. -113- loud �TJ^S^ORY O^THOUS ^^ell, if you caught him in the school, why didn^t you throw him out^^^ XXjell, I ragged him a while, then told him not to steal anything.V /Obviously the two gentlemen were hired as care^ takers, and probably lived in the two wellVkept homes along the row. It wouldn't do to leave them in doubt. I found them just around the corner, and turning up my volume, I let them know that I was about to leave the place. They relaxed, their problem solved, even seemed friendly. Indeed, they supplied answers to all my questions. j ( <0 rag. u-Zi 3 redJ [The place once held families, and enough single miners to fill both dormitories. The original claim was made in 1890, but the mining hit its peak 1915 1918, then again from 1925 to 1927, but most of the mines closed in 1942. That\% when the school locked its doors. ^ore than 150 men worked in the Iron Dyke Mine alone, and some mining was carried out there until 1952. The company provided its workers with two stores/^nd a choice of several saloons! ^The entire operation was presently owned by the Butler Ore Company, the employer of the two caretakers. offered them a cup of coffee out of my thermos, or a beer from the ice-^ox, but was politely refused. Ob­ viously that would be exceeding the bounds of proper �(^jrj^°s/ORY O^HOUSE Norm Wei behavior for caretakers charged with protecting the grounds from the likes of me. -US’- �Norm Weis X VJA^LLX\CE Ti>aH0 ANO z -For the past few monthsI traveled, someone always suggested I visit Silver City, Idaho. A few ' folk had suggested the area north of Kello^ and Wallace, Idaho. Again, planning to save the best for last, I headed north into the panhandle of Idaho to have a look at the area near Wallace. ^After a while, driving becomejrote/ and a persoii^ mind tends to wander. I recalled the various reactions that followed my many inquiries concerning two^story outhouses. Most people were dumbfounded, tending to sputter out some sort of stalling answer, waiting for a punchline or an explanation. In Montana and Wyoming there was occasional understanding, and often there were apologies that the structures had all disappeared. �prtn Weis^ In Texas they said,X>(jhat?V But In Crested Butte, Colorado, when asked about two=story outhouses, they assumed that you needed to use it! I wondered what the reaction would be in Idaho. [_Wallace, located at the east end of\Xjilver Valley is a town of about 2^1100 people, and likes to be known as '^y^he Home of the Silver Dollar^^ ItVs the headquarters for a number of mining and smelting companies. and has the gray sooty look of a town long in the mining and smelting business. ^The museum in Wallace had a number of excellent ore samples, old photographs, and booklets telling of the long=lasting union wars that racked the community. ^rom Wallace, a number of roads radiated outward like the spines of a spidei^^s web, reaching upward along various creeks and gulches. I drove up Nine Mile Road to Delta, then cut over the hill east to the marvelous old town of Murray. The town was full of history^ old buildings, few J <^^4 '' people! ^^pjEt no tall outhouses. Everyone said, '^’^go to Burke ^_I_ returned to Wallace and took the Canyon Creek Road, passing through a nearly‘continuous series of mines, smelters, and small settlements. Gem blended with Black Bear, which gave way to Mace, and became Burke. Along the way I drove a road that also made up the bed of two railroads. the‘^Northern Pacific**and the **bregon Washington**^ lines. �Tii^o=s'/^ oi/thoube^^ Norm Weis Beneath the concrete surface ran the waters of Canyon Creek. I would sonn learn that Canyon Creek was not the proper name for the ^reek in this locality, but Ripley's claim that this was the only place in the world where the railroad, the creek and the road occupied the same space, was thor'^Mghly evident. In fact, I would find another category < that could be added to Ripley's claim, get K E It was late afternoon, and the only establishment open in the little town of Burke was a bar crowded between the road, railroad, creek, and the rising ground behind. I entered, and soon became educated to the local ways and local terminology. ^^fter ordering a sandwich at the bar, I spread out an old 1901 topographic mining map of the area. Old maps tend to attract a certain type of on^lookers -- those interested in history, and willing to share their interest. was the barmaid. This time it She left the bar and took up a position where she could read the map over my shoulder. [ I took the cue and asked her if there were any two-story outhouses in the was the reply, XyAt least there was one behind the Sweets Hotel up S^^<Creek aways.Xy out the creek on the map. ‘^ays here the stream is unexpected. 9 vtoTCT �Norm Weis Come here — look at this map. They got the name of Creek wrong. You ever hear it called Canyon Creek)^ [joe ^swered from across the room. \AHell, no. ItVs always been 'Slr^t Creek — long as I can remember, J^Jhat particular four= letter word had never been in my mixed company repertoire, and I was slightly embar'^ <assed to hear it shouted about. I expected every head in the place to swivel in my direction in mild disapproval. But There were overhangers, trestle jobs, creek straddlers, and a small tributary called George GulchJ^^I wasn't about to ask the local name^^^V^ "t/iere was a bridge^outhouse combina­ tion. I had thought I knew it all when it came to unusual outhouses, but the bridge combo was new and fascinating. [The bridge was wood, a single span of about twenty feet, wide enough for one car/^nd two outhouses, that joined in the center to become one long structure accessed by two doors. The road crossing the bridge led to two unpainted homes, and the outhouses were no doubt a part of the property. �TJ$0-s/0RY OJ^THOUSeJ^^ Norm Weis I photographed the structure from all angles, noting that the sun was at the wrong angle. I would have to return for the morning light. I There was a nice place to pull off and camp a few miles up the main creek, just above the intake for the towii^s water supply. A sign nearby prohibited construction of any buildings ^(•meaning outhouses in particular)^ upstream from that point. I I dug out my maps and pamphlets pertinent to the area and spent the evening learning about the year mining effort in Silver Valley. [rhe 1901 map showed a number of mines that are not indicated on later maps. Obviously those mines were short-lived. The 1939 and 1957 maps indicated that Dorn A split off from Black Bear, then both faded into their neighbors, and^Frisco was bom near Gem. The Oregon Washing­ ton ^ine changed to the Pacific, and the town of Burke A grew another half mile up what all three maps referred to as Canyon Creek. ^bove Burke were the Tigerj^Poorman Mine, the Her­ cules, Tamarack, Custer, and Neversweat Mines. / Gold had been found in the area i^t 1860, but large-scale mining did not occur until the 1880*^ In 1892, the A fights between mine ow/jers and organized miners began. '\ �<^^2^Norm Wei^^ ^O=STORY 0 y^The first battle resulted in sixteen wounded and five dead before the Army was called in. But the miners^ union had a foothold. Dissatisfaction with working conditions continued for several years, and another war broke out in 1899. Over Oic IQQQ miners comandeered a train, loaded it with dynamite, and forced the engineer to drive it west to Kello^. They parked the train under the Bunker Hill Mill and set it off! Two men were killed by gunfire, and the y^rmy returned to restore order. More than miners were arrested. y^lowly the gold gave out, and zinc, silver, and lead became the production metals. Lead refining in the valley its own slow insidious cunfldQ TTie acciden­ tal target was the health of the populace, primarily the children. Lead poisoning had been discounted for years until it was found that the children in the schools had a high lead content in their blood. This caused damage to the nervous system. next morning I headed down the valley, cameras loaded and ready. Most of the homes along the creek had ex­ tensions that hung over the creek, or outbuildings that straddled the creek. Later, I learned that a whorehouse once stood on -121- �(Tj^S/^ORY O^HOU^^ C^orm Weis J the creek bank, and a level catwalk extended to an outhouse that stood over the creek on twenty^foot stilts. It was an older gentleman from Northport that told me about it. sed to go to work in the morning shift, ^out four in the morning — still kinda dark. That^s when the gals were finished working and doin^ their chores out back. We used to applaud each one when they walked the catwalk back of the cathouse. Sometimes they^ take a bow. We applauded everything, including the sound effects.^ ^He looked at me carefully, and watched me take notes. f^ell ya who ya ought to talk to about them gals.'^y He paused. X^o -- No -- I wori^t give the old sTd?B. the M H satisfaction.