UUM_Ms0283.xml Inventory of the Wasatch Mountain Club records Wasatch Mountain Club records Finding aid created by Tyler Horsley, Karen Carver and Cory Richardson. J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections

2007 (last modified: 2016 and 2018)
295 South 1500 East Salt Lake City, Utah 84112 special@library.utah.edu https://lib.utah.edu/collections/special-collections/index.php
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2024-04-04. Finding aid encoded in English. Finding aid based on DACS (Describing Archives: A Content Standard), 2nd Edition. J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Wasatch Mountain Club records Wasatch Mountain Club MS 0283 28.25 linear feet 1920-1998 The Wasatch Mountain Club records (1920-1998) contain financial records, membership lists, activity schedules, newsletters, brochures and pamphlets, summit registers, corresponence, meeting minutes, and ski-related material. The Wasatch Mountain Club was formed in August 1913, and remains in operation. The club supports a broad range of outdoor activities including hiking, ski mountaineering and river running. The club has also been involved with wilderness preservation issues since the 1960s, and continues to provide outdoor opportunities for club members and the public. English .

Although the Wasatch Mountain Club was formally incorporated on 13 May 1920, it was informally organized earlier, sometime in August of 1913. The seven original participants are said to have met in the mountains, on various trails near Salt Lake City. Soon, women were present on the outings, and before the club was formally organized, it had sponsored hiking and skiing trips, built a ski jump, and helped to rediscover Timpanogos Cave and preserve it from mining interests. There were thirteen charter members when the club incorporated, but within five years their numbers grew past 500. With a more extensive schedule of activities, hiking and skiing outings, bus tours, and social programs, it was agreed that a permanent lodge and headquarters should be constructed. Brighton, Utah at the head of Big Cottonwood Canyon, was selected as a site, and work began in the spring of 1929. Much of the labor necessary to build the lodge was volunteered by club members. When the building was finished in October 1937, it had a capacity of fifty overnight guests. In 1933 the club was governed by its first woman president, Miss Edith Cook. Also in that year the Wasatch Mountain Club Ladies Chorus (later the Schubert Singers) was founded. During the 1930s rock climbing outings and classes were first offered by the club. World War II effected the club significantly. Many of the male members were in the armed forces and gasoline was rationed, therefore club activities were somewhat limited. Nevertheless, club members joined the mountain Ski Corps Emergency Squad and the Office of Civil Defense participating in rescue work, guide service, and searches for lost aircraft. After the war, a series of shelter huts were constructed by the club along the exposed ridges between Alta, Brighton, and Park City. In 1949, a ski tow was put in at Great Western Hill, Brighton. During the 1950s, the club's activities diversified to include river running and ski mountaineering. By 1960 the club's membership had increased from under 100 immediately after the war to 600. In the 1960s the club became increasingly concerned with the conservation of wilderness. Club members made extensive studies and participated in lobbying efforts aimed at preserving the Wasatch and Uintah Ranges and many areas of Southern Utah and neighboring states. These efforts have been gratified by the designation of the Lone Peak Wilderness Area in the 1970s and eight other wilderness areas in Utah in 1984.

The Wasatch Mountain Club records (1920-1998) contain materials pertaining to club activities from the 1920s through the 1990s. A good introduction is provided by "A Wasatch Mountain Club History" by Lawrence Vanderplas, found in box one, folder one. Also in boxes one and two are incorporation and organizational documents, financial material, and a series of membership rosters dating form 1929 to 1977. These records are filed in the original order of their sources. Boxes three through five contain the club president's copies of the minutes of club meetings. Treasurer's reports, read at each meeting, are filed with the minutes of that meeting. Correspondence and miscellaneous papers are filed with the minutes in their original order. Box 6 contains correspondence between Miss Edith Cook (later Mrs. S. Dean Green) and the club directors. It also contains a scrapbook compiled in 1946 by Loretta Bartlett with materials dating back to the 1920s. Box seven contains newspaper clippings pertaining to the club and its members from 1949 to 1970 and a series of notices of club events and meetings. Box eight contains postcard schedules of club events from 1930 to 1966 and copies of the Wasatch Rambler, the club's magazine, which are available online at Wasatch Mountain Club. Also in box eight are documents pertaining to ski mountaineering and the civilian ski patrol, two avalanche reports, an information sheet about a 1917 hike of Mt. Timpanogos, and a series of programs from the Wasatch Mountain Club Ladies Choir. Box nine contains the guest register of the Wasatch Mountain Club Lodge at Brighton, Utah, with entries from 1944-1959, and a summit register from Box Elder Peak with entries from 1933 to 1977. Also in box nine are the papers of Frank Trottier, the club's legal advisor from 1920s and 1930s, and a notebook kept by O'Dell Peterson in the 1930s and 1940s. Box ten contains oversize material and issues of The Rambler are in boxes eleven and twelve. Boxes thirteen through sixteen contain further administrative and miscellaneous documents. Boxes seventeen through twenty-one contain correspondence, administrative material, and summit registers. Boxes twenty-two and twenty-three contain a scrapbook and news clippings, boxes twenty-four and twenty-five contain membership cards, and box twenty-six has financial information.

