Albert (Bert) Loper (1869-1949) was born July 31, 1869 in Bowling Green, Missouri. He came to Utah in 1886 and made his first trip down the Green river at age 24. Spending most of him time living on the banks of the Colorado River, at age 47, Bert met Rachel Jamison (1892-1975) an immigrant from Aberdeen, Scotland who shared his love for the rivers of the west. Rachel was born to William and Jane Grossic Jamison in Woodside, Aberdeen on 11 March, 1892. Rachel emigrated from Scotland, as young women, with her mother and other family members on 14 August 1914. Rachel and Bert were married in Loa, Utah on 29 April, 1916. They had two children, neither of whom survived. Bert Loper was also a veteran of the Spanish-American war.
Bert made many trips on the San Juan, Green and Colorado rivers and was said to have covered more miles over the Colorado than any other man during his lifetime. As one of the best known early river runners, Bert, "The Grand Old Man of the Colorado," continued to brave the rapids into his late seventies, piloting 32 seniors of the Salt Lake council of Boy Scouts, in 1947, down the Colorado River and brought them safely home. In an effort to make one more trip through the Grand Canyon of the Colorado for his 80th birthday, his boat capsized and he was lost in the water on 8 July, 1949. His remains were found 26 years later in April, 1975 and buried with his wife who had died 2 month earlier, 8 February, 1975. There were memorials erected in honor of Bert on the Colorado River at mile 41 where his boat was recovered, in Green River and Red Canyon. After Bert's death, Rachel moved from their home in Green River and worked at Tooele Ordinance Depot until her retirement in 1958. She lived in Salt Lake and continued to stay close to her sister's family, the Busenbark's. She died after a long illness in a Salt Lake nursing home in 1975.
The Albert (Bert) Loper and Rachel Jamison Loper papers (1893-1975) contain documents created by both Bert and Rachel Loper. The collection includes a brief autobiography of Bert's childhood, typescript travel logs and commentary written by Bert from numerous river trips, his diary entries (1907-1939), articles and reports of river conditions and Bert's general correspondence and scouting logs. The remaining half of the collection spans the period after Bert's death until the recovery of his remains in 1975 and includes memorial information, publications, and Rachel's correspondence, the reports from his accident and the condolences Rachel received and newspaper articles from 1909 to 1975. A few pieces and were added by William Busenbark (nephew to the Loper's and donor of this collection) after the death of Rachel Loper in February 1975. The majority of the material spans 1893 to 1951.
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
Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.
Gift of William Busenbark in 2004.
See P01136 and A0808 to see the photographs and VHS films of the 1939 Colorado River trip by Doug Wright.
Processed by Emma Kruger in 2007.
Forms part of the Utah River Running Archive.
Includes a brief autobiography of Bert's childhood.
Contains one page only.
Contains one page only.
Contains one log
Includes items such as: address books, drivers license, a memo book and a small bible.
Contains only one anniversary card
Includes the funeral program when Bert's remains were buried beside his wife.