^ (The light was right, and I returned to the bridge- A outhouse for more photographs. The resident of one of the homes watched me from his window. write in my notebook. He saw me snap photos, then Soon he came to the conclusion that I was a government man gathering evidence, probably a member of the hated Environmental Protection Agency. I He rushed out of the door, ran to the bridge and hollered, XjHje don’t use it anymor^-^-^'^a hear^ —*^e ain't used it for more'n a year!'^ Driving south, headed for Silver City, I passed •—' -122- �Norm Wei through a number of towns that looked great on the old maps, but none of them suited my purpose. Near Idaho City, I detoured to the remains of the Golden Age Camp to see little outhouse with the big sign over the door still survived It did -- the sign read.'«6AIN ENTRANCE .V/ -- —- K ’/Silver City is most easily reached via Jordan Valley, Oregon. A more challenging entrance is by way of the twenty^two=mile lumpy gravel road from State Highway 45, Either way, the town is well worth visitin ove. more than seventy buildings still intact. south of Boise. I / The old War Eagle Hotel had a very tall two^ story outhouse, but hotel and house burned down some years ago. However, a large number of tall specimens are still in action. ^^e Masonic /all, once a wood milling shop, built astraddle Jordan Creek, has two outhouses attached to the flank So as to drop deposits directly into the creek, bt A city ordinance later probated its use except during flood stage, at which time it was recommended that all daf>£>^ic:s trash be thrown in the creek, an<Jz\all eart&losets be shoveled out and disposed of the same way. huge annual flushing -123- Sort of a f �Tj^O^SyORY outhouse: Norm Weis 1866, the big town in the area was Ruby City,’ o-fJ Co- wTthTaTmost a thousand people. The first winter, snow drifted so badly that some folk moved a mile south, upstream, to a more sheltered spot. Within two years, everyone had skidded their homes and stores, with the aid of sled runners and oxen. to the new site, and Silver City was bom. I’^T^ Waye''*'^^s published as the town’s first paper. paper. At its peak, with somewhere between and 5^1^ population, the town had six stores, two hotels, a brewery,, nine saloons, six of which were known to be Hurdy Gurdys. The Hurdy Gurdy joints stood in a row and became known as^^irgin's Alley .MX ^bout this time, two prospectors filed a claim on a prospect later to be called the Poorman Mine. Then another man claimed an outcrop of the same vein about feet away. He was challenged by the original claimants, then ousted by a third group promptly built a fort at the tunnel en­ trance. They called it ‘*Fort Baker’’^ and held off any claim jumpers. Later, all the purported owners sold out, and the worth of gold and new owners promptly took out silver. The Oro Fino Mine was so rich that the ore could -124- �Norm Weis ORY OUTHOUSE be crushed by sledge and panned by hand. Its ore ran more ^ost of the ore was very rich and easily processed. Four stamp mills in town had only a total of fifty stamps, yet <2 —— kv> 1111 o m tjJ 0.5 nearly $40^s&^^^in valuable metals wexB taken from the area, making the Silver City Lode second only to the Comstock in Nevada. fining slacked off in the^O^, then surged again in 1930. Silver City lost its place as ^^iounty ^eat in 1934, and by 1944 only one man, Willie Hawes^as left in town. <•0 c J I , was responsible for the Willie, townVs preservation during the twenty^some years that Silver City had become a ghost. ^ilver City's history was marked by several large* scale shoot-outs. When a dispute over claim boundaries could not be resolved, each side hired gun^slicks. The Golden Chariot Mine crew attacked the Ida Elmore group, and fought a gun battle for three days. Many were wounded, but only two were killed -- one from each side -- before the /avalry M arrived to break it up. The fight was revived in town, and two more were killed. The gun fight occurred near the Idaho Hotel, which stands today very much as it did in the 186(V^^ Three stories I3 tall, and full of small rooms crowded with furniture, it the prize tourist spot in town. Where rooms once were �^ORY ofaHOUSEgX Norm Wej^ a night, and fire in the room was extra, you can now take a guided tour of the ^otel for a similar fee. Ed Jagels, of Murphy, Idaho, the present owner and proprietor, escorts hundreds of visitors through the 1 the ^otel each season. int±[Tl~ttrc hallways of He*^ full of stories about the town. One of his favorites deals with the hanging of 1881. When Henry McDonald was found guilty of murder and sentenced to hang, one of the stores in town prepared for the big event by preparing a Vlftangman'^s Special LunctX It was raining when they hauled McDonald to the scaffold, On the way, a youngster ran^,slipping and sliding Jpast the death wagon. L^Goiri^ somewhereasked McDonald. /The youngsterZ/'A^^/tW/there was was hurry, son — won'^ be much doin^ till I get therereplied McDonald. father Nattini and the sheriff soon led Henry McDonald up the steps to the platform and centered him over the trap door. The death warrant was read to the victim, his hands were tied, and his head covered with a hood. I At 1:54 the trap was sprung, and l/v\G.5Se. nesses left opjj^taes for the saloons. ' j wit- �Cj^rm WeiJ^ XI M I f\J G 0^3 M £ When the price of gasoline rose above a buck a gallon, I cut my travels short until the billfold shock slowly wore off. As a result, I learned a great deal more about Wyoming. History is close to the surface in my home state. It was here that Jim Bridger hunted, guided, told his lies, and built his fort. Here the Union Pacific cut its ties and forged a path from ^ast to west. in turn receiving title to twenty sections of land for every mile of track laid. And just twenty miles north of my home, the Teapot Dome scandal took place. [when I first visited the Naval Reserve No. 3, called Teapot Dome, I had no idea that- a town named Teapot ever existed, but the remains were there -- a few old buildings. the remnants of streets, and a grand old water tank. Although chipped by wind-blown gravel / and badly rusted, the name -—\ / �Norm Weis teapot, Wyomlnjg^ and -febo=wwis'^ater Supply</are still quite legible. Just why a water tank would be painted so grandly became clear when I learned the history of the town and the scandal. It would appear that a scam and a scandal were underway at the same time. Way back in 1873, a Wyoming historian named Hunton, made the journey north from Fort Caspar to investigate rumors of X^6ily dirt.X/ An Indian guided him and helped him scrape some heavy oil into a container. They ha4 collected almost a quart of V^greas^when hostile Indians chased them / off. / [__Many years later, the undergroundj dome-shaped trap was tapped, and in 1920 the dome was declared a ^ay<l jZ^il eserve. About this time. President Harding appointed Albert as Bacon Fall, formerly a senator from New Mexico, the pcoitioi W^ecretary of interior. In 1922, Secretary Fall contacted Harry Sinclair, president of Mammoth Oil Company, and after receiving $198^8® in bribes, secretly leased the Teapot Dome to Sinclair. Later, Fall conned Sinclair out of another then $10^9® more, and yet another $257^^^ It bordered on blackmail. At the same time, the Teapot Development Company erected the water tank, painted it up fancy, and marked off 1,040 town lots^; -S^^ere sold thp f i rat day, and in three �gjfcs'j^ORY OI^THOUSeTT" CZNorm Wei^ months, 903 had been purchased. A store was built, but few lot owners built, preferring to sit on their deeds, hoping that oil rights went with the lots. ^^Hien the scandal broke, the town died, if indeed it had ever lived. None of the lot owners profited, but Sinclair and Fall did quite well. ^J^e trial was to take over six years. Several majority stockholders of other oil companies adjourned to France, one for twenty^five years, another for the rest of his life. There were two civil suits, two contempt cases, and eight criminal trials. Harry Sinclair was sentenced to three months in jail for refusing to testify and for jury tampering. Former Secretary Fall was convicted of accepting a bribe, and sentenced to one year in jail not a bad deal, since he had received more than $400^^®" for his complicity. The Teapot Dome Scandal was only a momentary set^ back for Sinclair and his oil company. Soon, exploration crews found a number of oil fields, and pipelines laced their -S 1'25 way across the ^tate connecting wel^ to refinery. ^lon^ one of those pipelines , in 1923, a pumping station was built to hasten the flow along, and around that station a small town grew. Residents called it Ferris others called it "Ferris Dome," or just Ferris.