Arranged to the folder level.

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library's Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.

Photographs and photograph albums transferred to the Multimedia Division of Special Collection (P0004).

Donated by Dale Green, club historian (boxes 1-9) in 1976 and 1983.

Donated by Michael Treshow and Bill Moore (boxes 10-26) in 1999.

Processed by Karen Carver and Cory Richardson in 2007 and 2008.

Addendum processed by Betsey Welland in 2016.

See also the Wasatch Mountain Club photograph collection finding aid and the digitized photographs from the collection available through the Digital Library.

Forms part of the Ski and Snow Sports Archives (S.J. Quinney Outdoor Recreation Archives).

 Schubert Singers (Salt Lake City, Utah) Wasatch Mountain Club--Archives Outdoor recreation--Utah--History--Sources Skis and skiing--Utah--History--Sources Sports and Recreation Constitutions Lists (document genres) Newsletters Histories (literary works) Organization and Membership Lawrence Vanderplas, "A Wasatch Mountain Club History" 1 1

This essay traces the development and activities of the club from before its incorporation in 1920 until the mid-1970s. It includes a list of interviews the author conducted while researching this subject.

 Rules, Regulations, Constitution and Amendments 1937-1963 1 2-3 Certificate of Incorporation 1923 1 4 President's Notebook 1929-1957 1 5

A notebook containing the club president's copy of membership rosters. Some of these rosters have marginal notes and corrections. The original order of this notebook has been maintained.

 Membership Rosters 1961-1977 1 6-9 Board of Directors Rosters 1973-1976 1 10 Treasurer's File 1920-1945 1 11-25

Operating statements, balance sheets, property inventories and ledger pages.

 Financial Information Ledger 1923-1947 2 1-2 Lodge Construction 1929-1937 2 3

A collection of receipts, contracts, and treasurer's records.

 Commissary Expenses 1942 2 4 Club Materials Meeting Minutes 1921-1960 3 Meeting Minutes 1960-1968 4 Meeting Minutes 1968-1975 5 Correspondence 6 1

Miscellaneous correspondence between the Wasatch Mountain Club board of directors and Miss Edith Cook (later Mrs. Samuel Dean Green). Some of these letters are personal, some are "form letters" addressed to Mr. Green. They have been arranged chronologically.

 Scrapbook 1926-1946 6 2-22

The Wasatch Mountain Club Scrapbook, Volumns I through III. This scrapbook was compiled in 1946 by Loretta Bartlett, the club librarian and historian, and contains materials dating from 1926 through 1946. This scrapbook contains the only known existing copies of some early editions of , the Wasatch Mountain Club magazine. It also contains a variety of official correspondence, notices of meetings and outings, newspaper and magazine clippings pertaining to the Wasatch Mountain Club and its members, photographs and other memorabilia.

 Clippings and Notices News Clippings 1949-1970 7 1-2 Notices 1924-1968 7 3-11

Primarily notices of meetings and events.

 Schedules, Reports, and Newsletters

In addition to the foldered material, box 8 contains envelopes of postcards with schedules of Wasatch Mountain Club activities from 1930 to 1966.

 Wasatch Rambler 1922-1957 8 1

The Wasatch Rambler has been digitized by the club and is available online.

Ski Mountaineering and Civilian Ski Patrol 8 2 Avalance Accident Reports 1967 1972 8 3

Silver Fork, Big Cottonwood Canyon, and Cardiac Ridge, Cardiff Fork, Big Cottonwood Canyon.

 Mount Timpanogos 1917 8 4

An information sheet describing a trip up Mount Timpanogos sponsored by Brigham Young University.

 Ladies Chorus 1934-1971 8 5

Programs from concerts by the Wasatch Mountain Club Ladies Chorus (later the Schubert Singers).

 Miscellaneous

Papers in box 9, folders 3-14 were donated by Frank Trottier, who advised the Wasatch Mountain Club in legal matters in the 1920s and 1930s.