**”^ To the Sine ompany it was "Station Three,’ �TWO Norm Weis but whatever its name, it was built in the most hostile spot in the ^tate. ^2^cated just south of the Ferris Mountains, and west of the Seminoe Mountains, amid the sand dunes of the high plains desert, the town suffered from low temperatures and high windsM/)e/ damnable sand dunes continually crawled into town, covering fences, crowding houses, and requiring the constant attention of bulldozers. Airborne sand filtered into every nook and cranny. even piling up in attic spaces to such an extent that ceilings collapsed on dining room tables and carpeted living rooms. The Sinclair )^ompany spent thousands of dollars vacuuming every attic in town on a rotating basis. Finally the sand and wind won the battle. the town was abandoned. In 1949 One recluse remained until 1958, and now the buildings are slowly being covered with sand. Some local ranchers are Xjliberatin^i^ the lumber from the buildings before they are buried forever. --- Fifty miles north, tucked into the south end of �^=S'f:ORY O^THOUSE^^ Norm Weis Pedro Mountains, there is a delightful little pocket of greenery traced through by a small stream of clear cold water. Sagebrush grows twelve feet tall, and cottonwoods soar above. [This was one of the favorite spots of an Indian tribe that lived in the Pedros. They were an isolated tribe and had little contact with other Indians. In the late ISSOj^f^they were crowded out by the ^ite ^n^s incursions, but they left behind a n^mento that would cause great confu­ sion and speculation. Two prospectors found a deposit of graphite above the green glade, and claimed it under the name ^^^be Ninety- Six Graphite Mine.””^They dug into the mountain fifty feet or so, then slanted downward, hoping in vain that the vein would richen and thicken. Their efforts failed, and others tried their luck. Traces of gold were found, but nothing of value was uncovered/^ntil one blast opened up an old cave that held the mystery left by the Indians. [on a narrow shelf, high on the side of the cave, was found the tiny mummified body of a human being. He was fourteen inches tall, badly wrinkled, and with a head that lopped over as a beret might fall to one side of a manVs head The mummy was put on display, fees charged, and soon �"became the only profitable item to be Wiinec^</ from the Pedros. ^^Occasionally the mummy was permitted examination by experts, and some not so expert. The results were dis­ appointing to the displayers, and they chose to include in their brochures only those few explanations that made the mummy out to be the remains of a midget Indian. Probably a member of a midget tribe, they claimed. They called it the ’^Attle Man,**^nd the ’*01d Ninety-Six Graphite Mine,'**^nd every mine within ten miles became the **tAttle Man Mine.**^ f Writers perpetuated the mystery, making hay from the story, I just as the carnival folk made money displaying the remains for the price of a ticket. The legend grew. The truth is less exciting. One of the first to examine the mummy was Dr. Whiston, a Casper^Wyoming bone specialist. Fromays and a general examination, he stated the mummy was the remains of a malformed Indian child, probably the result of ii^reeding. The skull was incomplete, allowing the brain to lop over, a rare, but a defect was always fatal soon after birth. birth defect. Such Very likely the mother of the malformed infant lovingly placed her child on the high ledge in the cave, then closed the opening with rock. Time and dry air aged the child. The wrinkles and a little imagination created the legend of Little Man, ”'^^nd an entire race of pygmy Indians. �Rock At the turn of the century, when Cattle Kate left Rawlins and homesteaded a small spread on the Oregon Trail near Independence Rock, a series of events were set in motion that would rock the ^tate, and ultimately cost he^life and that of her friend, Jim Averill. ^J^te had a reputation for trading personal favors, and seemed to have a working agreement with Averill, who ran a store and saloon situated a mile from KateV/s, near the Sweet Water River. After an evening of boozing it up at Averills, a celebrating cowboy would be pointed in the direction of Kat^<J^ cabin. fee. where he could find satisfaction for a nominal Lacking funds, it became common for cowpokes to trade a maverick calf for Katd^s favors. I 1 A calf a piece, as it were. Soon she became known as'battle KateS^ ^^JCate’s herd grew, and in time the number of cattle -133-3) �exceeded what the nearby ranchers considered a reasonable number of motherless, unbranded critter^^ ^^verill sometimes took calves in trade for merchan­ dise, and added them to Katess herd. Obviously the cowhands considered calves, which they intentionally left unbranded, a sort of fringe benefit. {_When Averill led a movement to prevent ranchers from controlling enormous land areas by what he considered illegal means, the ranchers decided to retaliate. Seven of them stopped by Kate'^ place, intending to teach her a lesson. A fourteen^year^ld lad named Gene Crowder, who had been helping Kate, was taken in tow by the ranchers, for fear he would run for help. They met Jim Averill just leaving his place, and at gun-point loaded him in the wagon with Kate. ^The lad. Gene Crowder, got away in the confusion, ran to Averill'^ home, where he enlisted the help of Frank Buchanan. Frank followed the abductors at a distance and later told his story. He claimed ^.fehey stopped at the river and threatened to drown the two of them. the brag, and called their bluff. Kate wouldn'^t buy They took their hostages on up the river to the top of a small cliff, where they threw a lariat about Jim^s neck, and tied the other end to a tree. They tried to get -134- �Norm him to jump off the cliff —"^e game, go ahe Kate kept dodging the noose they tried to put about her neck, but in the end, she was trussed like Averill. ^Buchanan, figuring it was getting serious, sent a shot their way and galloped off for help. {j^en the posse arrived, both Kate and Jim were dangling at ropd<lZs end, hanging off the edge of the cliff. -ptMg, The ranchers were arrested and pirh~under cto 11cv\J bond. At the inquest, Buchanan told the whole story, naming names/'and offering absolute identification. Several of the ranchers admitted their part in the deed, one claiming they only in­ tended to scare the two VA^stlers.X^ I It looked like an open-and-shut case, but strange '— A A things began to happen. Gene Crowder, the young lad, died of a disease, and Buchanan failed to show up at the trial. He was last seen riding north in a buggy with a new lawyer. Several witnesses to the rancher^^admission^uietly disappeared. ^udge Corn found that the indictment was \?not a true bill,\/and discharged their bonds! ^ine years later, Buchanads/s bones were found north of town, his favorite scarf still tied about the fleshless neck V �of my old maps showed a town named Signor, while a later map listed the same town as Rongis. later map showed both towns, a few miles apart. An even All were located on the old Rawlins-to=Lander stage road, just one ^0 / stop north of the Crooks Gap stage station. It was a puzzle that begged a solution. ^The Crooks Gap ^tation, a small building of huge logs, still monitored the occasional traffic on the dusty stage road. Rongis was likewise deserted. cabin, and a broken=down barn marked the spot. An old Cattle wandered in and out of both buildings, using doorways as rubbing posts. I Ranchers in the area pointed me toward Harold Rogers, ^urator of the Lander ^useum. I^ccording to Harold, a gent by the name of Charlie Fletcher, a traveling gambler, stopped by the small ranch - /34- ' �TWO Norm Weis settlement of Signor and got a poker game started. Thirty:^ six hours later he owned the town and the ranch. He promptly turned the letters about, and renamed his town *^Rongis. Later, Rongis moved two miles to the west, and the old site reverted to "S^nor.**"^^ [^search of old county records turned up another strange name change. When developers bought up the old Ried Road ^anch, just south of Lander, Wyoming, they incorporated the ranch as the town of '^^imbuctoo,''b^hoping the catchy namp would attract attention and enhance sales. It didn't. But the site so that I could claim that I had I been to Timbuctoo and back in my search for rare outhouses and wild stories/ j^ort Washakie was built at a time when Indian uprisings were greatly feared, but its stout rock block^ bJoc^hooit houses were never put to use, except as temporary jails. Today the old cavalry stable is used by the ^tate ^ighway de­ partment* several employees o£ vhieli stoutly claim^is haunted. ^n quiet afternoons, right at quitting time, foot^ steps can be heard coming down the length of the long building. Dogs perk up their ears and whine as they follow the direction of the footsteps. The footfalls are those of a boot-shod cavalryman, and they turn into a small room now �brm Weis used as an office. There, the rocking chair suddenly begins to rock and creak, and dogs leave the room on bent legs with standing hair. (^bviously the story was true, for there was the And the chair? dog, right there by the chair. A rocking f chair, of course/ / (7^ '— ___ pc Jim Bridger built his fortified store in 1842 at the junction of the emigrant trail and th^lack Fork of Green River, in what is now Southwestern Wyoming. He tradedMth trappers, Indians and emigrants with equal favor. ^J^en Morm^’ns settled near Salt Lake/^^d en­ countered Indian resistance, Bridger was blamed for selling KO powder to the hostiles. In 1853, one hundred fifty Mormons in two parties attacked Bridger's fort, forcing him to vacate. A few years later, Bridger visited with President Buchanan and told him of the problem. ^Federal Troops to retake the fort.. Si/ Buchanan sent in They converted it to ht-QOgtrgU a military post, paying Bridger In the per year rent. meantime. Bridger built a ferry across the North Platte River, next to a Mormon ferry. The Mormon ferry let Mormons across 17 �fTHOUSE Norm Weis free, but double charged all others. Bridger charged Mormons double and let all others.cross free. They forced each other out of business. (^2^en the Union Pacific built its tracks past Fort Bridger, a small town sprouted, which continued after the ^ort was abandoned in 1890. However, the real story is not the ^ort, but the life of Jim Bridger. He was one of the WesfVs great characters. in 1804, and orphaned at thirteen, he headed j?est. At eighteen, he joined Ashley^s fur trappers and made his first trip into the northern Rockies. When Hugh Glass, one of the trappers, was badly mauled by a grizzly, young Jim Bridger and an older fellow named assigned the task of standing by Glass until he died. Indians were in the area, fires were risky, and food was short. Glass weakened, but hung on. When he seemed far past recovery, the two men left him and traveled south to safety. L But Hugh Glass recovered, and crawled and scrambled toUo I to Fort Laramie, blood in his eye, looking for those deserted him. He threatened Jim with his life, then forgave him/^ince he was young and green. ^Jim Bridger topped out at more than six feet, walked remarkably erect for a trapper, and saw things with his pale gray eyes that few others could detect. He was �ORY Ol^raOUSE Norm Weis never lost, and had an uncanny feel for the weather. Jim visited Yellowstone Lake when he was twenty^ six^^nd watched as two Indians disappeared forever beneath the crust of a hot pool. Later he told friends of the geysers and hot pools, but few believed him. This set Jim to telling wild stories. I They began to call him^ld GabeVwhile he was Still young. Everyone listened to his wild stories, and many greenhorns believed them. ^He told of petrified birds in petrified trees singing petrified songs, and of a large mountain of pure crystal that you could see through. "XZfook half a day to walk around it.^^i/ He claimed that he hauled out a chunk big as his arm and had it tested Wure Diamond,Vhe claimed. He even took three shots at an elk in that same area, then walked up to bleed it. Turned out the glass mountain was acting like a telescope -- t durn elk was twenty-five When he had two arrowheads removed from his back in a one^our operation, without benefit of anesthesia, the doctor couldiP^t believe the wounds hadn'^t^ infected. [^ridger spoke English, Spanish, some French, and ten Indian tongues, and he told stories in every language. 'V �T^S^ORY OUTHOUSE Norm Weis [jOnce, near Lake DeSmet, a small alkali pond at the time, he pointed out the oil seep above, and the coal outcrop below. I^^^e^open up that thar oil seep and run \Zr inter the lake -jj then touch off thet coal, and bile the hull thing down ter soap.XX (^aptain Palms believ^him, and so did a famous historian, who relayed this great idea to his rich friends r- even printed the fact later. [Jim always claimed the hills were growing, and delighted in pointing out a large boulder, claiming it was only a pebble when he put it there years ago. -Po/ / / He had a fascination Shakespeare, always identifying heavily with the characters, but always becoming disillusioned with their foul behavior. ^^_After he saw a Shakespearean play at Fort Laramie he promptly bought a book of plays at the /ut/le^/^d hired a private to read it to him. He loved it until the private got to the point where the two boy princes had their eyes put out. Jim asked the private,'^id he do that^^/ When the soldier reread the passage, Jim grabbed the book and threw it in the fire t’- Vfhat^ what I think dV himiVZ M He never lost his taste for Shakespeare. Once he stopped a train and traded a span of oxen for a copy of^: S'CaT'/ck's �Norm Weis a book on Shakespea^ Later he hired a boy at a month to read it to him, until the boy got to the story of Richard That cooked it rr VZi ain'^t listnen ter any more talk of a man n who war mean enough to kill his mother ^ne of Jim's favorites was the story of th^%uffalo Dam?^ Seems he was camped on the Platte, below Cottonwood Springs, when a'VXierd of buffalo came a streamir^down the hill -- we corralled the wagons and put the stock inside, M lest they be tromped.\/ [ae herd plunged into the river, one on top of another. The droves were enormous. miring down and climb­ ing over until 'dammed the river --'^nd the water rose to M where the wagons was -- Came plumb up to the axles, and it n were only a little short of washiri^ us away and drownin''^ /A few years ago, a coal-fired power plant was built half a hundred miles east of historic Fort Bridger, a place Old Gabe loved for its pristine beauty and its air so clear you co^ld \%ee for three days?</ -142- set �Norm Weis j power company named it the "Jim Bridger" plant, and ever since, ^Id Gabe has been turning unmea­ sured revolutions per minute in his grave. [In fact, the climate near his burial plot in Kansas City has warmed noticeably since the construction of the power plant, no doubt the result of the friction created by his rapid rotation! un �t’ORY Ol^THOUS yii Norm Weis U. I AH’ OR/ Summer was approaching and it was time I made plans to follow up the leads and hot tips that had accumulated while I had been rummaging about my home state. /Most of the tips -etfeoat sites in the Continental / '— -VollotJcet up 0/1 . ' ^tates had already been The inaccuracies of these leads were amazing, and did nothing to instill confidence in the sites yet unvisited. to Alberta,Xy the tipsters said. "There was a two^stoty outhouse in Lundbreck -- and be sure to visit Nordegg.Vj/ Al In British Columbia it was Fort Steele, Wildhors^^and Sandon. Then there were rumors about Flin Flon, Manitoba, and a few towns in Saskatchewan. [1 laid out a trip that would include the towns* in British Columbia and Alberta. Promontory, Utal^ite of the completion of the transcontinental railroad was on the �Cr^-sfORY ofaHOUS^ CTNorm Wefs f I had long been interested in the history of its construction. ’ I^^esident Lincoln and General Granville Dodge met and discussed the feasibility of building a transcontinental railroad in 1863, in the middle of the Civil War. One year later, the Pacific Railroad Act was passed, which authorized payment of ten sections of land and a cash bond for each mile of track to be laid. One year later, Lincoln was dead. (j^n 1866, construction began with the Central Pacific/ building east from California, and the Union Pacific laying track west from Omaha. The race was on, with the faster track layer taking the king\>^ share. By 1868 it was clear that the roads would meet somewhere in Utah, but since two^thirds f of the perrmile pay was awarded for finished grade, both roads built grades far in advance of their tracks. l(3/) The (Government hat/ upped the ante to twenty sections of land per mile of road, and the stakes were high. By the time the actual tracks approached a meeting point, both railroads had built grades more than 150 miles past the actual meeting point. The grades often ran parallel, although in opposite directions — even crossed several times. Rival grad- ing crews thought nothing of setting^powerful explosive charges without warning, as their competitors labored close by. I After much mediation, grade crews were called in and the tracks directed toward a meeting point in Promontory, Utah. . �o^thouseS^ Norm Weis The tracks were due to join on May 7, 1869, but the trainload of Union Pacific officers was held up by irate, workers at Piedmont, Wyoming. wages. unpaid The men demanded their back With the engine chained to resident of the Union Pacific saw the light, and telegraphed east for the funds. ^The Central Pacific folk had been celebrating for three days, waiting for the Union Pacific, and were in no mood to agree with the Union Pacific plans on just how the ceremony would be carried out. , The crowd grew unruly with the delay, so each side drove own silver spike. own golden spike and Each was tapped gently into a dally polished laurelwood tie. Then the spikes and ties were removed. was slipped in plac^and the honor of driving the last genuine spike was given to the two presidents of the railroads. Stanford of the Central Pacific missed. so Durant of the Union Pacific took a swing. He also missed. Two old-time spike drivers finished the job. I The story of the joining was better than the visit to the actual site. The engines standing in place are not the original engines, or even the right models. They are rented -I'UotzSCind from Paramount Studios at $100^^ each. In fact, nothing at the site is original, except one sledge and one shovel, which are on display in the small museum. -146- The Government