 Guest Register, Brighton Lodge 1944-1959 9 1 Summit Register, Box Elder Peak 1933-1973 9 2 Constitution and Amendments 1930-1950 9 3-4 Rules and Regulations 1937 9 5 Application Forms 1930s 9 6 Legal Documents 1932-1936 9 7 Income Statements and Receipts 1929-1947 9 8 Correspondence, Board of Directors 9 9 Lodge Construction 1915-1930 9 10 Membership Rosters 1930-1953 9 11-13 Thank You Letter, Charles Pfeiffer to Frank Trottier 1939 9 14 O'Dell Peterson Notebook 9 15

A notebook kept by O'Dell Peterson of Wasatch Mountain Club activities in the 1930s and miscellaneous materials. The original

order of this notebook has been preserved.

 Grand Canyon Trip 1924 9 16

Record of a trip to Southern Utah, written at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, Arizona. Bright Angel Point, 12 September 1924.

 Oversize Material General Materials 1931-1995 10

Contains two treasurer's journals (1931-1968) and a tee-shirt (1995).

 Newsletters The Rambler 1979-1985 11

The Wasatch Rambler has been digitized by the club and is available online.

The Rambler 1985-1988 12

The Wasatch Rambler has been digitized by the club and is available online.

Correspondence and Administrative Documents Correspondence 1921-1939 13 1-5 Administrative Documents 1922-1988 13 6-8 Board Meeting Minutes 1926-1946 14 Miscellaneous Trip Schedules and Bulletins 1949-1951 15 1 News Clippings 1987-1996 15 2 Club Manual 1993-1995 15 3 75th Anniversary Reception 1995 15 4

A tee-shirt commemorating the club's 75th anniversary was placed in box ten of this collection.

 Poster, Utah's Scenic Wonderlands Lecture 16 Administrative Files Bylaws and Constitution 1932-1991 17a 1-2 Officer Responsibilities 17a 3 Policies and Procedures 1974-1982 17a 4 Administrative Files 1990s 17a 5-6 Lodge at Brighton 17a 7 Conservation 17a 8 President's Files 1940s-1990 17b 1-2 President's Questionnaire 1984 17b 3 Secretarial and Financial Records Secretary's Files and Notebooks 1920s-1950s 17c 1-2 Financial Records 1960s-1990s 17c 3-4 Treasurer's Reports and Financial Documents 1970s-1980s 17c 5 Inventory, Outdoor Gear 1982 17c 6 Administrative Materials Board of Directors 1947-1970s 18a Board of Directors 1970s-1988 18b Board of Directors 1985-1995 18c Correspondence 1920s-1946 19a Correspondence 1947-1950 19b Correspondence 1951-1983 19c Membership Lists 1936-1992 20a 1-3 Cards 20a 4 Applications 1940s 20a 5 Newsletters

All issues of The Rambler are available online through the organization's website.

 Rambler 1923-1980s 20b 1-3

The Wasatch Rambler has been digitized by the club and is available online.

Editor's Files 1970s-1990s 20b 4-5 Layouts 20b 6 Pamphlets and Club Activities 20c Big Cottonwood Geology Sign 1998 20c 1 News Clippings and Brochures 20c 2 Brochures, Wasatch 20c 3 Pamphlets 1940s-1960s 20c 4 Club Activities 1950s-1960s 20c 5 Summit Registers Clayton Peak 1980s 21a 1 Hayden Peak 1950s-1970s 21a 2-4 Kessler Peak 1960s-1980s 21a 5 Lone Peak 1970s 21a 6-7 Mount Olympus 1970s 21a 8 Mount Olympus 1972 21b 1-2 Mount Majestic 21b 3 Notch Peak 1960s-1980s 21b 4 Pfeifferhorn 1960s-1970s 21b 5 Sunset Peak 1960s 21b 6 Superior Peak 1960s-1970s 21b 7 Thunder Mountain 1960s-1980s 21b 8 Twin Peaks 1960s 21b 9 Wolverine Peak 1970s 21b 10 Wolverine Peak 1970s 21c 1

Copy of the containing notes by hikers who apparently ran out of room in the summit register.

 Unidentified Summit Registers 1960s-1973 21c 2-4

Possibly Wolverine and Lone peaks.

 Hike Ratings, Trip Log Hike Ratings 1990s 21c 5 Unidentified Trip Log 1930s-1940s 21c 6 General Materials Scrapbook and Memorabilia 22

This box contains one scrapbook, one folder of material, and one plaque.

 News Clippings 23 Membership Materials Membership Applications 1920s-1930s 24

Contains 3 1/2" x 5 1/2" index cards arranged alphabetically.

 Membership Applications 1920s-1930s 25

Contains 3 1/2" x 5 1/2" index cards arranged alphabetically.

 Financial Documents Hiking Committee 1970s-1980s 26 1 Lodge Remodeling 1980s 26 2 Taxes, Lodge Property 1980s 26 3 IRS Audit 1986 26 4 Taxes, Treasurer's Files 1970s-1990s 26 5-9 Utah Incorporation Files 1980s 26 10 Miscellaneous 26 11