plans to �orm have replica steam engines built, at $350 each, but as genuine historical monument at Promontory, tt^ U. / S./ Government has swung and missed. �As I drove north through Idaho, headed for British Columbia, I wondered how Canadian historical reclamations would stack up against the meager effort put forth at Promontory, [jThe road paralleling Kootenay Lake in Southeastern British Columbia was smooth and relatively free of traffic. I weighed my chances of finding a twojrstory ^-or more^ outhouse. Snows were bound to be deep, and much of the province seemed to be twenty or thirty years behind the States/Regarding in­ door plumbing. At my last stop for gas, a small station a few miles into British Columbia, I asked the attendant where I might find the men\ks room. He said there was no men'^ room, so I asked where I might find the outhouse. toward the bacl^yard He jerked his head \A6h, anywhere will be all right.V ^iondel, a rather modern mining town, at the dead end of British Columbia^/s Highway 3A, was a ghost in the making. The town was built around one industry -- the Bluebell Lead and Zinc Mine. The town boasted a beautiful golf course, modem school, and a complete business district. dying. But the town was Mining was phasing out, and miners were being trans­ ferred or laid off. I In two years it would be a ghost town with a golf course/^nd a swimming pool, unless some entrepreneur could continue it as a summer resort. -147-9 �brm Wei drove about the town, inquired about outhouses, and was directed to try the area west of Kaslo. [ A free ferry took me across Kootena^y^Lake, and I headed up the west shore, passed through Kaslo, and took the road up the hill heading west, going upstream along a small creek. [it was almost dark when the rains came. The creek rose quickly, in places covering the road, so that I had to speculate on its exact location. It was one of those white knuckle situations, and it was a great relief to top out at V the old mine site called Retailack. {There was a level gravely spot just off the road, /opposite the old mine building. I backed and filled until my rig was level, then cooked supper and sacked out. Weird noises filtered through the sound of rain on the roof. was musical at times, and strangely human, like a ghost singing a sad lament. I slept poorly. [In the morning I stepped out of the vehicle, and stared down the deep ten=foot by ten-foot shaft I had unknow­ ingly parked beside. [^^retty close, huh?^/ said a voice at my elbow. was white-bearded and white=haired. He Called himself **Whlte Water Bert. aw ya come in last night. I was listening/ to �^O^sj’ORY ojlTHOUSE^ Norm Weis the radio — wondered if you was goinX/ to drive her in that hole.V/ Told me he lived up there ^e was a friendly sort. all alone “^i/liked to sing along with^he radio,X/"he said. He* J invite me to breakfast, but he’flZ^t an hour ago.\/ Said '^here werenVt no tall outhouses around -- try Sandon.XZ H Lihe gravel road south to Sandon rides the east bank of a considerable stream, now high and swift from the night'^s rain. What'^ left of Sandon is on the west bank. Only remote viewing was possible. ^t was nonetheless impressive. Fronting the buildings was a boardwalk and a \X>oard roadbuilt up of heavy timbers. For some distance, the road and the stream occupied the same spot. I scanned the far side with binoculars looking for unusual structures, then drove down the hill to New Denver, where *’Wiite Water Bert" had said there was a dandy museum. , ^he museum was tiny, but held fantastic, and some- times unbelievable information on Sandon. { The town began when Eli Carpenter and four others, calling themselves the\A6oble Five,'^ began mining gold, silver. and a lead ore called galena. was built in 1900, and soon the town had twenty-three hotels -- quite an unbelievable -149- �There were buildings on both sides of the creek, statistic. including a cigar factory! An Opera House! A brewery! The population hit TSatCat the peak, when the mining and skiing booms coincided. A big ski meet was held in 1925 on a slope claimed to be the second largest ski hill in North America. A number of fires removed most of the residences, ' and obviously most of the hotels, real or otherwise. Then the floods of 1957 reduced the town to the remnant visible today. Without doubt, tall outhouses existed here, but had either gone up in smoke or down the river. ^^rt Steele was only eighty air miles from Sandon, but 250 miles and half a day by road. A quick walk about the reconstructed town revealed some impressive structures, but no tall privies. I^arly a hundred buildings form a rough rectangle about a grassy court with a ban^^tand at the center. At one corner there is a gigantic waterwheel that was moved from Perry Creek. At the opposite comer is the reconstruction of the Northwest Mounted Police barracks. The reconstruction was under way, and I spent a pleasant afternoon watching two artisans tailor logs to a perfect fit. 7 �Norm Weis [J^e, the older of the two, wore a hard hat , while the younger, had long hair held in place by a head^2 Don, band. Quite an odd couple, but they worked marvelously well together. They used only the ■**tools of the time,**^like broad- and double-bitted axes, an adz or two, augers, hand saws, and cant hooks. Each log was trimmed, rolled in place, removed, retrimmed, and the process repeated until the log fell in place with only tiny gaps between. These were caulked later, as the original logs were caulked “ with a mixture of manure and mud. ^The museum, centrally located, held a wide variety of artifacts/^nd a complete histojy of the town. ^^treambed gold was found in the area, but placer In 1887, Indian trouble mining gave way to hyd^lic workings. developed, and a detachment of seventy-five Northwest Mounted Police arrived, under the leadership of Superintendent Samuel B Steele, to bring law and order. It was the first Mounty Post west of the Rockies, and the small town once called GalbraitlJ^s Ferry, took the name Steele in Sam SteeleVs honor. IjThe town hit its peak at the turn of the century. then faded as the minerals depleted. fifty people left in town. By 1940 there were only It was declared a istoric ^ite in 1961, and reconstruction began. I Although impressive, much of Fort Steele was con- trived. But five miles east, some of the original mining �S O^HOUSE Norm Weis equipment remained at a site once called Fisherville, later named Wild Horse. tI found an old shack, a flume, an ancient pickup truck with a bedstead for a tailgate, and pieces of old mining equipment scattered in all directions. Barren slopes marked the sites of the last hydraulic mining. (And up the hill from the old town, a grave stood surrounded by a battered picket fence. Growing from the center, a huge pine tree offered positive and genuine proof of the graveVs antiquity. 3 [old buildings respond to photographic efforts best during the first and last hours of daylight, when the sun lights the under eaves and throws long shadows to show relief. It was my practice to camp ovei^ight near photogenic sites in order to take advantage of the morning and evening light. (Each morning, after exposing a roll or two, I would continue my travels, on the lookout for a cafe that would offer a big breakfast. In British Columbia that generally means an Oriental cafe. Such cafes offer great Chinese or Japanese food. but most of them consider the cooking of eggs and the brewing of coffee as a compulsory exercise. �Norm Weis I Graving good old home cooking, I passed up three or four eating houses with Chinese logos, and finally, late in the morning, I foundPlaceXV The waitress, a young Chinese girl, took my order, served my coffee, and stood by while I took a sip. Noting my grimace, she explained^ 'v6offee rouzy.\/ It was -- so was the breakfast of burned spuds, dry toast and fried eggs that looked like my grandles. �[So far, the Canadian tour had failed to turn up the outhouses, or the stories that I had expected. My next stop was Nordegg, Alberta, just southwest of Edmonton. The usual ^<H^ell informed^/source had convinced me that I should drive the extra miles. Xj4t would be worth itX/he said. ^ordegg was a provincial prison, and had been for many years. I was stopped at the gate a mile from town. The guard wouldrlZt consider my request for a guided tour, and got a great laugh out of my reason for requesting it. He did, however, tell me that he had seen " personally a genuine two-story outhouse in Lundbreck, Alberta. bjs -tip would have been ignored had not been close to the route home. Lundbreck Calgary was also on the route, but obviously not worth an inquiry. However, I was greatly im­ pressed with the sight of Calgarj?^ bright clean buildings rising out of the plain. Like most Canadian Cities, it was remarkably -153- �Oj&THOUSE^ lean, with well groomed parks and nicely kept homes. I reached Lundbreck that evening braced for another disappointment, and indeed, I was once again ---------- disappointed. The two-story outhouse was gone. — /7 p Don Timmerman, Manager of the LONG HIM General Merchant No. 7, told me the sad story. IjDhe outhouse had been a dandy, with two doors the upper level, and four on the bottom. connected to the Windsor Hotel. At one time it was The ^otel had burned down. leaving the tall outhouse standing alone. t I (it attracted tourists, so Timmerman bought it for colno / from one of the partners had owned the ^otel, only , I to find that the other partner had earlier given the outhouse to the ^ark Jifepartment in Calgary. I wash<4; about to backtrack to Calgary and chance another disappointment. I It was late, so I planned to camp overnight art Lundbreck. In the meantime I could nose about town. IjDhe LONG_^^ ^tore has been in continuous operation for seventy-five years, and it still handles merchandise that most would consider antiques, like kerosene stable Interns and Alladin lamps for the living room. I asked the manager if the I No. 7 on the store meant it was one of seven chain stores -- , it^s just a number. -154- �T1(fO=sfORY Ol^HOUSE Norm Weis [_^xt to Store No. 7 are two very old buildings, freshly renovated, and freshly labeledvkXshopping Center -- M Oldest in the WestXJ/ I Timmerman was quite surprised to find that other tall outhouses existed. He had been under the impression that Vi^i^ was the only one in the world. He explained that the upper story was reserved for ladies and gentlemen. The lower floor, connected to the hotel bar, was reserved for miners and other less refined folk. He suggested that I stop by in a year or two and have a look at the reconstruction he had planned. It would cost a good deal more than the^jjfeS he originally planned to invest, bul^figured it would be good for business. (^ell, I would have to visit Calgary sometime in the future when my enthusiasm returned, and Lundbreck would still be el^fe. the route home. �year after my visit to Lundbreck, my spirits had revived, and a final plan of attack on the two^story outhouses of Alberta was perfected. The one^year wait was perhaps fortunate, since it gave Calgary a chance to situate its new ^quisition, and also Mr. Timmerman of Lundbreck a chance to finish his reconstruction. ^ust in case things didnVt work out as hoped, I planned to include in the tour/a visit to one of my old home towns in lowaltadlook at Flin Flon, Manitoba, and a weeks'^ fishing in one of my favorite Ronge, Saskatchewan. f My early years of teaching were spent in the small Northern Iowa town of Lake Mill^ TiSiaaB. The town was percent Lutheran and 'Hihyty pei^cent Norw^ian. combination that allowed no dancing by anyone anywhere, and no drinking or smoking by school teachers. I used to walk three miles �Norm Weis into the country to smoke, and would drive fifty miles to buy a beer. The school coach and I solved the smoking problem by puffing away in the dark recesses of the school^ boiler room, where we could use either of two exits. Within a year we had a smokersV group so large we had to elect officers. ^Ithough the town had certain very strict rules, there was no ban on humor. Norwegians enjoy the down-to= A A earth variety, like the old speaker in the outhouse ploy. / My good friend and hunting partner, Bif ^pronounced i J *Bife*7 Bolstad, was one of the prime movers of the stunt. Bif worked at a gas station that offered[only^outside plumbing. He also had some hell-raising relatives that were mechanically inclinj^^ and game for anything. They were the sort to wire your Model A Ford^ throttle wide open, or set a mink trap on the floorboards -- even put a dead carp under the seat cushion M in the heat of summer. Apparently Bif got his idea about the outhouse speaker from a traveling salesman, and/only)needed)to mention it to his relatives and members of the Saturday night poker gang, of which I was a welcome contributor. In short order, an old radioA record player with attached mike was located. It had been used to announce dances in a nearby town of different ethnic and moral character. ^he speaker was stripped out and slung under the seat of the two'=holer, and the radio proper hidden behind the outhouse. Finally, a long wire was strung to the mike in the front room of the gas station, right next to the cash register. -157- �Norm Wei on all of our friends/ until the word got around town -- then we had to pick on strangers. It H didnX/t work so well on the standup traffic, but brought an instant response from the sit^own customers. We used to sit for hours on weekends waiting for prospects, especially and wife combinations. As soon as the wife headed for the outhouse, we would explain to the husband about the mike and loudspeaker. He would always give the go ahead. and get as big a kick as any of us. I^s soon as Bif figured the lady was well situated, he\/d pick up the mike and say, V/Lady, could you move over 7- ]\Vrn working down here and you are in my light !XZ / The reaction was always outstanding, and when word got out, business increased. Husbands would drive miles to H A N I TO g A FL.KZ -Flow lin Flon, Manitoba is one of a kind.^^amed for old Flinerton Flonerty, wfaasae the leading character in a book owned by one of the early prospectors fchrt searched the area for mineralization. A number of metals were found in high concentration. and the town that sprouted had to face the immediate problem of building on solid granite, pre-cambrian bedrock. y— -158- �Tifo-S'/oS 0]6tH0US l^ome OUthous Norm Weis es were built on elevated cribs but one maiws great idea about combination sewers and sidewalks made a working sewer system possible. / onc cao4 From each house, a sewer pipe ran slightly down hill, surrounded by a long wooden box about four feet square. filled with insulating material. The tops of the long boxes were stoutly planked as elevated boardwalks that seldom needed to be shoveled after a snowfall. The boxes from each house joined trunklines that connected every house and store in town with the sewage plant located at the low point. In some places, where sewers crossed roads, dynamite had been used to penetrate the hard rock. I Outside of town, outhouses were common -- so common I__ M that prefabricated outhouses, made of particle board, were �1^^ — I LaRonge, straight west of Flin Flon, but in the neighboring ^F^rovince of Saskatchewan, did not go the sewer2. sidewalk route, although much of the town was built on solid rock. They stayed with the outhouse out back made of particle board, of course. [vftien I first visited Ls^Ronge a dozen years ago, the street was part gravel and part rounded humps of solid glacier polished granite. town. For years there were no flush toilets in Then a new Government building was constructed, with -159- CL �P-S^ORY O^HOUS. septic tank and shiny white porcelain flush stool. Indians, mostly Cree and Chippewa, would travel miles to trip the lever and watch things disappear. (rhe snowfall in the northern plains Canada was not great enough to warrant tall outhouses, and there was no point in searching about the town. planned. So I went fishing, as �A week later I headed south and west for Calgary, looking forward to a visit Heritage Park, where the two— story outhouse was said to be located. heritage Park is big and beautiful, and everything works. The paddlewheel steamer paddles, and the old locomotive makes the rounds. I hurried past a dozen interesting stores to confirm the existence of the tall outhouse. /And there it was in all its glory a two=door, <_ Ai A ’ four^oler on top of a four-door eight=holer, topped with a A I A cupola -- and on top of that, blowing in the breeze, the H / Canadian Flag! I It was a dandy. All painted up to match the hotel, with the upper floor connected to the second floor hall by a catwalk. all banistered and beautiful! But the light was an excuse to look the ^ark over while the sun slowly M moved to a more favorable position. j I rode the paddlewheel steamer and watched others wrong scull their shells and paddle canoes. -160- The train spewed coal �Norm Weis smoke and blew a steam whistle that brought memories rushing home. ■(vo^ They were baking bread in the bakery, and I ate a slice while watching the smithy shoe a horse. Constable Blake, in Royal Canadian Mounty red, told stories in front of the constabulary. I admired the pelts being baled at the Hudson Bay Fort, and had a s^sparilla in the hotel. ^_V^en the light was right, I set about photograph­ ing the two=.story outhouse. The flag was missing! It had A been placed there as a prank, and I passed up the chance to photograph it. pressive. Even without the flag, the outhouse was im- Xt worked — it even smelled! / V't y H ' plaque at the side explained its history. After the Windsor Hotel in Lundbreck burned down in 1963, Walter Supeta ^the other partner^ donated the outhouse to the Heri­ tage Park Society. A few days later, I stood by the reconstructed two — story outhouse in Lundbreck. pon Timmerman had followed the design quite faithfully, but something was lacking. was a shade too wide, and the lumber was too fresh. It The cat­ walks were missing, and worst of all, it lacked the proper bouquet ^n the long drive home, I considered my long twelve— year search for two^story outhouses and the memorable -161- (S'P �Norm Weis stories. I was confident that the chore was complete, and looked forward to closing my notebooks, parking my vehicle, and setting to work developing and printing the many nega­ tives I had exposed. ^■^I^the mail that had accumulated while I was gone, there was a letter from a Canadian friend by the name of Peter Byl. He had located a three=.story twenty="seat outhouse A A in Newfoundland! No matter how many I tracked down, there would always be one more to investigate. This one was too far away, and I had already traveled too far. I would pass on ---'■''^i^en again — the outhouse in Newfoundland ——^ell -< a 4 & a < � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Norman Weis Manuscripts Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1971-1987 Description An account of the resource A collection of manuscripts by Casper College professor Norman Weis. <br /><br />This collection includes manuscripts of:<br /><em>Ghost Towns of the Northwest: Known and Unknown<br />The Starduster<br />Two-Story Outhouse<br />Helldorados<br /></em><br />Each manuscript contains written in edits by Norman Weis Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_Manuscripts Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Manuscript Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <em>Two-Story Outhouse</em> Draft Manuscript Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <p><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a></p> </div> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1987 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Norman Weis Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Norm Weiss Manuscripts and Photographs, CCA 10.2003.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 10.2003.01_Weis_TwoStoryOuthouse_DraftManuscript Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/f0b0623ad4df58f719946bcf9aeb28e5.pdf 797648a2290eecd5fadb01c3a2eac046 PDF Text Text Christopher Uhl and Dana Stuchul Teaching as if Life Matters; The Promise of a New Education Culture. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011.224 pp. $25.00 (paperback). ISBN: 978-1421400396 Reviewed by: Chad Hanson, Casper College, USA DOI: 10.1177/009205SX12463194 Uhl and Stuchul’s volume on teaching is wedded to a perfect title. The authors assume the same thing about education that we assume about soci­ ety: It is greater than the sum of its parts. Although, I would argue, within the current scholarship of �Book Reviews teaching and learning, we tend to focus more on the parts than we focus on the greatness. Even as sociologists, we are prone to reducing studies of students to psychometrics (Arun and Roksa 2011). Therefore, Teaching as if Life Matters offers a refreshing view of undergraduates as whole and multifaceted people in the midst of becoming professionals. The book begins with a familiar observation. The authors paint a picture of their classrooms by describing “young people who seem to be resigned to following a soul-numbing life script consisting of attending classes, getting a degree, finding a job, paying off loan debt, working a job for forty­ plus years, and then retiring” (p. 2). Their anecdo­ tal depiction of student culture matches what we find in research on the undergraduate population (Carey 2012). Uhl and Stuchul call the situation an “impoverishment of spirit,” but they do not blame students for their condition (p. 2). Instead, they cite the cause as an “impoverished environment” in colleges and universities (p. 2). Uhl teaches biology and Stuchul is a chemist by training. Yet, they take a more sociological approach to higher education than we often see within the field of sociology (Hanson 2005). Uhl and Stuchul examine the norms, roles, and values at play in the production of everyday life in schools. This approach allows them to see how education changed over the course of history. During the past 50 years, our institutions were transformed, from ivy groves insulated from society-at-large to knowledge factories, “in lock­ step with the dominant culture and its emphasis on competition, materialism, individualism, and speed” (p. 14). More so than most, Uhl and Stuchul accept that postsecondary schools act as socializing institu­ tions. They insist that “schools are important loci of socialization” (p. 14). This approach allows them to avoid the traditional emphasis on cognitive outcomes and the question, “What do our students learn?” Within the scholarship of teaching and learning, outcomes are Conceived as products, but Uhl and Stuchul focus on the process of becoming an educated person. Instead of merely asking what students learn, they ask readers to consider how teachers and students relate to one another and why our interactions often fall into patterns 379 that make for less than exciting experiences in classrooms. The attention to the question of how students and teachers relate to one another provides a back­ ground for concrete suggestions with respect to teaching strategies. For example, the authors offer an exercise where students examine the posture and nonverbal communication of leaders (p. 38). In another case, they describe how they make use of Saint Benedict’s admonition to “listen with the ear of our hearts” when we read from a text (p. 68). In this venture, students are asked to treat reading as a form of meditation. They also describe a tech­ nique that allows students to wrestle with the ques­ tion of what it takes to discover their “calling,” where their values align with their choice of voca­ tion (p. 73). Throughout this work, the authors guide read­ ers toward building an environment where students have a chance to think about who they are and what they become as a result of their education. Questions of self -and identity are central to the book. Uhl and Stuchul do not cite or refer to authors who write in the tradition of symbolic interaction, but those familiar with the interactionist perspective will find a lot to like about their orientation. Uhl and Stuchul stop short of crediting the well-known interactionist. Manford Kuhn (1960), for example, but they pointedly encourage teachers to press students with the question, “Who are you?” (p. 83). In a chapter titled “Seeing Our­ selves with New Eyes,” they provide a framework for engaging students with questions such as: “Are you your possessions? Are you your body? Are you your beliefs? Are you what you do for a liv­ ing?” (p. 86). In keeping with the focus on the relationships between schools, students, and society, Uhl and Stuchul crafted a book with the intent to help us fulfill what they see as our core purpose—to help our institutions “serve as places of inspiration, exploration, discovery, and the making of meaning” (p. 170). In contrast, much of the work that fits within the scholarship of teaching and learning is bent toward 1950s behaviorism. We conceive teach­ ing and learning as a stimulus and a response. Even the eminent behaviorist, B. F. Skinner, understood the pitfalls associated with this method, however. He wrote, “Education is what survives after we have �forgotten what we learned” (Skinner 1964:484). Cognitive learning outcomes wither beside the change-in-self that occurs through the course of an education. The complex dramaturgy of the classroom is merely one component of the larger rite of passage that we call the baccalaureate. I spent the past semester reading many of the newly released books on postsecondary schools. When I picked up this title, it felt like stepping from black and white into color. Some of the chap­ ters contain new age-isms that will make hardnosed empiricists uncomfortable, but the book does a fine job tapping the spirit that motivated many of us to become teachers. In the end, readers will find a reasoned call to examine the current culture of education and a practical guide to reinvigorating life in the classroom. a i 1 < 1 i i i i i 1 i j < ] REFERENCES Arun, Richard and Josipa Roksa. 2011. Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses. Chicago; University of Chicago Press. Carey, Kevin. 2012. “Academically Adrift: The News Gets Worse.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, February 17 2012, p. A64. Hanson, Chad. 2005. “The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning—Done by Sociologists: Let’s Make That the Sociology of Higher Education.” Teaching Sod- C oZogy33(4):421-24. Kuhn, Manford. 1960. “Self-attitudes by Age, Sex, and Professional Training.” Sociological Quarterly l(l):39-56. * * ’ 1 I £ j S Skinner, B. F. 1964. “New Methods and New Aims in Teaching.” New Scientist 122(5):483-84. I i I � Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Print Journal Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource <i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Teaching as if Life Matters: The Promise of a New Education Culture </span></i> Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <div id="dublin-core-rights" class="element"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div id="dublin-core-rights" class="element"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div id="dublin-core-rights" class="element"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div id="dublin-core-rights" class="element"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div id="dublin-core-rights" class="element"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div id="dublin-core-rights" class="element"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text"> <div class="element-text"> <div class="element-text"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text five columns omega"> <div class="element-text"><a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 2012-10 Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Chad Hanson Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Chad Hanson Journal Publications, CCA 04.ii.e.2025.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CCA 04.ii.e.2025.01_ChadHansonPapers_72 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Searchable PDF Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available <em>Teaching Sociology</em> is published by Sage Publications https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/552afb9ba9243a89dc810ada39419512.pdf 8c8aa84e5d90437c1f1198978e1d1fb2 PDF Text Text ��� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Angus Morrison Skiing Records Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1950-1993 Description An account of the resource A collection of ski files collected, written, and kept by Angus Morrison, a member of Wyoming Ski Patrol for Casper Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Angus Morrison Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Angus Morrison Family Records: Angus Morrison Papers, NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Printed Papers Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1/5/1985 United States Ski Association Competition Division Ski Competition Results: Casper Slalom Men's and Women's Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Date Created Date of creation of the resource. January 5, 1985 Description An account of the resource 1985 Results for Casper Slalom Men's and Women's United States Ski Association Northern Division Ski Competition Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Angus Morrison and United States Ski Association Competition Northern Division Ski Competition Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Angus Morrison Family Records: Angus Morrison Papers, NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US_SkiCompetitionResults_02 https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/b51fc66253681d64d62ceeee2b50660d.pdf afc6520f6f2a4dc1c281e0fdaab7744c PDF Text Text ��� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Angus Morrison Skiing Records Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1950-1993 Description An account of the resource A collection of ski files collected, written, and kept by Angus Morrison, a member of Wyoming Ski Patrol for Casper Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Angus Morrison Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Angus Morrison Family Records: Angus Morrison Papers, NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Printed Papers Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1/6/1985 United States Ski Association Competition Division Ski Competition Results: Casper Slalom Men's Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Date Created Date of creation of the resource. January 6, 1985 Description An account of the resource 1985 Results for Casper Slalom Men's United States Ski Association Northern Division Ski Competition Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Angus Morrison and United States Ski Association Competition Northern Division Ski Competition Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Angus Morrison Family Records: Angus Morrison Papers, NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US_SkiCompetitionResults_08 https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/d0e34d64cb8872b889a7fc8d340303a6.pdf 1d8888304a3a0cbe242e2a27196d612f PDF Text Text ��� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Angus Morrison Skiing Records Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1950-1993 Description An account of the resource A collection of ski files collected, written, and kept by Angus Morrison, a member of Wyoming Ski Patrol for Casper Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Angus Morrison Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Angus Morrison Family Records: Angus Morrison Papers, NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Printed Papers Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1/6/1985 United States Ski Association Competition Division Ski Competition Results: Casper Slalom Women's Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ Date Created Date of creation of the resource. January 6, 1985 Description An account of the resource 1985 Results for Casper Slalom Women's United States Ski Association Northern Division Ski Competition Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Angus Morrison and United States Ski Association Competition Northern Division Ski Competition Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Angus Morrison Family Records: Angus Morrison Papers, NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.2022.01 WyCaC US_SkiCompetitionResults_03 https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/6da8d4d54628c722aff0965325e8d240.pdf b6acfb63dd694ace7d81ab1ee6403667 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Wyoming Symphony Orchestra Programs Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Description An account of the resource This digital collection consists of Wyoming Symphony Orchestra programs available for research use through the Goodstein Foundation Library. The archives of the Orchestra consist of programs, posters, photographs, scrapbooks, notebooks, records, and ephemera produced by the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra. Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Wyoming Symphony Orchestra Archives, NCA 01.i.2024.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.i.2024.01_WyomingSymphony_Programs Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Wyoming Symphony Orchestra Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Print program Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 11th Annual Music Week Souvenir Program Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1934 Description An account of the resource Digital copy of the 11th Annual Music Week Souvenir Program as found in the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra Archives available for research use through the Goodstein Foundation Library. The archives of the Orchestra consist of programs, posters, photographs, scrapbooks, notebooks, records, and ephemera produced by the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra. Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Wyoming Symphony Orchestra Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Wyoming Symphony Orchestra Archives, NCA 01.i.2024.01 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.i.2024.01_Programs_1934 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Extent The size or duration of the resource. 33 pages https://caspercollege.cvlcollections.org/files/original/5e2fb4092f4c275e694f3f7677588743.jpg 27e42d186d3ddb0149b164d646b751e3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource My Mom's Casper Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NKC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NKC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1908 Description An account of the resource Collection of photographs and postcards of Casper during the quite early twentieth century. Type The nature or genre of the resource Image; text Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Sheffner-McFadden Collection, NCA 01.v.2024.12 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.v.2024.12_MyMomsCasper Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Photographic Image Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1588 2nd Ave Looking West Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NKC/1.0/">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NKC/1.0/</a> Date Created Date of creation of the resource. 1915 Subject The topic of the resource 1588 2nd Ave Looking West Description An account of the resource 1588 2nd Ave Looking West, Casper Wyo Type The nature or genre of the resource Image Language A language of the resource ENG Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Sheffner-McFadden Collection, NCA 01.v.2024.12 WyCaC US. Casper College Archives and Special Collections. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context NCA 01.v.2024.12_MyMomsCasper_18 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource JPG